By the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered Zion.
Babylon means the kingdom, not the city. The Jews gathered by the rivers where they could worship in the open air, since they had no synagogues there. This is history written as it happened, not prophecy: the captivity has come, and the Psalmist speaks for the whole Church under this affliction.
AI summary
Commenting on Psalm 137:1-9
By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down. Water courses were abundant in Babylon, wherein were not only natural streams but artificial canals: it was place of broad rivers and streams. Glad to be away from the noisy streets, the captives sought the river side, where the flow of the waters seemed to be in sympathy with their tears.
Zion sits covered in cloud, dwelling among Babylon's daughters, tears mixing with the streams. They were posted by the rivers as prisoners of war, quartered there to labor in the galleys or left in solitude to match their sorrow. When they remembered Zion's glory, their love for God's house swallowed up every other care.
AI summary
Commenting on Psalm 137:1-6