"Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name;
make known his deeds among the peoples!
2 Sing to him, sing praises to him;
tell of all his wondrous works!
3 Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!
4 Seek the Lord and his strength;
seek his presence continually!
5 Remember the wondrous works that he has done,
his miracles, and the judgements he uttered,
6 O offspring of Abraham, his servant,
children of Jacob, his chosen ones!
7 He is the Lord our God;
his judgements are in all the earth.
8 He remembers his covenant for ever,
the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations,
9 the covenant that he made with Abraham,
his sworn promise to Isaac,
10 which he confirmed to Jacob as a statute,
to Israel as an everlasting covenant,
11 saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan
as your portion for an inheritance.”
12 When they were few in number,
of little account, and sojourners in it,
13 wandering from nation to nation,
from one kingdom to another people,
14 he allowed no one to oppress them;
he rebuked kings on their account,
15 saying, “Touch not my anointed ones,
do my prophets no harm!”
16 When he summoned a famine on the land
and broke all supply of bread,
17 he had sent a man ahead of them,
Joseph, who was sold as a slave.
18 His feet were hurt with fetters;
his neck was put in a collar of iron;
19 until what he had said came to pass,
the word of the Lord tested him.
20 The king sent and released him;
the ruler of the peoples set him free;
21 he made him lord of his house
and ruler of all his possessions,
22 to bind his princes at his pleasure
and to teach his elders wisdom.
23 Then Israel came to Egypt;
Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham.
24 And the Lord made his people very fruitful
and made them stronger than their foes.
25 He turned their hearts to hate his people,
to deal craftily with his servants.
26 He sent Moses, his servant,
and Aaron, whom he had chosen.
27 They performed his signs among them
and miracles in the land of Ham.
28 He sent darkness, and made the land dark;
they did not rebel against his words.
29 He turned their waters into blood
and caused their fish to die.
30 Their land swarmed with frogs,
even in the chambers of their kings.
31 He spoke, and there came swarms of flies,
and gnats throughout their country.
32 He gave them hail for rain,
and fiery lightning bolts through their land.
33 He struck down their vines and fig trees,
and shattered the trees of their country.
34 He spoke, and the locusts came,
young locusts without number,
35 which devoured all the vegetation in their land
and ate up the fruit of their ground.
36 He struck down all the firstborn in their land,
the firstfruits of all their strength.
37 Then he brought out Israel with silver and gold,
and there was none among his tribes who stumbled.
38 Egypt was glad when they departed,
for dread of them had fallen upon it.
39 He spread a cloud for a covering,
and fire to give light by night.
40 They asked, and he brought quail,
and gave them bread from heaven in abundance.
41 He opened the rock, and water gushed out;
it flowed through the desert like a river.
42 For he remembered his holy promise,
and Abraham, his servant.
43 So he brought his people out with joy,
his chosen ones with singing.
44 And he gave them the lands of the nations,
and they took possession of the fruit of the peoples' toil,
45 that they might keep his statutes
and observe his laws.
Praise the Lord!"
Psalm 105
This Psalm and the next are obviously companion-pieces. They represent, as Kidner puts it, 'the two contrasting strands of sacred history: the acts of God the unfailing, and of man the intractable'. Here, in this Psalm, the note of praise predominates, and the emphasis throughout is on the mighty acts and works of the covenant God, while in the next one it is more the ingratitude and impenitence that are stressed. Taken together, we get the whole picture of the Old Testament. Today, we concentrate on the bright side of the picture.
It is interesting to realise that 1-15 occur also in 1 Chronicles 16:8-22, a passage associated with the triumphant return of the Ark to Jerusalem early in David's reign, a time of consecration and dedication for the young monarch, and of his determination to order his life in accordance with the will and law of God (a fact of considerable significance, in view of its message, for it is when a man is most consecrated to the will of God that he sees most clearly what is really going on in the world, and in experience, around him). The great theme throughout is the covenant and the covenant God, and His faithfulness to it towards His people (8). The meaning of the divine will for his life - this is the awareness the Psalmist echoes, and which fills him with joy and exultation. This is what it means to be saved into purpose for life, for 'to call upon His Name' presupposes and implies a vertical relationship of fellowship with God, and therefore an entering into one's true - and truest - destiny; and to 'make known His deeds' and 'tell of all His wondrous works' means to be called into service for Him; and the praising and the singing redeem life from all that is empty and futile.