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Imprecatory Psalm 137
Imprecatory Psalm 137
One of the genres of Psalms is called the imprecatory Psalms. These are the Psalms that include a cry unto God to punish evil doers. Modern people read these from a personal wish for vengeance but it is better to see them as a cry for the justice of God. Their cry is that God would repay the evil that has been done. Even in the Old Covenant the individual was not to take vengeance (cp Lev. 19:17-18). This did NOT mean that punishment by the ordained rule / government was to be relaxed. God had given the rulers a mandate on meting out punishment: an eye for an eye. Even today the powers that be are ordained to punish evil doers (Rom. 13:1-5).
So, when the Babylonians destroyed Judah they simply went overboard. In Isa. 47:6 we read: "I was angry with my people; I profaned my heritage; I gave them into your hand; you showed them no mercy; on the aged you made your yoke exceedingly heavy." God had stated that He would bring Babylon into judgment for their evil (Isa. 13, 47, etc.).
A common war tactic was to destroy all the infants and children of a conquered nation. This included the ripping open of pregnant women and the dashing of the infants to pieces (cp. 2 Kings 8:12; Hosea 10:14; 13:16; Nahum 3:10). The brutality and horror of this is hard to comprehend.
Even today we expect a degree of humanity and restraint in warfare, particularly against the civilians. Our current outrage against using chemical warfare against civilians is a long-standing outrage. Hence the closing lines: "O daughter of Babylon, doomed to be destroyed, blessed shall he be who repays you with what you have done to us! Blessed shall he be who takes your little ones and dashes them against the rock!"
These Psalms are best to be seen as a cry for justice and God's judgment upon the extreme evil of the Babylonians.
As for US, Rom. 12 still teaches: "Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good" (Rom. 12:18-21).
Hugh DeLong
