107:1 "Give thanks to the LORD, because he is good; his love is eternal!" |
107:2 Repeat these words in praise to the LORD, all you whom he has saved. He has rescued you from your enemies |
107:3 and has brought you back from foreign countries, from east and west, from north and south. |
107:4 Some wandered in the trackless desert and could not find their way to a city to live in. |
107:5 They were hungry and thirsty and had given up all hope. |
107:6 Then in their trouble they called to the LORD, and he saved them from their distress. |
107:7 He led them by a straight road to a city where they could live. |
107:8 They must thank the LORD for his constant love, for the wonderful things he did for them. |
107:9 He satisfies those who are thirsty and fills the hungry with good things. |
107:10 Some were living in gloom and darkness, prisoners suffering in chains, |
107:11 because they had rebelled against the commands of Almighty God and had rejected his instructions. |
107:12 They were worn out from hard work; they would fall down, and no one would help. |
107:13 Then in their trouble they called to the LORD, and he saved them from their distress. |
107:14 He brought them out of their gloom and darkness and broke their chains in pieces. |
107:15 They must thank the LORD for his constant love, for the wonderful things he did for them. |
107:16 He breaks down doors of bronze and smashes iron bars. |
107:17 Some were fools, suffering because of their sins and because of their evil; |
107:18 they couldn't stand the sight of food and were close to death. |
107:19 Then in their trouble they called to the LORD, and he saved them from their distress. |
107:20 He healed them with his command and saved them from the grave. |
107:21 They must thank the LORD for his constant love, for the wonderful things he did for them. |
107:22 They must thank him with sacrifices, and with songs of joy must tell all that he has done. |
107:23 Some sailed over the ocean in ships, earning their living on the seas. |
107:24 They saw what the LORD can do, his wonderful acts on the seas. |
107:25 He commanded, and a mighty wind began to blow and stirred up the waves. |
107:26 The ships were lifted high in the air and plunged down into the depths. In such danger the sailors lost their courage; |
107:27 they stumbled and staggered like drunks--- all their skill was useless. |
107:28 Then in their trouble they called to the LORD, and he saved them from their distress. |
107:29 He calmed the raging storm, and the waves became quiet. |
107:30 They were glad because of the calm, and he brought them safe to the port they wanted. |
107:31 They must thank the LORD for his constant love, for the wonderful things he did for them. |
107:32 They must proclaim his greatness in the assembly of the people and praise him before the council of the leaders. |
107:33 The LORD made rivers dry up completely and stopped springs from flowing. |
107:34 He made rich soil become a salty wasteland because of the wickedness of those who lived there. |
107:35 He changed deserts into pools of water and dry land into flowing springs. |
107:36 He let hungry people settle there, and they built a city to live in. |
107:37 They sowed the fields and planted grapevines and reaped an abundant harvest. |
107:38 He blessed his people, and they had many children; he kept their herds of cattle from decreasing. |
107:39 When God's people were defeated and humiliated by cruel oppression and suffering, |
107:40 he showed contempt for their oppressors and made them wander in trackless deserts. |
107:41 But he rescued the needy from their misery and made their families increase like flocks. |
107:42 The righteous see this and are glad, but all the wicked are put to silence. |
107:43 May those who are wise think about these things; may they consider the LORD's constant love. |