1071 Oh give thanks to the Lord , for He is good , For His lovingkindness is everlasting . 2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the adversary 3 And gathered from 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 region ; They did not find a way to an inhabited city . 5 They were hungry and thirsty ; Their soul fainted within them. 6 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble ; He delivered them out of their distresses . 7 He led them also by a straight way , To go to an inhabited city . 8 Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness , And for His wonders to the sons of men ! 9 For He has satisfied the thirsty soul , And the hungry soul He has filled with what is good .
10 There were those who dwelt in darkness and in the shadow of death , Prisoners in misery and chains , 11 Because they had rebelled against the words of God And spurned the counsel of the Most High . 12 Therefore He humbled their heart with labor ; They stumbled and there was none to help . 13 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble ; He saved them out of their distresses . 14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death And broke their bands apart . 15 Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness , And for His wonders to the sons of men ! 16 For He has shattered gates of bronze And cut bars of iron asunder .
17 Fools , because of their rebellious way , And because of their iniquities , were afflicted . 18 Their soul abhorred all kinds of food , And they drew near to the gates of death . 19 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble ; He saved them out of their distresses . 20 He sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from their destructions . 21 Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness , And for His wonders to the sons of men ! 22 Let them also offer sacrifices of thanksgiving , And tell of His works with joyful singing .
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Matthew Henry's Commentary on Psalm 107:1-22
Commentary on Psalm 107:1-9
(Read Psalm 107:1-9)
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.
Commentary on Psalm 107:10-16
(Read Psalm 107:10-16)
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.
Commentary on Psalm 107:17-22
(Read Psalm 107:17-22)
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.