Psalms 107:20
Ver. 20. He sent his word, and healed them,.... It was his will and pleasure they should be healed, and accordingly they were; he issued his orders for the removal of the affliction, and it was done; diseases are his servants, which come and go at his command; so Christ, in the days of his flesh, healed by speaking a word, Mt 8:3. This is true of Christ the essential Word, who was sent in the fulness of time, and was made flesh and dwelt among men, and went about healing all manner of diseases among the people; and who is also the physician of souls who came with healing in his wings; that is, with pardon of sin, for which his blood was shed: he is the only physician, the skilful, universal, and infallible one, and does all freely, and in a most marvellous manner, by his stripes, blood and wounds, and by an application of these to diseased persons sensible of their case. It may also be applied to the word of the Gospel; the law is the means of wounding, it is the killing letter; the Gospel is the means of healing, the doctrines of it are the leaves of the tree of life, which are for the healing of the nations; it is the doctrine of remission of sins by the blood of Christ, and by it Christ speaks peace and pardon to wounded consciences.
And delivered them from their destructions; from the destruction of the body, of the beauty and strength of it by diseases; restoring to health is a redeeming of the life from destruction; from the grave, the pit of corruption and destruction, so called because in it bodies corrupt, putrefy, and are destroyed by worms; and such who are savingly convinced of sin, and blessed with pardoning grace and mercy, are delivered from the everlasting destruction of body and soul in hell. Psalms 107:21Ver. 21. Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness,.... Both in restoring to bodily health, which is an instance of divine goodness; and in healing the diseases of the soul, or in the pardon of sin, which is according to the multitude of his mercies, and the riches of his grace.And for his wonderful works to the children of men; bodily health is sometimes restored in a wonderful manner, when all means used are without success, and the prescriptions of doctors fail; and pardon of sin is a wonder of grace now, and will be to all eternity; and for these things praise ought to be given to the Lord, and they should be declared to men for his glory. Psalms 107:22Ver. 22. And let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving,.... Not legal sacrifices, but spiritual and evangelical ones, the sacrifices of praise and thankfulness which God has enjoined are well pleasing to him through Christ, glorify him, and are but our reasonable service; see Heb 13:15.And declare his works with rejoicing: tell them to the children of men, what he has done for them, for soul and body; let them come to Zion with joy and everlasting joy on their heads; to the gates thereof, or to the public assemblies of the saints, and there declare what great things the Lord has done for them; and has had compassion upon them in healing their bodily diseases, and curing them of their soul maladies. Psalms 107:23Ver. 23. They that go down to the sea in ships,.... This is the fourth instance of persons in distress crying to the Lord for help, and, having it, are laid under obligation to praise him; the case of seafaring men: so the Targum introduces it,"mariners that go down to the sea in ships;''the same form of expression as here is used in Isa 42:10. Some affirm the sea to be higher than the earth, but by this it should be lower; besides the earth is said to be founded on the seas, which suggests superiority; and all the rivers run into the sea, which supposes a declivity; but, be it so that it is higher than the earth, yet this phrase is to be justified by the shores being higher than the sea, from whence men go down to take shipping, as Kimchi observes; though Kimchi's father is of opinion that it respects persons going down into the ship, which is deep, as Jonah is said to do, Jon 1:3.That do business in great waters: which refers either to the steering and working of the ship, and everything relating to the management of the ropes and sails, and other affairs; and in a storm much business is done, all hands are employed: or else to the business they go to sea about, as catching fish, curing them, and carrying them to market; or else to traffic and merchandise of goods, they convey from place to place. The phrase is much like that, "as many as trade by sea", Re 18:17. Psalms 107:24Ver. 24. These see the works of the Lord,.... In creation, the sea itself, its flux and reflux; the creatures in it, fishes of various forms and sizes: and in providence, in preserving ships and men in the most imminent danger, and even to a miracle; sometimes causing the wind to change or to subside in a moment, whereby deliverance is wrought.And his wonders in the deep; the strange and wonderful creatures that are in the deep waters of the sea, and to be seen nowhere else; and the amazing appearances of divine providence, in delivering when in the greatest distress, and none at hand to help, and all hope of salvation gone. Psalms 107:25Ver. 25. For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind,.... Winds are not raised by men, nor by devils, nor by angels, but by the Lord himself; who has created them, holds them in his fist, brings them out of his treasures, and sends them forth to do his will; if he speaks the word, gives but the order, a storm arises at once, and executes what he pleases, Ps 148:8.Which lifteth up the waves thereof; that is, the waves of the sea; it comes down into it, and causes surges; which rise above the ship, and sometimes cover it, and ready to sink it; yea, even they are lifted up to the heavens, as it follows. Psalms 107:26Ver. 26. They mount up to the heaven,.... The waves which are lifted up by the stormy wind, and the ships which are upon them, and the men in them.They go down again to the depths: one while they seem to reach the skies, and presently they are down, as it were, in the bottom of the sea, and are threatened to be buried in the midst of it; distress at sea is described in much the same language by Virgil and Ovid {m}.Their soul is melted because of trouble; because of the danger of being cast away; so it was with Jonah's mariner's, and with the disciples in the storm; sea roaring, and men's hearts failing for fear, are joined together in Lu 21:25{m} "Tollimur in coelum", Virgil. Aeneid 3. prope finem. "Coelumque aequare videtur pontus". Ovid. Metamorph. l. 12. Fab. 10. Psalms 107:27Ver. 27. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man,.... Through the agitation of the water, and motion of the ship, not being able to stand upon deck.And are at their wit's end; or, "all their wisdom is swallowed up" {n}; their wisdom in naval affairs, their art of navigation, their skill in managing ships, all nonplussed and baffled; they know not what method to take to save the vessel and themselves; their knowledge fails them, they are quite confounded and almost distracted. So Apollinarius paraphrases it,"they forget navigation, and their wise art does not appear;''so Ovid, describing a storm, uses the same phrase, "deficit ars","art fails.''{n} elbtt Mtmkx lk "omnis sapientia eorum absorpta est", Pagninus, Montanus, Vatablus; so Junius & Tremellius, Piscator. Psalms 107:28Ver. 28. Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble,.... As in a storm seafaring persons are used to do; so did Jonah's mariners, though Heathens, everyone cried to his god. With the Romans {o} tempests were reckoned deities, and had temples erected, and sacrifices offered to them; but these persons were such as knew and owned the true Jehovah, and called upon him in their distress: so did the apostles of Christ.And he bringeth them out of their distresses; by stilling the winds and the waves, causing them to proceed on their voyage with pleasure, and landing them safe on shore, as follows.{o} Cicero, de Nat. Deor. l. 3. c. 20. Virgil. Aeneid. l. 5. v. 772. Horat. Epod. Ode 10. v. 23, 24. Ovid. Fast. 6. v. 193. Psalms 107:29Ver. 29. He maketh the storm a calm,.... As Christ did by a word speaking, Mr 4:39.So that the waves thereof are still; and roar and toss no more, but subside; and the sea becomes smooth and quiet, its raging ceases: the angry sea, as Horace {p} calls it, becomes calm and peaceable; see Ps 89:9.{p} "Nec horret iratum mare", Horat. Epod. Ode 2. v. 6. "Nec maris ira manet", Ovid. Metamorph. l. 12. Fab. 7. Psalms 107:30Ver. 30. Then are they glad because they be quiet,.... The mariners are glad that the waves are quiet, and they free from danger, and at ease and in repose themselves.So he bringeth them unto their desired haven; the port, city, border or tract of land {q}, they are bound to; which they desire to be at, and eagerly look out for, and rejoice when arrived at it. This is all the Lord's work in providence: mariners too often take it to themselves, as if it was owing to their own skill and management that they have brought home the ship safe to the appointed port; but it is owing to the secret guidance and protection of divine Providence, which should be acknowledged. The late Mr. Hussey {r} thinks, that all this is not to be understood of seamen and naval affairs in common, but is a prophecy of what should befall the disciples of Christ, when on shipboard with him; who are the persons that went "down to the sea of Galilee" in a ship;whose business in the great waters was fishing; when, by the will of God, there came down a "stormy wind", which "lifted up the waves" of the sea, so that the ship in which they were was filled with them, and in danger of being sunk; when they went up and down, as here described, and reeled as they went along on the deck, to awake their Master their hearts melting, and they at their wit's end through fear, when they saw such wonders, what no common mariner ever did; the Godman and Mediator rising and in a majestic manner rebuked the winds and waves, and caused a calm, and so brought them to the country of the Gadarenes, whither they were bound; see Lu 8:23. But it may be applied, in a more spiritual manner, to the people of God in common who are embarked in the cause of Christ, and in a church state, comparable to a ship, of which Christ is the master, governor, and pilot; and who are sailing through the tempestuous sea of this world, and are tossed with tempests in it; and have business to do here, not only of a civil, but of a spiritual nature and who not only see the wondrous works of creation and providence, but of grace and redemption; the deep things of God, the mysteries of his grace and love: and who sometimes are covered with the billows and waves of affliction, and in the utmost distress; which are all under the direction and at the command of God, to whom they apply for relief; and he commands a calm in their breasts, and causes their afflictions to cease, which produce joy and gladness in them; and at last they are brought safe to heaven, their desired haven, which they are bound unto, are seeking after, and desirous of; and where they are at entire rest, brought hither by the Lord himself.{q} Vid. Kimchii Sepher Shorash. rad. Nwx {r} Warning from the Winds, p. 21-26. Psalms 107:31Ver. 31. Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness,.... Seafaring men particularly, before mentioned, as Jonah's mariners did, Jon 1:16, or all the four sorts of persons instanced in, as Kimchi thinks: and even all men whatsoever should do this, high and low, rich and poor, of every age, sex, and condition; since they all receive favours from the Lord, and should return thanks to him; and especially good men, who are blessed with spiritual blessings by him: these should allconfess to the Lord his goodness; as it may be rendered,See Gill on "Ps 107:15", they should own the mercy received as the Lord's doing, and acknowledge their unworthiness of it, and give him the glory of it.And for his wonderful works to the children of men! or, "confess and declare his wonderful works to the children of men": the wonderful works of creation and providence, which those that go to sea, see in the deeps, and everything of the same kind which others observe; and especially the wonderful works of grace, or what God has done in a wonderful manner for the souls of his people; see Ps 66:16. Psalms 107:32Ver. 32. Let them exalt him also in the congregation of the people,.... Of the people of God, who are gathered out of the world into a church state; and who gather themselves together to attend the worship and service of God in some one place; and here the Lord should be praised, and his name exalted, by those who have received favours from him; see Ps 111:1, the Targum explains it,"in the congregation of the people of the house of Israel.''And praise him in the assembly of the elders; or, "in the seat", or "chair of the elders {s}": not of the Scribes and Pharisees, and elders of the people, that sat in Moses's chair; but rather of the four and twenty elders, who are said to have four and twenty seats round the throne, where they worship and praise God; and which are emblems of Gospel churches; the members of which, for their grace, gravity, and prudence, are called elders; and over which elders in office preside, and who rule well, and labour in the word and doctrine; see Re 4:4. The Targum renders it,"the sanhedrim of the wise men.''{s} bvwmb "in cathedra", Pagninus, Montanus. Psalms 107:33Ver. 33. He turneth rivers into a wilderness,.... A country abounding with rivers, as the country round about Sodom and the land of Canaan were, Ge 13:10. Such an one is sometimes, by the just judgment of God, turned into a desert.And the water springs into dry ground: what was like a well watered garden becomes like dry and barren earth, on which nothing grows. Psalms 107:34Ver. 34. A fruitful land into barrenness,.... Or, "into saltness" {t}; as Sodom and the land adjacent became a salt sea; and the land of Canaan was threatened to become brimstone, salt and burning, like Sodom; in which nothing was sown, and which bore no grass; see Ge 14:3 and so the Targum,"the land of Israel, which brought forth fruit, he hath destroyed, as Sodom was overthrown.''For the wickedness of them that dwell therein; this was the cause of the overthrow of Sodom, and of the destruction of that fine country, as also of Canaan afterwards; see Ge 13:13. The very Heathens had a notion that barrenness and unfruitfulness in countries were owing to the sins of men; hence the sterility and famine at Mycenas were attributed to the wickedness of Atreus {u}. This may figuratively be understood of the present state and condition of the Jews; who were once a people well watered with the word and ordinances, and had the first preaching of the Gospel among them; but, rejecting and despising it, are now become like a desert, barren and unfruitful in the knowledge of divine things: and it might be illustrated by the case of several Christian churches; the seven churches of Asia, and others, once as well watered gardens, but now are no more; and the places where they stood are destitute of spiritual knowledge, and the means of it.{t} hxlml "in salsuginem", Pagninus, Montanus, Musculus, Vatablus, Piscator, Gejerus, Michaelis; so Junius & Tremellius; "in salsam", Cocceius. {u} Hygin. Fab. 88. Psalms 107:35Ver. 35. He turneth the wilderness into a standing water,.... On the other hand, when it is the pleasure of God, a country uncultivated and like a desert, he makes it fruitful as one that is well watered and tilled; as this country of ours, and the land in America, once waste places, now fruitful ones.And dry ground into water springs: which is expressive of the same thing, and may he figuratively understood of the Gentile world; which, before the coming of Christ, and the preaching of the Gospel, and the pouring down of the Spirit, was like a wilderness and dry ground; but now watered with the word and ordinances, and the grace of God, and in many places has become fruitful in grace and good works. The Targum prefaces this verse thus,"when they return unto the law, he turneth, &c.'' Psalms 107:36Ver. 36. And there he maketh the hungry to dwell,.... In those fruitful places which they find agreeable to them, and so fix upon them as the places of their abode, and build houses, and dwell there; having all the conveniences of life, which they wanted elsewhere: so such as hunger and thirst after righteousness make to such places where the waters are, the word is preached, and ordinances administered; and here they take up their dwelling, their bread being given them, and their waters sure unto them.That they may prepare a city for habitation; those poor necessitous persons, as they were when they first came; building houses, and others continually coming to them, by degrees form a well regulated city, which are a large number of inhabitants: which may be considered as an emblem of the church of God, often compared to a city; and is an habitation for God, and where saints desire and delight to dwell. Psalms 107:37Ver. 37. And sow the fields, and plant vineyards,.... And so raise a sufficient supply of corn and wine for the support of themselves and families. In a spiritual sense the "fields" are the world, and the seed which is sown is the word; the persons that sow it are the ministers of the Gospel, which, by a divine blessing, brings forth fruit, in some thirty, some sixty, and some an hundred fold: the "vineyards" are the churches, planted by Christ and by his ministers, as his instruments; believers are the pleasant plants in them, and young converts are the tender grapesWhich may yield fruits of increase; or "fruit" and "increase"; the fields yield all sorts of grain for food, and the vineyards wine for drink. So the seed of the word being sown, and churches planted, they increase with the increase of God, and bring forth fruits of righteousness to the glory of his name. Psalms 107:38Ver. 38. He blesseth them also, so that they are multiplied greatly,.... Not only their fields and vineyards are blessed with an increase, but these husbandmen themselves; as man at his first creation was bid to do, being blessed of God; and as the Israelites were in Egypt, Ge 1:28 and which may spiritually denote the great number of converts to Christian churches, especially in the latter day, Jer 30:19.And suffereth not their cattle to decrease; their sheep and oxen, which is reckoned a great temporal happiness, Ps 144:13, and may signify that God does and will give a sufficient number of Gospel ministers, comparable to oxen for their laboriousness, that shall in all ages minister to his churches; see 1Co 9:9. Psalms 107:39Ver. 39. Again they are minished,.... Or "lessened", in their families, cattle, and substance; either the same persons as before, or others. The Targum paraphrases it,"but when they sin, they are lessened:''for sin is the cause of it, as follows:and brought low through oppression, affliction and sorrow; either because of their oppression of the poor, the evil they do to them, and the sorrow they bring upon them; or they are brought into a low estate through the tyranny and oppression of others, and by the afflictions and sorrows they are brought into by them. This may be applied to the Jews, at their destruction by the Romans, when they were greatly lessened and brought low by their oppression of them: or rather to the Christians; not under the Heathen persecutions, for then they increased more and more; but under antichristian tyranny, when the beast had power over them, and overcame and slew them; and their numbers were so reduced, that the whole world is said to wonder after the beast, Re 13:3, and which will be the case again, when the witnesses will be slain: the number of Christians is greatly lessening now; there are but a few names in Sardis; Jacob is small, but will be smaller and fewer still. Psalms 107:40Ver. 40. He poureth contempt upon princes,.... That is, the Lord does, who is above them; he laughs at them, and has them in derision, when they are raging against his people, cause, and interest; he sets them up and pulls them down at his pleasure; he hurls them from their seats and thrones, and makes them contemptible to their subjects; he sometimes brings them to a shameful end, as Herod, who was eaten with worms; and wicked princes, if they are not brought to disgrace in this world, they will rise to shame and everlasting contempt in the other; and will stand with the meanest and lowest before the Judge of the whole earth; and seek to the rocks and mountains to cover them from his wrath. This particularly will be true of the antichristian princes, when the vials of God's wrath will be poured out upon them, Re 16:1.And causeth them to wander in the wilderness; where there is no way; no beaten track or path; whither being driven out of their kingdoms, they flee for shelter, and wander about in untrodden paths; as Nebuchadnezzar, when he was driven from men, and had his dwelling with the beasts of the field: or this may be interpreted, as it is by Aben Ezra and Kimchi, the infatuation of their wisdom, and of their being left without counsel, and erring through it; being at their wits' end, not knowing what step to take, or measures to concert; being in a maze, in a wilderness, at an entire loss what they should do; see Job 12:17. Psalms 107:41Ver. 41. Yet setteth he the poor on high from affliction,.... On the other hand, the Lord sometimes exalteth men of low degree, raiseth men of mean extract and parentage, who have made a poor figure in life, to high places of honour, free from adversity and distress; as David from the sheepfold, and from following the ewes great with young, to be king of Israel. This may be applied to the saints and people of God, who for the most part are poor in purse, the poor of this world, whom he chooses, calls, and saves; poor knowledge, capacity, and gifts; poor as to their spiritual circumstances, having neither food nor clothing, nor money to buy either; poor in spirit, and sensible of it; and poor by reason of afflictions: these the Lord sets on high, sets them among the princes of his people, makes them kings and priests; sets them on Christ the Rock, who is higher than they, higher than the angels and than the heavens; sets them above the angels, their nature being advanced above theirs in Christ, and they being represented by him in heavenly places; and standing in the relation of sons to God, and of spouse and bride to Christ, and angels being their ministering servants; and ere long they will be set on thrones, and have a crown of glory, life, and righteousness, put upon them, and be possessed of an everlasting kingdom, and be out of the reach of affliction. They are not clear of it in this world; it is needful for them, they are appointed to it, and through it they must enter the kingdom; but then they will come out of all tribulation, and there will be no more pain, sorrow, and death: it may be rendered, "after affliction", after their time of affliction is over, then God will exalt and glorify them; see 1Pe 5:10, this may respect the prosperity of the church in the latter day; see Da 7:27.And maketh him families like a flock; that is, the Lord makes the poor families like a flock of sheep, so greatly does he increase them; this is a very apt figure that is here used, since the people of God are often compared to sheep, and to a flock of them; and these are creatures that greatly increase; and here it denotes the large number of the saints, as in the first times of the Gospel, both in Judea and in the Gentile world; and as it will be in the latter day, when they shall be multiplied and not be few, glorified and not be small; and that they should be branched out into families, or particular churches, which, like families, consist of children, young men, and fathers, of which Christ is master, and ministers stewards; so it has been from the beginning of the Gospel dispensation and will be much more so in the latter day, when the earth will be full of these families every where. The Targum introduces this verse thus,"when they turn to the law he setteth, &c.'' Psalms 107:42Ver. 42. The righteous shall see it, and rejoice,.... Shall see the increase and prosperity of the saints, the glory of the church in the latter day, and rejoice at it; the judgments of God upon the wicked, upon antichristian princes and states, and rejoice on that account; see Re 18:20 and the several deliverances of persons in distress before mentioned, and rejoice with them that rejoice; which is what good men ought to do, Ro 12:15.And all iniquity shall stop her mouth; men of iniquity, very bad men, the man of sin and his followers, and all profane and atheistical persons, who will be silenced and have nothing to say against the providence of God; will be confounded, and through shame lay their hand on their mouths and be struck with admiration at the wonderful things done by the Lord for his people; nor will they have anything to say against their own condemnation. Psalms 107:43Ver. 43. Whoso is wise,.... Or as it may be read interrogatively, "who is wise?" as in Jer 9:12, that is, spiritually wise, wise unto salvation; who is made to know wisdom in the hidden part; for not such as are possessed of natural wisdom, or worldly wise men, much less who are wise to do evil, are here meant.And will observe these things; the remarkable appearances of divine Providence to persons in distress; the various changes and vicissitudes in the world; the several afflictions of God's people, and their deliverances out of them; the wonderful works of God in nature, providence, and grace; these will be observed, taken notice of, laid up in the mind, and kept by such who are truly wise, who know how to make a right use and proper improvement of them.Even they shall understand the lovingkindness of the Lord; everyone of the wise men; they will perceive the kindness of God unto all men, in the several dispensations of his providence towards them, and his special love and kindness towards his own people, even in all their afflictions; they will perceive this to be at the bottom of every mercy and blessing; they will understand more of the nature and excellency of it, and know more of the love of God and Christ, which passeth knowledge. Or "the kindnesses of the Lord shall be understood": that is, by wise men; so R. Moses in Aben Ezra renders the words.
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible.