September 30 – Psalms 107 and 108 from the Old Testament

Psalms 107 and 108 – Psalm 107

107:1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,

and his loyal love endures!

107:2 Let those delivered by the Lord speak out,

those whom he delivered from the power of the enemy,

107:3 and gathered from foreign lands,

from east and west,

from north and south.

107:4 They wandered through the wilderness on a desert road;

they found no city in which to live.

107:5 They were hungry and thirsty;

they fainted from exhaustion.

107:6 They cried out to the Lord in their distress;

he delivered them from their troubles.

107:7 He led them on a level road,

that they might find a city in which to live.

107:8 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his loyal love,

and for the amazing things he has done for people!

107:9 For he has satisfied those who thirst,

and those who hunger he has filled with food.

107:10 They sat in utter darkness,

bound in painful iron chains,

107:11 because they had rebelled against God’s commands,

and rejected the instructions of the sovereign king.

107:12 So he used suffering to humble them;

they stumbled and no one helped them up.

107:13 They cried out to the Lord in their distress;

he delivered them from their troubles.

107:14 He brought them out of the utter darkness,

and tore off their shackles.

107:15 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his loyal love,

and for the amazing things he has done for people!

107:16 For he shattered the bronze gates,

and hacked through the iron bars.

107:17 They acted like fools in their rebellious ways,

and suffered because of their sins.

107:18 They lost their appetite for all food,

and they drew near the gates of death.

107:19 They cried out to the Lord in their distress;

he delivered them from their troubles.

107:20 He sent them an assuring word and healed them;

he rescued them from the pits where they were trapped.

107:21 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his loyal love,

and for the amazing things he has done for people!

107:22 Let them present thank offerings,

and loudly proclaim what he has done!

107:23 Some traveled on the sea in ships,

and carried cargo over the vast waters.

107:24 They witnessed the acts of the Lord,

his amazing feats on the deep water.

107:25 He gave the order for a windstorm,

and it stirred up the waves of the sea.

107:26 They reached up to the sky,

then dropped into the depths.

The sailors’ strength left them because the danger was so great.

107:27 They swayed and staggered like a drunk,

and all their skill proved ineffective.

107:28 They cried out to the Lord in their distress;

he delivered them from their troubles.

107:29 He calmed the storm,

and the waves grew silent.

107:30 The sailors rejoiced because the waves grew quiet,

and he led them to the harbor they desired.

107:31 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his loyal love,

and for the amazing things he has done for people!

107:32 Let them exalt him in the assembly of the people!

Let them praise him in the place where the leaders preside!

107:33 He turned streams into a desert,

springs of water into arid land,

107:34 and a fruitful land into a barren place,

because of the sin of its inhabitants.

107:35 As for his people, he turned a desert into a pool of water,

and a dry land into springs of water.

107:36 He allowed the hungry to settle there,

and they established a city in which to live.

107:37 They cultivated fields,

and planted vineyards,

which yielded a harvest of fruit.

107:38 He blessed them so that they became very numerous.

He would not allow their cattle to decrease in number.

107:39 As for their enemies, they decreased in number and were beaten down,

because of painful distress and suffering.

107:40 He would pour contempt upon princes,

and he made them wander in a wasteland with no road.

107:41 Yet he protected the needy from oppression,

and cared for his families like a flock of sheep.

107:42 When the godly see this, they rejoice,

and every sinner shuts his mouth.

107:43 Whoever is wise, let him take note of these things!

Let them consider the Lord’s acts of loyal love!

Psalm 108

A song, a psalm of David.

108:1 I am determined, O God!

I will sing and praise you with my whole heart.

108:2 Awake, O stringed instrument and harp!

I will wake up at dawn!

108:3 I will give you thanks before the nations, O Lord!

I will sing praises to you before foreigners!

108:4 For your loyal love extends beyond the sky,

and your faithfulness reaches the clouds.

108:5 Rise up above the sky, O God!

May your splendor cover the whole earth!

108:6 Deliver by your power and answer me,

so that the ones you love may be safe.

108:7 God has spoken in his sanctuary:

“I will triumph! I will parcel out Shechem,

the valley of Succoth I will measure off.

108:8Gilead belongs to me,

as does Manasseh!

Ephraim is my helmet,

Judah my royal scepter.

108:9Moab is my wash basin.

I will make Edom serve me.

I will shout in triumph over Philistia.”

108:10 Who will lead me into the fortified city?

Who will bring me to Edom?

108:11 Have you not rejected us, O God?

O God, you do not go into battle with our armies.

108:12 Give us help against the enemy,

for any help men might offer is futile.

108:13 By God’s power we will conquer;

he will trample down our enemies.