4
They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way;
They found no city to dwell in.
5
Hungry and thirsty,
Their soul fainted in them.
6
Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
And He delivered them out of their distresses.
7
And He led them forth by the right way,
That they might go to a city for a dwelling place.
8
Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness,
And for His wonderful works to the children of men!
9
For He satisfies the longing soul,
And fills the hungry soul with goodness.
Before we were saved we were not unlike the people mentioned in verses 4 and 5. Wandering, without direction, no place to call home, no one to turn to for comfort, seeking but not having a destination. Then we cried out to the Lord and He delivered us and led us to a place of rest. Where He gave us satisfaction in our souls. Even now, when we wander from time to time He is faithful to come and deliver us when we cry out to Him.………..Bill
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Charles Spurgeon
“They wandered in the wilderness.” They wandered, for the track was lost, no vestige of a road remained; worse still, they wandered in a wilderness, where all around was burning sand. They were lost in the worst possible place, even as the sinner is who is lost in sin; they wandered up and down in vain searches and researches as a sinner does when he is awakened and sees his lost estate; but it ended in nothing, for they still continued in the wilderness, though they had hoped to escape from it. “In a solitary way.” No dwelling of man was near, and no other company of travelers passed within hail. Solitude is a great intensifier of misery. The loneliness of a desert has a most depressing influence upon the man who is lost in the boundless waste. The traveler’s way in the wilderness is a waste way, and when he leaves even that poor, barren trail, to get utterly beyond the path of man, he is in a wretched plight indeed. A soul without sympathy is on the borders of hell: a solitary way is the way of despair.
“They found no city to dwell in.” How could they? There was none. Israel in the wilderness abode under canvas, and enjoyed none of the comforts of settled life; wanderers in the Sahara find no town or village. Men when under distress of soul find nothing to rest upon, no comfort and no peace; their efforts after salvation are many, weary, and disappointing, and the dread solitude of their hearts fills them with dire distress.
“Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble.” Not till they were in extremities did they pray, but the mercy is that they prayed then, and prayed in the right manner, with a cry, and to the right person, even to the Lord. Nothing else remained for them to do; they could not help themselves, or find help in others, and therefore they cried to God. Supplications which are forced out of us by stern necessity are none the less acceptable with God; but, indeed, they have all the more prevalence, since they are evidently sincere, and make a powerful appeal to the divine pity. Some men will never pray till they are half-starved, and for their best interests, it is far better for them to be empty and faint than to be full and stouthearted. If hunger brings us to our knees it is more useful to us than feasting; if thirst drives us to the fountain it is better than the deepest draughts of worldly joys; and if fainting leads to crying it is better than the strength of the mighty,
“And he delivered them out of their distresses.” Deliverance follows prayer most surely. The cry must have been very feeble, for they were faint, and their faith was as weak as their cry, but yet they were heard and heard at once. A little delay would have been their death: but there was none, for the Lord was ready to save them. The Lord delights to come in when no one else can be of the slightest avail. The case was hopeless till Jehovah interposed, and then all was changed immediately; the people were shut up, straitened, and almost pressed to death, but enlargement came to them at once when they began to remember their God and look to him in prayer.
“And he led them forth by the right way.” There are many wrong ways, but only one right one, and into this none can lead us but God himself. When the Lord is the leader the way is sure to be right; we never need question that. Forth from the pathless mazes of the desert, he conducted the lost ones; he found the way, made the way, and enabled them to walk along it, faint and hungry as they were.
“That they might go to a city of habitation.” The end was worthy of the way: he did not lead them from one desert to another, but he gave the wanderers an abode, the weary ones a place of rest. They found no city to dwell in, but he found one readily enough. What we can do and what God can do are two very different things. What a difference it made to them to leave their solitude for a city, their trackless path for well-frequented streets, and their faintness of heart for the refreshment of a home! Far greater are the changes which divine love works in the condition of sinners when God answers their prayers and brings them to Jesus. Shall not the Lord be magnified for such special mercies? Can we who have enjoyed them sit down in ungrateful silence?
“Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness.” Men are not mentioned here in the original, but the word is fitly supplied by the translators; the psalmist would have all things in existence magnify Jehovah’s name. Surely men will do this without being exhorted to it when the deliverance is fresh in their memories. They must be horrible ingrates who will not honor such a deliverer for so happy a rescue from the most cruel death. It is well that the redeemed should be stirred up to bless the Lord again and again, for preserved life deserves lifelong thankfulness. Even those who have not encountered the like peril, and obtained the like deliverance, should bless the Lord in sympathy with their fellows, sharing their joy.
“And for his wonderful works to the children of men.” These favors are bestowed upon our race, upon children of the family to which we belong, and therefore we ought to join in the praise. The children of men are so insignificant, so feeble, and so undeserving, that it is a great wonder that the Lord should do anything for them; but he is not content with doing little works, he puts forth his wisdom, power, and love to perform marvels on the behalf of those who seek him. In the life of each one of the redeemed, there is a world of wonders, and therefore from each, there should resound a world of praises. As to the marvels of grace which the Lord has wrought for his church as a whole there is no estimating them, they are as high above our thoughts as the heavens are high above the earth. When shall the day dawn when the favored race of man shall be as devoted to the praise of God as they are distinguished by the favor of God?
“For he satisfieth the longing soul.” This is the summary of the lost traveler’s experience. He who in a natural sense has been rescued from perishing in a howling wilderness ought to bless the Lord who brings hint again to eat bread among men. The spiritual sense is, however, the more rich in instruction. The Lord sets us longing and then completely satisfies us. That longing leads us into solitude, separation, thirst, faintness, and self-despair, and all these conduct us to prayer, faith, divine guidance, satisfying of the soul’s thirst, and rest: the good hand of the Lord is to be seen in the whole process and in the divine result.
“And filleth the hungry soul with goodness.” As for thirst he gives satisfaction, so for hunger, he supplies filling. In both cases the need is more than met, there is an abundance in the supply which is well worthy of notice:…… none who come under the Lord’s providing ever complain of short commons. Nor does he fill the hungry with common fare, but with goodness itself. It is not so much good, as the essence of goodness which he bestows on needy suppliants. Shall man be thus royally supplied and return no praise for the largeness of love? It must not be so. We will even now give thanks with all the redeemed church, and pray for the time when the whole earth shall be filled with his glory.
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Enduring Word
They wandered in the wilderness: When God gathered His people (Psalm 107:2-3), they had to come to the Promised Land from every direction. Some came from the wilderness, and they wandered the desolate desert. (Guzik)
i. Wandered: “Their passage through the wilderness was not a journeying, such as when men pass on in a road to some inhabited place; but a wandering up and down away from all path and road, and so in an endless maze of desolation.” (Hammond, cited in Spurgeon)
Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them: In the trouble of the wilderness, the redeemed cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and God answered (He delivered them out of their distresses). (Guzik)
He led them forth by the right way: Better than modern navigation systems, God led His redeemed to just the right place, to a city for a dwelling place. (Guzik)
i. “His deliverance is full of surprises, as he supplies all the needs of his people. He straightens the way; leads them into the city; and provides for their shelter, food, and drink.” (VanGemeren)
Oh, that men would give thanks: God’s goodness to those returning through the wilderness should give everyone reason to thank Him, for His wonderful works to the children of men. We should be able to thank God for more than just His work in our personal lives, but also for what He does for others. (Guzik)
He satisfies the longing soul: The psalm spoke of those hungry and thirsty in the wilderness, but there is also a longing in the soul of man. God’s literal guidance and deliverance for His redeemed in the wilderness becomes a picture of how He delivers the lost, thirsty, and hungry soul, and fills it with goodness. (Guzik)
i. It seems that Mary, the mother of Jesus, quoted Psalm 107:9 (and fills the hungry soul with goodness) in her song: He has filled the hungry with good things (Luke 1:53). This is one of many scriptural quotations and allusions found in Mary’s song recorded in Luke 1:46-55, showing that she was a woman who knew and loved God’s word. (Guzik)
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Barnes
They wandered in the wilderness – On their return from Babylon; or, when God was conducting them again to their own land. The word “wilderness” in the Scriptures means a desolate, barren, uninhabited region, usually destitute of trees, of springs, and of water-courses. It does not denote, as it does with us, a region of extensive “forests.” Compare the notes at Matthew 4:1.
Their soul fainted in them – The word used here – עטף ‛âṭaph – means properly to cover, to clothe, as with a garment, Psalms 73:6; or a field with grain, Psalms 65:13; then, to hide oneself, Job 23:9; then, to cover with darkness, Psalms 77:3; Psalms 102:0, title; thus it denotes the state of mind when darkness seems to be in the way – a way of calamity, trouble, sorrow; of weakness, faintness, feebleness. Here it would seem from the connection to refer to the exhaustion produced by the want of food and drink.
Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble – The language in this verse is repeated in this psalm in Psalms 107:13, Psalms 107:19, and Psalms 107:28 – as if this were the main subject of the psalm, that when the people of God in different circumstances, or under various forms of trouble, call upon God, he hears them and delivers them.
Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness – More literally, “Let such – or, let these – praise the Lord for his goodness,” the word “men” having been supplied by our translators. Yet it is not improper to suppose that a wider range is intended than would be denoted if it were confined to those who had then been delivered. It was evidently designed to impress the minds of those who might use this psalm in their devotions; and the idea is, that the deliverance then vouchsafed to the people of God in their troubles should lead all to praise and adore him. Such a surprising interposition suggested an important lesson in regard to God, applicable to all people; and should lead all to praise him in view of the trait of character thus manifested, as that of a God who hears prayer when his people are in trouble, and who can make a straight path before them when they are in danger of being lost, and who can conduct them through the wilderness – the waste places – of this world, as he did his people across the pathless sands of the desert. The true use of all history is to teach us lessons about God.
For he satisfieth the longing soul – This does not mean – what is indeed true in itself – that God has made provision for the “soul” of man, and satisfies it when it longs or pants for its needed supply, but the reference is to the creatures of God – the living things that he has made; and the idea is, that he has made provision for their needs. He gives them food and drink so that their needs are met. The “particular” reference here, however, in the word rendered “longing” is to “thirst,” as contradistinguished from the other member of the verse, where the reference is to “hunger.” So the word is used in Isaiah 29:8.
And filleth the hungry soul with goodness – Supplies the needs of the hungry with “good;” that is, with that which is “good” for it; which meets its needs, and imparts strength and happiness.
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John Gill
Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble,…. To be directed in their way, and for food and drink, as travelers do when in such distress. Natural men, even the very Heathens, when in distress, will cry unto God for relief, as Jonah’s mariners did, Jonah 1:5. It is a time of trouble with awakened sinners when they are convinced of sin by the Spirit of God; when they are pricked to the heart with a sense of it; when the terrors of death and hell get hold of them; when they see themselves lost and undone, and in a wrong way, and know not what to do; when they find themselves starving and ready to perish; and then they cry, that is, pray, unto the Lord, the God of their lives, whose ears are open to their cries.
And he led them forth by the right way,…. Thus God by his providence directs travellers that have lost their way and puts them into the right way. There is no doubt a very great concern of Providence in such a case, and which ought to be acknowledged with thankfulness. And thus the Lord leads awakened and inquiring souls to the right way of salvation; to Christ, who is the way, the truth, and the life; and directs and enables them to believe in him, to walk by faith, and to continue to walk in him, as they have received him; and which is a plain and straight way, in which they shall not stumble; yea, in which men, though fools, shall not err, wander, or lose themselves: and though this way is attended with many afflictions and tribulations, and so may be said to be a narrow and a rough way; yet it is a right one and a safe one, it brings at last to eternal life: the Syriac version renders it, “by the way of truth.”
O that men would praise the Lord for his goodness,…. For his providential goodness, in providing food and drink for them, when fainting; in directing them to their right way, when they had lost it; and in bringing them safe to the place they were bound for: and particularly for his special grace and goodness, in redemption and effectual calling; for bringing out of a wilderness state and condition, and supplying them with all spiritual provisions, and putting them in the right way to eternal glory and happiness.
For he satisfieth the longing soul,…. The soul that is hungry and thirsty, and longs for food and drink, when nature in such circumstances craves. And so such who long for Christ and his grace, for an interest in him, and fellowship with him, the Lord satisfies with these things, as with marrow and fatness.
And filleth the hungry soul with goodness; with the goodness and fatness of his house; with good things; with the good things laid up in Christ and in the covenant; with the good things of the Gospel; with the grace and goodness of God in Christ; see Psalm 65:4.
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Matthew Henry
They were bewildered, had no road to travel in, no dwelling place to rest in, v. 4. When they were redeemed out of the hand of the enemy, and gathered out of the lands, they were in danger of perishing in their return home through the dry and barren deserts. They wandered in the wilderness, where there was no trodden path, no company, but a solitary way, no lodging, no conveniences, no accommodations, no inhabited city where they might have quarters or refreshment. But God led them forth by the right way (v. 7), directed them to an inn, nay, directed them to a home, that they might go to a city of habitation, which was inhabited, nay which them themselves should inhabit. This may refer to poor travelers in general, those particularly whose way lay through the wilds of Arabia, where we may suppose they were often at a loss; and yet many in that distress were wonderfully relieved, so that few perished. Note, We ought to take notice of the good hand of God’s providence over us in our journeys, going out and coming in, directing us in our way, and providing for us places both to wait in and rest in. Or (as some think) it has an eye to the wanderings of the children of Israel in the wilderness for forty years; it is said (Deu. 32:10), God led them about, and yet here he led them by the right way. God’s way, though to us it seems about, will appear at last to have been the right way. It is applicable to our condition in this world; we are here as in a wilderness, have here no continuing city, but dwell in tents as strangers and pilgrims. But we are under the guidance of his wise and good providence, and, if we commit ourselves to it, we shall be led in the right way to the city that has foundations.
They were ready to perish for hunger (v. 5): Their soul even fainted in them. They were spent with the fatigues of their journey and ready to drop down for want of refreshment. Those that have constant plenty, and are every day fed to the full, know not what a miserable case it is to be hungry and thirsty, and to have no supply. This was sometimes the case of Israel in the wilderness, and perhaps of other poor travelers; but God’s providence finds out ways to satisfy the longing soul and fill the hungry soul with goodness, v. 9. Israel’s wants were seasonably supplied, and many have been wonderfully relieved when they were ready to perish. The same God that has led us has fed us all our life long unto this day, has fed us with food convenient, has provided food for the soul, and filled the hungry soul with goodness. Those that hunger and thirst after righteousness, after God, the living God, and communion with him, shall be abundantly replenished with the goodness of his house, both in grace and glory. Now for all this, those who receive mercy are called upon to return thanks (v. 8): Oh that men (it is meant especially of those men whom God has graciously relieved) would praise the Lord for his goodness to them in particular, and for his wonderful works to others of the children of men!
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Clarke
For he satisfieth the longing soul — This is the reason which the psalmist gives for the duty of thankfulness which he prescribes. The longing soul, נפש שוקקה nephesh shokekah, the soul that pushes forward in eager desire after salvation.
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KJV W/ STRONGS BIBLE – PSALMS 106
107:4 They wandered 8582 8804 in the wilderness 4057 in a solitary 3452 way 1870; they found 4672 8804 no city 5892 to dwell 4186 in.
107:5 Hungry 7457 and thirsty 6771, their soul 5315 fainted 5848 8691 in them.
107:6 Then they cried 6817 8799 unto the LORD 3068 in their trouble 6862, [and] he delivered 5337 8686 them out of their distresses 4691.
107:7 And he led them forth 1869 8686 by the right 3477 way 1870, that they might go 3212 8800 to a city 5892 of habitation 4186.
107:8 Oh that [men] would praise 3034 8686 the LORD 3068 [for] his goodness 2617, and [for] his wonderful works 6381 8737 to the children 1121 of men 120!
107:9 For he satisfieth 7646 8689 the longing 8264 8802 soul 5315, and filleth 4390 8765 the hungry 7457 soul 5315 with goodness 2896.
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Geneva Bible 1560
Psalm 107:4-9
4 When they wandered in the desert and wilderness out of the way, and found no citie to dwell in,
5 c Both hungrie and thirstie, their soul fainted in them.
6 Then they cryed unto the Lord in their trouble, & he delivered them from their distres,
7 And led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation.
8 Let them therefore confess before the Lord his loving kindness, and his wonderful works before the sons of men.
9 For he satisfied the thirstie soul, and filled the hungrie soul with goodness.
c He shows that there is none affliction so grievous, out of the which God will not deliver his, and also exhorts them, that are delivered, to be mindful of so great a benefit.
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Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Hebrews 13:20-21 NKJV
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