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