Psalm 106:1-48
1 Praise the LORD.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
his love endures forever.
2 Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the LORD
or fully declare his praise?
3 Blessed are they who maintain justice,
who constantly do what is right.
4 Remember me, O LORD, when you show favor to your people,
come to my aid when you save them,
5 that I may enjoy the prosperity of your chosen ones,
that I may share in the joy of your nation
and join your inheritance in giving praise.
6 We have sinned, even as our fathers did;
we have done wrong and acted wickedly.
7 When our fathers were in Egypt,
they gave no thought to your miracles;
they did not remember your many kindnesses,
and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea.
8 Yet he saved them for his name's sake,
to make his mighty power known.
9 He rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up;
he led them through the depths as through a desert.
10 He saved them from the hand of the foe;
from the hand of the enemy he redeemed them.
11 The waters covered their adversaries;
not one of them survived.
12 Then they believed his promises
and sang his praise.
13 But they soon forgot what he had done
and did not wait for his counsel.
14 In the desert they gave in to their craving;
in the wasteland they put God to the test.
15 So he gave them what they asked for,
but sent a wasting disease upon them.
16 In the camp they grew envious of Moses
and of Aaron, who was consecrated to the LORD.
17 The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan;
it buried the company of Abiram.
18 Fire blazed among their followers;
a flame consumed the wicked.
19 At Horeb they made a calf
and worshiped an idol cast from metal.
20 They exchanged their Glory
for an image of a bull, which eats grass.
21 They forgot the God who saved them,
who had done great things in Egypt,
22 miracles in the land of Ham
and awesome deeds by the Red Sea.
23 So he said he would destroy them—
had not Moses, his chosen one,
stood in the breach before him
to keep his wrath from destroying them.
24 Then they despised the pleasant land;
they did not believe his promise.
25 They grumbled in their tents
and did not obey the LORD.
26 So he swore to them with uplifted hand
that he would make them fall in the desert,
27 make their descendants fall among the nations
and scatter them throughout the lands.
28 They yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor
and ate sacrifices offered to lifeless gods;
29 they provoked the LORD to anger by their wicked deeds,
and a plague broke out among them.
30 But Phinehas stood up and intervened,
and the plague was checked.
31 This was credited to him as righteousness
for endless generations to come.
32 By the waters of Meribah they angered the LORD,
and trouble came to Moses because of them;
33 for they rebelled against the Spirit of God,
and rash words came from Moses' lips.
34 They did not destroy the peoples
as the LORD had commanded them,
35 but they mingled with the nations
and adopted their customs.
36 They worshiped their idols,
which became a snare to them.
37 They sacrificed their sons
and their daughters to demons.
38 They shed innocent blood,
the blood of their sons and daughters,
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan,
and the land was desecrated by their blood.
39 They defiled themselves by what they did;
by their deeds they prostituted themselves.
40 Therefore the LORD was angry with his people
and abhorred his inheritance.
41 He handed them over to the nations,
and their foes ruled over them.
42 Their enemies oppressed them
and subjected them to their power.
43 Many times he delivered them,
but they were bent on rebellion
and they wasted away in their sin.
44 But he took note of their distress
when he heard their cry;
45 for their sake he remembered his covenant
and out of his great love he relented.
46 He caused them to be pitied
by all who held them captive.
47 Save us, O LORD our God,
and gather us from the nations,
that we may give thanks to your holy name
and glory in your praise.
48 Praise be to the LORD, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting.
Let all the people say, "Amen!"
Praise the LORD.
When I first read the story of the people wandering the desert I was surprised of there grumbling and rebelling...The Psalmist too, writes about how quickly the people forgot about the LORD, His presence, and what He had just done to help them get out of bondage in Egypt...I wouldn't have done that (grumbling and complaining) if I were there...Or so I thought...
Then after reading the story a few more times I was beginning to relate better with the people...When I get tired I am more likely to grumble...If I were in the desert I would have been hot and uncomfortable...How would the nights have been (in the open desert)...I am sure the first few days, before God provided them water, manna, and quail would have been interesting and much fatigue and exhaustion would have been with the people...
We want...It appears we as humanity want first the basic needs...We want water if we are thirsty. We want food when we are hungry...God provided this to His people in the desert...
After we get our basic needs satisfied, we sometimes forget and want other things...We want to be thinner, we want to look more fit, we want more money, we want a partner, we want our partner to be better, a new car, a bigger, greener yard, a second home, we want to go here (and there), and so on...The list goes on and on...If we don't get these things, we may grumble...
God had saved the people from Egypt...They had seen the ten miracles and plagues in Egypt...They had seen the parting of the Sea...But soon they forgot...And how soon I also forget...We sin, try to repent, trust in the LORD, then grow complacent and sin again... The more we do this the more unworthy we are...But God is and was always there to help His people...He kept His promise and the Israeli people made it to the Promised Land...
The sinning and complacency are the steps that keep us from God...We are sinners, we need to work on this...We also can work on our complacency...The people had witnessed many of God's miracles...God was present with them...But they quickly forgot His mighty works and became complacent...How quickly I forget...It appears we forget quicker when we don't get what we want, either in our basic needs or in our more lavish needs...
In the 23rd Psalm, it says the LORD is my Shepherd I shall not want...This is good advice...But we still do want...We must take time to think about this "I shall not want"...Jesus teaches the LORD's prayer and in the prayer we ask the LORD to give us this day our daily bread...We do have wants, but Jesus tells us God will provide the basic needs if we pray and trust in Him...
The more I have thought about this, the more I think, maybe I would have grumbled even more, if I were with the people in the desert, even knowing my Father was there...I thank God for His grace, and His eternal ability to forgive...
In the verses three to five above, God will bless us who maintain justice and do what is right...God's people will prosper if we follow and trust in Him...He will come to our aid when we are in trouble...
We must praise Him and remember how His overwhelming grace and kindness in the desert kept the people going as they made it to the Promised Land...
Some day we too will make it to the Promised Land...We daily must watch our wants, our sins, our complacency, and our forgetting...Praise the LORD for His kindness and grace...May we give thanks to your Holy Name and give glory in Your praise...