Psalm 107

In the Face of Danger

When did you last feel danger? What happened?

Danger has many forms. We can feel endangered by an immanent threat or by a loss of control. We sense an approaching hurt or a coming catastrophe or a looming presence unknown to us. Danger is more than the discomfort of steeping outside our comfort zones. It is a sharp, visceral sense that life as we know it will dramatically change for the worst or end all together.

When the danger passes, the sense of shock turns to relief. Thank you, Lord for saving us. Psalm 107 is such a thanksgiving for salvation. It praised God for his saving activity among the faithful.

The psalm can be divided into six sections:

1) a brief introduction of thanksgiving for the activity of God (107:1)

2) descriptions of four dangers that a Jew might face:

A) those scattered in the Diaspora, in a real or metaphorical desert without the means to maintain life. God gave them safety in cities (Jewish ghettoes in foreign cities?; 107:2-7).

B) those who found themselves in prison (for just or unjust reasons?). God gave them freedom as an answer to their repentance (107:10-14).

C) those who were sick and at the door of death. God restored their health (107:17-20).

D) those who traveled the sea, despite the dangers of storms. God brought the storms about, but also calmed the waters (107:23-30).

Notice the refrain the psalmist used to maintain the theme: Let them thank the Lord for his kindness, his awesome deed for us mortals (107:8, 15, 21, 31). In each danger, he gave the saved a reason to rejoice (107:9, 16, 22, 32).

3) an ending that exalted God for upending the presumed order of the cosmos and society. In this way, God blessed his chosen. He laid fertile land to waste as a punishment for the wicked (107:33-34), but turned the desert into tilling ground for the impoverished faithful and gave them cities for their dwelling (107:35-38). He rejected the arrogant and haughty (i.e., the princes) and freed those oppressed by them (107:39-40). Justice resulted among the people and gave the wise pause (107:42-43).

For the psalmist, this chant reduced all danger to the four categories in 107:2-32: life in a foreign land, imprisonment, health, and natural calamities. The fifth category (political oppression) he wove into ending (107:33-40). In each case, God’s overwhelming providence worked for the good of his faithful.

This psalm encourages us to have hope in the face of danger. God will protect us. His salvation may not be in a form we want, but he is faithful. He will not let us down.

Give thanks to the Lord for he is good; his mercy endures forever!

How have you thanked God for his mercy, even in the face of danger?