Psalms 107:23-38
Psalms 107:23-41 The Message (MSG)
Some of you set sail in big ships; you put to sea to do business in faraway ports. Out at sea you saw GOD in action, saw his breathtaking ways with the ocean: With a word he called up the wind— an ocean storm, towering waves! You shot high in the sky, then the bottom dropped out; your hearts were stuck in your throats. You were spun like a top, you reeled like a drunk, you didn’t know which end was up. Then you called out to GOD in your desperate condition; he got you out in the nick of time. He quieted the wind down to a whisper, put a muzzle on all the big waves. And you were so glad when the storm died down, and he led you safely back to harbor. So thank GOD for his marvelous love, for his miracle mercy to the children he loves. Lift high your praises when the people assemble, shout Hallelujah when the elders meet! GOD turned rivers into wasteland, springs of water into sunbaked mud; Luscious orchards became alkali flats because of the evil of the people who lived there. Then he changed wasteland into fresh pools of water, arid earth into springs of water, Brought in the hungry and settled them there; they moved in—what a great place to live! They sowed the fields, they planted vineyards, they reaped a bountiful harvest. He blessed them and they prospered greatly; their herds of cattle never decreased. But abuse and evil and trouble declined as he heaped scorn on princes and sent them away. He gave the poor a safe place to live, treated their clans like well-cared-for sheep.
Psalms 107:23-38 King James Version (KJV)
They that go down to the sea in ships, That do business in great waters; These see the works of the LORD, And his wonders in the deep. For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, Which lifteth up the waves thereof. They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: Their soul is melted because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, And are at their wits' end. Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, And he bringeth them out of their distresses. He maketh the storm a calm, So that the waves thereof are still. Then are they glad because they be quiet; So he bringeth them unto their desired haven. Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, And for his wonderful works to the children of men! Let them exalt him also in the congregation of the people, And praise him in the assembly of the elders. He turneth rivers into a wilderness, And the watersprings into dry ground; A fruitful land into barrenness, For the wickedness of them that dwell therein. He turneth the wilderness into a standing water, And dry ground into watersprings. And there he maketh the hungry To dwell, that they may prepare a city for habitation; And sow the fields, and plant vineyards, Which may yield fruits of increase. He blesseth them also, so that they are multiplied greatly; And suffereth not their cattle to decrease.
Psalms 107:23-38 New American Standard Bible - NASB 1995 (NASB1995)
Those who go down to the sea in ships, Who do business on great waters; They have seen the works of the LORD, And His wonders in the deep. For He spoke and raised up a stormy wind, Which lifted up the waves of the sea. They rose up to the heavens, they went down to the depths; Their soul melted away in their misery. They reeled and staggered like a drunken man, And were at their wits’ end. Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, And He brought them out of their distresses. He caused the storm to be still, So that the waves of the sea were hushed. Then they were glad because they were quiet, So He guided them to their desired haven. Let them give thanks to the LORD for His lovingkindness, And for His wonders to the sons of men! Let them extol Him also in the congregation of the people, And praise Him at the seat of the elders. He changes rivers into a wilderness And springs of water into a thirsty ground; A fruitful land into a salt waste, Because of the wickedness of those who dwell in it. He changes a wilderness into a pool of water And a dry land into springs of water; And there He makes the hungry to dwell, So that they may establish an inhabited city, And sow fields and plant vineyards, And gather a fruitful harvest. Also He blesses them and they multiply greatly, And He does not let their cattle decrease.
Psalms 107:23-38 New Century Version (NCV)
Others went out to sea in ships and did business on the great oceans. They saw what the LORD could do, the miracles he did in the deep oceans. He spoke, and a storm came up, which blew up high waves. The ships were tossed as high as the sky and fell low to the depths. The storm was so bad that they lost their courage. They stumbled and fell like people who were drunk. They did not know what to do. In their misery they cried out to the LORD, and he saved them from their troubles. He stilled the storm and calmed the waves. They were happy that it was quiet, and God guided them to the port they wanted. Let them give thanks to the LORD for his love and for the miracles he does for people. Let them praise his greatness in the meeting of the people; let them praise him in the meeting of the elders. He changed rivers into a desert and springs of water into dry ground. He made fertile land salty, because the people there did evil. He changed the desert into pools of water and dry ground into springs of water. He had the hungry settle there so they could build a city in which to live. They planted seeds in the fields and vineyards, and they had a good harvest. God blessed them, and they grew in number. Their cattle did not become fewer.
Psalms 107:23-38 American Standard Version (ASV)
They that go down to the sea in ships, That do business in great waters; These see the works of Jehovah, And his wonders in the deep. For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, Which lifteth up the waves thereof. They mount up to the heavens, they go down again to the depths: Their soul melteth away because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, And are at their wits’ end. Then they cry unto Jehovah in their trouble, And he bringeth them out of their distresses. He maketh the storm a calm, So that the waves thereof are still. Then are they glad because they are quiet; So he bringeth them unto their desired haven. Oh that men would praise Jehovah for his lovingkindness, 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 seat of the elders. He turneth rivers into a wilderness, And watersprings into a thirsty ground; A fruitful land into a salt desert, For the wickedness of them that dwell therein. He turneth a wilderness into a pool of water, And a dry land into watersprings. And there he maketh the hungry to dwell, That they may prepare a city of habitation, And sow fields, and plant vineyards, And get them fruits of increase. He blesseth them also, so that they are multiplied greatly; And he suffereth not their cattle to decrease.
Psalms 107:23-38 New International Version (NIV)
Some went out on the sea in ships; they were merchants on the mighty waters. They saw the works of the LORD, his wonderful deeds in the deep. For he spoke and stirred up a tempest that lifted high the waves. They mounted up to the heavens and went down to the depths; in their peril their courage melted away. They reeled and staggered like drunkards; they were at their wits’ end. Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven. Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind. Let them exalt him in the assembly of the people and praise him in the council of the elders. He turned rivers into a desert, flowing springs into thirsty ground, and fruitful land into a salt waste, because of the wickedness of those who lived there. He turned the desert into pools of water and the parched ground into flowing springs; there he brought the hungry to live, and they founded a city where they could settle. They sowed fields and planted vineyards that yielded a fruitful harvest; he blessed them, and their numbers greatly increased, and he did not let their herds diminish.
Psalms 107:23-38 New King James Version (NKJV)
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.
Psalms 107:23-38 Amplified Bible (AMP)
¶Those who go down to the sea in ships, Who do business on great waters; They have seen the works of the LORD, And His wonders in the deep. For He spoke and raised up a stormy wind, Which lifted up the waves of the sea. They went up toward the heavens [on the crest of the wave], they went down again to the depths [of the watery trough]; Their courage melted away in their misery. They staggered and trembled like a drunken man, And were at their wits’ end [all their wisdom was useless]. Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, And He brought them out of their distresses. He hushed the storm to a gentle whisper, So that the waves of the sea were still. [Ps 65:7; 89:9; Matt 8:26] Then they were glad because of the calm, And He guided them to their desired haven (harbor). Let them give thanks to the LORD for His lovingkindness, And for His wonderful acts to the children of men! Let them exalt Him also in the congregation of the people, And praise Him at the seat of the elders. ¶He turns rivers into a wilderness, And springs of water into a thirsty ground; [1 Kin 17:1, 7] A productive land into a [barren] salt waste, Because of the wickedness of those who dwell in it. [Gen 13:10; 14:3; 19:25] He turns a wilderness into a pool of water And a dry land into springs of water; [Is 41:18] And there He has the hungry dwell, So that they may establish an inhabited city, And sow fields and plant vineyards, And produce an abundant harvest. Also He blesses them so that they multiply greatly, And He does not let [the number of] their cattle decrease.
Psalms 107:23-38 New Living Translation (NLT)
Some went off to sea in ships, plying the trade routes of the world. They, too, observed the LORD’s power in action, his impressive works on the deepest seas. He spoke, and the winds rose, stirring up the waves. Their ships were tossed to the heavens and plunged again to the depths; the sailors cringed in terror. They reeled and staggered like drunkards and were at their wits’ end. “LORD, help!” they cried in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress. He calmed the storm to a whisper and stilled the waves. What a blessing was that stillness as he brought them safely into harbor! Let them praise the LORD for his great love and for the wonderful things he has done for them. Let them exalt him publicly before the congregation and before the leaders of the nation. He changes rivers into deserts, and springs of water into dry, thirsty land. He turns the fruitful land into salty wastelands, because of the wickedness of those who live there. But he also turns deserts into pools of water, the dry land into springs of water. He brings the hungry to settle there and to build their cities. They sow their fields, plant their vineyards, and harvest their bumper crops. How he blesses them! They raise large families there, and their herds of livestock increase.
Psalms 107:23-38 The Passion Translation (TPT)
Some of us set sail upon the sea to faraway ports, transporting our goods from ship to shore. We were witnesses of God’s power out in the ocean deep; we saw breathtaking wonders upon the high seas. When God spoke he stirred up a storm, lifting high the waves with hurricane winds. Ships were tossed by the swelling sea, rising to the sky, then dropping down to the depths, reeling like drunkards, spinning like tops, everyone at their wits’ end until even sailors despaired of life, cringing in terror. Then we cried out, “Lord, help us! Rescue us!” And he did! God stilled the storm, calmed the waves, and he hushed the hurricane winds to only a whisper. We were so relieved, so glad as he guided us safely to harbor in a quiet haven. So lift your hands and give thanks to God for his marvelous kindness and for his miracles of mercy for those he loves! Let’s exalt him on high and lift up our praises in public; let all the people and the leaders of the nation know how great and wonderful is YAHWEH, our God! Whenever he chooses he can dry up a river and turn the land into a desert. Or he can take a fruitful land and make it into a saltwater swamp, all because of the wickedness of those who dwell there. But he also can turn a barren wilderness into an oasis with water! He can make springs flow into desert lands and turn them into fertile valleys so that cities spring up, and he gives it all to those who are hungry. They can plant their fields and vineyards there and reap a bumper crop and gather a fruitful harvest. God will bless them and cause them to multiply and prosper.
Psalms 107:23-38 English Standard Version Revision 2016 (ESV)
Some went down to the sea in ships, doing business on the great waters; they saw the deeds of the LORD, his wondrous works in the deep. For he commanded and raised the stormy wind, which lifted up the waves of the sea. They mounted up to heaven; they went down to the depths; their courage melted away in their evil plight; they reeled and staggered like drunken men and were at their wits’ end. Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. He made the storm be still, and the waves of the sea were hushed. Then they were glad that the waters were quiet, and he brought them to their desired haven. Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man! Let them extol him in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders. He turns rivers into a desert, springs of water into thirsty ground, a fruitful land into a salty waste, because of the evil of its inhabitants. He turns a desert into pools of water, a parched land into springs of water. And there he lets the hungry dwell, and they establish a city to live in; they sow fields and plant vineyards and get a fruitful yield. By his blessing they multiply greatly, and he does not let their livestock diminish.