What does it mean that God’s mercy "endureth for ever" in this psalm?

When this psalm says God’s mercy “endureth for ever,” it means his kindness and loyal love do not run out or change with our moods or seasons of life. Again and again the people in the psalm get into trouble, often because of their own sin. They wander, rebel, act foolishly, and end up in deep distress. Yet every time they cry out, God listens and rescues them. His mercy lasting forever does not mean he ignores sin, but that he keeps showing patient love and deliverance to those who turn back to him.

Who are the "redeemed of the LORD" and why should they "say so"?

The “redeemed of the LORD” are those God has brought back from danger and from the power of enemies. In the psalm this includes people gathered from east, west, north, and south, who were lost in deserts, locked in prison, near death from sickness, or caught in deadly storms. God stepped in and saved them when they cried to him. They are told to “say so” because people who have been rescued by God should not stay silent. Their stories of his help give him honor and encourage others to trust him too.

What is the "wilderness" and "city of habitation" picture about?

The picture of wandering in the wilderness shows people with no direction, safety, or home. They are hungry, thirsty, and exhausted. The “city of habitation” is the safe place where God finally brings them, with shelter and community. This can describe real dangers, like being lost or displaced, but it also fits the inner emptiness and confusion people feel without God. The psalm says that when they cried out, God led them by the right way to that city. It shows that God guides lost people into a place of rest and belonging.

Why do some people in this psalm sit in darkness and the shadow of death?

Those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death in this psalm are there “because they rebelled against the words of God, and contemned the counsel of the most High.” In other words, they knowingly turned away from what God said and made light of his wisdom. God then allowed hard labor, sorrow, and bondage to humble them. This darkness can picture deep trouble, fear, or even the nearness of death. Yet when they finally cry to the Lord, he brings them out of that darkness and breaks their chains, showing both his justice and his mercy.

What does it mean that "he sent his word, and healed them"?

When it says God “sent his word, and healed them,” it shows that God does not need many tools or helpers to rescue and restore. His command, promise, or message is enough to turn things around. In the psalm, people are so sick they have lost all appetite and are near death. Then God acts by his word and they are healed and kept from destruction. This can apply to physical healing, but also to the way God’s truth, when heard and believed, brings spiritual healing, lifts despair, and pulls people back from paths that would ruin them.

Why does the psalm keep repeating "Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble"?

The repeated line “Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble” is there to drive home a pattern. People get into all kinds of distress: lost in deserts, chained in prison, sick to death, or tossed on a raging sea. Often their own sin and foolish choices brought them there. Yet as soon as they honestly cry to God, he hears and delivers them. The repetition teaches that no trouble is too great, and no person has sunk too low, to call on God. It also reminds us not to wait, but to turn to him as soon as we see our need.

What does this psalm teach about God calming the stormy sea?

The part about those who go down to the sea in ships shows how small and helpless people are when God stirs up creation. The waves rise and fall so high that sailors stagger like drunk people and feel at their wits’ end. When they cry to the Lord, he makes the storm a calm and brings them to their desired harbor. This teaches that God rules over nature and can end chaos in a moment. It also encourages anyone whose life feels like a storm that God is able to quiet fear and bring them safely where they need to be.

How does this psalm connect suffering with sin and God’s discipline?

In several scenes this psalm links suffering to sin. Some are in darkness because they rebelled against God’s words. Others are called fools who are afflicted because of their transgressions. Their pain is not random; God uses it to bring down proud hearts and make them face their condition. Yet the goal is not to crush them, but to lead them to cry out to him. When they do, he saves and heals. So the psalm helps us see that some hardships are loving discipline, meant to turn us from destructive paths back to God’s mercy.

What does it mean that the wise will "understand the lovingkindness of the LORD"?

The closing verse says that whoever is wise and pays attention to these things will understand the lovingkindness of the Lord. This means a wise person does not just rush through life but stops to notice patterns of trouble and rescue. They see how God humbles the proud, lifts the poor, dries up fruitful lands because of wickedness, and then turns deserts into fertile places for the needy. By watching how God acts in judgment and mercy, they come to know his steady love. Wisdom here is not clever talk, but a humble, watchful heart that learns from God’s works.

Ps.107.1

Psalm 107:1

KJV

O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.

Thanksgiving for Deliverance

1 O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.

2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;

3 And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south.

4 They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way; they found no city to dwell in.

5 Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them.

6 Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses.

7 And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation.

8 Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!

9 For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.

10 Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron;

11 Because they rebelled against the words of God, and contemned the counsel of the most High:

12 Therefore he brought down their heart with labour; they fell down, and there was none to help.

13 Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses.

14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder.

15 Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!

16 For he hath broken the gates of brass, and cut the bars of iron in sunder.

17 Fools because of their transgression, and because of their iniquities, are afflicted.

18 Their soul abhorreth all manner of meat; and they draw near unto the gates of death.

19 Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he saveth them out of their distresses.

20 He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.

21 Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!

22 And let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare his works with rejoicing.

23 They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters;

24 These see the works of the Lord, and his wonders in the deep.

25 For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof.

26 They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble.

27 They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits’ end.

28 Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses.

29 He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.

30 Then are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven.

31 Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!

32 Let them exalt him also in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders.

33 He turneth rivers into a wilderness, and the watersprings into dry ground;

34 A fruitful land into barrenness, for the wickedness of them that dwell therein.

35 He turneth the wilderness into a standing water, and dry ground into watersprings.

36 And there he maketh the hungry to dwell, that they may prepare a city for habitation;

37 And sow the fields, and plant vineyards, which may yield fruits of increase.

38 He blesseth them also, so that they are multiplied greatly; and suffereth not their cattle to decrease.

39 Again, they are minished and brought low through oppression, affliction, and sorrow.

40 He poureth contempt upon princes, and causeth them to wander in the wilderness, where there is no way.

41 Yet setteth he the poor on high from affliction, and maketh him families like a flock.

42 The righteous shall see it, and rejoice: and all iniquity shall stop her mouth.

43 Whoso is wise, and will observe these things, even they shall understand the lovingkindness of the Lord.

Cross References

No cross references available for this verse.