Psalms 137:9

Psa 137:9 Happy [shall he be], that taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the stones.

Ver. 9. That taketh and dasheth thy little ones] So at the destruction of Troy (Horat. l. iv. Od. 6).

Sed palam captis gravis (heu nefas, heu)

Nescios fari pueros, Achivis

Ureret flammis, etiam latentes

Matris in alvo.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Ver. 9. Happy shall he be that taketh, etc. That is, so oppressive hast thou been to all under thy domination, as to become universally hated and detested; so that those who may have the last hand in thy destruction, and the total extermination of thy inhabitants, shall be reputed "happy" shall be celebrated and extolled as those who have rid the world of a curse so grievous. These prophetic declarations contain no excitement to any person or persons to commit acts of cruelty and barbarity; but are simply declarative of what would take place in the order of the retributive providence and justice of God, and the general opinion that should in consequence be expressed on the subject; therefore praying for the destruction of our enemies is totally out of the question. Adam Clarke.

Ver. 9. Happy shall he be, etc. With all possible might and speed oppose the very first risings and movings of the heart to sin; for these are the buds that produce the bitter fruit; and if sin be not nipped in the very bud, it is not imaginable how quickly it will shoot forth...Now these sins, though they may seem small in themselves, yet are exceedingly pernicious in their effects. These little foxes destroy the grapes as much or more than the greater, and therefore are to be diligently sought out, hunted, and killed by us, if we would keep our hearts fruitful. We should deal with these first streamings out of sin as the Psalmist would have the people of God deal with the brats of Babylon: Happy shall he be, that taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the stones. And without doubt most happy and successful will that man prove in his spiritual welfare, who puts on no bowels of pity even to his infant corruptions, but slays the small as well as the great; and so not only conquers his enemies by opposing their present force, but also by extinguishing their future race. The smallest children, if they live, will be grown men; and the first motions of sin, if they are let alone, will spread into great, open, and audacious presumptions. Robert South, 1633-1716.

Ver. 9. Against the stones. That elM signifies a rock, is undubitable, from the concurrent testimony of all the best Hebrew lexicographers. Hence it follows, because there is no rock, nor mountain, nor hill, either in tim city or in the province of ancient Babylonia, that the locality against which the malediction of this Psalm is hurled cannot be the metropolis of the ancient Assyrian empire, but must be apocalyptic Babylon, or Papal Rome, built upon seven hills, one of which is the celebrated Tarpeian Rock. But the eighth verse emphatically declares that the retributive justice of God will visit upon apocalyptic Babylon the same infliction which Assyrian Babylon, and also Pagan Rome, inflicted upon Jerusalem. As therefore Nebuchadnezzar as well as Titus "burnt the house of the Lord, and tim king's house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, and every great man's house burnt he with fire" (2Ki 25:9), so "the ten horns shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire; and she shall be utterly burned with fire" (Re 17:16 18:8). When the Canaanites had filled up the measure of their iniquity, Israel received a divine commission to exterminate the guilty nation. When Papal Rome shall have filled up the measure of her iniquity, then "a mighty angel will take up a stone, like a great millstone, and will cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down": "For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities. Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double" (Re 18:5-6). Then shall issue the divine proclamation: "Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her" (Re 18:20). John Noble Coleman, in "The Book of Psalms, with Notes, "1863.

Ver. 9. He that taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the stones.

My heroes slain, my bridal bed o'erturned,

My daughters ravished, and my city burn'd,

My bleeding infants dashed against the floor;

These have I yet to see, perhaps yet more. Homer's Iliad, Pope's Translation, Book 22, 89-91.

Psalms 137:9*

Ver. 9. Happy shall he be, that taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the stones. Fierce was the heart of the Jew who had seen his beloved city the scene of such terrific butchery. His heart pronounced like sentence upon Babylon. She should be scourged with her own whip of wire. The desire for righteous retribution is rather the spirit of the law than of the gospel; and yet in moments of righteous wrath the old fire will burn; and while justice survives in the human breast it will not lack for fuel among the various tyrannies which still survive. We shall be wise to view this passage as a prophecy. History informs us that it was literally fulfilled: the Babylonian people in their terror agreed to destroy their own offspring, and men thought themselves happy when they had put their own wives and children to the sword. Horrible as was the whole transaction, it is a thing to be glad of if we take a broad view of the world's welfare; for Babylon, the gigantic robber, had for many a year slaughtered nations without mercy, and her fall was the rising of many people to a freer and safer state. The murder of innocent infants can never be sufficiently deplored, but it was an incident of ancient warfare which the Babylonians had not omitted in their massacres, and, therefore, they were not spared it themselves. The revenges of providence may be slow, but they are ever sure; neither can they be received with regret by those who see God's righteous hand in them. It is a wretched thing that a nation should need an executioner; but yet if men will commit murders tears are more fitly shed over their victims than over the assassins themselves. A feeling of universal love is admirable, but it must not be divorced from a keen sense of justice.

The captives in Babylon did not make music, but they poured forth their righteous maledictions, and these were far more in harmony with their surroundings than songs and laughter could have been. Those who mock the Lord's people will receive more than they desire, to their own confusion: they shall have little enough to make mirth for them, and more than enough to fill them with misery. The execrations of good men are terrible things, for they are not lightly uttered, and they are heard in heaven. "The curse causeless shall not come; " but is there not a cause? Shall despots crush virtue beneath their iron heel and never be punished? Time will show.

Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

9. (Psa 137:9) Happy he (who) shall seize and dash thy little ones against the stones. This revolting act was not uncommon in ancient warfare. See 2Ki 8:12, Hos 14:1, Nah 3:10, Isa 13:16; Isa 13:18. The more revolting, the stronger the description of the change awaiting Babylon. The day is coming when he shall be deemed fortunate who, according to the usages of war, requites thy own sanguinary cruelties. The word translated dash means really to dash in pieces, as in Psa 2:9. The act here meant is commonly expressed by a different Hebrew verb. Taketh and dasheth is equivocal, the first of these verbs being used in familiar English as a kind of auxiliary, whereas the corresponding verb in Hebrew denotes a distinct and independent act.

Joseph Addison Alexander, The Psalms Translated and Explained (1850) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

He alludeth to Isaiah’s prophecy, Isa. 13:16, promising good success to Cyrus and Darius, whom ambition moved to fight against Babylon, but God used them as his rods to punish his enemies.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Verse 9. Happy - that taketh and dasheth thy little ones] That is, So oppressive hast thou been to all under thy domination, as to become universally hated and detested; so that those who may have the last hand in thy destruction, and the total extermination of thy inhabitants, shall be reputed happy - shall be celebrated and extolled as those who have rid the world of a curse so grievous. These prophetic declarations contain no excitement to any person or persons to commit acts of cruelty and barbarity; but are simply declarative of what would take place in the order of the retributive providence and justice of God, and the general opinion that should in consequence be expressed on the subject; therefore praying for the destruction of our enemies is totally out of the question. It should not be omitted that the Chaldee considers this Psalm a dialogue, which it thus divides: - The three first verses are supposed to have been spoken by the psalmist, By the rivers, c. The Levites answer from the porch of the temple, in Ps 137:4, How shall we sing, c. The voice of the Holy Spirit responds in Ps 137:5-6, If I forget thee, c. Michael, the prince of Jerusalem, answers in Ps 137:7, Remember, O Lord, &c. Gabriel, the prince of Zion, then addresses the destroyer of the Babylonish nation, in Ps 137:8-9, Happy shall be he that rewardeth thee, c. To slay all when a city was sacked, both male and female, old and young, was a common practice in ancient times. Homer describes this in words almost similar to those of the psalmist: -

Υἱας τ' ολλυμενους, ἑλκυσθεισας τε θυγατρας,

Και θαλαμους κεραΐζομενους, και νηπια τεκνα

Βαλλομενα προτι γαιῃ εν αινῃ δηΐοτητι,

Ἑλκομενας τε νυους ολοης ὑπο χερσιν Αχαιων.

Il. lib. xxii., ver. 62.

My heroes slain, my bridal bed o'erturned

My daughters ravished, and my city burned:

My bleeding infants dashed against the floor

These I have yet to see; perhaps yet more.

POPE.

These excesses were common in all barbarous nations, and are only prophetically declared here. He shall be reputed happy, prosperous, and highly commendable, who shall destroy Babylon.

ANALYSIS OF THE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-SEVENTH PSALM

When this Psalm was composed, the Jews were in captivity in Babylon, far from their own country, the temple, and the public exercises of religion; and the scoff and scorn of their enemies; and they contrast what they were with what they are. This Psalm has two parts: -

I. The complaint of Israel. Because of the insults of the Babylonians, they deplore their sad condition, long for the temple, and their return to Jerusalem, Ps 137:1-7.

II. An imprecation or prayer for vengeance, on their persecutors, Ps 137:7-9.

I. Their complaint arises from their captivity, and it is aggravated. -

1. From the place, Babylon: "By the rivers of Babylon." A place far from their country; who were aliens from the covenant made by God with Abraham, scorners of their religion, had laid waste their city and forced them to base and servile labour.

2. From the continuance of their captivity and misery: "There we sat down," c. Took up the seats allotted to us, and that for seventy years.

3. From the effects it produced: "Yea, we wept," &c.

4. From the cause which drew these tears. The remembrance of what they had enjoyed, (now lost,) the services of religion: "We wept when we remembered Zion," &c.

5. From the intenseness of their grief, which was so great that they could not even tune their harps: "We hung our harps," &c.

That which increased their grief was the joy their enemies manifested at it.

1. THERE, in a strange land, the place of our captivity.

2. "THEY that carried us away captive."

3. "They required of us a song." They quired of us mirth, saying,

4. O thou Jew or captive, come now, "sing us one of the songs of Zion."

To this sarcasm the captive Jews return a double answer.

"How shall we sing the Lord's song in a strange land?" You are aliens, and this is a strange land we cannot sing God's service there, which is destined to his honour, to you, or in this place without offending our God.

They reply by a protestation of their hope and constancy in religion, and accurse themselves if they do not continue in it.

1. "If I forget thee," c. Forget the worship and feasts I kept there.

2. "If I do not remember thee," &c. If I do not prefer and make mention of Jerusalem, then "let my tongue cleave," &c. Let me no more have the use of that excellent organ of God's glory. It would be unworthy of my religion, and a dishonour to my God to sing the songs of Zion thus circumstanced, and to scoffers and aliens.

II. This seems to be the sense of the first part of the Psalm. The second part has reference to the imprecations poured out against Edom and Babylon, both persecutors of God's people. The Babylonians carried them away captive, and the Edomites persecuted their brethren with the sword, Am 1:12.

1. Against Edom.

(1) "Remember, O Lord, the children of Edom,'' &c. How they carried themselves towards thy people on that day when thy anger smote against them, and the Babylonians carried us away.

(2) Remember how they added to our affliction, saying, "Rase it," &c.

2. Against Babylon. To her he turns his speech by an apostrophe but at the same time foretells her ruin: "O daughter of Babylon," c. Thou seemest to thyself to be most happy but thy ruin approaches. Shortly after, the Medes, led by Cyrus destroyed them.

(1) "Happy shall he be that rewardeth," &c. [See the notes.]

(2) "Happy shall he be that taketh and dasheth thy little ones," &c. [See the notes.]

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(9) Little ones.—Literally, sucklings.

Stones.—Better, cliff or rock.

For this feature of barbarous cruelty with which ancient war was cursed see 2Ki_8:12; Isa_13:16; Hos_10:14, &c. and comp. Homer, Iliad, xxii. 63: “My bleeding infants dashed against the floor.”

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

9. The barbarous customs of Oriental warfare spared neither women nor children in a war of extermination. Cp. Isa_13:16; Hos_10:14; Hos_13:16; Nah_3:10; 2Ki_8:12; Hom. Il. xxii. 63. The stern law of retaliation demanded that Babylon should be treated as she had treated Jerusalem. Cp. Isa_47:1-9; Jer_51:24; Jer_51:56.

the stones] The rock or crag.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Happy shall he be that taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the stones. That takes the infants from their mothers' breasts, or out of their arms, and dashes out their brains against a "rock", as the word (k) signifies; which, though it may seem a piece of cruelty, was but a just retaliation; the Babylonians having done the same to the Jewish children, and is foretold elsewhere should be done to theirs, Isa 13:16. Nor is this desired from a spirit of revenge, but for the glory of divine justice, and that such a generation of cruel creatures might be rooted out of the earth; see Rev 2:2. Some allegorically understand this of crushing and mortifying the first motions of sin in the heart; but such a sense seems to have no place here.

(k) "ad petram", V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, &c. "ad repem", Cocceius.

Next: Psalms Chapter 138

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Happy shall he be that taketh ... - Margin, as in Hebrew, rock. This refers to what was not uncommon in ancient warfare, as it is now among savage tribes - the indiscriminate slaughter of those of all ages, and of both sexes, in war. It was expressly foretold of Babylon that this would occur (see Isa 13:16, and the notes at that place), and there may be a reference here to that prediction, and the psalmist may mean to say that the man would be accounted happy, or would be happy, who wreaked vengeance on Babylon in carrying out that prophecy. The idea is, “This will certainly occur, for it is foretold, and happy or fortunate will he be who is the instrument in fulfilling it.” Compare 2Ki 8:12; Nah 3:10; Hos 13:16. See also Homer, II xxii. 63,373, following It is impossible to reconcile such barbarous customs with the idex of “honorable war,” or with the principles of war as carried on among “civilized” nations now.

It should be added, however, that there is much - very much - that is practiced in war by “civilized” nations still, which it is equally impossible to reconcile with any just notions of morality or humanity, and which in coming ages, and when people shall come to view things aright, will seem to the people of those times to be not less monstrous, strange, and barbarous. In regard to this passage, we are not necessarily to suppose that the author of the psalm approved of this, or desired it, or prayed for it. He looked forward to the fulfillment of a prediction; he saw that a just and terrible judgment would certainly come upon Babylon; he expressed that in the common language of the times, and states the manner in which it would occur; he described the feelings - the gratification - of those who would execute the divine purpose in the overthrow of Babylon; he referred to the estimate in which the conqueror would be held by people, and the glory of the achievement as giving him fame among people.

It must be admitted that the feelings of the author of the psalm appear to accord with this; that he considers it proper that the city should be destroyed; and that he regards its overthrow as a righteous judgment, and as a thing to be desired in the divine administration. It is true that he might approve of such an overthrow, and see it to be right - he might describe the feelings of those by whom it would be done, their joy, their exultation, and even their barbarity, without himself approving of their barbarity, or sympathizing with their feelings, or partaking of their spirit; but still it cannot in fairness be denied that there is an apparent approval of the act here referred to, which savors more of imprecation than forgiveness, and which is apparently prompted more by the spirit of revenge than by a desire of just punishment. On this subject, however, see the General Introduction, Section 6 (4); and the notes at Psa 109:10. A correct record may be made, whether of facts or of feelings, without any design of expressing either approbation or disapprobation on the part of the historian, the prophet, or the poet.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

As thou didst use our little ones. So this was but a just retaliation foretold here, as also Isa 13:6.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

9. Dasheth thy little ones—The barbarity of this expression, which, however, is to be understood as predictive, must be considered in connexion with the customs of war in there ages, and the fact that it is only parallel to the previous expression, “rewardeth thee as thou hast served us.” It was simply retributive justice, according to the custom of the times, and was fulfilled by the Babylonians themselves, when, to save provision at the siege by Darius Hystaspes, just mentioned, they put to death all useless persons, including all women and children in the city, except one wife for each man, and her maid. All the prophets who have spoken of Babylon’s fall have mentioned her cruelty to the Hebrews, and the corresponding severity of her own doom. See Isaiah 47; Jeremiah 51; Lam_5:10-13 : and of Edom, Jer_49:13-22; Lam_4:21-22, and Obadiah’s prophecy. On the Vindictive Psalms, see Psalms 109.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Happy shall he be, that taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the stones; i.e. that brings on thee the worst calamities of war. (see 2Ki_8:12 Hos_10:14 Hos_13:16 Nah_3:10)

A horrible kind of happiness.

Can the sentiments of our text, and of these verses, and the many like them in these psalms, be justified? Are they not wicked, cruel, unchristian, and so to be utterly condemned by all good men? Such questions are continually asked. But let it be remembered

I OPPRESSION DRIVES EVEN WISE MEN MAD. These terrible utterances are the product of a cruelly oppressed and suffering people. Let us put ourselves in their place.

II THAT IT IS THE LANGUAGE OF THE OLD TESTAMENT, NOT OF THE NEW. Now, the Old Testament taught:

1. That God"s retributions, both to the good and evil, were given here and now, in temporal blessing or the reverse. They had no clear knowledge of a future life, still less of any judgment to come.

2. That the Divine character was to be known by these retributions, and God"s honor maintained, and the true religion upheld by them.

3. Hence they were told to invoke curses on the wicked, and they would feel it wrong not to do so. How else could God be glorified?

4. The prosperity of the wicked was a great trial to them. It seemed so to dishonor God and to imperil his truth in the world. Hence:

5. We are net justified in attributing these utterances to mere personal spite and revenge. Their motive was far other and higher.

III THAT ALL WAR IS THE PRACTICAL CARRYING OUT OF THE PRINCIPLES OF THE OLD TESTAMENT. Even with all the alleviations and mitigations of modern and more Christian days, war does the very things which in these psalms many think so wrong.

IV THAT IT IS POSSIBLE TO DO DREADFUL THINGS WITHOUT BEING POSSESSED OF A DREADFUL SPIRIT. Many men deem war to be at times necessary and just; and surely it can be so, and often has been; and they have urged such war as in the sight and under the fear of God. The magistrate is not to bear the sword in vain, but to remember that he is the minister of God.

V RECOGNIZE OUR INDEBTEDNESS TO THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST. And rejoice in it and spread it far and wide. For this gospel not only takes away all excuse for the vindictive spirit, but ever tends to lessen the occasions which provoke it. Let it but spread, and there shall be no more such horrible happiness as that which our text seems to contemplate and approve. S.C.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.