Israel’s Rebelliousness and the Lords Help.

106 [a]Praise [b]the Lord!
Oh (A)give thanks to the Lord, for He (B)is good;
For (C)His mercy is everlasting.
Who can speak of the (D)mighty deeds of the Lord,
Or can proclaim all His praise?
How blessed are those who maintain [c]justice,
[d]Who (E)practice righteousness at all times!

Remember me, Lord, in Your (F)favor [e]toward Your people.
Visit me with Your salvation,
So that I may see the (G)prosperity of Your chosen ones,
That I may (H)rejoice in the joy of Your nation,
That I may (I)boast with Your [f]inheritance.

(J)We have sinned [g](K)like our fathers,
We have gone astray, we have behaved wickedly.
Our fathers in Egypt did not understand Your [h]wonders;
They (L)did not remember [i]Your abundant kindnesses,
But (M)rebelled by the sea, at the [j]Red Sea.
Nevertheless He saved them (N)for the sake of His name,
So that He might (O)make His power known.
So He (P)rebuked the [k]Red Sea and it (Q)dried up,
And He (R)led them through the mighty waters, as through the wilderness.
10 So He (S)saved them from the [l]hand of one who hated them,
And (T)redeemed them from the [m]hand of the enemy.
11 (U)The waters covered their adversaries;
Not one of them was left.
12 Then they (V)believed His words;
They (W)sang His praise.

13 They quickly (X)forgot His works;
They (Y)did not wait for His plan,
14 But (Z)became lustfully greedy in the wilderness,
And (AA)put God to the test in the desert.
15 So He (AB)gave them their request,
But (AC)sent a [n]wasting disease among them.

16 When they became (AD)envious of Moses in the camp,
And of Aaron, the holy one of the Lord,
17 The (AE)earth opened and swallowed up Dathan,
And engulfed the [o]company of Abiram.
18 And a (AF)fire blazed up in their [p]company;
The flame consumed the wicked.

19 They (AG)made a calf in Horeb,
And worshiped a cast metal image.
20 So they (AH)exchanged their glory
For the image of an ox that eats grass.
21 They (AI)forgot God their Savior,
Who had done (AJ)great things in Egypt,
22 [q](AK)Wonders in the land of Ham,
And awesome things by the [r]Red Sea.
23 Therefore (AL)He said that He would destroy them,
If (AM)Moses, His chosen one, had not stood in the gap before Him,
To turn away His wrath from destroying them.
24 Then they (AN)rejected the (AO)pleasant land;
They (AP)did not believe His word,
25 But (AQ)grumbled in their tents;
They did not listen to the voice of the Lord.
26 Therefore He [s](AR)swore to them
That He would have them fall in the wilderness,
27 And that He would (AS)bring down their [t]descendants among the nations,
And (AT)scatter them in the lands.

28 They also (AU)followed [u]Baal-peor,
And ate (AV)sacrifices offered to the dead.
29 So they (AW)provoked Him to anger with their deeds,
And a plague broke out among them.
30 Then Phinehas (AX)stood up and [v]intervened,
And so the (AY)plague was brought to a halt.
31 And it was (AZ)credited to him as righteousness,
To all generations forever.

32 They also (BA)provoked Him to wrath at the waters of [w]Meribah,
So that it (BB)went badly for Moses on their account.
33 Because they (BC)were rebellious against [x]His Spirit,
He spoke rashly with his lips.

34 They (BD)did not destroy the peoples,
As (BE)the Lord had commanded them,
35 But (BF)they got involved with the nations
And learned their [y]practices,
36 And (BG)served their idols,
(BH)Which became a snare to them.
37 They even (BI)sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the (BJ)demons,
38 And shed (BK)innocent blood,
The blood of their (BL)sons and their daughters
Whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan;
And the land was (BM)defiled with the blood.
39 So they became (BN)unclean in their [z]practices,
And [aa](BO)were unfaithful in their deeds.

40 Therefore the (BP)anger of the Lord was kindled against His people,
And He (BQ)loathed His [ab](BR)inheritance.
41 So (BS)He handed them over to the [ac]nations,
And those who hated them ruled over them.
42 Their enemies also (BT)oppressed them,
And they were subdued under their [ad]power.
43 Many times He would (BU)rescue them;
They, however, were rebellious in their (BV)plan,
And they (BW)sank down into their guilt.

44 Nevertheless He looked at their distress
When He (BX)heard their cry;
45 And He (BY)remembered His covenant for their sake,
And [ae](BZ)relented (CA)according to the greatness of His mercy.
46 He also made them (CB)objects of compassion
In the presence of all their captors.

47 (CC)Save us, Lord our God,
And (CD)gather us from the nations,
To give thanks to Your holy name
And (CE)glory in Your praise.
48 (CF)Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
From everlasting to everlasting.
And all the people shall say, “Amen.”
[af]Praise [ag]the Lord!

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 106:1 Or Hallelujah!
  2. Psalm 106:1 Heb Yah
  3. Psalm 106:3 Or judgment
  4. Psalm 106:3 Many Heb mss The one who performs
  5. Psalm 106:4 Lit of
  6. Psalm 106:5 I.e., people
  7. Psalm 106:6 Lit with
  8. Psalm 106:7 I.e., wonderful acts
  9. Psalm 106:7 Lit the multitude of Your kindnesses
  10. Psalm 106:7 Lit Sea of Reeds
  11. Psalm 106:9 Lit Sea of Reeds
  12. Psalm 106:10 Or power
  13. Psalm 106:10 Or power
  14. Psalm 106:15 Or leanness into their soul
  15. Psalm 106:17 Or assembly, band
  16. Psalm 106:18 Or assembly, band
  17. Psalm 106:22 I.e., Wonderful acts
  18. Psalm 106:22 Lit Sea of Reeds
  19. Psalm 106:26 Lit lifted up His hand
  20. Psalm 106:27 Lit seed
  21. Psalm 106:28 Or Baal of Peor
  22. Psalm 106:30 Or pronounced judgment
  23. Psalm 106:32 Lit strife
  24. Psalm 106:33 Or his spirit
  25. Psalm 106:35 Lit works
  26. Psalm 106:39 Lit works
  27. Psalm 106:39 Or prostituted themselves
  28. Psalm 106:40 I.e., people
  29. Psalm 106:41 Or Gentiles
  30. Psalm 106:42 Lit hand
  31. Psalm 106:45 Lit was sorry
  32. Psalm 106:48 Or Hallelujah!
  33. Psalm 106:48 Heb Yah

Israel’s Rebelliousness and the Lord’s Deliverances.

106 Praise the Lord! (Hallelujah!)
Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;
For His mercy and lovingkindness endure forever!(A)

Who can put into words the mighty deeds of the Lord?
Or who can proclaim all His praise [that is due Him]?

Blessed are those who observe justice [by honoring God’s precepts],
Who practice righteousness at all times.


Remember me, O Lord, when You favor Your people.
Visit me with Your salvation [when You rescue them],

That I may see the prosperity of Your chosen ones,
That I may rejoice in the gladness of Your nation,
That I may glory with Your inheritance.


We have sinned like our fathers;
We have committed iniquity, we have behaved wickedly.(B)

Our fathers in Egypt did not understand nor appreciate Your miracles;
They did not remember the abundance of Your mercies nor imprint Your lovingkindnesses on their hearts,
But they were rebellious at the sea, at the [a]Red Sea.(C)

Nevertheless He saved them for His name’s sake,
That He might make His [supreme] power known.

He rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up;
And He led them through the depths as through a pasture.(D)
10 
So He saved them from the hand of the one that hated them,
And redeemed them from the hand of the [Egyptian] enemy.(E)
11 
And the waters covered their adversaries;
Not one of them was left.(F)
12 
Then Israel believed in [the validity of] His words;
They sang His praise.

13 
But they quickly forgot His works;
They did not [patiently] wait for His counsel and purpose [to be revealed regarding them],
14 
But lusted intensely in the wilderness
And tempted God [with their insistent desires] in the desert.(G)
15 
So He gave them their request,
But sent a wasting disease among them.(H)

16 
They envied Moses in the camp,
And Aaron [the high priest], the holy one of the Lord,(I)
17 
Therefore the earth opened and swallowed Dathan,
And engulfed the company of Abiram.(J)
18 
And a fire broke out in their company;
The flame consumed the wicked.(K)

19 
They made a calf in Horeb (Sinai)
And worshiped a cast image.(L)
20 
Thus they exchanged [the true God who was] their glory
For the image of an ox that eats grass.
21 
They forgot God their Savior,
Who had done such great things in Egypt,
22 
Wonders in the land of Ham,
Awesome things at the Red Sea.
23 
Therefore He said He would destroy them,
[And He would have done so] had not Moses, His chosen one, stepped into the gap before Him,
To turn away His wrath from destroying them.(M)
24 
Then they despised the pleasant land [of Canaan];
They did not believe in His word nor rely on it,
25 
But they sulked and complained in their tents;
They did not listen to the voice of the Lord.
26 
Therefore He lifted up His hand [swearing] to them,
That He would cause them to fall in the wilderness,
27 
And that He would cast out their descendants among the nations
And scatter them in the lands [of the earth].

28 
They joined themselves also to [the idol] Baal of Peor,
And ate sacrifices offered to the dead.
29 
Thus they provoked Him to anger with their practices,
And a plague broke out among them.
30 
Then Phinehas [the priest] stood up and [b]interceded,
And so the plague was halted.(N)
31 
And that was credited to him for righteousness,
To all generations forever.

32 
They provoked Him to anger at the waters of [c]Meribah,
So that it went hard with Moses on their account;(O)
33 
Because they were rebellious against His Spirit,
Moses spoke recklessly with his lips.

34 
They did not destroy the [pagan] peoples [in Canaan],
As the Lord commanded them,
35 
But they mingled with the [idolatrous] nations
And learned their ways,
36 
And served their idols,
Which became a [dreadful] snare to them.
37 
They even sacrificed their sons and their daughters to demons(P)
38 
And shed innocent blood,
Even the blood of their sons and of their daughters,
Whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan;
And the land was polluted with their blood.
39 
In this way they became unclean in their practices;
They played the prostitute in their own deeds [by giving their worship, which belongs to God alone, to other “gods”].

40 
Therefore the anger of the Lord was kindled against His people
And He detested His own [d]inheritance.(Q)
41 
He gave them into the hands of the nations,
And those who hated them ruled over them.
42 
Their enemies also oppressed them,
And they were subdued under the [powerful] hand of their enemies.
43 
Many times He rescued them;
But they were rebellious in their counsel,
And sank down in their wickedness.

44 
Nevertheless He looked [sympathetically] at their distress
When He heard their cry;
45 
And He remembered His covenant for their sake,
And relented [rescinding their sentence] according to the greatness of His lovingkindness [when they cried out to Him],
46 
He also made them objects of compassion
Among those who had carried them away captive.(R)

47 
Save us, O Lord our God,
And gather us from among the nations,
That we may give thanks to Your holy name
And glory in praising You.
48 
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
From everlasting even to everlasting.
And let all the people say, “Amen.”
Praise the Lord! (Hallelujah!)(S)

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 106:7 Lit Sea of Reeds; and so throughout.
  2. Psalm 106:30 The exact meaning of the Hebrew here has been debated since ancient times. The term interceded probably is best because it could refer to Phinehas’ intervention by executing the guilty couple (Num 25:7f), or to his interceding through prayer in behalf of Israel. No such prayer is recorded, but it is certainly possible that Phinehas prayed for relief before or after the execution. The ancient rabbis mostly understood the intercession as a prayer, but some of them took the meaning of the Hebrew to be that Phinehas interceded essentially by arguing with God as to whether it was fair to destroy so many people for the sins of two.
  3. Psalm 106:32 Lit strife.
  4. Psalm 106:40 I.e. people.