Why read Psalm 137?
Read Psalm 137 to give thanks for answered prayer and renew your trust. The psalmist praises God for His help and asks Him to bring His work to completion.
You can read this psalm when its themes speak to your circumstances, or as part of your regular reading of the Psalter. This explanation draws on the text itself; the psalm is not reserved for one particular need.
The full text of Psalm 137 (8 verses), from the 19th Kathisma of the Psalter. The opening words — “I shall praise You, O Lord, with all my heart,...” — are also the psalm’s traditional “name”: our grandmothers did not say “Psalm 137”, but called it by name, using its first words.
The text of Psalm 137
1. I shall praise You, O Lord, with all my heart, for You have heard the words of my mouth, and before the angels I shall sing to You.
2. I shall worship in Your holy dwelling place and praise Your name for Your mercy and Your truth; for You have magnified Your holy name above everything.
3. On every day when I call upon You, hear me swiftly! Increase the strength in my soul.
4. Let all the kings of the earth praise You, O Lord, when they hear all the words of Your mouth,
5. And sing in the ways of the Lord, for great is the glory of the Lord.
6. For the Lord is high and looks upon the lowly, and the high things He knows from afar.
7. If I come into trouble, give me life! Against my enemies You stretched out Your hand, and Your right hand delivered me.
8. The Lord will repay them for me. O Lord, Your mercy is forever; do not overlook the works of Your hands.
When Psalm 137 is read
- It belongs to the 19th Kathisma and is recited in personal prayer, especially for peace and understanding.
- At the end of each psalm, tradition adds: «Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.».
Adjacent psalms
The numbering follows the Orthodox Psalter (Septuagint). The same psalm may have a different number in other Bible editions.
