Psalm 107 is very intricate, loaded with spiritual truths and directives for all. Various aspects of the blessed deliverance of God are presented within its spiritually rich verses. Perhaps volumes could be written about the treasure it contains. Given the fact there are many indicators we are nearing Armageddon it would be good for us to look particularly at verses 23 to 32:
“Those who go down to the sea in ships, Who do business on great waters;
24 They have seen the works of YHVH, And His wonders in the deep.
25 For He spoke and raised up a
stormy wind, Which lifted up the waves of the sea.
26 They rose up to the heavens, they went down to the depths; Their soul melted away in their misery.
27 They reeled and staggered like a drunken man, And were at their wits' end.
28 Then they cried to YHVH in their trouble, And He brought them out of their distresses.
29 He caused the storm to be still, So that the waves of the sea were hushed.
30 Then they were glad because they were quiet, So He guided them to their desired haven.
31 Let them give thanks to YHVH for His lovingkindness, And for His wonders to the sons of men!
32 Let them extol Him also in the congregation of the people, And praise Him at the seat of the elders.”
This passage can be applied to Israel in the future when it goes through the Great Tribulation. This passage can also certainly be applied to true Christians not only in the everyday sense, but also prophetically. Given the host of current events over recent decades it appears we are approaching the final years of the Age of the Gentiles.
And regardless of one’s view of when the rapture of the Church will occur, the Word of God is clear that the true Church itself will undergo great trouble before the Day of YHVH. We shall apply the above Holy Bible text to today’s true Christian, noting the sailors, the sea, the storm, their cry, and the Captain.
I. The Sailors 23-24
Psalm 107, of course, is a Hebrew hymn and all of its contents undoubtedly can be directives for the Jews. But the knowledgeable Christian must think of the numerous Gospel anecdotes of the Lord’s disciples in a boat, and later we will see there is a very definite connection with an account in John.
Verse 23 shows these are sailors, and so, naturally, they have a boat. They do business on great waters. Checking the Hebrew for the English word “business” I find it does mean {1}, among other things, occupational endeavors, occupation, work, business, workmanship, and service, but also political or religious public business. So devotionally these verses depict today’s true Christian doing necessary business in the world.
Verse 24 also shows their spiritual eyes are open, for they can see “the works of YHVH, And His wonders in the deep.” It does the Christian very well to read and study the written Word and then let God show them how His directives and direct action affects those they observe. For the realm of darkness they can observe the workings of the subtle serpent {2} making the “mystery of iniquity” continually churn in whirlpools to ensnare anyone, including the Christian {3}. Yet, one can see God remains in control and they realize that things will only get so far.
On the glorious brighter side such a Christian can see the move of God in the world, especially if they know where to look. While web sites like persecution.org and icommittopray.com continually have reports of how Christians and some others who call themselves Christians are persecuted, frequently there are reports of conversions to Christ, even among Muslims. There are also, at times, valid reports from other sources of miracles, healings, escapes, and exploits.
II. The Sea 23-24
Then there is the sea which speaks of the billions on earth that do not personally know God through Christ, the only Way that He has ordained to know Him (John 14:6). Various Holy Scriptures point to the spiritual animosity between each one in that realm of darkness to the Christ (Messiah) of God. There are some unsaved people that think this animosity does not exist, that they are close to God and know Him, but this is not the case unless they know Him through Christ, living a surrendered life to Him in accordance with His written Word.
As the natural sea is always moving, constantly restless, so are those in the realm of darkness. Or, if they are at “rest,” the rest they enjoy will not lead to eternal rest. Nor is it truly a sustainable rest because without Christ there will be no peace that passes understanding (Philippians 4:7), unless someone is deluded. Though these need Christ, many reject Him because receiving Him means the destruction of their way (1 John 3:8).
III. The Storm 25-26
We may certainly view verses 23 to 32 as pointing to God’s direction and purposes in the common troubles we all face, as well as His expectation that we should trust in Him. However, a prophetic theme runs through many of the psalms. This psalm is no exception and later we shall see this section of Psalm 107 had at least two fulfillments in the days of Christ’s earthly ministry.
However, it does speak of the end of the Age of the Gentiles and I, and millions of others, am of the opinion that that point of time is within two or three decades from the writing of this article. Consider well verse 25: “For He spoke and raised up a stormy wind, which lifted up the waves of the sea.” The great sea of humanity is an uproar because He has prophetically indicated in passages like Daniel 2 and Revelation 19 to 22 that the Christ, the Savior and Judge of the earth, will one day set up His kingdom upon earth, and it will endure forever.
The world is in an uproar over this because since the fall of Adam each person instinctively does not want God’s control over their life. While Messiah will certainly be a ruler in a political sense, foundationally and predominately He is to be the spiritual ruler of each person. That would mean sin would have to go (1 John 3:8). Most, if not all, consciously or unconsciously, do not want to give up their sin, nor do they care to do things God’s Way. So, instinctively, each person in the world feels threatened by God Who would cure their selfishness and crush their ego.
I will elaborate a little more. Most Christians who go to work will find their employers want them to say nothing about God, especially His Christ. Everyone else can jabber about how drunk they got, or how they are able to seemingly cheat on their spouse, or just talk filthy, or anything else, but a Christian cannot say one word about the Christ Who came to redeem us.
This animosity toward Christ is greatly amplified in many human governments and some of the worse cases are Red China and North Korea where millions of Christians are persecuted. Some of the worse things that happen to them are labor camps and physical death. Why? How dangerous can Christians be? What government officials are really afraid of is the Christ within each Christian! Most governments want to be the god, and the only god, of their people.
American Politics 2016
Early in 2016 and right up to election night I expected a Hillary Clinton win for the presidency, and would then expect the antichrist attitude would increase, having been previously emboldened by the Obama administration. But, surprisingly, a man many thought would never make it due in part to his rudeness and sometimes crass behavior, Donald Trump wins the bid. Some, not all, evangelical Christians and “Christians” pushed for that win. Trump states he would like to move the American Embassy in Tel Aviv to Jerusalem--a very bold statement. At the end of December 2016 President Obama, a most antichrist individual, betrayed Israel in the United Nations. Trump strongly took a stand in favor of Israel.
Now, consider the focused attacks against Trump’s supporters over the course of those months. I have lived over 60 decades and I have never seen anything like it, and it continued right up until the time I wrote this article. There are many more details I can bring out but, real Christian or not, there is something about the rise of Donald Trump that would make I and others say God was behind it and something big is about to occur. In my opinion, Armageddon, hopefully, is less than twenty years away. I say hopefully because after Armageddon Christ will physically rule on earth. We will then have real peace!
But watch! Like any other human Mr. Trump is going to err somehow, but not intentionally. It will somehow badly hurt the United States. Upon whom will the wrath of the people be outpoured? Upon Christians, of course, especially evangelical ones whether they voted for Trump or not. But, instinctively the “problem” to the persecutors will be Christ. Sinful human nature does not want God to rule it.
Expect Trouble!
Whether it is your relatives, your boss, your government officials, or anyone else, a real Christian should expect a rise of persecution. Right now U.S.A. Christians will have some breathing room and a little more working time for the Lord, but be ready! While I think of it, God bless the United Kingdom for leaving the European Union. Hopefully the U.K. and the U.S.A. are on the path to try to be a blessing to Israel and not a curse. Hopefully these steps will lessen the wrath of God toward both nations when He releases His judgments in the coming Great Tribulation.
The sea of humanity is very turbulent at this time for, as stated, the sin nature in each unsaved person realizes Christ draws near. The height and depth of the seas are mentioned in verse 26. We have already mentioned the height of the waves in speaking about human governments, but I briefly want to point out that, at least in the U.S.A., the waves had been gradually getting taller over the years. Decades ago U.S. government officials had a slight negative influence. Once Obama became President of the United States the waves got higher and homosexuality became more acceptable. Christian photographers, bakers, and others suffered for refusing to condone homosexual marriage. The Obama administration attempted to crush the consciences of pro-life people that operated businesses by insisting they provide to employees insurance that would pay for abortions. And the waves threatened to get very high when presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said {4} in regard to women’s rights, “deep seated cultural codes, religious beliefs and structural biases have to be changed.” What might she have done as president?
When it comes to "they went down to the depths" I definitely want to be brief. The depths are disgusting. For one thing, homosexuality is not the only sickening sexual malady ravaging society today but all sorts of other perversions: incest, bestiality and more. In another rank area of sin there have been children locked in crates, had gasoline poured on them, being baked in hot cars, and even worse things I can mentioned. There is also the hideous tortures and executions performed by those hiding behind religion as an excuse to vent their evil nature. The depths of the waves have been getting deeper, sicklier, over the decades, because Christ draws near and sinful human flesh instinctively knows its days are numbered and, in the meantime, many refuse to turn to Christ who would destroy that sin nature.
IV. The Cry 27-28
Returning to the realm of nature for a minute as depicted in verse 27 we see that the sailors realize their inadequacy: "They reeled and staggered like a drunken man, And were at their wits' end." "At their wit's end" is literally "there wisdom is swallowed up." When it comes to the spiritual realm thankfully it does not have to be this way. First of all, anyone truly born-again by God has Christ within and should have a powerful peace within themselves so that no matter what happens they belong to God and rest in Him.
Additionally, we have the full set Holy Scriptures and many portions of it describe the end of the Age of the Gentiles. Nothing of what is happening should be a surprise to us, nor should we wonder "what is going on?" I have seen that question by some Christians on social media and either they are ignorant of what God's Word says or they are too spiritually sleepy, or both! We might be disgusted, saddened, angered, and more, but we should not be surprised. Verse 27 not only teaches us that we are inadequate, but if we stare at the waves we will be weakened and crippled by fear.
Looking into the language, their cry was not just a crying out. Strong notes the word can mean . . .
1a1) to cry, cry out (for help)
1a2) to cry, cry out (in distress or need)
1a3) to make outcry, clamor
Other Hebrew words could have been chosen but the Holy Spirit chose this one, and note that clamor and outcry is included. The word is used for Abel’s blood crying out (Genesis 4:10), Esau pleading with Isaac to bless him (Genesis 27:34), when Israel was trapped between Pharaoh’s army and the Red Sea (Exodus 14:10), and elsewhere. A word very similar in spelling to it is used regarding the outcry to God about Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 18:21).
In regard to the boastful height and the nauseating depth of the waves of humanity we should make a clamor and an outcry to God. We should not want another generation of humans being infected with the twisted values society has to offer that desecrates the image of God in men {5}. We should cry out about worldwide persecution, how Israel is treated, the dumbing down of society, the increase of sin in its intensity and more. May God send revival or rapture or both! Even if He would bless us with a sovereign revival history shows us that many will return to their sinful ways in a short space of time. I would rather see it all stop and Christ return to reign on earth.
Holy Scriptures indicate that we should keep making an outcry unto God. We desire to see real justice, and for the earth to be filled with the true and everlasting knowledge of God. We must remember Luke 8:7 states, "will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them?"
V. The Captain 28- 32
The sacred Name YHVH occurs twelve times in Psalm 107 with three occurrences in our text, verses 23 to 32. While it is because of reverence that the Name appears as LORD in many versions, I feel it would be better to more clearly show when it occurs. Strong says the Name means "the existing One." Wilson {6} says the Name
"expresses the eternity and immutability of the divine nature, and the faithfulness of God to all His purposes and promises." He, indeed, is the best one we can cry out to.One of the promises that God made was our salvation from sin. From Genesis 3:15 to throughout the Word we see that promise proclaimed. We also see that He indeed is one Being, but subsists in a special way whereby mankind can somewhat understand Him better, and most importantly He subsists in such a way as to provide redemption for us. In two sections of Genesis He refers to Himself as "Us," and in the remainder of the Old Testament (OT) we will find that YHVH at times will speak of Himself in the third grammatical person.
The Hebrew word for God, Elohim, in Genesis 1:1 and elsewhere is in the plural. In the ancient Hebrew there are other words that are also in the plural and have no singular form. However, the verb "created" in Genesis 1:1 is singular. The terms "Father," "Son," and "Spirit" in regard to the Godhead do occur in the OT, but this revelation is brought out more fully in the New Testament. It is very clear that there is only one Being Who is God, but He subsists as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This is, in part, for our salvation, for we cannot please God unless we be born again as a son of His and be led by His Spirit.
There were times in OT history that YHVH appeared in the flesh. One of those occurrences was when YHVH spoke with Abraham in Genesis 18. In John 8 Jesus was speaking to some of the Jews and at one point He said, “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.” Shocked, the Jews asked, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?” Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.” The Jews proceeded to pick up stones to stone Him. They knew He was saying He was YHVH in the flesh.
The Only Qualified Captain
As we read the Holy Bible we will see that YHVH had to veil Himself with our flesh in order to save us from our sins and the wrath of the Father. There were two foundational blessings for us, among others, to apply to our lives: forgiveness of our sins and a life for us to live to please the Father, had to be provided. Forgiveness of sins may be had because Christ took the full penalty for our transgressions as He died upon the cross. And everything He did from the time His physical body was conceived to when He ascended and was exalted provides for us the life that is well pleasing to the Father.
This is why we read in Hebrews 2, . . .
Verse 10 (AV) - For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.
Verses 14 and 15 - Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.
And Hebrews 5:8 - Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered.
In reading that, the Authorize Version, and a few others, terms Christ as “the Captain of our salvation.” Think for a moment if you would trust a ship captain that had little or no experience upon the seas, or one that had a poor record of navigation and safety. Of course you would not. “But brother Pete,” you might say, “you assert that the Holy Scriptures show Christ is God in the flesh, and God already knows all things.” True. However, salvation of sinful man is not done by a simple whim of God, but in actuality. God through Christ met the requirements He set. So, not only did Christ actually pay our penalty for our sin, He actually lived the life we need to live in order to truly please God and be called His son (child). Terms in the above verses that speak of Him being made perfect mean that He was made complete for our salvation upon obeying the Holy Spirit and the written Word.
He is the Life that we need for salvation, and no one can come to the Father except by Him (John 14:6). When someone truly submits to the Father through the Son they are to no longer live and are crucified with Christ (Galatians 2:20) and are raised with Him to newness of life. No longer are we to be directed by ourself or others, but like Christ we live by every Word from the mouth of God.
Now, if you are truly His disciple, consider yourself a vessel upon the sea of the world. You may have to go to work or school, run errands, and so on. There are times people react negatively to your witness to Christ. Troubles come your way. The world around you seems to be sinking morally lower and violence, along with other hateful things, is on the rise. But, because Christ is within you can call out unto Him and receive guidance and strength has you navigate the tempestuous sea. And there are times, besides the ones already mentioned, that you cry out to Him because of a sudden occurrence or things seem too complex.
His Deliverance
In the phrase in verse 28, "in their trouble" the Hebrew word for trouble can mean, among other things, narrow, tight, straits, or distress. A check of Wilson's OT Word Studies shows there were a total of thirty Hebrew terms the Holy Spirit could have used through the psalmist, and this particular term in verse 28 has a corresponding word in the New Testament translated at times as "tribulation" and is used for the term "great tribulation." This is just one part of the futuristic prophetic tone of our passage.
While there is a futuristic prophetic tone here, there is also the assurance that if we are truly saved our Captain is already within us. He enables us to really hear from the Holy Spirit and respond in His strength and merit. If we are in Him, He will bring us out of distress. This is not saying that He will always see to it that we will avoid all trouble. There are times we must go through trouble in order to develop His godly character within us. Though we go through trouble, He brings us out of it. This also may be looked at in the sense of the time remaining in our earthly life. He will safely take us from this realm and place us before His throne, provided we remain in Him.
Yet, another sense where by He leads us out is that He brings calm to us even in the storm if we let Him: “He caused the storm to be still, so that the waves of the sea were hushed. Then they were glad because they were quiet, . . .". As one grows in Jesus Christ they become spiritually stronger in Him and many have grown to the point that they have His peace “that passes all understanding" (Philippians 4:27). They may personally be facing all sorts of trouble in their earthly life, but they have His peace because they walk with Him in the spiritual realm.
Also, the one who knows at least the Gospels should be able to detect that this portion of Psalm 107 prophetically spoke of the time when Christ would calm the physical sea by His rebuke, “Peace! Be still!” (Mark 4:39). And, it was a rebuke. Remember the AV was created centuries ago. Today that would be “Shut up! Be quiet!” However, many put a “fluffy” tone and temperament to almost everything Jesus said and did.
We then read, “So He guided them to their desired haven.” This, too, prophetically spoke of Mark 4 but it also spoke of another incident which is recorded in John 6:15-21. Years back I spoke on that passage, which, while it can be applied personally today, is also prophetic of the end of the Age of Gentiles. God willing you should be able to hear that message by following the link below {8} and hopefully I will one day get a chance to place the article here on Experts Column.
The word “guide” is also very significant because we are told by Christ in John 16:13 that if we are truly His disciples, “. . . when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.” As stated in another article we should understand this to mean things to come not just as they relate to the end of the Age of the Gentiles but things to come in our personal life. And, with the immediate context, the best place always to be is in the will of God, then we will have the peace of God.
The Captain Who Is Most Worthy Of Praise And Exaltation
"Let them give thanks to YHVH for His lovingkindness, And for His wonders to the sons of men! 32 Let them extol Him also in the congregation of the people, and praise Him at the seat of the elders."
Thanks is always proper to give to God. There is so much about Him that is blessed, desirable and good. It appears "lovingkindness" is just one aspect of the Hebrew word so used in verse 31. And, in thinking of "His wonders to the sons of men," while that does mean His miraculous power to still storms and do other awesome things it is a wonder in itself that He, the most high, the most holy God, even bothers with us.
We should express our thanks to Him and extol Him before others, especially to the Church, the Body of Christ. Lifting Him up is much more helpful than focusing upon problems, threats, and feelings. And while "praise Him at the seat of the elders" would of course mean before the leaders of congregations on earth, I must think that when we do praise God, in a way we enter His glorious throne room and join in with the elders there who praise Him day and night as recorded in Revelation 4.
Ahoy!
Aye mate, though there be turbulent seas ahead let us stay on board, steady as she goes, making sure Jesus Christ remains the Captain of our vessel. Stay afloat. Do not be part of the sea but be above the sea. Do not jump ship. You may think you can swim but remember, sharks swim too!
Notes:
{1} From an electronic version of Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance by James Strong incorporated in the Online Bible program, and so throughout the article whenever the ancient language is referred to and no other authority is cited.
{2} A Holy Bible term for satan. Yes, that should be capitalized since it is a name, but I purposely choose not to do that for now. Experts Column gives me that latitude to express myself in such a manner.
{3} Please read to Go Straight Upstream at http://holybibletreasures.expertscolumn.com/article/go-straight-upstream
{4} See http://www.lifenews.com/2016/08/08/hillary-clinton-make-christians-change-their-religious-views-to-support-abortion/ and https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/hillary-clinton-is-a-threat-to-religious-liberty/2016/10/13/878cdc36-9150-11e6-a6a3-d50061aa9fae_story.html?utm_term=.be71b2f2f5b7
{5} Used in the proper traditional sensible sense, denoting all people, male and female. I could not care less about being politically correct.
{6} Wilson, William: Wilson's Old Testament Word Studies (MacDonald Publishing Company, McLean, VA) p 259
{7} Wilson, William: Wilson's Old Testament Word Studies (MacDonald Publishing Company, McLean, VA) p 455
{8} Listen to Stay On Course by selecting its link at http://www.sapphirestreams.com/life/audioM.html#M232
This article was written in the form of a sermon (message) outline with comments. God willing by February 20, 2017 (hopefully much sooner), you should be able to hear the actual message (sermon) by selecting a link at http://www.sapphirestreams.com/life/audioM.html#M436 .
Unless otherwise noted all Holy Scripture is from the New American Standard Bible changing LORD to YHVH as it rightly should be when the text so indicates. * = For other versions the spelling of some words is updated for our time in addition to changing LORD to YHVH as it rightly should be when the text so indicates.
Not responsible for any advertisements appearing with this article nor am I necessarily in agreement with any of them. The statements of this paragraph hold true not only for this article, but for everything I have placed on the Internet.
