"Va, pensiero" Fly, Thought, On Wings Of Gold

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This chorus by Verdi is based on the Psalm "By the waters of Babylon we sat and wept." (See Psalm text below the Verdi lyrics.)

Here's Verdi's lyrics:

Fly, thought, on wings of gold;
go settle upon the slopes and the hills,
where, soft and mild, the sweet airs
of our native land smell fragrant!

Greet the bank of the Jordan
and Zion's toppled towers...
Oh, my country so beautiful and lost!
Oh, remembrance so dear and so fatal!

Golden harp of the prophetic seers,
why dost thou hang mute upon the willow?
Rekindle our bosom's memories,
and speak to us of times gone by!

Mindful of the fate of Jerusalem,
give forth a sound of crude lamentation,
or may the Lord inspire you a harmony of voices
which may instill virtue to suffering.

Psalm 137

An Experience of the Captivity.

 ¹ By the rivers of Babylon, 
There we sat down and wept, 
When we remembered Zion. 
² Upon the ^[a]willows in the midst of it 
We hung our ^[b]harps. 
³ For there our captors ^[c]demanded of us ^[d]songs, 
And our tormentors mirth, saying, 
“Sing us one of the songs of Zion.”

 ⁴ How can we sing the LORD’S song
In a foreign land?
⁵ If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
May my right hand ^[e]forget her skill.
⁶ May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
If I do not remember you,
If I do not ^[f]exalt Jerusalem
Above my chief joy.

 ⁷ Remember, O LORD, against the sons of Edom
The day of Jerusalem,
Who said, “Raze it, raze it
To its very foundation.”
⁸ O daughter of Babylon, you ^[g]devastated one,
How blessed will be the one who repays you
With ^[h]the recompense with which you have repaid us.
⁹ How blessed will be the one who seizes and dashes your little ones
Against the rock.

Usually verses 7-9 aren't set to music.