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BOOK V

(Psalms 107–150)

Psalm 107

Thanksgiving for Deliverance from Many Troubles

O give thanks to the L ord, for he is good;

for his steadfast love endures forever.

Let the redeemed of the L ord say so,

those he redeemed from trouble

and gathered in from the lands,

from the east and from the west,

from the north and from the south.

Some wandered in desert wastes,

finding no way to an inhabited town;

hungry and thirsty,

their soul fainted within them.

Then they cried to the L ord in their trouble,

and he delivered them from their distress;

he led them by a straight way,

until they reached an inhabited town.

Let them thank the L ord for his steadfast love,

for his wonderful works to humankind.

For he satisfies the thirsty,

and the hungry he fills with good things.

Some sat in darkness and in gloom,

prisoners in misery and in irons,

for they had rebelled against the words of God,

and spurned the counsel of the Most High.

Their hearts were bowed down with hard labor;

they fell down, with no one to help.

Then they cried to the L ord in their trouble,

and he saved them from their distress;

he brought them out of darkness and gloom,

and broke their bonds asunder.

Let them thank the L ord for his steadfast love,

for his wonderful works to humankind.

For he shatters the doors of bronze,

and cuts in two the bars of iron.

Some were sick through their sinful ways,

and because of their iniquities endured affliction;

they loathed any kind of food,

and they drew near to the gates of death.

Then they cried to the L ord in their trouble,

and he saved them from their distress;

he sent out his word and healed them,

and delivered them from destruction.

Let them thank the L ord for his steadfast love,

for his wonderful works to humankind.

And let them offer thanksgiving sacrifices,

and tell of his deeds with songs of joy.

Some went down to the sea in ships,

doing business on the mighty waters;

they saw the deeds of the L ord,

his wondrous works in the deep.

For he commanded and raised the stormy wind,

which lifted up the waves of the sea.

They mounted up to heaven, they went down to the depths;

their courage melted away in their calamity;

they reeled and staggered like drunkards,

and were at their wits’ end.

Then they cried to the L ord in their trouble,

and he brought them out from their distress;

he made the storm be still,

and the waves of the sea were hushed.

Then they were glad because they had quiet,

and he brought them to their desired haven.

Let them thank the L ord for his steadfast love,

for his wonderful works to humankind.

Let them extol him in the congregation of the people,

and praise him in the assembly of the elders.

He turns rivers into a desert,

springs of water into thirsty ground,

a fruitful land into a salty waste,

because of the wickedness of its inhabitants.

He turns a desert into pools of water,

a parched land into springs of water.

And there he lets the hungry live,

and they establish a town to live in;

they sow fields, and plant vineyards,

and get a fruitful yield.

By his blessing they multiply greatly,

and he does not let their cattle decrease.

When they are diminished and brought low

through oppression, trouble, and sorrow,

he pours contempt on princes

and makes them wander in trackless wastes;

but he raises up the needy out of distress,

and makes their families like flocks.

The upright see it and are glad;

and all wickedness stops its mouth.

Let those who are wise give heed to these things,

and consider the steadfast love of the L ord.

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

39. Afterwards they are lessened Ere I enter upon the consideration of the truths contained in this verse, I must make some brief verbal observations. Some make the word עוצר, otser, to signify tyranny, and certainly עצר, atsar, does signify to bear rule. But since it is used metaphorically for anguish, it appears to me that this is the meaning which is most accordant with the tenor of the passage. The last two words of the verse may be read as in the nominative case, as I have rendered them, or in the genitive, the anguish of misery and sorrow This lection appears to me preferable, through the anguish of misery, ²⁸⁹²⁸⁹ “Par angoisse de mal et par douleur.” — Fr. and through sorrow.

We come now to notice shortly the main things in the passage. And as we had formerly a description of the changes which these districts underwent in relation to the nature of the soil, so now we are informed that mankind do not for ever continue in the same condition; because they both decrease in number, and lose their place and property by being reduced by wars or by civil commotions, or by other casualties. Therefore, whether they are wasted by the pestilence, or are defeated in battle, or are cut off by intestine broils, it is manifest that both their rank and condition undergo alteration. And what is the occasion of this change, but that God withdraws his grace, which hitherto formed the hidden spring from which all their prosperity issued? And as there are a thousand casualties by which cities may be ruined, the prophet brings forward one species of change of all others the most palpable and remarkable. And since God’s hand is not observed in that which relates to persons living in comparative obscurity, he brings into view princes themselves, whose name and fame will not permit any memorable event which befalls them to remain in obscurity. For it seems that the world is made on their account. When God, therefore, hurls them from their lofty estate, then men, aroused as it were from their slumber, are prepared to regard his judgments. Here, too, the mode of address which is employed must be attended to; in saying, that God poured contempt upon princes, it is as if it was his pleasure, so long as they retained their dignity, that honor and respect should be paid to them. The words of Daniel are well known,

“O king, God hath put the fear of thee in the very fowls of the heaven and the beasts of the earth,” (Daniel 2:8)

And assuredly, though princes may clothe themselves with power, yet that inward honor and majesty which God has conferred upon them, is a greater safeguard than any human arm. Nor even would a single village hold out for the space of three days, did not God, by his invisible and invincible agency, put a restraint upon the hearts of men. Hence, whenever God renders princes contemptible, their magnificent power must of necessity be subverted. This is a fact corroborated by history, that mighty potentates, who have been the terror and dread of the whole world, when once denuded of their dignity and power, have become the sport even of their own dependants. And inasmuch as such a striking revolution as this should be regarded as a wonderful display of God’s power, yet such is the obtuseness of our minds, that we will not acknowledge his overruling providence. As a contrast to these reverses, the prophet afterwards shows, that the poor and ignoble are exalted, and their houses increased, and that those who were held in no estimation, suddenly increase in wealth and power. In these things men would assuredly recognize the providence of God, were it not that the perversity of their minds rendered them insensate.

²⁸⁹ “Par angoisse de mal et par douleur.” — Fr.