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H8437 H8437
Conj-w | N-mpc | 1cp  |  1× in 1 sense
tormentors, mockers — those who afflict or mock, used of Babylonian captors demanding songs
This disputed plural noun in Psalm 137:3 refers to those who tormented Israel in exile. The Babylonians who 'wasted us' demanded 'songs of Zion'—a cruel mockery. The word might derive from a root meaning 'to wail' (making the tormentors 'those who made us wail') or 'to waste/despoil.' Textual variants suggest early uncertainty. Either way, the term captures the psychological cruelty of exile: forced to perform sacred songs as entertainment for captors.
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Senses
1. sense 1 — The plural noun with first-person suffix in Psalm 137:3 means 'our tormentors' or 'those who made us wail.' BDB notes textual difficulty and suggests possible emendation. The parallelism with 'those who carried us away' suggests oppressors who added mockery to military defeat, demanding songs for amusement. The term emphasizes not just conquest but humiliation, central to the psalm's raw emotion and imprecatory conclusion. 1×
VIOLENCE_CONFLICT › Violence, Harm, Destroy, Kill › Oppression and Tyranny
AR["وَمُعَذِّبُونَا"]·ben["এবং-নির্যাতনকারীরা-আমাদের"]·DE["und-unser-tormentors"]·EN["and-our-tormentors"]·FR["et-Tolaad"]·heb["ו-תוללינו"]·HI["और-हमारे-सताने-वालों-ने"]·ID["dan-yang-menyiksa-kami"]·IT["[ותוללינו]"]·jav["lan-tiyang-ingkang-ngina-kita"]·KO["그리고-우리-를-괴롭힌-자들-이"]·PT["e-nossos-opressores"]·RU["и-мучители-наши"]·ES["y-nuestros-opresores"]·SW["na-waliotutesa"]·TR["ve-alay-edenlerimiz"]·urd["اور-ہمارے-ستانے-والوں-نے"]
Ps 137:3
Related Senses
H4421 1. war, battle, armed conflict (319×)H0341 1. enemy, adversary, foe (284×)H3898a 1. Nifal: to fight, wage war (167×)H2026 1. kill, slay (active) (146×)H2451 1. wisdom, discernment (146×)H5483b 1. horse (the animal) (138×)H0006 1. to perish, be destroyed (105×)H7843 1. Hifil: destroy, annihilate (83×)H2491a 1. slain, fatally pierced (74×)H6862c 1. adversary, enemy, foe (69×)H8045 1. destroy, exterminate (69×)G0615 1. kill, put to death (60×)H6571b 1. horseman, cavalryman (52×)H8077a 1. desolation, waste (abstract state) (52×)G4678 1. of wisdom (51×)G4717 1. crucify, fasten to a cross (46×)H2763a 1. utterly destroy (Hifil active) (44×)G0622 1. perish, be destroyed (intransitive) (41×)H0006 2. to destroy, annihilate (Piel) (38×)H8074 1. be desolate, lie waste (36×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† [תּוֹלָל] n.m. doubtful word, only pl. sf. וְתוֹלָלֵינוּ ψ 137:3; AV RV they that wasted us, cf. 𝔗, but read then וְשׁוֹלְלֵינוּ Bae al.; > Thes596 Hup De al. made us wail (√ ילל).