Here's Psalm 107:8. "Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!"

Now read with me Psalm 107:15. "Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!"

Again, Psalm 107:21 says: "Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!"

And, finally, Psalm 107:31 proclaims: "Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!"

Once a Preacher said something like this. "If God says something once, it is true! After all, God cannot lie!" See Titus 1:2. It's indeed impossible for God to be untruthful! See Hebrews 6:18. Then that Man of God continued. "If God says something more than once, much less four times in the same chapter, it must be exceedingly important!"

There you have it!

Four times!

One Psalm!

"Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!"

The opening verb here is spelled "yadah" in Hebrew. It's a jussive verb, expressing a strong wish or desire! "Yadah" basically means "to throw" something! "To cast" it or "to hurl" it somewhere! I can see a Believer somewhere gathering a hand-full of thanks and praise and appreciation and hurling them heavenward, reverently!

And why would a man so praise Jehovah God?

For His "Goodness!"

"Chesed" or "hesed" means God's kindness and favour! In its most basic form, "to bend down," or "to stoop over" to someone, meeting a practical need!

It's a word picture of what God did to us and for us many years ago. The Incarnation and Virgin Birth of the Lord Jesus Christ! God "came down" and dwelt in our midst, dying on Calvary, saving lost sinners!

Grab a handful of That and lift your hands toward Glory!

Paul often did! "God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ." Galatians 6:14

But there's another reason for such lavish praise!

God's "wonderful works" to the children of men!

"Pala" means "that which is marvellous, surpassing, extraordinary." It can also have the idea of something being "hard or difficult" to accomplish!

"Pala" is here a participle too, the Lord's acts are being described.

Here's the first time "pala" is used in the Bible. "Is any thing too hard for the LORD?" Genesis 18:14

The plagues of Egypt, judgments from our great God, are also called "wonders," using "pala" of course. See Exodus 3:20 for an example.

Exodus 34:10 adds God's very words, "Before all thy people I will do marvels, such as have not been done in all the earth, nor in any nation: and all the people among which thou art shall see the work of the LORD: for it is a terrible thing that I will do with thee."

In Judges 6:13, with Gideon speaking, God is said to do "miracles," depicting "pala" in Hebrew.

Who is reading here today with a testimony?

Can you name something great God has done?

Would you by faith "shoot" some arrows of praise and thanksgiving His Way this Thursday in December?

If you are one of the "children of men," a human being, such praise is desirable!

So much so that it is suggested four times in one Psalm!

Indeed!

                                                                     --- Dr. Mike Bagwell

Someone quickly get this Verse "by heart." Then quote it to yourself a hundred times today ... or more! Then, obey its admonition! "Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!" 

Amen!

LESSON 2:

I can hear my precious Mom quoting this verse now!

She loved it and often used it in personal testimony!

"Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy." Psalm 107:2

The word "redeemed" is a participle, spelled "gaal" in Hebrew. It means "to ransom" someone. To act as their "next of kin!" To buy them out of trouble! Obviously it pictures the Old Testament concept of the Kinsman-Redeemer!

Jesus came to earth, taking on a human body, God in flesh! He thereby became my kinsman! He next bought me out of the slave house of sin and destitution! He restored to me everything, and more really, that I lost due to my ungodliness! And the Price He paid was His Own Blood, His Own sinless Life!

We who are saved are redeemed!

The main verb is "say," using "amar" as its Hebrew foundation. Its "time" action is "incomplete." This individual is to continually say things about his or her redemption! Often the verb implies "answering" a situation verbally! My response to an action of another!

Get it?

God saved me by His Grace!

I must tell it!

By the way, "amar" is the first word in the Hebrew sentence here. It's the seventh word in English! I like both positions! In many ancient languages the first word of a sentence is of paramount importance!

"Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy."

But if I am redeemed, the next question is "redeemed from what?"

"The hand of the enemy!"

The noun here, "yad," is used 1614 times in the Bible! It means hand in this sense, an open hand! The enemy is reaching for me ... to do me harm! He is after me! And God came and snatched me away from the evil foe! In Hebrew the noun "kaph" means a closed hand!

Then the word "enemy" is used. "Tzsar" is the noun. It only means "enemy" in this sense, that which makes one "distressed, in a narrow tight place!" It also possesses a hint of the idea of "hardness." Like a rock! It's translated "flint" once in the King James Version.

If God has redeemed us, we should talk about it!

Tell it!

Paul did!

He just couldn't quit telling it!

Read a detailed account of his conversion in Acts 9 then again in Acts 22 and somehow he relates it again in Acts 26!

Now the rest of the Psalm, the one we are currently studying, Psalm 107, gives one testimony after another! From folks who have been redeemed!

It's a great Passage of Scripture!

Tomorrow, Lord willing, we shall begin our journey!

Meanwhile, praise God that He found you and saved you!

In fact, here's the geography of our redemption. "And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south." Psalm 107:3

The verb "gathered" is interesting. "Qabatzs" means "to assemble!" God is forming an assembly! In the Old Testament it was a national assembly, Israel! In the New Testament it's a spiritual one, the Church! The verb is in the piel stem here too, intensive vigorous action being implied! God is really working ... to build this Body!

The noun "lands" is "eretzs." The "earth" in other words. The "nations" of the world! Here in the Old Testament is already a missionary emphasis!

"East" or "mizrach" means "breaking forth," a hint of sunrise being pictured I'm sure!

"West" or "maarab" means "dusk." The place where the sun sets!

"North," in Hebrew "tzsaphon," means "hiding place," a location for valuable treasures!

And the "south" or "yam," an unusual word for south, means the "sea" 322 times in its 396 Bible appearances.

Everywhere!

God redeems people from every point of the compass!

All the world!

Praise His Name!

Where did He find you?

                                                                             --- Dr. Mike Bagwell

LESSON 3, THE FIRST TESTIMONY:

The Psalm contains four little "word pictures."

Testimonies I call them.

That verb "testify" is from a Latin background. There "testis" means a "witness." And any English verb ending in "fy" is derived from the Latin verb "facio," meaning "to make or to do." Therefore "to testify" is literally defined as "making witness!"

The first vignette our Text presents reads like this: "They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way; they found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses. And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation. Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness." Psalm 107:4-9

What a testimony!

Here are a group of people who are lost!

The verb "wander" proves that. "Taah" means "to err, to go astray," even "to totter!" It's also the first word in the Hebrew sentence, lending great emphasis to its action. This is constant wandering too! No sense of direction! Hopelessness!

The noun "wilderness" is "midbar" and means wild uninhabited land, vast amounts of it. It's "desert" fifteen times in the King James Bible.

They were "looking for a city," but could not find one! The verb "found" or "matzsa" means "to encounter, to light upon, to befall." In all their misguided travels they never came across a single city, not a hamlet or village either!

Lost ... and alone!

The verb "dwell" means "to sit" or "to assemble," an inner longing of mankind! "Moshab" it is in Hebrew.

"Hungry" is once "hungebitten" in our Bible! "Raeb" is so translated in Job 18:12, again King James Version. It really means "famished."

And "fainted" or "ataph" means "to envelope, to cover, to shroud" in darkness! It is a word picture for one who is about to faint, to pass out from exhaustion or dehydration or something similar.

Then it happens!

They "cried" unto the Lord! "Tzsaaq" means "to shriek" literally! To scream out loud! They kept on crying too, until the Lord heard! This is earnest pleading!

"Trouble" is "tzsar" again. It's literally a narrow, tight place with many cramped circumstances!

"Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses. And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation."

Lost people cried ... and the Lord "delivered" them!

"Natzsal" means "to rescue, to snatch away, to recover!" Some day God is going to "snatch away" His Church too!

This kind of idea is where the old-timers, preachers of yesteryear, coined the term "being arrested" or "being apprehended" by the Holy Spirit of God! Literally one more definition, a valid one too, of "natzsal" is "to strip away" from the enemy!

"Distresses" is "metzsuqah" and means a tight place, but his time one that is immoveable! Like a rock or pillar! God rescued me from the desert of life, but He also delivered me from a far worse fate, a literal Hell fire, eternal agony!

But "saving" us is not all God did!

He also "led us forth." This is "darak" in Hebrew and means "to tread," to make a pathway! God pioneered the way out of the desert! "Darak" also is used to indicate an archer "stringing his bow," by "stepping" on it and pulling of course!

My Guide is a Warrior! Exodus 15:3 beautifully says, "The LORD is a man of war: the LORD is his name."

The "right" way is the "straight" way! "Yashar derek," the path of the upright. "Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it," said Jesus in Matthew 7:14.

Then, after being found and rescued, the Lord gave them community!

An assembly!

"A city of habitation!"

The Church here on earth, the Bride in Heaven!

What a joyous time of fellowship and celebration!

Here's the Bride and the City being closely compared. "And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." Revelation 22:2

And what's the result of such saving Grace?

What should the blessed recipient do?

"Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!" Psalm 107:8

Yes! 

Again, why?

"For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness." The Lord does! Psalm 107:9

The verb "satisfieth" is translated from "saba," to fill "completely!" To satiate! To the point where one can't handle any more! Temporarily anyway!

I say that because the adjective "longing" uses the Hebrew participle "shaqaq," meaning "to run to and fro," like a crazed animal ... seeking more water and food! This may be a glimpse of strong appetite, spiritually of course! Every Believer needs to have such a thing! Craving the sincere milk of the Word!

"Filleth" is "male" and means completely filled by Another! This represents something that's been done to you or for you!

One can be full because he fed himself a lot of food. This is not the idea with "male." It is satisfaction because the Lord has fed us!

"Hungry" again is "famished," in Hebrew "raeb."

And all that God has done for these once "lost" people is summarized as "goodness." They are "satisfied and filled with goodness." It's spelled "tob" and means "beautiful, gracious, pleasant, precious, well, kind" and much more really. This little Hebrew noun has one of the widest ranges of meaning, all lovely too, that I've ever studied!

Look what God has done!

What a wonderful testimony!

Can anyone today identify with these "lost" people?

Has anyone reading these lines also been "found" and "rescued" and "filled with goodness" by our dear Lord?

Are you saved?

One more time, "They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way; they found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses. And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation. Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness."

Praise His Name!

                                                                                --- Dr. Mike Bagwell

LESSON 4, THE SECOND TESTIMONY:

They are called testimonies.

Psalm 107 contains at least four of them!

For instance, "Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron; because they rebelled against the words of God, and contemned the counsel of the most High: therefore he brought down their heart with labour; they fell down, and there was none to help. Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder. Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! For he hath broken the gates of brass, and cut the bars of iron in sunder." Psalm 107:10-16

The previous paragraph, verses 4-9, told of a group of pilgrims, lost on their journey! Yet they called to God for help! He heard them and delivered them and led them in the right way! Just like the words of "Amazing Grace" recollect, "I once was lost but now am found!" Praise the Lord!

But this paragraph goes further!

Not lost now, but imprisoned! The verb "bound" is "asiyr" in Hebrew and means "to tie, to bind, to harness, to gird with a rope!"

"Affliction" or "aniy" means "down." Depressed, loaded, burdened; that general idea.

"Iron," in Hebrew "barzel," means that which can "cut or pierce," perhaps like a sword or plow. Here in context chains of iron are meant.

"Shadow of death" translates "tzsalmaveth," a blended term, combining the common nouns for "shade" and "death." These prisoners are condemned to die!

"Darkness" implies their being confined in a dungeon or the like. The word is "choshek," meaning anything from "obscurity" to "night."

Why are such men in prison?

They have "rebelled" against God! Against His Laws! "Marah" means "to be disobedient, to be bitter, to provoke!"

"Contemned" means "to despise, to abhor, to hate, to spurn." It's "naatzs" in Hebrew.

"Counsel" is spelled "etzsah." It means "advice" or "purpose." God's Will, in other words.

In verse 12 God loved these rebels enough to bring them down! "Brought down" is "kana," meaning "to humble."

"Labour" or "amal" is "toil, sorrow, grief, misery or pain."

To "fall down," in Hebrew "kashal," is "to stagger or totter or stumble."

Then, in their destitution, they did in spirit what Romans 10:13 says specifically, "Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Here's the Old Testament version: "They cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses." Psalm 107:13

To "break in sunder" explains the Hebrew verb "nathaq." It means "to pull apart!" This verb is in the piel stem, very intensive action!

Verse 15 repeats the refrain, "Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!" This should be the song of all who were once imprisoned, but have now been set free by the marvelous Grace of God!

Finally, verse 16 adds this summary. "For he hath broken the gates of brass, and cut the bars of iron in sunder."

"Broken" translates "shabar," literally "to crush, to shatter, to rupture!" Here's another piel verb! God is mightily active!

See the "bars?"

Likewise "to cut asunder" is "gada" and means "to chop to pieces!" To hew! Vigorously so, since it's again a piel verb!

This paragraph is a celebration of our redemption. We enjoy such because of the shed Blood of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ!

I was in the prison house of sin, a slave to wicked passions.

But Jesus came!

He paid the Price for my release!

Micah 2:13 calls our Lord the "Breaker!"

He literally and spiritually broke me out of bondage!

Praise His good Name!

                                                                              --- Dr. Mike Bagwell

Just in case the exposition today has "chopped" the Text into excessively small pieces, here it is in whole. "Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron; because they rebelled against the words of God, and contemned the counsel of the most High: therefore he brought down their heart with labour; they fell down, and there was none to help. Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder. Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! For he hath broken the gates of brass, and cut the bars of iron in sunder."

He set me free!

 By the way, that verb "saved" in the middle of our Text is spelled "yasha." It's closely related to the Old Testament Name Joshua, which is virtually the equivalent of Jesus! It means "Jehovah is salvation!"

LESSON 5, THE THIRD TESTIMONY:

For many years, especially as a young man, I heard the term again and again, "sin-sick." Or "sin-sickness."

"Lord, heal those who are sick, and those who are sin-sick too!" Thus prayed many a godly old-timer.

Isaiah, in his very first chapter, links Israel's blatant sins with the word picture of sickness. "Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward. Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment." Isaiah 1:4-6

This too is the idea in Psalm 107:17-22. "Fools because of their transgression, and because of their iniquities, are afflicted. Their soul abhorreth all manner of meat; and they draw near unto the gates of death. Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saveth them out of their distresses. He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions. Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! And let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare his works with rejoicing."

Don't miss the beauty of this paragraph because it's longer than one verse. Here are sick people. They need to be "healed." The Hebrew word is "rapha." As a noun it means "physician." As a verb, "to cure, repair or heal."

They have lost their appetite, that sick! They "abhor" all manner of meat. "Taab" means "to detest, to loathe." And "meat" is simply "okel," a derivative of "akal," to eat. It means any chewable food.

How sick are they? Critically ill! They have "drawn near" the very gates of death! "Naga" means "to touch, to lay one's hands" upon something! Pretty close! The noun "gates" is taken from "shaar," anything that's "open." Death is ready to receive them!

But now look.

Why are they so sick?

Because of their "transgression." And "pesha" means "rebellion!" Rebellion against God! It's verbal background suggests "breaking away, apostasizing!" Departing from the faith!

And their "iniquities" too! "Avon," which is pronounced aw-vone' in Hebrew, means that which is "twisted" or "perverted" out of its original shape! Lifestyles that are clearly opposed to God's Will!

These individuals are named for their sins, "fools" being built upon the same definition as "iniquities!" Precisely so, "eviyl" really means "perverse!" Sin is contagious! Sin is also addictive! Often it appears that God's judgment upon certain sinners is to remove His restraining Hand and allowing them to sin and sin and sin in that certain area, with impunity! They become their very sins! So for eternity, "He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still." Revelation 22:11

The basic idea behind "afflicted" is "brought low!" Belittled! Godliness exalts a people, ungodliness demeans them perceptibly! "Anah" is the verb. In the King James Bible it's translated as "weakened, troubled, exercised, forced" as well as "humbled." Sin is no friend to humanity!

But, oh, these sick people do the right thing!

"Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saveth them out of their distresses." Psalm 107, it's refrain!

"Cry" or "qara" means "to shriek out loud!" And "trouble" means "a tight place," one of great "pressure," in Hebrew, "tzsar." To "save," using "yasha," means "to deliver, to bring victory, to avenge, to rescue!" Then "distresses" is a second word yet that means "stress, straitness." It's "metzsuqah," often meaning "to compress!" Here we may have horizontal tightness ... followed by vertical pressure! Either way, Jesus is The Answer! He is The Redeemer!

What did God do to help them?

"He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions." Psalm 107:20

The verb "sent" has the idea of an official dispatch! As an ambassador! "Shalach" means "to let loose, to stretch out, to appoint!" Then the noun "word" is spelled "dabar," emphasizing the content of that which is spoken. Now how it's said but what is said! Notice that the word does the "healing." The medicinal power of God's Word! It heals the sin-sick soul!

To "deliver," in Hebrew "malat," means "to allow to escape!" Looks like God's Word so hinders the devil, so retards his power, that escape becomes readily available! Then the Holy Spirit no doubt effects that escape!

And the word "destructions" is spelled "shechiyth." It means a "pit!" Hell itself in all probability!

This is soul salvation!

What then should these sick men who have been made well do? "Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!"

Yes!

"Yadah," to "praise," literally means "to throw hands full" of thanksgiving heavenward! Gratefulness!

God is the Author of all life's blessings, the little ones and the big ones! His "goodness" and His "wonderful works!"

Lastly, verse 22 compares our thanksgiving to sacrifices on an altar! "And let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare his works with rejoicing."

The verb "sacrifice" and noun "sacrifices" are identical to the other Old Testament words that indicate actual bloodshed and death! Lambs, goats, doves, oxen and all the rest!

Thank God if he has saved you!

Thank Him reverently!

Let your thanks cost you something!

Thank him the very best way you can!

Give it all your energy!

And, as we thank God for saving us, for healing us spiritually, for saving us from a devil's hell, we will in that process be "declaring" His might works! "Saphar" means "to count, to enumerate, to number or to tell!" It's a piel verb too, energetically do so!

"Works," God's "works," a noun spelled "maaseh" in Hebrew, means anything "made" or anything "done" by the Lord.

And of course, if God has been this good to someone, his or her thanks and testifying and praises will be done with "rejoicing." And "rinnah" means "a shout," usually pleasant in nature! Certainly so here.

Anyone today remember being that sick, that sin-sick?

Dead in trespasses and sins?

Then came Jesus!

The great Physician!

With the balm of Gilead!

He touched us!

He healed us with His Blood, His Death, His Word, His Holy Spirit!

We are spiritually well now!

Going to live eternally!

What a testimony Psalm 107 just presented!

Has some sick sinner come to these pages today?

Accidentally perhaps, or so you thought!

Jesus is still the Saviour!

He still makes sick souls well!

Are you saved?

                                                                           --- Dr. Mike Bagwell

LESSON 6, THE FOURTH TESTIMONY:

The Jews were not a seafaring people.

Yet Psalm 107 uses just that word picture, sailors in a storm, to illustrate the amazing grace of God.

Listen to the testimony of these men, told in the third person.

"They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters; these see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep. For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof. They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits' end. Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses. He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still. Then are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven. Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! Let them exalt him also in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders." Psalm 107:23-32

These are not military subjects, but maritime businessmen. The noun used for "business" is "melakah," one's occupation, his means of livelihood. Alternate King James Version translations include "goods, cattle and stuff!"

The noun "deep" is "metzsolah" and is built upon a verbal root that means "to sink!" An abyss is here indicated.

"Works" and "wonders" might could include the "little" things God does as well as the "big" ones! "Wonders" is "pala," used so often in Psalm 107 as "wonderful works!" Miracles!

In verse 25 the verb "commanded" is "amar," merely "to say" something! God's very statements are His very commands! "Raiseth" or "amad" means "to appoint or establish." And "stormy" is "saar," meaning tempest or whirlwind. Then "lifteth up" is spelled "rum," in Hebrew meaning "to exalt or to heave!" Next "waves" means "heaps or billows," translating "gal" in Hebrew. Here we have God controlling the weather! Handling the storms! Jonah would say "amen!"

Watch the waters agitate in verse 26. "They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths." Then notice the crew's response, their souls "melting." The verb "mug" means "to dissolve, to faint, to become soft!" And "trouble" here does not merely mean "pressure"of some kind. It's "ra," evil or bad or malignant!

"To reel to and from" translates "chagag," meaning "to hold a feast, to party, to dance, to celebrate!" Perhaps drunkenness is even being implied! To "stagger," in Hebrew "nua," means "to quiver, to waver." Surprisingly, "wit's end" means literally that their "wisdom" has been "swallowed up," exhausted! "Chokmah bala" the Psalmist would have written.

That's all they can take too!

They, just before all wisdom is spent, "cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses."

Best thing anyone ever did!

God immediately intervenes! "He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still." Psalm 107:29

Jesus could do this too!

"Calm" or "demamah" means "whisper!" Stillness, silence! Synonymously, "still" means "peaceful," explaining "chashah."

God is still not content however. "Then are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven." Psalm 107:30 shows the Almighty bringing these travelers safety to port.

"Glad" or "samach" means "to brighten up!" To "bring" someone safely to shore utilizes the verb "nachah," meaning "to lead, to guide, to govern!"

"Haven," used only here in the Bible, "machoz," means a "city" literally, specifically as a place "safely enclosed!"

"Desired" or "chephetzs" means "delightful, pleasurable, favourable."

Then the Psalmist, under the direct control of the Holy Spirit, again adds: "Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!" Psalm 107:31

Yes!

But this Psalm 107 testimony differs from the previous three, at least in this sense; once delivered, these subjects want to congregate and praise the Lord! A public time of praise and thanksgiving! "Let them exalt him also in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders." Psalm 107:32

Both "congregation," in Hebrew "qahal," and "assembly" or "moshab" mean "company" and "dwelling place" respectively. I see and hear faint "hints" of New Testament worship here!

To "exalt" means "to life up high," as does "rum" in Hebrew. And "praise" translates "halal!"

Two groups hear and benefit from such testimony, both the "people" and the "elders." For "people" we have "am," a "related group" of kindred souls! While "zaqen" includes the "older" men, vested with experience and civic authority.

Little or big, all must hear of the power of God!

Rescued, delivered from the terrible storm!

Snatched away from sure death!

Then delivered safely to the shore!

In John 6:21, after Jesus had walked on the water and stilled the great storm, "Then they, the Disciples, willingly received him into the ship: and immediately the ship was at the land whither they went."

Destination attained!

Safe on solid ground!

John Newton, an old sea captain, wicked as he could be, had no doubt weathered many a storm! With God's Hand guiding the vessel! Once our sailor was saved, both physically and spiritually, he could talk of little else than God's "Amazing Grace!"

So should we!

                                                                            --- Dr. Mike Bagwell

LESSON 7, VERSES 33-34:

For thirty-two verses the Psalm has been accenting the Goodness of God!

"O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good." That's exactly how the Psalm begins!

Four times people have in faith expressed their dire needs to the Lord ... and four times He answered dramatically!

It's Psalm 107 we are discussing.

Of those lost in the desert we are told, "Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses. And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation." Psalm 107:6

See God's Goodness!

Then some were imprisoned, facing the death sentence! "Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder." Psalm 107:13-14

The Lord is so Good yet again!

Next people gravely ill are noticed. "Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saveth them out of their distresses. He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions." Psalm 107:19-20

What Mercy!

Fourthly, panicking sailors caught in the throes of a terrible cyclone, prepare to die in the raging waters. "Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses. He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still. Then are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven." Psalm 107:28-30

God's Goodness is indeed praised throughout this whole Text!

Then the refrain, the chorus, is repeated fourfold! In verses 8 and 15 and 21 and 31 we hear it clearly! "Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!"

But in verses 33 and 34 something drastic happens!

Look at what God is said to do. "He turneth rivers into a wilderness, and the watersprings into dry ground; a fruitful land into barrenness, for the wickedness of them that dwell therein." Psalm 107:33-34

The verb "turned" is "siym," also spelled "sum" in Hebrew. It has sort of an "official" meaning. "To appoint, to ordain, to mark, to set" something in place.

"Rivers" translates "nahar," anything from a stream to a flood, all being bodies of water.

"Wilderness," in Hebrew "midbar," often just means "desert." It's used precisely that way 13 times in the King James Bible.

The synonym "watersprings" or "mayim" is also a general word, indicating several forms of liquid. Here obviously and contextually water is meant.

Now the great and good God has reversed some life-giving systems! Wide rivers, narrow streams, brooks, springs and maybe even wells are made dry!

Drought!

These acts result in crop failure too!

The apples on the trees and figs on the bushes and grapes on the vine all refuse to develop!

That's what turning "fruitful land into barrenness" means.

"Barren" or "melechah" often means "salted with salt!" That's what a man's enemies used to do to his farmlands! That act alone spelled sure disaster to an agriculturalist.

But why is God doing this?

The God Who has been so very Good for all these paragraphs?

Here's why. "For the wickedness of them that dwell therein." Psalm 107:34

The verse is not teaching us that invariably every time God dries a river or disallows the rain the subjects involved are extremely wicked people.

Just as Jesus in Matthew 5:45 said of God the Father, "He maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust." So presumably God can send no rain on the just and the unjust.

The mistake Job's three "friends" made was just this. They assumed that anytime troubles come ... the recipients were being chastened of God for some sin, known or unknown! Thus, to them Job was a major hypocrite! But in God's eyes Job was godly and pure!

Still, our verse today is clear.

This particular drought was because of wickedness!

Again, we are told of God: "He turneth rivers into a wilderness, and the watersprings into dry ground; a fruitful land into barrenness, for the wickedness of them that dwell therein."

This particular noun "wickedness" is one of the strongest available to the Psalmist. "Ra" means "wicked" in this sense, ever developing wickedness. Like spreading gangrene! Malignant! "Becoming worse and worse," Paul would have said. The root word behind "ra" is "raa," a verb meaning "to spoil!" It pictures something coming to pieces due to spoilage, rotting before your very eyes! Disintegrating!

To "dwell" does not mean staying in a motel room. It means, "yashab" in Hebrew, "to establish residence, to remain" in a place. Living there!

For 32 verses it was God's Goodness!

Now, it's God's judgment?

Again, 32 verses of God's Kindness!

Followed by verses describing, no, promising God's wrath!

It all reminds me of Romans 11:22. "Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God."

Wow!

That Greek word for "severity" is astounding. "Apotomia" grammatically means "to cut" ("temno") something "apart" ("apo"). To sever it!

But how do these two acts of God mix?

Why are they combined here?

Based on Psalm 107's ending verse I say this. No new subject has been introduced! Although God has withheld the rain, He is still good!

Here's that last verse in full. "Whoso is wise, and will observe these things, even they shall understand the lovingkindness of the LORD." Psalm 107:43

Positive acts of deliverance ... then negative judgments upon sin ... all are expressions of God's goodness!

Why so?

How so?

Because even though drought is unpleasant, maybe even death threatening, if it brings about repentance, repentance toward God ... it is good!

Yes, I am saying even when God whips ... He does so out of love and grace and mercy!

Hebrews 12 clearly says to God's people, and the Jews being addressed in Psalm 107 were God's people, "My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: for whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons."

See that? "Whom the Lord loveth, He chasteneth!"

If some kind of "reverse" has brought a man to Jesus, God has not been unkind to that person!

God has been good!

Blessed drought!

Blessed trial!

Listen to the Psalmist elsewhere, "It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes." Psalm 119:71

So this Psalm 107 passage shows God's goodness: "Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy; and gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south."

And so does this one. "He turneth rivers into a wilderness, and the watersprings into dry ground; a fruitful land into barrenness, for the wickedness of them that dwell therein."

God is good, whatever He does!

If one does not believe this, then the hard times of life must be interpreted in an altogether different way, a way that might omit God completely!

                                                                                     --- Dr. Mike Bagwell

LESSON 8, VERSES 35-38:

In one single paragraph of Psalm 107, God turned the rivers into dry parched gullies, "He turneth rivers into a wilderness, and the watersprings into dry ground." Then absolutely reversing Himself, "He turneth the wilderness into a standing water, and dry ground into watersprings." Psalm 107:33 and 35

Admittedly this first action is mysterious. God judges reluctantly, but surely! God hates sin! God's wrath, directed against iniquity is called by Isaiah a "strange act." Isaiah 28:21 echoes, "For the LORD shall rise up as in mount Perazim, he shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon, that he may do his work, his strange work; and bring to pass his act, his strange act."

Due to a people's rebellion and stubbornness, God can send drought and famine and the sword. And these things can intensify rapidly if folks continue to reject the Almighty!

But, more often, God sends bountiful blessings, again and again! Psalm 65:11 says to God, "Thou crownest the year with thy goodness; and thy paths drop fatness." Indeed!

Yet here's the question, in a Psalm that's all about God's goodness ... why this fluctuation?

Drought, then plenty!

Judgment, then blessing!

Desert, then oasis!

Just look at today's full Text.

"He turneth the wilderness into a standing water, and dry ground into watersprings. And there he maketh the hungry to dwell, that they may prepare a city for habitation; and sow the fields, and plant vineyards, which may yield fruits of increase. He blesseth them also, so that they are multiplied greatly; and suffereth not their cattle to decrease." Psalm 107:35-38

What bounty!

"Standing water" is more than just a good flowing stream or river! Water to spare! A reservoir! Goodness, then some left over for tomorrow!

"Watersprings" also in English conveys the same idea!

Fresh moving water!

Living water!

God in this short paragraph blesses His people with water and food and dwelling places! Add to that groceries for the future, vegetables and fruits and juices! But that's not all!

Numerical increase is a necessity for a wayfaring people! And God in the Bible controls the womb! He "opens" and "closes" according to His Will! These blessed people "multiply greatly!"

Then comes the "meat," protein! Their "cattle" thrive too! No disease or pestilence attacks the herds! Steak on their tables! Milk in their bowls! Add butter and yogurt too!

What else can people need?

And, as we all know, having experienced it firsthand, God regularly does things like this for countries and families and individuals, years at a time!

Great is His Faithfulness!

Look again.

Once where no people could live, in the middle of the desert, God establishes such havens of rest!

"He turneth the wilderness into a standing water, and dry ground into watersprings. And there he maketh the hungry to dwell, that they may prepare a city for habitation; and sow the fields, and plant vineyards, which may yield fruits of increase. He blesseth them also, so that they are multiplied greatly; and suffereth not their cattle to decrease."

A paragraph like this just must be included in a Bible Chapter that is dedicated to "understanding the lovingkindness of the LORD." Psalm 107:43, it's last verse!

Truly, as James taught us, "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." James 1:17

God is good!

But what if things go "bad?"

What if, to use Habakkuk's words, "The fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls?" Habakkuk 3:17

Here's what!

God is still good!

God's goodness is NOT based on the amount of sunshine in my life!

God's goodness is based on His very Character!

On Who and What He is!

Nehemiah 9:17, "Thou art a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness."

Psalm 103:8, "The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy."

Leviticus 34:6, "And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin ...."

And part of God's goodness somehow involves buffetings as well as blessings! Dreary days as well as sunny days! Pain as well as prosperity!

Job had it right. "What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?" Job 2:10

David, while fleeing his own throne as his son Absalom sought to kill him, was "cursed" by a wicked rebel! "Thence came out a man of the family of the house of Saul, whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera: he came forth, and cursed still as he came. And he cast stones at David, and at all the servants of king David. And thus said Shimei when he cursed, Come out, come out, thou bloody man, and thou man of Belial: the LORD hath returned upon thee all the blood of the house of Saul, in whose stead thou hast reigned; and the LORD hath delivered the kingdom into the hand of Absalom thy son: and, behold, thou art taken in thy mischief, because thou art a bloody man." 2nd Samuel 16:5-8

Is God still good?

Watch how King David wisely handles this situation!

Instead of murder at that moment, snuffing out the life of this heathen, David responds: "Let him curse, because the LORD hath said unto him, Curse David. Behold, my son, which came forth of my bowels, seeketh my life: how much more now may this Benjamite do it? let him alone, and let him curse; for the LORD hath bidden him. It may be that the LORD will look on mine affliction, and that the LORD will requite me good for his cursing this day. And as David and his men went by the way, Shimei went along on the hill's side over against him, and cursed as he went, and threw stones at him, and cast dust." 2nd Samuel 16:10-13

King David turned this cursing into a token of God's possible goodness! Future goodness, granted, but goodness anyway!

The goodness of the Lord!

It's evident on warm days ... and cold days!

Pleasant days ... and hard days!

And those with the strongest faith of all, even at their lowest moments, trust in that goodness of God!

Or maybe I should say they trust in the God of goodness!

Listen to the Psalmist, "I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living." Psalm 27:13

Back to Job again, looking for God's goodness in all that suffering and confusion! "Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him: but he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold." Job 23:9-10

God is good!

Scraping corruption from his weakened diseased body, Job still belives! "For I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me." Job 19:25-27

God is good!

It did not look like it to Job, at least for a while, but God is still good!

Then, finally, in the "end" as James called it, "Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy." James 5:11

God is good!

Feast or famine, God is good!

Sunshine or storm, God is good!

And that's what Psalm 107 is teaching us!

Whatever comes our way, God is good!

"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:35-39

Circumstances change!

God's goodness, based on His Love, remains the same!

Hallelujah!

                                                                              --- Dr. Mike Bagwell

LESSON 9, VERSES 39-41:

Twice the Bible tells us that God is so great, so vast, so wise, that His ways are "past finding out." Both Job and Paul say so, Job 9:10 and Romans 11:33.

Such is the case in the last verses of Psalm 107.

The entire Psalm is about God's Kindness, His Mercy.

"Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! " Psalm 107 says this four times.

But look what God does, unpredictably, in verse 33, "He turneth rivers into a wilderness, and the watersprings into dry ground."

Yet by verse 35 the Lord is doing the very opposite! "He turneth the wilderness into a standing water, and dry ground into watersprings."

Then, as if we did not get it the first time, the process is repeated!

"Again, they are minished and brought low through oppression, affliction, and sorrow. He poureth contempt upon princes, and causeth them to wander in the wilderness, where there is no way. Yet setteth he the poor on high from affliction, and maketh him families like a flock." Psalm 107:39-41

As if to say, "God cannot be forced into some neat formula!" He cannot always be predicted! He knows all the facts of any given case! We do not! AND EVEN WHEN IT APPEARS THAT GOD HAS FORGOTTEN TO BE KIND, THAT IS NOT THE CASE!

GOD IS GOOD!

PERIOD!

He can bless or curse!

Send sunshine or storm!

And do it all "to the praise of the glory of his grace."

Or "to the praise of his glory."

"According to the good pleasure of his will."

Or again, "according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself."

God can send rain or drought ... and still be God!

And still be good!

Is God good? Jesus said so! To the so-called "rich young ruler" our Lord spoke. "Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God." Matthew 19:7, Mark 10:18, Luke 18:19

If He is God, He is good!

Now, for a few definitions from today's Text.

"Again, they are minished and brought low through oppression, affliction, and sorrow. He poureth contempt upon princes, and causeth them to wander in the wilderness, where there is no way. Yet setteth he the poor on high from affliction, and maketh him families like a flock." Psalm 107:39-41

"Minished" means "made small," spelled "maat" in Hebrew.

"Brought down" is "shachach" or "bowed down." Like an animal, couching or stooping!

"Oppression" means "restraint or coercion." It's "otzser" in Hebrew.

"Affliction" is simply spelled "ra" and means that which is "evil, bad, malignant."

"Sorrow" or "yagon" means "grief or anguish."

What weapons in the hand of God! He does possess an armoury, according to Jeremiah 50:25. "The LORD hath opened his armoury, and hath brought forth the weapons of his indignation."

The verb "pour out" translates "shaphak" and means "to spill or douse or gush forth." A great amount of something is being dispensed!

"Contempt" is a noun, "buz," often meaning "shame." It's kin to the verb "despise!"

"Princes" are "nobles," using the synonyms found in the King James Bible.

To "wander" is "to err, go astray or stagger!"  Like drunk men, "taah" hints!

Uniquely, the "wilderness" or "tohu" is that which is "formless, empty, full of waste or confusion!"

No "way," in Hebrew "derek," is no road or path or exit!

Then again, just as abruptly too, God does the opposite!

"Yet setteth he the poor on high from affliction, and maketh him families like a flock." Psalm 107:41

The "poor" are the "ebyon," those in want, in need, beggars!

To "set on high" translates "sagab," not only "to exalt," but also "to defend!"

God placed the princes in affliction ("ra") but removed the poor from affliction ("aniy"). The later term here means "depression, pressure" or just plain old "trouble," in that sense anyway.

Maybe the princes needed some difficult times!

Maybe the poor were at the breaking point and needed some encouragement!

Perhaps both acts of God here, while appearing inconsistent, are perfectly in line with His great goodness!

That's exactly what this Psalm is saying to us!

God even takes the poor, rejected and lonely as he or she is, and puts him into a family! Into a kindred group! Incorporating him into a like-minded assembly of people!

Like a flock, of sheep that is!

Paul captured a bit of the spirit of this Text when he wrote to the Philippians, thanking them for a recent gift. "I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need."

Paul can go hungry!

Or Paul can sit at the table and feast with the brethren!

Either way, God is good!

Paul can have money!

Paul can be without any cash whatsoever!

Still, God is good!

Paul can live!

Paul can die!

Neither circumstance has any bearing on the fact that God is good!

That's what we are being taught again today!

I've often wondered why some folks have "trouble" when they pray the Jabez prayer! Some certainly do too!

"Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that thine hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me!" Prayed to the Lord by Jabez in 1st Chronicles 4:10.

In other words, "God be good to me!"

Part of God's goodness occasionally might involve a trip to the "woodshed," a good "whipping" from the loving yet chastening Hand of God!

Is God any less good during the hard times than he is during the good times?

Psalm 107 says God is good ... absolutely!

                                                                            --- Dr. Mike Bagwell

Some of you may feel that the past two or three days have been repetitive. But I have just exegeted the verses in order, as they were written! God is repeating Himself, for emphasis I presume. Then again, maybe we are all just slow learners!

LESSON 10, VERSES 42-43:

Psalm 107, its last half anyway, has provided us with four "life situations."

The first was negative, rivers were emptied.

The second positive, parched dry ground became standing water.

The third was negative again, with much affliction and oppression and sorrow!

And finally the fourth was positive again, the lowly are elevated to places of respect and the lonely given families to love!

This pattern forms what Bible Teachers often call a "chiasm," really a modified chiasm in this context.

This kind of series grammatically looks like this, usually: A B B A. Or for that matter: C D D C. In our case more precisely with P standing for positive and N for negative, N P N P.

And over all four situations ... this fact rules: God is Good! The Psalm essentially demands it!

He is good when the rivers are full ... or empty!

He is good when there is loneliness ... or companionship!

He is good all the time!

Eternally so!

Goodness is one of God's very attributes!

If this lesson alone can be learned from Psalm 107, none of us will ever again accuse God of pettiness or partiality or meanness or wrongdoing!

Never!

As Abraham determined in Genesis 18:25, "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?"

Indeed, right and good!

If these facts are secure in one's mind and heart, we are then ready for the last two verses of the Psalm. "The righteous shall see it, and rejoice: and all iniquity shall stop her mouth. Whoso is wise, and will observe these things, even they shall understand the lovingkindness of the LORD." Psalm 107:42-43

The godly of the earth shall "see" God's dealings, both positive and negative, and conclude beyond doubt that God is filled with lovingkindness! That God is good!

The verb "see" is "raah" and means "to look at carefully, to inspect," but here more surely "to perceive," to understand!

God is good however things "go" today!

Regardless of the circumstances, "This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24

Such peace, such faith, makes one "rejoice!"

"Samach" means "to brighten up, to shine," in other words ... "to be glad and show it in one's face!" To be joyful, to be merry! And the "time" sense of this verb in this context suggests on-going joy, habitual praise!

If God is always good, I can trust Him ... no matter what!

If this is so, then it's true! "All things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." They really do! Thank God for Romans 8:28!

That will make you glad!

And when even the skeptics and doubters and those weak in faith are brought to this truth, the goodness of an omniscient God, "all iniquity shall stop her mouth."

No one will accuse God of unfairness!

Or misguided activity!

Or lack of knowledge!

Or being harsh and unkind!

"Iniquity" or ""evel" means "to distort, to twist, to pervert" something out of the shape God originally intended for it! That's what sin does of course!

"Shall stop" translates "qaphatzs" which means "to shut or close." We all get this picture!

No more "bad talk" about how God does things!

No complaining, no "murmuring" as Paul called it.

God is Good!

He knows best!

We shall quietly trust Him!

Like Jesus often prayed to His Father in Heaven; "Not my will, but Thine, be done. Luke 22:42

And we say "amen!"

Then, lastly, "Whoso is wise, and will observe these things, even they shall understand the lovingkindness of the LORD." Psalm107:43

"Wise" employs the Hebrew noun "chakam," meaning something like this: "skilled in godly living!"

"Observe" is "shamar" and means not merely to see or watch, but "to obey, to guard, to keep" these sayings, the truths of Psalm 107.

To "understand" means "to discern levels of meaning" in any situation!

Dried up river beds ... what could they mean in God's Eyes?

That leads to "understanding" ... when considered with an open Bible by one's side!

And the inquiring mind will discover, every time, that God is Good!

The noun "lovingkindness" brings us full circle in the Psalm. "Hesed" is first used in Verse 1 where it's "mercy!" It's last used right here in Verse 43, the last Verse, where it's "lovingkindness!"

Inclusio!

That great big perfect God Who was willing to "stoop down" to my level and die on the Cross and save my soul from Hell!

If He did THAT for me already, and He has, how could He ever be anything but "kind" to me thereafter.

If He did the BIG thing well ... will He not also do the little things just as well?

Of course He will!

If you want it in Pauline language, here it comes. "He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?" Romans 8:32

Amen!

                                                                          --- Dr. Mike Bagwell

And for anyone who still questions the importance of God's "Goodness," remember this. Once when Moses asked to see God's very Glory, he was denied. And Moses said unto the Lord, "I beseech thee, shew me thy glory." Whereupon the Lord answered, "And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy. And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live." Then, when the great Event happened, when God revealed, just as He stated, His "Goodness," these words were recorded, "And the LORD said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock: and it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by: and I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen." It is apparent here that Exodus 33 somehow directly links God's Glory and God's Goodness!

Moses asked for "Glory!" God immediately said that His "Goodness" would then be revealed! Then, in the summary statement, we are again told that God's "Glory" was the end result! This is no contradiction either!

Therefore, we must conclude that both are important, Goodness and Glory! Maybe equally so! Surely God's Goodness is a function of God's Glory!

I AM SO THANKFUL FOR THE OPPORTUNITY OF STUDYING THIS GREAT PASSAGE OF SCRIPTURE! WE HOPE YOU FEEL THE SAME WAY!