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Psalm 137:5
If I forget you, Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill.
3For there, those who led us captive asked us for songs. Those who tormented us demanded songs of joy: “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”
4How can we sing the LORD’s song in a foreign land?
5If I forget you, Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill.
6Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth if I don’t remember you, if I don’t prefer Jerusalem above my chief joy.
7Remember, LORD, against the children of Edom in the day of Jerusalem, who said, “Raze it! Raze it even to its foundation!”
Notice
A right hand losing its skill makes the vow startling: amid captivity and demands for songs, remembering Jerusalem matters enough to stake a cherished ability on it.
Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.
How does the captors’ demand for songs shape your reading of this vow about the right hand?
Write on thisWhat place connected with worship do you fear forgetting, and how does this vow speak to that fear?
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Where else Scripture says this
12 passages readers most often link with this verse, and the thread each one shares with it.
This verse's connections, by chapterThe Bible's strongest chapter linksHover or tap a book to trace it
Jeremiah 51:50You who have escaped the sword, go! Don’t stand still! Remember the LORD from afar, and let Jerusalem come into your mind.”Both passages speak of remembering Jerusalem from a distance, with Jeremiah joining that remembrance to remembering the LORD.
Daniel 6:10–11When Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house (now his windows were open in his room toward Jerusalem) and he kneeled on his knees three …Jerusalem remains a point of devotion in both texts: the captive vows remembrance, and Daniel prays with his windows open toward it.
Psalm 84:10For a day in your courts is better than a thousand. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.Both express attachment to a place of worship, through an oath about Jerusalem and a preference for God’s courts.
Isaiah 62:1For Zion’s sake I will not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until her righteousness shines out like the dawn, and her salvation like a …Both speakers bind themselves to Jerusalem’s importance: one vows remembrance, while the other refuses silence until her righteousness and salvation shine.
Zechariah 11:17Woe to the worthless shepherd who leaves the flock! The sword will strike his arm and his right eye. His arm will be completely withered, and his right eye …Both texts describe loss of bodily ability, though the psalm contains a self-curse and Zechariah pronounces judgment on a shepherd.
Psalm 122:5–9For there are set thrones for judgment, the thrones of David’s house.The connection is limited: Psalm 137 names Jerusalem as worth remembering, while Psalm 122 points to the thrones of David’s house.
Exodus 26:31“You shall make a veil of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, with cherubim. It shall be the work of a skillful workman.The shared thread is skill: the psalm stakes it on remembrance, while Exodus requires it for making the veil.
Isaiah 62:6–7I have set watchmen on your walls, Jerusalem. They will never be silent day nor night. You who call on the LORD, take no rest,Both texts express enduring concern for Jerusalem, through a vow against forgetting and watchmen who never fall silent.
Psalm 84:1–2For the Chief Musician. On an instrument of Gath. A Psalm by the sons of Korah. How lovely are your dwellings, LORD of Armies!Both express attachment to a place associated with God: Jerusalem in the captive’s oath and the LORD’s dwellings in Psalm 84.
Nehemiah 1:2–4Hanani, one of my brothers, came, he and certain men out of Judah; and I asked them about the Jews who had escaped, who were left of the captivity, and …Jerusalem remains a concern amid displacement: the captive vows to remember it, and Nehemiah asks for news of it.
Nehemiah 2:2–3The king said to me, “Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing else but sorrow of heart.” Then I was very much afraid.The shared thread is sorrow: the captive’s oath arises amid torment, while Nehemiah’s sorrow is visible in his face.
Psalm 102:13–14You will arise and have mercy on Zion, for it is time to have pity on her. Yes, the set time has come.Both express concern for Jerusalem, also called Zion: one through a vow of remembrance, the other through hope for God’s mercy.
Where this verse fits
Grief. loneliness. injustice and anger.
One step
Something small to carry out of this verse
Encouragement
The captive speaks a severe oath over his own hand. His grief takes the form of a vow to remember Jerusalem, even far from home.
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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).