Psalms 116 Study Notes: Thanksgiving for Rescue from Death
The psalmist thanks the LORD for rescuing him when he was near death and helpless. He urges his soul to rest in God's kindness, asks what he can give back, and answers with worship, kept vows, and a thank offering among God's people in Jerusalem.
General
Paul quotes the opening of 116:10 in 2 Corinthians 4:13. What does he use it to show?
Answer: That faith in God moves His servants to speak even in hardship
In 116:10-11 the psalmist remembers that he went on trusting even when he was deeply afflicted and, in his alarm, concluded that no human being could be relied on. His faith was what led him to speak. Paul quotes the opening of the verse in the form he gives it and applies it to himself and his co-workers: sharing the psalmist's faith, they too believe and so they speak (2 Corinthians 4:13). Paul was writing out of hardship, pressed on every side but not crushed (2 Corinthians 4:8-9), and the hope that kept him speaking was that God, who raised Jesus, will raise believers too (2 Corinthians 4:14).
- Psalm 116:10-11 (BSB)“I believed, therefore I said, “I am greatly afflicted.” In my alarm I said, “All men are liars!””The psalmist recalls that he kept trusting and spoke even while deeply afflicted and alarmed.
- 2 Corinthians 4:13 (BSB)“And in keeping with what is written, “I believed, therefore I have spoken,” we who have the same spirit of faith also believe and therefore speak,”Paul quotes the psalm to describe the faith that leads him and his fellow workers to speak.
- 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 (BSB)“We are hard pressed on all sides, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.”Paul describes the heavy pressures he faced while he kept speaking in faith.
- 2 Corinthians 4:14 (BSB)“knowing that the One who raised the Lord Jesus will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in His presence.”Paul gives the resurrection as the hope behind his speaking.
Theological
What does Paul use 116:10 to show in 2 Corinthians 4:13?
Answer: That faith in God moves His servants to speak even in hardship
The psalmist recalls that his trust did not fail even in severe affliction, when in alarm he declared that no human being can be trusted (116:10-11); his speech flowed from faith. Paul cites the verse in the form he gives it and claims the psalmist's faith for his apostolic ministry: believing, therefore speaking (2 Corinthians 4:13). The context is apostolic suffering, under heavy pressure yet not crushed (2 Corinthians 4:8-9), and the ground of the bold speech is resurrection hope, that God, having raised Jesus, will raise His people with Him (2 Corinthians 4:14).
- Psalm 116:10-11 (BSB)“I believed, therefore I said, “I am greatly afflicted.” In my alarm I said, “All men are liars!””The psalmist recalls that he kept trusting and spoke even while deeply afflicted and alarmed.
- 2 Corinthians 4:13 (BSB)“And in keeping with what is written, “I believed, therefore I have spoken,” we who have the same spirit of faith also believe and therefore speak,”Paul quotes the psalm to describe the faith that leads him and his fellow workers to speak.
- 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 (BSB)“We are hard pressed on all sides, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.”Paul describes the heavy pressures he faced while he kept speaking in faith.
- 2 Corinthians 4:14 (BSB)“knowing that the One who raised the Lord Jesus will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in His presence.”Paul gives the resurrection as the hope behind his speaking.
General
True or False: The psalmist says the LORD saved him because he was strong enough to hold on until help came (116:5-6).
Answer: False
This is false. The psalmist says the opposite: he was helpless, and the LORD saved him (116:6). The reason for his rescue lies in God, whom he describes as gracious, righteous, and deeply compassionate, the One who guards the simplehearted (116:5-6), that is, ordinary people with no cunning or power of their own. This matches the LORD's own description of Himself to Moses as compassionate and gracious (Exodus 34:6). The same pattern runs through the gospel: salvation is by grace, a gift of God and not the result of human effort (Ephesians 2:8-9).
- Psalm 116:5-6 (BSB)“The LORD is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. The LORD preserves the simplehearted; I was helpless, and He saved me.”The psalmist praises the LORD's character and tells how He saved him when he was helpless.
- Exodus 34:6 (BSB)“Then the LORD passed in front of Moses and called out: “The LORD, the LORD God, is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion and faithfulness,”The LORD's own self-description to Moses names His compassion and grace.
- Ephesians 2:8-9 (BSB)“For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.”Paul teaches that salvation is God's gift by grace, not something people achieve.
- Psalm 34:6 (BSB)“This poor man called out, and the LORD heard him; He saved him from all his troubles.”The afflicted man is saved because the LORD hears him, not because of his own strength.
Theological
True or False: According to 116:5-6, the psalmist's own strength was the reason the LORD rescued him.
Answer: False
This is false. The psalmist confesses that he was helpless when the LORD saved him (116:6), and he traces the rescue entirely to God's character: gracious, righteous, and compassionate, the preserver of the simplehearted (116:5-6). The verse echoes the divine name proclaimed at Sinai (Exodus 34:6). The helplessness of the one saved and the sufficiency of the Savior anticipate the Pauline teaching that salvation is by grace through faith, God's gift and not of works (Ephesians 2:8-9).
- Psalm 116:5-6 (BSB)“The LORD is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. The LORD preserves the simplehearted; I was helpless, and He saved me.”The psalmist praises the LORD's character and tells how He saved him when he was helpless.
- Exodus 34:6 (BSB)“Then the LORD passed in front of Moses and called out: “The LORD, the LORD God, is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion and faithfulness,”The LORD's own self-description to Moses names His compassion and grace.
- Ephesians 2:8-9 (BSB)“For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.”Paul teaches that salvation is God's gift by grace, not something people achieve.
- Psalm 34:6 (BSB)“This poor man called out, and the LORD heard him; He saved him from all his troubles.”The afflicted man is saved because the LORD hears him, not because of his own strength.
General
What reason does the psalmist give for his love for the LORD at the start of Psalm 116 (116:1-2)?
Answer: The LORD had listened to his cry for mercy
The psalm begins with love that answers to grace. The psalmist loves the LORD because God heard his plea for mercy and bent down, as it were, to listen to him (116:1-2). Because God has listened, he resolves to keep calling on Him for the rest of his life. Love for God here is a response, not a starting point: God acted first, and the psalmist loves in return, the same order John states when he says we love because God first loved us (1 John 4:19). Psalm 34 gives the same testimony of a poor man who cried out and was heard (Psalm 34:6).
- Psalm 116:1-2 (BSB)“I love the LORD, for He has heard my voice—my appeal for mercy. Because He has inclined His ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live.”The psalmist opens by declaring his love for the LORD and giving the reason for it.
- 1 John 4:19 (BSB)“We love because He first loved us.”John grounds all love for God in God's prior love, the same order the psalmist follows.
- Psalm 34:6 (BSB)“This poor man called out, and the LORD heard him; He saved him from all his troubles.”Another psalm testifies that a poor man cried out and the LORD heard and saved him.
Theological
In 116:1-2, what ground does the psalmist give for his love toward the LORD?
Answer: The LORD had listened to his cry for mercy
The opening sets the psalm's logic: the psalmist's love is the fruit of an answered plea for mercy (116:1-2). God inclined His ear, and so the psalmist commits himself to lifelong calling upon Him. The priority is God's; love is responsive, echoing the Johannine principle that human love for God always follows His prior love (1 John 4:19). Psalm 34:6 offers a parallel testimony of the afflicted man whose cry the LORD heard and answered with deliverance.
- Psalm 116:1-2 (BSB)“I love the LORD, for He has heard my voice—my appeal for mercy. Because He has inclined His ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live.”The psalmist opens by declaring his love for the LORD and giving the reason for it.
- 1 John 4:19 (BSB)“We love because He first loved us.”John grounds all love for God in God's prior love, the same order the psalmist follows.
- Psalm 34:6 (BSB)“This poor man called out, and the LORD heard him; He saved him from all his troubles.”Another psalm testifies that a poor man cried out and the LORD heard and saved him.
General
What does 116:15 say about how the LORD regards the dying of His saints?
Answer: He regards it as costly and weighty, never a light matter
The saints are God's faithful, devoted people. The psalmist, who has just been rescued from death, says their death is precious in the LORD's sight (116:15). Precious means costly and highly valued: the death of one of His faithful people is never a small or careless matter to Him. Psalm 72:14 uses the same idea when it says the blood of the oppressed is precious in the king's sight, so he redeems them. When God's people do die, they die under His care: nothing, not even death, can separate them from His love in Christ (Romans 8:38-39), and the Lord's people who die are called blessed (Revelation 14:13).
- Psalm 116:15 (BSB)“Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints.”In the middle of his thanksgiving, the psalmist states how the LORD regards the death of His faithful people.
- Psalm 72:14 (BSB)“He will redeem them from oppression and violence, for their blood is precious in his sight.”Another psalm says the blood of the oppressed is precious in the king’s sight, which is why he redeems them from violence.
- Romans 8:38-39 (BSB)“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”Paul affirms that not even death can separate believers from God's love in Christ.
- Revelation 14:13 (BSB)“And I heard a voice from heaven telling me to write, “Blessed are the dead—those who die in the Lord from this moment on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labors, for their deeds will follow them.””A voice from heaven calls blessed those who die in the Lord.
Theological
In context, what does 116:15 affirm about the death of the LORD's saints?
Answer: He regards it as costly and weighty, never a light matter
Set within a thanksgiving for rescue from death, 116:15 declares that the death of God's faithful ones is precious to Him: costly and weighty, never a light matter. Psalm 72:14 applies the same thought to the righteous king who guards the oppressed because their lives are costly in his eyes. For the saints who do die, the verse fits with the perseverance of God's people: death cannot sever them from God's love in Christ (Romans 8:38-39), and believers who die are pronounced blessed (Revelation 14:13).
- Psalm 116:15 (BSB)“Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints.”In the middle of his thanksgiving, the psalmist states how the LORD regards the death of His faithful people.
- Psalm 72:14 (BSB)“He will redeem them from oppression and violence, for their blood is precious in his sight.”Another psalm says the blood of the oppressed is precious in the king’s sight, which is why he redeems them from violence.
- Romans 8:38-39 (BSB)“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”Paul affirms that not even death can separate believers from God's love in Christ.
- Revelation 14:13 (BSB)“And I heard a voice from heaven telling me to write, “Blessed are the dead—those who die in the Lord from this moment on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labors, for their deeds will follow them.””A voice from heaven calls blessed those who die in the Lord.
General
The psalmist asks what he can give the LORD in return for such kindness (116:12). What is his answer?
Answer: He will raise a cup for his rescue, pray, and pay his vows
Having listed God's kindnesses, the psalmist asks what he can give back (116:12). His answer is not a payment at all. He will raise the cup that celebrates the rescue God has given, and he will call on the LORD's name again (116:13). He will also keep the vows he made to the LORD, and do it openly in front of God's people (116:14). No one can repay God, since no one has first given Him anything and everything comes from Him (Romans 11:35-36). The fitting response is thanksgiving and kept promises, which God Himself asks of His people (Psalm 50:14), as David also pledged (Psalm 22:25).
- Psalm 116:12-14 (BSB)“How can I repay the LORD for all His goodness to me? I will lift the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD. I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people.”The psalmist asks how to repay the LORD and answers with worship, prayer, and kept vows.
- Romans 11:35-36 (BSB)““Who has first given to God, that God should repay him?” For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever! Amen.”Paul asks who has ever given to God first so as to be repaid, since all things come from Him.
- Psalm 50:14 (BSB)“Sacrifice a thank offering to God, and fulfill your vows to the Most High.”God calls His people to bring thank offerings and keep their vows to Him.
- Psalm 22:25 (BSB)“My praise for You resounds in the great assembly; I will fulfill my vows before those who fear You.”David likewise promises to pay his vows before the gathered worshipers.
Theological
How does the psalmist answer his own question in 116:12 about repaying the LORD?
Answer: He will raise a cup for his rescue, pray, and pay his vows
The question of 116:12 is answered not with a payment but with worship. The psalmist will raise the cup of deliverance and again call on the LORD's name (116:13), and he will perform his vows publicly among God's people (116:14). Grace cannot be repaid, for no one has ever given God something first and so put Him in debt (Romans 11:35-36). What God asks is grateful worship and faithfulness to one's vows (Psalm 50:14), the same public thanksgiving David promised before the whole congregation (Psalm 22:25).
- Psalm 116:12-14 (BSB)“How can I repay the LORD for all His goodness to me? I will lift the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD. I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people.”The psalmist asks how to repay the LORD and answers with worship, prayer, and kept vows.
- Romans 11:35-36 (BSB)““Who has first given to God, that God should repay him?” For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever! Amen.”Paul asks who has ever given to God first so as to be repaid, since all things come from Him.
- Psalm 50:14 (BSB)“Sacrifice a thank offering to God, and fulfill your vows to the Most High.”God calls His people to bring thank offerings and keep their vows to Him.
- Psalm 22:25 (BSB)“My praise for You resounds in the great assembly; I will fulfill my vows before those who fear You.”David likewise promises to pay his vows before the gathered worshipers.
General
Why does the psalmist tell his soul to return to its rest (116:7-8)?
Answer: Because the LORD has dealt kindly with him and rescued him
The psalmist speaks to himself, calling his anxious soul back to rest, and the reason is God's goodness to him (116:7). He then lists what the LORD did: He rescued his life from death, his eyes from tears, and his feet from stumbling (116:8). So he will live his life before the LORD among the living (116:9). Psalm 56:13 uses almost the same words of deliverance, and David elsewhere is sure he will see the LORD's goodness while still alive (Psalm 27:13). Jesus offers the same kind of rest to the weary who come to Him (Matthew 11:28-29).
- Psalm 116:7-9 (BSB)“Return to your rest, O my soul, for the LORD has been good to you. For You have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. I will walk before the LORD in the land of the living.”The psalmist calls his own soul back to rest and lists what the LORD has delivered him from.
- Psalm 56:13 (BSB)“For You have delivered my soul from death, and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.”Another psalm uses nearly the same words of deliverance from death and stumbling, so that the psalmist may walk before God.
- Psalm 27:13 (BSB)“Still I am certain to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.”David is confident he will see the LORD's goodness while still alive on earth.
- Matthew 11:28-29 (BSB)“Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”Jesus invites the weary to come to Him and find rest for their souls.
Theological
What reason does 116:7-8 give for the psalmist's summons to his soul to return to rest?
Answer: Because the LORD has dealt kindly with him and rescued him
The self-address of 116:7 is grounded in God's kindness: the soul may rest because the LORD has shown it His goodness. The threefold deliverance follows, life from death, eyes from tears, feet from stumbling (116:8), issuing in a resolve to live out his days in the LORD's presence (116:9). The language closely parallels Psalm 56:13 and the confidence of Psalm 27:13. Christ's invitation to the weary to find rest for their souls in Him (Matthew 11:28-29) answers the same longing.
- Psalm 116:7-9 (BSB)“Return to your rest, O my soul, for the LORD has been good to you. For You have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. I will walk before the LORD in the land of the living.”The psalmist calls his own soul back to rest and lists what the LORD has delivered him from.
- Psalm 56:13 (BSB)“For You have delivered my soul from death, and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.”Another psalm uses nearly the same words of deliverance from death and stumbling, so that the psalmist may walk before God.
- Psalm 27:13 (BSB)“Still I am certain to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.”David is confident he will see the LORD's goodness while still alive on earth.
- Matthew 11:28-29 (BSB)“Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”Jesus invites the weary to come to Him and find rest for their souls.
General
How does the psalmist describe the trouble he was in before he called on the LORD (116:3-4)?
Answer: He had been caught as if by cords of death and the grave
The psalmist pictures himself tangled in ropes of death, overwhelmed by the agony of Sheol (the Old Testament name for the realm of the dead, the grave), and faced with trouble and sorrow (116:3). He was close to dying. In that condition he did the one thing left to him: he called on the LORD's name and begged Him to deliver his life (116:4). David uses very similar pictures of cords and snares of death and of Sheol before telling how God heard him (Psalm 18:4-6), and Paul later declares that whoever calls on the Lord's name will be saved (Romans 10:13).
- Psalm 116:3-4 (BSB)“The ropes of death entangled me; the anguish of Sheol overcame me; I was confronted by trouble and sorrow. Then I called on the name of the LORD: “O LORD, deliver my soul!””The psalmist describes the deadly danger he faced and his cry to the LORD.
- Psalm 18:4-6 (BSB)“The cords of death encompassed me; the torrents of chaos overwhelmed me. The cords of Sheol entangled me; the snares of death confronted me. In my distress I called upon the LORD; I cried to my God for help. From His temple He heard my voice, and my cry for His help reached His ears.”David uses similar images of death and Sheol entangling him before he called to the LORD and was heard.
- Romans 10:13 (BSB)“for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.””Paul affirms that everyone who calls on the Lord's name will be saved.
Theological
What imagery does 116:3-4 use for the psalmist's peril before his prayer?
Answer: He had been caught as if by cords of death and the grave
The psalmist describes mortal danger in the language of entrapment: ropes of death bound him and the agony of Sheol overwhelmed him, together with trouble and sorrow (116:3). His only recourse was prayer, calling on the LORD's name for the deliverance of his soul (116:4). The imagery closely parallels David's account in Psalm 18:4-6, where death and Sheol bind him like cords until his cry reaches God. Paul's statement that all who call on the Lord's name will be saved (Romans 10:13) carries the same pattern into the gospel.
- Psalm 116:3-4 (BSB)“The ropes of death entangled me; the anguish of Sheol overcame me; I was confronted by trouble and sorrow. Then I called on the name of the LORD: “O LORD, deliver my soul!””The psalmist describes the deadly danger he faced and his cry to the LORD.
- Psalm 18:4-6 (BSB)“The cords of death encompassed me; the torrents of chaos overwhelmed me. The cords of Sheol entangled me; the snares of death confronted me. In my distress I called upon the LORD; I cried to my God for help. From His temple He heard my voice, and my cry for His help reached His ears.”David uses similar images of death and Sheol entangling him before he called to the LORD and was heard.
- Romans 10:13 (BSB)“for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.””Paul affirms that everyone who calls on the Lord's name will be saved.
General
True or False: The psalmist plans to keep his vows privately, away from the gathered people of God (116:17-19).
Answer: False
This is false. The psalmist says twice that he will keep his vows in front of all God's people (116:14, 18), and he names the place: the courtyards of the temple in Jerusalem, where the people gathered to worship (116:19). He calls himself the LORD's servant, born to a servant mother, whose chains the LORD has broken (116:16), and he will bring a thank offering (116:17). The one God has set free gladly calls himself God's servant, much as Paul says believers are freed from sin to serve righteousness (Romans 6:18). Jonah made the same promise of thanks and kept vows after his rescue (Jonah 2:9), and believers now bring God an offering of praise through Jesus (Hebrews 13:15).
- Psalm 116:16-19 (BSB)“Truly, O LORD, I am Your servant; I am Your servant, the son of Your maidservant; You have broken my bonds. I will offer to You a sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the LORD. I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people, in the courts of the LORD’s house, in your midst, O Jerusalem. Hallelujah!”The psalmist calls himself the LORD's servant, freed by Him, and vows public thanksgiving in Jerusalem.
- Romans 6:18 (BSB)“You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.”Paul describes believers as set free from sin and made slaves of righteousness.
- Hebrews 13:15 (BSB)“Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise, the fruit of lips that confess His name.”Hebrews calls believers to offer God a continual sacrifice of praise through Jesus.
- Jonah 2:9 (BSB)“But I, with the voice of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to You. I will fulfill what I have vowed. Salvation is from the LORD!””Jonah, after his rescue, likewise promises a thank offering and the keeping of his vows.
Theological
True or False: In 116:17-19 the psalmist intends to fulfill his vows privately rather than before the congregation.
Answer: False
This is false. The vow to pay his vows before all God's people is repeated (116:14, 18) and located precisely in the temple courtyards in Jerusalem (116:19). The psalmist identifies himself as the LORD's servant, born of His maidservant, whose chains God has broken (116:16), and so he brings a thank offering (116:17). Liberation issues in service, as Paul says believers are freed from sin to become slaves of righteousness (Romans 6:18). Jonah's post-deliverance vow is parallel (Jonah 2:9), and the new covenant form of the thank offering is the sacrifice of praise offered through Jesus (Hebrews 13:15).
- Psalm 116:16-19 (BSB)“Truly, O LORD, I am Your servant; I am Your servant, the son of Your maidservant; You have broken my bonds. I will offer to You a sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the LORD. I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people, in the courts of the LORD’s house, in your midst, O Jerusalem. Hallelujah!”The psalmist calls himself the LORD's servant, freed by Him, and vows public thanksgiving in Jerusalem.
- Romans 6:18 (BSB)“You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.”Paul describes believers as set free from sin and made slaves of righteousness.
- Hebrews 13:15 (BSB)“Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise, the fruit of lips that confess His name.”Hebrews calls believers to offer God a continual sacrifice of praise through Jesus.
- Jonah 2:9 (BSB)“But I, with the voice of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to You. I will fulfill what I have vowed. Salvation is from the LORD!””Jonah, after his rescue, likewise promises a thank offering and the keeping of his vows.