Discovery BoxPsalms 107:13-20 
Context107:13 They cried out to the Lord in their distress;
he delivered them from their troubles.
107:14 He brought them out of the utter darkness, 1
and tore off their shackles.
107:15 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his loyal love,
and for the amazing things he has done for people! 2
107:16 For he shattered the bronze gates,
and hacked through the iron bars. 3
107:17 They acted like fools in their rebellious ways, 4
and suffered because of their sins.
107:18 They lost their appetite for all food, 5
and they drew near the gates of death.
107:19 They cried out to the Lord in their distress;
he delivered them from their troubles.
107:20 He sent them an assuring word 6 and healed them;
he rescued them from the pits where they were trapped. 7
1 tn Heb “darkness and deep darkness.” See the note on the word “darkness” in v. 10.
2 tn Heb “and [for] his amazing deeds for the sons of man.” See v. 8.
3 sn The language of v. 16 recalls Isa 45:2.
4 tn Heb “fools [they were] because of the way of their rebellion.”
5 tn Heb “all food their appetite loathed.”
6 tn Heb “he sent his word.” This probably refers to an oracle of assurance which announced his intention to intervene (see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 [WBC], 59).
7 tn Heb “he rescued from their traps.” The Hebrew word שְׁחִית (shekhit, “trap”) occurs only here and in Lam 4:20, where it refers to a trap or pit in which one is captured. Because of the rarity of the term and the absence of an object with the verb “rescued,” some prefer to emend the text of Ps 107:20, reading מִשַׁחַת חַיָּתָם (mishakhat khayyatam, “[he rescued] their lives from the pit”). Note also NIV “from the grave,” which interprets the “pit” as Sheol or the grave.
