Psalm 107

New International Reader's Version

⁴ Some of them wandered in deserts that were dry and empty.
    They couldn’t find a city where they could make their homes.
⁵ They were hungry and thirsty.
    Their lives were slipping away.
⁶ Then they cried out to the Lord because of their problems.
    And he saved them from their troubles.
⁷ He led them straight
    to a city where they could make their homes.
⁸ Let them give thanks to the Lord for his faithful love.
    Let them give thanks for the wonderful things he does for people.
⁹ He gives those who are thirsty all the water they want.
    He gives those who are hungry all the good food they can eat.

¹⁰ Others lived in the deepest darkness.
    They suffered as prisoners in iron chains.
¹¹ That’s because they hadn’t obeyed the commands of God.
    They had refused to follow the plans of the Most High God.
¹² So he made them do work that was hard and bitter.
    They tripped and fell, and there was no one to help them.
¹³ Then they cried out to the Lord because of their problems.
    And he saved them from their troubles.
¹⁴ He brought them out of the deepest darkness.
    He broke their chains off.
¹⁵ Let them give thanks to the Lord for his faithful love.
    Let them give thanks for the wonderful things he does for people.
¹⁶ He breaks down gates that are made of bronze.
    He cuts through bars that are made of iron.

¹⁷ Others were foolish. They suffered because of their sins.
    They suffered because they wouldn’t obey the Lord.
¹⁸ They refused to eat anything.
    They came close to passing through the gates of death.
¹⁹ Then they cried out to the Lord because of their problems.
    And he saved them from their troubles.
²⁰ He gave his command and healed them.
    He saved them from the grave.
²¹ Let them give thanks to the Lord for his faithful love.
    Let them give thanks for the wonderful things he does for people.
²² Let them sacrifice thank offerings.
    Let them talk about what he has done as they sing with joy.

²³ Some people sailed out on the ocean in ships.
    They traded goods on the mighty waters.
²⁴ They saw the works of the Lord.
    They saw the wonderful deeds he did on the ocean.
²⁵ He spoke and stirred up a storm.
    It lifted the waves high.
²⁶ They rose up to the heavens. Then they went down deep into the ocean.
    In that kind of danger the people’s boldness melted away.
²⁷ They were unsteady like people who have become drunk.
    They didn’t know what to do.
²⁸ Then they cried out to the Lord because of their problems.
    And he brought them out of their troubles.
²⁹ He made the storm as quiet as a whisper.
    The waves of the ocean calmed down.
³⁰ The people were glad when the ocean became calm.
    Then he guided them to the harbor they were looking for.
³¹ Let them give thanks to the Lord for his faithful love.
    Let them give thanks for the wonderful things he does for people.
³² Let them honor him among his people who gather for worship.
    Let them praise him in the meeting of the elders.

³³ He turned rivers into a desert.
    He turned flowing springs into thirsty ground.
³⁴ He turned land that produced crops into a salty land where nothing could grow.
    He did it because the people who lived there were evil.
³⁵ He turned the desert into pools of water.
    He turned the dry and cracked ground into flowing springs.
³⁶ He brought hungry people there to live.
    They built a city where they could make their homes.
³⁷ They planted fields and vineyards
    that produced large crops.
³⁸ He blessed the people, and they greatly increased their numbers.
    He kept their herds from getting smaller.

³⁹ Then the number of God’s people got smaller.
    They were made humble by trouble, suffering and sorrow.
⁴⁰ The God who looks down on proud nobles
    made them wander in a desert where no one lives.
⁴¹ But he lifted needy people out of their suffering.
    He made their families increase like flocks of sheep.
⁴² Honest people see it and are filled with joy.
    But no one who is evil has anything to say.

⁴³ Let those who are wise pay attention to these things.
    Let them think about the loving deeds of the Lord.