| New King James Version | New International Version |
| 1By the rivers of Babylon, There we sat down, yea, we wept When we remembered Zion. | 1By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion. |
| 2We hung our harps Upon the willows in the midst of it. | 2There on the poplars we hung our harps, |
| 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!” | 3for there our captors asked us for songs, our tormentors demanded songs of joy; they said, "Sing us one of the songs of Zion!" |
| 4How shall we sing the LORD’s song In a foreign land? | 4How can we sing the songs of the LORD while in a foreign land? |
| 5If I forget you, O Jerusalem, Let my right hand forget its skill! | 5If I forget you, Jerusalem, may 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. | 6May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you, if I do not consider Jerusalem my highest joy. |
| 7Remember, O LORD, against the sons of Edom The day of Jerusalem, Who said, “Raze it, raze it, To its very foundation!” | 7Remember, LORD, what the Edomites did on the day Jerusalem fell. "Tear it down," they cried, "tear it down to its foundations!" |
| 8O daughter of Babylon, who are to be destroyed, Happy the one who repays you as you have served us! | 8Daughter Babylon, doomed to destruction, happy is the one who repays you according to what you have done to us. |
| 9Happy the one who takes and dashes Your little ones against the rock! | 9Happy is the one who seizes your infants and dashes them against the rocks. |
| The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. | New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. |
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