Psalm 107:13

Psalm 107:13, in plain English

At their lowest point, they also cry out to God in their trouble, and God saves them—their desperation becomes the catalyst for deliverance.

Why it's here

Notice the same pattern repeating: cry out, then God responds. It doesn't matter whether your trouble came from being lost or from your own choices; what matters is that you call on God, and He answers.

Who's speaking

The psalmist, showing that rescue is available to all who cry out

Where it sits in the story

This is radical grace. God hears even those who got themselves into trouble through rebellion. Rescue isn't reserved for the innocent; it's available to anyone who turns back to God.

The scholarly reading

Like the first group, these prisoners in extremity cry out to God and receive salvation—demonstrating that even transgressors who repent find divine mercy.

Language and setting

The cry-and-answer pattern repeats with precision: za'aq ('they cried out') parallels verse 6, and now comes the matching deliverance (yoshi'em, 'He saved them'). The reiteration signals that God's mercy is not reserved for the innocent but extends to the repentant guilty. The post-exilic Jewish community—who understood themselves as the chastened prisoners now released—would find this immensely reassuring: their faithlessness had brought punishment, but repentance opens the door to restoration.

Voice

The liturgical voice maintains its testimonial register, affirming the reliability of God's redemptive response to genuine supplication.

Significance

This embodies the prophetic promise of restoration despite rebellion: Jeremiah 29:12-14 articulates that when exiles pray, God listens and brings them back. The New Testament develops this into the theme of repentance as the condition for forgiveness—not as transaction but as reorientation of the will toward God.

11because they rebelled against the words of God and despised the counsel of the Most High.

12He humbled their hearts with hard labor; they stumbled, and there was no one to help.

13Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and He saved them from their distress.

14He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death and broke away their chains.

15Let them give thanks to the LORD for His loving devotion and His wonders to the sons of men.

Read all of Psalm 107 — Four stories of people in trouble — lost, imprisoned, sick, storm-tossed. Each time they cry out. Each time God delivers. Let the redeemed say so.