“Praise the Lord! I will praise the Lord with my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright and in the congregation.” Psalm 111:1
The title of this psalm in Hebrew is “Hallelujah.” The psalmist faithfully fulfills this theme. Like every good author, he remains focused on his subject from beginning to end. [1]
He is wholehearted about praising God as his main objective in life. He worships God both “in the assembly of the upright” and in the larger congregation of God’s people. [2]
This reminds us that God deserves our praise in both private and public settings. We should worship Him in our homes, in small gatherings of believers, and in the larger assembly of His church. In every setting, worship is especially encouraging when shared with sincere believers whose hearts unite in praising the Lord. [3]
“The works of the Lord are great, studied by all who have pleasure in them.” Psalm 111:2
The psalmist next directs our attention to the works of the Lord, making them the subject of our meditation as we praise Him. These include His providential dealings with the world, with His church, and with individuals. [4]
God’s works reflect His greatness. Nothing He does is insignificant or trivial. Every work is the product of His infinite wisdom and power. [5]
Those who delight in God also delight in His works. They are “sought out of all those that have pleasure therein.” They are not satisfied with a casual or superficial glance. They diligently examine and thoughtfully consider them. Whether studying the natural world or the course of human history, our goal should be to recognize the greatness and glory of God’s works. [6]
Those who humbly and diligently seek to understand God's works will indeed find rich treasures. As Psalm 25:14 declares, “The secret of the Lord is with those that fear Him.” [7]
“His work is honorable and glorious, and His righteousness endures forever.” Psalm 111:3
“Heavenly Father, I honor You and give You glory for all Your wonderful works!”
“His righteousness endures forever." In Ecclesiastes 3:14, it is written, “I know that whatever God does, it shall be forever. Nothing can be added to it, and nothing taken from it. God does it, that men should fear before Him.”
“He has made His wonderful works to be remembered. The Lord is gracious and full of compassion.” Psalm 111:4
God has performed deeds worthy of being heard repetitively throughout our lifetimes. His works are marvelous and deserve to be remembered from generation to generation.
Praise the Lord for preserving His Word against all attempts to alter it or eliminate it. We remember God’s works by reading of them in the Bible.
When the Son of God came to earth and wrapped Himself in human flesh, He demonstrated God’s grace and compassion by healing the sick and casting out demons from people. In Acts 10:38, Peter testified to a group of Italians, “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.”
God’s greatest work of compassion was sending His Son into the world so that whosever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life. The greatest disaster that every human soul needs rescued from is an eternity in hell. Though Jesus Christ had committed no sin, He was flogged, spit on, hit with fists, mocked and crucified to pay for our sins.
In Acts 10:43, while still preaching to a group of Italians, Peter concluded his sermon with this good news: “To Him all the prophets witness that, through His name, whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins.”
Among all God’s works, His forgiveness of sin is the most astonishing. It deserves continual remembrance because it most clearly displays His grace and brings Him the greatest glory. [8]
“He has given food to those who fear Him. He will ever be mindful of His covenant.” Psalm 111:5
In Matthew 5:44-45, Jesus taught us that we should love our enemies to be children of our Heavenly Father because He expresses love for His enemies. God provides sunshine and rain for both evil and good people, but He gives the Bread of Life, the revelation of Jesus Messiah, to those who humble themselves before Him and seek His presence in their lives.
God will “ever be mindful of His covenant.” God’s past faithfulness gives us a basis to believe in His future faithfulness. Not even the smallest part of His covenant shall fail to come to pass. Though people forget God’s promises, God does not. His promises stand secure forever. [9]
“He has declared to His people the power of His works, in giving them the heritage of the nations.” Psalm 111:6
God fulfilled His promise to Abraham by helping Abraham’s descendants to conquer the seven nations of Canaan. His power was further demonstrated during David’s reign, when many surrounding nations were subdued and became tributaries to Israel. [10]
In these victories God displayed both His sovereign authority and irresistible power. He faithfully accomplishes every promise that He has made. Nothing is impossible with God. [11].
“The works of His hands are verity and justice. All His precepts are sure. They stand fast forever and ever and are done in truth and uprightness.” Psalm 111:7-8
God’s commandments are perfect. They need not, nor should they be amended or changed.
Throughout the history of the world some have doubted, denied and even deviously plotted to eliminate God’s commandments, but failed. David wrote in Psalm 119:89, “Forever, O Lord, Your Word is settled in heaven.” In Matthew 5:18, Jesus said, “For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.”
“He has sent redemption to His people. He has commanded His covenant forever. Holy and awesome is His Name.” Psalm 111:9
In 1 Peter 1:18-19, Peter wrote to us saying, “You were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”
Thus, we can proclaim with the words of Job 19:25-26, “I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth. And after my skin is destroyed, this I know... I shall see God.... How my heart yearns within me!”
God’s covenant is established forever, because “the Scripture cannot be broken.” Unlike people, whose changing minds often lead them to revise their plans, the infinitely wise God never needs to alter His laws, and neither men nor demons possess the power to overthrow it. [12]
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. A good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever.” Psalm 111:10
Wisdom is to fear, love and trust God above all things. The fear of the Lord helps us to say, “NO” to sin and “YES” to God.
In Joshua 1:8, the Lord told Joshua, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”
In John 7:16-17, Jesus declared, “My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me. If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority.” When we want to honor God, the teaching of Jesus makes perfect sense.
Praise of prideful things passes away. Reveling in rebellion ends. Praise for God lasts forever.
[1-12] Material derived, developed and edited from Matthew Henry’s Commentary
Free resources for prophetic servants of Jesus Christ
Thursday, July 2, 2026
Wednesday, July 1, 2026
The Lord Said to My Lord – Psalm 110
“A Psalm of David. The Lord said to my Lord, ‘Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool.’” Psalm 110:1
Under the direction of God’s Holy Spirit, David called his “yet-to-be-born” son, “Lord.” In 2 Peter 1:17, Peter quoted the words that God spoke from heaven about Jesus: “This is my Son, whom I love. With Him I am well pleased.” The Lordship of Christ is certain. God has confirmed it.
In Matthew 22:41-42, Jesus asked the Pharisees what they thought about the Messiah, and then, asked them directly, “Whose Son is He?” They answered, “The Son of David.” Then, He asked them a follow up question, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls Him Lord?” How could a son of David be the Messiah sent into the world by God? Then, Jesus proceeded to quote, “The Lord said to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.’” Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary states, “The Jews understood the words, ‘My Lord,’ to denote the Messiah.” The words of Jesus here confirm that belief.
Peter quotes David’s “The Lord said to my Lord” Bible verse during his message on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2:34. Paul quotes it in his writings to the churches in 1 Corinthians 15:25, Ephesians 1:22 and Hebrews 10:13. Thus, Psalm 110 celebrates the coming reign of Jesus Christ over all the kingdoms of this world.
According to 1 Kings 2:19, Psalms 45:9; Mark 16:19; and Ephesians 1:20, to sit at the right hand of God is to sit at the supreme place of honor. Sitting at the right hand of God denotes both His dignity and His dominion. All the favors that come from God to man, and all the service that comes from man to God, pass through His hand.
God the Father has Christ sit down while He makes His enemies to bow before Him. The phrase, “make Your enemies Your footstool” is an expression “taken from the custom of Eastern conquerors to signify a complete subjection.” [1]
The enemies of Christ will become His footstool. Jesus Christ has enemies. Satan has filled their hearts with hatred for Him. But one day, every knee will bow to Jesus and every tongue will profess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God our Father.
Once, while participating in a Christian meeting in a particular nation, a spirit of fear tried to influence me to leave. Thoughts came to me, “We all are going to be arrested. What will the authorities do to us?” But then, the Lord spoke to me and said, “You may or may not have to stand before earthly authorities, but everyone in this room will bow before Me.” After that, the fear of God became greater in me than the fear of man, and I continued to witness for Christ in that nation for another 10 years. Incidentally, no one attending that meeting that night was arrested. It all ended well.
“The Lord shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies!” Psalm 110:2
Christ sets up His kingdom in “Zion.” Zion or Jerusalem is also known as the city of David. Zion is where Christ died to stone for our sins. Zion is where He resurrected from the dead for our resurrection. And Zion is where the Holy Spirit was poured out and birthed the Church.
Matthew Henry, in his commentary, sees the Gospel as the rod of God’s strength. For, says He, “the power of the Holy Spirit comes to us with the Gospel proclamation.”
In Romans 1:16, Paul wrote, “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes.” In, 1 Thessalonians 1:5, Paul wrote, “Our Gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction.” In Luke 24:49. Jesus told the disciples, “I am going to send you what My Father has promised, but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”
Some interpret “the rod of His strength” as a shepherd’s rod and staff, denoting Christ’s tender care for His Church. [2]
“Your people shall be volunteers in the day of Your power. In the beauties of holiness, from the womb of the morning, You have the dew of Your youth.” Psalm 110:3
God’s volunteers serve Him in the power of the Holy Spirit. They present themselves to Him as living sacrifices. The Holy Spirit endues the servants of Christ with power to be His witnesses.
Christ grants the beauty of holiness to those who believe in Him and profess Him. After our sins are washed away by the blood of Christ, and we gladly offer ourselves to obey Him, Jesus baptizes us with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit beautifies us with the holiness of God.
Matthew Henry interprets “the dew of Your youth” as young people converting to Christ. Young people flocking to Christ, like dew on the ground in the morning, helps the Church to be a bright witness for God in a dark world.
“The Lord has sworn and will not relent, ‘You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.’” Psalm 110:4
The story of Melchizedek is recorded in Genesis 14. After Abraham defeated a coalition of kings, he met a priest named Melchizedek. Melchizedek means king of righteousness. He is also referred to as king of Salem. Salem is Hebrew for peace and the ancient name of Jerusalem. [3]
Melchizedek is interpreted by many to be the preincarnate Messiah. Like Jesus, He is a king and a priest. In Hebrews 7:3, we read, “He is without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life,” meaning He is an eternal. Melchizedek brings out bread and wine to bless Abraham, which Christians often parallel with the Last Supper. [4] He had the honored title of priest of the Most High God. He blessed Abraham, demonstrating his greatness over the patriarch. Abraham gave Melchizedek a tithe, a tenth part of all the spoils of battle. Melchizedek is associated with Jesus in the Book of Hebrews.
Hebrews 5:5-10 emphasize that God declared Jesus a priest in the order of Melchizedek. It was not an honor that He claimed for Himself. Hebrews 6:20 emphasizes that Jesus serves now and forever as a living, active High Priest for His people. Hebrews 7:17 and 7:21 emphasize that the priestly order of Melchizedek is better than the priestly order of Aaron, because it is eternal and will never end. [5]
“The Lord is at Your right hand. He shall execute kings in the day of His wrath.” Psalm 110:4
Our Lord Jesus will certainly execute evil kings in the day of His wrath. Revelation 6:15-17 speaks of the wrath of the Lamb on kings of the earth, great men, rich men, commanders, mighty men, slaves and free people. In response, they say to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”
“He shall judge among the nations He shall fill the places with dead bodies. He shall execute the heads of many countries.” Psalm 110:6
This passage likely refers to the great slaughter that happens in Revelation 19:11-21. In this passage, Christ appears on a white horse. The armies of heaven follow Him on white horses. Jesus strikes the nations with the words of His mouth. He treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. Birds eat the flesh of kings, captains, mighty men, horses and of people, free and slave, small and great. The kings of the earth, and their armies, had gathered against Christ but were defeated. The birds (vultures) were filled with their flesh.
“He shall execute the heads of many nations” recalls what the Lord God said to the serpent in Genesis 3:15, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed. He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.” Those heads of nations who compromise with the devil and serve him will be crushed. [6]
“He shall drink of the brook by the wayside. Therefore, He shall lift up the head.” Psalm 110:7
Matthew Henry sees the brook by the wayside as the bitter cup which the Father gave to Christ. He drank of the wrath of God. Christ drank of this brook when He was made a curse for us. In John 18:1, it is written that Jesus “went out with His disciples over the Brook Kidron.” In Hebrew, Kidron (קִדְרוֹן) means “dark.” He drank of the dark waters of sin by the wayside to take our sin out of the way of our salvation. By believing in Jesus, we are exempted from God’s wrath on sin.
“Therefore shall He lift up the head.” In John 19:30, when on the cross, Jesus bowed His head, and died, but three days later, He arose to life again. He lifted up His head as a conqueror.
Jesus lifts up the heads of all who profess Him. In John 11:25, He declared, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.”
Praise the Lord! I am so glad that David’s Lord is also my Lord. I hope and pray that you believe in and profess Him as your Savior and Lord as well.
[1] Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary (see also Joshua 10:24; Judges 1:7)
[2] Matthew Henry’s Commentary
[3] Enduring Word Commentary
[4] www.soundcitybiblechurch.com/articles/2016/3/1/is-melchizedek-jesus
[5] Enduring Word Commentary
[6] Matthew Henry’s Commentary
Under the direction of God’s Holy Spirit, David called his “yet-to-be-born” son, “Lord.” In 2 Peter 1:17, Peter quoted the words that God spoke from heaven about Jesus: “This is my Son, whom I love. With Him I am well pleased.” The Lordship of Christ is certain. God has confirmed it.
In Matthew 22:41-42, Jesus asked the Pharisees what they thought about the Messiah, and then, asked them directly, “Whose Son is He?” They answered, “The Son of David.” Then, He asked them a follow up question, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls Him Lord?” How could a son of David be the Messiah sent into the world by God? Then, Jesus proceeded to quote, “The Lord said to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.’” Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary states, “The Jews understood the words, ‘My Lord,’ to denote the Messiah.” The words of Jesus here confirm that belief.
Peter quotes David’s “The Lord said to my Lord” Bible verse during his message on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2:34. Paul quotes it in his writings to the churches in 1 Corinthians 15:25, Ephesians 1:22 and Hebrews 10:13. Thus, Psalm 110 celebrates the coming reign of Jesus Christ over all the kingdoms of this world.
According to 1 Kings 2:19, Psalms 45:9; Mark 16:19; and Ephesians 1:20, to sit at the right hand of God is to sit at the supreme place of honor. Sitting at the right hand of God denotes both His dignity and His dominion. All the favors that come from God to man, and all the service that comes from man to God, pass through His hand.
God the Father has Christ sit down while He makes His enemies to bow before Him. The phrase, “make Your enemies Your footstool” is an expression “taken from the custom of Eastern conquerors to signify a complete subjection.” [1]
The enemies of Christ will become His footstool. Jesus Christ has enemies. Satan has filled their hearts with hatred for Him. But one day, every knee will bow to Jesus and every tongue will profess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God our Father.
Once, while participating in a Christian meeting in a particular nation, a spirit of fear tried to influence me to leave. Thoughts came to me, “We all are going to be arrested. What will the authorities do to us?” But then, the Lord spoke to me and said, “You may or may not have to stand before earthly authorities, but everyone in this room will bow before Me.” After that, the fear of God became greater in me than the fear of man, and I continued to witness for Christ in that nation for another 10 years. Incidentally, no one attending that meeting that night was arrested. It all ended well.
“The Lord shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies!” Psalm 110:2
Christ sets up His kingdom in “Zion.” Zion or Jerusalem is also known as the city of David. Zion is where Christ died to stone for our sins. Zion is where He resurrected from the dead for our resurrection. And Zion is where the Holy Spirit was poured out and birthed the Church.
Matthew Henry, in his commentary, sees the Gospel as the rod of God’s strength. For, says He, “the power of the Holy Spirit comes to us with the Gospel proclamation.”
In Romans 1:16, Paul wrote, “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes.” In, 1 Thessalonians 1:5, Paul wrote, “Our Gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction.” In Luke 24:49. Jesus told the disciples, “I am going to send you what My Father has promised, but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”
Some interpret “the rod of His strength” as a shepherd’s rod and staff, denoting Christ’s tender care for His Church. [2]
“Your people shall be volunteers in the day of Your power. In the beauties of holiness, from the womb of the morning, You have the dew of Your youth.” Psalm 110:3
God’s volunteers serve Him in the power of the Holy Spirit. They present themselves to Him as living sacrifices. The Holy Spirit endues the servants of Christ with power to be His witnesses.
Christ grants the beauty of holiness to those who believe in Him and profess Him. After our sins are washed away by the blood of Christ, and we gladly offer ourselves to obey Him, Jesus baptizes us with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit beautifies us with the holiness of God.
Matthew Henry interprets “the dew of Your youth” as young people converting to Christ. Young people flocking to Christ, like dew on the ground in the morning, helps the Church to be a bright witness for God in a dark world.
“The Lord has sworn and will not relent, ‘You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.’” Psalm 110:4
The story of Melchizedek is recorded in Genesis 14. After Abraham defeated a coalition of kings, he met a priest named Melchizedek. Melchizedek means king of righteousness. He is also referred to as king of Salem. Salem is Hebrew for peace and the ancient name of Jerusalem. [3]
Melchizedek is interpreted by many to be the preincarnate Messiah. Like Jesus, He is a king and a priest. In Hebrews 7:3, we read, “He is without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life,” meaning He is an eternal. Melchizedek brings out bread and wine to bless Abraham, which Christians often parallel with the Last Supper. [4] He had the honored title of priest of the Most High God. He blessed Abraham, demonstrating his greatness over the patriarch. Abraham gave Melchizedek a tithe, a tenth part of all the spoils of battle. Melchizedek is associated with Jesus in the Book of Hebrews.
Hebrews 5:5-10 emphasize that God declared Jesus a priest in the order of Melchizedek. It was not an honor that He claimed for Himself. Hebrews 6:20 emphasizes that Jesus serves now and forever as a living, active High Priest for His people. Hebrews 7:17 and 7:21 emphasize that the priestly order of Melchizedek is better than the priestly order of Aaron, because it is eternal and will never end. [5]
“The Lord is at Your right hand. He shall execute kings in the day of His wrath.” Psalm 110:4
Our Lord Jesus will certainly execute evil kings in the day of His wrath. Revelation 6:15-17 speaks of the wrath of the Lamb on kings of the earth, great men, rich men, commanders, mighty men, slaves and free people. In response, they say to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”
“He shall judge among the nations He shall fill the places with dead bodies. He shall execute the heads of many countries.” Psalm 110:6
This passage likely refers to the great slaughter that happens in Revelation 19:11-21. In this passage, Christ appears on a white horse. The armies of heaven follow Him on white horses. Jesus strikes the nations with the words of His mouth. He treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. Birds eat the flesh of kings, captains, mighty men, horses and of people, free and slave, small and great. The kings of the earth, and their armies, had gathered against Christ but were defeated. The birds (vultures) were filled with their flesh.
“He shall execute the heads of many nations” recalls what the Lord God said to the serpent in Genesis 3:15, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed. He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.” Those heads of nations who compromise with the devil and serve him will be crushed. [6]
“He shall drink of the brook by the wayside. Therefore, He shall lift up the head.” Psalm 110:7
Matthew Henry sees the brook by the wayside as the bitter cup which the Father gave to Christ. He drank of the wrath of God. Christ drank of this brook when He was made a curse for us. In John 18:1, it is written that Jesus “went out with His disciples over the Brook Kidron.” In Hebrew, Kidron (קִדְרוֹן) means “dark.” He drank of the dark waters of sin by the wayside to take our sin out of the way of our salvation. By believing in Jesus, we are exempted from God’s wrath on sin.
“Therefore shall He lift up the head.” In John 19:30, when on the cross, Jesus bowed His head, and died, but three days later, He arose to life again. He lifted up His head as a conqueror.
Jesus lifts up the heads of all who profess Him. In John 11:25, He declared, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.”
Praise the Lord! I am so glad that David’s Lord is also my Lord. I hope and pray that you believe in and profess Him as your Savior and Lord as well.
[1] Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary (see also Joshua 10:24; Judges 1:7)
[2] Matthew Henry’s Commentary
[3] Enduring Word Commentary
[4] www.soundcitybiblechurch.com/articles/2016/3/1/is-melchizedek-jesus
[5] Enduring Word Commentary
[6] Matthew Henry’s Commentary
Tuesday, June 30, 2026
A Psalm for the Persecuted – Psalm 109
“To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. Do not keep silent, O God of my praise! For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful have opened against me. They have spoken against me with a lying tongue. They have also surrounded me with words of hatred and fought against me without a cause. In return for my love they are my accusers, but I give myself to prayer. Thus they have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for my love.” Psalm 109:1-5
“Heavenly Father, in Your grace and mercy, please help the Gospel proclaimers who serve You among hateful people. Please grant them the love, patience and forgiveness that they need to keep shining for You. Please make a way of escape for them if any trial becomes too great for them to endure. And Father, please set free the slaves of the devil. Please rescue them from being instruments of hate and affliction to others. Holy Spirit, please grant them new birth. I pray this in the wonderful and powerful Name of Jesus Christ, amen.”
In 2 Thessalonians 2:7, 9, Paul wrote of the mystery of lawlessness that is at work in the world. He wrote of the coming of the lawless one, that is, the antichrist. How is it that someone who is made in God’s image can behave so devilish against those who praise, love and glorify the Lord?
David used his mouth to praise the Lord, but wicked and deceitful people used their mouths to speak lies and hateful words against him. The more David expressed God’s love for them, the more they hated him. How did David respond to such treatment? He gave himself to prayer. He asked God not to remain silent while all this was happening, but to intervene.
When David experienced hatred from people due to his love for God, the Lord helped him to process what was happening to him, and respond appropriately.
In John 15:24-25, Jesus told His disciples, “If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin, but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father. But this happened that the word might be fulfilled which is written in their law, ‘They hated Me without a cause.’”
Graciously convicting a sinner of his or her sin so that he or she may repent and receive God’s forgiveness is an act of lovingkindness, but proud people do not receive it that way. Thus, they hate the one who is trying to help them without a cause.
In Matthew 10:22, Jesus prepared His disciples for unprovoked hatred. He said to them, “You will be hated by all for My Name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.”
In Matthew 24:9, when His disciples asked Jesus for signs of His second coming, He said to them, “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My Name’s sake.”
In Revelation 12:17, Satan is at war with those “who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.”
Thus, in Ephesians 6:16-18, Paul urges us to “take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit.”
Prayer invokes God’s help against the evil one. God is easily able to repel his attacks.
“Set a wicked man over him, and let an accuser stand at his right hand. When he is judged, let him be found guilty, and let his prayer become sin.” Psalm 109:6-7
David singles out a particular person who was worse than the rest of his enemies. The ringleader! [1] He zealously prays that God will deal with the man’s behavior.
This passage is particularly applicable to Judas who betrayed the Messiah and Savior of all people. In John 19:11, Jesus spoke of Judas to Pilate when He said, “The one who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.” [2] Judas knew that Jesus was the Messiah and yet betrayed Him for 30 pieces of silver. 30 pieces of silver was the common purchase price for a slave in those days.
Set the wicked one over him, that is, Satan. In John 13:27, Satan entered Judas, and deceived him to do evil against Jesus, against himself, and against humanity.
“Let his days be few and let another take his office.” Psalm 109:8
Soon after Judas betrayed Jesus for Satan, his life ended.
In Acts 1:18, Peter said of Judas, “This man purchased a field with the wages of iniquity, and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his entrails gushed out.” Judas traded the promised Messiah for an earthly property, and then, experienced a painful death there.
In Acts 1:20, Peter confirmed that Judas was the one of whom David prophesied in Psalm 109:8.
Those that mismanage their trusts will justly have their office taken from them and given to those that will show themselves faithful. [3]
In Acts 13:22, Paul noted in one of his sermons how God replaced King Saul with King David, saying, “When He [God] had removed him [Saul], He raised up David to be their king; to whom also He bare witness and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My heart, who shall do all My will.”
Judas Iscariot not only betrayed Jesus he betrayed himself and his family.
“Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow. Let his children continually be vagabonds and beg. Let them seek their bread also from their desolate places. Let the creditor seize all that he has, and let strangers plunder his labor. Let there be none to extend mercy to him, nor let there be any to favor his fatherless children.” Psalm 109:9-12
The children of wicked parents often suffer due to the bad choices of their parents, as well as due to the bad things that others may falsely assume about them because of their parents. [4]
“Let his posterity be cut off, and in the generation following let their name be blotted out. Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out. Let them be continually before the Lord, that He may cut off the memory of them from the earth.” Psalm 109:13-15
In Revelation 20:15, it is written, “Anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.” This prophecy shall come to pass for all who reject Jesus the Savior from sin.
“Because he did not remember to show mercy, but persecuted the poor and needy man, that he might even slay the broken in heart.” Psalm 109:16
Rather than being merciful to the poor and needy, he persecuted them. He broke their hearts.
In John 12:3-5, when Mary took a very expensive bottle of perfume and poured it on Jesus’ feet, Judas remarked, “Why wasn’t this perfume sold for 300 silver coins and the money given to the poor?” But then in John 12:6, John tells us that “Judas did not really care about the poor. He asked this because he carried the moneybag and sometimes would steal from it.” Judas embezzled money that was given by others to help the poor. In John 12:7-8, Jesus rebuked his anger, saying to him, “Leave her alone! She has kept this perfume for the day of My burial. You will always have the poor with you, but you won’t always have Me.”
“As he loved cursing, so let it come to him. As he did not delight in blessing, so let it be far from him. As he clothed himself with cursing as with his garment, so let it enter his body like water, and like oil into his bones. Let it be to him like the garment which covers him, and for a belt with which he girds himself continually. Let this be the Lord’s reward to my accusers, and to those who speak evil against my person.” Psalm 109:17-20
Water is good for the body, oil is good for the joints between the bones, a garment covers nakedness and a belt holds loose clothing in place. These are all blessings from God that a cursor takes for granted. David asked God to turn these blessings that the cursor took for granted and turn them into curses. Thus, it is not believers in Christ who need to be concerned about curses. Cursors of God and God’s people need to beware. In Genesis 12:3, the Lord said to Abraham, the man who believed in God, “I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
“But You, O God the Lord, deal with me for Your Name’s sake, because Your mercy is good, deliver me. For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me. I am gone like a shadow when it lengthens. I am shaken off like a locust. My knees are weak through fasting, and my flesh is feeble from lack of fatness. I also have become a reproach to them. When they look at me, they shake their heads.” Psalm 109:21-25
Rather than trying to get even with those who attacked him, David took the matter to God. [6]
Who could heal his wounds? He felt his life was a fading shadow. He was treated like a pesty locust by people who cursed God. His knees were weak due to fasting. But it is better to have leanness in body, while the soul prospers than vice versa. The people that David fasted and prayed for, shook their heads in disgust at him. [7]
In all this David was a type of Christ, who in His humiliation was thus wounded, thus weakened, and thus reproached. David was also a type of the Church, which is often afflicted, tossed with tempests, and not comforted. [8]
“Help me, O Lord my God! O, save me according to Your mercy, that they may know that this is Your hand—that You, Lord, have done it!” Psalm 109:26-27
In Matthew 5:3, Jesus began His sermon on the mount with these words, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Blessed are those who can say to the Lord as David did, “Help me, O Lord my God, I am poor in spirit. I cannot make it without You.”
In Luke 1:47-49, a distant descendant of David declared, “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for He has been mindful of the humble state of His servant.” These were the words of the Virgin Mary who gave birth to Messiah.
Whenever I have a dangerous mission before me, my “go-to prayer” is “God help me! Please be with me.” Like the tax collector in Luke 18, I know that I need God’s mercy. I need His hand to be with me. And when I return, I know it because His hand was with me.
“Let them curse, but You bless. When they arise, let them be ashamed, but let Your servant rejoice. Let my accusers be clothed with shame and let them cover themselves with their own disgrace as with a mantle.” Psalm 109:28-29
David valued the blessings of God as sufficient to counterbalance their curses. [9]
David asked God to reveal to his accusers the shamefulness of their ways. Proverbs 22:15 says, “Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline will drive it far from him.” Romans 2:4 says, “God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance.” Only by the grace of God can a malicious accuser of God’s people be separated from his foolishness.
In John 9:35-37, after the Pharisees ostracized a poor man from the synagogue for professing Christ, Christ found him, and affirmed his faith in Messiah, saying to the poor man, “You have now seen Him. In fact, He is the One speaking with you.”
“I will greatly praise the Lord with my mouth. Yes, I will praise Him among the multitude. For He shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save him from those who condemn him.” Psalm 109:30-31
David concluded his psalm with joy, joy that his temporary trial ended well. He declared, “I will greatly praise the Lord with my mouth.” Not in privacy only, but also among many people. [10]
God shall stand at the right hand of the poor. God says to the poor saint in Hebrews 13:5, “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you. Never will I forsake you.’” Praise the Lord!
[1-10] Material developed and edited from Matthew Henry’s Commentary
“Heavenly Father, in Your grace and mercy, please help the Gospel proclaimers who serve You among hateful people. Please grant them the love, patience and forgiveness that they need to keep shining for You. Please make a way of escape for them if any trial becomes too great for them to endure. And Father, please set free the slaves of the devil. Please rescue them from being instruments of hate and affliction to others. Holy Spirit, please grant them new birth. I pray this in the wonderful and powerful Name of Jesus Christ, amen.”
In 2 Thessalonians 2:7, 9, Paul wrote of the mystery of lawlessness that is at work in the world. He wrote of the coming of the lawless one, that is, the antichrist. How is it that someone who is made in God’s image can behave so devilish against those who praise, love and glorify the Lord?
David used his mouth to praise the Lord, but wicked and deceitful people used their mouths to speak lies and hateful words against him. The more David expressed God’s love for them, the more they hated him. How did David respond to such treatment? He gave himself to prayer. He asked God not to remain silent while all this was happening, but to intervene.
When David experienced hatred from people due to his love for God, the Lord helped him to process what was happening to him, and respond appropriately.
In John 15:24-25, Jesus told His disciples, “If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin, but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father. But this happened that the word might be fulfilled which is written in their law, ‘They hated Me without a cause.’”
Graciously convicting a sinner of his or her sin so that he or she may repent and receive God’s forgiveness is an act of lovingkindness, but proud people do not receive it that way. Thus, they hate the one who is trying to help them without a cause.
In Matthew 10:22, Jesus prepared His disciples for unprovoked hatred. He said to them, “You will be hated by all for My Name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.”
In Matthew 24:9, when His disciples asked Jesus for signs of His second coming, He said to them, “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My Name’s sake.”
In Revelation 12:17, Satan is at war with those “who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.”
Thus, in Ephesians 6:16-18, Paul urges us to “take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit.”
Prayer invokes God’s help against the evil one. God is easily able to repel his attacks.
“Set a wicked man over him, and let an accuser stand at his right hand. When he is judged, let him be found guilty, and let his prayer become sin.” Psalm 109:6-7
David singles out a particular person who was worse than the rest of his enemies. The ringleader! [1] He zealously prays that God will deal with the man’s behavior.
This passage is particularly applicable to Judas who betrayed the Messiah and Savior of all people. In John 19:11, Jesus spoke of Judas to Pilate when He said, “The one who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.” [2] Judas knew that Jesus was the Messiah and yet betrayed Him for 30 pieces of silver. 30 pieces of silver was the common purchase price for a slave in those days.
Set the wicked one over him, that is, Satan. In John 13:27, Satan entered Judas, and deceived him to do evil against Jesus, against himself, and against humanity.
“Let his days be few and let another take his office.” Psalm 109:8
Soon after Judas betrayed Jesus for Satan, his life ended.
In Acts 1:18, Peter said of Judas, “This man purchased a field with the wages of iniquity, and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his entrails gushed out.” Judas traded the promised Messiah for an earthly property, and then, experienced a painful death there.
In Acts 1:20, Peter confirmed that Judas was the one of whom David prophesied in Psalm 109:8.
Those that mismanage their trusts will justly have their office taken from them and given to those that will show themselves faithful. [3]
In Acts 13:22, Paul noted in one of his sermons how God replaced King Saul with King David, saying, “When He [God] had removed him [Saul], He raised up David to be their king; to whom also He bare witness and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My heart, who shall do all My will.”
Judas Iscariot not only betrayed Jesus he betrayed himself and his family.
“Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow. Let his children continually be vagabonds and beg. Let them seek their bread also from their desolate places. Let the creditor seize all that he has, and let strangers plunder his labor. Let there be none to extend mercy to him, nor let there be any to favor his fatherless children.” Psalm 109:9-12
The children of wicked parents often suffer due to the bad choices of their parents, as well as due to the bad things that others may falsely assume about them because of their parents. [4]
“Let his posterity be cut off, and in the generation following let their name be blotted out. Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out. Let them be continually before the Lord, that He may cut off the memory of them from the earth.” Psalm 109:13-15
In Revelation 20:15, it is written, “Anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.” This prophecy shall come to pass for all who reject Jesus the Savior from sin.
“Because he did not remember to show mercy, but persecuted the poor and needy man, that he might even slay the broken in heart.” Psalm 109:16
Rather than being merciful to the poor and needy, he persecuted them. He broke their hearts.
In John 12:3-5, when Mary took a very expensive bottle of perfume and poured it on Jesus’ feet, Judas remarked, “Why wasn’t this perfume sold for 300 silver coins and the money given to the poor?” But then in John 12:6, John tells us that “Judas did not really care about the poor. He asked this because he carried the moneybag and sometimes would steal from it.” Judas embezzled money that was given by others to help the poor. In John 12:7-8, Jesus rebuked his anger, saying to him, “Leave her alone! She has kept this perfume for the day of My burial. You will always have the poor with you, but you won’t always have Me.”
“As he loved cursing, so let it come to him. As he did not delight in blessing, so let it be far from him. As he clothed himself with cursing as with his garment, so let it enter his body like water, and like oil into his bones. Let it be to him like the garment which covers him, and for a belt with which he girds himself continually. Let this be the Lord’s reward to my accusers, and to those who speak evil against my person.” Psalm 109:17-20
Water is good for the body, oil is good for the joints between the bones, a garment covers nakedness and a belt holds loose clothing in place. These are all blessings from God that a cursor takes for granted. David asked God to turn these blessings that the cursor took for granted and turn them into curses. Thus, it is not believers in Christ who need to be concerned about curses. Cursors of God and God’s people need to beware. In Genesis 12:3, the Lord said to Abraham, the man who believed in God, “I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
“But You, O God the Lord, deal with me for Your Name’s sake, because Your mercy is good, deliver me. For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me. I am gone like a shadow when it lengthens. I am shaken off like a locust. My knees are weak through fasting, and my flesh is feeble from lack of fatness. I also have become a reproach to them. When they look at me, they shake their heads.” Psalm 109:21-25
Rather than trying to get even with those who attacked him, David took the matter to God. [6]
Who could heal his wounds? He felt his life was a fading shadow. He was treated like a pesty locust by people who cursed God. His knees were weak due to fasting. But it is better to have leanness in body, while the soul prospers than vice versa. The people that David fasted and prayed for, shook their heads in disgust at him. [7]
In all this David was a type of Christ, who in His humiliation was thus wounded, thus weakened, and thus reproached. David was also a type of the Church, which is often afflicted, tossed with tempests, and not comforted. [8]
“Help me, O Lord my God! O, save me according to Your mercy, that they may know that this is Your hand—that You, Lord, have done it!” Psalm 109:26-27
In Matthew 5:3, Jesus began His sermon on the mount with these words, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Blessed are those who can say to the Lord as David did, “Help me, O Lord my God, I am poor in spirit. I cannot make it without You.”
In Luke 1:47-49, a distant descendant of David declared, “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for He has been mindful of the humble state of His servant.” These were the words of the Virgin Mary who gave birth to Messiah.
Whenever I have a dangerous mission before me, my “go-to prayer” is “God help me! Please be with me.” Like the tax collector in Luke 18, I know that I need God’s mercy. I need His hand to be with me. And when I return, I know it because His hand was with me.
“Let them curse, but You bless. When they arise, let them be ashamed, but let Your servant rejoice. Let my accusers be clothed with shame and let them cover themselves with their own disgrace as with a mantle.” Psalm 109:28-29
David valued the blessings of God as sufficient to counterbalance their curses. [9]
David asked God to reveal to his accusers the shamefulness of their ways. Proverbs 22:15 says, “Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline will drive it far from him.” Romans 2:4 says, “God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance.” Only by the grace of God can a malicious accuser of God’s people be separated from his foolishness.
In John 9:35-37, after the Pharisees ostracized a poor man from the synagogue for professing Christ, Christ found him, and affirmed his faith in Messiah, saying to the poor man, “You have now seen Him. In fact, He is the One speaking with you.”
“I will greatly praise the Lord with my mouth. Yes, I will praise Him among the multitude. For He shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save him from those who condemn him.” Psalm 109:30-31
David concluded his psalm with joy, joy that his temporary trial ended well. He declared, “I will greatly praise the Lord with my mouth.” Not in privacy only, but also among many people. [10]
God shall stand at the right hand of the poor. God says to the poor saint in Hebrews 13:5, “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you. Never will I forsake you.’” Praise the Lord!
[1-10] Material developed and edited from Matthew Henry’s Commentary
Monday, June 29, 2026
Be Exalted, O God – Psalm 108
“A Song. A Psalm of David. O God, my heart is steadfast.” Psalm 108:1
Let us bring our wandering hearts under the lordship of Jesus Christ. In 2 Corinthians 10:5, Paul wrote of casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, so as to bring “every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.”
Jesus Christ, the Lord of heaven and earth, is more than able to fill our hearts until overflowing with blessings. In Ephesians 1:23, we read that Christ “fills all in all.” When Christ is with us and we are with Him, songs of God’s praise do arise from within our heart and soul.
“I will sing and give praise, even with my glory. Awake, lute and harp! I will awaken the dawn. I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples, and I will sing praises to You among the nations.” Psalm 108:2-3
Spirit-filled worship is animate. Full of life, love and joy! David woke up with the dawn of day and commanded his voice and his musical instruments to sing praises to the Lord. He wanted praises of God to be heard among the nations. [1] He wanted the nations to join his song just as birds seem to join together in singing to the Lord every morning.
Our tongue is one of God’s greatest gifts. It fulfills its highest purpose when it proclaims God’s praises. As Psalms 45:1 says, when the heart overflows with praise, the tongue becomes “the pen of a ready writer.” [2]
David dedicated his musical talents to God’s glory, saying, “Awake, my psaltery and harp.” [3] God welcomes us to use musical instruments to worship Him.
“For Your mercy is great above the heavens, and Your truth reaches to the clouds.” Psalm 108:4
God’s mercy and truth are beyond what our finite minds can comprehend without the help of His Word and Holy Spirit. Praise God that He reveals His mercy and truth to us.
“Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, and Your glory above all the earth.” Psalm 108:5
This should also be our desire—that God would receive the honor due His Name throughout the earth. David’s exaltation of God reflects the heart of Jesus in John 12:28 where Jesus prayed, “Father, glorify Your own Name.” David’s heart to glorify God reflects what Jesus taught us to pray, when He prayed, “Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be Your Name.” [4]
Our prayers should not be focused only on our personal needs. [5] We should be jealous for God. That He would be exalted and glorified by all people everywhere! For example, pray, “Thank You Lord that Your glory covers the earth as the waters cover the sea!”
“That Your beloved may be delivered, save with Your right hand, and hear me.” Psalm 108:6
The faith of us who are God’s beloved ones rests on His power and His promises. [6] We pray, “Save with your right hand,” because Jesus God’s Son sits at His right hand. God did and does hear, deliver and save us by His right hand.
“God has spoken in His holiness: ‘I will rejoice. I will divide Shechem and measure out the Valley of Succoth. Gilead is Mine. Manasseh is Mine. Ephraim also is the helmet for My head. Judah is My lawgiver. Moab is My washpot. Over Edom I will cast My shoe. Over Philistia I will triumph.” Psalm 108:7-9
God confirmed His Word by His holiness. Therefore, we can rejoice even before the answer is manifest. God’s promises are certain. God’s speaking and doing are inseparable. [7]
God had promised David the loyalty of his people, so David spoke of the lands of Shechem and Succoth, Gilead and Manasseh, Ephraim and Judah as his. God promised David victory over his enemies. Therefore, David considered these nations as already won. [8]
David’s inheritance of nations is symbolic of Christ. God has promised His Son the nations as His inheritance and the ends of the earth as His possession. [9]
In John 6:37, Jesus declared, “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.”
In Hebrews 2:8, we read that God put all things in subjection under His Son’s feet. “But now we do not yet see all things put under Him.” Although this victory has not yet been fully revealed, it is guaranteed. God watches over His Word to perform it.
“Who will bring me into the strong city? Who will lead me to Edom?” Psalm 108:10
David brought his concerns before God in prayer. His confidence rested not in military might but in God’s faithfulness. The same God who gave him past victories, would also win today’s battle. [10]
“Is it not You, O God, who cast us off? And You, O God, who did not go out with our armies? Give us help from trouble, for the help of man is useless. Through God we will do valiantly, for it is He who shall tread down our enemies.” Psalm 108:11-13
When the enemy tells us that God is against us, we can tell God how we are feeling and ask Him to prove the enemy wrong. Contrary to Satan’s lies, David believed that God would once again give him the victory. Rather than admit defeat, he proclaimed, “Through God we will do valiantly, He will tread down our enemies.”
In Ephesians 6:10-13, Paul wrote, “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”
David could not defeat the spiritual forces of wickedness in his own strength. The Lord, in His mercy, revealed this truth to David and he boldly declared, “Through God we shall do valiantly.”
In Philippians 4:13, Paul expressed this same truth when he wrote, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
God does valiantly! He treads down enemies! Therefore, let us sing God’s praises among all nations. All of us together singing like birds in the morning, “Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, and Your glory above all the earth.”
Let us bring our wandering hearts under the lordship of Jesus Christ. In 2 Corinthians 10:5, Paul wrote of casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, so as to bring “every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.”
Jesus Christ, the Lord of heaven and earth, is more than able to fill our hearts until overflowing with blessings. In Ephesians 1:23, we read that Christ “fills all in all.” When Christ is with us and we are with Him, songs of God’s praise do arise from within our heart and soul.
“I will sing and give praise, even with my glory. Awake, lute and harp! I will awaken the dawn. I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples, and I will sing praises to You among the nations.” Psalm 108:2-3
Spirit-filled worship is animate. Full of life, love and joy! David woke up with the dawn of day and commanded his voice and his musical instruments to sing praises to the Lord. He wanted praises of God to be heard among the nations. [1] He wanted the nations to join his song just as birds seem to join together in singing to the Lord every morning.
Our tongue is one of God’s greatest gifts. It fulfills its highest purpose when it proclaims God’s praises. As Psalms 45:1 says, when the heart overflows with praise, the tongue becomes “the pen of a ready writer.” [2]
David dedicated his musical talents to God’s glory, saying, “Awake, my psaltery and harp.” [3] God welcomes us to use musical instruments to worship Him.
“For Your mercy is great above the heavens, and Your truth reaches to the clouds.” Psalm 108:4
God’s mercy and truth are beyond what our finite minds can comprehend without the help of His Word and Holy Spirit. Praise God that He reveals His mercy and truth to us.
“Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, and Your glory above all the earth.” Psalm 108:5
This should also be our desire—that God would receive the honor due His Name throughout the earth. David’s exaltation of God reflects the heart of Jesus in John 12:28 where Jesus prayed, “Father, glorify Your own Name.” David’s heart to glorify God reflects what Jesus taught us to pray, when He prayed, “Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be Your Name.” [4]
Our prayers should not be focused only on our personal needs. [5] We should be jealous for God. That He would be exalted and glorified by all people everywhere! For example, pray, “Thank You Lord that Your glory covers the earth as the waters cover the sea!”
“That Your beloved may be delivered, save with Your right hand, and hear me.” Psalm 108:6
The faith of us who are God’s beloved ones rests on His power and His promises. [6] We pray, “Save with your right hand,” because Jesus God’s Son sits at His right hand. God did and does hear, deliver and save us by His right hand.
“God has spoken in His holiness: ‘I will rejoice. I will divide Shechem and measure out the Valley of Succoth. Gilead is Mine. Manasseh is Mine. Ephraim also is the helmet for My head. Judah is My lawgiver. Moab is My washpot. Over Edom I will cast My shoe. Over Philistia I will triumph.” Psalm 108:7-9
God confirmed His Word by His holiness. Therefore, we can rejoice even before the answer is manifest. God’s promises are certain. God’s speaking and doing are inseparable. [7]
God had promised David the loyalty of his people, so David spoke of the lands of Shechem and Succoth, Gilead and Manasseh, Ephraim and Judah as his. God promised David victory over his enemies. Therefore, David considered these nations as already won. [8]
David’s inheritance of nations is symbolic of Christ. God has promised His Son the nations as His inheritance and the ends of the earth as His possession. [9]
In John 6:37, Jesus declared, “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.”
In Hebrews 2:8, we read that God put all things in subjection under His Son’s feet. “But now we do not yet see all things put under Him.” Although this victory has not yet been fully revealed, it is guaranteed. God watches over His Word to perform it.
“Who will bring me into the strong city? Who will lead me to Edom?” Psalm 108:10
David brought his concerns before God in prayer. His confidence rested not in military might but in God’s faithfulness. The same God who gave him past victories, would also win today’s battle. [10]
“Is it not You, O God, who cast us off? And You, O God, who did not go out with our armies? Give us help from trouble, for the help of man is useless. Through God we will do valiantly, for it is He who shall tread down our enemies.” Psalm 108:11-13
When the enemy tells us that God is against us, we can tell God how we are feeling and ask Him to prove the enemy wrong. Contrary to Satan’s lies, David believed that God would once again give him the victory. Rather than admit defeat, he proclaimed, “Through God we will do valiantly, He will tread down our enemies.”
In Ephesians 6:10-13, Paul wrote, “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”
David could not defeat the spiritual forces of wickedness in his own strength. The Lord, in His mercy, revealed this truth to David and he boldly declared, “Through God we shall do valiantly.”
In Philippians 4:13, Paul expressed this same truth when he wrote, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
God does valiantly! He treads down enemies! Therefore, let us sing God’s praises among all nations. All of us together singing like birds in the morning, “Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, and Your glory above all the earth.”
[1-11] Material developed and edited from Matthew Henry’s Commentary
Sunday, June 28, 2026
Convinced of God’s Lovingkindness – Psalm 107:23-43
“Those who go down to the sea in ships, who do business on great waters, they see the works of the Lord, and His wonders in the deep. For He commands and raises the stormy wind, which lifts up the waves of the sea. They mount up to the heavens, they go down again to the depths, their soul melts because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits’ end. Then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble, and He brings them out of their distresses. He calms the storm, so that its waves are still. Then they are glad because they are quiet. So, He guides them to their desired haven.” Psalm 107:23-30
Our Lord Jesus Christ literally fulfilled this prophecy in Mark 4:35-41.
Jesus and His disciples were in a boat on the sea of Galilee when “a furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped.” Their boat was mounting up on waves and then descending into the sea so that their souls were melting. They reeled to and fro, and staggered like drunken men on that boat. They were at their wits’ end. They cried out to Jesus who was asleep on the boat. Jesus stood up, rebuked the wind, and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. “The disciples were terrified and asked each other, ‘Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!’”
Psalm 107:29 says that the Lord calms the storm and its waves are still. God does it. Thus, the divine nature of Christ is revealed in Mark 4:35-41.
There is a saying: “Let those who would learn to pray go to sea” meaning that a life-threatening storm at sea will help you to start praying. [1]
In fact, it is good to do as Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 5:17, “Pray without ceasing.” God welcomes continuous prayers from us. We can commit everything we do to God by simply saying or thinking inside our mind, “Lord Jesus, please be with me as I... [fill in the blank]. Proverbs 16:3 says, “Commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will be established.”
We don’t have to verbalize every prayer we pray because God hears our thoughts. It is good to verbally profess prayers to God, but, sometimes, when I am in a conversation with someone, I am also praying in my mind and asking God to guide my understanding of what they are saying and how I should respond to what they have said. The Lord answers the prayers that I pray in my mind to Him. Such prayers prayed in my mind coincide with what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2:16, “We have the mind of Christ.”
The Holy Spirit reminds me when I am at my wits’ end to ask God for help and He gives me blessed assurance that God will come through for me.
“O, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people and praise Him in the company of the elders.” Psalm 107:31-32
It is commendable and proper to respond to God’s assistance with gratitude and praise. We should thank Him privately in our homes and publicly among fellow believers. [2]
“He turns rivers into a wilderness, and the water springs into dry ground; a fruitful land into barrenness, for the wickedness of those who dwell in it.” Psalm 107:33-34
God can cause well-watered regions to become wildernesses that are dry and barren. According to Genesis 13:10, Sodom was once like the garden of the Lord. However, after the inhabitants committed themselves to devilish behavior, God turned it into a salty wasteland. [3]
In fact, in Deuteronomy 29:19, Moses prophesied that if a person began to say, “I will have peace, even though I follow the dictates of my own heart” the Lord would not spare him. He said that every curse that is written in this book would settle on him, and the Lord would blot out his name from under heaven. He promised that the whole land would burn with brimstone, salt, and fire like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah. [4]
In Revelation 20:15, it is written, “Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.” So, this curse is not just on the land of those who serve Satan, it is also on the souls of such individuals. Such a soul should repent and turn to God.
The earth suffers when people turn away from God. When people fail to produce the spiritual fruit that God desires, He stops blessing the land from which they derive their physical fruit. [5]
“He turns a wilderness into pools of water, and dry land into water springs. There He makes the hungry dwell, that they may establish a city for a dwelling place, and sow fields and plant vineyards, that they may yield a fruitful harvest. He also blesses them, and they multiply greatly, and He does not let their cattle decrease.” Psalm 107:35-38
The Lord can also upgrade families and individuals from poverty to prosperity. Throughout the world we see people whose humble beginnings gave little indication of their future success. [6]
For example, at one point in his life, King David was an unknown shepherd boy. His older brother spoke poorly of him. Later, his father-in-law tried to kill him. His first wife left him. But the Lord’s anointing was on David. David believed the Word that God had spoken over him prophetically. God told him that he would be king of his nation, and it came to pass.
In Jeremiah 1:12, the Lord said to Jeremiah, “I will watch over My Word to perform it.” In 1 Timothy 4:14, the Lord said to Timothy via His servant Paul, “Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership.”
The day that I was born again by God’s Spirit, Jesus told me that He would use my life to touch many people. I was poor in spirit. I grew up in a small town. I had few friends and no hope on the horizon. But sure enough, Jesus kept His promise to me. Soon, I was studying the Bible at a college far from my home in a big city. And after that, I ministered the Word of God in four different states that were far from my home state. Then, the Lord brought me to Hong Kong and China from 1985-1997. Since returning from China, I have resided and ministered the Word of God in nine states, and now, articles I published online have been read in 166 countries. The Lord gave me a new word recently. He said, “The lives you have touched will touch more lives.”
Praise God! God is good! His mercy endures forever.
“When they are diminished and brought low through oppression, affliction, and sorrow, He pours contempt on princes, and causes them to wander in the wilderness where there is no way. Yet He sets the poor on high, far from affliction, and makes their families like a flock.” Psalm 107:39-41
Thanks be to God for all the proud and cruel “princes” that God has dethroned, and for all the poor people of goodwill that He has raised up to take their places.
God lifts the poor from the dust and sets them among the honorable, fulfilling what is declared in 1 Samuel 2:8 and Psalms 113:7-8. Those who were once oppressed are not only delivered but elevated beyond the reach of former troubles. He makes their households like flocks of sheep—numerous, productive, united, gentle, and peaceful. [7]
“The righteous see it and rejoice, and all iniquity stops its mouth.” Psalm 107:42
“All iniquity will stop its mouth.” God’s actions expose the folly of atheism and every denial of His providence. Since practical unbelief lies at the root of all sin, God’s judgments leave sinners without excuse. When they see that their punishment corresponds to their wrongdoing and that God has justly removed the blessings they abused, they will have no defense to offer. [8]
It comforts believers to see God directing human affairs according to His purposes, raising up virtue and bringing down pride. Such events confirm that God is actively working among us. [9]
“Whoever is wise will observe these things, and they will understand the lovingkindness of the Lord.” Psalm 107:43
How wonderful to be convinced of God’s lovingkindness, to experience it personally, and to be shaped by His love as Mary was in Luke 2:19. [10]
[1-10] Material developed and edited from Matthew Henry’s Commentary
Our Lord Jesus Christ literally fulfilled this prophecy in Mark 4:35-41.
Jesus and His disciples were in a boat on the sea of Galilee when “a furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped.” Their boat was mounting up on waves and then descending into the sea so that their souls were melting. They reeled to and fro, and staggered like drunken men on that boat. They were at their wits’ end. They cried out to Jesus who was asleep on the boat. Jesus stood up, rebuked the wind, and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. “The disciples were terrified and asked each other, ‘Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!’”
Psalm 107:29 says that the Lord calms the storm and its waves are still. God does it. Thus, the divine nature of Christ is revealed in Mark 4:35-41.
There is a saying: “Let those who would learn to pray go to sea” meaning that a life-threatening storm at sea will help you to start praying. [1]
In fact, it is good to do as Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 5:17, “Pray without ceasing.” God welcomes continuous prayers from us. We can commit everything we do to God by simply saying or thinking inside our mind, “Lord Jesus, please be with me as I... [fill in the blank]. Proverbs 16:3 says, “Commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will be established.”
We don’t have to verbalize every prayer we pray because God hears our thoughts. It is good to verbally profess prayers to God, but, sometimes, when I am in a conversation with someone, I am also praying in my mind and asking God to guide my understanding of what they are saying and how I should respond to what they have said. The Lord answers the prayers that I pray in my mind to Him. Such prayers prayed in my mind coincide with what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2:16, “We have the mind of Christ.”
The Holy Spirit reminds me when I am at my wits’ end to ask God for help and He gives me blessed assurance that God will come through for me.
“O, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people and praise Him in the company of the elders.” Psalm 107:31-32
It is commendable and proper to respond to God’s assistance with gratitude and praise. We should thank Him privately in our homes and publicly among fellow believers. [2]
“He turns rivers into a wilderness, and the water springs into dry ground; a fruitful land into barrenness, for the wickedness of those who dwell in it.” Psalm 107:33-34
God can cause well-watered regions to become wildernesses that are dry and barren. According to Genesis 13:10, Sodom was once like the garden of the Lord. However, after the inhabitants committed themselves to devilish behavior, God turned it into a salty wasteland. [3]
In fact, in Deuteronomy 29:19, Moses prophesied that if a person began to say, “I will have peace, even though I follow the dictates of my own heart” the Lord would not spare him. He said that every curse that is written in this book would settle on him, and the Lord would blot out his name from under heaven. He promised that the whole land would burn with brimstone, salt, and fire like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah. [4]
In Revelation 20:15, it is written, “Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.” So, this curse is not just on the land of those who serve Satan, it is also on the souls of such individuals. Such a soul should repent and turn to God.
The earth suffers when people turn away from God. When people fail to produce the spiritual fruit that God desires, He stops blessing the land from which they derive their physical fruit. [5]
“He turns a wilderness into pools of water, and dry land into water springs. There He makes the hungry dwell, that they may establish a city for a dwelling place, and sow fields and plant vineyards, that they may yield a fruitful harvest. He also blesses them, and they multiply greatly, and He does not let their cattle decrease.” Psalm 107:35-38
The Lord can also upgrade families and individuals from poverty to prosperity. Throughout the world we see people whose humble beginnings gave little indication of their future success. [6]
For example, at one point in his life, King David was an unknown shepherd boy. His older brother spoke poorly of him. Later, his father-in-law tried to kill him. His first wife left him. But the Lord’s anointing was on David. David believed the Word that God had spoken over him prophetically. God told him that he would be king of his nation, and it came to pass.
In Jeremiah 1:12, the Lord said to Jeremiah, “I will watch over My Word to perform it.” In 1 Timothy 4:14, the Lord said to Timothy via His servant Paul, “Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership.”
The day that I was born again by God’s Spirit, Jesus told me that He would use my life to touch many people. I was poor in spirit. I grew up in a small town. I had few friends and no hope on the horizon. But sure enough, Jesus kept His promise to me. Soon, I was studying the Bible at a college far from my home in a big city. And after that, I ministered the Word of God in four different states that were far from my home state. Then, the Lord brought me to Hong Kong and China from 1985-1997. Since returning from China, I have resided and ministered the Word of God in nine states, and now, articles I published online have been read in 166 countries. The Lord gave me a new word recently. He said, “The lives you have touched will touch more lives.”
Praise God! God is good! His mercy endures forever.
“When they are diminished and brought low through oppression, affliction, and sorrow, He pours contempt on princes, and causes them to wander in the wilderness where there is no way. Yet He sets the poor on high, far from affliction, and makes their families like a flock.” Psalm 107:39-41
Thanks be to God for all the proud and cruel “princes” that God has dethroned, and for all the poor people of goodwill that He has raised up to take their places.
God lifts the poor from the dust and sets them among the honorable, fulfilling what is declared in 1 Samuel 2:8 and Psalms 113:7-8. Those who were once oppressed are not only delivered but elevated beyond the reach of former troubles. He makes their households like flocks of sheep—numerous, productive, united, gentle, and peaceful. [7]
“The righteous see it and rejoice, and all iniquity stops its mouth.” Psalm 107:42
“All iniquity will stop its mouth.” God’s actions expose the folly of atheism and every denial of His providence. Since practical unbelief lies at the root of all sin, God’s judgments leave sinners without excuse. When they see that their punishment corresponds to their wrongdoing and that God has justly removed the blessings they abused, they will have no defense to offer. [8]
It comforts believers to see God directing human affairs according to His purposes, raising up virtue and bringing down pride. Such events confirm that God is actively working among us. [9]
“Whoever is wise will observe these things, and they will understand the lovingkindness of the Lord.” Psalm 107:43
How wonderful to be convinced of God’s lovingkindness, to experience it personally, and to be shaped by His love as Mary was in Luke 2:19. [10]
[1-10] Material developed and edited from Matthew Henry’s Commentary
Saturday, June 27, 2026
The Revelation of the Redeemer – Psalm 107:1-22
“O, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy, and gathered out of the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south.” Psalm 107:1-3
In Matthew 8:11, Jesus said, “Many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.”
In Revelation 7:9, we read, “After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands.”
Those before God’s throne sing to the Lamb of God Jesus, “You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God, and we shall reign on the earth.” (Revelation 5:9-10)
In Ephesians 2:11-13, it is written, “Remember that you, once... were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”
Thanks be to God for His goodness and mercy. He redeemed us from bondage to sin and Satan. He adopted us from all over the earth by revealing His Son Jesus Christ to us and gracing us with faith in His shed blood for the forgiveness of our sins. He made us coheirs with Christ. Yes, praise the Lord, we have good reason to thank God.
“They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way. They found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He delivered them out of their distresses. And He led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city for a dwelling place.” Psalm 107:4-7
When Israel strayed from God, they experienced homelessness. They experienced gnawing hunger pains, and shakiness due to lack of hydration. After they tried every other option, they humbled themselves and cried out to God for forgiveness and for help. In that moment, God revealed His love for them. Unlike others who abandoned them, He drew near and helped.
God placed in His apostles a passion for souls that surpassed concerned for their own wellbeing. In 1 Corinthians 4:11-13, Paul testified, “To the present hour we both hunger and thirst, and we are poorly clothed, and beaten, and homeless. We labor, working with our own hands. Being reviled, we bless! Being persecuted, we endure! Being defamed, we entreat! We have been made as the filth of the world, the offscouring of all things until now.” All for the sake of love!
God’s Spirit kept Paul encouraged. He wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:16-17, “We do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.”
“O, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! For He satisfies the longing soul and fills the hungry soul with goodness.” Psalm 107:8-9
God’s acts of mercy are truly wonderful. As we verbally acknowledge and testify of God’s mercy and goodness toward us, we build ourselves up in our most holy faith. In Jude 1:20, we read, “You, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit.”
“Those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, bound in affliction and irons—because they rebelled against the Words of God, and despised the counsel of the Most High.” Psalm 107:10-11
The captives of sin are in a dark place being tormented by the devil. They want out but cannot free themselves. How did they end up here? They rebelled against God’s Word. They rejected the counsel of the Most High which He spoke to them through the mouths of His servants.
“Therefore He brought down their heart with labor. They fell down, and there was none to help. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death and broke their chains in pieces.” Psalm 107:12-14
When they cried out to the Lord, everything began to change. Their darkness turned to daylight. Their sadness turned to joy. The chains that had bound them were gone. Love replaced hate.
God makes evil to serve His purposes. He takes our plan B and makes it part of His plan A for us. He takes what was meant to ruin us and makes it improve us. He replaces stubborn pride with a teachable spirit.
Has your wealth, health and honor sprouted wings and flown away? Turn to the Lord, ask Him to forgive you and to be merciful to you. The people described in Psalm 107 cried out to the Lord, and He saved them out of their distresses.
“O, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! For He has broken the gates of bronze and cut the bars of iron in two.” Psalm 107:15-16
The greatest obstacles bow before God. Gates of brass and bars of iron cannot keep Him away from us. When He saves us, we should respond to His mercy and goodness with praise.
“Fools, because of their transgression, and because of their iniquities, were afflicted. Their soul abhorred all manner of food, and they drew near to the gates of death. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses. He sent His Word, healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.” Psalm 107:17-20
God disciplines fools to replace their foolishness with His wisdom. Fools harm themselves and others. Foolishness is hazardous to health and happiness. Freed from folly, and endued with God’s wisdom, the former fool now enjoys God and God’s ways. He bears good fruit.
A season of sickness provides an opportunity to open the Bible and grow in faith. In Romans 10:17, we read, “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” In Hebrews 11:3, we read, “By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.”
In Matthew 19:26, Jesus said, “With God all things are possible.”
In James 5:13-15, we read, “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the Name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.”
The phrase, “He sent His Word, and healed them” can be applied to the miraculous healings performed by Christ during His earthly ministry. With a single command—“Be clean” or “Be whole”—the healing was accomplished immediately. It may also be applied to the spiritual healing that the Holy Spirit brings through regeneration. God sends His Word, and souls are healed. Through God’s Word the Holy Spirit convicts, converts, and sanctifies us. [1]
“O, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving and declare His works with rejoicing.” Psalm 107:21-22
In Luke 17:12-19, Jesus met ten leprous men. They cried out and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” Jesus responded, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” As they went, they were healed. One of the ten men was a Samaritan. He returned and fell down on his face at the feet of Jesus. He thanked Jesus. Jesus responded, “Were there not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” Jesus said to the man, “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.”
The Samaritan man was wise to turn around and bow to Jesus, and to sincerely thank Him.
May God graciously give you the revelation of His Son Jesus Christ. He is the Redeemer.
[1] Matthew Henry’s Commentary
In Matthew 8:11, Jesus said, “Many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.”
In Revelation 7:9, we read, “After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands.”
Those before God’s throne sing to the Lamb of God Jesus, “You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God, and we shall reign on the earth.” (Revelation 5:9-10)
In Ephesians 2:11-13, it is written, “Remember that you, once... were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”
Thanks be to God for His goodness and mercy. He redeemed us from bondage to sin and Satan. He adopted us from all over the earth by revealing His Son Jesus Christ to us and gracing us with faith in His shed blood for the forgiveness of our sins. He made us coheirs with Christ. Yes, praise the Lord, we have good reason to thank God.
“They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way. They found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He delivered them out of their distresses. And He led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city for a dwelling place.” Psalm 107:4-7
When Israel strayed from God, they experienced homelessness. They experienced gnawing hunger pains, and shakiness due to lack of hydration. After they tried every other option, they humbled themselves and cried out to God for forgiveness and for help. In that moment, God revealed His love for them. Unlike others who abandoned them, He drew near and helped.
God placed in His apostles a passion for souls that surpassed concerned for their own wellbeing. In 1 Corinthians 4:11-13, Paul testified, “To the present hour we both hunger and thirst, and we are poorly clothed, and beaten, and homeless. We labor, working with our own hands. Being reviled, we bless! Being persecuted, we endure! Being defamed, we entreat! We have been made as the filth of the world, the offscouring of all things until now.” All for the sake of love!
God’s Spirit kept Paul encouraged. He wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:16-17, “We do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.”
“O, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! For He satisfies the longing soul and fills the hungry soul with goodness.” Psalm 107:8-9
God’s acts of mercy are truly wonderful. As we verbally acknowledge and testify of God’s mercy and goodness toward us, we build ourselves up in our most holy faith. In Jude 1:20, we read, “You, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit.”
“Those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, bound in affliction and irons—because they rebelled against the Words of God, and despised the counsel of the Most High.” Psalm 107:10-11
The captives of sin are in a dark place being tormented by the devil. They want out but cannot free themselves. How did they end up here? They rebelled against God’s Word. They rejected the counsel of the Most High which He spoke to them through the mouths of His servants.
“Therefore He brought down their heart with labor. They fell down, and there was none to help. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death and broke their chains in pieces.” Psalm 107:12-14
When they cried out to the Lord, everything began to change. Their darkness turned to daylight. Their sadness turned to joy. The chains that had bound them were gone. Love replaced hate.
God makes evil to serve His purposes. He takes our plan B and makes it part of His plan A for us. He takes what was meant to ruin us and makes it improve us. He replaces stubborn pride with a teachable spirit.
Has your wealth, health and honor sprouted wings and flown away? Turn to the Lord, ask Him to forgive you and to be merciful to you. The people described in Psalm 107 cried out to the Lord, and He saved them out of their distresses.
“O, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! For He has broken the gates of bronze and cut the bars of iron in two.” Psalm 107:15-16
The greatest obstacles bow before God. Gates of brass and bars of iron cannot keep Him away from us. When He saves us, we should respond to His mercy and goodness with praise.
“Fools, because of their transgression, and because of their iniquities, were afflicted. Their soul abhorred all manner of food, and they drew near to the gates of death. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses. He sent His Word, healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.” Psalm 107:17-20
God disciplines fools to replace their foolishness with His wisdom. Fools harm themselves and others. Foolishness is hazardous to health and happiness. Freed from folly, and endued with God’s wisdom, the former fool now enjoys God and God’s ways. He bears good fruit.
A season of sickness provides an opportunity to open the Bible and grow in faith. In Romans 10:17, we read, “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” In Hebrews 11:3, we read, “By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.”
In Matthew 19:26, Jesus said, “With God all things are possible.”
In James 5:13-15, we read, “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the Name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.”
The phrase, “He sent His Word, and healed them” can be applied to the miraculous healings performed by Christ during His earthly ministry. With a single command—“Be clean” or “Be whole”—the healing was accomplished immediately. It may also be applied to the spiritual healing that the Holy Spirit brings through regeneration. God sends His Word, and souls are healed. Through God’s Word the Holy Spirit convicts, converts, and sanctifies us. [1]
“O, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving and declare His works with rejoicing.” Psalm 107:21-22
In Luke 17:12-19, Jesus met ten leprous men. They cried out and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” Jesus responded, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” As they went, they were healed. One of the ten men was a Samaritan. He returned and fell down on his face at the feet of Jesus. He thanked Jesus. Jesus responded, “Were there not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” Jesus said to the man, “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.”
The Samaritan man was wise to turn around and bow to Jesus, and to sincerely thank Him.
May God graciously give you the revelation of His Son Jesus Christ. He is the Redeemer.
[1] Matthew Henry’s Commentary
Friday, June 26, 2026
Blessing the Lord from Everlasting to Everlasting – Psalm 106:24-48
“Then they despised the pleasant land. They did not believe His Word, but complained in their tents, and did not heed the voice of the Lord. Therefore, He raised His hand in an oath against them, to overthrow them in the wilderness, to overthrow their descendants among the nations, and to scatter them in the lands.” Psalm 106:24-27
Most of the Israelites trusted the doubts of doubters rather than the belief of the two believers Caleb and Joshua. In Numbers 14:10-12, they spoke of stoning Moses and Aaron until the glory of the Lord appeared unto them.
In Numbers 14:28-30, the Lord said to Moses, “Tell them, ‘As surely as I live, declares the Lord, I will do to you the very thing I heard you say: in this wilderness your bodies will fall—every one of you 20 years old or more who was counted in the census and who has grumbled against Me. Not one of you will enter the land I swore with uplifted hand to make your home, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.”
The earthly Promised Land is a type of the heavenly Promised Land. God has given the promise of eternal life to whosoever believes in His Son Jesus Christ. Sadly, many doubt the words of Christ. They will not enter the heavenly Promised Land.
The lesson is clear: those who despise God’s gift eventually forfeit it. Those who reject His gracious offer of eternal life, will not enter the heavenly Promised Land. [1]
“They joined themselves also to Baal of Peor, and ate sacrifices made to the dead. Thus, they provoked Him to anger with their deeds, and the plague broke out among them.” Psalm 106:28-29
The Israelites committed a serious sin when they were a step away from entering the Promised Land. They joined themselves to sexually immoral idol worshippers. God made His displeasure known by sending a plague among the people, which quickly swept away 24,000 of them. [2]
Many years later, in Joshua 22:17-18, Joshua exclaimed, “Was not the sin of Peor enough for us? Up to this very day we have not cleansed ourselves from that sin, even though a plague fell on the community of the Lord! And are you now turning away from the Lord?”
“Then Phinehas stood up and intervened, and the plague was stopped. And that was accounted to him for righteousness to all generations forevermore.” Psalm 106:30-31
Filled with zeal for the Lord, Phinehas stood up and executed judgment on Zimri and Cozbi, prominent offenders who had openly defied God. As with Abraham, God accounted the faith of Phinehas as righteousness. [3]
In Romans 4:3-6, it is written, “What does Scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.’ Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift but as an obligation. However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness. David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the one to whom God credits righteousness apart from works.”
Through this one man’s act, guilt was no longer charged to the nation. In this way, Phinehas was a type of Christ. He did what God’s Spirit led him to do on behalf of others.
“They angered Him also at the waters of strife, so that it went ill with Moses on account of them, because they rebelled against His Spirit, so that he spoke rashly with his lips.” Psalm 106:32-33
The psalmist recalls Israel’s rebellion at the waters of Meribah, where their constant grumbling provoked Moses to speak rashly and react contrary to God’s will.
“They did not destroy the peoples, concerning whom the Lord had commanded them.” Psalm 106:34
After receiving the good land God had promised them, they showed no zeal in removing the wicked inhabitants whom He had ordered them to drive out. [4]
They likely assumed they could avoid being influenced by them, but they eventually succumbed to their practices. In 1 Corinthians 15:33, God’s Word says, “Do not be deceived: evil company corrupts good habits.”
“But they mingled with the Gentiles and learned their works. They served their idols, which became a snare to them. They even sacrificed their sons and their daughters to demons, and shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, and the land was polluted with blood.” Psalm 106:35-38
One sin led to others. After a while, they began to sacrifice their sons and daughters to demons. The very thought is horrifying. The beginning of idolatry and superstition, like the beginning of a flood, may seem small, but once unleashed there is no telling how far it will go. [5]
In his book “Finishing Strong,” Steve Farrar wrote, “Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay.”
We need to say, “NO” to sin. In 1 Timothy 4:1-2, Paul warns us, “Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron.” A sensitive conscience is better than a seared one. When tempted say, “NO!”
“Thus they were defiled by their own works and played the harlot by their own deeds.” Psalm 106:39
They defiled themselves by participating in ungodly activities. Their rebellion was especially offensive because they had known God’s goodness and love. [6]
“Therefore the wrath of the Lord was kindled against His people, so that He abhorred His own inheritance.” Psalm 106:40
God’s judgments followed, as they inevitably do. The change was not in God but in them. [7]
“And He gave them into the hand of the Gentiles, and those who hated them ruled over them. Their enemies also oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection under their hand.” Psalm 106:41-42
Notice how the punishment matched the sin. They willingly mingled with the heathen and learned their ways; therefore God used those same nations to discipline them. Often the very people who lead others into sin become instruments of their suffering. Satan, who tempts, also torments. The nations that ruled over Israel hated them and oppressed them harshly. In this way God taught them the difference between serving Him and serving earthly rulers (2 Chronicles 12:8). [8]
“Many times He delivered them, but they rebelled in their counsel and were brought low for their iniquity.” Psalm 106:43
God raised up deliverers for them during the period of the Judges. Time after time God rescued them, yet they relapsed into idolatry and provoked Him with their own misguided plans and inventions. As a result, He allowed new oppressors to rise against them, and they were brought very low because of their iniquity. [9]
“Nevertheless He regarded their affliction, when He heard their cry; and for their sake He remembered His covenant and relented according to the multitude of His mercies.” Psalm 106:44-45
Though God had every reason to destroy them, He relented according to the greatness of His mercy. While God does not change His character or promises, He graciously changes His dealings with people when they turn to Him. The Lord God showed them mercy once again. They were disciplined but not destroyed; cast down but not abandoned. [10]
“He also made them to be pitied by all those who carried them away captive.” Psalm 106 46
As a God of power, He turned the hearts of their captors toward them. He not only restrained their enemies from completely destroying them but even caused those enemies to show compassion. No human effort could have produced such a change. God can transform hearts, turning lions into lambs. When a person’s ways please the Lord, He can even cause his enemies to show favor and compassion. [11]
“Save us, O Lord our God, and gather us from among the Gentiles, to give thanks to Your holy Name, to triumph in Your praise.” Psalm 106:47
Even after God had begun restoring His people, there was still reason to pray for a fuller restoration. The psalmist asked God to gather His scattered people so they might once again worship Him, give thanks to His holy Name, and rejoice in His praise. [12]
“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting! And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’ Praise the Lord!” Psalm 106:48
Blessing the Lord from everlasting to everlasting is what we who receive His gracious promise of eternal life shall do. The Lord God Almighty is leading us into the heavenly Promised Land through faith in His Son Jesus Christ. In the celestial city all the people of God are gathered together and they say such words as, “Amen” and “Praise the Lord!” Everyone is full of love, joy and praise in the presence of the Lord!
[1-12] Material developed and edited from Matthew Henry’s Commentary
Most of the Israelites trusted the doubts of doubters rather than the belief of the two believers Caleb and Joshua. In Numbers 14:10-12, they spoke of stoning Moses and Aaron until the glory of the Lord appeared unto them.
In Numbers 14:28-30, the Lord said to Moses, “Tell them, ‘As surely as I live, declares the Lord, I will do to you the very thing I heard you say: in this wilderness your bodies will fall—every one of you 20 years old or more who was counted in the census and who has grumbled against Me. Not one of you will enter the land I swore with uplifted hand to make your home, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.”
The earthly Promised Land is a type of the heavenly Promised Land. God has given the promise of eternal life to whosoever believes in His Son Jesus Christ. Sadly, many doubt the words of Christ. They will not enter the heavenly Promised Land.
The lesson is clear: those who despise God’s gift eventually forfeit it. Those who reject His gracious offer of eternal life, will not enter the heavenly Promised Land. [1]
“They joined themselves also to Baal of Peor, and ate sacrifices made to the dead. Thus, they provoked Him to anger with their deeds, and the plague broke out among them.” Psalm 106:28-29
The Israelites committed a serious sin when they were a step away from entering the Promised Land. They joined themselves to sexually immoral idol worshippers. God made His displeasure known by sending a plague among the people, which quickly swept away 24,000 of them. [2]
Many years later, in Joshua 22:17-18, Joshua exclaimed, “Was not the sin of Peor enough for us? Up to this very day we have not cleansed ourselves from that sin, even though a plague fell on the community of the Lord! And are you now turning away from the Lord?”
“Then Phinehas stood up and intervened, and the plague was stopped. And that was accounted to him for righteousness to all generations forevermore.” Psalm 106:30-31
Filled with zeal for the Lord, Phinehas stood up and executed judgment on Zimri and Cozbi, prominent offenders who had openly defied God. As with Abraham, God accounted the faith of Phinehas as righteousness. [3]
In Romans 4:3-6, it is written, “What does Scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.’ Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift but as an obligation. However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness. David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the one to whom God credits righteousness apart from works.”
Through this one man’s act, guilt was no longer charged to the nation. In this way, Phinehas was a type of Christ. He did what God’s Spirit led him to do on behalf of others.
“They angered Him also at the waters of strife, so that it went ill with Moses on account of them, because they rebelled against His Spirit, so that he spoke rashly with his lips.” Psalm 106:32-33
The psalmist recalls Israel’s rebellion at the waters of Meribah, where their constant grumbling provoked Moses to speak rashly and react contrary to God’s will.
“They did not destroy the peoples, concerning whom the Lord had commanded them.” Psalm 106:34
After receiving the good land God had promised them, they showed no zeal in removing the wicked inhabitants whom He had ordered them to drive out. [4]
They likely assumed they could avoid being influenced by them, but they eventually succumbed to their practices. In 1 Corinthians 15:33, God’s Word says, “Do not be deceived: evil company corrupts good habits.”
“But they mingled with the Gentiles and learned their works. They served their idols, which became a snare to them. They even sacrificed their sons and their daughters to demons, and shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, and the land was polluted with blood.” Psalm 106:35-38
One sin led to others. After a while, they began to sacrifice their sons and daughters to demons. The very thought is horrifying. The beginning of idolatry and superstition, like the beginning of a flood, may seem small, but once unleashed there is no telling how far it will go. [5]
In his book “Finishing Strong,” Steve Farrar wrote, “Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay.”
We need to say, “NO” to sin. In 1 Timothy 4:1-2, Paul warns us, “Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron.” A sensitive conscience is better than a seared one. When tempted say, “NO!”
“Thus they were defiled by their own works and played the harlot by their own deeds.” Psalm 106:39
They defiled themselves by participating in ungodly activities. Their rebellion was especially offensive because they had known God’s goodness and love. [6]
“Therefore the wrath of the Lord was kindled against His people, so that He abhorred His own inheritance.” Psalm 106:40
God’s judgments followed, as they inevitably do. The change was not in God but in them. [7]
“And He gave them into the hand of the Gentiles, and those who hated them ruled over them. Their enemies also oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection under their hand.” Psalm 106:41-42
Notice how the punishment matched the sin. They willingly mingled with the heathen and learned their ways; therefore God used those same nations to discipline them. Often the very people who lead others into sin become instruments of their suffering. Satan, who tempts, also torments. The nations that ruled over Israel hated them and oppressed them harshly. In this way God taught them the difference between serving Him and serving earthly rulers (2 Chronicles 12:8). [8]
“Many times He delivered them, but they rebelled in their counsel and were brought low for their iniquity.” Psalm 106:43
God raised up deliverers for them during the period of the Judges. Time after time God rescued them, yet they relapsed into idolatry and provoked Him with their own misguided plans and inventions. As a result, He allowed new oppressors to rise against them, and they were brought very low because of their iniquity. [9]
“Nevertheless He regarded their affliction, when He heard their cry; and for their sake He remembered His covenant and relented according to the multitude of His mercies.” Psalm 106:44-45
Though God had every reason to destroy them, He relented according to the greatness of His mercy. While God does not change His character or promises, He graciously changes His dealings with people when they turn to Him. The Lord God showed them mercy once again. They were disciplined but not destroyed; cast down but not abandoned. [10]
“He also made them to be pitied by all those who carried them away captive.” Psalm 106 46
As a God of power, He turned the hearts of their captors toward them. He not only restrained their enemies from completely destroying them but even caused those enemies to show compassion. No human effort could have produced such a change. God can transform hearts, turning lions into lambs. When a person’s ways please the Lord, He can even cause his enemies to show favor and compassion. [11]
“Save us, O Lord our God, and gather us from among the Gentiles, to give thanks to Your holy Name, to triumph in Your praise.” Psalm 106:47
Even after God had begun restoring His people, there was still reason to pray for a fuller restoration. The psalmist asked God to gather His scattered people so they might once again worship Him, give thanks to His holy Name, and rejoice in His praise. [12]
“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting! And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’ Praise the Lord!” Psalm 106:48
Blessing the Lord from everlasting to everlasting is what we who receive His gracious promise of eternal life shall do. The Lord God Almighty is leading us into the heavenly Promised Land through faith in His Son Jesus Christ. In the celestial city all the people of God are gathered together and they say such words as, “Amen” and “Praise the Lord!” Everyone is full of love, joy and praise in the presence of the Lord!
[1-12] Material developed and edited from Matthew Henry’s Commentary
Thursday, June 25, 2026
God’s Great Grace – Psalm 106:1-23
“Praise the Lord! O, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Who can utter the mighty acts of the Lord? Who can declare all His praise?” Psalm 106:1-2
God’s good deeds are too numerous to recount and too far beyond us to properly honor. In John 21:25, we read, “There are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.”
“God You are good and merciful! Praise You! Thank You!”
“Blessed are those who keep justice, and he who does righteousness at all times!” Psalm 106:3
In Micah 6:8, it is written, “He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?”
God’s people are characterized by sound principles and faithful obedience. They keep judgment by following the wisdom and standards of God’s truth. They practice righteousness, living rightly before both God and others. Their obedience is not occasional but consistent. [1]
“Remember me, O Lord, with the favor You have toward Your people.” Psalm 106:4a
The psalmist asks the Lord to think of him with favor as He does towards His people. The word for favor in Hebrew is רָצוֹן (raw-tsone) which also has the meaning of pleasure, delight and good will. The psalmist wants his heavenly Father to approve of him.
In Matthew 3:17, the heavenly Father said of Jesus, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” When we abide in Christ, believe in Him and profess Him, God is well pleased with us.
“O, visit me with Your salvation, that I may see the benefit of Your chosen ones, that I may rejoice in the gladness of Your nation, that I may glory with Your inheritance.” Psalm 106:4b-5
God’s saving work comes to us in the person of His Chosen One Jesus Messiah. Jesus is the One who confers to us the joy and privilege of belonging to God and His people. It is in Christ that we inherit eternal life, and in that eternity, we shall glory in Him forever.
“We have sinned with our fathers. We have committed iniquity. We have done wickedly. Our fathers in Egypt did not understand Your wonders. They did not remember the multitude of Your mercies but rebelled by the sea—the Red Sea.” Psalm 106:6-7
How did the fathers of the psalmist sin against God? They forgot... they forgot the multitude of God’s mercies toward them. They witnessed God’s miracles in Egypt, yet failed to understand their meaning and purpose. God delivered them from Egyptian slavery to reveal Himself to them and to enjoy fellowship with Him.
The devil wants to replace our love for God with hatred of Him.
In Exodus 14:11-12, they said to Moses, “Have you taken us away to die in the wilderness because there were no graves in Egypt? Why have you so dealt with us, to bring us up out of Egypt? Is this not the word that we told you in Egypt, saying, ‘Let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians?’ For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than that we should die in the wilderness.”
They were ready to abandon God in a moment. The mighty miracles He did among them should have strengthened their loving commitment toward Him.
Likewise, the welcome Jesus received on Palm Sunday contrasts with the rejection of Him six days later on Good Friday. In John 12:37, we read, “Although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him.” According to Matthew 26:56, on the night Jesus was betrayed, “all the disciples forsook Him and fled.”
“Nevertheless He saved them for His Name’s sake that He might make His mighty power known. He rebuked the Red Sea also, and it dried up. So, He led them through the depths, as through the wilderness. He saved them from the hand of him who hated them and redeemed them from the hand of the enemy. The waters covered their enemies. There was not one of them left.” Psalm 106:8-11
The Israelites had the Egyptians before them and the Red Sea behind them. Most assumed that they would die, but God saved them. The sea that became a path to life for Israel became a grave for Egypt. In Exodus 14:30, we read, “So the Lord saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore.” [2]
God showed mercy to an unbelieving and complaining people to magnify His Name in them.
In Deuteronomy 7:7-8, we read, “The Lord did not set His love on you [Israel] nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all peoples; but because the Lord loves you, and because He would keep the oath which He swore to your fathers, the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you from the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.”
In 1 Corinthians 1:27-29, it is written, “God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise. God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly and despised things of the world, and the things that are not, to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast in His presence.”
The apostle Paul wrote in Romans 7:24-25, “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!” God chose Israel, He chose Paul and He chose me because we all needed His great grace to survive and thrive.
God’s greatness was revealed in dividing the sea and in showing mercy to people who provoked Him. God’s power to forgive sin is every bit as marvelous as His power to do miracles. [3]
In Mark 2:9-11, Jesus said to His critics, “Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Arise, take up your bed and walk?’ But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins—He said to the paralytic, ‘I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.’”
We cannot visibly see sins forgiven by God but we can see the outcomes of His forgiveness.
“Then they believed His Words. They sang His praise.” Psalm 106:12
After God parted the Red Sea and drowned the Egyptian army, Israel believed God’s words. In Exodus 14:31, we read, “Thus Israel saw the great work which the Lord had done in Egypt. So the people feared the Lord, and believed the Lord and His servant Moses.” In Exodus 15:1, they sang God’s praise.
“They soon forgot His works. They did not wait for His counsel...” Psalm 106:13
In Romans 10:17, it is written, “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” God’s Word contains the accounts of reliable witnesses who saw what God did, and heard what He said. In Joshua 1:8, the Lord said to Joshua, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” Joshua believed God and prospered.
“...But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, and tested God in the desert.” Psalm 106:14
While in the wilderness, Israel missed the pleasures of Egypt. According to the World History Encyclopedia, the Egypt that Israel escaped was a center of sensuality. Archaeological and textual evidence demonstrates that the Egyptians embraced pleasure and eroticism. God got Israel out of Egypt rather quickly compared to how long it took Him to get Egypt out of Israel. The lustful habits they learned in Egypt continued to plague their relationship with God.
“And He gave them their request but sent leanness into their soul.” Psalm 106:15
Leanness of soul is a sign that something is wrong with one’s relationship with God. In 1 John 3:6, it is written, “Whoever abides in Him does not sin.” The key to victory over sin is to abide in Christ. In John 15:4, Jesus said, “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.”
In Romans 1:28, Paul wrote, “Even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting.” Romans 1:29-31 lists the sinful desires that people can be filled with when they don’t want to abide in Christ.
“When they envied Moses in the camp, and Aaron the saint of the Lord, the earth opened up and swallowed Dathan, and covered the faction of Abiram. A fire was kindled in their company. The flame burned up the wicked.” Psalm 106:16-18
In Numbers 15:32-36, a man gathered sticks on the Sabbath Day. He was arrested and brought to Moses and Aaron. The Lord told Moses that the congregation must stone him to death, and they did. After that, in Numbers 16, Korah, Dathan and Abiram along with 250 leaders rebelled against Moses and Aaron. What did God do? He opened earth and these men and their families went down into it. This event foreshadows what happens in eternity to those who rebel against Christ and His Word.
“They made a calf in Horeb and worshiped the molded image. Thus they changed their glory into the image of an ox that eats grass. They forgot God their Savior, who had done great things in Egypt, wondrous works in the land of Ham, awesome things by the Red Sea.” Psalm 106:19-22
In 1 Corinthians 10:6-8, Paul wrote, “Now these things became our examples, to the intent that we should not lust after evil things as they also lusted. And do not become idolaters as were some of them. As it is written, ‘The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.’ Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and in one day 23,000 fell.”
“Therefore He said that He would destroy them, had not Moses His chosen one stood before Him in the breach, to turn away His wrath, lest He destroy them.” Psalm 106:23
In Exodus 32:30, Moses said to the people, “You have committed a terrible sin, but I will go back up to the Lord on the mountain. Perhaps I will be able to obtain forgiveness for your sin.”
Like Israel, we have sinned and need God’s forgiveness. In Romans 3:23, it is written, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We need someone to stand in the gap for us.
In Luke 24:34, Jesus atoned for our sins. While on the cross He prayed for us, saying, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” Thus, in Romans 8:1, it is written, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.” It is in Christ that God forgives our sins. It is in Christ that His Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us and to fill us with love for God and for people.
1 John 4:7 says, “Love is from God.” 1 John 4:19 says, “We love because He first loved us.” We know that God loves us because of what Jesus did for us on the cross and in His resurrection. Thus, knowing our sins are forgiven and that God loves us, we can focus on loving those around us. In Galatians 5:14, it is written, “The entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” Praise the Lord, being loved and loving others is a great way to live!
[1-3] Material developed and edited from Matthew Henry’s Commentary
God’s good deeds are too numerous to recount and too far beyond us to properly honor. In John 21:25, we read, “There are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.”
“God You are good and merciful! Praise You! Thank You!”
“Blessed are those who keep justice, and he who does righteousness at all times!” Psalm 106:3
In Micah 6:8, it is written, “He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?”
God’s people are characterized by sound principles and faithful obedience. They keep judgment by following the wisdom and standards of God’s truth. They practice righteousness, living rightly before both God and others. Their obedience is not occasional but consistent. [1]
“Remember me, O Lord, with the favor You have toward Your people.” Psalm 106:4a
The psalmist asks the Lord to think of him with favor as He does towards His people. The word for favor in Hebrew is רָצוֹן (raw-tsone) which also has the meaning of pleasure, delight and good will. The psalmist wants his heavenly Father to approve of him.
In Matthew 3:17, the heavenly Father said of Jesus, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” When we abide in Christ, believe in Him and profess Him, God is well pleased with us.
“O, visit me with Your salvation, that I may see the benefit of Your chosen ones, that I may rejoice in the gladness of Your nation, that I may glory with Your inheritance.” Psalm 106:4b-5
God’s saving work comes to us in the person of His Chosen One Jesus Messiah. Jesus is the One who confers to us the joy and privilege of belonging to God and His people. It is in Christ that we inherit eternal life, and in that eternity, we shall glory in Him forever.
“We have sinned with our fathers. We have committed iniquity. We have done wickedly. Our fathers in Egypt did not understand Your wonders. They did not remember the multitude of Your mercies but rebelled by the sea—the Red Sea.” Psalm 106:6-7
How did the fathers of the psalmist sin against God? They forgot... they forgot the multitude of God’s mercies toward them. They witnessed God’s miracles in Egypt, yet failed to understand their meaning and purpose. God delivered them from Egyptian slavery to reveal Himself to them and to enjoy fellowship with Him.
The devil wants to replace our love for God with hatred of Him.
In Exodus 14:11-12, they said to Moses, “Have you taken us away to die in the wilderness because there were no graves in Egypt? Why have you so dealt with us, to bring us up out of Egypt? Is this not the word that we told you in Egypt, saying, ‘Let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians?’ For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than that we should die in the wilderness.”
They were ready to abandon God in a moment. The mighty miracles He did among them should have strengthened their loving commitment toward Him.
Likewise, the welcome Jesus received on Palm Sunday contrasts with the rejection of Him six days later on Good Friday. In John 12:37, we read, “Although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him.” According to Matthew 26:56, on the night Jesus was betrayed, “all the disciples forsook Him and fled.”
“Nevertheless He saved them for His Name’s sake that He might make His mighty power known. He rebuked the Red Sea also, and it dried up. So, He led them through the depths, as through the wilderness. He saved them from the hand of him who hated them and redeemed them from the hand of the enemy. The waters covered their enemies. There was not one of them left.” Psalm 106:8-11
The Israelites had the Egyptians before them and the Red Sea behind them. Most assumed that they would die, but God saved them. The sea that became a path to life for Israel became a grave for Egypt. In Exodus 14:30, we read, “So the Lord saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore.” [2]
God showed mercy to an unbelieving and complaining people to magnify His Name in them.
In Deuteronomy 7:7-8, we read, “The Lord did not set His love on you [Israel] nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all peoples; but because the Lord loves you, and because He would keep the oath which He swore to your fathers, the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you from the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.”
In 1 Corinthians 1:27-29, it is written, “God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise. God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly and despised things of the world, and the things that are not, to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast in His presence.”
The apostle Paul wrote in Romans 7:24-25, “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!” God chose Israel, He chose Paul and He chose me because we all needed His great grace to survive and thrive.
God’s greatness was revealed in dividing the sea and in showing mercy to people who provoked Him. God’s power to forgive sin is every bit as marvelous as His power to do miracles. [3]
In Mark 2:9-11, Jesus said to His critics, “Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Arise, take up your bed and walk?’ But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins—He said to the paralytic, ‘I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.’”
We cannot visibly see sins forgiven by God but we can see the outcomes of His forgiveness.
“Then they believed His Words. They sang His praise.” Psalm 106:12
After God parted the Red Sea and drowned the Egyptian army, Israel believed God’s words. In Exodus 14:31, we read, “Thus Israel saw the great work which the Lord had done in Egypt. So the people feared the Lord, and believed the Lord and His servant Moses.” In Exodus 15:1, they sang God’s praise.
“They soon forgot His works. They did not wait for His counsel...” Psalm 106:13
In Romans 10:17, it is written, “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” God’s Word contains the accounts of reliable witnesses who saw what God did, and heard what He said. In Joshua 1:8, the Lord said to Joshua, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” Joshua believed God and prospered.
“...But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, and tested God in the desert.” Psalm 106:14
While in the wilderness, Israel missed the pleasures of Egypt. According to the World History Encyclopedia, the Egypt that Israel escaped was a center of sensuality. Archaeological and textual evidence demonstrates that the Egyptians embraced pleasure and eroticism. God got Israel out of Egypt rather quickly compared to how long it took Him to get Egypt out of Israel. The lustful habits they learned in Egypt continued to plague their relationship with God.
“And He gave them their request but sent leanness into their soul.” Psalm 106:15
Leanness of soul is a sign that something is wrong with one’s relationship with God. In 1 John 3:6, it is written, “Whoever abides in Him does not sin.” The key to victory over sin is to abide in Christ. In John 15:4, Jesus said, “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.”
In Romans 1:28, Paul wrote, “Even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting.” Romans 1:29-31 lists the sinful desires that people can be filled with when they don’t want to abide in Christ.
“When they envied Moses in the camp, and Aaron the saint of the Lord, the earth opened up and swallowed Dathan, and covered the faction of Abiram. A fire was kindled in their company. The flame burned up the wicked.” Psalm 106:16-18
In Numbers 15:32-36, a man gathered sticks on the Sabbath Day. He was arrested and brought to Moses and Aaron. The Lord told Moses that the congregation must stone him to death, and they did. After that, in Numbers 16, Korah, Dathan and Abiram along with 250 leaders rebelled against Moses and Aaron. What did God do? He opened earth and these men and their families went down into it. This event foreshadows what happens in eternity to those who rebel against Christ and His Word.
“They made a calf in Horeb and worshiped the molded image. Thus they changed their glory into the image of an ox that eats grass. They forgot God their Savior, who had done great things in Egypt, wondrous works in the land of Ham, awesome things by the Red Sea.” Psalm 106:19-22
In 1 Corinthians 10:6-8, Paul wrote, “Now these things became our examples, to the intent that we should not lust after evil things as they also lusted. And do not become idolaters as were some of them. As it is written, ‘The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.’ Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and in one day 23,000 fell.”
“Therefore He said that He would destroy them, had not Moses His chosen one stood before Him in the breach, to turn away His wrath, lest He destroy them.” Psalm 106:23
In Exodus 32:30, Moses said to the people, “You have committed a terrible sin, but I will go back up to the Lord on the mountain. Perhaps I will be able to obtain forgiveness for your sin.”
Like Israel, we have sinned and need God’s forgiveness. In Romans 3:23, it is written, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We need someone to stand in the gap for us.
In Luke 24:34, Jesus atoned for our sins. While on the cross He prayed for us, saying, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” Thus, in Romans 8:1, it is written, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.” It is in Christ that God forgives our sins. It is in Christ that His Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us and to fill us with love for God and for people.
1 John 4:7 says, “Love is from God.” 1 John 4:19 says, “We love because He first loved us.” We know that God loves us because of what Jesus did for us on the cross and in His resurrection. Thus, knowing our sins are forgiven and that God loves us, we can focus on loving those around us. In Galatians 5:14, it is written, “The entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” Praise the Lord, being loved and loving others is a great way to live!
[1-3] Material developed and edited from Matthew Henry’s Commentary
Wednesday, June 24, 2026
Prophecies of Revelation in Psalm 105:25-45
“He turned their heart to hate His people, to deal craftily with His servants.” Psalm 105:25
In the Gospels, the hatred in the hearts of the Pharisees toward God was exposed when they demanded the crucifixion of God’s Son Jesus Christ.
In Genesis 43:3, the hatred in the hearts of the Egyptians toward God’s people was exposed when they would “not eat food with the Hebrews, for that is an abomination to the Egyptians.” Eventually, the hatred in their hearts led to ever worsening mistreatment of God’s servants.
God turned the hearts of the Egyptians to hate His people, that is, to no longer hide what was in their hearts, but reveal it by their misdeeds. The Egyptians dealt craftily with them. The Hebrew word for “craftily is נָכַל (nâkal). It means to scheme or act treacherously against someone.
The Egyptians used every political strategy to weaken them, and reduce their numbers. They made their labor harsh, their lives bitter, and killed their male children at birth. [1]
What the Egyptians did to God’s servants in Exodus is a foreshadowing of what the “beast” or antichrist ruler of Revelation 13 will do to the saints. In Revelation 13:7, we read, “It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation.”
God removed the restraints of Pharaoh from acting out his hatred against His servants before He destroyed him. God will also remove the restraints from the earth’s final antichrist before He destroys him. In this way, all such rulers, who want to appear as saviors of the world are exposed as deceivers and embodiments of Satan.
In 2 Thessalonians 2:7-8, we read, “The mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.” God is restraining worldwide cruelty, but cruel hatred is already in the hearts of many. Don’t get caught off-guard.
In the Book of Revelation, God reveals to us the final end of all Pharaoh-like rulers. Rulers who deceive people to think that they are better gods and saviors than God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Such rulers harbor hatred of Christ and His servants.
In Revelation 19, when Christ returns, He casts the end time’s antichrist into a lake of fire. After that, in Revelation 20, the devil is cast into a lake of fire. In Revelation 21-22, the followers of Christ enjoy a heavenly Promised Land much better than the one located here on earth.
“He sent Moses His servant, and Aaron whom He had chosen.” Psalm 105:26
The instruments God used to deliver Israel from Egypt were prophets. God chose Moses to be Israel’s leader and lawgiver, and He made Aaron their high priest. Moses represents the Law which convicts people of sin. Aaron represents the Gospel for God appointed him to make atonement for the sins of His people.
In Revelation 11, the Lord speaks of two witnesses who speak for God during the end time. After they are martyred and resurrected, and ascend to heaven, we read in Revelation 11:15, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!” In Revelation 11:19, we read, “the temple of God was opened in heaven.” These two embodied Christ and the Holy Spirit. They exposed evil and revealed God.
“They performed His signs among them, and wonders in the land of Ham. He sent darkness and made it dark. And they did not rebel against His Word.” Psalm 105:27-28
The plagues are called God’s signs and wonders. They demonstrate God’s wrath against evil. Each plague carried a clear message, namely, “Let My people go.” [2]
In Exodus 10:21-23, we read, “Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Stretch out your hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, darkness which may even be felt.’ So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and there was thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days. They did not see one another. Nor did anyone rise from his place for three days. But all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.”
Then, “they”—that is, the Israelites—“did not rebel against His Word.” The plague of darkness was the ninth of ten plagues. By this time, the Israelites who at first doubted God, believed Him.
Many of the signs that God did in Egypt are also done in the Book of Revelation. For example, in Revelation 16:10, we read, “Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became full of darkness.”
“He turned their waters into blood and killed their fish.” Psalm 105:29
The Nile, which the Egyptians worshiped, became bloody and wreaked of death. The Egyptians loss their convenient water supply and delicious fish when their water was turned to blood. [3]
In Revelation 16:4, 6, we read, “Then the third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood.” “They have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and You have given them blood to drink. For it is their just due.”
“Their land abounded with frogs, even in the chambers of their kings.” Psalm 105:30
Frogs invaded the king’s palace. His contempt for God yielded contempt in his chambers. [4]
In Revelation 16:13, we read, “I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.”
“He spoke, and there came swarms of flies, and lice in all their territory.” Psalm 105:31
According to Exodus 8:17, 24, swarms of flies filled the air, and lice covered them. God can use the smallest creatures to humble the proud and magnify His power.
“He gave them hail for rain and flaming fire in their land. He struck their vines also, and their fig trees, and splintered the trees of their territory.” Psalm 105:32-33
According to Exodus 9:23, the hail and fire also destroyed their livestock and crops.
In Revelation 8:7, we read, “The first angel sounded: And hail and fire followed, mingled with blood, and they were thrown to the earth. And a third of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.”
“He spoke, and locusts came, young locusts without number, and ate up all the vegetation in their land and devoured the fruit of their ground.” Psalm 105:34-35
God has many arrows in His quiver. Locusts are a part of His arsenal. Though individually weak, God unites them to overwhelm His enemies. [5]
In Revelation 9:3, we read, “Then out of the smoke locusts came upon the earth. And to them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.”
“He also destroyed all the firstborn in their land, the first of all their strength.” Psalm 105:36
During the night, the pride and hope of Egyptian families was struck down by an angel of death. Egypt refused to release God’s firstborn people Israel, so God took Egypt’s firstborn. [6]
In Revelation 14:19-20, we read that an angel thrust his sickle into the earth and gathered the vine of the earth (those not of God), and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And blood came out of the winepress, up to the horses’ bridles for many miles.
“He also brought them out with silver and gold, and there was none feeble among His tribes.” Psalm 105:37
The impoverished slaves came forth from Egypt strong and with much treasure.
In Revelation 21:21, we read of New Jerusalem, “The twelve gates were twelve pearls: each individual gate was of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.”
“Egypt was glad when they departed, for the fear of them had fallen upon them.” Psalm 105:38
Previously mistreated by Egypt, Israel left Egypt with honor. God made His people a stone too heavy for Egypt. The Lord says in Zechariah 12:3, “I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples. All who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.” [7]
“He spread a cloud for a covering, and fire to give light in the night.” Psalm 105:39
God spread a cloud above Israel to shade them from the sun by day. He appointed a pillar of fire to light their way by night. God graciously provides for His people day and night, until they (we) reach heaven, where there will be eternal light. [8] Praise the Lord!
“The people asked, and He brought quail, and satisfied them with the bread of heaven.” Psalm 105:40
The people asked for meat, and God gave them quail. Numbers 11:31 says that there were so many birds that the ground was covered about three feet deep with them.
“He opened the rock, and water gushed out. It ran in the dry places like a river.” Psalm 105:41
The water ran like a river, abundantly and continually, accompanying them throughout their journey. This is why in 1 Corinthians 10:4 the Scripture says that the rock followed them. This river of God flowed through dry desert regions without disappearing into the sand. This miracle is echoed in Isaiah 43:19-20, “I will give rivers in the desert, to give drink to My chosen.” [9]
In Revelation 7:17, we read, “The Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
“For He remembered His holy promise, and Abraham His servant.” Psalm 105:42
Though Israel was often unworthy and ungrateful, God acted on their behalf because He remembered His covenant with Abraham. He did not allow His promise to fail. [10]
“He brought out His people with joy, His chosen ones with gladness.” Psalm 105:43
While Egypt cried, Israel rejoiced. They looked back with gratitude at the slavery they had escaped and forward with hope toward the promised land. God gave them a new song. [11]
In Hebrews 12:22-23, God reminds us, “You have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect.” We too, will experience joy and gladness with God!
“He gave them the lands of the Gentiles, and they inherited the labor of the nations, that they might observe His statutes and keep His laws. Praise the Lord!” Psalm 105:44-45
The Israelites enjoyed what others had labored to build. The wealth of those who sacrificed their children to idols were transferred to Israel. Just as the Egyptians had benefited from Israel’s labor, Israel now benefited from the labor of the Canaanites. [12]
God gave to Israel the lands of the nations that they might observe His statutes and keep His laws. They weren’t to sit back, take their ease and only satisfy their lust for pleasure. They were to put the wealth of the nations to work by creating communities on earth that reflected the glory of the kingdom of God that is coming.
The phrase, “Praise the Lord,” with which Psalm 105 ends will likely be a phrase that we shout when we who believe in and profess Jesus Christ enter heaven.
[1-12] Material developed and edited from Matthew Henry’s Commentary
In the Gospels, the hatred in the hearts of the Pharisees toward God was exposed when they demanded the crucifixion of God’s Son Jesus Christ.
In Genesis 43:3, the hatred in the hearts of the Egyptians toward God’s people was exposed when they would “not eat food with the Hebrews, for that is an abomination to the Egyptians.” Eventually, the hatred in their hearts led to ever worsening mistreatment of God’s servants.
God turned the hearts of the Egyptians to hate His people, that is, to no longer hide what was in their hearts, but reveal it by their misdeeds. The Egyptians dealt craftily with them. The Hebrew word for “craftily is נָכַל (nâkal). It means to scheme or act treacherously against someone.
The Egyptians used every political strategy to weaken them, and reduce their numbers. They made their labor harsh, their lives bitter, and killed their male children at birth. [1]
What the Egyptians did to God’s servants in Exodus is a foreshadowing of what the “beast” or antichrist ruler of Revelation 13 will do to the saints. In Revelation 13:7, we read, “It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation.”
God removed the restraints of Pharaoh from acting out his hatred against His servants before He destroyed him. God will also remove the restraints from the earth’s final antichrist before He destroys him. In this way, all such rulers, who want to appear as saviors of the world are exposed as deceivers and embodiments of Satan.
In 2 Thessalonians 2:7-8, we read, “The mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.” God is restraining worldwide cruelty, but cruel hatred is already in the hearts of many. Don’t get caught off-guard.
In the Book of Revelation, God reveals to us the final end of all Pharaoh-like rulers. Rulers who deceive people to think that they are better gods and saviors than God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Such rulers harbor hatred of Christ and His servants.
In Revelation 19, when Christ returns, He casts the end time’s antichrist into a lake of fire. After that, in Revelation 20, the devil is cast into a lake of fire. In Revelation 21-22, the followers of Christ enjoy a heavenly Promised Land much better than the one located here on earth.
“He sent Moses His servant, and Aaron whom He had chosen.” Psalm 105:26
The instruments God used to deliver Israel from Egypt were prophets. God chose Moses to be Israel’s leader and lawgiver, and He made Aaron their high priest. Moses represents the Law which convicts people of sin. Aaron represents the Gospel for God appointed him to make atonement for the sins of His people.
In Revelation 11, the Lord speaks of two witnesses who speak for God during the end time. After they are martyred and resurrected, and ascend to heaven, we read in Revelation 11:15, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!” In Revelation 11:19, we read, “the temple of God was opened in heaven.” These two embodied Christ and the Holy Spirit. They exposed evil and revealed God.
“They performed His signs among them, and wonders in the land of Ham. He sent darkness and made it dark. And they did not rebel against His Word.” Psalm 105:27-28
The plagues are called God’s signs and wonders. They demonstrate God’s wrath against evil. Each plague carried a clear message, namely, “Let My people go.” [2]
In Exodus 10:21-23, we read, “Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Stretch out your hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, darkness which may even be felt.’ So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and there was thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days. They did not see one another. Nor did anyone rise from his place for three days. But all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.”
Then, “they”—that is, the Israelites—“did not rebel against His Word.” The plague of darkness was the ninth of ten plagues. By this time, the Israelites who at first doubted God, believed Him.
Many of the signs that God did in Egypt are also done in the Book of Revelation. For example, in Revelation 16:10, we read, “Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became full of darkness.”
“He turned their waters into blood and killed their fish.” Psalm 105:29
The Nile, which the Egyptians worshiped, became bloody and wreaked of death. The Egyptians loss their convenient water supply and delicious fish when their water was turned to blood. [3]
In Revelation 16:4, 6, we read, “Then the third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood.” “They have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and You have given them blood to drink. For it is their just due.”
“Their land abounded with frogs, even in the chambers of their kings.” Psalm 105:30
Frogs invaded the king’s palace. His contempt for God yielded contempt in his chambers. [4]
In Revelation 16:13, we read, “I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.”
“He spoke, and there came swarms of flies, and lice in all their territory.” Psalm 105:31
According to Exodus 8:17, 24, swarms of flies filled the air, and lice covered them. God can use the smallest creatures to humble the proud and magnify His power.
“He gave them hail for rain and flaming fire in their land. He struck their vines also, and their fig trees, and splintered the trees of their territory.” Psalm 105:32-33
According to Exodus 9:23, the hail and fire also destroyed their livestock and crops.
In Revelation 8:7, we read, “The first angel sounded: And hail and fire followed, mingled with blood, and they were thrown to the earth. And a third of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.”
“He spoke, and locusts came, young locusts without number, and ate up all the vegetation in their land and devoured the fruit of their ground.” Psalm 105:34-35
God has many arrows in His quiver. Locusts are a part of His arsenal. Though individually weak, God unites them to overwhelm His enemies. [5]
In Revelation 9:3, we read, “Then out of the smoke locusts came upon the earth. And to them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.”
“He also destroyed all the firstborn in their land, the first of all their strength.” Psalm 105:36
During the night, the pride and hope of Egyptian families was struck down by an angel of death. Egypt refused to release God’s firstborn people Israel, so God took Egypt’s firstborn. [6]
In Revelation 14:19-20, we read that an angel thrust his sickle into the earth and gathered the vine of the earth (those not of God), and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And blood came out of the winepress, up to the horses’ bridles for many miles.
“He also brought them out with silver and gold, and there was none feeble among His tribes.” Psalm 105:37
The impoverished slaves came forth from Egypt strong and with much treasure.
In Revelation 21:21, we read of New Jerusalem, “The twelve gates were twelve pearls: each individual gate was of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.”
“Egypt was glad when they departed, for the fear of them had fallen upon them.” Psalm 105:38
Previously mistreated by Egypt, Israel left Egypt with honor. God made His people a stone too heavy for Egypt. The Lord says in Zechariah 12:3, “I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples. All who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.” [7]
“He spread a cloud for a covering, and fire to give light in the night.” Psalm 105:39
God spread a cloud above Israel to shade them from the sun by day. He appointed a pillar of fire to light their way by night. God graciously provides for His people day and night, until they (we) reach heaven, where there will be eternal light. [8] Praise the Lord!
“The people asked, and He brought quail, and satisfied them with the bread of heaven.” Psalm 105:40
The people asked for meat, and God gave them quail. Numbers 11:31 says that there were so many birds that the ground was covered about three feet deep with them.
“He opened the rock, and water gushed out. It ran in the dry places like a river.” Psalm 105:41
The water ran like a river, abundantly and continually, accompanying them throughout their journey. This is why in 1 Corinthians 10:4 the Scripture says that the rock followed them. This river of God flowed through dry desert regions without disappearing into the sand. This miracle is echoed in Isaiah 43:19-20, “I will give rivers in the desert, to give drink to My chosen.” [9]
In Revelation 7:17, we read, “The Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
“For He remembered His holy promise, and Abraham His servant.” Psalm 105:42
Though Israel was often unworthy and ungrateful, God acted on their behalf because He remembered His covenant with Abraham. He did not allow His promise to fail. [10]
“He brought out His people with joy, His chosen ones with gladness.” Psalm 105:43
While Egypt cried, Israel rejoiced. They looked back with gratitude at the slavery they had escaped and forward with hope toward the promised land. God gave them a new song. [11]
In Hebrews 12:22-23, God reminds us, “You have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect.” We too, will experience joy and gladness with God!
“He gave them the lands of the Gentiles, and they inherited the labor of the nations, that they might observe His statutes and keep His laws. Praise the Lord!” Psalm 105:44-45
The Israelites enjoyed what others had labored to build. The wealth of those who sacrificed their children to idols were transferred to Israel. Just as the Egyptians had benefited from Israel’s labor, Israel now benefited from the labor of the Canaanites. [12]
God gave to Israel the lands of the nations that they might observe His statutes and keep His laws. They weren’t to sit back, take their ease and only satisfy their lust for pleasure. They were to put the wealth of the nations to work by creating communities on earth that reflected the glory of the kingdom of God that is coming.
The phrase, “Praise the Lord,” with which Psalm 105 ends will likely be a phrase that we shout when we who believe in and profess Jesus Christ enter heaven.
[1-12] Material developed and edited from Matthew Henry’s Commentary
Tuesday, June 23, 2026
Being a Professing Believer in Christ – Psalm 105:1-24
“O, give thanks to the Lord! Call upon His Name. Make known His deeds among the peoples!” Psalm 105:1
In Isaiah 43:10, the Lord says to us, “You are My witnesses... My servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe Me, and understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, nor shall there be after Me.”
The three short sentences of Psalm 105:1 provide for us three keys to be a witness for God.
First, give Him thanks. In Christ we live, move and have our being. The air we breathe, the ground we walk on, the food we eat, the loving friendships we enjoy, the protection from harm, the revelation of who He is and the gift of eternal life are some of His many blessings to us.
Second, call upon His Name. Don’t attempt to speak for or serve God in your own strength. In Acts 1:8, Jesus said to us, “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you shall be My witnesses...” We need the power of the Holy Spirit. In Acts 4:29-31, after God’s people prayed that they would speak God’s Word with boldness, “they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the Word of God with boldness.” In Ephesians 6:18-20, Paul asked Christians to pray that he would make known the Gospel to others with boldness.
Third, “Make known His deeds among the peoples.” Trust the Lord to be with you! In Mark 16:15-18, when Jesus called the disciples to go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature, He went with them and did signs such as casting out demons, giving them new tongues, healing the sick and protecting them from harm. His miracles opened doors for them.
“Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him. Talk of all His wondrous works! Glory in His holy Name. Let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the Lord!” Psalm 105:2-3
Sing praises to God. Throughout history, testimonies of God’s miraculous works have been preserved in the lyrics of Holy Spirit anointed songs.
In Matthew 26:30, Jesus sang a hymn with His disciples before they went to the Garden of Gethsemane where He was a witness to the guards who arrested Him. In Acts 16:25, Paul and Silas sang hymns to God before they witnessed to the jailer and his family. Evangelists, like Billy Graham, preach the Gospel after their listeners sing praises to God. The Holy Spirit moves in peoples’ hearts when God’s praises are sung. God inhabits the praises of His people.
Sharing testimonies of God’s wondrous works is also another way to capture the attention of people who are generally disinterested in “God-talk.” The goal of every witness is to glorify the Lord so that the hearts of the seekers rejoice in HIM.
In Jeremiah 9:23-24, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, let not the mighty man glory in his might, nor let the rich man glory in his riches, but let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth, for in these I delight,’ says the Lord.”
“Seek the Lord and His strength. Seek His face evermore! Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth, O seed of Abraham His servant, you children of Jacob, His chosen ones!” Psalm 105:4-6
Some ancient translations read, “Seek the Lord and be strengthened.” Those who desire strength in their inner being must receive it from God through faith and prayer. [1]
“Remember His marvelous works!” In John 14:26, Jesus said, “The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My Name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.”
Consider your relationship with God. You are a “seed of Abraham His servant.” You belong to God’s household and share in the privileges of His servants—His protection and provision. [2]
You are “children of Jacob His chosen.” You have inherited the blessings associated with all the saints of God who have gone before you. God is your Father. You are a member of His family. [3]
“He is the Lord our God. His judgments are in all the earth.” Psalm 105:7
In Isaiah 26:9, Isaiah wrote of God, “When Your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.” In Deuteronomy 32:3-4, Moses wrote of God, “I proclaim the Name of the Lord. Ascribe greatness to our God. He is the Rock. His work is perfect. For all His ways are justice. A God of truth and without injustice, righteous and upright is He.” God’s verdict on every legal case that is brought before Him is perfect.
In Acts 17:30-31, Paul proclaimed to the men of Athens, Greece, “God commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.”
In Revelation 20:12, John shares what the Lord showed him, saying, “I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.” In Revelation 20:15, we read, “Anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.”
How does your name appear in the Book of Life? You believe in Jesus Messiah. The worst sin is to reject God’s remedy for sin... His Son Jesus. The best deed is to believe and profess Him.
“He remembers His covenant forever, the Word which He commanded, for 1,000 generations, the covenant which He made with Abraham, and His oath to Isaac, and confirmed it to Jacob for a statute, to Israel as an everlasting covenant, saying, ‘To you I will give the land of Canaan as the allotment of your inheritance,’ when they were few in number, indeed very few, and strangers in it. When they went from one nation to another, from one kingdom to another people, He permitted no one to do them wrong. Yes, He rebuked kings for their sakes, saying, ‘Do not touch My anointed ones, and do My prophets no harm.’” Psalm 105:8-15
Throughout all His dealings with Israel, God remembered His covenant promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The land of Canaan was not obtained by human achievement but was granted by God’s gracious promise. In the same way, believers receive their heavenly inheritance not through their own merit but through the grace of God in Christ. [4]
The patriarchs were few in number, strangers in the land, and wanderers from nation to nation. From a human perspective, they appeared weak and vulnerable. Yet God protected them. He did not allow anyone to oppress them and even rebuked kings for their sake, saying, “Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm.” Though they possessed little earthly security, they were safely kept under God’s sovereign care. [5]
“Moreover He called for a famine in the land. He destroyed all the provision of bread. He sent a man before them—Joseph—who was sold as a slave.” Psalm 105:16-17
In Genesis 37, after Joseph shared with his father and brothers a dream that God gave him concerning his future and theirs, some of his brothers hated him and decided to kill him.
Thankfully, Reuben intervened for Joseph. He urged them to throw Joseph into a pit instead of killing him. He planned to rescue Joseph from the pit when his brothers were gone. However, while Reuben was temporarily absent, Joseph’s other brothers sold him as a slave to Midianite human traffickers. Was God’s promise to Joseph and the patriarchs thwarted?
“They hurt his feet with fetters, he was laid in irons. Until the time that his Word came to pass, the Word of the Lord tested him. The king sent and released him, the ruler of the people let him go free. He made him lord of his house, and ruler of all his possessions, to bind his princes at his pleasure, and teach his elders wisdom.” Psalm 105:18-22
Though Joseph suffered betrayal, slavery, false accusation, and imprisonment, God resurrected him from a metaphoric death and exalted him to the throne room of the king of Egypt. [6] Suddenly, the wealth of the mightiest nation on earth was committed to his care. He was over the princes (the king’s sons) and over the king’s advisors.
Joseph’s life serves as a striking foreshadowing of Christ. Just as Joseph was humbled before being exalted, so Christ suffered before entering into His glory. [7] Despite the evil that was done to Him while on earth, Jesus now sits on a throne at the right hand of God His Father.
“Israel also came into Egypt, and Jacob dwelt in the land of Ham. He increased His people greatly and made them stronger than their enemies.” Psalm 104:23-24
God fulfilled His promise to Abraham. He greatly multiplied his descendants. The king of Egypt feared them. What God promises, He accomplishes. [8]
The safest place to be on earth is resting in the promises of God. In Hebrews 11, the author recounts the many miracles that God did for those who trusted in Him.
“Dear Heavenly Father, please grant us Holy Spirit empowered convictions of faith in You. Please open doors of opportunity for us to boldly share the Gospel with those whose hearts You have prepared. I ask this in Name of Your Son and our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.”
[1-8] Material developed and edited from Matthew Henry’s Commentary
In Isaiah 43:10, the Lord says to us, “You are My witnesses... My servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe Me, and understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, nor shall there be after Me.”
The three short sentences of Psalm 105:1 provide for us three keys to be a witness for God.
First, give Him thanks. In Christ we live, move and have our being. The air we breathe, the ground we walk on, the food we eat, the loving friendships we enjoy, the protection from harm, the revelation of who He is and the gift of eternal life are some of His many blessings to us.
Second, call upon His Name. Don’t attempt to speak for or serve God in your own strength. In Acts 1:8, Jesus said to us, “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you shall be My witnesses...” We need the power of the Holy Spirit. In Acts 4:29-31, after God’s people prayed that they would speak God’s Word with boldness, “they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the Word of God with boldness.” In Ephesians 6:18-20, Paul asked Christians to pray that he would make known the Gospel to others with boldness.
Third, “Make known His deeds among the peoples.” Trust the Lord to be with you! In Mark 16:15-18, when Jesus called the disciples to go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature, He went with them and did signs such as casting out demons, giving them new tongues, healing the sick and protecting them from harm. His miracles opened doors for them.
“Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him. Talk of all His wondrous works! Glory in His holy Name. Let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the Lord!” Psalm 105:2-3
Sing praises to God. Throughout history, testimonies of God’s miraculous works have been preserved in the lyrics of Holy Spirit anointed songs.
In Matthew 26:30, Jesus sang a hymn with His disciples before they went to the Garden of Gethsemane where He was a witness to the guards who arrested Him. In Acts 16:25, Paul and Silas sang hymns to God before they witnessed to the jailer and his family. Evangelists, like Billy Graham, preach the Gospel after their listeners sing praises to God. The Holy Spirit moves in peoples’ hearts when God’s praises are sung. God inhabits the praises of His people.
Sharing testimonies of God’s wondrous works is also another way to capture the attention of people who are generally disinterested in “God-talk.” The goal of every witness is to glorify the Lord so that the hearts of the seekers rejoice in HIM.
In Jeremiah 9:23-24, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, let not the mighty man glory in his might, nor let the rich man glory in his riches, but let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth, for in these I delight,’ says the Lord.”
“Seek the Lord and His strength. Seek His face evermore! Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth, O seed of Abraham His servant, you children of Jacob, His chosen ones!” Psalm 105:4-6
Some ancient translations read, “Seek the Lord and be strengthened.” Those who desire strength in their inner being must receive it from God through faith and prayer. [1]
“Remember His marvelous works!” In John 14:26, Jesus said, “The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My Name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.”
Consider your relationship with God. You are a “seed of Abraham His servant.” You belong to God’s household and share in the privileges of His servants—His protection and provision. [2]
You are “children of Jacob His chosen.” You have inherited the blessings associated with all the saints of God who have gone before you. God is your Father. You are a member of His family. [3]
“He is the Lord our God. His judgments are in all the earth.” Psalm 105:7
In Isaiah 26:9, Isaiah wrote of God, “When Your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.” In Deuteronomy 32:3-4, Moses wrote of God, “I proclaim the Name of the Lord. Ascribe greatness to our God. He is the Rock. His work is perfect. For all His ways are justice. A God of truth and without injustice, righteous and upright is He.” God’s verdict on every legal case that is brought before Him is perfect.
In Acts 17:30-31, Paul proclaimed to the men of Athens, Greece, “God commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.”
In Revelation 20:12, John shares what the Lord showed him, saying, “I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.” In Revelation 20:15, we read, “Anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.”
How does your name appear in the Book of Life? You believe in Jesus Messiah. The worst sin is to reject God’s remedy for sin... His Son Jesus. The best deed is to believe and profess Him.
“He remembers His covenant forever, the Word which He commanded, for 1,000 generations, the covenant which He made with Abraham, and His oath to Isaac, and confirmed it to Jacob for a statute, to Israel as an everlasting covenant, saying, ‘To you I will give the land of Canaan as the allotment of your inheritance,’ when they were few in number, indeed very few, and strangers in it. When they went from one nation to another, from one kingdom to another people, He permitted no one to do them wrong. Yes, He rebuked kings for their sakes, saying, ‘Do not touch My anointed ones, and do My prophets no harm.’” Psalm 105:8-15
Throughout all His dealings with Israel, God remembered His covenant promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The land of Canaan was not obtained by human achievement but was granted by God’s gracious promise. In the same way, believers receive their heavenly inheritance not through their own merit but through the grace of God in Christ. [4]
The patriarchs were few in number, strangers in the land, and wanderers from nation to nation. From a human perspective, they appeared weak and vulnerable. Yet God protected them. He did not allow anyone to oppress them and even rebuked kings for their sake, saying, “Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm.” Though they possessed little earthly security, they were safely kept under God’s sovereign care. [5]
“Moreover He called for a famine in the land. He destroyed all the provision of bread. He sent a man before them—Joseph—who was sold as a slave.” Psalm 105:16-17
In Genesis 37, after Joseph shared with his father and brothers a dream that God gave him concerning his future and theirs, some of his brothers hated him and decided to kill him.
Thankfully, Reuben intervened for Joseph. He urged them to throw Joseph into a pit instead of killing him. He planned to rescue Joseph from the pit when his brothers were gone. However, while Reuben was temporarily absent, Joseph’s other brothers sold him as a slave to Midianite human traffickers. Was God’s promise to Joseph and the patriarchs thwarted?
“They hurt his feet with fetters, he was laid in irons. Until the time that his Word came to pass, the Word of the Lord tested him. The king sent and released him, the ruler of the people let him go free. He made him lord of his house, and ruler of all his possessions, to bind his princes at his pleasure, and teach his elders wisdom.” Psalm 105:18-22
Though Joseph suffered betrayal, slavery, false accusation, and imprisonment, God resurrected him from a metaphoric death and exalted him to the throne room of the king of Egypt. [6] Suddenly, the wealth of the mightiest nation on earth was committed to his care. He was over the princes (the king’s sons) and over the king’s advisors.
Joseph’s life serves as a striking foreshadowing of Christ. Just as Joseph was humbled before being exalted, so Christ suffered before entering into His glory. [7] Despite the evil that was done to Him while on earth, Jesus now sits on a throne at the right hand of God His Father.
“Israel also came into Egypt, and Jacob dwelt in the land of Ham. He increased His people greatly and made them stronger than their enemies.” Psalm 104:23-24
God fulfilled His promise to Abraham. He greatly multiplied his descendants. The king of Egypt feared them. What God promises, He accomplishes. [8]
The safest place to be on earth is resting in the promises of God. In Hebrews 11, the author recounts the many miracles that God did for those who trusted in Him.
“Dear Heavenly Father, please grant us Holy Spirit empowered convictions of faith in You. Please open doors of opportunity for us to boldly share the Gospel with those whose hearts You have prepared. I ask this in Name of Your Son and our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.”
[1-8] Material developed and edited from Matthew Henry’s Commentary
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