Rivers of Babylon

The Rivers of Babylon appear in Psalm 137:1, one of Scripture's most poignant laments: "By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion." The rivers refer to the network of canals and waterways — branches of the Euphrates and Tigris and the irrigation canals between them — that crisscrossed the Babylonian plain. Exiled Israelites settled along these waterways (Ezekiel 1:1 speaks of Ezekiel among the exiles by the Chebar River), and the rivers of Babylon became the symbol of longing for home, for Jerusalem, and for the presence of God. The Psalm concludes with fierce imprecations against Babylon — a counterpoint to the pathos of the opening verses that has been interpreted theologically as a cry for divine justice rather than personal revenge.