1 Give thanks to Yahweh, For he is good, For his loving kindness endures forever.
2 Let the redeemed by Yahweh say so, Whom he has redeemed from the hand of the adversary,
3 And gathered out of the lands, From the east and from the west, From the north and from the south.
4 They wandered in the wilderness in a desert way. They found no city to live in.
5 Hungry and thirsty, Their soul fainted in them.
6 Then they cried to Yahweh in their trouble, And he delivered them out of their distresses,
7 He led them also by a straight way, That they might go to a city to live in.
8 Let them praise Yahweh for his loving kindness, For his wonderful works to the children of men!
9 For he satisfies the longing soul. He fills the hungry soul with good.
10 Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, Being bound in affliction and iron,
11 Because they rebelled against the words of God, And condemned the counsel of the Most High.
12 Therefore he brought down their heart with labor. They fell down, and there was none to help.
13 Then they cried to Yahweh in their trouble, And he saved them out of their distresses.
14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, And broke their bonds in sunder.
15 Let them praise Yahweh for his loving kindness, For his wonderful works to the children of men!
16 For he has broken the gates of brass, And cut through bars of iron.
17 Fools are afflicted because of their disobedience, And because of their iniquities.
18 Their soul abhors all kinds of food. They draw near to the gates of death.
19 Then they cry to Yahweh in their trouble, He saves them out of their distresses.
20 He sends his word, and heals them, And delivers them from their graves.
21 Let them praise Yahweh for his loving kindness, For his wonderful works to the children of men!
22 Let them offer the sacrifices of thanksgiving, And declare his works with singing.
23 Those who go down to the sea in ships, Who do business in great waters;
24 These see Yahweh's works, And his wonders in the deep.
25 For he commands, and raises the stormy wind, Which lifts up its waves.
26 They mount up to the sky; they go down again to the depths. Their soul melts away because of trouble.
27 They reel back and forth, and stagger like a drunken man, And are at their wits' end.
28 Then they cry to Yahweh in their trouble, And he brings them out of their distress.
29 He makes the storm a calm, So that its waves are still.
30 Then they are glad because it is calm, So he brings them to their desired haven.
31 Let them praise Yahweh for his loving kindness, For his wonderful works for the children of men!
32 Let them exalt him also in the assembly of the people, And praise him in the seat of the elders.
33 He turns rivers into a desert, Water springs into a thirsty ground,
34 And a fruitful land into a salt waste, For the wickedness of those who dwell in it.
35 He turns a desert into a pool of water, And a dry land into water springs.
36 There he makes the hungry live, That they may prepare a city to live in,
37 Sow fields, plant vineyards, And reap the fruits of increase.
38 He blesses them also, so that they are multiplied greatly. He doesn't allow their cattle to decrease.
39 Again, they are diminished and bowed down Through oppression, trouble, and sorrow.
40 He pours contempt on princes, And causes them to wander in a trackless waste.
41 Yet he lifts the needy out of their affliction, And increases their families like a flock.
42 The upright will see it, and be glad. All the wicked will shut their mouths.
43 Whoever is wise will pay attention to these things. They will consider the loving kindnesses of Yahweh.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Psalms 107
Commentary on Psalms 107 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
PSALM 107
Ps 107:1-43. Although the general theme of this Psalm may have been suggested by God's special favor to the Israelites in their restoration from captivity, it must be regarded as an instructive celebration of God's praise for His merciful providence to all men in their various emergencies. Of these several are given—captivity and bondage, wanderings by land and sea, and famine; some as evidences of God's displeasure, and all the deliverances as evidence of His goodness and mercy to them who humbly seek Him.
1, 2. This call for thankful praise is the burden or chorus (compare Ps 107:8, 15, &c.).
2. redeemed of the Lord—(compare Isa 35:9, 10).
say—that is, that His mercy, &c.
hand of—or, "power of enemy."
3. gathered—alluding to the dispersion of captives throughout the Babylonian empire.
from the south—literally, "the sea," or, Red Sea (Ps 114:3), which was on the south.
4-7. A graphic picture is given of the sufferings of those who from distant lands returned to Jerusalem; or,
city of habitation—may mean the land of Palestine.
5. fainted—was overwhelmed (Ps 61:3; 77:3).
8, 9. To the chorus is added, as a reason for praise, an example of the extreme distress from which they had been delivered—extreme hunger, the severest privation of a journey in the desert.
10-16. Their sufferings were for their rebellion against (Ps 105:28) the words, or purposes, or promises, of God for their benefit. When humbled they cry to God, who delivers them from bondage, described as a dark dungeon with doors and bars of metal, in which they are bound in iron—that is, chains and fetters.
shadow of death—darkness with danger (Ps 23:4).
16. broken—literally, "shivered" (Isa 45:2).
17-22. Whether the same or not, this exigency illustrates that dispensation of God according to which sin brings its own punishment.
are afflicted—literally, "afflict themselves," that is, bring on disease, denoted by loathing of food, and drawing
18. near unto—literally, "even to"
gates—or, "domains" (Ps 9:13).
20. sent his word—that is, put forth His power.
their destructions—that is, that which threatened them. To the chorus is added the mode of giving thanks, by a sacrifice and joyful singing (Ps 50:14).
23-32. Here are set forth the perils of seafaring, futility of man's, and efficiency of God's, help.
go … sea—alluding to the elevation of the land at the coast.
24. These see … deep—illustrated both by the storm He raises and the calm He makes with a word (Ps 33:9).
25. waves thereof—literally, "His waves" (God's, Ps 42:7).
27. are … end—literally, "all their wisdom swallows up itself," destroys itself by vain and contradictory devices, such as despair induces.
29-32. He maketh … calm—or, "to stand to stillness," or "in quiet." Instead of acts of temple-worship, those of the synagogue are here described, where the people with the
assembly—or session of elders, convened for reading, singing, prayer, and teaching.
33-41. He turneth rivers into a wilderness, &c.—God's providence is illustriously displayed in His influence on two great elements of human prosperity, the earth's productiveness and the powers of government. He punishes the wicked by destroying the sources of fertility, or, in mercy, gives fruitfulness to deserts, which become the homes of a busy and successful agricultural population. By a permitted misrule and tyranny, this scene of prosperity is changed to one of adversity. He rules rulers, setting up one and putting down another.
40. wander … wilderness—reduced to misery (Job 12:24).
42, 43. In this providential government, good men will rejoice, and the cavils of the wicked will be stopped (Job 5:16; Isa 52:15), and all who take right views will appreciate God's unfailing mercy and unbounded love.