Psalms 107:27

27 They reeled and staggered like drunkards, and all their skill was useless. ^[a]

Psalms 107:27 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 107:27

They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man
Through the agitation of the water, and motion of the ship, not being able to stand upon deck.

And are at their wit's end;
or, "all their wisdom is swallowed up" ^F14; their wisdom in naval affairs, their art of navigation, their skill in managing ships, all nonplussed and baffled; they know not what method to take to save the vessel and themselves; their knowledge fails them, they are quite confounded and almost distracted. So Apollinarius paraphrases it,

``they forget navigation, and their wise art does not appear;''

so Ovid, describing a storm, uses the same phrase, "deficit ars",

``art fails.''

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FOOTNOTES:

F14 (elbtt Mtmkx lk) "omnis sapientia eorum absorpta est", Pagninus, Montanus, Vatablus; so Junius & Tremellius, Piscator.

Psalms 107:27 In-Context

25 For He spoke and raised a tempest that lifted the waves of the sea.

26 They mounted up to the heavens, then sunk to the depths; their courage melted in their anguish.

27 They reeled and staggered like drunkards, and all their skill was useless.

28 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and He brought them out of their distress.

29 He calmed the storm to a whisper, and the waves of the sea were hushed.

Footnotes

• [a]. Or and all their wisdom was swallowed up or and they were at their wits’ end