Psalms 106
106
PSALM 106
Israel’s Rebelliousness and the Lord’s Deliverances.
1Praise the Lord! (Hallelujah!)
Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;
For His mercy and lovingkindness endure forever!
2Who can put into words the mighty deeds of the Lord?
Or who can proclaim all His praise [that is due Him]?
3Blessed are those who observe justice [by honoring God’s precepts],
Who practice righteousness at all times.
4Remember me, O Lord, when You favor Your people.
Visit me with Your salvation [when You rescue them],
5That I may see the prosperity of Your chosen ones,
That I may rejoice in the gladness of Your nation,
That I may glory with Your inheritance.
6We have sinned like our fathers;
We have committed iniquity, we have behaved wickedly.
7Our fathers in Egypt did not understand nor appreciate Your miracles;
They did not remember the abundance of Your mercies nor imprint Your lovingkindnesses on their hearts,
But they were rebellious at the sea, at the #Lit Sea of Reeds; and so throughout.Red Sea.
8Nevertheless He saved them for His name’s sake,
That He might make His [supreme] power known.
9He rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up;
And He led them through the depths as through a pasture.
10So He saved them from the hand of the one that hated them,
And redeemed them from the hand of the [Egyptian] enemy.
11And the waters covered their adversaries;
Not one of them was left.
12Then Israel believed in [the validity of] His words;
They sang His praise.
13But they quickly forgot His works;
They did not [patiently] wait for His counsel and purpose [to be revealed regarding them],
14But lusted intensely in the wilderness
And tempted God [with their insistent desires] in the desert.
15So He gave them their request,
But sent a wasting disease among them.
16They envied Moses in the camp,
And Aaron [the high priest], the holy one of the Lord,
17Therefore the earth opened and swallowed Dathan,
And engulfed the company of Abiram.
18And a fire broke out in their company;
The flame consumed the wicked.
19They made a calf in Horeb (Sinai)
And worshiped a cast image.
20Thus they exchanged [the true God who was] their glory
For the image of an ox that eats grass.
21They forgot God their Savior,
Who had done such great things in Egypt,
22Wonders in the land of Ham,
Awesome things at the Red Sea.
23Therefore He said He would destroy them,
[And He would have done so] had not Moses, His chosen one, stepped into the gap before Him,
To turn away His wrath from destroying them.
24Then they despised the pleasant land [of Canaan];
They did not believe in His word nor rely on it,
25But they sulked and complained in their tents;
They did not listen to the voice of the Lord.
26Therefore He lifted up His hand [swearing] to them,
That He would cause them to fall in the wilderness,
27And that He would cast out their descendants among the nations
And scatter them in the lands [of the earth].
28They joined themselves also to [the idol] Baal of Peor,
And ate sacrifices offered to the dead.
29Thus they provoked Him to anger with their practices,
And a plague broke out among them.
30Then Phinehas [the priest] stood up and #The exact meaning of the Hebrew here has been debated since ancient times. The term interceded probably is best because it could refer to Phinehas’ intervention by executing the guilty couple (Num 25:7f), or to his interceding through prayer in behalf of Israel. No such prayer is recorded, but it is certainly possible that Phinehas prayed for relief before or after the execution. The ancient rabbis mostly understood the intercession as a prayer, but some of them took the meaning of the Hebrew to be that Phinehas interceded essentially by arguing with God as to whether it was fair to destroy so many people for the sins of two.interceded,
And so the plague was halted.
31And that was credited to him for righteousness,
To all generations forever.
32They provoked Him to anger at the waters of #Lit strife.Meribah,
So that it went hard with Moses on their account;
33Because they were rebellious against His Spirit,
Moses spoke recklessly with his lips.
34They did not destroy the [pagan] peoples [in Canaan],
As the Lord commanded them,
35But they mingled with the [idolatrous] nations
And learned their ways,
36And served their idols,
Which became a [dreadful] snare to them.
37They even sacrificed their sons and their daughters to demons
38And shed innocent blood,
Even the blood of their sons and of their daughters,
Whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan;
And the land was polluted with their blood.
39In this way they became unclean in their practices;
They played the prostitute in their own deeds [by giving their worship, which belongs to God alone, to other “gods”].
40Therefore the anger of the Lord was kindled against His people
And He detested His own #I.e. people.inheritance.
41He gave them into the hands of the nations,
And those who hated them ruled over them.
42Their enemies also oppressed them,
And they were subdued under the [powerful] hand of their enemies.
43Many times He rescued them;
But they were rebellious in their counsel,
And sank down in their wickedness.
44Nevertheless He looked [sympathetically] at their distress
When He heard their cry;
45And He remembered His covenant for their sake,
And relented [rescinding their sentence] according to the greatness of His lovingkindness [when they cried out to Him],
46He also made them objects of compassion
Among those who had carried them away captive.
47Save us, O Lord our God,
And gather us from among the nations,
That we may give thanks to Your holy name
And glory in praising You.
48Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
From everlasting even to everlasting.
And let all the people say, “Amen.”
Praise the Lord! (Hallelujah!)
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Psalms 106
106
Psalm 106#sn Psalm 106. The psalmist recalls Israel’s long history of rebellion against God, despite his mighty saving deeds on their behalf.
1 Praise the Lord!
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
and his loyal love endures!#tn Heb “for forever [is] his loyal love.”
2 Who can adequately recount the Lord’s mighty acts,
or relate all his praiseworthy deeds?#tn Heb “[or] cause to be heard all his praise.”
3 How blessed are those who promote justice,
and do what is right all the time!
4 Remember me, O Lord, when you show favor to your people!
Pay attention to me, when you deliver,
5 so I may see the prosperity#tn Heb “good.” of your chosen ones,
rejoice along with your nation,#tn Heb “in order that [I may] rejoice with the rejoicing of your nation.”
and boast along with the people who belong to you.#tn Heb “with your inheritance.”
6 We have sinned like#tn Heb “with.” our ancestors;#tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 7).
we have done wrong, we have done evil.
7 Our ancestors in Egypt failed to appreciate your miraculous deeds,
they failed to remember your many acts of loyal love,
and they rebelled at the sea, by the Red Sea.#tn Heb “Reed Sea” (also in vv. 9, 22). “Reed Sea” (or “Sea of Reeds”) is a more accurate rendering of the Hebrew expression יָם סוּף (yam suf), traditionally translated “Red Sea.” See the note on the term “Red Sea” in Exod 13:18.sn They rebelled. The psalmist recalls the people’s complaint recorded in Exod 14:12.
8 Yet he delivered them for the sake of his reputation,#tn Heb “his name,” which here stands metonymically for God’s reputation.
that he might reveal his power.
9 He shouted at#tn Or “rebuked.” the Red Sea and it dried up;
he led them through the deep water as if it were a desert.
10 He delivered them from the power#tn Heb “hand.” of the one who hated them,
and rescued#tn Or “redeemed.” them from the power#tn Heb “hand.” of the enemy.
11 The water covered their enemies;
not even one of them survived.#tn Heb “remained.”
12 They believed his promises;#tn Heb “his words.”
they sang praises to him.
13 They quickly forgot what he had done;#tn Heb “his works.”
they did not wait for his instructions.#tn Heb “his counsel.”
14 In the wilderness they had an insatiable craving#sn They had an insatiable craving. This is described in Num 11:4-35. for meat;#tn Heb “they craved [with] a craving.”
they challenged God#tn Heb “they tested God.” in the desert.
15 He granted their request,
then struck them with a disease.#tn Heb “and he sent leanness into their being.”sn Disease. See Num 11:33-34, where this plague is described.
16 In the camp they resented#tn Or “envied.” Moses,
and Aaron, the Lord’s holy priest.#tn Heb “the holy one of the Lord.”
17 The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan;
it engulfed#tn Or “covered.” the group led by Abiram.#tn Or “the assembly of Abiram.”
18 Fire burned their group;
the flames scorched the wicked.#sn Verses 16-18 describe the events of Num 16:1-40.
19 They made an image of a calf at Horeb,
and worshiped a metal idol.
20 They traded their majestic God#tn Heb “their glory.” According to an ancient Hebrew scribal tradition, the text originally read “his glory” or “my glory.” In Jer 2:11 the Lord states that his people (Israel) exchanged “their glory” (a reference to the Lord) for worthless idols.
for the image of an ox that eats grass.
21 They rejected#tn Heb “forgot.” the God who delivered them,
the one who performed great deeds in Egypt,
22 amazing feats in the land of Ham,
mighty#tn Or “awe-inspiring.” acts by the Red Sea.
23 He threatened#tn Heb “and he said.” to destroy them,
but#tn Heb “if not,” that is, “[and would have] if [Moses] had not.” Moses, his chosen one, interceded with him#tn Heb “stood in the gap before him.”
and turned back his destructive anger.#tn Heb “to turn back his anger from destroying.”sn Verses 19-23 describe the events of Exod 32:1-35.
24 They rejected the fruitful land;#tn Heb “a land of delight” (see also Jer 3:19; Zech 7:14).
they did not believe his promise.#tn Heb “his word.”
25 They grumbled in their tents;#sn They grumbled in their tents. See Deut 1:27.
they did not obey#tn Heb “did not listen to the voice of.” the Lord.
26 So he made a solemn vow#tn Heb “and he lifted his hand to [or “concerning”] them.” The idiom “to lift a hand” here refers to swearing an oath. One would sometimes solemnly lift one’s hand when making such a vow (see Ezek 20:5-6, 15).
that he would make them die#tn Heb “to cause them to fall.” in the desert,
27 make their descendants#tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.” die#tn Heb “and to cause their offspring to fall.” Some emend the verb to “scatter” to form tighter parallelism with the following line (cf. NRSV “disperse”). among the nations,
and scatter them among foreign lands.#tn Heb “among the lands.” The word “foreign” is supplied in the translation for clarification.
28 They worshiped#tn Heb “joined themselves to.”sn They worshiped Baal of Peor. See Num 25:3, 5. Baal of Peor was a local manifestation of the Canaanite deity Baal located at Peor. Baal of Peor,
and ate sacrifices offered to the dead.#tn Here “the dead” may refer to deceased ancestors (see Deut 26:14). Another option is to understand the term as a derogatory reference to the various deities which the Israelites worshiped at Peor along with Baal (see Num 25:2 and L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 [WBC], 49).
29 They made the Lord angry#tn Heb “They made angry [him].” The pronominal suffix is omitted here, but does appear in a few medieval Hebrew mss. Perhaps it was accidentally left off, an original וַיַּכְעִיסוּהוּ (vayyakh’isuhu) being misread as וַיַּכְעִיסוּ (vayyakh’isu). In the translation the referent of the pronominal suffix (the Lord) has been specified for clarity to avoid confusion with Baal of Peor (mentioned in the previous verse). by their actions,
and a plague broke out among them.
30 Phinehas took a stand and intervened,#sn The intervention of Phinehas is recounted in Num 25:7-8.
and the plague subsided.
31 This brought him a reward,
an eternal gift.#tn Heb “and it was reckoned to him for righteousness, to a generation and a generation forever.” The verb חָשַׁב (khashav, “to reckon”) is collocated with צְדָקָה (tsÿdaqah, “righteousness”) only in Ps 106:31 and Gen 15:6, where God rewards Abram’s faith with a land grant.sn Brought him a reward. See Num 25:12-13.
32 They made him angry by the waters of Meribah,
and Moses suffered#tn Heb “there was harm to Moses.” because of them,
33 for they aroused#tn The Hebrew text vocalizes the form as הִמְרוּ (himru), a Hiphil from מָרָה (marah, “to behave rebelliously”), but the verb fits better with the object (“his spirit”) if it is revocalized as הֵמֵרוּ (hemeru), a Hiphil from מָרַר (marar, “to be bitter”). The Israelites “embittered” Moses’ “spirit” in the sense that they aroused his temper with their complaints. his temper,#tn Heb “his spirit.”
and he spoke rashly.#tn The Hebrew text adds “with his lips,” but this has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.sn Verses 32-33 allude to the events of Num 20:1-13.
34 They did not destroy the nations,#tn That is, the nations of Canaan.
as the Lord had commanded them to do.
35 They mixed in with the nations
and learned their ways.#tn Heb “their deeds.”
36 They worshiped#tn Or “served.” their idols,
which became a snare to them.#sn Became a snare. See Exod 23:33; Judg 2:3.
37 They sacrificed their sons and daughters to demons.#tn The Hebrew term שֵׁדִים (shedim, “demons”) occurs only here and in Deut 32:17. Some type of lesser deity is probably in view.
38 They shed innocent blood –
the blood of their sons and daughters,
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan.
The land was polluted by bloodshed.#sn Num 35:33-34 explains that bloodshed defiles a land.
39 They were defiled by their deeds,
and unfaithful in their actions.#tn Heb “and they committed adultery in their actions.” This means that they were unfaithful to the Lord (see Ps 73:27).
40 So the Lord was angry with his people#tn Heb “the anger of the Lord burned against his people.”
and despised the people who belong to him.#tn Heb “his inheritance.”
41 He handed them over to#tn Heb “gave them into the hand of.” the nations,
and those who hated them ruled over them.
42 Their enemies oppressed them;
they were subject to their authority.#tn Heb “they were subdued under their hand.”
43 Many times he delivered#tn The prefixed verbal form is either preterite or imperfect, in which case it is customary, describing repeated action in past time (“he would deliver”). them,
but they had a rebellious attitude,#tn Heb “but they rebelled in their counsel.” The prefixed verbal form is either preterite or imperfect, in which case it is customary, describing repeated action in past time (“they would have a rebellious attitude”).
and degraded themselves#tn Heb “they sank down.” The Hebrew verb מָכַךְ (makhakh, “to lower; to sink”) occurs only here in the Qal. by their sin.
44 Yet he took notice of their distress,
when he heard their cry for help.
45 He remembered his covenant with them,
and relented#tn The Niphal of נָחַם (nakham) refers here to God relenting from a punishment already underway. because of his great loyal love.
46 He caused all their conquerors#tn Or “captors.”
to have pity on them.
47 Deliver us, O Lord, our God!
Gather us from among the nations!
Then we will give thanks#tn Heb “to give thanks.” The infinitive construct indicates result after the imperative. to your holy name,
and boast about your praiseworthy deeds.#tn Heb “to boast in your praise.”
48 The Lord God of Israel deserves praise,#tn Heb “[be] blessed.” See Pss 18:46; 28:6; 31:21.
in the future and forevermore.#tn Heb “from everlasting to everlasting.”
Let all the people say, “We agree!#tn Heb “surely” (אָמֵן, ’amen), traditionally transliterated “amen.” Praise the Lord!”#sn The final verse (v. 48) is a conclusion to this fourth “book” (or major editorial division) of the Psalter. Similar statements appear at or near the end of each of the first, second and third “books” of the Psalter (see Pss 41:13; 72:18-19; 89:52, respectively).
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