O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;

for his steadfast love endures forever. (Ps. 107:1)

            Have you ever found yourself in such a difficult or dangerous situation that you felt there was no recourse but to pray for divine aid? Have you ever felt so burdened by guilt that you knew there was no way forward without praying for forgiveness?

            Most believers have been there. Once you emerged from the troubled times and regained a level footing, did you express appreciation to God for helping you through the traumatic time?

            Have you ever thanked God publicly?

            The psalmist understood the importance of recognizing the ways in which God has provided forgiveness, encouragement, or deliverance in our lives—and the importance of thanking God for it.

Let the redeemed say so

(vv. 1-3)

Psalm 107 begins with a familiar appeal: “O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever” (v. 1). The call to thanksgiving rings a bell because we also find those exact words or similar ones in 1 Chr. 16:34, 41; 2 Chr. 5:13, 7:3, 6, 20:21; Jer. 33:11, as well as in Ps. 106:1, 118:1, and repeated throughout Psalm 136. [DD]

            The brief credo is grounded in God’s self-revelation to Moses from Exod. 34:6-7: “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for the thousandth generation, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin.” Echoes or quotations appear frequently in the Old Testament, including such diverse texts as Neh. 9:17; Jon. 4:2; Joel 2:13; and Ps. 86:5, 15, 103:8-14, and 145:8.

            The people of Israel believed many things about God, known by the personal name Yahweh, with whom they had been called to live in a covenant relationship. When thinking of Yahweh’s various attributes, divine goodness and steadfast love were preeminent. Such love did not preclude divine discipline, but it also prompted God to remain faithful to the Hebrews even when they were not faithful in return.

            The history of God and Israel was bound up in stories of deliverance: God had saved Israel from captivity in Egypt, from starvation in the wilderness, from defeat in battles, from various oppressors in the land, and from the time of exile in Babylon.

            What God could not do was deliver the people of Israel from their proclivity to worship other gods and to choose selfish behavior over love for neighbor. Israel’s prophets believed that God had sent other nations to punish them before delivering them from their power.

            The Assyrians devastated the northern kingdom of Israel in 722 BCE, scattering its inhabitants across the empire. The Babylonians later conquered the southern kingdom of Judah, beginning a period of exile that would see waves of Hebrews sent to Babylon in 597, 587, and 582. God’s steadfast love endured, however. The Persian king Cyrus—whom Isaiah referred to as God’s anointed (Isa. 45:1)—defeated the Babylonians and allowed the exiles to return, giving the Hebrews another chance to live in Jerusalem, albeit as a sub-province of Persia. [DD]

            Psalm 107 appears to celebrate a return, for vv. 2-3 celebrate how God had redeemed the Hebrews and gathered them in from north, south, east, and west. Such deliverance called for public praise: “Let the redeemed of the LORD say so!”

It’s possible that Psalm 107 originally consisted of v. 1 and vv. 4-32. In this form, it could have been used in the Jerusalem temple before the exile, serving as a means of praising God for deliverance from a variety of different situations. Verses 2-3 and 33-43 may have been added after many Hebrews returned from the exile, with the psalm reinterpreted as a means of thanksgiving for their deliverance from captivity.

Let the redeemed say why

(vv. 4-32)

Generic praise is one thing, but thanksgiving tied to specific acts of divine benevolence can be more meaningful, and that constitutes the main body of the psalm. It falls into four obvious sections (vv. 4–9, 10–16, 17–22, 23–32), each an image of potential trials from which people could be delivered. For each situation, the psalmist describes a crisis that led to a prayer for deliverance, an account of God’s redeeming acts, and a concluding call to thank God for what has been done.

            The first picture is that of travelers who are lost in the wilderness, perhaps a caravan of merchants who have run out of food and water, not knowing where to find an inhabited town (vv. 4-5). When they cried out to Yahweh, God delivered them from their distress and led them safely to a town (vv. 6-7). Echoing the initial call for the “redeemed of the LORD” to declare it openly, the psalmist calls such travelers to give public thanks for God’s steadfast love that replaced their need with goodness (vv. 8-9).

            This picture calls to mind Israel’s wandering in the wilderness after leaving Egypt, when God provided food and water before ultimately leading them to the land of promise. It may also recall the long and dangerous trek required for the exiles who chose to leave Babylon and return to their homeland. The term translated “inhabited town” in vv. 4 and 7 carries the literal sense of “a city (for) dwelling.” Thus, NET2 speaks of seeking “a city in which to live.” Yahweh, however, led them to the best city they could imagine, to Jerusalem.

            The second image is that of imprisonment or exile itself. While individuals might have experienced the misery of life in chains for ordinary crimes, leading families of the entire nation had suffered the dark gloom of life in exile. In the spirit of the prophets, the psalmist attributed their plight to having “rebelled against the words of God, and spurned the counsel of the Most High” (vv. 10-11). With no one else to help, they prayed for deliverance, and Yahweh “broke their bonds asunder,” saving them from their distress (vv. 13-14). Such deliverance calls for praise to Yahweh “for his steadfast love, for his wonderful works to humankind” (vv. 15-16). [DD]

            Sickness is the subject of the third picture, which describes a group of people who have suffered illness that they brought upon themselves “through their sinful ways” (vv. 17-18). The NRSV obscures the harshness of the description in v. 17, which describes such people as fools for behaving so unwisely: “They acted like fools in their rebellious ways, and suffered because of their sins” (NET2). But even foolish people can pray to God for deliverance, and these found healing in God’s mercy (vv. 19-20). No less than any other, they should give thanks and offer sacrifices in praise of God’s steadfast love, “and tell of his deeds with songs of joy” (vv. 21-22).

            In a culture where many people habitually poison their bodies by smoking cigarettes, sicken themselves through poor food choices, and weaken their bodies by avoiding exercise, these verses are sobering. Lung diseases, cardiovascular ailments, and Type II diabetes are leading causes of death that shorten many lives—but are largely preventable.

            The final image of people in need of deliverance describes a perilous journey by sea, something few Israelites would have experienced, but which would have been the subject of popular stories, such as the harrowing account of Jonah being lost in a stormy sea stirred up by Yahweh. Seafaring merchants would have told tales of surviving storms that they also credited to divine activity (vv. 23-26). Knowing there was nothing left to do but pray, they sought God’s help and found deliverance, for “he made the storm be still, and the waves of the sea were hushed” (vv. 27-30). Like others whom God had saved, they were urged to offer public praise for God’s steadfast love and wonderful works (vv. 31-32).

Let the redeemed not forget

(vv. 33-42)

The last section of the psalm contains elements of wisdom teaching, and it was probably added as a way of summing up the lessons taught through the various examples. These verses are a reminder that God has power over land as well as sea. Yahweh can turn rivers into a desert if the people follow sinful ways, but the Lord can also transform a parched wilderness into fertile and well-watered land for those who turn their lives toward God (vv. 33-38).

            Whatever troubling situation God’s people might face—whether oppression, disappointment, or sorrow (v. 39)—the psalmist believed that God could help, overthrowing repressive rulers and redeeming the downtrodden from their distress (vv. 40-41). Those who are wise will take note of such truths, the psalmist says, and should learn from them as they “consider the steadfast love of the LORD” (vv. 42-43).

            What kinds of trouble have been most common in our lives? Very few of us have been held as a captive, but we may have felt exiled or excluded, put down or unappreciated by others. We may have experienced sickness that we brought on ourselves, or we may have faced trouble that seemed to come out of nowhere.

            And yet … and yet God’s steadfast love endures forever, the psalmist says. We can trust God to hear our prayers, and we can give glad testimony for God’s wonderful deeds, for they are wonderful, indeed.