Psalm 107

Writing about Psalm 80 the other day, with its refrain, "Turn us again, O God...", made me think of Psalm 107, which has a refrain appearing four times:

"Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men" (v.8, 15, 21, 31).

While Psalm 80 reflects a plea from fallen men, beseeching the Lord to save them, Psalm 107 reflects the desire of God's heart for men to turn to him and worship him. We know from the apostle Paul that God "desires all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth" (1 Timothy 2:4). These two psalms, then, represent the nature of man's relationship to God. We desire God to "rend the heavens and come down," for we are broken and in need of God's healing presence. God desires us to seek his face and give thanks for the many blessings we experience each day. We need communion with the Triune God, and God stands at the door of our hearts knocking, desiring to come in.

Before each refrain in Psalm 107 is a reminder of what God has done for his people. For example, in v.6-7, God's people cry out in distress, and he leads them in the right way. In v.14, God is said to have brought his people out of darkness and the shadow of death. In v.20, God heals his people. In v.30, the storms of our lives are stilled and we are led to our desired haven.

So according to Psalm 107, we have a long litany of reasons to worship God, but the most precious reason is that it pleases God, and is the desire of his own heart. In addition, we can make this refrain a part of our prayer life. God's desire must become our own, and so we must plead with others using the words the Holy Spirit inspired the psalmist to write:

"Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!"