Thanksgiving for Deliverance from Death.
116 I love the Lord, because He hears
My voice and my supplications.
2 Because He has inclined His ear to me,
Therefore I shall call upon Him as long as I live.
3 The cords of death encompassed me
And the [a]terrors of [b]Sheol [c]came upon me;
I found distress and sorrow.
4 Then I called upon the name of the Lord:
“O Lord, I beseech You, [d]save my life!”5 Gracious is the Lord, and righteous;
Yes, our God is compassionate.
6 The Lord preserves the simple;
I was brought low, and He saved me.
7 Return to your rest, O my soul,
For the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.
8 For You have rescued my soul from death,
My eyes from tears,
My feet from stumbling.
9 I shall walk before the Lord
In the [e]land of the living.
10 I believed when I said,
“I am greatly afflicted.”
11 I said in my alarm,
“All men are liars.”12 What shall I render to the Lord
For all His benefits [f]toward me?
13 I shall lift up the cup of salvation
And call upon the name of the Lord.
14 I shall pay my vows to the Lord,
Oh may it be in the presence of all His people.
15 Precious in the sight of the Lord
Is the death of His godly ones.
16 O Lord, [g]surely I am Your servant,
I am Your servant, the son of Your handmaid,
You have loosed my bonds.
17 To You I shall offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving,
And call upon the name of the Lord.
18 I shall pay my vows to the Lord,
Oh may it be in the presence of all His people,
19 In the courts of the Lord’s house,
In the midst of you, O Jerusalem.
[h]Praise [i]the Lord!
There are a couple things I want to point out in this psalm. There is affliction and distress to be found, but ultimately, it is a psalm of thanksgiving, as the sub-heading notes. They both have to do with the psalmist’s response to God. He was near to death and the “terrors of Sheol” had come upon him.
Yet, in verse 1, the psalmist loves the Lord for a very good reason: “because He hears my voice and my supplications.” This love is not predicated upon the answer, or upon God saving Him from death–though He does do that. No, it is simply because God hears our prayers, every single one of them. As I’ve often heard, He also answers every single prayer, but not with a “yes”. It could be “yes” or “no”, or even “not yet”, but He hears and responds to every prayer.
Of course, prayer ought also to be much more than just asking for things. Your friends wouldn’t last long if all you ever did was ask them for favors. Rather, you have conversations, and do things together, and we would short God if we didn’t do the same with him. Our prayers are more than just requests, but should be ongoing conversations, getting to know Him more, and sharing the depths of our own hearts.
Which leads me unexpectedly to the second thing, in verse 12, “What shall I render to the Lord
For all His benefits toward me?” There are two sides to this, one that God has benefited us immensely, and the other being the reality that we can never repay God for those benefits. So in whatever state you find yourself, take the time to think of all your blessings, all the things for which you are thankful. You may be surprised once you get going, unless you already expect to find many blessings, which you should!
And if we can never repay God for those benefits, what then? Do then what the psalmist does: in v. 13 he raises the cup of celebration and salvation and gives glory to the name of the Lord. We ought also, if we vowed (promised) something to God, to fulfill those vows. And of course we should bring a sacrifice of thanksgiving. Or in other words, we can give something back to God in thanks. Though it be only a small token, it keeps the attitude of our hearts in the right direction.
Last, but not least, following that “unexpected” transition, we should talk to Him. Thank God directly, and then continue to develop that relationship through ongoing conversation. He’s always listening to you, are you listening for His voice? He may call at any moment, will you be paying attention? Remember Paul’s words, “Pray without ceasing…”, which doesn’t mean babbling incessantly at God. Rather, it means to always have your heart and your ears open, sharing with Him your every thought, and listening all the time for His.
How shall we repay God for all His benefits? With our whole hearts, all our mind, and our very soul, all of it being in tune with Him, and following His way rather than our own selfish agenda. Seek Him first. Yes, period, without any thought of reward or incentive, just seek Him.