Psalm 106 - Merciful God

That the holy God of all creation seeks to show mercy to mankind is a bit mind boggling, but according to this Psalm that is exactly what He does for His people! In spite of our failures, He seeks to restore us. Let us look at this Psalm to see how His mercy was shown to His chosen people Israel.

This Psalm begins with a hallelujah statement of praise to the Lord because His love and mercy are steadfast and endure forever! It continues with a rhetorical question, “who can describe the utter deeds of the Lord?” Indeed, who would be able to do that? The psalmist goes on to admit that he and his forefathers sinned. The Bible teaches that all have sinned, that is, all have grieved the heart of holy God by our actions, words, or the attitudes of our heart (Romans 3:23). The writer of this psalm then begins to enumerate some of the times in the history of Israel when the nation sinned and rebelled against the Lord. We have read about those times in Israel's history in the Bible: 

Unthankfulness regarding deliverance from Egypt;

Wrong cravings in the wilderness instead of trusting God’s provision;

Jealousy of Moses and Aaron;

Making and worshipping the golden calf in Horeb; 

Worshipping the false god Baal of Peor;

Complaining about having no water at Meribah; 

Interweaving their lives the heathen nations to the point of serving their idols.

These are just some of the sins of Israel, and we do not want to focus on these rebellious acts. But we do need to acknowledge some verses which illuminate the problem in the hearts of the Israelites. Verses 12 and 13 tell us the people initially believed the words of the Lord and sang His praise, but they soon forgot His works. Verse 21 states they forgot God, their Savior. Verse 24 tells us they had no faith in His promise. In verse 39 they became unclean by their acts, and played the prostitute in their deeds by worshiping other gods. The Israelites forgot His works, they did not believe His promises to them, and the result showed in their actions. The downward spiral of a sinful heart is portrayed here. Let us take note and be careful to remember the past answers to prayer, His protection, and the ways He has provided. Forgetting can lead to not believing in His promises for the present, as well as the future. This can result in a sinful heart against the One who has done so much for us!

It is important to consider how the Lord continued to show mercy to the nation in spite of their sin. Verse 23 relates that God would have destroyed them had not Moses stood in the breach to turn away His wrath. And in verse 30 we are told that Phinehas stood up and intervened to stop a plague, and it was counted to him for righteousness. The point here is that often an individual can be used to intercede on behalf of those who are grieving the Lord by their lives. It is clear that God uses people to influence and impact the lives of others. Each one of us can have a powerful impact on others who are in the realm of our influence in this world. Whether or not we want it or recognize it, the truth is we influence those whose paths we cross each day. By the way we live with integrity and the encouraging words we speak, we are able to impact lives for eternity. The Lord uses those who are submitted to Him and to His direction each moment of the day, and who are willing to intercede on behalf of others. We are to live lives surrendered to Him for our benefit as well as for the benefit of those needing His grace and mercy.

Lastly, we need to remember that God shows mercy because He is a merciful God. This psalm relates that many times God delivered His people but they continued to be rebellious. However, verse 45 records that He “heard their cries and remembered His covenant and relented according to the abundance of His steadfast love." The word relented means he rescinded their sentence. They deserved to be punished for their sin, but God chose to show mercy because of His covenant with them. If you are a person who has acknowledged and repented of sin in your life, and asked Jesus to cleanse it by His sacrificial blood, then you are a child of God. His Holy Spirit lives in you, and you are His by covenant. In the words of II Timothy 2:13, “If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.” Even though we sin, He cannot deny Himself. We still need to recognize and confess sin to maintain proper fellowship with Him, but our relationship is secure through the covenant blood of Christ. Because of this covenant God is able to show us mercy and grace, and draw us gently back to fellowship with Him.

The takeaway thought is this: At times God uses an individual to intercede for a rebellious soul so God can show mercy. Other times He just shows up and shows mercy. He is a loving, faithful, merciful God.

Author: Clara NeSmith

Clara NeSmith has taught Bible study classes in her local church for over 40 years, and is currently working on her first book. She enjoys sharing from God’s Word the truths gleaned in her daily study, along with her hobbies of reading and sewing. Clara worked at her dream job of being a stay-at-home mom for many years. She then did Social Work in an elderly care setting for 20 years. She has four grown children and 9 grandchildren. She currently resides in Brandon, FL.