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PSALM 106

1. O, give thanks to jehovah, for he is good, for his mercy is for ever.
2. Who can express the mighty acts of jehovah? Who can show forth all his praise?
3. Blessed are they who keep judgement, who at all times do justice.
4. Remember me, O jehovah, with the favour which than bearest to your people; O, visit me with your salvation!
5. That I may behold the good of your chosen, that I may rejoice in the gladness of your nation; that I may glory with your inheritance.
6. We have sinned, with our fathers, we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly.
7. Our fathers understood not your wonders in Egypt, they remembered not the multitude of your mercies, but were rebellious at the sea, even at the Red Sea.
8. Yet he saved them for his name's sake, that he might cause his mighty power to be known.
9. Yea, he rebuked the Red Sea and it was dried up, so he led them through the depths, as through the desert.
10. He saved them from the hand of him that hated them, and redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.
11. But the waters covered their adversaries; there was not one of them left.
12. Then they believed his words, they sang his praise.
13. Soon they forgot his works, and 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, Aaron, the saint of jehovah.
17. The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan, and covered the company of Abiram.
18. A fire was kindled in their company; the flame burned up the wicked.
19. They made a calf in Horeb, and worshiped a molten image.
20. Thus they changed their glory into the likeness of an ox that eats grass.
21. They forgot god their saviour, who had done great things in Egypt,
22. Wonderful works in the land of Ham, fearful things by the Red Sea.
23. Therefore he said that he would destroy them, unless Moses his chosen had stood before him in the breach, to turn away his wrath from destroying them.
24. They despised the desirable land; they believed not his words,
25. But murmured in their tents, and hearkened not to the voice of jehovah;
26. Therefore he lifted up his hand against them, to cast them down in the wilderness;
27. To cast down their seed amongst the nations, and to scatter them through the lands.
28. They joined themselves to Baal-peor, and did eat the sacrifices of the dead.
29. Thus did they provoke him to anger by their deeds; a plague broke in upon them.
30. Then stood up Phineas, and executed judgement, and the plague was stopped;
31. Which has been accounted to him for justice, from generation to generation, even for ever.
32. They excited him to anger at the waters of Meribah, and evil befell Moses on their account;
33. Because they provoked his spirit, so that he spoke rashly with his lips.
34. They destroyed not the peoples, as jehovah had commanded them;
35. But mingled themselves with the nations, and learned their works;
36. Yea, they served their idols; they were a snare to them.
37. They even sacrificed their sons and their daughters to devils.
38. And shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan; so that the land was polluted with blood.
39. Thus did they defile themselves with their works, and go a whoring with their own deeds.
40. Therefore was the anger of jehovah kindled against his people, so that he abhorred his own inheritance.
41. And he gave them up into the hand of the nations, and they that hated them ruled over them.
42. Their enemies oppressed them, and they were bowed down under their hand.
43. Many times did he deliver them, but they provoked him with their counsel, and were brought low for their iniquity.
44. Yet when he looked upon their distress, when he heard their cry,
45. He remembered his covenant with them, and repented according to the multitude of his mercies.
46. Yea, he caused them to be pitied by all who held them captive.
47. Save us, O jehovah, our god, and gather us from amongst the nations, to give thanks to your holy name, to triumph in your praise.
48. Blessed be jehovah, the god of Israel, from eternity to eternity, and let all the people say, Amen. hallelujah.

the internal sense.

Of the church established among the Jewish nation, that it became perverse and fell off. A prayer of the lord to the father, to assist him, that he may see the church restored, verses 1 to 5; that they of the church, although they saw Divine miracles, fell off and yet were preserved, verses 6 to 8; as at the Red Sea, and afterwards again in the wilderness; and nevertheless they rebelled, verses 9 to 34; that they entirely destroyed and profaned the goods and truths of the Word, verses 35 to 39; that therefore the church among them was left by the lord, and destroyed, verses 40 to 43; that then they without the church were heard, verses 44 to 46; and that out of them a church will be established, which will worship the lord, verses 47, 48.

Verse 1. Hallelujah. That hereby is signified that the all of faith, and hence of glory, is from Divine truth, which is from jehovah, appears from the signification of a song, when concerning jehovah, as denoting the glorification of the lord, the reason why Jah denotes the Divine truth proceeding from the Divine Human principle of the lord, is because Jah is from Jehovah, and is called Jah, because it is not the esse, but the existere from the esse. AC 8267.

Verse 4. Remember me, O jehovah, with the favour of your people; O, visit me with your salvation. That to remember, when concerning the lord, denotes to have compassion, and thus to preserve or deliver from a principle of mercy, is manifest from this and many other passages, where Divine remembrance is spoken of. AC 9849.

Verse 5. That I may behold the good of your chosen, that I may rejoice in the gladness of your nation; that I may glory with your inheritance. That nation in the internal sense, where the lord is treated of, and the celestial things of his love, signifies him, and all celestial things, may appear from the signification of a nation or nations, when spoken of in the Word. The signification of a nation, as denoting the celestial things of love, and the good thence derived, had its rise in that perceptivity, which distinguished the men of the most ancient church into house, families, and nations, and thus rendered them perceptive of the lord's kingdom. AC 1416.

Verse 7. Your wonders in Egypt; see Psalm 78:43, Exposition.

Verse 9. He rebuked the Red Sea, and it was dried up; so he led them through the depths, as through the wilderness. By depths in old time was signified hell, and the phantasies and persuasions of what is false were likened to waters and streams of water; so also hells occasionally appear, namely as depths and seas. The wicked spirits who devastate man, also who tempt him, are from that source; and the phantasies which they infuse, and the lusts which they kindle in man, are as inundations and exhalations from that source. AC 756.

Verse 17. The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan, and covered the company of Abiram. The reason why Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, with their company, were swallowed up by the earth, although they took the fire from the altar, and therewith burnt incense, was because by their murmuring against Moses and Aaron, was signified the profanation of the good of celestial love, since by Moses and Aaron was represented the lord; for to murmur, that is, to rebel against the lord, and at the same time to be engaged in holy offices, is profanation. AE 324.

Verse 19. They made a calf in Horeb, and worshiped the molten image. By making a calf in Horeb, and by worshiping a molten image, is signified idolatrous worship, which is that of ceremonies, of statutes, of judgements, and of precepts, in the external form only, and not at the same time in the internal; and that thus in their heart they were idolaters; by changing glory into the effigy of an ox that eats grass, is signified that they alienated themselves from the internal things of the Word and of the church, and worshiped what is external, which is merely a scientific principle. From these considerations it may now be manifest what is signified by a calf, or what is molten, and what is meant in David, where he says, "They made a calf in Horeb, and changed glory into the effigy of an ox that eats grass." AC 10407.

Verse 22. Wondrous works in the land of Ham. That Ham signifies what is corrupt in the church, arising from worship in externals, without internals. Such persons in the ancient church were called Ham, because they lived the life of all lust, only supposing that they may be saved by faith without regard to their life. AC 61063. See further concerning Ham, Psalm 78:51, Exposition.

Verse 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. That by a breach is signified the infraction and perversion of truth by separation from good, is evident from this passage, where to stand in the breach denotes also to take heed lest falses break in, as in David, "jehovah said that he would have destroyed the people, had not Moses his chosen stood in the breach before him," where, to stand in the breach denotes also to take heed lest falses break in. AC 4926.

Verses 26, 27. Therefore he lifted up his hand against them, to cast them down in the wilderness. To cast down their seed amongst the nations, and to scatter them in the lands. By casting down their seed amongst the nations, and dispersing them into the lands, is signified that Divine Truth with them will perish by evils and by falses. AE 768.

Verse 28. They joined themselves to Baal-peor. By Baal-peor is signified the adulteration of good. AE 655.

Verse 30. Then stood up Phineas, and executed judgement, and the plague was stopped. They who are born within the church, and from infancy have imbued the principles of the truth of the church, ought not to enter into marriages with those who are out of the church, and have thereby imbued such things as are not of the church; the reason is because there is no conjunction between them in the spiritual world, for every one in that world is consociated according to good and the truth thence derived; and since there is no conjunction between such in the spiritual world, neither ought there to be any conjunction on earth; for marriages regarded in themselves are conjunctions of minds, [animi,] and of minds, [mentes,] the spiritual life of which [minds] is derived from the truths and goods of faith and charity; on this account marriages on earth, between those who are of a different religion, are also accounted in heaven as heinous; and especially between those who are of the church with those who are out of the church; this also was the reason why the Jewish and Israelitish nation was forbidden to contract matrimony with the Gentiles, Deut 7:3, 4, and why it was altogether heinous to commit whoredom with them, this was signified by the plague mentioned in Numb 25:1 to 9, which Phineas stopped. This appears still more evident from the origin of conjugial love, as being from the marriage of good and truth, see AC 2727 to 2759; when conjugial love descends thence, it is heaven itself in man; this [heaven] is destroyed when two conjugial partners are of dissimilar hearts grounded in dissimilar faith. AC 8998.

Verse 32. At the waters of Meribah; see Psalm 95:8, 9, 10, Exposition.

Verse 37. Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters to devils. This was altogether infernal; but by sacrificing sons and daughters, in the spiritual sense, were signified by evil lusts, to destroy the truths and goods of the church, for sons signify the truths of the church, and daughters its goods. AE 586.

Verses 38, 39. And shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, etc. To shed the blood of sons and of daughters, in the internal sense, denotes that they extinguished all the truths of faith and goods of charity; to sacrifice sons and daughters to the idols of Canaan, signifies to profane those things which are of faith and charity by external worship, separate from internal. AC 1167.