Psalm 107 – Give Thanks to the Lord

This Thanksgiving weekend, I decided it would be appropriate to post a Psalm that gives thanks to the Lord, not only for the blessings He bestows upon us, but simply because of who He is. I think Psalm 107 fits the bill.

Psalm 107

 ¹ Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
   his love endures forever.
² Let the redeemed of the LORD say this—
   those he redeemed from the hand of the foe,
³ those he gathered from the lands,
   from east and west, from north and south.

 ⁴ Some wandered in desert wastelands,
   finding no way to a city where they could settle.
⁵ They were hungry and thirsty,
   and their lives ebbed away.
⁶ Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,
   and he delivered them from their distress.
⁷ He led them by a straight way
   to a city where they could settle.
⁸ Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love
   and his wonderful deeds for men,
⁹ for he satisfies the thirsty
   and fills the hungry with good things.

 ¹⁰ Some sat in darkness and the deepest gloom,
   prisoners suffering in iron chains,
¹¹ for they had rebelled against the words of God
   and despised the counsel of the Most High.
¹² So he subjected them to bitter labor;
   they stumbled, and there was no one to help.
¹³ Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
   and he saved them from their distress.
¹⁴ He brought them out of darkness and the deepest gloom
   and broke away their chains.
¹⁵ Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love
   and his wonderful deeds for men,
¹⁶ for he breaks down gates of bronze
   and cuts through bars of iron.

 ¹⁷ Some became fools through their rebellious ways
   and suffered affliction because of their iniquities.
¹⁸ They loathed all food
   and drew near the gates of death.
¹⁹ Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
   and he saved them from their distress.
²⁰ He sent forth his word and healed them;
   he rescued them from the grave.
²¹ Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love
   and his wonderful deeds for men.
²² Let them sacrifice thank offerings
   and tell of his works with songs of joy.

 ²³ Others went out on the sea in ships;
   they were merchants on the mighty waters.
²⁴ They saw the works of the LORD,
   his wonderful deeds in the deep.
²⁵ For he spoke and stirred up a tempest
   that lifted high the waves.
²⁶ They mounted up to the heavens and went down to the depths;
   in their peril their courage melted away.
²⁷ They reeled and staggered like drunken men;
   they were at their wits’ end.
²⁸ Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,
   and he brought them out of their distress.
²⁹ He stilled the storm to a whisper;
   the waves of the sea were hushed.
³⁰ They were glad when it grew calm,
   and he guided them to their desired haven.
³¹ Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love
   and his wonderful deeds for men.
³² Let them exalt him in the assembly of the people
   and praise him in the council of the elders.

 ³³ He turned rivers into a desert,
   flowing springs into thirsty ground,
³⁴ and fruitful land into a salt waste,
   because of the wickedness of those who lived there.
³⁵ He turned the desert into pools of water
   and the parched ground into flowing springs;
³⁶ there he brought the hungry to live,
   and they founded a city where they could settle.
³⁷ They sowed fields and planted vineyards
   that yielded a fruitful harvest;
³⁸ he blessed them, and their numbers greatly increased,
   and he did not let their herds diminish.

 ³⁹ Then their numbers decreased, and they were humbled
   by oppression, calamity and sorrow;
⁴⁰ he who pours contempt on nobles
   made them wander in a trackless waste.
⁴¹ But he lifted the needy out of their affliction
   and increased their families like flocks.
⁴² The upright see and rejoice,
   but all the wicked shut their mouths.

 ⁴³ Whoever is wise, let him heed these things
   and consider the great love of the LORD.