Let them extol him in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders
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Psalm 107:32
Riding out a storm on the sea can make your heart quiver. There is a saying: “Let those that would learn to pray go to sea.”
Commentator Matthew Henry says that it should read: “Let those that will go to sea learn to pray, that they may come with the more boldness to the throne of grace when they are in trouble.”
Perilous circumstances can bring even the most faithless person to his knees in prayer. But the believer should be the first to pray in any circumstance.
Psalm 107 presents four situations in which people are in distress. When they realize their state, they cry out to God. He responds to their prayers and delivers them. The psalmist then says, “Oh those men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men” (Psalm 107:31, KJV). God shows His goodness and is merciful in the physical realm, but also in the spiritual realm. And who better to exclaim it: “Let the redeemed of the Lord say so” (Psalm 107:2).
Charles Spurgeon explains it this way: “Whatever others may think or say, the redeemed have overwhelming reasons for declaring the goodness of the Lord. Theirs is a particular redemption… the Redeemer is so glorious, the ransom price so immense, and the redemption so complete, that they are under sevenfold obligations to give thanks unto the Lord, and to exhort others to do so.”
Beloved, these stormy times require constant prayer, for the people of this nation, its governing officials, and for the world. Worship the Lord whose mercy endures forever. Sing praise to the Prince of Peace!
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