Psalm 107

1 Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!

2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he has redeemed from trouble [from the hand of the foe]

3 and gathered in from the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south.

The very first verse sets up a theme for the entirety of Book 5 -- “Praise YHWH for his redeeming acts of love.” This phrase “His steadfast love endures forever” is repeated 26 times in Psalm 136 alone. This psalm describes God’s redemption in four different contexts, all of which we can identify with either literally or figuratively. The second verse then summons the redeemed to tell the story of God’s redemption. He has redeemed them from the hand of the foe (the more literal translation). To redeem someone is to purchase them out of ownership by someone else. When another person has a claim on your life, you need to be redeemed in order to be free. In this sense, God redeemed his people many times over -- from foreign nations who held them captive to difficult situations that left them trapped. Not only did he set them free from that which enslaved them, but he gathered them from every place and made them a community -- their isolation ended and their life together began. They came from every direction -- the east (the sunrise), the west, the north, and the south (Lit. “the sea” - perhaps a reference to the Red Sea which has arms that wrap around the Sinai peninsula). Like the four directions from which people are gathered, the psalmist will describe four situations from which people needed redemption. While they are literal experiences, they all point to spiritual realities as well. The spiritual reality of these opening three verses is that people of all nations, from every direction on earth can experience the redemptive steadfast love of God. The psalmist may have been thinking of the Jewish people here, but the implications for the whole world are there as well. The church consists of people from every direction of the globe, all purchased by the redeeming blood of Jesus, blood-bought and free to follow him wholeheartedly, singing, “Give thanks to the LORD for he is good, his steadfast love endures forever.” It is a song that we should sing every day, never tiring of that amazing good news, never taking it for granted as old news, and constantly looking for new ways to share it with those who are enslaved. 

4 Some wandered in desert wastes, finding no way to a city to dwell in;

5 hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them.

The first group of people described in the psalm are homeless desert wanderers, hungry and thirsty, looking for a home. This could be a reference to the nation of Israel and their 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, but I think it is more general than that. There was then as there is now, a segment of the population that for various reasons are destitute. They own nothing except the clothes on their back and they go from place to place surviving on the kindness of others and their own wits. There are homeless encampments in our cities, and certainly throughout the world there are those who are desperately poor, wandering from place to place in search of food and shelter. The circumstances vary -- refugees from war and violence, outcasts from their family and community, victims of political and economic oppression, perhaps even criminals on the run. The causes of poverty are many and persistent. Despite the work that has been done and the money that has been expended, the poor are always with us. Even as I write this today in my comfortable home, I know that there are people living on the streets of my city, camped in the parks and woods, going from shelter to shelter for food, caught in a cycle that seems to be unbreakable. The church is on the frontlines of this struggle, and progress is measured one changed life at a time. It is slow-going, but the gospel is good news for the poor, and faithful Christians are speaking and embodying the gospel for the poor in our community. For that I am grateful and willingly join them in doing my part. What we cannot do is give up. The poor are with us, in part, for our sake, so that we can exercise gratitude and charity as our response to the love of God. 

6 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.

7 He led them by a straight way till they reached a city to dwell in.

The homeless wanderers reached the end of their road and their resources and then cried out to YHWH. This is often where we have to wind up before things turn around. People speak of hitting the absolute rock bottom before having the motivation to truly act in a way that brings about change. There is often some crisis that precipitates change -- a private sin is made public, the addiction destroys every meaningful relationship in your life, the diagnosis comes with a terminal prognosis. The homeless wanderer decides that he wants a home, a family, a future and so he cries out to the LORD and He delivers them from their distress. He leads them in a straight way, (Hebrew: right way) until they arrive at a city in which to live. God saves them when they allow themselves to be led by Him in the right way. They still have to pick up their feet and move. They have to remain on course. They have to make the choice to get up every morning and keep moving forward on the journey. And when they reach the city, they find that there are others who have been on the same journey and now they are all in community together. The city here is viewed in a positive light, a community of mutual support, where all are blessed by the presence of one another. While human will and effort are required in this journey, the force of the psalm is on the love of the LORD that facilitates it. We cannot reform ourselves on our own. We can’t live well in community with other humans without following the way of the LORD. Jesus is the way, the right way, the straight way to the Father. No one gets to the Father except through Jesus. The church is that city, a destination and refuge for homeless wanderers. Jesus all but declared this in his sermon on the mount: “All ya’ll are the light of the world. A city set on a hill that cannot be hidden.” (Matthew 5:16) Let the redeemed of the LORD be a light that shines when all other lights go out, leading the prodigals home. 

8 Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man!

9 For he satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things.

What a sweet verse! Giving thanks for the steadfast love of the LORD is a major thread through Book 5 and this psalm launches that theme so beautifully. The LORD’s love is expressed in the wonderful things that he does on behalf of the children of man (lit. sons of Adam). Anytime the word “Adam” is used, I can’t help but think of the original Adam, made in the image of God but marred by pride. And yet, God still did marvelous things for him and his children. This is the story of the Bible. In verse nine, the first thing that God does for us is that he satisfies the longing soul and fills the hungry soul with good things. The soul is literally the “throat” or “breath” of a person, but it means more than that of course. It’s one of those words that is associated with the foundation of who we are, our deepest, inmost being (Psalm 103:1 gives us that parallel). God satisfies our deepest desires and needs with good things (Psalm 103:5). The homeless wanderer may have simply been looking for his next meal and a roof over his head, but God surprises him marvelously by meeting a deeper need -- that of relationship with his creator. This is our deepest need. It was what we were made for. Adam and Eve were made for relationship with each other and with God. Both of those relationships were shattered by pride. The fact that God worked to restore those relationships is the greatest evidence of his steadfast love. He did this through all the complexities of human relationships and history, harnessing man’s free will to accomplish his sovereign purposes. The gospel is so amazingly beautiful in its simplicity, scope, and effect that it can’t help but be true. Reality demonstrates the proposition of the psalmist -- “He satisfies the longing soul and the hungry soul he fills with good things.” Have you satisfied your soul in God or do you look to fill it with other things? Are you lost in the wilderness, looking for a city, not even realizing your own hunger? I think this describes many people. They do not know they are lost because they know where they are (they just don’t know that they need to be somewhere else). They don’t know that they’re hungry because they are inhaling junk food and it gives them a short-term sugar high, but then leaves them lifeless. Fasting is one of the ways that we can get in touch with this hunger for God, our physical hunger reminding us of our poverty and need for ultimate fulfillment. 

10 Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, prisoners in affliction and in irons,

11 for they had rebelled against the words of God, and spurned the counsel of the Most High.

12 So he bowed their hearts down with hard labor; they fell down, with none to help.

This may be referring to some of the exiles in Babylon. While most of the people would not have been imprisoned, it’s possible that some would have been political prisoners. The ancient world didn’t look to prisons to reform but to punish and to deter. They weren’t designed for comfort or transformation of the soul. Debtors, criminals awaiting trial and political prisoners were kept in chains. The phrase “shadow of death” is the same as that of Psalm 23:4, the realm through which YHWH shepherds us. This is the worst place on earth to be. Cold, hungry, alone, hopeless, wasting days and years of your life in meaninglessness -- this was (and still is) the lot of those who are imprisoned. Conditions in modern prisons are somewhat better from a comfort standpoint, but not from a soul standpoint. It must be soul-crushing to be locked up for years, living with such limitations while the rest of the world goes on with its ordinary lives. It is still one of the worst places on earth to live, and most of us seldom think about those who are living there. They got there (for the most part) because they have rebelled against the words of God. That was true in the days of the psalmist (the Jews were captive in Babylon because of their disobedience), and it’s true of our prisons today. While the reasons for crime are many, one of the components is certainly a willful disregard for the laws of God and the laws of society that are founded on the laws of God. The consequence of disobedience is limitation to freedom. This is the great lie of sin: “break this law, cross this boundary and you will be free.” Actually, you’ll find yourself in a prison of your own making. The hope is that this experience can be redemptive, that the bowing of your heart, the loneliness of your soul will cause you to look up for help and hope. No normal person delights in giving someone else punishment. We’d rather show kindness (unless we’re messed up). I take it that God doesn’t enjoy it either, but it is necessary to teach the soul so that we may experience the life that God desires, becoming convinced that his ways are true freedom, that living in alignment with the way we were made is better than getting crossways with it.  

13 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.

14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and burst their bonds apart.

Like the homeless hungry wanderer, the prisoners hit bottom and cried out to the LORD. Realizing that there was no way out of the prison, they turned to the one who promised to be with them through the darkest valley and under the shadow of death itself. Recalling the language of Psalm 23:4, the psalmist describes God’s enlightening of the prisoner that resulted in the bursting of their bonds. This may be a reference to the end of the Babylonian exile, but I think it’s more than that. I think this speaks to all those that have been incarcerated, up to the present. It also speaks to those who are trapped in prisons of their own making. It addresses those who have been enslaved by their own freedom. They’ve chosen to follow their heart, which is deceitful above all things, and they have wrecked their bodies and their minds with substances and behaviors that have corrupted them in every way. There are addictions, behaviors, and ways of thinking that leave us trapped in a type of bondage that is stronger than prison walls and chains. There are men and women incarcerated today who are freer than those who are on the outside, because they are in control of themselves and they’re placed themselves in the control of God. Verse 14 also reminds us of Psalm 2:3 where the rebellious rage against the restrictions of natural law. “Let us throw off the chains and fetters!” they say, demanding to live in a way that goes against nature and nature’s God. Then they are surprised to find themselves in even stronger bonds. God is a chain-breaker, literally and figuratively. He gave Samson a second chance. He took Joseph from a prison to a palace. Jesus cast an army of demons out of man that had been bound by them. Paul and Silas walked out of the Philippian prison, bringing a saved family with them. Don’t doubt that God will do the same today -- whether literal or spiritual. He brings us out of darkness and into his glorious light, setting us free from our addictions and bondage to sin.

15 Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man!

16 For he shatters the doors of bronze and cuts in two the bars of iron.

The appropriate response to God’s marvelous deliverance is to give thanks to the LORD for his steadfast love. This is the theme of the psalm, the chorus if you will, that the psalmist returns to again and again. It should be ours as well. Once again, these wondrous works are done for the sons of Adam, the man who initially exchanged the boundaries that God established for the alluring freedom of god-likeness. He got snookered, but God began his rescue plan immediately. In dramatic fashion, God shatters the doors of bronze and cuts the bars of iron in half. Bronze doors were used at city gates and bars of iron (the strongest metal of the time) were placed across the back to secure them. Battering rams were used by invading armies, but God just cuts these bars in half like he’s got some kind of cutting torch. Nothing in the ancient world could cut an iron bar in half. They had to be melted down in order to be shaped. This action was supernatural, beyond what humans were capable of. It’s a reminder that we do not have the capacity to save ourselves. We can’t open the bronze gate that entraps us and we can’t slice the iron bar that holds it secure. We need help from above, from outside of ourselves. We got into this mess by looking to ourselves. We will get out of it by looking to God. So when God lets us out of our prison, let’s not forget to give thanks to him, not only in our words expressed in prayer and worship, but in the way that we live our lives, refusing to return to the prison cell that he has released us from. 

17 Some were fools through their sinful ways, and because of their iniquities suffered affliction;

18 they loathed any kind of food, and they drew near to the gates of death.

The third group of people described in the psalm are those who made foolish moral choices. These weren’t stupid people, in fact they may have been brilliant. But their choice to refuse the wisdom of God resulted in harmful consequences. Their afflictions were directly related to their moral decisions. Examples of this are abundant today -- gluttony, sloth, lust, greed, pride, envy and wrath -- all of them result in negative physical, psychological and spiritual effects. Reflect on each of them and one can imagine the personal and relational destruction that they cause. The psalmist focuses on physical illness, disease that is rooted in lifestyle choices. The result in this case was loss of appetite and a wasting away of the body to the point that they were near death. Whether a specific disease can be cited or not isn’t important. The principle is there. Sin wrecks us. The choices that we make every day, for good and bad, shape us for every day that follows. Some of those choices can be deadly or at least life-shortening. The gates of death are a metaphor found throughout the ancient world and in the Old Testament. They are the doors through which everyone enters and from which there is no return. They take us to the realm of the dead, a place that we know nothing about with any certainty. We trust the authority of scripture to inform us, but we have no firsthand knowledge. Because of the resurrection of Jesus we have a more certain hope that resurrection is possible. The New Testament makes it clear that there is life beyond these gates, a reunion with the saints and everlasting life in the presence of the Father. This is not the expectation of the psalmist who is describing people who are approaching those gates with no hope. Like those who are homeless and imprisoned, the sin sick are in need of a savior. 

19 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.

20 He sent out his word and healed them, and delivered them from their destruction.

Like others before them, the sin sick recognized their dire situation and cried out to YHWH. Staring death in the face, watching their body waste away, having no energy to go on living, they finally asked God for help, and he delivered them from their distress. He spoke a word and they were healed. His voice commanded the cosmos into existence and it has the same power of creativity and rebirth today. This is the Hebrew word rapha. God is a healer. And so when Jesus came on the scene and began healing, even from a distance at the command of his word, thoughtful people may have made the connection to this psalm. They had seen Jesus serve the poor and the prisoner, and now he was healing the sick. He delivered them from their self-created destruction. He saved them from themselves. This third vignette is a description of the physical effects of sin. The homeless wanderer and the prisoner were cut off from the community, but the sin sick individual is at war with their body in a sense. Jesus healed every kind of physical wound and social division when he walked on the earth. He was bringing heaven down to earth, showing us the world as it was meant to be. The gospel has the power to do this today as well. Rather than complain about the world, do something about it by advancing the gospel, letting people know that there is a savior who hears their cry and can deliver them from their destruction.

21 Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man!

22 And let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving, and tell of his deeds in songs of joy!

For the third time in this psalm the refrain rings out. The redeemed respond with joyful thanksgiving at the working out of YHWH’s steadfast love on behalf of the sons of Adam. This gratitude is expressed in words of thanks and songs of joy. It doesn’t mention a time or place, so we are to assume that this is simply a spontaneous call to thanksgiving that should be expressed naturally. The refrain is echoed in Hebrews 13:15 where the writer says, “Through Jesus then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name.” This action follows the teaching about Jesus going outside the city and suffering for us. It is out of gratitude for His sacrifice and demonstration of YHWH’s steadfast love that we respond with thanksgiving. The Hebrews passage also mentions the people of God wandering and looking for a city, reminiscent of the first stanza of this psalm. Rather than offer the cultic sacrifices of animals, we are to sacrifice the sacrifice of thanksgiving (that’s the Hebrew expression). The beautiful thing about this is that it’s much easier than slaughtering an animal but it’s also more difficult because it must be genuine. It’s possible to go through the motions and complete the cultic sacrifice while maintaining a distant and disobedient heart. This psalm calls for genuine worship that springs from gratitude. It can’t be stopped, controlled, or manipulated in any way. It is a spontaneous outpouring of gratefulness in response to the works of God. Not only are we to give thanks, but we are to tell of his deeds in song. Write songs that tell what God has done -- gospel-centered, God-centered music that doesn’t just focus on how the worshiper feels but on who God is and what he has done. That is certainly the theme of this song as the chorus has now expressed for the third time. 

23 Some went down to the sea in ships, doing business on the great waters;

24 they saw the deeds of the LORD, his wondrous works in the deep.

The fourth and final stanza is an extended version of the first three. Here the environment YHWH saves from and through is the ocean. Seafaring has always been a dangerous business and remains so today. The fact is that human beings were not made for the sea. We must breathe air and stand on something solid and the ocean offers neither of these. It is a foreign environment that can kill us within minutes. So you have to admire the courage of anyone who ventures out into its realm. That must have been even more true in the ancient times when navigation technology was in its infancy. Weather was unpredictable and when bad weather struck there was not much you could do about it except strap in and bail water. Ancient mariners saw the wonders of the deep no doubt, huge creatures that would occasionally surface -- whales, great white sharks, perhaps a giant squid -- these became the stuff of legends. They also experienced the tremendous power of storms, winds and waves that could swamp a boat and kill everyone aboard, sending their cargo to the seafloor. Ships went out and never returned. It was dangerous work that men engaged in to enrich their lives. Working on the sea could give a person wisdom and a deep respect for the power of God and humility when contemplating the vastness, beauty, and power of the ocean. It is still true today. People are drawn to beaches and bodies of water. They take cruises, transport cargo and occasionally battle with one another around the world. Anyone that takes a moment to contemplate that they are floating on the surface of a deadly environment should be humbled and recognize that their life is in God’s hands. 

25 For he commanded and raised the stormy wind, which lifted up the waves of the sea.

26 They mounted up to heaven; they went down to the depths; their courage melted away in their evil plight;

27 they reeled and staggered like drunken men and were at their wits' end. [Hebrew and all their wisdom was swallowed up]

The amazing beauty and depth of the ocean in the previous verse gives way to the sheer terror that is the sea as well. YHWH commanded and raised the stormy wind which lifted up the waves of the sea. They are described as ascending to the heavens and then dropping to the depths of the sea. I’ve seen videos of massive ships being swamped by gargantuan waves, so this isn’t completely hyperbolic. I’ve seen Coast Guard cutters rise and fall dramatically in swells that are tens of feet high, so imagine doing that in a wooden sailing vessel in the 5th century BC. It was the ride of your life and likely your very death as well. There is a sense that you are at the complete mercy of the sea. One wave could swamp the boat, wash you overboard and your life is over, your body lost forever. The sailors try to maintain their balance by running from side to side and shifting their weight, but it is as useless as a drunk man trying to stand up straight. Their condition is summed up with these words, “their wisdom is swallowed up.” Not only is the sea threatening to swallow their bodies, but it has engulfed their wisdom as well. There is nothing they can do, helpless against the power of the sea and the God who animates it. The wild ride at sea can be understood metaphorically as any situation that throws you off balance and threatens to engulf your life and your thinking. Sudden news of the death of a loved one, a terminal diagnosis, being victimized in some way -- these are but some of the ways that we stagger while riding the ship of life. Massive waves of events beyond our control cause us to rise and fall and push us from side to side. There is no soundness, no sure footing, no certainty that we will see another day. It is about as dire as it gets. In this world we will have trouble. It’s not a matter of if, but when. Who is your captain? He is the same one who commands the winds and the waves. 

28 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.

29 He made the storm be still, and the waves of the sea were hushed.

30 Then they were glad that the waters [Hebrew they] were quiet, and he brought them to their desired haven.

Like the three groups before them, the sailors cried out to the LORD in their trouble and He delivered them from their distress. Verse 29 is literally, “He arose (stood), the storm to calmness, so that are silent its waves.” The same voice that commanded the storm to rise (v. 25) is also the one that commands it to be still. The sailors let out shouts of joy when the waves stilled because they knew they would live to see another day. Their terrors are over and soon they will home with their families, asleep in safety. The “desired haven” of verse 30 is described using the Hebrew word “delightful, pleasurable”. If this experience is a metaphor for life, the ultimate delightful haven is heaven itself. Even trauma of death on the sea cannot not prevent the believer from experiencing the delights of heaven. It is what is on the other side of the pain and fear in life. For the believer, there is always calm after the storm -- whether YHWH ends the storm or brings us through it into his glorious presence in death. Either way, He is the great captain of our souls, our pleasure and delight in life and death. One cannot help but see Jesus in this psalm, the parallel to what Jesus did on two occasions in the gospels is too obvious to be missed. The disciples on the Sea of Galilee were afraid for their lives while Jesus slept in the boat. When they finally woke him up, he rebuked the waves with the words, “Peace, be still”, and just like that calm returned. At that moment the text says that the disciples feared a great fear. They were terrified because they had witnessed nothing less than the power of YHWH. Jesus was doing what only God could do. They knew this psalm and now they had lived it, and they were convinced that Jesus was more than just an exceptional rabbi. He was YHWH in the flesh. And just like the sailors in the psalm, Jesus brought the disciples to their desired haven. (In one case it happened to be a cemetery inhabited by a demon-possessed man, [Mark 5], but still, at least they were alive and with Jesus, even in a dark, death-filled place. You are never alone and you need not fear when Jesus is your captain. 

31 Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man!

32 Let them extol him in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders.

When the sailors return from their voyage they go to church. They return to worship in the congregation of the people, rightfully expressing their thanks to the LORD for his steadfast love. Like the others before them they have reason to celebrate and give credit to YHWH for his miraculous intervention in their lives. The reasonable response to salvation from the LORD is public worship. We should want others to know what God has done for and through us. This is good for us and edifying for the saints. Some of the most memorable worship moments I’ve had have come on the heels of dramatic experiences of God’s work in my life. I recall coming home from missions trips and that first Sunday back feeling so alive and full of faith, weeping as I sang the truth about God. I recall worshiping when my heart was aching for various reasons and being overwhelmed with confidence that God was going to redeem all things. The command in verse 32 is to “make much” of YHWH in the congregation. Do I actively do this or do I just go through the motions out of habit? Is God elevated in my heart? Do I recount his deeds on my behalf? Is my mind listing the many things for which I should give him thanks? Quicken my mind and bring these wonderful deeds of salvation to the forefront of my attention so that every time I worship, genuine heartfelt gratitude is expressed. 

33 He turns rivers into a desert, springs of water into thirsty ground,

34 a fruitful land into a salty waste, because of the evil of its inhabitants.

This is a classic statement of reversal, found in the psalms and in prophetic literature. YHWH has the power to undo the created order because he’s the one that ordered it to begin with. Anything that He has done can be undone. Here it is stated in the negative. He takes watered land and turns it into desert. He takes fruitful land and makes it a salty wasteland. The reason for this is the evil of the inhabitants of the land. To the south and east of Judah the Dead Sea basin functions like a great drain from the entire Jordan valley. Water flows down from the mountains to the north, through the Sea of Galilee, finally ending up in the Dead Sea where it evaporates. It’s the lowest spot on the surface of the earth so nothing drains from it. Historically there were cities along its eastern shore, taking advantage of the salt deposits for commerce as well as mining for other minerals. These cities were destroyed by fire from heaven, and it was seen as judgment from God for their wickedness -- specifically for their violation of sexual mores. They became a sign to Israel of what could happen to them if they didn’t observe the Torah. A disordered moral universe invites destruction as surely as a disordered physical world does. For the last fifty years or so there has been much greater concern for the environment of the planet. We should care for the environment and steward its resources well, no doubt. But many care far more about the physical environment of the planet than its moral environment. Younger generations pride themselves today on their concern for the environment while flaunting moral laws that are wrecking their lives and causing relational and societal breakdown. Great lands and countries can become wastelands through the wickedness of their inhabitants. Don’t think that it can’t happen where you live. We are talking about spiritual laws here that are as inviolable as physical ones. A vibrant, fruitful, life-giving culture can become a barren wasteland if moral realities are ignored and replaced with self-created ones. I fear that is what the West has become, a culture divorced from the life-giving water and fruitful soil of the moral laws that once sustained it. Choosing our own reality figuratively (the Metaverse) and literally (self-identification as one of 50+ genders) is a recipe for the death of a society. The psalmist sees the hand of God in bringing down fruitful societies, but it is the cultures that come down under the weight of their own pride. 

35 He turns a desert into pools of water, a parched land into springs of water.

36 And there he lets the hungry dwell, and they establish a city to live in;

37 they sow fields and plant vineyards and get a fruitful yield.

38 By his blessing they multiply greatly, and he does not let their livestock diminish.

The reversal can happen in the opposite direction as well. YHWH can turn a desert into pools of water, parched land into springs. The greening of the land is another common prophetic motif, a picture of what God’s blessing looks like for a society. With a fruitful land, the population can grow, children survive childhood because they have food to eat. Mothers are fruitful as well because they are healthier. As the population grows, cities grow. Community and culture can flourish as they become prosperous. There is more time and resources for artistic and educational endeavors. This productivity leads to greater productivity, to multiplication of resources. It is a good thing. It is the world as God designed it, humans stewarding the resources of the earth to make it a better place for everyone. It’s not a matter of luck and just happening to receive God’s blessing, simply being in the right place at the right time. The Torah tells us how to live and how to order society for maximum fruitfulness personally and corporately. The extent to which a people live according to the revealed wisdom of the Creator is the primary determiner in their success and flourishing. This wisdom of the ages has been tossed aside these days and in its place we selectively follow the wisdom of “the science”. I say selectively because there is a lot of data that science provides that is just flat ignored because we don’t want to do it. For example, there is abundant evidence of the importance of a two parent, mom and dad led family. The benefits for adults and children are some of the most well documented findings of social science today, and yet public policy and popular culture doesn’t promote family formation, fidelity in relationships, or permanent identities for anyone. Our arrogance is leading to the desiccation of society, the fruitful soil is drying out and toxic salt is replacing it. There is hope in the potential of reversal that YHWH offers if we will surrender our hubris and follow his ways.

39 When they are diminished and brought low through oppression, evil, and sorrow,

40 he pours contempt on princes and makes them wander in trackless wastes;

41 but he raises up the needy out of affliction and makes their families like flocks.

The reversal of the environment from flourishing to famine is mirrored in the reversal of social status. Nations are humbled through oppression, evil and sorrow -- presumably brought on by themselves. This affects everyone from the top down. Princes who are destined to inherit power and glory are made to wander in trackless wastes. These places are described with the same word that’s used in Genesis 1:2, “formless”, suggesting a complete loss of order in society and a reversal of hierarchy. In contrast to this, YHWH raises the needy up out of affliction and causes their families to flourish. The blessing of numerous children is described here as flocks, and it was indeed seen as a blessing in the ancient world. Today a “flock of children” might be seen as strange, pitiful, or a danger to the planet depending on one’s perspective. However, children remain one of the greatest blessings from God, regardless of what our upside culture says. Conceived in love, they are evidence of the miraculous power of God. They reflect his glory (from the mouths of infants and children you’ve ordained praise), and they teach us to love unconditionally. They keep us future-oriented and they allow us to have some level of immortality as we pass our genes and characteristics on to them as their parents. It’s fascinating that according to this text, the blessing God bestows on the needy is children. That’s not the type of blessing that the health and wealth gospel people normally focus on. Nor is it the blessing that our self-centered modern culture pursues as well. It’s one of those things that we’ve gotten incredibly wrong about in the modern world. 

42 The upright see it and are glad, and all wickedness shuts its mouth.

43 Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things; let them consider the steadfast love of the LORD.

When we see God turn things upside down our response is determined by our perspective. The upright see it and they’re glad. It is a cause for celebration when the needy and afflicted prosper while those who oppress others find themselves on the outside, fallen into a pit they dug themselves. Those who were on the giving end of wickedness are speechless. They are stunned that their world has been turned upside down and they have nothing to say. Surprise, shock, disbelief -- this is the reaction to divine transformation by those who haven’t experienced it. It doesn’t fit their paradigm. Their worldview doesn’t have room for it. In Hebrew the phrase is literally, “all wickedness shuts [its] mouth.” Mouths that have been spewing arrogance and deceit are zippered by truth that even they cannot deny. In Psalm 63:11 the psalmist says that “the king shall rejoice in God; all who swear by him shall exult, for the mouths of liars will be stopped.” We look forward to the day when this word is completed and truth reigns supreme. One thing is clear from watching the news for more than five minutes -- wickedness is a loud mouth, evil has a megaphone that amplifies its deceit to the ruin of many. There will come a day when this world system is undone and for those who live by truth, it will be a good day, a day of rejoicing. The wise person should take all of this to heart today -- God’s salvation of the homeless, the sinsick, the prisoner, and the seafaring sailor. He saves them completely from their circumstances and places them safely in a city with others who have been so saved. The foundation of this action of God is his steadfast love, his promise of enduring faithfulness that seeks our good. It is the kindness of God that leads us to repentance, knowing his great love for us compels us to do what is reasonable and rational -- sacrifice all for him in return. Consider God’s salvation today -- yours and those in your life. Rejoice and be wise.