We Sate Down and Wept by the Waters
We Sate Down and Wept by the Waters - meaning Summary
Lament for Lost Jerusalem
Byron's lyric dramatizes collective mourning after Jerusalem's fall. Speakers sit by the waters of Babylon, recall the city's destruction and the scattering of its women, and refuse to lend voice or music to their conqueror. The suspended harp on the willow becomes a private token of lost glory and resistance; the speaker vows never to play it for the spoiler. The poem concentrates grief, memory, and stubborn cultural fidelity in a brief dramatic scene.
Read Complete AnalysesI. We sate down and wept by the waters Of Babel, and thought of the day When our foe, in the hue of his slaughters, Made Salem’s high places his prey; And ye, oh her desolate daughters! Were scattered all weeping away. II. While sadly we gazed on the river Which roll’d on in freedom below, They demanded the song; but, oh never That triumph the stranger shall know! May this right hand be withered for ever, Ere it string our high harp for the foe! III. On the willow that harp is suspended, Oh Salem! its sound should be free; And the hour when thy glories were ended But left me that token of thee: And ne’er shall its soft tones be blended With the voice of the spoiler by me!
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