Daily Meditations

Psalm 107:28-29 He stilled the storm a whisper The previous verse ends with the image of sailors reeling and staggering like drunkards in the stormy seas, they are at their wits end! Quite simply all those seafaring years of experience counted for nothing, the hurricane forces presented conditions that were worse than anything they had faced before, these sailors could think of nothing more they could do to help themselves.  Many a sinner has encountered such calamities, the world is out of their control, the manifestations of evil are threatening to take their lives, there is no hope and no respite, they are in a place of total helplessness and devastation. Then they cry out to the Lord! How many of us have been brought to our knees at a time of great tragedy or calamity and we have cried out to heaven as a last resort. “There is nothing more we can do, God help us!” It is this cry that stirs heaven into action, for God hears us in our distress and He will answer the cry of faith. In

Psalm 107:25-27 Why, even the wind and the waves obey Him! Jonah 1 describes for us the devastating effects of a storm that threatened the lives of a handful of sailors and their passengers, “ Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god.”  In Acts 27 we read of Paul’s encounter with a Mediterranean storm.  “Before very long, a wind of hurricane force, called the Northeaster, swept down from the island. (Crete) The ship was caught by the storm and could not head into the wind; so we gave way to it and were driven along….. We took such a violent battering from the storm that the next day they began to throw the cargo overboard……When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the storm continued raging, we finally gave up all hope of being saved.”  In Mark 4 Jesus also encounters a storm as He and the disciples cross the Lake of Galilee,  “A furious squa

Psalm 107:23-24 The works of the Lord in the deep This verse takes us back to the beginning of creation where we read that the earth was formless, but the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. When God spoke, a vault separated the waters above and below and those above were called sky. And then God gathered the waters below the sky into one place so that dry land appeared. (Genesis 1.) Psalm 104:7 tells us that, after the flood, “ At Your rebuke the waters fled, at the sound of Your thunder they took to flight.”   Today’s verse reminds us that these are the mighty waters, they certainly appeared so to the sailors at the time this was written. It is doubtful that many ventured further than the Mediterranean Sea or the Indian Ocean, those ventures alone would have taught these ancient mariners about the violence of the waves and the depths that lay below. Many would have lost their lives in storms way beyond their control and the seas therefore held a sinister and impenetrable hold

Psalm 107:21-22 Let them sacrifice Thank Offerings We have already commented on the profound statement found here in verse 21, for it is a repeat of verse 8 and verse 15. What follows is an explanation of how God’s people expressed their gratitude and thankfulness to Him. They “ sacrificed thank offerings ” and they  “told of His works with songs of joy.”  “Thank Offerings” or “Peace Offerings” or “Fellowship Offerings” were a natural way for Israelites to celebrate and give thanks to God for His blessings especially on wondrous occasions of salvation from distress, death or sickness. A “fatted calf” would be taken to the altar of the Temple or Tabernacle. The animal would be killed, and the fatty part burned on the altar as an offering to the Lord. The priests took a share of the carcass for themselves, and the remainder was given to the one who offered it, to be taken home and eaten that day at a feast to which family members and/or friends were invited.  Whilst we do not have to pur

Psalm 107:20 He sent out His Word The words of this verse are intriguing, what do they mean? The first thing to note is that God’s power and influence over the natural world and the cosmos did not end on the 6 th  day of creation. We know for instance, from Psalm 104 and from the accounts of the Flood, that in Noah’s time this planet was returned to its primeval watery origins and then recreated, in a matter of days, to be presented as the planet we now know. It was by the power of God’s Word that all things were made, for the Scripture tells us “ and God said ….. and it was so.” John chapter 1 reminds us that the Word was the source of all life and everything owes its existence to that Word. It was the same Word that became flesh and showed us the full glory of the Father in human form. So, when this amazing God of ours chooses to send out His Word, things happen!  In the verse before us it is the healing of the sick that is in view, those who were afflicted and close to death because

Psalm 107:19 He saved them from their distress This statement of fact is repeated throughout the Psalm, we have already read these words in v6 and v13 and they will crop up again in v28. I was reminded of their potency when I awoke in the night recently and had the most awful heartburn and indigestion; being away from home meant there were no potions or pills readily available to ease the discomfort. I know it sounds a bit trite, but I was reminded of these words so I  “cried out to the Lord in my trouble! ” He must have heard my cry because I snuggled down into my bed, went back to sleep and awoke refreshed and trouble-free in the morning. Hallelujah, it’s good to know that our God still hears and answers, even though the problems may seem trivial compared to the plight of the Israelites.  We need to get a handle on the promises inherent in these verses, the Lord God does care for us. This whole Psalm is about the different kinds of trouble experienced by God’s people, we’ve already r

Psalm 107:17-18 The consequences of rebellion We now move away from the oppression of foreign powers to the far more personal troubles that arose from rebellion and disregard for the Lord God and His laws. Rebellion is caused by foolishness and also increases foolishness. The people here had abandoned God’s ways and served foreign gods or idols; what a foolish thing to do. Their rebellion took them further and further away from YAHWEH and so their foolishness increased. Such behaviour has a detrimental effect on health, both physically and mentally. Listen to these words from Leviticus 26:14-16;  “But if you will not listen to me and carry out all these commands, and if you reject my decrees and abhor my laws and fail to carry out all my commands and so violate my covenant, then I will do this to you: I will bring on you sudden terror, wasting diseases and fever that will destroy your sight and sap your strength .”  There are not many sermons preached on this subject! Most Christians w

Psalm 107:16 Gates  of bronze This verse talks about “gates of bronze” and “bars of iron.” Obviously, the reference is to city gates and the bars that secure them. Every city in Bible times was a fortress, the city gates were the only way in and out. It was at these gates that sentries stood and each visitor was monitored, and here at the gates business was transacted. The gates were closed at night and guards were posted if there was any hint of trouble. The verse here talks about the very strongest of gates for most cities or settlements could only afford wood, and bronze gates were top of the range! There was a popular proverb at that time, “Can a man break iron ….. or bronze?” So, the inference here is that the Lord God goes before His people and no matter how heavily armed or securely guarded the enemy settlements might be, our God can break down the gates. Whatever fortress the enemy may have established within us or against us, our Father can break through, He can smash aside th

Psalm 107:15 Let them give thanks to the Lord Here is a heart cry rather than a polite request;  “Oh that people would praise the Lord for His wonderful acts for all men and His unfailing love for us all! ” Do we not feel this at times? We see, outworking all around us, the unfailing provision of the Lord, the profound depth of His love, His miraculous answers to our prayers and the faithful way in which He treats rebellious peoples. And how we long for people to just stop and say, “thank you Lord”, to recognise His intervention, to give Him just a little bit of the credit He deserves. But no, they blindly press on in their darkness and if they even stop to be grateful, they only acknowledge idols, false gods or their own ingenuity and hard work, Yahweh does not get a look in. Please don’t let us be like them, let us constantly give thanks to the Lord, let’s be always aware of His unfailing love for us and His wonderful deeds for mankind. Surely this has been the over-riding theme of r

Psalm 107:13-14 He brought them out of darkness This is becoming a familiar scenario. God blesses Israel. Israel lapses into idolatry and rebellion. God punishes His people. Israel cries out in the midst of their suffering. God hears and relents and remembers His covenant. Israel is restored to the land and to prosperity once again.  This seems to be a relentless process in which God’s chosen people, for all their ingenuity and ability never seem to learn the lessons of the past. We see it happening right before our very eyes, restoration of the land and its people was granted in 1948, the Jews returned and quickly became prosperous, and they overcame insurmountable odds when the surrounding nations attacked them in the War of Independence, in the Six Day War in 1967 and during Yom Kippur in 1973. But now, decades later, the people do not acknowledge YAHWEH, they are secular and rebellious, despite His unprecedented blessings. We all know what happens next, the nations turn against the

Psalm 107:12 There was no one to help! As we have seen, the history of Israel is littered with trials and suffering caused, initially, by their waywardness and rebellion against God, but also by the conquering ambitions of neighbouring countries who delighted in invading the land and carrying the people off as slaves and captives. The Assyrians did it, so did the Babylonians, the Persians relented somewhat but the Romans had few scruples and sought to condemn the Jews to obscurity forever! We can read human accounts of these conquests and point the finger at the perpetrators but, in truth, the Lord God was behind it all. If the people had trusted Him by faith, obeyed His laws and honoured Him as God, none of these disasters would have happened. Our Lord does not shirk His responsibilities here or hide His intentions, He allows us to know that He is behind the suffering and the national catastrophes that have overtaken the nation of Israel. He wants the whole world to know that there ar

Psalm 107:10-11 It doesn't pay to rebel The redeemed of the Lord do indeed have a story to tell (v2), we have heard the stories already, in the Psalm, of those who wandered in desert wastelands and who the Lord led to a city where they could settle, now we are going to hear from ex-prisoners! Throughout the history of mankind there have been many thousands of men and women who have been incarcerated in prison cells and dungeons, living in total darkness, and chained up like animals. Our ancestors had no compunction about detaining their enemies in these ways and it seems that such practices were common enough in Bible times. The cause of the imprisonments mentioned here are two-dimensional, verse 11 tells us that men were imprisoned because “ they rebelled against God’s commands and despised the plans of the Most High .”  The other side of the story is that some foreign power was presumably involved in taking and holding prisoners. This is another of those occasions when God allowe

Psalm 107:8-9 The Lord fills the hungry with good things Verse 1 of this Psalm encouraged us to “ give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever .” Our reasons for being thankful are now expanded and they embrace the attributes of a generous and loving God; we are to give thanks TO Him – for His unfailing love. In other words, we need to take time out to just stop and say “Thank You for Your love for me that is revealed in countless different ways, every day of my life. Thank You for Your wonderful deeds for all mankind, not just for me. Thank You that the thirsty are satisfied and the hungry are filled with good things.”  As I write, it is a Sunday morning in March 2024 and a  US military ship is sailing towards the Middle East, carrying equipment to build a temporary pier off the coast of Gaza. Many organisations are waiting to transport supplies of food to a war-torn land where innocent adults and children are reportedly starving. The people of Gaza are Muslims an

Psalm 107:7 He led them by a straight way Verse 6 of the Psalm has God’s people crying out to Him in their trouble. Please do not think that our journey through this life is a bed of roses, as some preachers like us to think. One of the hardest aspects of being a church leader is how to pray for those who are suffering or passing through very difficult circumstances. Some ministers would have no hesitation in commanding the problems to go immediately, in asking the Lord to heal and in promising that prayers will be answered straight away and the situation will instantly change for the better. Experience teaches that this is not always the case, my own experience teaches me that I have learned a great deal about the Lord, and about myself, when passing through the  “valley of the shadow of darkness / death .”  However, these verses do promise that the Lord will ultimately  deliver His people from their distress  when they cry out to Him, He will  lead them by a straight way , and He wil

Psalm 107:4-6 Some wandered in desert wastelands This is a prophetic Psalm for it describes events that had taken place at the time it was written, it also describes other events that were looming on the horizon, but it similarly speaks of things that will happen in decades and centuries to come. What the Psalm is telling us is that man’s behaviour and the consequences of it, never change. So, we will find here lonely travellers, wasting away in desert lands and conversely, sailors threatened by the terrors of the seas. Here, in today’s verses, suffering and trials are depicted by the desert wastelands and the horrors of having no food or water. Such suffering is unimaginable for those of us who have a supermarket just down the road, but it has been a familiar experience for many who have travelled in the wildernesses of the world. Remember, that the Psalm starts on a note of praise and with a request that those who have been redeemed by the Lord should tell their story. In other words

Psalm 107:2-3 Let the redeemed ..... tell their story The “ redeemed of the Lord”  are those who have literally been delivered or saved by Him. Remember that this familiar world, ruled over by men, with all of its conflicts and crises, is also a spiritual domain. There are powers of evil and good wrestling against one another for the domination and ultimate control of our planet; this has been ongoing since the Garden of Eden. Few are delivered from the darkness of enemy control; few are saved from his clutches, and few are delivered from the power and effects of sin. Those that are, are encouraged here to tell their story. This is not an easy task; it is almost impossible to convince a blind man of the beauty and complexity of the world in which we live. How can our stories make sense to those who are blind? This is especially difficult when the blind far outweigh those who have sight and when the blind also choose not to believe our stories. For sight only comes by faith. Despite the

Psalm 107:1 Give thanks to the Lord This Psalm is closely related to Psalms 104-106, but whilst Psalm 106 highlighted the feckless faith of the Israelites and their constant rebellions against the Lord God, these next 43 verses place greater emphasis on the faithfulness and unfailing love of the Lord for His people. Time and again, the Lord hears the cries of the Israelites, and He reaches down and saves them. Many commentators suspect that this was written after the Babylonian exile when a grateful Levite wanted to give the Lord the praise and thanks for His deliverance, and He contrasts this with the waywardness and disobedience of Israel.    V1         “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever.”  It would be easy to overlook these words and dismiss them as a familiar introduction to a Psalm. However, sometimes we need to stop and break down just what those familiar words are saying! “Give thanks to the Lord.”  This is not just a polite request for all believ

Psalm 106:48 Amen! Praise the Lord! What a journey we have been on in this Psalm! From verse 6 onwards we have studied the recalcitrant attitudes of the Israelites as opposed to the tender compassion of their God. Time and again they rebelled and brought punishments upon themselves. Time and again the Lord felt righteous anger towards them. Time and again they cried out in despair, and time and again the Lord responded in mercy and grace. This is a parable, played out in real time with real people at its heart; a parable that spans the centuries of human history when one tiny nation has been revealing to the whole world the depth of God’s love and His mercy towards those whom He has chosen. It’s a parable that is not just about people but about a land that He also loves; it tells us as much about the heart and character of God towards Israel, as the Gospels tell us about His heart and character towards all peoples. It’s a lesson we should never forget, especially when we feel unworthy,

Psalm 106:47 Save us, Lord our God. This has been the heart cry of all exiled Jews, over the centuries. Time and again, having suffered the indignities and the heartbreak of separation from both God and their homeland, these people have cried out,  “Save us, Lord our God, and gather us from the nations.”  And every time that heart cry has been heard in heaven, the Lord has  “remembered His covenant and out of His great love He has relented.”  The past 80 years or more have been no different as these seemingly “accursed” people have heard the call to return to their land and to be gathered back into the safe arms of their God. Sadly, they still ignore Him and disobey Him, as we have seen. And sadly, the surrounding still nations hate them, and most of the rest of the world have little time for their safety or their right to exist. These factors alone declare to us all that there is something different about God’s chosen people, that behind the stories repeated in the media, is a deeper

Psalm 106:46 Show them mercy Prior to the Dedication of the Temple, King Solomon prayed a powerful prayer for His people, it includes a plea that when the people sinned and were  “given over to their enemies”,  that the Lord would hear their cries and forgive and restore them. 1 Kings 8:46-53.  King Hezekiah had a similar request when he spoke to the people,  “If you return to the Lord, then your fellow Israelites and your children will be shown compassion by their captors and will return to this land, for the Lord your God is gracious and compassionate. (Echoes of Exodus 34) He will not turn His face from you if you return to Him.”  2 Chronicles 30:9. On his return from Babylon to Jerusalem, Ezra the priest prayed, “ Though we are slaves, our God has not forsaken us in our bondage. He has shown us kindness in the sight of the Kings of Persia: He has granted us new life to rebuild the house of our God and repair its ruins, and He has given us a wall of protection in Judah and Jerusalem

Psalm 106:44-45 Out of His great love He relented I have had cause, recently, to reflect in depth and teach about one of the greatest pronouncements found in the whole Bible. It comes when Moses had an audience with the Lord God on Mount Sinai, at the time the second or New Stone Tablets were written. “ Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him, and proclaimed His name, the Lord. And He passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin… …..” Exodus 34:5-7. These words, you may remember, were quoted in Psalm 103:8 and there is an echo of them here. Wickedness, rebellion and sin have characterised the Israelites for centuries, but the Lord still  “takes note of their distress and their cries, for their sake He remembers His covenant and out of His great love He relents .”         There are so many o

Psalm 106:43 They were bent on rebellion This Psalm has highlighted some of the best known of God’s interventions in the lives of the Israelites. Each time He has shown Himself to be true and trustworthy as He has rescued the people from natural disasters and the threats of their enemies, but the biggest challenge that the Lord has faced is to save the Israelites from themselves! That challenge is described here in this verse, “ Many times He delivered them, but they were bent on rebellion and they wasted away in their sin.”  Rebellion and sin were their biggest adversaries, God could save them from famine, disease and snake bites; He could rescue them from their mortal enemies, but He could not save them from themselves. Rebellion is the opposite to compliance, if people comply with God’s will and His laws, they will dwell in safety, and He will provide for their every need. However, it is very difficult for the Lord to keep putting Himself out for human beings who do not want His int

Psalm 106:42 Their enemies oppressed them The enemies of Israel were many and the tactics used against them varied too. Obviously, if another nation assembles an army and lines up its soldiers along your borders a fight is brewing, and it pays to be ready and to respond in kind. Sometimes the enemy tactics are just intimidatory and they would rather strike a deal, but that rarely seemed to be the case so far as Israel was concerned. No, they armed themselves and prepared for a violent and costly confrontation with a hostile force. Such conflicts have spattered the pages of human history for centuries and the threat of them is just as real today. There is another, more sinister, way of exploiting a nation and Israel’s enemies knew just how to do this. It is to pretend that you have come in peace. It involves making alliances and signing agreements. It is a casual but insidious means of bringing your culture and your beliefs into the core of your opponents’ territory. It’s about winning

Psalm 106:41 He gave them into the hands of the nations This Psalm has been a wake-up call about the way we view our relationship with the Lord God. We cannot say that we believe in Him and yet treat Him as if He were nothing. We cannot say that He is our God, but we barely speak to Him and are so easily tempted to pursue other, lesser gods. We cannot proudly declare that we love His Word and yet make that word a religious formula that has to be repeated and chanted but not obeyed. Faith is nothing if there are no works. How can believers wear their faith as a badge of respectability but still use God’s name in blasphemy and speak of Him as if He doesn’t exist? The list goes on, but it is right to declare that true faith affects every part of our being and every moment of our waking days, and true faith is not an outward expression of religion but an inner devotion, a relationship that surpasses all others.  Israel treated Yahweh with contempt at times, they certainly abandoned Him for

Psalm 106:40 The Lord abhorred His inheritance The next few verses (v40-43) tell us about the Lord’s anger against His people who constantly rebelled and disobeyed Him. The remainder of the Psalm (v44-48) reminds us that He still remembers His covenant and that He will not forsake His chosen people forever. Was the Lord right to vent His anger against the many rebellions that Israel subjected Him to? Leviticus 26:14-46 sets out some of the finer details of the covenant relationship between the Lord and His people and as you will see, they could not complain that they had not been warned! There are many warnings about the punishments that will be visited on those who disobey Him.  Perhaps it is a good moment to stop and think about our own relationships with Him. We know that He loves us. We know that we are chosen by Him,  “For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight.”  Ephesians 1:4 We have been adopted into God’s family and given the

Psalm 106:39 Defilement in God's eyes What does it mean to defile the land or to defile yourself? The word means to desecrate, profane or spoil in normal language. The deeper meaning of Scripture is that, in God’s eyes, the purity of something or someone He created is removed, it becomes unclean and unwholesome and thus cannot enter His presence or be blessed by His glory. Leviticus 18 contains a long list of prohibited sexual activities, including incestuous relationships, homosexuality, and sex with animals. Sacrificing children to Molech is also included and the Lord says,  “Do not defile yourselves in any of these ways, because this is how the nations that I am going to drive out before you become defiled.”  There is a warning that if the people practice these things, the land will vomit them out! Ezekiel 20:30-31 adds idolatry to the list of defilements.  “Therefore, say to the Israelites: “This is what the sovereign Lord says: Will you defile yourselves the way your ancestors

Psalm 106:37-38 They shed innocent blood “They sacrificed to demons, not God, gods they had never known  …..” is a correct letter-for-letter translation of the first part of Deuteronomy 32:17 where the phrase “false gods” is repeated. It should be made clear here that there are e lohim,  or other lesser gods, who are spiritual beings that inhabit the heavenly realms. Many of these are loyal and true to our God and there are many Scriptures that concur with this view. However, there are also evil powers or false gods who are opposed to the will of Yahweh. These are not just angels, the Hebrew Scriptures use a different word for angels,  malakim , which means messengers or watchers. The evil elohim, or false gods, are of course in the Satan’s employ and are created beings, possessed with free will, who have huge influence over the affairs of men.  The verses before us today show us just how far these “false gods” are prepared to go in their rebellion against the Lord God, but also how fi

Psalm 106:36 Idols are a snare The worship of pagan idols always ends in entrapment! The comments on v35 of this Psalm include the text of Exodus 23:33 where God warns that allowing pagan peoples to dwell in the land will,  “cause you to sin against me, because the worship of their gods will certainly be a snare to you. ” In Deuteronomy 7:16 the commands of the Lord to His people are strongly worded, “ You must destroy all the peoples the Lord your God gives over to you. Do not look on them with pity and do not serve their gods, for that will be a snare to you .” In Judges 8:27 we read that one of God’s chosen leaders got caught up in the snare after he had delivered Israel from the Midianites. After telling his people that he would not be their ruler but  “the Lord will rule over you”,  Gideon asked for earrings from the Midianite plunder to be given to him and obtained about 20 kilograms of gold.  “Gideon made the gold into an ephod (an object of worship), which he placed in Ophrah,

Psalm 106:34-35 They mingled with the nations! Another day, another failure on Israel’s part to obey the Lord God by faith. This time we find ourselves, at last, in the Land of Promise. The context of these verses covers a period of several hundred years including the time that this Psalm was being written. Listen to the words of the Lord spoken to Moses at Sinai, long before Canaan came into view.  “I will establish your borders from the Red Sea   to the Mediterranean Sea,   and from the desert to the Euphrates River.   I will give into your hands the people who live in the land, and you will drive them out   before you.     Do not make a covenant   with them or with their gods.     Do not let them live in your land or they will cause you to sin against me, because the worship of their gods will certainly be a snare   to you .” Exodus 23:31-33. The commands here could not be clearer, they describe the outer boundaries of the land that God gave to the Israelites, and they include instr