Tell of All His Wonderful Works
105
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!
Reflection
- This psalm praises God for His faithful dealings with Israel. It reviews Israel’s history from Abraham to the wilderness wanderings, and the covenant God made with Abraham.
- A key word in this psalm is “remember” (vv. 5, 8, 42). By remembering how faithful God had been remembering His promise to their patriarch, the Israelites would remember to praise Him. God’s people benefit from reviewing history because it reminds them of God’s faithfulness. This reminder encourages us to trust in God’s promises given to us. We, too, can see that he has been consistently faithful to his word throughout history.
- How have you experienced God’s provision or help when you saw no way out? How does God take care of your basic needs? How does God provide beyond your expectations?
- In rejoicing over God’s faithfulness that finally brought the Israelites to the land promised to Abraham, the people are reminded that the right response is obedience and praise (v45).
- In what specific ways can you respond to God’s faithfulness by obedience and praise?
Prayer & Journaling:
Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.