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Introduction
Psalms, Volume 3: (Psalms 107–150): An Expositional Commentary Psalm 107: The Pilgrims’ Psalm: Part 1
opening (vv. 1–3)
opening (vv. 1–3)
“the main body (vv. 4–32)
“closing grateful reflection on God’s sovereignty in human affairs (vv. 33–43
“four clearly marked sections.
These pictures may be images of the Babylonian captivity or possibly even literal descriptions of the conditions from which the Jews of that time were rescued, but they also picture our own spiritual condition apart from Jesus Christ.
1. Homes for the homeless. Homelessness or perhaps just being lost in the wilderness is the first picture of peril (vv. 4–9)
“I have looked at this image as part of the Pilgrim’s experience and as our having literal homes today, but we are all homeless without God, who is our only true home.
Apart from God we are like the prodigal son, who left his father’s home to squander his substance in a far country. Salvation began when he came to his senses, confessed his sin, and returned to his father. Have you returned to God, crying, “Father, I have sinned against you!”?
“2. Freedom for captives.
“the distress of prisoners. The Pilgrims’ leaders were often put in prison for dissenting from the established religion of the time, and when small groups tried to escape the persecution by sailing across the English Channel to Holland or elsewhere, they were frequently arrested on that account too.
Boice, J. M. (2005). : An Expositional Commentary (p. 864). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.
“There are not many among us who can speak of being delivered from prison literally—though there are some—but all who are Christians can speak of being delivered from the prison house of sin.
“We have been slaves to sin, but by his atoning death we have been forever liberated.
“3. Healing for the sick.
“It describes illness so severe that it brought those afflicted “near the gates of death” (v. 18).
“You may have experienced God’s deliverance from a serious illness, just as the psalmist describes and the Pilgrims experienced. The psalm is also depicting deliverance from spiritual sickness, since it refers to “affliction” caused by “their iniquities” and God’s “word” as the agent of our healing (v. 20).
God’s Word is the only thing that heals our spiritual sicknesses, for it is the only thing that has life
“4. Safety for those at sea.
“In the opinion of many commentators the most beautiful, most poetic, and certainly the most stirring section of is the part that describes the peril of God’s people while at sea (vv. 23–32).
A person needs to have been on the ocean in a violent storm to appreciate how accurate those frightening words are.
“Forget the ocean. Perhaps you have been in a situation of an entirely different nature but in which you have also been at your wits’ end and cried to the Lord and were delivered. Perhaps you were facing a serious financial problem, a personality conflict at work, or a battle within your family.
“
In the first two parts of , the introduction (vv. 1–3) and the overview of the diverse deliverances of God’s people (vv. 4–32), we have seen how God delivers his people from the many dangers, toils, and snares of this life. Now we will see how he also brings us home, anchoring our souls in a safe harbor at last.
Swiss psychiatrist Paul Tournier wrote a book entitled A Place to Be, which claims that a place to belong, a home, is what we all most deeply desire. Tournier says we long for it all our lives and are restless until we find it. tells us that God provides just such a home for his people. We have a home in God here and now, a home enriched by our having Christian brothers and sisters.
“He is acknowledging that not everything the people of God experience can be described as a deliverance and be received with utter joy. Life has its pain and tragedies, even for Christians. Yet in spite of them, we can and should praise God for his wisdom and goodness
Uses of the doctrine
“1. Reverence for God.
“2. Looking for things that are eternal.
“3. Calling sinners to repentance.
“4. Thanksgiving
Boice, J. M. (2005). : An Expositional Commentary (p. 875). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.
“What matters most in life is not the number or severity of the perils from which we are delivered, but whether we are actually in the hands of that greatly loving God.
Boice, J. M. (2005). : An Expositional Commentary (p. 871). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.