PSALM 105
“REMEMBER HIS MARVELOUS WORKS”
I want to begin our lesson this morning by highlighting an individual whose name we see in the Old Testament, but we rarely talk about. His name appears 11 times within the titles of the various psalms. He is depicted in the picture up here. His name is Asaph. He was a Levite, a priest and a prophet. Asaph was appointed by David when the ark was brought into Jerusalem. He was a singer and a musician with the assignment to “raise sounds of joy” (1 Chronicles 15:16 NASB). He eventually was appointed as chief musician and worship leader. Asaph was a prominent fixture in Israel’s corporate worship during the reign of King David. His sons continued his legacy in the years that followed.
Now, I want to give you some idea of Asaph’s spiritual insight. I want you to listen to these words that he addressed to God out of Psalm 73:
“Whom have I in heaven but You? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides You. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” (Psalm 73:25-26).
Those are Asaph’s words. Now, I mention Asaph for a reason. He shows up in the background story to Psalm 105, which is what we will be studying this morning.
Here is the context for Psalm 105, a psalm of praise and remembrance. It was penned at the beginning of David’s reign over a unified Israel. A little historical background… Soon after becoming Israel’s king, David captured Jerusalem from the Jebusites. It was a strategic location and had been a well-fortified stronghold for decades. But David conquered that city with God’s help and he immediately made it his capital. He then brought the Ark of the Covenant to be housed in the tabernacle which had been relocated to the new capital city. So, not only did Jerusalem become the political center of Israel, but David also made it Israel’s worship center. It was David’s vision – you may recall the story – he wanted to construct a magnificent temple in Jerusalem. He even made plans for it. He gathered materials for it. But, as we all know, the temple would be built by his son Solomon years later.
The events surrounding Psalm 105 are recorded in 1 Chronicles Chapter 16... “And they brought in the ark of God and set it inside the tent [speaking of the tabernacle] that David had pitched for it, and they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before God…” David then blessed the people in the name of the LORD and they ate, they had a meal. “Then [David] appointed some of the Levites as ministers before the ark of the LORD, to invoke, to thank, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel.” Asaph, David’s chief musician, led the worship. “Then on that day David first appointed that thanksgiving be sung to the LORD by Asaph and his brothers” (1 Chronicles 16:1,4 and 7). Then, beginning in v 8 here in 1 Chronicles 16 we hear the words to the song that was sung in connection with this celebration that was going on. We do not know for sure who wrote this song, but it was very likely written by Asaph. The words to this song later became the first 15 verses of Psalm 105. So, let’s go ahead and get into that psalm.
READ Psalm 105:1-7
God’s people are to rejoice – “give thanks to the LORD,” “call on His name,” “make known His deeds,” “sing praises to Him,” “tell of His wondrous works,” “glory in His name,” “rejoice!” This is one of the great benefits of corporate worship. It allows us to express openly and loudly, often with great emotion, our love for our great God and Savior. There is a special dynamic involved when like-minded believers come together and worship the Lord in song. This was an important part of the life of Old Testament Israel. And it is to us today in the church.
God’s people are to remember – we are to remember His wondrous works, His miracles and His judgments. We are not to forget God’s works or His words. Now, as we are going to see, for the people of Israel it all began for them with God’s covenant promise to Abraham, but it certainly did not end there. For us as New Testament believers in 2025 here in Rockwall, Texas, it began with the day of our salvation, but it did not end there. Our lives as God’s New Testament covenant people continues as long as we have breath and beyond.
Charles Spurgeon commented on v 5, talking about remembering the wondrous works. He said, “Alas, we are far more ready to recollect foolish and evil things than to retain in our minds the glorious deeds of [God].” He goes on to say, “If we would keep these in remembrance, our faith would be stronger, our gratitude warmer, our devotion more fervent, and our love more intense.” And he is right. Those are the things we need to remember.
As we read this psalm, we know that it was penned in the historical context of God’s covenant people Israel, the Jewish nation. But verse 7, where it says, “His judgments are in all the earth,” reminds us of a key theological point. The LORD our God, Yahweh, was not just the God of Israel – though He was – but He was, even back then, the God of the entire world. As one of my professors at DTS (Dallas Theological Seminary) liked to say, “God owns all the teams.”
That sets the stage for this great hymn of remembrance Psalm 105…
READ Psalm 105:8-11
God’s relationship with His chosen people began with the Abrahamic covenant. He promised to give the descendants of Abraham (who would become the nation of Israel) the land of Canaan as their inheritance. If you go back to Genesis, God made this promise to Abraham – He said, “Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward [all directions, look all around you], for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever. I will make your offspring as the dust of the earth, so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your offspring also can be counted. Arise, walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I will give it to you” (Genesis 13:14-17). Later God reiterated this promise to Abraham. He said, “To your offspring I give this land [then He starts to describe it], from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates, the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites [all the ITES], the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites and the Jebusites.” [all the peoples of those areas] (Genesis 15:18-21).
So, why is that important? That vast portion of prime real estate just described was promised to Abraham and his descendants. It is this same land that is being fought over still today. It is still in the news!
You will hear some people try to make the argument that Abraham’s descendants include the Arab world, which is why they say that they too have a legitimate claim to this land. That is the argument. How do we know that THEY are NOT the rightful heirs? We know that the promise of this land was through Abraham’s son Isaac and grandson Jacob’s line, the Jewish nation because God confirmed the promise to them. In other words, He did not confirm the promise through Ismael or through Esau. God repeated His covenant promise (that He made to Abraham) to Isaac in Genesis Chapter 26 and then to Jacob in Genesis Chapter 35. That is the Jewish nation. This is why we Christians support the Jewish state of Israel’s claim to this land and why we continue to be such a strong defender of Israel. So even today, it is important to remember God’s promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. It matters both theologically and politically.
[The question was raised in class about a statement I made earlier to the effect, “from the river to the river” and if this has anything to do with the slogan you hear in protests, “From the river to sea.”]
Well, “from the river to the sea” is the idea of removing everybody in the land, specifically, removing the Jews (ethnic cleansing) “from the river” (talking about the Jordan River) “to the to the sea” (a reference to the Mediterranean Sea). So, everybody in that little narrow area where most of the Jews in Israel live today, “from the river to the sea” is talking about getting rid of all the Jews. So, it has a completely different meaning. The reference I made “from river to river” references the land from the Euphrates River well to the north down to Egypt, the Nile River, the land that God promised to Abraham Isaac and Jacob. Now, they did NOT fully possess all of this land because of their disobedience, but that was land that God promised. The land that was promised was much bigger than what modern Israel possesses, far beyond their current boundaries. But it certainly includes what they have today. The point of all this is, based on what the Bible says, going back to Genesis, there is support for why the Jews have a right to that land.
READ Psalm 105:12-15
So, at the time that God promised the land to Abraham, he and his family were only a small group of people living in the land of Canaan. And God protected and preserved their lives because of the promise that He had made to them. You can read in the book of Genesis story after story after story about how God protects them and has His hand on them.
READ Psalm 105:16-22
The familiar story of Joseph. Joseph was Jacob’s son. He was sold into slavery by his own brothers (they were jealous of Joseph) and he ended up in Egypt. He was falsely accused and thrown into prison. While in prison Joseph interpreted the dreams of the chief baker and chief cupbearer (who had been imprisoned by Pharaoh). Joseph interpreted the cupbearer’s dream to mean that he would be restored to his original position. And he interpreted the baker’s dream to mean that he would be executed. The fates of both these men unfolded exactly as Joseph predicted. Fast-forward several years, Pharaoh had two disturbing dreams but nobody in his kingdom could tell him what those dreams meant. Then the cupbearer remembered Joseph and how he had correctly interpreted his and the baker’s dreams. He told Pharaoh about Joseph. Well, Pharaoh summoned Joseph from the prison and told him about his two dreams. Joseph informed Pharaoh that both dreams had the same meaning – that there will be seven years of abundance in the land of Egypt followed by seven years of extreme famine. Well, Joseph made sure when he told Pharaoh what the dreams meant that it was God who had revealed this to him. Joseph gave God the credit and glory for it. Joseph offered some sound advice to Pharoah – appoint a wise and discerning man to oversee the task of collecting and storing food for the seven good years for distribution later, during the famine. After a brief discussion with his officials Pharaoh decided that Joseph would be the best man for the job. He made Joseph his second in command. For the next seven years Joseph supervised the collection of all the excess grain and had it stored in various cities. As Joseph predicted, the seven good years were followed by a severe widespread famine. People came to Egypt from all over to buy grain. Through Joseph, the nation of Egypt was blessed and many lives were spared.
Now, v 19 in the New Living Translation says, “Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the LORD tested Joseph’s character.” So here is the picture: God spoke to Joseph. He gave him a word, specifically the interpretation of the various dreams. Joseph then trusted God. He placed God’s whole reputation on the line before all those pagan unbelievers in Egypt. What Joseph did was he honored God’s name. He told them that this is what God said and he showed that he was a follower of God. Joseph boldly spoke the revelation that God had given him. And he made sure that God received all the honor and glory when they came to pass. In the end, God blessed Joseph and He raised him to a position of power and prestige.
READ Psalm 105:23-25
So, God used Joseph to save the lives of many people including Joseph’s own family. In bringing his father Jacob and his brothers down to Egypt during the famine, Joseph provided for and God protected His covenant people. In Egypt, God’s people multiplied and retained their racial identity with no intermarriage with the Egyptians. Their growth eventually (over hundreds of years) made them stronger than the Egyptians. The Egyptian leaders began to see the Israelites as a threat and their hearts turned against God’s people and the Pharaoh enslaved them. But, having read Exodus, we know that God’s sovereign hand was in all of this. They did not see it at the time, but God’s hand was in it.
READ Psalm 105:26-27
Then the next few verses recount all the plagues that God sent on the land of Egypt. This psalm here does not include all of the plagues and they are not mentioned in the order that they appear in Exodus. But that is not the psalmist’s point. He is not trying to be historically accurate. What he is emphasizing here, is how God intervened miraculously for His people in Egypt.
READ Psalm 105:28-32
Darkness, water turned to blood, frogs, flies, gnats, hailstones. Some of the commentaries you read say that these various plagues exposed the weaknesses of the many Egyptian gods – each plague associated with a different Egyptian god. Those so-called gods were obviously no match for the one true God of Israel.
READ Psalm 105:33
The destruction of the trees (vegetation) was likely a result of the intense hail that fell on the land.
READ Psalm 34-38
So, after those other plagues, God sent swarms of locust. The last plague was the plague of death, striking the firstborn dead. That plague of death was the catalyst that finally released the people of Israel from their bondage. When the people left Egypt, the book of Exodus describes it like this: “The Egyptians were urgent with the people to send them out of the land in haste. For they said, ‘We shall all be dead.’” (Exodus 12:33). That is what the Egyptians were saying. They wanted to get rid of these people. “For dread of them had fallen upon [Egypt]” (Exodus 12:38).
During the actual exodus, we are told that “[the Israelites] had asked the Egyptians for silver and gold jewelry and for clothing. And the LORD had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked. Thus, they plundered the Egyptians.” (Exodus 12:35-36). That is what the scripture says. So, God was really looking out for His people, even during this exodus.
READ Psalm 105:39-43
God’s faithfulness can be seen in His care and provision for His people in the wilderness. About a year was all that God ever intended for them to be in the wilderness and most of that was spent at Mount Sinai where God gave them the Law. The verse about singing, v 43, reminds me of what happened at the Red Sea. Do you remember when God performed that miracle and drowned all the Egyptian army? The people had this long song of Moses afterward, singing. They came out singing!
READ Psalm 105:44
God eventually brought His people to the Promised Land – the land He first promised 650 years before to Abraham, and then later to Isaac and to Jacob. Under Joshua’s leadership the “land of the nations,” the land of Canaan as it was known becomes THEIR land.
God’s desire for His people is revealed in the last verse of this psalm…
READ Psalm 105:45
Keeping the statutes of the Lord was to be a joyous gratitude for all the benefits the Lord had provided for His people. So, let me ask you a question. Did they? Did the people of Israel keep God’s statutes and observe His laws? Off and on, partially, for a while, maybe. Psalm 106 is a follow-up to Psalm 105. In that psalm God remains faithful even when His people, as it turns out, were less than faithful to Him. So, in Psalm 106 we get a lot more of the unfaithfulness coming out. Israel’s history is a sad history because of the continued disobedience of God’s people. God wanted far more for them than they ever achieved.
What do we take away from a psalm like this? How does this apply to us? Thanks for asking. Applications from Psalm 105, for us to remember as God’s people…
First, God is sovereign over the events of history. We can see that, can’t we?
Second, God often uses the negative actions of sinful humans, which were originally intended for evil, ultimately for good. You take the life of Joseph as an example, which the psalmist brought up. It says in Psalm 105:17 that “[God] had sent a man ahead of them, Joseph.” Well, that is not how it looked from Joseph’s perspective. From his perspective he was basically kidnapped and sent off to a strange land that he couldn’t even speak their language. It doesn’t sound like God was sending him ahead. It sounds like he was being dragged against his own will. That is how it looked to Joseph, from his perspective. Joseph could look back years later and see God’s hand in all of it. And the people of Israel while they are Egypt, they are not happy at all about being treated like they were. They cried to God and God eventually sent Moses. And they could look back years later and see God’s hand in all of that. The same with our lives. We perceive negative things happening to us. God ultimately will intend them all for good. It is hard for us to sometimes understand and believe that, but, theologically, that is the God we serve.
The third point is that God does not force the obedience of His redeemed people. He didn’t force the Israelites’ obedience and He doesn’t force our obedience. Obedience is (or should be) an act of our own will and motivated by our love for Him. But far too often we are a lot like the Israelites, aren’t we? Unfortunately.
And finally, even when we are less than faithful to God – are we ever less than faithful to God? – He remains faithful to us. He even provides a way for us to be restored back to fellowship with Him. Several psalms talk about that, the restoration of fellowship. It is an important part of our lives because we are going to sin, we are going to fail God. We need to have a way of being restored.
What a great God we serve! Remember His marvelous works, which began with our own salvation and will continue on for all eternity.