Psalm 107: Oh, That Men Would Give Thanks for His Goodness!

Oh, 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.

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.
Oh, 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.

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,
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.
Oh, 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.

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 and healed them,
And delivered them from their destructions.
Oh, 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.

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.
Oh, 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.

He turns rivers into a wilderness,
And the watersprings into dry ground;
A fruitful land into barrenness,
For the wickedness of those who dwell in it.
He turns a wilderness into pools of water,
And dry land into watersprings.
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.

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.
The righteous see it and rejoice,
And all iniquity stops its mouth.

Whoever is wise will observe these things,
And they will understand the lovingkindness of the LORD.

The Very Good

“Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good.” (Genesis 1:31)

Emphasis on very. Not “satisfactory.” Not “that’ll do.” Not “useful” or “efficient” or “nice.” It was very. The Hebrew word might also be translated, with a little more punch, exceedingly, abundantly, with a great deal of much-ness (won’t exactly find this last one in the lexicon, but the sense is there, you know). In other words, it just doesn’t get any better than this. This is indeed the best of all possible worlds.

Now if God is exceedingly, abundantly, mucho happy with it all—forget about sin, death, and the devil for a minute—how much more so should we be. Look around on all that God has made, the way He has made it, and give thanks. God is very good. The world He has made is very good—the world and everything in it.

Don’t like Brussels sprouts? They are very good. Add a little butter and salt, and give thanks for them.

Don’t like math? You are not allowed to dislike it. It is very good—God says so. Give thanks for the way numbers work in the world, and do your homework.

Can’t stand us men? God made mankind male and female and called it “very good.” I know it’s a stretch, but . . . give thanks for them and the way God made them, and ask God for help in seeing them from God’s “very-good” perspective.

Don’t like children? God made the world to be full of them. They are very good. I know they are not always “very good” in the moral sense—sometimes they can be really, really bad. But not only are they made in the image of God, they are the models for those who would be heirs of the kingdom of God. Give thanks for them, and ask God to change your heart (and theirs) to conform to His.

Give thanks in everything and for all things, God says. Everything God has made and everything God has done is very good.

All right, Mr. Pollyanna, you say, when do we add back in all the dark side of the universe? We all know there is plenty not only not very good but not good at all. Yes, that is true. I was getting to that. Give thanks for that too. Since God causes all things to work together for our good, you can, at least in that sense, give thanks for all things without discrimination. But very good loses its meaning fairly quickly if there is not a very bad for contrast’s sake. Bring back into the picture sin, death, and the devil. You are permitted to hate these things, and with passion. God hates them too. That is why He has defeated them through the death of our Lord Jesus Christ—which was a very bad thing turned to our very greatest good.

In fact, because there is so much bad in the world, it is that much more important for us to remember, rejoice in, give thanks for, and enjoy to the max the so much more very-good stuff of which this world is made and the very good and gracious God who made it. Abhor what is evil, but embrace with fervent love and gratitude the good—which includes the exceedingly and abundantly good universe God crafted with His own hands in six days.

“Lord God, we give You thanks for the very good world You have made and all of the very good and wonderful things You have placed in it. We give You thanks also for being a sovereign Lord over all things who causes all things—good and bad—to work together for our good. We thank You most of all for our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom and for whom all things are created, and for the redemption of creation through His death, burial, and resurrection. Make us by Your Holy Spirit after His image, we pray in Christ’s name. Amen.”

Psalm 13: Pray and Give Thanks

How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever?
How long will You hide Your face from me?
How long shall I take counsel in my soul,
Having sorrow in my heart daily?
How long will my enemy be exalted over me?
Consider and hear me, O Lord my God;
Enlighten my eyes,
Lest I sleep the sleep of death;
Lest my enemy say,
“I have prevailed against him”’
Lest those who trouble me rejoice when I am moved.
But I have trusted in Your mercy;
My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.
I will sing to the Lord,
Because he has dealt bountifully with me.

The psalmist here teaches us how to respond to trouble. So much of the time, our response is to worry, be anxious, fret, grow angry and depressed, give way to despair and frustration, wallow in self-pity and discontentment. An opposite problem, of course, is to fake our way through the trouble, denying its existence or the intensity of its effect on us. Or we may look for solutions that are hopelessly doomed to failure because they are not according to God’s Word. What is God’s solution?

Pray and give thanks.

Worry denies the power of God; prayer is an acknowledgement of it. Discontentment refuses to embrace the purpose of God; thanksgiving rejoices in it. Whatever the situation you find yourself in, present your case to God—honestly and openly, just as the psalmist does here—and accompany your petition with joyful thanks and praise. Giving thanks for the past and present blessings builds up your faith that enables you to trust God for the future.

“Wonderful God and Savior, we cry out to You and ask You to hear us for Christ’s sake. Deliver us from our troubles, from our enemies, from our sins. Enlighten our eyes, dear God, and show us Your power and greatness and purpose. We give thanks to You this day for all the salvation and mercy and bounty You have poured out on us through Jesus Christ, and we pray You would teach us to come to You with our thanksgivings and praise—may they continually be on our lips. We trust ourselves to You, O God, for You alone are our hope, You alone have the power to help, You alone are the source of all our blessing, our good, our contentment, our joy. Through our Lord Jesus Christ we pray and give thanks. Amen.”