By the rivers of Babylon— there we sat down and there we wept when we remembered Zion. On the willows there we hung up our harps. For there our captors asked us for songs, and our tormentors asked for mirth, saying, 'Sing us one of the songs of Zion!’ (Psalm 137: 1-3)

In approximately 586 BC the Kingdom of Judah, the last independent Jewish state, was conquered by the Neo-Babylonians. The political, religious, and social leadership was exiled to the enemy's capital where they remained until the Babylonians were overturned by the rising Persian state nearly fifty years later.

The Babylonian Captivity is seen by many scholars as crucial to shaping subsequent Jewish identity. Rather than being assimilated, the Jewish elite in exile responded with a burst of religious and literary creativity. During this period many of the historical scriptures (Joshua, Judges, Kings, and Samuel) were completed, the Torah was edited into close to its current form, and new works including Lamentations, Second Isaiah, and Ezekiel were produced.

How are we to respond to utter defeat and devastation? Some will lose hope and linger to die. Others preserve their hope and express it in anger. A creative and loving God gives us the ability to respond with creativity and love.