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Writer's pictureStefan Matzal

Comments on Psalm 105

From various commentators:

Call to Praise (vv. 1-6)

Jehovah is the author of all our benefits, therefore let him have all our gratitude. --Charles H. Spurgeon "Make known his deeds among the nations" (v. 1) Israel did not hide the name of God from the Gentiles in fear, but rather felt herself in duty bound to make it known to them. Indeed in the end Yahweh is to be revealed to the world in such a way that all worship of idols vanishes away, and every knee will bow to his name alone. --Gerhard von Rad

God's Promise of the Land (vv. 7-11)

The psalm views Israel as a people whose identity and destiny come to them from their forefathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Their identity as people of the LORD is rooted in God's relation to these ancestors. --James L. Mays Galatians 3:6ff. and 4:28ff. show that every Christian belongs to this family, whose history and calling we now inherit. Here are the early chapters of our own story: we can sing of its miraculous beginnings with more than a spectator's interest. --Derek Kidner Israel is to experience life in its land as a life lived out of the promise of God. Having their own land in the midst of the nations is a sacrament of God's faithfulness to his covenant with Abraham. --James L. Mays

Young Wandering Nation (vv. 12-15)

We see here a vivid description of the people of God. They are "his anointed ones" (v. 15), having the residue of the Spirit; they are his prophets (v. 15), to whom is entrusted the word of life. --W. Wilson

Joseph (vv. 16-22)

Joseph was the advance guard and pioneer for the whole clan. His brethren sold him, but God sent him. Where the hand of the wicked is visible, God's hand may be invisibly at work, overruling their malice. --Charles H. Spurgeon

Jacob in Egypt (vv. 23-25)

When by the malice of enemies God's people are brought to the greatest straits, there is deliverance near to be sent from God to them. --David Dickson

The Plagues on Egypt (vv. 26-36)

The plagues are presented here not to trace the progress of Pharaoh's hardening -- he is not mentioned -- but to praise the decisive and versatile power of God. Note the terse simplicity of the verbs: e.g. He sent...he spoke...he gave...he smote, etc. --Derek Kidner

Exodus and Entrance Into the Land (vv. 37-45)

The promise to Abraham was not exhausted by Israel's temporary occupation of the land. Canaan was a shadow of the reality, which is a heavenly country destined to be the final home of God's people of the covenants new and old (Hebrews 3:7 - 4:1; 11:13-16; 11:39-40). --Leslie C. Allen The final verse discloses that the Lord had a purpose for his kept commitment all along -- the creation of a people obedient to his statutes and laws. The position of this final statement gives it significant importance in the theology of the psalm. The sovereign of the universe sought to establish an enclave of those who represented and displayed his reign. The lesson for the church is clear. God's purpose to have a people who live by his rule in the midst of the nations persists through all times (Matt. 5-7). --James L. Mays

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