01/20/2021 – Day 249 – Psalms 105 – 107-How do you put a commentary into words, and walk away feeling like you got your arms around it?
I’ve read that people who say they died and saw a glimpse of God and heaven before they were pulled back, seem speechless when asked to describe the experience.
It isn’t as much a challenge to keep up with the readings daily throughout the year. But to pull together a thoughtful commentary , even if it is quotations and links from respected sources, that thankfully has been very challenging for me. This in particular is weighted to the more challenging single days. Why?
The psalms are not so much a book per se but a collection of 150 songs and poems focused on praising the Triune God. Indivdidually, they were composed over nearly a millenium , say around 1300 b.c with Psalm 90 attributed to Moses to just beyond roughly Babylonian exile (586 to 538 b.c.) with the writing of Psalm 137.
I am going to provide three different sources on this read:
- A summary of all the books of Psalms from “Compelling Truth. This is not lengthy but it will be edifying if you aren’t to this point familiar with the Psalms. The website linke is as follows:
https://www.compellingtruth.org/Book-of-Psalms.html
- Matthew Henry’s summarized commentary, at least most of it, for the first two psalms, chapter 105 and 106.
- and finally, Charles Spurgeon’s commentary of Psalm 107, by verse brothers and sisters. And if that isn’t enough, there are other contributing commentators by verse below it. And that, a list of references, including entire books that have been written on just this chapter.
Just a few quick interesting tidbits about Psalm 107:
Some point in the chapter to a foreshadow to an event in the New Testament, that definitely seems to link to the perfect storm event at Lake Galilee with Jesus and his disciples in the boat. Recall how the disciples were just struck with fear as in awe that Jesus caused the storm to immediately disappear just by saying: “Peace, Be still!” (Mark 4:39
- The psalm is one of a select few of Israel’s historical psalms, along with Psalm 106. Psalm 107 forms the opening piece of the modern liturgy for Israel’s Independence Day found in Jewish zealot prayer books. But note, the Roman Catholics also use this Psalm in various mass readings throughout the liturgical year.
And here is the Psalm 107 Bible Commentary , starting with Charles H. Spurgeon:
https://www.christianity.com/bible/commentary.php?com=spur&b=19&c=107
A group could easily study the Psalms over an entire year. I read the Psalms in their entirety to Emily while she was in utero. At first, I was somewhat skeptical. But it hit me when I asked myself years later, how was it that this young lady prayed so articulately seemingly accompanied with a seemingly fully in sync – rhyme, meter and melodic rhythm. Mind you, this was in her teenage years, with our moments where I wondered if her head would start spinning around before it subsided.
Soli Deo Gloria indeed! How do you put it into words?