Human Sin & Divine Compassion - Nov. 12th, 2023

Introduction

Theme: Israel’s persistence in sin and the wondrous patience of God.

“A RECORD OF REPEATED REBELLION” ~ Clarke

Occasion: Unknown. Probably post-exilic. Cf. ver. 5, 46, 47.

I. Contemplation of Sin & Grace (Ps. 106:1-5).

A. Praise Rendered (Ps. 106:1-3).

Psalm 106:1–3 KJV 1900

1 Praise ye the Lord. O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: For his mercy endureth for ever. 2 Who can utter the mighty acts of the Lord? Who can shew forth all his praise? 3 Blessed are they that keep judgment, And he that doeth righteousness at all times.

Romans 5:20 KJV 1900

20 Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound:

The Psalmist’s first note, therefore is of worship and praise.

B. Deliverance Requested (Ps. 106:4-5).

Psalm 106:4–5 KJV 1900

4 Remember me, O Lord, with the favour that thou bearest unto thy people: O visit me with thy salvation; 5 That I may see the good of thy chosen, That I may rejoice in the gladness of thy nation, That I may glory with thine inheritance.

The Prayer seems personal, and the Psalmist would share in the deliverance.

II. Confession of Sin (Ps. 106:6-45).

A. Review of Personal History (Ps. 106:6)

Psalm 106:6 KJV 1900

6 We have sinned with our fathers, We have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly.

B. Review of Paternal History (Ps. 106:7-46)

1. Rebellion & Recovery: Provocation - Exodus from Egypt (Ps. 106:7-12)

a. The Sin (Ps. 106:7)

Psalm 106:7 KJV 1900

7 Our fathers understood not thy wonders in Egypt; They remembered not the multitude of thy mercies; But provoked him at the sea, even at the Red sea.

b. The Salvation (Ps. 106:8-12)

Psalm 106:8–12 KJV 1900

8 Nevertheless he saved them for his name’s sake, That he might make his mighty power to be known. 9 He rebuked the Red sea also, and it was dried up: So he led them through the depths, as through the wilderness. 10 And he saved them from the hand of him that hated them, And redeemed them from the hand of the enemy. 11 And the waters covered their enemies: There was not one of them left. 12 Then believed they his words; They sang his praise.

The manifold sins of God’s people make a somber background for His wondrous patience which shines like a bright light in a dark place.

First, were murmurings at the Red Sea.

2. Repeated: Rebellion and Recovery (Ps. 106:13-23).

a. The Sin (Ps. 106:13-16).

Psalm 106:13–16 KJV 1900

13 They soon forgat his works; They waited not for his counsel: 14 But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, And tempted God in the desert. 15 And he gave them their request; But sent leanness into their soul. 16 They envied Moses also in the camp, And Aaron the saint of the Lord.

b. The Searching (Ps. 106:17-18).

Psalm 106:17–18 KJV 1900

17 The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan, And covered the company of Abiram. 18 And a fire was kindled in their company; The flame burned up the wicked.

c. The Sin (Ps. 106:19-22),

Psalm 106:19–22 KJV 1900

19 They made a calf in Horeb, And worshipped the molten image. 20 Thus they changed their glory Into the similitude of an ox that eateth grass. 21 They forgat God their saviour, Which had done great things in Egypt; 22 Wondrous works in the land of Ham, And terrible things by the Red sea.

d. The Searching (Ps. 106:23a).

e. The Salvation (Ps. 106:23bc). Intercession of Moses

Psalm 106:23bc KJV 1900

23 Therefore he said that he would destroy them, Had not Moses his chosen stood before him in the breach, To turn away his wrath, lest he should destroy them.

Then came lusting for food in the wilderness, and later the envy exhibited against moses and Aaron for which swift punishment was meted out.

After that the worship of the Golden Calf and its dire results.

3. Repeated: Rebellion and Recovery (Ps. 106:24-31).

a. The Sin (Ps. 106:24-25).

Psalm 106:24–25 KJV 1900

24 Yea, they despised the pleasant land, They believed not his word: 25 But murmured in their tents, And hearkened not unto the voice of the Lord.

The people continued to murmur and refused to go up into the land which they “despised.”

Numbers 14:31 KJV 1900

31 But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised.

b. The Searching (Ps. 106:26-27).

Psalm 106:26–27 KJV 1900

26 Therefore he lifted up his hand against them, To overthrow them in the wilderness: 27 To overthrow their seed also among the nations, And to scatter them in the lands.

c. The Sin (Ps. 106:28-29a).

Psalm 106:28–29a KJV 1900

28 They joined themselves also unto Baal-peor, And ate the sacrifices of the dead.

d. The Searching (Ps. 106:29b).

Psalm 106:29b KJV 1900

29 Thus they provoked him to anger with their inventions: And the plague brake in upon them.

e. The Salvation (Ps. 106:30-31). Interposition of Phinehas

Psalm 106:30–31 KJV 1900

30 Then stood up Phinehas, and executed judgment: And so the plague was stayed. 31 And that was counted unto him for righteousness Unto all generations for evermore.

4. Repeated: Rebellion and Recovery (Ps. 106:32-43a).

a. The Sin (Ps. 106:32a).

Psalm 106:32a KJV 1900

32 They angered him also at the waters of strife, So that it went ill with Moses for their sakes:

Their idolatry was the climax to a succession of abominations which provoked to action the retribution inflicted at God’s command.

The rebellion at Meribah is noted in other order.

b. The Searching (Ps. 106:32b-33).

Psalm 106:32b–33 KJV 1900

33 Because they provoked his spirit, So that he spake unadvisedly with his lips.

c. The Sin (Ps. 106:34-39 ).

Psalm 106:34–39 KJV 1900

34 They did not destroy the nations, Concerning whom the Lord commanded them: 35 But were mingled among the heathen, And learned their works. 36 And they served their idols: Which were a snare unto them. 37 Yea, they sacrificed their sons And their daughters unto devils, 38 And shed innocent blood, Even the blood of their sons and of their daughters, Whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan: And the land was polluted with blood. 39 Thus were they defiled with their own works, And went a whoring with their own inventions.

Instead of destroying the nations as directed, they mingled with them in sin, idolatry, and intermarriage, and offered human sacrifice.

d. The Searching (Ps. 106:40-42).

Psalm 106:40–42 KJV 1900

40 Therefore was the wrath of the Lord kindled against his people, Insomuch that he abhorred his own inheritance. 41 And he gave them into the hand of the heathen; And they that hated them ruled over them. 42 Their enemies also oppressed them, And they were brought into subjection under their hand.

e. The Salvation (Ps. 106:43a). Intervention of Jehovah.

Psalm 106:43a KJV 1900

43 Many times did he deliver them; But they provoked him with their counsel, And were brought low for their iniquity.

The history is epitomized in sin, punishment, and forgiveness.

5. Rebellion and Recovery (Ps. 106:43b-46). Provocation - Experience in Canaan.

a. The Sin (Ps. 106:43b).

Psalm 106:43b (KJV 1900)

43 . . . But they provoked him with their counsel,

And were brought low for their iniquity.

Finally, God abandoned the people to their own devices, and to the punishment that became inevitable.

b. The Salvation (Ps. 106:44-45). "Nevertheless."

Psalm 106:44–45 KJV 1900

44 Nevertheless he regarded their affliction, When he heard their cry: 45 And he remembered for them his covenant, And repented according to the multitude of his mercies.

Even then, He yet had pity.

Summary:

The sins of the community have resulted in the community’s being exiled from the Promised Land (106:47).

Numerous examples of community sin are recorded in Psalm 106. They include the rebellion of Dathan and Abiram (106:16–18; Num 16:1–40), the making of the golden calf (106:19–20; Exod 32:1–8), the failure to enter the land (106:24–25; Num 14), the worship of Baal of Peor (106:28; Num 25), the rebellion at Meribah (106:32; Exod 17), and the failure to drive the Canaanites out of the land and the resultant idolatry (106:34–39; Judg 1–2). This is not a record of minor transgressions but of major violations of Israel’s covenant responsibilities.

Why? What lay at the root of rebellion? Two foundational failures.

First, forgetting.

Second, not trusting.

Three times we are told that Israel “forgot” (106:7, 13, 21). They forgot God’s many acts of kindness. They forgot all that he had done for them in the past. They forgot, in particular, his saving grace that had brought them out of Egypt. They forgot, not in the sense that they had no memory of these things, but in the sense that the memory of what God had done did not produce within them the response of obedience. God’s saving miracles and the record of those miracles were intended to produce grateful obedience (106:45), but they did not.

Why not? Because they did not combine their memory of what God had done with faith (see Heb 4:2). “They wouldn’t believe his promise to care for them” (106:24). They would believe for a time (106:12), but that faith seemed to dwindle very quickly (106:13), and the old pattern of disobedience reemerged.

Hebrews 4:2 KJV 1900

2 For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.

In light of the amazing record of God’s saving miracles recorded in Psalm 105, the record of Israel’s sin in Psalm 106 is incredible. Yet what comes through ever so brightly in this dismal history of sin and rebellion is the saving grace of God. “They rebelled.… Even so, he saved them” (106:7–8). “Again and again he rescued them, but they chose to rebel against him.… Even so, he pitied them” (106:43–44). Why? “He remembered his covenant” (106:45). The covenant in view is the covenant with their ancestors, with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (105:8–11, 42). What kept God faithful to his covenant promises? “His unfailing love” (106:45). The record of human sin is dwarfed by the record of divine love that saves those who “have sinned,” “done wrong,” and acted wickedly” (106:6). [Futato, Cornerstone Bible Commentary]

III. Call from Captivity (Ps. 106:46-48).

A. Punishment (Ps. 106:46).

Psalm 106:46 KJV 1900

46 He made them also to be pitied Of all those that carried them captives.

This doleful story shows God’s compassion throughout all their sin.

B. Prayer (Ps. 106:47-48).

Psalm 106:47–48 KJV 1900

47 Save us, O Lord our God, And gather us from among the heathen, To give thanks unto thy holy name, And to triumph in thy praise. 48 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting: And let all the people say, Amen. Praise ye the Lord.

The prayer claims mercy and offers thanksgiving.

Summary:

While the record of repeated sin could lead to despair, the record of God’s saving grace leads to hope—hope that God will save in the present as he has in the past. “Save us, O Lord our God!” (106:47). Because of his love and in spite of our sin, he is still “our God” upon whom we can call for salvation. The “he saved them” of the past (106:8) leads to the “save us” of the present (106:47).

We can call on him for the salvation of the community (106:47). This verse envisions Israel in exile in Babylon. The salvation they needed was to be gathered back from among the nations. As such, the salvation of the individual finds its place in the context of the salvation of the community. “Remember me, Lord, when you show favor to your people” (106:4). God’s favor is not simply a disposition within God, though it is that. God’s favor is experienced in the tangible prosperity and joy for which the psalmist hopes (106:5). The psalmist longs to experience God’s favor in the concrete realities of life here and now. The hope of the individual and the community is that God will once again demonstrate his love as he has so often done in the past. [CBC]

IV. Celebration of God’s Grace (Ps. 106:1, 23, 30, 47).

Psalm 106:1 KJV 1900

1 Praise ye the Lord. O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: For his mercy endureth for ever.

Psalm 106:23 KJV 1900

23 Therefore he said that he would destroy them, Had not Moses his chosen stood before him in the breach, To turn away his wrath, lest he should destroy them.

Psalm 106:30 KJV 1900

30 Then stood up Phinehas, and executed judgment: And so the plague was stayed.

Psalm 106:47 KJV 1900

47 Save us, O Lord our God, And gather us from among the heathen, To give thanks unto thy holy name, And to triumph in thy praise.

This psalm, which exposes so much sin, starts with the words, “Praise the Lord! Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!” And it ends on a similar note: “Save us … so we can thank your holy name and rejoice and praise you.”

Thus the confession of sin is ultimately a sacrifice of praise to the God of saving grace, whose “faithful love endures forever” (106:1).

And his saving grace comes to us through a mediator.

On one occasion that mediator was Moses who “stepped between the Lord and the people” (106:23).

On another occasion, it was Phinehas who “had the courage to intervene” (106:30).

But Moses and Phinehas were only precursors of the true mediator,

1 Timothy 2:5 KJV 1900

5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

And we have all benefited from the rich blessings Jesus brought to us—“one gracious blessing after another” (John 1:16). These gracious blessings stir our hearts to obey him—from hearts full of gratitude and praise (Ps. 106:1, 47). [CBC]

John 1:16 KJV 1900

16 And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace.

Psalm 106:1 KJV 1900

1 Praise ye the Lord. O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: For his mercy endureth for ever.

Psalm 106:47 KJV 1900

47 Save us, O Lord our God, And gather us from among the heathen, To give thanks unto thy holy name, And to triumph in thy praise.

Psalm 106:48 KJV 1900

48 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting: And let all the people say, Amen. Praise ye the Lord.