Thanksgiving for Deliverance

(Matthew 8:23–27, Mark 4:35–41, Luke 8:22–25)

Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good;

His loving devotion endures forever.

2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say so,

whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy

3 and gathered from the lands,

from east and west, from north and south.[fn]

4 Some wandered in desert wastelands,

finding no path to a city in which to dwell.

5 They were hungry and thirsty;

their soul fainted within them.

6 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,

and He delivered them from their distress.

7 He led them on a straight path

to reach a city where they could live.

8 Let them give thanks to the LORD for His loving devotion

and His wonders to the sons of men.

9 For He satisfies the thirsty

and fills the hungry with good things.

10 Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death,

prisoners in affliction and chains,

11 because they rebelled against the words of God

and despised the counsel of the Most High.

12 He humbled their hearts with hard labor;

they stumbled, and there was no one to help.

13 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,

and He saved them from their distress.

14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death

and broke away their chains.

15 Let them give thanks to the LORD for His loving devotion

and His wonders to the sons of men.

16 For He has broken down the gates of bronze

and cut through the bars of iron.

17 Fools, in their rebellious ways,

and through their iniquities, suffered affliction.

18 They loathed all food

and drew near to the gates of death.

19 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,

and He saved them from their distress.

20 He sent forth His word and healed them;

He rescued them from the Pit.

21 Let them give thanks to the LORD for His loving devotion

and His wonders to the sons of men.

22 Let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving

and declare His works with rejoicing.

23 Others went out to sea in ships,

conducting trade on the mighty waters.

24 They saw the works of the LORD,

and His wonders in the deep.

25 For He spoke and raised a tempest

that lifted the waves of the sea.

26 They mounted up to the heavens, then sunk to the depths;

their courage melted in their anguish.

27 They reeled and staggered like drunkards,

and all their skill was useless.[fn]

28 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,

and He brought them out of their distress.

29 He calmed the storm to a whisper,

and the waves of the sea [fn] were hushed.

30 They rejoiced in the silence,

and He guided them to the harbor they desired.

31 Let them give thanks to the LORD for His loving devotion

and His wonders to the sons of men.

32 Let them exalt Him in the assembly of the people

and praise Him in the council of the elders.

33 He turns rivers into deserts,

springs of water into thirsty ground,

34 and fruitful land into fields of salt,

because of the wickedness of its dwellers.

35 He turns a desert into pools of water

and a dry land into flowing springs.

36 He causes the hungry to settle there,

that they may establish a city in which to dwell.

37 They sow fields and plant vineyards

that yield a fruitful harvest.

38 He blesses them, and they multiply greatly;

He does not let their herds diminish.

39 When they are decreased and humbled

by oppression, evil, and sorrow,

40 He pours out contempt on the nobles

and makes them wander in a trackless wasteland.

41 But He lifts the needy from affliction

and increases their families like flocks.

42 The upright see and rejoice,

and all iniquity shuts its mouth.

43 Let him who is wise pay heed to these things

and consider the loving devotion of the LORD.