Psalm 106-108

New Life Version

The Lord Is Good to His People

106 Praise the Lord! O give thanks to the Lord for He is good. His loving-kindness lasts forever. ² Who can put into words the great works of the Lord? Who can make known all His praise? ³ Happy are those who are faithful in being fair and who always do what is right and good!

⁴ O Lord, remember me when You show favor to Your people. Visit me also when You save them. ⁵ So I may share in the well-being of Your chosen ones. So I may share in the joy of Your nation, and be proud of Your people.

⁶ We have sinned like our fathers. We have done wrong. We have been sinful in our actions. ⁷ Our fathers in Egypt did not understand Your powerful works. They did not remember how many times You showed Your loving-kindness. But they turned against You by the sea, the Red Sea. ⁸ Yet He saved them because of the honor of His name, and to make His great power known. ⁹ So He spoke sharp words to the Red Sea and it dried up. And He led them through the sea as through a desert. ¹⁰ He saved them from the hand of those who hated them. He set them free from the hand of those who went against them. ¹¹ And the waters covered those who hated them. Not one of them was left. ¹² Then they believed His promises. They sang His praise.

¹³ But they soon forgot His works. They did not wait to hear what He wanted them to do. ¹⁴ They wanted many things in the desert, and they tempted God there. ¹⁵ So He gave them what they wanted, but He allowed their souls to become weak because of it.

¹⁶ They were jealous of Moses in the place where they set up their tents. And they were jealous of Aaron, the holy one of the Lord. ¹⁷ So the earth opened up and swallowed Dathan. It closed over the group of Abiram. ¹⁸ And a fire came among their followers. It burned up the sinful people.

¹⁹ They made a calf at Horeb and worshiped a god of gold. ²⁰ They traded their shining-greatness for something that looked like a bull that eats grass. ²¹ They forgot the God Who saved them, Who had done great things in Egypt, ²² powerful works in the land of Ham, and works that brought fear by the Red Sea. ²³ So He said that He would destroy them. But Moses, His chosen one, stood in the way to keep His anger from destroying them. ²⁴ Then they hated the good land. They did not believe in His Word. ²⁵ But they complained in their tents. They did not listen to the voice of the Lord. ²⁶ So He swore to them that He would let them die in the desert. ²⁷ And He would spread out their children among the nations and divide them over all the earth.

²⁸ They joined themselves to Baal of Peor and ate gifts given to the dead. ²⁹ They made the Lord angry by their actions and a sickness broke out among them. ³⁰ Then Phinehas stood up and came between them, and the sickness was stopped. ³¹ And this made him right with God to all people forever.

³² They also made the Lord angry at the waters of Meribah. And trouble came to Moses because of them. ³³ He spoke from his lips without thinking because they went against the Spirit of God.

³⁴ They did not destroy the people as the Lord told them to do. ³⁵ But they mixed with the nations and learned their ways. ³⁶ They served their gods, which became a trap to them. ³⁷ They even gave their sons and daughters as gifts on an altar to the demons. ³⁸ They poured out the blood of those who were not guilty, the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they gave on an altar to the gods of Canaan. And the land was poisoned with blood. ³⁹ They made themselves unclean by what they did. They were not true to God in what they did.

⁴⁰ So the Lord was angry with His people. He hated His people. ⁴¹ So He handed them over to the nations. And those who hated them ruled over them. ⁴² Those who hated them held a strong power over them. And they were made to obey them. ⁴³ God set them free many times. But they always turned against Him and went deeper into sin.

⁴⁴ But He looked upon their trouble when He heard their cry. ⁴⁵ He remembered His agreement because of them, and took pity on them by the greatness of His loving-kindness. ⁴⁶ Those who held them also saw how God took pity on them.

⁴⁷ O Lord our God, save us! Gather us from among the nations. And we will give thanks to Your holy name and find honor in Your praise. ⁴⁸ Honor and thanks be to the Lord, the God of Israel, forever and ever. Let all the people say, “Let it be so!” Praise the Lord!

God Helps Men in Trouble

107 Give thanks to the Lord for He is good! His loving-kindness lasts forever! ² Let the people who have been saved say so. He has bought them and set them free from the hand of those who hated them. ³ He gathered them from the lands, from east and west, from north and south.

⁴ Some traveled through the desert wastes. They did not find a way to a city where they could live. ⁵ They were hungry and thirsty. Their souls became weak within them. ⁶ Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble. And He took them out of their suffering. ⁷ He led them by a straight path to a city where they could live. ⁸ Let them give thanks to the Lord for His loving-kindness and His great works to the children of men! ⁹ For He fills the thirsty soul. And He fills the hungry soul with good things.

¹⁰ Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death. They suffered in prison in iron chains. ¹¹ Because they had turned against the Words of God. They hated what the Most High told them to do. ¹² So He loaded them down with hard work. They fell and there was no one to help. ¹³ Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble. And He saved them from their suffering. ¹⁴ He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death. And He broke their chains. ¹⁵ Let them give thanks to the Lord for His loving-kindness and His great works to the children of men! ¹⁶ For He has broken gates of brass and cut through walls of iron.

¹⁷ Some were fools because of their wrong-doing. They had troubles because of their sins. ¹⁸ They hated all kinds of food. And they came near the gates of death. ¹⁹ Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble. And He saved them from their suffering. ²⁰ He sent His Word and healed them. And He saved them from the grave. ²¹ Let them give thanks to the Lord for His loving-kindness and His great works to the children of men! ²² Let them give Him gifts of thanks and tell of His works with songs of joy.

²³ Some went out to sea in ships to buy and sell on the great waters. ²⁴ They have seen what the Lord can do and His great works on the sea. ²⁵ For He spoke and raised up a storm that lifted up the waves of the sea. ²⁶ They went up to the heavens and down to the deep. Their strength of heart left them in their danger. ²⁷ They could not walk straight but went from side to side like a drunk man. They did not know what to do. ²⁸ Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble. And He took them out of all their problems. ²⁹ He stopped the storm, and the waves of the sea became quiet. ³⁰ Then they were glad because the sea became quiet. And He led them to the safe place they wanted. ³¹ Let them give thanks to the Lord for His loving-kindness and His great works to the children of men! ³² Let them honor Him in the meeting of the people and praise Him in the meeting of the leaders.

³³ He changes rivers into a desert and wells of water into a thirsty ground. ³⁴ He changes a land of much fruit into a salt waste because of the sin of those who live in it. ³⁵ He changes a desert into a pool of water and makes water flow out of dry ground. ³⁶ And He makes the hungry go there so they may build a city to live in. ³⁷ They plant seeds in the fields and plant grape-vines and gather much fruit. ³⁸ He lets good come to them and they become many in number. And He does not let the number of their cattle become less.

³⁹ When the number of people becomes less and they are put to shame under a bad power and trouble and sorrow, ⁴⁰ He pours anger on rulers. He makes them walk in the waste places where there is no path. ⁴¹ But He lifts those in need out of their troubles. He makes their families grow like flocks. ⁴² Those who are right see it and are glad. But all the sinful shut their mouths. ⁴³ Let the wise man think about these things. And may he think about the loving-kindness of the Lord.

A Song of Praise

108 My heart will not be moved, O God. I will sing. Yes, I will sing praises with my soul. ² Wake up, different kinds of harps. I will wake up the new day. ³ I will give thanks to You among the people, O Lord. I will sing praises to You among the nations. ⁴ For Your loving-kindness is great above the heavens. And Your truth can touch the sky. ⁵ Be lifted up high above the heavens, O God. Let Your shining-greatness be over all the earth. ⁶ Save us with Your right hand and answer me. Let Your loved ones be set free.

⁷ God has said in His holy place: “I will be full of joy. I will divide Shechem and the valley of Succoth. ⁸ Gilead is Mine. Manasseh is Mine. Ephraim is the covering for My head. Judah is My law giver. ⁹ Moab is where I wash My hands. I will throw My shoe over Edom. I will call out over Philistia that I have won.”

¹⁰ Who will bring me into the strong city? Who will lead me into Edom? ¹¹ Have You not turned away from us, O God? And will You not go out with our armies, O God? ¹² O give us help against those who hate us. For the help of man is worth nothing. ¹³ With God’s help we will do great things. And He will break under His feet those who fight against us.