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Longing for Zion in a Foreign Land

  1By the rivers of Babylon,
   There we sat down, yea, we wept
   When we remembered Zion.
   2We hung our harps
   Upon the willows in the midst of it.
   3For there those who carried us away captive asked of us a song,
   And those who plundered us requested mirth,
   Saying, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”
  4How shall we sing the Lord’s song
   In a foreign land?
   5If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
   Let my right hand forget its skill!
   6If I do not remember you,
   Let my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth—
   If I do not exalt Jerusalem
   Above my chief joy.
  7Remember, O Lord, against the sons of Edom
   The day of Jerusalem,
   Who said, “Raze it, raze it,
   To its very foundation!”
  8O daughter of Babylon, who are to be destroyed,
   Happy the one who repays you as you have served us!
   9Happy the one who takes and dashes
   Your little ones against the rock!