Seder 19: Ps 106---God's Faithfulness Versus Man's Fickleness

Psalm 105 and Psalm 106 are two major Exodus psalms.  Both rehearse the history of God's mighty deeds on behalf of his people, but they have distinct emphases.  Psalm 105 emphasizes God's faithfulness and sovereignty, while Psalm 106 contrasts God's faithfulness with the fickleness of his people. 

Psalm 106 is a psalm of repentance.  Sins from Israel's history are confessed, including 

• Israel's lust for meat in the wilderness (Num 11);
• the rebellion of Dathan and Abiram (Num 16)
• the golden calf incident (Exod 32);
• the Baal Peor incident (Num 25)
• Moses' sin at Meribah (Num 20)
• Israel's failure to fully conquer Canaan.

The psalm was written at some time after the exile of the house of Judah in 587/586 BC, since it recalls God's mercy to his people in exile and prays for the restoration of the nation (vv 40-47).  

Psalm 106 has several New Testament connections.  Verse 20  ("They exchanged the glory of God for the image of an ox that eats grass") uses language taken up by Paul in Rom 1:23 in discussing the human tendency toward idolatry.  Verse 37 ("They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons") is referred to in 1 Cor 10:20, where Paul affirms that the gods of the nations are demons (see also Deut 32:17).  Also interesting is the statement that the decisive intervention of Phinehas at Baal Peor "counted to him as righteousness" (v 31), another example of faith demonstrated by works---see also James 2:14-26.  

The language of Ps 106 also appears several times in Zechariah's hymn of rejoicing at the birth of John the Baptist in Luke 1:68-79.  Verse 68 uses the language of Ps 106:48, verse 71 refers to Ps 106:10 (LXX), and verse 72 refers to Ps 106:45.  The birth of John the Baptist is example of the love and faithfulness of God extolled in Ps 106.