Psalm 106
Steady & Steadfast Love
We live in the world East of Eden. The world as it is then is one stained by sin. This is evident from what we see in the paper each day, or doomscrolling through social media or listening to the latest podcast.
This is evident not only in the present but also throughout history, whether that is in modern or ancient history textbooks, or in the songs of the people of God, like this one.
But where all eyes can see the consequences of sin, this Psalm invites us to look on with eyes of faith and see how history also charts the steady and steadfast love of God for his people.
1 Praise the LORD!
Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his steadfast love endures for ever!
2 Who can utter the mighty deeds of the LORD,
or declare all his praise?
3 Blessed are they who observe justice,
who do righteousness at all times!
4 Remember me, O LORD, when you show favour to your people;
help me when you save them,
5 that I may look upon the prosperity of your chosen ones,
that I may rejoice in the gladness of your nation,
that I may glory with your inheritance.
6 Both we and our fathers have sinned;
we have committed iniquity; we have done wickedness.
7 Our fathers, when they were in Egypt,
did not consider your wondrous works;
they did not remember the abundance of your steadfast love,
but rebelled by the sea, at the Red Sea.
8 Yet he saved them for his name’s sake,
that he might make known his mighty power.
9 He rebuked the Red Sea, and it became dry,
and he led them through the deep as through a desert.
10 So he saved them from the hand of the foe
and redeemed them from the power of the enemy.
11 And the waters covered their adversaries;
not one of them was left.
12 Then they believed his words;
they sang his praise.
13 But they soon forgot his works;
they did not wait for his counsel.
14 But they had a wanton craving in the wilderness,
and put God to the test in the desert;
15 he gave them what they asked,
but sent a wasting disease among them.
16 When men in the camp were jealous of Moses
and Aaron, the holy one of the LORD,
17 the earth opened and swallowed up Dathan,
and covered the company of Abiram.
18 Fire also broke out in their company;
the flame burned up the wicked.
19 They made a calf in Horeb
and worshipped a metal image.
20 They exchanged the glory of God
for the image of an ox that eats grass.
21 They forgot God, their Saviour,
who had done great things in Egypt,
22 wondrous works in the land of Ham,
and awesome deeds by the Red Sea.
23 Therefore he said he would destroy them—
had not Moses, his chosen one,
stood in the breach before him,
to turn away his wrath from destroying them.
24 Then they despised the pleasant land,
having no faith in his promise.
25 They murmured in their tents,
and did not obey the voice of the LORD.
26 Therefore he raised his hand and swore to them
that he would make them fall in the wilderness,
27 and would make their offspring fall among the nations,
scattering them among the lands.
28 Then they yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor,
and ate sacrifices offered to the dead;
29 they provoked the LORD to anger with their deeds,
and a plague broke out among them.
30 Then Phinehas stood up and intervened,
and the plague was stayed.
31 And that was counted to him as righteousness
from generation to generation for ever.
32 They angered him at the waters of Meribah,
and it went ill with Moses on their account,
33 for they made his spirit bitter,
and he spoke rashly with his lips.
34 They did not destroy the peoples,
as the LORD commanded them,
35 but they mixed with the nations
and learned to do as they did.
36 They served their idols,
which became a snare to them.
37 They sacrificed their sons
and their daughters to the demons;
38 they poured out innocent blood,
the blood of their sons and daughters,
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan,
and the land was polluted with blood.
39 Thus they became unclean by their acts,
and played the whore in their deeds.
40 Then the anger of the LORD was kindled against his people,
and he abhorred his heritage;
41 he gave them into the hand of the nations,
so that those who hated them ruled over them.
42 Their enemies oppressed them,
and they were brought into subjection under their power.
43 Many times he delivered them,
but they were rebellious in their purposes
and were brought low through their iniquity.
44 Nevertheless, he looked upon their distress,
when he heard their cry.
45 For their sake he remembered his covenant,
and relented according to the abundance of his steadfast love.
46 He caused them to be pitied
by all those who held them captive.
47 Save us, O LORD our God,
and gather us from among the nations,
that we may give thanks to your holy name
and glory in your praise.
48 Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting!
And let all the people say, “Amen!”
Praise the LORD!
This song is all about stubborn grace for stubborn people.
Where in Psalm 105 God remembering his covenant is the motivation for singing and service, in Psalm 106 God remembering his covenant is the ground for our cries for mercy.
The desire at the core of the plea in v4 is to be found in the target sight of God’s grace. For when the grace of God appears, bringing salvation for the people of God through the Son of God (see Titus 2.11), the prayer in v4 is that we would be among those rescued from judgement and darkness. We want to be included in the inheritance, gladness and prosperity that is the sole preserve of those who have been drawn into the Kingdom of God (v5). The problem is acknowledged in v6. Like those who have gone before us, we have sinned, rejecting God’s ways and purposes.
The Psalmist then charts the generational cycle of sin that stains the people of God.
First, during the great Exodus, even having seen the mighty power of God in the Ten Plagues, the people still lost sight of God’s steadfast love (v7). In so doing, when under immense strain, instead of retreating to the faithfulness of God, they rebelled against God accusing him of faithlessness.
Second, those in the wilderness tested God (v14), envied Moses & Aaron (v16), constructed a golden calf as an idol (v19), forgot God (v21), plunged into false religions (vv28-29), and grumbled by the edge of Meribah (v32).
Third, while finally in the Promised Land, they disobeyed God by not purging the land of the nations, mixing with them (vv33-34), plunging ever deeper into pagan worship (vv36-38), and selling themselves to anyone who would take them (v39).
Each time, the stubborn and hard hearts of the people was met with the stubborn and melting grace of God.
First, God saved them for the sake of his own glory, liberating them from slavery and the pursuit of Pharaoh through the waters of the sea (vv8-12).
Second, God raised up Phineas, the descendant of Aaron, to intervene during the plague that surged through the people (v30).
Third, God remembered his covenant promises, hearing the desperate and faith-tinged cries of his people (v44). God blessed his people so that even when in exile, those they lived with and served under, would look on them favourably.
Each time, sin is met with justice and grace!
Finally, the prayer to God is for salvation to all those (v47), who are both near and far away. It is a prayer for the alienation and scattering to end and for a time of reconciliation to God and a gathering of God’s people far and wide to draw near to God together.
God’s whole covenant with his people is one of grace. While we may not live up to our end of bargain, God remains unyieldingly and forever faithful.
And the end of this Psalm is the close to Book 4 of the Psalter. Each book culminates with a call to the people to praise the Lord, and this is no different. Therefore,
Glory be to God the Father, for he is good and his steadfast love endures forever.
Glory be to God the Son, our Saviour who is searching for his lost sheep.
Glory be to God the Spirit, who pierces the hardest of hearts with the sweetest grace.
Ever three and ever One.
Home Group: Ecclesiastes 7.1-14
Why is being in the house of mourning better than being in the house of feasting? How does considering our certain death help us to live well in the present and into the future? How might we ensure we don’t forget death without becoming morbid about it?
What does the preacher caution us against in vv7-10? How might each of these impede our pursuit of wisdom? What is the benefit of wisdom in our lives (11-12)?
What are the limits of wisdom (v13)? What comfort is there in knowing that God has made even the day of adversity (v14)?