Tehillim 107 | A Psalm for Yom HaAtzmaut

The Chief Rabbinate instituted the recitation of this psalm on Yom HaAtzmaut (Israel’s Independence Day), and it’s easy to connect with that choice: this psalm is one of the most stirring songs of thanksgiving and redemption. The opening of the psalm echoes and continues the two preceding psalms, 105 and 106, in a direct sequence: Psalm 105 spoke of God’s great kindnesses. Psalm 106 spoke of our ingratitude throughout the generations and ended with a plea that God will redeem us once again, and this time, we will remember to show Him gratitude: “Save us, Lord our God, and gather us from the nations so that we may give thanks to Your holy name and glory in Your praise” (106:47). Psalm 107 picks up from there and fulfills that commitment: “Thanks the Lord for He is good; His loving-kindness is forever; let the redeemed of the Lord's redeemed say this — those He redeemed from the enemy's hand, those he gathered from the lands” (107:1–3).

The psalm has three parts: The first part is an introduction, calling on those redeemed by God, who are being gathered into the land, to give thanks. The second part describes specific types of individuals who are obligated to give thanks: wanderers in the desert, the sick, prisoners, and those who go down to the sea. Each figure faces a different kind of crisis, cries out to God, is saved, and ultimately expresses gratitude through the recurring refrain: “Let them thank the Lord for His loving-kindness, for His wondrous deeds for humanity.” This section is the basis for the Talmudic teaching (Berakhot 54b) determining those who must recite the Bestowed blessing (Birkhat HaGomel). The third part of the psalm expands to a national perspective, portraying God’s sovereignty over the entire nation. God, who brought calamity due to sin, now revives the land again: “He turns desert land into pools of water… they sow fields and plant vineyards that yield a fruitful harvest” (v. 35–37), and increases its population: “He lifts the destitute from poverty and increases their families like flocks” (v. 41). The thread running through the psalm is the idea of the sovereignty of the Holy One, blessed be He, over both individual lives and the national life, and our obligation to thank Him. The psalm ends with educational verses: “The upright see and rejoice, while all wicked mouths are silenced. Let  the wise keep all this in mind; let them reflect on the Lord's loving-kindness” (v. 42–43).

One of the questions that the commentators grappled with is what is the redemption for which thanks is being given? Is it the national redemption of the people of Israel, or a personal redemption experienced by any human being? On one hand, names like Israel, Yaakov, or Zion are not mentioned, and the psalm seems to be directed universally to whoever hears it, whoever they may be. On the other hand, the psalm’s literary context within Tehillim – as a continuation of Psalms 105 and 106 and as the opening of the fifth book of Tehillim, along with the biblical meaning of “ingathering of exiles,” points toward an interpretation centered on Israel’s national redemption. In an article on the Har Etzion Yeshiva website, Rav Elchanan Samet analyzes the psalm and proposes that this ambiguity is intentional: the psalm is meant to simultaneously describe both a personal, universal redemption and a national one — for everything we must thank God.

Rav Yoel Bin-Nun (in a short article for Yom HaAtzmaut) interprets the psalm as a national one, speaking specifically about the redemption of Israel, and sees within it a “prophetic” vision intended for Israel’s redemption in our generation. In his analysis of the psalm, he emphasizes the difficulties that arise along the way: In the second section, in two of the redemption stories, the people try to ascend to the land but get stuck (“Some lost their way in deserted wasteland” (v. 4), “Those who go down to the sea in ships” (v. 23)); in the other stories, the people do not even try, and need to be pushed by God (“Some sat in darkness and death-shadow… for they had defied God's words” (v. 10-11), “for He shattered gates of bronze…”(v.16-17)). Even upon reaching the land, physical hardships arise (“fruitful land into a salt-sown waste” (v. 34)), hardships of decline (“but they shrink and languish” (v. 39)), and challenges of leadership (“He pours contempt on nobles” (v. 40)). And all this, even before fulfilling the grand visions of prophecy like the Temple, the Messiah, or a righteous government — it is all simply in order to return to the land. According to Rav Yoel, this is the message of the psalm – do not disdain the “day of small things” – On the path to redemption, there are struggles, and for everything that happens along the way we must thank.