Psalms — Chapter 107
“Praise GOD, who is good—whose steadfast love is eternal!”
Thus let GOD’s redeemed say,those redeemed from adversity,
who have been gathered in from the lands,from east and west,from the north and from the sea.
Some lost their way in the wilderness,in the wasteland;they found no settled place.
Hungry and thirsty,their spirit failed.
In their adversity they cried to GOD,and they were rescued from their troubles.
They were shown a direct wayto reach a settled place.
Let them give praise for GOD’s steadfast loveand wondrous deeds for humankind—
for satisfying the thirsty,and filling the hungry with all good things.
Some lived in deepest darkness,bound in cruel irons,
because they defied the word of God,spurned the counsel of the Most High.
Their hearts were humbled through suffering;they stumbled with no one to help.
In their adversity they cried to GOD,and were rescued from their troubles.
They were brought out of deepest darkness,their bonds broken asunder.
Let them give praise for GOD’s steadfast loveand wondrous deeds for humankind—
shattering gates of bronze,breaking their iron bars.
There were fools who suffered for their sinful way,and for their iniquities.
All food was loathsome to them;they reached the gates of death.
In their adversity they cried to GOD and they were saved from their troubles.
[God] gave an order and healed them—delivering them from the pits.athe pits Of death.
Let them give praise for GOD’s steadfast loveand wondrous deeds for humankind.
Let them offer thanksgiving sacrifices,and tell those deeds in joyful song.
Others go down to the sea in ships,ply their trade in the mighty waters;
they have seen GOD’s worksand such wonders in the deep.
God’s word raised a storm windthat made the waves surge.
Mounting up to the heaven,plunging down to the depths,disgorging in their misery,
they reeled and staggered like a drunk,all their skill to no avail.
In their adversity they cried to GOD,and were saved from their troubles.
The storm was reduced to a whisper;the waves were stilled.
They rejoiced when all was quiet,and were brought to the port they desired.
Let them give praise for GOD’s steadfast love,and wondrous deeds for humankind.
Let them exalt in the congregation of the people,acclaim in the assembly of the elders.
The rivers are turned into a wilderness,springs of water into thirsty land,
fruitful land into a salt marsh,because of the wickedness of its inhabitants.
The wilderness is turned into pools,parched land into springs of water.
There the hungry are settled;they build a place to settle in.
They sow fields and plant vineyardsthat yield a fruitful harvest.
They are blessed and they increase greatly—their cattle do not decrease,
after they had been few and crushedby oppression, misery, and sorrow.
[God] pours contempt on noblesand makes them lose their way in trackless deserts;
but the needy are secured from suffering,their families increased like flocks.
The upright see it and rejoice;the mouth of all wrongdoers is stopped.
One who is wise will take note of these thingsand consider GOD’s steadfast love.
✦ Connected Across Traditions
The Golden Rule
Matthew 7:12
“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
Hadith (An-Nawawi 13)
“None of you truly believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.”
Mahabharata 5.1517
“One should never do to another what one regards as injurious to oneself.”
Dhammapada 10:1
“All tremble at violence; all fear death. Putting oneself in the place of another, one should not kill nor cause another to kill.”
Impermanence & Letting Go
Dhammapada 20:277
“All conditioned things are impermanent. When one sees this with wisdom, one turns away from suffering.”
Tao Te Ching 76
“A man is born gentle and weak. At his death he is hard and stiff. The soft and yielding is the disciple of life.”
Ecclesiastes 3:1-2
“To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven.”
Bhagavad Gita 2:22
“As a person puts on new garments, giving up old ones, the soul similarly accepts new material bodies, giving up the old and useless ones.”
Humility & Surrender
Bhagavad Gita 18:66
“Abandon all varieties of dharma and simply surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reactions; do not fear.”
Matthew 5:5
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”
Tao Te Ching 22
“If you want to become whole, let yourself be partial. If you want to become full, let yourself be empty.”
Quran 2:45
“Seek help through patience and prayer. It is indeed exacting, but not for those who are humble.”
Good vs Evil / Light vs Darkness
Yasna 30:3
“Now the two primal Spirits, who reveal themselves as Twins, are the Better and the Bad, in thought and word and action.”
John 1:5
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
Dhammapada 1:1-2
“Mind is the forerunner of all actions. If one speaks or acts with a pure mind, happiness follows like a shadow.”
Bhagavad Gita 16:21
“There are three gates to self-destructive hell: lust, anger, and greed. Therefore, one must learn to give these up.”