Those who go down to the sea in ships, who do business in great waters;
Parallel Translations
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Those who go down to the sea in ships, who do business in great waters;
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They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters;
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They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters —
Cross-references (5)
Passages linked to Psalms 107:23 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Revelation 18:17 For in an hour such great riches are made desolate.’ Every ship master, and everyone who sails anywhere, and mariners, and as many as gain their living by sea, stood far away,
- Psalms 48:7 With the east wind, you break the ships of Tarshish.
- Isaiah 42:10 Sing to Yahweh a new song, and his praise from the end of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that is therein, the islands and their inhabitants.
- Ezekiel 27:26 Your rowers have brought you into great waters. The east wind has broken you in the heart of the seas.
- Acts 27:9-28 When much time had passed and the voyage was now dangerous, because the Fast had now already gone by, Paul admonished them and said to them, “Sirs, I perceive that the voyage will be with injury and much loss, not only of the cargo and the ship, but also of our lives.” But the centurion gave more heed to the master and to the owner of the ship than to those things which were spoken by Paul. Because the haven was not suitable to winter in, the majority advised going to sea from there, if by any means they could reach Phoenix, and winter there, which is a port of Crete, looking southwest and northwest. When the south wind blew softly, supposing that they had obtained their purpose, they weighed anchor and sailed along Crete, close to shore. But before long, a stormy wind beat down from shore, which is called Euroclydon. When the ship was caught and couldn’t face the wind, we gave way to it and were driven along. Running under the lee of a small island called Clauda, we were able, with difficulty, to secure the boat. After they had hoisted it up, they used cables to help reinforce the ship. Fearing that they would run aground on the Syrtis sand bars, they lowered the sea anchor, and so were driven along. As we labored exceedingly with the storm, the next day they began to throw things overboard. On the third day, they threw out the ship’s tackle with their own hands. When neither sun nor stars shone on us for many days, and no small storm pressed on us, all hope that we would be saved was now taken away. When they had been long without food, Paul stood up in the middle of them, and said, “Sirs, you should have listened to me, and not have set sail from Crete and have gotten this injury and loss. Now I exhort you to cheer up, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship. For there stood by me this night an angel, belonging to the God whose I am and whom I serve, saying, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul. You must stand before Caesar. Behold, God has granted you all those who sail with you.’ Therefore, sirs, cheer up! For I believe God, that it will be just as it has been spoken to me. But we must run aground on a certain island.” But when the fourteenth night had come, as we were driven back and forth in the Adriatic Sea, about midnight the sailors surmised that they were drawing near to some land. They took soundings, and found twenty fathoms. After a little while, they took soundings again, and found fifteen fathoms.
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 23. They that go down to the sea in…
23. They that go down to the sea in ships Here we have another instance of God’s superintending care towards mankind pointed out to us by the prophet, exemplified in the bringing of those who are shipwrecked to the harbour, and this, too, as if he had raised them from the depth and darkness of the tomb, and brought them to live in the light of day. I do not understand what is here said about those who are accustomed to navigate the ocean seeing the wonders of God, as referring generally to the many wonderful things with which it abounds. Such persons are well fitted to bear testimony regarding the works of God, because they there behold more vast and various wonders than are to be seen upon earth. But it appears to me preferable to connect this with the subsequent context, where the prophet is his own interpreter, and where he shows how suddenly God raises and calms the tempest.
The sum of the matter is, that the scope of the passage is to point out that the lives of those who navigate the seas are often in great jeopardy by the storms which they encounter; because, as often as the ocean heaves and is agitated, and the billows rise and rage, so often does death stare them in the face. But he furnishes us with a still more vivid picture of the providence of God; for in telling us, that the sea does not of its own accord rise into a tempest, he makes use of the verb, he speaks, intimating that the word and providence of God make the winds blow, to agitate the sea. True, indeed, the mariners imagine from certain phenomena, that a storm is approaching, but sudden changes proceed only from the secret appointment of God. Therefore, he gives not merely a historical narrative of the manner in which squalls and storms arise, but, assuming the character of a teacher, begins with the cause itself, and then directs to the imminent danger with which the tempest is fraught; or rather, portrays, as in a picture, the image of death, in order that the goodness of God may appear the more conspicuous when the tempest happily ceases without any loss of life. They mount up, says he, to the heavens, they descend into the deeps; as if he should say, they mount up into the air, so that their life may be destroyed, and then they tumble down towards the caverns of the ocean, where they may be drowned. Next, he mentions the fears which torment them, or rather which may deprive them of understanding; intimating by these words, that however skilfully mariners may steer their vessels, they may happen to be deprived of their senses; and being thus paralysed, they could not avail themselves of aid, were it even at hand. For though they collect all their tackling, cast their sounding line into the deep, and unfurl their sails to all points, yet after making every attempt, and all human skill is baffled, they give themselves up to the mercy of wind and wave. All hope of safety being cut off, no farther means are employed by them. And now that all human aid fails, they cry unto God for deliverance, which is a convincing evidence that they had been as it were dead.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain He showeth by the sea what care God hath…
He showeth by the sea what care God hath over man, for in that that he delivereth them from the great danger of the sea, he delivereth them, as it were from a thousand deaths.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Psa 107:23 They that go down to the sea…
Psa 107:23 They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters;
Ver. 23. They that go down to the sea in ships] Here we have a fourth specimen or instance of God’s gracious and wise dispensations towards men, in their trading or trafficking by sea. These are said to go down to sea, because the banks are above it; but the water is naturally higher than the land, and, therefore, sailors observe that their ships fly faster to the shore than from it. But what a bold man, saith the poet, was he that first put forth to sea! (Horat. Od. lib. 1, 3.)
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Illi robut, et aes triplex
Circa pectus erat, qui fragilem truci
Commisit pelago ratem
Primus, nec timuit praecipitem Africum, &c.
That do business in great waters] Merchants and mariners, who fish, and find almug, or coral, saith Kimchi, who do export and import commodities of all sorts.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Go down to the sea; he saith go down,…
Go down to the sea; he saith go down, either because the sea or the shore of it is commonly lower than their habitations from whence they come, or than the natural or artificial banks which are raised to prevent the inundation of the waters; or because the sea is lower than the earth, as may be gathered from the rivers which run down into it.
Do business; whose occupation lies there, either as merchants or as mariners.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain The psalmist here calls upon those to give glory…
The psalmist here calls upon those to give glory to God who are delivered from dangers at sea. Though the Israelites dealt not much in merchandise, yet their neighbours the Tyrians and Zidonians did, and for them perhaps this part of the psalm was especially calculated.
I. Much of the power of God appears at all times in the sea, Psa 107:23, Psa 107:24. It appears to those that go down to the sea in ships, as mariners, merchants, fishermen, or passengers, that do business in great waters. And surely none will expose themselves there but those that have business (among all Solomon's pleasant things we do not read of any pleasure-boat he had), but those that go on business, lawful business, may, in faith, put themselves under the divine protection. These see the works of the Lord, and his wonders, which are the more surprising, because most are born and bred upon land, and what passes at sea is new to them. The deep itself is a wonder, its vastness, its saltness, its ebbing and flowing. The great variety of living creatures in the sea is wonderful. Let those that go to sea be led, by all the wonders they observe there, to consider and adore the infinite perfections of that God whose the sea is, for he made it and manages it.
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II. It especially appears in storms at sea, which are much more terrible than at land. Observe here, 1. How dangerous and dreadful a tempest at sea is. Then wonders begin to appear in the deep, when God commands and raises the strong wind, which fulfils his word, Psa 148:8. He raises the winds, as a prince by his commission raises forces. Satan pretends to be the prince of the power of the air; but he is a pretender; the powers of the air are at God's command, not at his. When the wind becomes stormy it lifts up the waves of the sea, Psa 107:25. Then the ships are kicked like tennis-balls on the tops of the waves; they seem to mount up to the heavens, and then they couch again, as if they would go down to the depths, Psa 107:26. A stranger, who had never seen it, would not think it possible for a ship to live at sea, as it will in a storm, and ride it out, but would expect that the next wave would bury it and it would never come up again; and yet God, who taught man discretion to make ships that should so strangely keep above water, does by his special providence preserve them, that they answer the end to admiration. When the ships are thus tossed the soul of the seaman melts because of trouble; and, when the storm is very high, even those that are used to the sea can neither shake off nor dissemble their fears, but they reel to and fro, and tossing makes them giddy, and they stagger and are sick, it may be, like a drunken man; the whole ship's crew are in confusion and quite at their wits' end (Psa 107:27), not knowing what to do more for their preservation; all their wisdom is swallowed up, and they are ready to give up themselves for gone, Jon 1:5, etc. 2. How seasonable it is at such a time to pray. Those that go to sea must expect such perils as are here described, and the best preparation they can make for them is to make sure a liberty of access to God by prayer, for then they will cry unto the Lord, Psa 107:28. We have a saying, "Let those that would learn to pray go to sea;" I say, Let those that will go to sea learn to pray, and accustom themselves to pray, that they may come with the more boldness to the throne of grace when they are in trouble. Even heathen mariners, in a storm, cried every man to his god; but those that have the Lord for their God have a present and powerful help in that and every other time of need, so that when they are at their wits' end they are not at their faith's end. 3. How wonderfully God sometimes appears for those that are in distress at sea, in answer to their prayers: He brings them out of the danger; and, (1.) The sea is still: He makes the storm a calm, Psa 107:29. The winds fall, and only by their soft and gentle murmurs serve to lull the waves asleep again, so that the surface of the sea becomes smooth and smiling. By this Christ proved himself to be more than a man that even the winds and the seas obeyed him. (2.) The seamen are made easy: They are glad because they are quiet, quiet from the noise, quiet from the fear of evil. Quietness after a storm is a very desirable thing, and sensibly pleasant. (3.) The voyage becomes prosperous and successful: So he brings them to their desired haven, Psa 107:30. Thus he carries his people safely through all the storms and tempests that they meet with in their voyage heaven-ward, and lands them, at length, in the desired harbour. 4. How justly it is expected that all those who have had a safe passage over the sea, and especially who have been delivered from remarkable perils at sea, should acknowledge it with thankfulness, to the glory of God. Let them do it privately in their closets and families. Let them praise the Lord for his goodness to themselves and others, Psa 107:31. Let them do it publicly (Psa 107:32), in the congregation of the people and in the assembly of the elders; there let them erect the memorials of their deliverance, to the honour of God, and for the encouragement of others to trust him.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain They mount up to the heaven,.... The waves which…
They mount up to the heaven,.... The waves which are lifted up by the stormy wind, and the ships which are upon them, and the men in them.
They go down again to the depths: one while they seem to reach the skies, and presently they are down, as it were, in the bottom of the sea, and are threatened to be buried in the midst of it; distress at sea is described in much the same language by Virgil and Ovid (m).
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Their soul is melted because of trouble; because of the danger of being cast away; so it was with Jonah's mariner's, and with the disciples in the storm; sea roaring, and men's hearts failing for fear, are joined together in Luk 21:25.
(m) "Tollimur in coelum", Virgil. Aeneid 3. prope finem. "Coelumque aequare videtur pontus". Ovid. Metamorph. l. 12. Fab. 10.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 23. They that go down to the sea…
Verse 23. They that go down to the sea in ships] This is the FOURTH comparison. Their captivity was as dangerous and alarming as a dreadful tempest at sea to a weather-beaten mariner.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Psa 107:23-27. They that go down to the sea…
Psa 107:23-27. They that go down to the sea in ships — He says go down, because the sea is lower than the earth, as appears by the rivers which run down into it; that do business in great waters — Whose occupation lies there as mariners, merchants, or fisher-men; or, who go to take ship as passengers. These see the works of the Lord — His wonderful works, either, 1st, Of creation, such as fishes of various kinds and shapes, and some of a prodigious size; which are not seen by other men. Or, 2d, His works of providence in bringing them into extraordinary dangers through storms, and working out for them extraordinary deliverances; they witness scenes, and experience interpositions of divine providence, such as others can scarcely form a conception of. For he raiseth the stormy wind — The winds and storms, which come not by chance, but by the order of Divine Providence. They mount up to heaven, &c. — The ships are sometimes raised so high, that it appears as if they would touch the clouds; and then sink down as low as if they would be buried in the bottom of the sea, to the great astonishment and dread of the passengers, whose soul is melted because of trouble — Who are ready to die with fear and dismay. They reel to and fro, &c. — They are so tossed and whirled about, that, as they are not able to stand upon the decks, so the most skilful mariners are at their wit’s end, and do not know which way to steer, or what course to take to save themselves from perishing; all their skill fails them, as some translate the words. “There cannot,” says Dr. Dodd, “be conceived any thing more poetical or sublime than this description of a storm at sea; a subject on which the most celebrated poets have employed their pens. It would be a pleasing task, if the nature or limits of our work allowed it, to compare this description of the psalmist with those of ancient and modern writers. But we are denied this agreeable task; and shall only add, that those who will make the comparison, will find how much superior are the ideas and expressions of the sacred poet to those of uninspired writers.” But, as Dr. Horne observes, “Experience alone can illustrate its beauty, evince its truth, and point out the propriety of the circumstances which are selected to furnish us with a full and complete idea of the whole. Few of us, indeed,” adds he, “are ever likely to be in that terrible situation. But then,” (for this is a fourth similitude portraying the danger of our present state, and the goodness of God displayed in our salvation,) “we cannot help reflecting, that there is a ship in which we are all embarked; there is a troubled sea on which we all sail; there are storms by which we are all frequently overtaken; and there is a haven which we all desire to behold and to enter. For the church is a ship; the world is a sea; temptations, persecutions, and afflictions are the waves of it; the prince of the power of the air is the stormy wind which raises them; and heaven is the only port of rest and security. Often during the voyage, for our punishment or our trial, God permits us to be thus assaulted. The succession and the violence of our troubles, the elevations and depressions of our minds, the uncertainty of our counsels, and our utter inability to help ourselves, are finely represented by the multitude and impetuosity of the waves, the tossings and agitations of the vessel, the confusion, terror, and distress among the sailors. In both cases prayer is the proper effect, and the only remedy left. We should cry unto the Lord Jesus in our trouble; we should, as it were, awake him, like the disciples, with the repetitions of, Lord, save us, we perish! Then will he arise and rebuke the authors of our tribulation, saying unto them, Peace, be still, and they shall hear and obey his voice. He will make the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof shall be still; and, at length, he will bring us in peace, joy, and gladness, to our desired haven, there to exalt him in the congregation of his chosen, and praise him in the great assembly of saints and angels.”
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain They that go down to the sea in ships…
They that go down to the sea in ships - The scene here changes again. From those that wander in the desert - from those who are in prison - from those who are sick - the eye of the psalmist turns to those who encounter the perils of the ocean, and he finds there occasion for praise to God. The phrase “go down” or “descend” is employed here because the sea is lower than the land, and because we “descend” when we embark on board of a vessel.
That do business ... - Whose business or employment is on the ocean.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 23-32. This fourth division describes the perils of seafaring…
23-32. This fourth division describes the perils of seafaring life, and is to be taken literally. It does not suppose the mariners to be wicked, but only in perils beyond redemption by human arm, and the usual point is made that men, who are habitually thoughtless of God, will yet call upon him when in extreme distress. In this strophe Psa_107:28; Psa_107:31, are the usual refrain.
23. Go down to the sea—The expression supposes the sea lower than the land, lying in hollow depths prepared for it. Job_38:10-11; Psa_104:8; Isa_42:10. We would say, “Put to sea.”
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That do business— Not fishermen, but merchants. The Tyrians held the commerce of the world at this time, and they were well known to the Hebrews.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 23. They that go down to the sea] Or,…
23. They that go down to the sea] Or, go down on the sea; the sea being apparently below the land. Cp. Isa_42:10, and the somewhat different use of ‘go down’ in Jon_1:3.
that do business in great waters] As merchants and traders, traversing the open sea, and not merely making coasting voyages.
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23–32. A fourth example of Jehovah’s goodness, in the deliverance of sailors caught in a storm. The Targ.[62] refers it to the voyage of Jonah, and some expressions suggest that Jonah 1, 2 may have been in the poet’s mind; but the reference is quite general. Addison (Spectator, No. 489) comments on the sublimity of the Psalmist’s description of the storm.
[62] Ed. Lagarde. The text in Walton’s Polyglott does not contain the gloss.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (23) They that go down to the sea.—An expression…
(23) They that go down to the sea.—An expression so exactly opposite to the ancient equivalent for embarking that we feel we have the very Hebrew feeling. From the high lands of Judæa it was a literal descent to the shores of the Mediterranean. So Jonah went down to Joppa (Jon_1:3). (Comp. Isa_42:10.)
Do business.—Probably with allusion to commercial enterprise.
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(23-32) Storm-tossed mariners.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Vers. 23-32. Finally, there are eases among those whose…
Vers. 23-32. Finally, there are eases among those whose business requires them to traverse the sea, where the danger is great, and death seems imminent. Let such persons cast themselves upon God, and "cry to him in their trouble," and they too will be heard and delivered. Must it not be their duty also to give thanks?
They that go down to the sea in ships. That many of the Israelites engaged in maritime pursuits appears from 1Ki_9:26-28 1Ki_10:22 1Ki_22:48 2Ch_20:36; as also from Jud_1:5:17 Psa_48:7 Pro_23:34 Pro_30:19; and from many passages of the Apocrypha. Joppa was at all times an Israelite port, from which trade was carried on by the residents. (2Ch_2:16 Ezr_3:7 Jon_1:3) That do business in great waters; i.e. the sea of Galilee and Lake Merom.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Charles H. Spurgeon 1885 · Public Domain Ver. 23. They that go down to the sea…
Ver. 23. They that go down to the sea in ships. Navigation was so little practised among the Israelites that mariners were invested with a high mystery, and their craft was looked upon as one of singular daring degree of and peril. Tales of the sea thrilled all hearts with awe, and he who had been to Ophir or to Tarshish and had returned alive was looked upon as a man of renown, an ancient mariner to be listened to with reverent attention. Voyages were looked on as descending to an abyss, "going down to the sea in ships"; whereas now our bolder and more accustomed sailors talk of the "high seas."
That do business in great waters. If they had not had business to do, they would never have ventured on the ocean, for we never read in the Scriptures of any man taking his pleasure on the sea: so averse was the Israelitish mind to seafaring, that we do not hear of even Solomon himself keeping a pleasure boat. The Mediterranean was "the great sea" to David and his countrymen, and they viewed those who had business upon it with no small degree of admiration.
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As a specimen of medieval spiritualizing we give the following from the Hermit of Hampole:
Ver. 23. They that go down to the sea in ships, etc. They that (are true prelates and preachers,)go down from the sublimity of contemplation, to the sea, that is, suiting themselves to the lowly, that they also may be saved, in ships, that is, in the faith, hope and charity of the church, without which they would be drowned in the waters of pleasure, that do business, that is, continue preaching, in great waters, that is, among many people in order that they may become fishers of men. Richardus Hampolitanus.
Ver. 23-27.
While thus our keels still onward boldly strayed
Now tossed by tempest, now by calms delayed;
To tell the terrors of the deep untried,
What toils we suffered, and what storms defied;
What rattling deluges the black clouds poured,
What dreary weeks of solid darkness lowered;
What mountain surges mountain surges lashed,
What sudden hurricanes the canvas dashed;
What bursting lightnings, with incessant flare,
Kindled in one wide flame the burning air;
What roaring thunders bellowed over our head,
And seemed to shake the reeling ocean's bed:
To tell each horror in the deep revealed,
Would ask an iron throat with tenfold vigour steeled.
Those dreadful wonders of the deep I saw,
Which fill the sailor's breast with sacred awe;
And what the sages, of their learning vain,
Esteem the phantoms of a dreamful brain.
Luiz de Camoens (1524-1579), in "the Lusiad."
Ver. 23-31. No language can be more sublime than the description of a storm at sea in this Psalm. It is the very soul of poetry. The utmost simplicity of diction is employed to convey the grandest thoughts. The picture is not crowded; none but the most striking circumstances are selected; and everything is natural, simple, and beyond measure interesting. The whole is an august representation of the Providence of God, ruling in what appears the most ungovernable province of nature. It is God who raises the storm; it is God who stilleth it. The wise men of this world may look no farther than the physical laws by which God acts; but the Holy Spirit, by the Psalmist, views the awful conflict of the elements as the work of God. Alexander Carson.
Ver. 23-32. This last picture springs naturally from the mention in Ps 107:3 of the sea; and here the psalmist may have directed his imagination to the usual tempestuousness of the season at which the psalm was sung. Joseph Francis Thrupp.
Psalms 107:24*
Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain They that go down to the sea in ships,…
Psa_107:23-31
They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters.
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Distressed seamen and the Sovereign of the sea
I. Gods sovereignty over the sea. Behind the laws there is the Lawgiver. Behind the force of the winds and waves there is the Force of all forces--the great God. To regard God as the Ruler of the sea is--
1. Philosophical.
2. Scriptural.
3. Assuring. We know His will is good. We bow reverently before the mystery, and wait for more light.
II. Mans impotency when the sea rebels against him. But even when impotent, and defeated by the warring elements, man is greater than they; for he is conscious of his impotence and defeat, while they know not of their triumph.
III. Mans resource when the sea rebels against him. When all else fails, prayer to God is left. But is it only when you are at your wits end that you cry unto God? What right have you to expect that He whom you seek only when you are in trouble wilt answer your selfish cry?
IV. Gods answer to mans cry. God does not always literally allay the storm, and save from it those who cry unto Him. He, however, calms the inward tempest, so that the waves of anxiety and terror are still.
V. Mans obligation for Gods interposition.
1. Gods gracious doings for man are wonderful.
2. Men are prone to overlook Gods gracious doings for them.
3. Men are under the most sacred obligations to celebrate the gracious doings of God for them. (Homiletic Magazine.)
On the stormy sea
I. The ship sails forth. Life is a voyage. We all go down to the sea in ships, to a life of mystery and danger, of glorious privilege and responsibility. Our hearts are full of happiness as of new wine. Rejoice, O young man, but remember, be mindful of the sublime things.
II. The wind rises. Has it come to you already? Has there been a turn in your prosperity? Are things going wrong? Is it sickness, bereavement, financial stringency? Are the winds whistling through the cordage? Fear not! God holds the trident; the winds are in His fist. There are some anchors that will hold in the fiercest stress OF Euroclydon. One is the Wisdom of God. There is nothing that happens without His cognizance. No storm comes haphazard. God understands the end from the beginning; and He makes no mistakes. Another is Gods Goodness. He doth not afflict willingly. Whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth. But never too much.
III. The sailors are at their wits end. In the margin it is, All their wisdom is swallowed up. Then there is hope! For when I am weak, then am I strong. My strength is made perfect in weakness.
IV. They are on their knees. Our Lord said that men ought always to pray and riot to faint. But alas, men do not always pray. They will not. But they pray when the storm breaks. And, strange to tell, God is willing to hear even the cry of desperation. He is of great lovingkindness and forbearance. For some men prayer is their vital breath, their native air. To others it is like the bell in the coal-mine, used only in time of danger.
V. The storm is assuaged. The rule, after all, is fair weather. The storm, rage it never so fiercely, will soon be spent. Our light afflictions are but for a moment. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. There is no night without a dawn.
VI. The ship sails in. In that day the sorest troubles of the earthly life will seem insignificant as we look back upon them. We shall understand then what the apostle meant when he called our afflictions light, and spoke of them as enduring but for a moment. It will be in our hearts to bless God for all the storms and the trials. (D. J. Burrell, D.D.)
The voyage of life
I. The voyage of life is fraught with many dangers.
1. Our vessel is weak. Many have been shattered by striking on comparatively small rocks, and many have been wrecked by only just changing the tack from prosperity to adversity, or sometimes from scarcity to abundance. Others have been wrecked through too much joy, too weak to bear it; whilst the sorrows of this world have worked death to a vast multitude so weak that they are crushed before the moth.
2. The sea is rough. Where are those that set out from the same port--nursed on the same hearth with us? Many have been crushed by the storms, but very few, comparatively, are still afloat.
3. Our course lies among rocks. Many have been stranded, but, obtaining timely help, have been prevented from becoming a wreck. It is but seldom we find any one who has not undergone some repairs at the hands of a physician. Some have been in dock a long time, and, being wonderfully restored, have been launched again into the deep. But others are seen being dashed to pieces by some disease or other; and it is a sad sight to see any one striking upon those rocks, and every blow carrying away part of the vessel, as it were, until at last the sides of the ship are laid bare.
4. The weather is foggy and dark. We know not on leaving our homes what will befall us before we return. And our safety so long is not to be attributed to our own care and foresight, but having obtained help of God we continue unto this day.
II. Divine grace has made every provision necessary to enable us to make the voyage of life in safety.
1. An abundant supply of stores. They that seek the Lord shall not want any good thing.
2. Ballast in the ship to keep her from capsizing. Many have made shipwreck for the want of it. In time of temptation they fall away. But if the fear of God be in the heart they will withstand every squall, as Joseph did in Egypt.
3. A chart to sail by. The Word of God is the rule which tells us where every danger lurks, and also how to avoid it.
4. A compass to steer by. Although the believers vessel is tossed by the waves quite as much as any other vessel, her prow now in this direction, now in that, yet there is a principle of rectitude which governs him; he knows what point to sail for and what direction to take in the midst of all weathers.
5. A quadrant to take observations. Faith is the evidence of things not seen.
6. A light fixed wherever there is moral danger.
7. Means of constant communication with the shore. (D. Roberts, D.D.)
The Christian mariner
I. His voyage.
1. The Christian voyager, like the mariner, looks daily for guidance to his great Teacher in the heavens. The lights and landmarks along the coasts of Christian attainment; his frames and feelings, comparing himself with others, etc., which are the main guides of the religions coaster, are all discarded, and the Sun of Righteousness becomes his great Teacher and Guide.
2. He is a close student of his chart--the Bible. How it inspires courage and strengthens hope!
II. His compass.
1. The Christians conscience, like the mariners compass, is his indispensable and most constantly trusted guide, to be obeyed in darkness and storm, as well as in sunshine and calm.
2. The Christians conscience, like the mariners compass, is easily deranged, and if not frequently tested may lead him astray. The question is not, therefore, have you been faithful in following your conscience, but have you been faithful in testing your conscience by the Sun of Righteousness?
3. The Christians conscience, like the mariners compass, is more or less influenced by early associations. We can never permanently settle ourselves from the effects of the moral direction in which our prow was set, or the spiritual atmosphere that surrounded the laying and shaping of our keel. Because of these great channels and laws of influence no two Christians look out upon the sphere of duty from exactly the same standpoint; and we need nothing so much as charity to enable us to patiently meet and rightly construe the opinions and conduct of others, who, though perhaps equally conscientious, may not be able to see eye to eye with us in many things pertaining to Christian character and conduct.
4. The Christians conscience, like the mariners compass, is frequently deranged by something taken on board. Especially is that Christian in danger who is greatly prospered in temporal matters, and wields a sort of sovereignty over all manner of wares. It indicates great strength and purity of character when such persons remain humble, conscientious, and loyal to God.
5. The Christian voyager, like the mariner, sails by his compass, though he cannot explain the mystery that surrounds it. There are mysteries about the compass which the ordinary sailor never attempts to explain or understand. He becomes possessed of its benefits, not by solving its mysteries, but by following its guidance. So the Christians safety is secured not by understanding everything, but by obedience to Divine teaching. Hence, although surrounded by mystery, he sails by faith.
6. The Christian who, like the mariner, tests and sails by his compass, is daily nearing his desired haven. Land ahead. Its fruits are waving oer the hills of fadeless green. (T. Kelly, D. D.)
Soul navigation
I. Its weather is fouler to some than to others. This difference is partly necessary and partly moral. A mans condition in life depends greatly both upon his temperament and upon the external circumstances under which he has been brought up. Some have temperaments that are impulsive and tempestuous; others gentle and pacific. Some are surrounded by circumstances suited to soothe and to please, others by those tending ever to agitate and distress. This difference in the temperaments and circumstances of men, whilst it reveals the sovereignty of that God who arranges human affairs after the counsel of His own will, should at the same time dispose us to act with tender consideration in all our intercourse with our fellow-men. But there is a morality in this difference that should not be overlooked. Men have power to rule in a great measure their own temperaments, and control their own circumstances. The man to whom God has given the most fiery passions He has given corresponding intellect for control.
II. It exposes to terrible disasters. How many souls are shipwrecked every day! They go down into the abysses of passion, worldliness, impiety.
III. There need be no shipwrecks. In all cases man is responsible for them.
1. He has an infallible chart--a chart which reveals life true to eternal fact. There is not a danger it does nob expose. It draws the very line over which you should sail if you would sail safely and meet a prosperous end. It tells you how to avoid all the perils lying beneath the wave, how to escape the fierce hurricanes, how to sail through peaceful seas and into sunny climes.
2. He might have a safe anchorage (Heb_6:19).
3. He might have an all-sufficient captain--Christ. (Homilist.)
Lessons from the ocean in a storm
The sight of the ocean in a storm serves--
I. To impress us with the majesty of god. Perhaps there is no spectacle in nature so overwhelmingly grand as that of the ocean when lashed into fury with the tempest. How great is God!
II. To awe us with our utter helplessness. How powerless we feel in the presence of such wild majesty! Such a sight may well take the egotism out of man, and bury it in the abysses of forgetfulness for ever. What is man? etc.
III. To inspire us with sympathy for mariners. How many brave men, who fight our battles, who enrich our markets, who diffuse our civilization and religion, will go down in that storm! (Homilist.)
A plea for sailors
The Roman poet has celebrated in familiar verse the courage of the heroic pioneer of civilization--the man who first trusted his fragile barque to the treacherous sea. In what striking contrast to this solitary man--brooding over the unknown possibilities of that wide and unexplored world of waters, at once inviting and alarming him, until at length his final resolve was taken and his daring venture made are the vast multitudes who to-day do business in the great waters! They include men of all nationalities who find a point of common interest in their love for the free and daring life of the sailor. They have habits, tastes, tendencies peculiar to themselves. If we would realize how much we owe to them, let us try to imagine the island deprived of their services. That all the luxuries which are drawn to our markets from all the provinces of the world would at once be withdrawn would be a comparatively small matter, and yet that loss would be felt as seriously even by classes who are not generally regarded as consumers of luxuries. For under that term must be included many things to which even those of very moderate means have become so accustomed that they esteem them necessaries of life. But the mischief would not end here. The supplies even of the staff of life would be curtailed and before very long would cease altogether. Nor would this exhaust our calamities. We export as well as import. Our little island is the centre of a vast trade which has the world for its circumference, and at every point of importance we have our representatives. The peculiar treasures of all countries are attracted to us, and our prosperity, in truth, our very existence, depends on the maintenance of that complicated network of communications which unites us with all peoples, making us at once their debtors and creditors. Needless to insist on the passionate feeling with which England regards her empire of the sea. The sentiment has been cultivated so long, and has sunk so deep into the national heart, that it seems now to be a rooted and invincible instinct. The most popular among our national songs are songs of the sea. The most stirring incidents in our national struggles are stories of the sea. The most popular of our heroes are those whose laurels have been won on the sea. The heart of the Englishman glows with pride and gratitude as he remembers the great deliverances wrought for the nation by the gallant men who won for us the supremacy of the seas. But their services are equally great in the works of peace. There are few classes who contribute more to the fabric of national wealth and greatness than those who go down to the sea in ships. These men see the works of the Lord and His wonders in the deep. They have a great commission with nature, and with nature in some of her most impressive and majestic scenes of which dwellers in the crowded streets of great cities know nothing. It has been said that an undevout astronomer is mad. The same might be said with much more truth of the undevout sailor. He may be said to live in the presence of the Infinite. Grandeur, majesty, mystery, are around him continually. He is away from those displays of human arrogance and conceit which hide from so many the presence and the work of God. Under few, if any, conditions is there so much to make him feel how little and how feeble man is; how great and unsearchable is God. Did we not know so much of the deceitfulness of the human heart and understand how soon familiarity with the most impressive spectacles will weaken, and step by step, by little and little, ultimately destroy their power, we might think that the effect of such scenes must be to induce faith and reverence. But where the sight of these wonders does not soften it will certainly harden; when the sailor is not devout, the danger is lest he become profane. He does not remain merely negative; he grows reckless, daring, unbelieving. Let it not be forgotten, further, that the peculiar conditions of his life withdraw him from a multitude of influences which tell in favour of godliness. It is true that the temptations which beset the path of others are during a large part of his time absent from him; but then, on the other hand, when they do assail him, they come with peculiar severity. A period of liberty, apt to degenerate into licence, has succeeded the severe restraint under which he is confined. He is thrown into the companionship of those who desire to lead him astray, without any experience of their wiles, or probably without any friend to supply the necessary word of warning. He feels as though some measure of indulgence were due to him in compensation for the perils and privations of months. Thus even his comparative exemption from the common seductions of life only becomes a source of graver spiritual danger in the time of recreation he spends ashore. When to this is added the loss of the advantages resulting from the influences and associations of home, it will be seen that he is in a position calling for special sympathy and help. For us who rejoice in the blessings of the Gospel and would fain give them to all, what remains but that we give our special thought and care to our brethren who go down to the sea in ships. (J. G. Rogers, D.D.)
At their wits end. Then they cry unto the Lord.
At their wits end
Nothing is more certain, or calls for more grateful acknowledgment, than the ready and merciful interpositions of God in our seasons of exceptional weakness and need. Nothing, perhaps, of a romantic kind attached to the circumstances in which we were placed; it was in the routine of trade rather than amid the excitements of travel; in the safe places of life, and not among gloomy cells or staggering ships, when, face to face with a yet very authentic extremity, we cried unto the Lord, and He delivered us out of our distresses: It is human to cry aloud to God when we feel ourselves in the hands of forces we cannot control, when resource of power or of knowledge is exhausted. But when men practically only cry unto the Lord in moments such as these; when they only claim the friendship and help of God when all else has failed; when these words set forth an habitual state, At their wits end, then--! well, I will put the matter mildly, and say, this is serious. This is to reduce the Divine friendship to the low level of a mere selfish convenience, and, on the whole, to be rather more dishonourable before God than we would like to be before our fellow-man. The great mistake lies in supposing--and, indeed, sometimes in actually teaching--that our need of God is greatest in the critical moment of our lives. We are supposed to be fairly equal to the ordinary strain, or that the ordinary strain is in some way provided for. It is in the great trials we think, as their merciless grasp fastens round us, that we stand in direst need of Divine assistance. Thus we say to men, How will you do when sickness overtakes you? If your child should die, or you yourself be called upon to step down into the valley, how will you do without God then? Badly enough, I should say. But can there be any question that it is not at such times we are tempted to forget God? In a passionate crisis the problem solves itself. It is in the common uneventful days, in the regular routine of daily life, amid faces, and scenes, and duties familiar to us as the light of the morning, it is here that the real difficulty lies. There is no question about crying to God out of the depths. It is not in the depths, it is in the long level flats that most mens danger lies. (J. Thew.)
Through stress of weather
I. How slow men are to pray in prosperity. It may be written down as an axiom, that prosperity prevents prayer. Thank God it is an equally true axiom that adversity prompts prayer.
1. We are apt to become careless of Divine things when prosperity smiles upon us.
2. There is also a danger of becoming absorbed in the business that is thus blessing you. The more we have, the more, as a rule, we want.
3. Prosperity, too, is prone to make us lose our sense of dependence upon God. The ballast of adversity is not to be despised.
II. How ready men are to pray in adversity. Then is a very commonplace adverb of time, but it is wonderfully expressive. Not till they were obliged to in any of these cases, not till pressed by utmost need did they cry. Not till they got to the end of the creature did they appeal to the Creator.
1. This truth, sad as it is, is noticeable in the case of temporal troubles. Those who have been thoughtless till the trouble came upon them, and prayerless too, begin to think and to pray as soon as the grief afflicts them. Thank God for the griefs that make us pray, for the troubles that drive us to the mercy-seat. Thank God that He sometimes takes the Aeolian harp and puts it where the rough winds blow, for it would remain mute did not the breezes sweep through its strings.
2. Sometimes it is in spiritual matters that this experience comes to us. Do not despair; cry loudly to God, plead the merit and death of Christ, and He will save you out of your troubles.
III. How willingly the Lord hears the prayer. True, it was belated; true, it was a small compliment to God to pray only when one was driven to it, but it does not seem to me as if God minded even that, so gracious and generous is He. He seems to say, You are late in coming, but it is better late than never. I will heal you, I will deliver you. He does not reproach, He does not refuse, He does not even delay. They have been long in asking, but He is quick in saving. (T. Spurgeon.)
When at wits end
Most that are acquainted with God are taken in the briars. Jesus Christ in the days of His flesh had never heard of many, if their necessities had not brought them to Him.
Sending up a signal of distress
Wearied and worn, suffering from brain-fag, from the strain of incessant service through the winter season, Brother C--and I set sail from Old England on the 22nd of May, bent on availing ourselves of the advantages of enforced rest en voyage, and change of scenery and associations on the Continent. Five days later, we were nearing the north coast of Germany. A wild wind and a choppy sea kept us later than usual on deck. Driven by sheer weariness, I retired to my berth at two oclock in the morning; but not for long. At five I was ruthlessly roused by my friend, What meanest thou, O sleeper? Arise, call upon thy God. Whats the matter? I inquired. We have run aground, and cant move. Hurrying up to the captains bridge, we found him the picture of anxiety. We were (in the wrong sense) steadfast, unmovable--of this there was little doubt. For three hours had the captain been trying to go ahead, then astern, but not an inch could he move the good ship; and with one thousand two hundred tons of cargo aboard, we were evidently getting more and more deeply embedded in the sandbank. We wanted sixteen feet of draught to float us, and had but nine. As well might we try to float a heavy-laden sinner into the kingdom of grace on the shallow doctrines so common to-day, as to steer our ship over this sandbank. At length the captain bade Jack run up the signal for help. Friend C--caught at the idea, and seizing me by the arm, said, I think we will get to our cabin, and fake the hint. There we retired, and sent up the signal for help. Presently, addressing the steward, C--asked, Did you feel the vessel move? Not likely, he replied, after sticking here three hours. Turning to the mate, C--put the same question, with a similar result, Not likely! What do you land-lubbers know about it? Just then the vessel fairly lurched. Did she move, mate? Yes, said he, with an astonished air; but I cant understand it. By this time a tug from the coast was bearing down upon us, but reversed her course as our captain lowered his signal. When we again mounted his bridge, he was almost beside himself with joy to think we had slidden bodily off the bank, and were once more steaming into the Channel. I am thankful were off; but I cant understand it a little; it completely puzzles me. Said friend C--, Shall we explain it, captain? We are firm believers in the efficacy of prayer; and seeing your trouble, we just now took your unintentional hint, and sent up a signal for help. Do you never resort to prayer in the midst of trouble, captain? God has said, Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain In the next section are set forth the perils…
In the next section are set forth the perils of seafaring.
v. 23. They that go down to the sea in ships, launching forth on the deep after descending from the general elevation of the land, that do business in great waters, the allusion being to merchants with an oversea trade;
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v. 24. these see the works of the Lord, their own eyes observing the manifestation of God’s mighty power on the ocean, and His wonders in the deep, since its limitless expanse fills the heart of man with awe in the presence of the greatness of God.
v. 25. For He commandeth, as the Lord of the elements, and raiseth the stormy wind, literally, "makes the breath of the storm to stand," like an enemy threatening destruction, which lifteth up the waves thereof, or "His waves," those in His control.
v. 26. They mount up to the heaven, their crests rising up like mountains, they go down again to the depths, in the deep troughs between the billows; their soul is melted because of trouble, that is, the hearts of the sailors are filled with dread.
v. 27. They reel to and fro, as their frail craft is tossed about, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wit’s end, altogether helpless in the turmoil of the elements.
v. 28. Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and He bringeth them out of their distresses, saving them in the emergency which threatened their ship and their lives.
v. 29. He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still, presenting a smooth and untroubled surface.
v. 30. Then are they, the sailors, glad because they be quiet; so He bringeth them unto their desired haven, to the port for which they were headed.
v. 31. Oh, that men, after such experiences, would praise the Lord for His goodness and for His wonderful works to the children of men!
v. 32. Let them exalt Him also, in telling of the wonderful deliverance they experienced, in the congregation of the people, in public assembly, in the place of worship, and praise Him in the assembly of the elders, in the open market-place, where the public meetings of the people were held. That this admonition applies to Christian sailors of all times is evident.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 and do business overseas
and do business overseas
They would sail to places and buy and sell things with the people there. AT: "selling things in cities far away" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
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translationWords
works
Yahweh
miracle
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 107:23-32 Sailors give thanks to the Lord when he…
107:23-32 Sailors give thanks to the Lord when he saves them from the chaos and peril of the sea.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.