106:1-3 Praise the Lord, for He is good, for His mercy endures forever!
2 So say those who are redeemed by the Lord, whom he delivered from the hand of the enemy,
3 and gathered from the countries, from the east and the west, from the north and the sea.
And again the call to praise Jehovah: there is a reason, for His people have been delivered from the hands of the invaders and gathered from all nations. Actually, here it is said about all the redeemed by the Lord, not necessarily only about literal Israel - it is. The chanter knows that the people of Jehovah will be gathered from all nations, and this people will be delivered from the hand of both literal invaders and spiritual pests.

106:4-7 They wandered in the desert along a deserted path and did not find a populated city;
5 they endured hunger and thirst, their soul melted away in them.
6 But they cried to the Lord in their distress, and he delivered them from their distress,
7 and led them on a straight path to go to a populated city.
Here we can talk about Israel being led through the wilderness at the exit from Egypt and that God, although he punished them with the wilderness and did not want to see those who persist in their lusts - in the promised land, but, nevertheless, according to their cry for help he took care of them until the time of their life in the wilderness had expired, he did not leave them to the mercy of fate.

106:8 Let them praise the Lord for His mercy and for His wonderful works for the sons of men:
The chanter wants all the sons of men to praise God, but not just like that, but for his great deeds for people, so that they have the opportunity to find joy in life - even in this century. Many, alas, do not notice what God has already done for the sons of men and take the improvement of the earth for granted. Well, how, after all, read, the kings of nature, to assess the magnitude of God's deeds for them is not enough intelligence, but to spoil someone else's property - God's planet - is very easy to do.

106:9-11 for He satisfied the thirsty soul and filled the hungry soul with good things.
10 They sat in darkness and the shadow of death, chained with sorrow and iron;
11 for they did not obey the words of God, and neglected the will of the Most High.
But not only material goods are abundantly showered on man from God. Spiritual light has come for the hungry and thirsty on earth, for those sitting in complete ignorance and in complete spiritual darkness did not have the opportunity to enjoy life: the sorrows of this age darken all the ignorant.

All those who neglect the word of God and His instructions continue to sit in the darkness of ignorance, which is why they are shrouded in sorrows, as if behind prison bars they are trapped in troubles and no one can escape from them without enlightenment from God.

106:12 He humbled their hearts by their works; they stumbled, and there was no one to help.
God had no other choice but to show the disobedient people all the "charm" of independence from Him: sorrows and overwork - that's all the joy of those who are free from the Lord. When a person has the opportunity to compare the days of prosperity with the days of hopeless exhaustion, then it is easier for him to evaluate the days of prosperity and make his heart feel at least some gratitude to the One who provides them with prosperity. So God is forced to teach humanity to do good - through the knowledge of evil, to humble their "lordly" claims - by the need to work hard for themselves - on those days when He ceases to patronize them for their disobedience. Otherwise, the sons of men grow up - ungrateful and lustful consumers instead of grateful and loving sons of God.

So it is in life in the relationship between parents and children: those parents who do not accustom their children to independence and try to do everything instead of their children will inevitably reap ungrateful and cruel-hearted children, raising capricious “barchuks” out of them. In order to prevent this from happening, you need to take an example from God and stop patronizing your children at least periodically, especially during those periods of their lives when they are ungrateful and disobedient to their parents.

106:13 But they cried to the Lord in their sorrow, and He saved them from their calamities; And just as children, forced to live in difficult conditions for some time, eventually turn to their parents for help, so rebellious Israel also always turned to God when they no longer had the strength to endure difficulties. And God always came to their aid again and again in the hope that they would finally come to their senses and understand that there was no need to stumble against God's ways and act presumptuously.

106:14 brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and loosed their bands.
God can bring His human children out of spiritual and physical darkness, if a person would have a desire to get out of the wilds. And God is always ready to lend a helping hand.

106:15,16 Let them praise the Lord for His mercy and for His wonderful works for the sons of men:
16 For he has broken the gates of brass, and broken the bands of iron.
And how can such a God not be praised? Yes, we all simply have to constantly thank our God for the fact that He is patiently busy with all of humanity in the hope that at least someday we will come to our senses. That at least someday we will come to the correct conclusion that there is no one but God worthy of our devotion and love, for only He is always ready and able to help a person

106:17,18 The foolish suffered for their wicked ways and for their iniquities;
18 Their souls turned away from all food, and they drew near to the gates of death.
The reckless will always suffer from illness and approaching death, and this is fair: whoever bites the “hand” of the Giver of life and goodness will one day lose it, and no one will want to give anything to the reckless, neither health, nor wisdom, nor joy life - you can’t wait for such a thing from God (it doesn’t mean mental madness, but it means spiritual depravity so much that they don’t want to recognize Jehovah as their God). Recklessness here acts as a spiritual and moral, and not an intellectual or mental category.

106:19 But they cried to the Lord in their sorrow, and He saved them from their calamities;
And, it would seem, everything is clear and understandable with the reckless of the people of God. But as soon as they cried out to the Lord, He immediately picked up their cry, for he was waiting for their conversion, did not stop hoping that they would come to their senses: God does not want the death of people, and therefore is patient and merciful.

106:20 sent his word and healed them, and delivered them from their graves.
This text is prophetic about Christ Jesus, who rescued mankind from the shadow of death and freed it from the graves in the sense that thanks to the redemption, people have hope for healing and resurrection in the age to come.

106:21 May they praise the Lord for His mercy and for His wonderful works for the sons of men!
And we will all show blatant ingratitude if we do not feel the need to thank God and glorify Him for all the good that He does for each of us for the sake of our own well-being.

106:22 May they offer Him a sacrifice of praise and may they proclaim His deeds with singing!
Therefore, our hearts must urge us to praise the Lord and give thanks to Him all our days with the sacrifice of our lips and praise in His honor, and proclaim everywhere about His wonderful deeds for mankind.
Well, if we are not prompted to do this, and if our heart does not sing from thoughts about God - something is clearly wrong with us, and our heart comes out, stony, impenetrable or wrong, if we are obvious blessings from the Lord - notice do not want.

106:23-28 Going on ships to the sea, doing business on big waters,
24 they see the works of the Lord and his wonders in the deep:
25 He says, and a stormy wind rises and lifts its waves high:
26 ascend to heaven, descend to the abyss; their soul melts in distress;
27 they twirl and stagger like drunkards, and all their wisdom vanishes.
28 But they cried to the Lord in their affliction, and he brought them out of their distress.
Using the example of those traveling by sea, the psalmist showed here how it is possible to notice the miracles and help of God, for in the circumstances of the elements it is very difficult not to notice the good deeds of the Lord in salvation from the depths of the sea. For if a storm and a storm break out on the sea, then the smell of death is very clearly felt, and if God does not calm the elements and help to be saved, then there is no salvation from anyone else.
Sailors appreciate God’s care for themselves, and therefore they call for his help every time during disasters at sea, therefore they are grateful to Him, and therefore it is impossible to dissuade them that God does not help them if they survive after the storm.

106:29-31 He turns the storm into silence, and the waves fall silent.
30 And they rejoice that they are quiet, and He brings them to the desired harbor.
31 Praise the Lord for His mercy and for His wonderful works for the sons of men!
Sailors see how God calms every storm and calms the waves of the sea, how can they not sing the glory of the Lord and give praise for His wonders? Therefore, the singer calls to praise the Lord of all the sons of men, even if they have not yet encountered the breath of death: the Lord always has something to praise and praise for. If you think about it, of course, and not be a reckless animal.

106:32 May they exalt Him in the assembly of the people, and may they glorify Him in the assembly of the elders!
As you can see, the gathering of God's people has always taken place, and the elders in it - not by the whim of man, but by the will of God are, for this is how God arranged the society of His people in order to preserve order in it. Where there is no order, there is disorder and everything bad, there you can not see the well-being of the people.

So, the glory of the Lord is also appropriate in the assembly of God's people, there is no place on earth where it would be possible to keep silent about the God of miracles.

106:33,34 He turns rivers into desert and springs of water into dry land,
34 fertile land into salty soil, for the wickedness of those who dwell on it.
If the peoples who know God remain in wickedness and do not appreciate the works of God for them, God leaves their inheritance, and then the rivers of this inheritance will dry up, the earth will become salt, for without God's care everything sooner or later becomes worthless.

106:35-38 He turns the desert into a lake, and the dry land into springs of water;
36 and settles the hungry there, and they build a city to dwell in; 37 they sow the fields, they plant vineyards, which bring them abundant fruit.
38 He blesses them, and they multiply greatly, and their livestock does not diminish.
But for those who are hungry and thirsty for his word, God turns His eyes to the desolate places of the earth and revives them for the sake of these people. And it helps them to build cities, and life resumes where desertedness and devastation were fierce: the vineyards give their fruits, and the cattle multiply in that land, and the people of God prosper under the supervision of God. Where the eyes of the Lord are, there is life, abundance and happiness.

106:39,40 They decreased and fell from oppression, disaster and sorrow, -
40 He pours dishonor on the princes and leaves them to wander in the wilderness, where there is no way.
An interesting remark by the psalmist: disasters and sorrows and a decrease in the people often occur because of the princes of the people, therefore God is angry, first of all, with the princes of His people, and leaves them to wander in the spiritual wilderness, where there is no word of God and admonition to what way of life - get out of there. Therefore, princes most often do not accept the word of God's instruction, because they go into independent wandering of their minds.

106:41 He brings the poor out of distress and multiplies his family like a flock of sheep.
The rest of the people, who do not belong to the princes, and who are not carried away by their arrogance towards the spiritual desert - God himself strengthens, when there is no hope for the princes, finds a way to help them and multiply in number. This has always been the case with Jehovah's people. So it will be until the end of this age: if the princes become worthless, God finds another way to help those who are hungry and thirsty for His ways, but without hope and without help - He never leaves.

106:42 The righteous see this and rejoice, but all wickedness stops their mouths.
Those who know about this state of things from God will certainly see how He helps the “poor” of His people, the hungry and thirsty, finding a way to help them even without the wicked “princes”.
That is why they rejoice at the picture of God's help for those who seek Him. For through them God helps his people, through them he stops the mouth of the wickedness of the princes, showing the “poor” a way out of the spiritual wilderness of the “principality”, which has become wicked because of the wickedness of the princes.

106:43 Whoever is wise will notice this and understand the mercy of the Lord.
Not everyone will notice how God helps the "poor" and the poor in spirit from His people. But he who is wise among His people will certainly notice.

v.BOOK 5 (PSALMS 106-150)

Psalm 106: So say the redeemed

There is often behavior in the lives of God's people that can be summed up in the words of one of the following lists:

Sin or Disobedience

Slavery Retribution

Prayer Repentance

Salvation Revival

First, people move away from the Lord and live in disobedience to His Word. Then they suffer the bitter consequences of their apostasy. When they come to their senses, they cry out to the Lord and confess their sins. Then He forgives their sins and returns His blessing to them again. This is what happens in ancient history about the prodigal son, which is still familiar to us and relevant.

From observing this frequently repeated cycle, two main conclusions can be drawn. First, it is the conclusion that the human heart easily departs from the living God. Secondly, the fact that the mercy of the Lord, who restores people who come to Him with repentance, is truly unlimited.

Here in Psalm 107, the Lord's merciful deliverance is described in four different ways:

As the salvation of those lost in the wilderness (vv. 4-9)

As the release of the captives (vv. 10-16)

How Healing the Dangerously Sick (vv. 17-22)

As a sailor's deliverance from a terrible storm (v. 23-32).

Introduction (106:1-3)

First, in the introduction to the psalm, the theme is voiced. This is a call to praise the Lord. Two reasons are given for doing this: The Lord is good and His mercy endures forever. Each of these reasons would be enough for endless gratitude.

Further, a special class of people is singled out who accepted His goodness and love, namely, those who were delivered by Him from persecution, slavery, oppression and disasters and returned to their land from the world's dispersion. It is clear that the author of the psalm is talking about Israel, but we will not limit these words only to this people, since we too were redeemed from the slavery of sin and, as redeemed by the Lord, should join the thanksgiving choir.

Rescue of those lost in the wilderness (106:4-9)

This first image alludes to Israel's forty years of wandering through a lifeless and terrible desert. The people did not know the way. They endured hunger and thirst, were in despair and confusion. Then they cried out to the Lord in their sorrow, and their wanderings suddenly ended. The Lord led them on a straight path to the plains of Moab. From there they entered Canaan. And there they found a city where they could finally feel at home. How they (and all of us) should praise the Lord for His unquenchable love, for that wonderful care for His people, which He shows. In the promised land He satisfied the hungry and thirsty soul.

Release from prison (106:10-16)

106:10-12 The second episode in the history of Israel is connected with the Babylonian captivity. The author compares seventy years of captivity with a period of imprisonment. Babylon was like a gloomy, dark dungeon. The Israelites felt like prisoners in chains, condemned to painful slavery (although living conditions in Babylon were not as harsh as in Egypt). The Israelites went into exile because they rebelled against the words of God and neglected His Word. Exhausted and exhausted from hard work, they stumbled under the weight of the load, and no one supported them.

106:13-16 But when they cried out to the Lord, He rescued them from the land of darkness and broke the chains of bondage. Now they must praise the Lord for His unfailing love and for all the wonderful things He has done for them.

For He has broken the gates of brass and broken the bands of iron. This verse helps us understand that the psalmist is referring specifically to the Babylonian captivity. There are similar words in Isaiah 45:2, where the Lord almost exactly describes how He will end the captivity. He tells Kira:

I will go before you and level the mountains, I will crush the brass doors and break the iron bars.

Judging by the context, He meant the end of the Babylonian captivity.

Healing from a Serious Illness (106:17-22)

106:17-20 This third section may refer to the people of Israel at the time of the first coming of Christ. The people at that time were sick. The period of Maccabees, full of trials, has just ended. Some people were reckless and suffered God's judgment for their lawless ways. They had lost their appetite and were rapidly approaching the gates of death. The pious remnant of the people prayed and waited for the hope of Israel. God sent His word and healed them. His Word could be the Lord Jesus Christ, the Logos, who carried the ministry of healing in the house of Israel. How many times do we read stories in the Gospels that He healed everyone. Matthew reminds us that by healing the sick, the Savior fulfilled what the prophet Isaiah predicted: "He took upon Himself our infirmities and bore our sicknesses" (Matt. 8:17). If you object that not all of the Israelites were healed, we remind you that not all of them entered the promised land and not all of them returned from the Babylonian captivity.

Deliverance of a sailor from a terrible storm (106:23-32)

106:23-27 The last picture is the most descriptive. It describes sailors who serve on a large ocean-going ship. They know that the Lord controls the storms of the sea. First comes the strong wind. Then high uplifting gigantic waves are formed. The ship is rocking on the waves, its hull is cracking. He is lifted to the crest of the wave and thrown down. The most durable ship is like a matchbox in this boiling and foaming abyss. In such a storm, even the most experienced sailors lose their presence of mind. They can only twirl and stagger like drunks trying to do their job on the ship. They are seized with a keen awareness of their insignificance, and all their wisdom disappears.

106:28-30 It is not surprising that sailors, who are often blasphemous and godless, begin to pray at such a moment. And the Lord is gracious enough to hear these desperate prayers. He turns the storm into silence, and the waves fall silent. What a relief! People are able to sail the ship again and soon arrive at the port to which they set off.

106:31, 32 The sailors, feeling relieved, do not forget to thank the Lord for His constant mercy and all the wonderful answers to the prayers that He sends. They fulfill their vows by praising Him with the believers, praising Him in the assembly of the elders.

Are we exaggerating when we say that we are talking about the last storm that awaits Israel and their subsequent entry into the kingdom of peace? The storm is the period of the Great Tribulation. The sea symbolizes the restless pagan peoples. The sailors are the people of Israel who disturb other nations during Jacob's troubles. The believing remnant of the people cries out to the Lord. Then He intervenes personally, returns to earth to establish His kingdom of peace and prosperity.

The government and grace of God (106:33-43)

106:33, 34 The remaining verses of this psalm explain how God reacts to the disobedience of His people and their return to obedience. He is omnipotent, He dries up the rivers and causes the seething streams to evaporate. It costs Him nothing to turn a fertile land into a salt desert when people turn away from Him.

106:35-38 But He can also reverse this process. This will happen when the Prince of Peace returns to rule the earth during the Millennium. The Negev desert will be filled with abundant water sources. The Sahara will become a flowering garden. In places that have been uninhabited for centuries, settlements will appear. Modern cities will appear everywhere. The desert will suddenly become land suitable for cultivation. Grains, vegetables, fruits and berries will grow in abundance in it. Thanks to God's blessing, the harvest will be huge and the number of livestock will increase greatly.

106:39-43 The other side of the picture is His judgment on sinful rulers. Tyrants have lost their strength and humiliated themselves under the yoke of misfortune and sorrow; He brings dishonor on the princes and leaves them to wander in the wilderness without roads (vv. 39, 40, NAB).

Such was the fate of the pharaoh, Herod and Hitler, and so will end the career of the triumvirate of evil during the Great Tribulation.

But God frees the poor from misfortune and blesses them with a large family. Seeing this, the righteous rejoice. The wicked, when they see this, have nothing to say (which is not typical for them).

The one who is wise sees the hand of God in the changes in the destinies of people and nations, he learns from the lessons of history and contemporary events. He especially thinks of the mercy of the Lord in His dealings with those who keep His Word.

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Interpretation of Psalm 106

Book V (Psalms 106-150)

Of these 44 psalms, 15 belong to David (107-109; 123; 130; 132; 137-144), one was written by King Solomon (Ps. 126), the remaining 28 are anonymous.

This psalm is a call to praise the Lord, addressed to the delivered and delivered by Him not only "from the hand of the enemy" (verse 2), but also from many other painful circumstances that are listed in the course of the psalm. In the same (or very similar) phrases (verses 6, 13, 19, 28) it is emphasized that God delivered the Jews every time they called on Him for help.

Ps. 106:1-3. Judging by verses 2-3, this psalm, whose author is unknown, was created shortly after the return of the Jews from the Babylonian captivity (obviously, even before the construction of the 2nd temple, which is not mentioned here).

In verse 3 - a symbolic indication (from the east and west, from the north to the deliverance of the Jews from the countries of their dispersion, from where they were again gathered to Palestine. From pestilence in this verse, obviously, implies their first exodus - from Egypt, their crossing of the Red Sea .

Ps. 106:4-9. A figurative description of Israel's wandering in the wilderness and deliverance by the Lord, Who, in the end, satiated the thirsty soul, and filled the hungry soul with good things.

Ps. 106:10-16. Here is about the liberation of the captives bound by grief and iron. The reason for their evil fate until the moment of release is stated in verse 11. It is suggested in the Hebrew Khartoum that Ps. 106:10-16 refers to the capture by the Babylonians of the Jewish king Zedekiah and his associates. (The old word verei is used here to mean "bars" or "bars".)

Ps. 106:17-22. It is believed that these verses refer to the healing of "reckless sinners" stricken with a serious illness. They were already approaching the gates of death (verse 18). But they cried to the Lord... and He saved them... (verse 19). Isn't that a reason to praise Him! (verses 21-22).

Ps. 106:23-32. The psalmist describes the rescue of sailors from a terrible storm. ("Those who do business in high waters" (v. 23) are understood by some as seafaring merchants.) Having lost all hope of salvation, they cried to the Lord in their distress, and He brought them out of their distress. It is easy to see that this phrase, with slight modifications, sounds like a refrain throughout Psalm 106.

Ps. 106:33-38. If until now the psalmist spoke of the deliverance of the Lord from disasters (those who cry out to Him) as a reason to glorify Him, now he names another reason for this: His guardianship of the world, wise management of it.

Great is the power of the Lord over nature. A colorful illustration of this is in verses 33-38. For the wickedness of those who live on earth, He is able to turn fertile soil into saline soil (compare Deut. 29:23-28), and dry up springs of water. But the desert, on the other hand, turns at the will of Her into the earth, abundantly moistened with water and giving excellent harvests. And he settles the hungry there, and this land is settled, blessed by God (verses 36-38).

Ps. 106:39-43. Evidently, verse 39 implies a connection between the prosperity of a people and its moral and spiritual condition. As he, living well, falls into pride and loses the feeling of his dependence on God, oppression, disasters and sorrows are allowed to him. His "princes" suffer dishonor (verse 40); the second part of verse 40 can be understood both literally and in figuratively the words.

The "poor" in verse 41 and the righteous in verse 42 seem to reflect the same concept: a humble, obedient people; such He rescues from distress, blesses with multiplication of offspring. A wise man, the psalmist remarks in verse 43, cannot fail to notice this pattern.