This psalm is without a title, and its author is unknown. The occasion on which it was composed is not particularly designated, though from Psalms 107:2-3, it is probable that it was on a return from exile or captivity. There is nothing in the psalm to forbid the supposition that this was the return from the captivity at Babylon, and that the psalm was designed to be used at the re-dedication of the temple after the restoration. Every part of it would be appropriate to such an occasion, and it is every way probable that so important an event would be celebrated with appropriate songs of praise.
The “design” of the psalm, so far as it has a practical bearing, is indicated in Psalms 107:8, Psalms 107:15, Psalms 107:21, Psalms 107:31, in the language repeated in those verses: “Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!” The purpose of the psalm is so to set forth these “works,” or these “doings” of God, as to lead men to praise and adoration.
The psalm is very regular in its structure. The first three verses are introductory, intended to designate the people who were specially called on to praise God - as those who had been redeemed from the hand of the enemy, and gathered out of the lands - east, west, north, and south.
The remainder of the psalm is divided into portions marked by the above words, “Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness,” etc., Psalms 107:8, Psalms 107:15, Psalms 107:21, Psalms 107:31. These portions are of unequal length, and this language (with a few appropriate words added) is placed “at the close of each part,” as being that which was suggested by the previous thoughts. In the closing portion, however, Psalms 107:32-43, this language is not employed, but the expression of “desire” in the other cases is changed into an “affirmation” that all who were wise would “observe these things,” and would “understand the loving-kindness of the Lord.”
The particular parts of the psalm are the following:
I. A reference to the redeemed of the Lord as having wandered in the wilderness; as having been hungry and thirsty; as having no city to dwell in; and then, as calling upon the Lord in such a manner that he heard them, and led them in a right and safe way. For “this” the psalmist expresses the wish that “men would praise the Lord for his goodness,” Psalms 107:4-9.
II. A reference to God as displaying goodness toward those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and who are bound in affliction and iron: illustrated by a reference to the people of God in the times of bondage, as being cast down and punished for their sins, and as then calling upon the Lord in their trouble, so that he brought them out of that darkness and shadow of death, and brake their bands asunder. For “this” the psalmist expresses the wish that “men would praise the Lord for his goodness,” Psalms 107:10-16.
III. A reference to the deliverance performed for the people of God. They had sinned; they had shown their folly; they had drawn near to the gates of death, and then they cried unto the Lord, and he sent his word and healed them. For “this” the psalmist expresses the desire that “men would praise the Lord for his goodness,” Psalms 107:17-22.
IV. A reference to the goodness of the Lord as manifested toward those who go down to the sea in ships, and do business in the great waters. They see the wonders of the Lord in the deep. They encounter storms and tempests. They are raised up to the heavens on the waves, and then sink to a corresponding depth. They reel to and fro and stagger like a drunkard; and then they cry to the Lord, and he hears them, and makes the sea calm, and brings them to the desired haven. For “this” the psalmist expresses the wish that “men would praise the Lord for his goodness,” Psalms 107:23-32.
V. A reference to the goodness of the Lord in preparing a place for men to dwell in: turning rivers into a wilderness, the water-springs into dry ground, the wilderness into standing water, and the dry ground into water-springs: making arrangements for people to dwell upon the earth, so that they may sow the fields and plant vineyards - setting the poor on high from affliction, and making them families like a flock. In reference to “this,” and to “all” that God does, the psalmist says, in the conclusion of the psalm, that all who are “wise, and will observe these things, shall understand the loving-kindness of the Lord,” Psalms 107:33-43.