Psalms 107

1 "Give thanks to the Lord, because he is good; ¹ his love is eternal!"

2 Repeat these words in praise to the Lord, all you whom he has saved. He has rescued you from your enemies

3 and has brought you back from foreign countries, from east and west, from north and south.

4 Some wandered in the trackless desert and could not find their way to a city to live in.

5 They were hungry and thirsty and had given up all hope.

6 Then in their trouble they called to the Lord, and he saved them from their distress.

7 He led them by a straight road to a city where they could live.

8 They must thank the Lord for his constant love, for the wonderful things he did for them.

9 He satisfies those who are thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.

10 Some were living in gloom and darkness, prisoners suffering in chains,

11 because they had rebelled against the commands of Almighty God and had rejected his instructions.

12 They were worn out from hard work; they would fall down, and no one would help.

13 Then in their trouble they called to the Lord, and he saved them from their distress.

14 He brought them out of their gloom and darkness and broke their chains in pieces.

15 They must thank the Lord for his constant love, for the wonderful things he did for them.

16 He breaks down doors of bronze and smashes iron bars.

17 Some were fools, suffering because of their sins and because of their evil;

18 they couldn't stand the sight of food and were close to death.

19 Then in their trouble they called to the Lord, and he saved them from their distress.

20 He healed them with his command and saved them from the grave.

21 They must thank the Lord for his constant love, for the wonderful things he did for them.

22 They must thank him with sacrifices, and with songs of joy must tell all that he has done.

23 Some sailed over the ocean in ships, earning their living on the seas.

24 They saw what the Lord can do, his wonderful acts on the seas.

25 He commanded, and a mighty wind began to blow and stirred up the waves.

26 The ships were lifted high in the air and plunged down into the depths. In such danger the sailors lost their courage;

27 they stumbled and staggered like drunks - all their skill was useless.

28 Then in their trouble they called to the Lord, and he saved them from their distress.

29 He calmed the raging storm, and the waves became quiet.

30 They were glad because of the calm, and he brought them safe to the port they wanted.

31 They must thank the Lord for his constant love, for the wonderful things he did for them.

32 They must proclaim his greatness in the assembly of the people and praise him before the council of the leaders.

33 The Lord made rivers dry up completely and stopped springs from flowing.

34 He made rich soil become a salty wasteland ² because of the wickedness of those who lived there.

35 He changed deserts into pools of water and dry land into flowing springs.

36 He let hungry people settle there, and they built a city to live in.

37 They sowed the fields and planted grapevines and reaped an abundant harvest.

38 He blessed his people, and they had many children; he kept their herds of cattle from decreasing.

39 When God's people were defeated and humiliated by cruel oppression and suffering,

40 he showed contempt for their oppressors and made them wander in trackless deserts.

41 But he rescued the needy from their misery and made their families increase like flocks.

42 The righteous see this and are glad, but all the wicked are put to silence.

43 May those who are wise think about these things; may they consider the Lord's constant love.

Psalms 107 Commentary

Chapter 107

God's providential care of the children of men in distresses, in banishment, and dispersion. (1-9) In captivity. (10-16) In sickness. (17-22) Danger at sea.(23-32) God's hand is to be seen by his own people. (33-43)

Verses 1-9 In these verses there is reference to the deliverance from Egypt, and perhaps that from Babylon: but the circumstances of travellers in those countries are also noted. It is scarcely possible to conceive the horrors suffered by the hapless traveller, when crossing the trackless sands, exposed to the burning rays of the sum. The words describe their case whom the Lord has redeemed from the bondage of Satan; who pass through the world as a dangerous and dreary wilderness, often ready to faint through troubles, fears, and temptations. Those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, after God, and communion with him, shall be filled with the goodness of his house, both in grace and glory.

Verses 10-16 This description of prisoners and captives intimates that they are desolate and sorrowful. In the eastern prisons the captives were and are treated with much severity. Afflicting providences must be improved as humbling providences; and we lose the benefit, if our hearts are unhumbled and unbroken under them. This is a shadow of the sinner's deliverance from a far worse confinement. The awakened sinner discovers his guilt and misery. Having struggled in vain for deliverance, he finds there is no help for him but in the mercy and grace of God. His sin is forgiven by a merciful God, and his pardon is accompanied by deliverance from the power of sin and Satan, and by the sanctifying and comforting influences of God the Holy Spirit.

Verses 17-22 If we knew no sin, we should know no sickness. Sinners are fools. They hurt their bodily health by intemperance, and endanger their lives by indulging their appetites. This their way is their folly. The weakness of the body is the effect of sickness. It is by the power and mercy of God that we are recovered from sickness, and it is our duty to be thankful. All Christ's miraculous cures were emblems of his healing diseases of the soul. It is also to be applied to the spiritual cures which the Spirit of grace works. He sends his word, and heals souls; convinces, converts them, makes them holy, and all by the word. Even in common cases of recovery from sickness, God in his providence speaks, and it is done; by his word and Spirit the soul is restored to health and holiness.

Verses 23-32 Let those who go to sea, consider and adore the Lord. Mariners have their business upon the tempestuous ocean, and there witness deliverances of which others cannot form an idea. How seasonable it is at such a time to pray! This may remind us of the terrors and distress of conscience many experience, and of those deep scenes of trouble which many pass through, in their Christian course. Yet, in answer to their cries, the Lord turns their storm into a calm, and causes their trials to end in gladness.

Verses 33-43 What surprising changes are often made in the affairs of men! Let the present desolate state of Judea, and of other countries, explain this. If we look abroad in the world, we see many greatly increase, whose beginning was small. We see many who have thus suddenly risen, as suddenly brought to nothing. Worldly wealth is uncertain; often those who are filled with it, ere they are aware, lose it again. God has many ways of making men poor. The righteous shall rejoice. It shall fully convince all those who deny the Divine Providence. When sinners see how justly God takes away the gifts they have abused, they will not have a word to say. It is of great use to us to be fully assured of God's goodness, and duly affected with it. It is our wisdom to mind our duty, and to refer our comfort to him. A truly wise person will treasure in his heart this delightful psalm. From it, he will fully understand the weakness and wretchedness of man, and the power and loving-kindness of God, not for our merit, but for his mercy's sake.

Cross References

• 1. 107.11 Chronicles 16.34;2 Chronicles 5.13; 7.3;Ezra 3.11;Psalms 100.5; 106.1; 118.1; 136.1;Jeremiah 33.11.
• 2. +2107.34Ben Sira 39.23.

Footnotes

• [a]. [Probable text] south; [Hebrew] the Mediterranean Sea [(meaning "west").]

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 107

This psalm, from its style, and from its connection with the preceding psalms, seems to have been written by David. The two foregoing psalms respect the children of Israel; this is generally thought to concern all mankind, and its view to assert a general providence which attends all, in whatsoever condition and circumstance; and to encourage men in their distresses to cry unto the Lord. According to Kimchi, Aben Ezra, and others, four sorts of persons are mentioned, travellers through a wilderness, prisoners, sick persons, and such who use the seas; to which some add a fifth, husbandmen; these are instanced in, not to the exclusion of others, but from them it may be concluded that whatsoever state or condition persons may be in, they are known and taken notice of by the Lord, and are relieved by him when they call upon him. Some restrain the whole to the Israelites, as the Targum, R. Obadiah, Arama, and others, where they make any application; and others apply the psalm to New Testament times; and indeed, though the literal sense should be attended unto and preserved, yet it seems to be applicable to spiritual persons and things. The title of it in the Syriac version is pretty remarkable,

``it is said concerning Joab and Abiah the sons of Samuel, who recited the commandments of the Lord. God gathered the Jews out of captivity, and brought them out from Babylon. Also the only begotten Son of God, Jesus Christ, gathered the Gentiles from the four corners of the world, by preaching to baptism.''