41 And setteth on high the needy from affliction, And placeth families as a flock.
And Mordecai went out from before the king, in royal clothing of blue and white, and a great crown of gold, and a garment of fine linen and purple, and the city of Shushan hath rejoiced and been glad; to the Jews hath been light, and gladness, and joy, and honour, and in every province and province, and in every city and city, the place where the word of the king, even his law, is coming, gladness and joy `are' to the Jews, a banquet, and a good day; and many of the peoples of the land are becoming Jews, for a fear of the Jews hath fallen upon them.
And it cometh to pass, in the thirty and seventh year of the removal of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, in the twenty and fifth of the month, hath Evil-Merodach king of Babylon lifted up, in the year of his reign, the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah, and bringeth him out from the house of restraint, and speaketh with him good things, and setteth his throne above the throne of the kings who `are' with him in Babylon, and he hath changed his prison garments, and he hath eaten bread before him continually, all the days of his life. And his allowance -- a continual allowance -- hath been given to him by the king of Babylon, the matter of a day in its day, till the day of his death -- all days of his life.
Again do the sons of thy bereavement say in thine ears: `The place is too strait for me, Come nigh to me -- and I dwell.' And thou hast said in thy heart: `Who hath begotten for me -- these? And I bereaved and gloomy, A captive, and turned aside, And these -- who hath nourished? Lo, I -- I was left by myself, these -- whence `are' they? Thus said the Lord Jehovah: `Lo, I lift up unto nations My hand, And unto peoples I raise up Mine ensign, And they have brought thy sons in the bosom, And thy daughters on the shoulder are carried.
And the sons of Heth answer Abraham, saying to him, `Hear us, my lord; a prince of God `art' thou in our midst; in the choice of our burying-places bury thy dead: none of us his burying-place doth withhold from thee, from burying thy dead.' And Abraham riseth and boweth himself to the people of the land, to the sons of Heth,
He is raising up from the dust the poor, From a dunghill He exalteth the needy. To cause to sit with princes, With the princes of His people. Causing the barren one of the house to sit, A joyful mother of sons; praise ye Jah!
And Jehovah hath turned `to' the captivity of Job in his praying for his friends, and Jehovah doth add `to' all that Job hath -- to double. And come unto him do all his brethren, and all his sisters, and all his former acquaintances, and they eat bread with him in his house, and bemoan him, and comfort him concerning all the evil that Jehovah had brought upon him, and they gave to him each one kesitah, and each one ring of gold. And Jehovah hath blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning, and he hath fourteen thousand of a flock, and six thousand camels, and a thousand pairs of oxen, and a thousand she-asses.
For then thou liftest up thy face from blemish, And thou hast been firm, and fearest not. For thou dost forget misery, As waters passed away thou rememberest. And above the noon doth age rise, Thou fliest -- as the morning thou art. And thou hast trusted because their is hope, And searched -- in confidence thou liest down, And thou hast rested, And none is causing trembling, And many have entreated thy face;
And the women say unto Naomi, `Blessed `is' Jehovah who hath not let a redeemer cease to thee to-day, and his name is proclaimed in Israel, and he hath been to thee for a restorer of life, and for a nourisher of thine old age, for thy daughter-in-law who hath loved thee -- who is better to thee than seven sons -- hath borne him.' And Naomi taketh the lad, and layeth him in her bosom, and is to him for a nurse; and the neighbouring women give to him a name, saying, `There hath been a son born to Naomi,' and they call his name Obed; he `is' father of Jesse, father of David.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Psalms 107
Commentary on Psalms 107 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
PSALM 107
Ps 107:1-43. Although the general theme of this Psalm may have been suggested by God's special favor to the Israelites in their restoration from captivity, it must be regarded as an instructive celebration of God's praise for His merciful providence to all men in their various emergencies. Of these several are given—captivity and bondage, wanderings by land and sea, and famine; some as evidences of God's displeasure, and all the deliverances as evidence of His goodness and mercy to them who humbly seek Him.
1, 2. This call for thankful praise is the burden or chorus (compare Ps 107:8, 15, &c.).
2. redeemed of the Lord—(compare Isa 35:9, 10).
say—that is, that His mercy, &c.
hand of—or, "power of enemy."
3. gathered—alluding to the dispersion of captives throughout the Babylonian empire.
from the south—literally, "the sea," or, Red Sea (Ps 114:3), which was on the south.
4-7. A graphic picture is given of the sufferings of those who from distant lands returned to Jerusalem; or,
city of habitation—may mean the land of Palestine.
5. fainted—was overwhelmed (Ps 61:3; 77:3).
8, 9. To the chorus is added, as a reason for praise, an example of the extreme distress from which they had been delivered—extreme hunger, the severest privation of a journey in the desert.
10-16. Their sufferings were for their rebellion against (Ps 105:28) the words, or purposes, or promises, of God for their benefit. When humbled they cry to God, who delivers them from bondage, described as a dark dungeon with doors and bars of metal, in which they are bound in iron—that is, chains and fetters.
shadow of death—darkness with danger (Ps 23:4).
16. broken—literally, "shivered" (Isa 45:2).
17-22. Whether the same or not, this exigency illustrates that dispensation of God according to which sin brings its own punishment.
are afflicted—literally, "afflict themselves," that is, bring on disease, denoted by loathing of food, and drawing
18. near unto—literally, "even to"
gates—or, "domains" (Ps 9:13).
20. sent his word—that is, put forth His power.
their destructions—that is, that which threatened them. To the chorus is added the mode of giving thanks, by a sacrifice and joyful singing (Ps 50:14).
23-32. Here are set forth the perils of seafaring, futility of man's, and efficiency of God's, help.
go … sea—alluding to the elevation of the land at the coast.
24. These see … deep—illustrated both by the storm He raises and the calm He makes with a word (Ps 33:9).
25. waves thereof—literally, "His waves" (God's, Ps 42:7).
27. are … end—literally, "all their wisdom swallows up itself," destroys itself by vain and contradictory devices, such as despair induces.
29-32. He maketh … calm—or, "to stand to stillness," or "in quiet." Instead of acts of temple-worship, those of the synagogue are here described, where the people with the
assembly—or session of elders, convened for reading, singing, prayer, and teaching.
33-41. He turneth rivers into a wilderness, &c.—God's providence is illustriously displayed in His influence on two great elements of human prosperity, the earth's productiveness and the powers of government. He punishes the wicked by destroying the sources of fertility, or, in mercy, gives fruitfulness to deserts, which become the homes of a busy and successful agricultural population. By a permitted misrule and tyranny, this scene of prosperity is changed to one of adversity. He rules rulers, setting up one and putting down another.
40. wander … wilderness—reduced to misery (Job 12:24).
42, 43. In this providential government, good men will rejoice, and the cavils of the wicked will be stopped (Job 5:16; Isa 52:15), and all who take right views will appreciate God's unfailing mercy and unbounded love.