Read the Bible

¹ Praise the Lord, because he is good!
    His faithful love will last forever!
² Everyone the Lord has saved should repeat that word of thanks.
    Praise him, all who have been rescued from the enemy.
³ He gathered his people together from many different countries.
    He brought them from east and west, north and south.^[a]

⁴ Some of them wandered in the dry desert.
    They were looking for a place to live,
    but they could not find a city.
⁵ They were hungry and thirsty
    and growing weak.
⁶ Then they called to the Lord for help,
    and he saved them from their troubles.
⁷ He led them straight to the city where they would live.
⁸ Thank the Lord for his faithful love
    and for the amazing things he does for people.
⁹ He satisfies those who are thirsty.
    He fills those who are hungry with good things.

¹⁰ Some of God's people were prisoners,
    locked behind bars in dark prisons.
¹¹ That was because they had fought against what God said.
    They refused to listen to the advice of God Most High.
¹² God made life hard for those people
    because of what they did.
They stumbled and fell,
    and there was no one to help them.
¹³ They were in trouble, so they called to the Lord for help,
    and he saved them from their troubles.
¹⁴ He took them out of their dark prisons.
    He broke the ropes that held them.
¹⁵ Thank the Lord for his faithful love
    and for the amazing things he does for people.
¹⁶ He breaks down their bronze gates.
    He shatters their iron bars.

¹⁷ Some people became fools and turned against God,
    and they suffered for the evil they did.
¹⁸ They became so sick that they refused to eat,
    so they almost died.
¹⁹ They were in trouble, so they called to the Lord for help,
    and he saved them from their troubles.
²⁰ He gave the command and healed them,
    so they were saved from the grave.
²¹ Thank the Lord for his faithful love
    and for the amazing things he does for people.
²² Offer sacrifices of thanks to him.
    Sing with joy about all that he has done.

²³ Some sailed the sea in ships.
    Their work carried them across the water.
²⁴ They saw what the Lord can do.
    They saw the amazing things he did at sea.
²⁵ He gave the command, and a strong wind began to blow.
    The waves became higher and higher.
²⁶ The waves lifted them high into the sky
    and dropped them into the deep sea.
    The storm was so dangerous that the men lost their courage.
²⁷ They were stumbling and falling like someone who is drunk.
    Their skill as sailors was useless.
²⁸ They were in trouble, so they called to the Lord for help,
    and he saved them from their troubles.
²⁹ He stopped the storm
    and calmed the waves.
³⁰ The sailors were happy that the sea became calm,
    and he led them safely to where they wanted to go.
³¹ Thank the Lord for his faithful love
    and for the amazing things he does for people.
³² Praise God in the great assembly.
    Praise him when the older leaders meet together.

³³ He changed rivers into a desert.
    He stopped springs from flowing.
³⁴ He made the fertile land become salty,
    because the people living there did such evil things.
³⁵ He changed the desert into a land with pools of water.
    He caused springs to flow from dry ground.
³⁶ He led the hungry to that good land,
    and they built a city to live in.
³⁷ They planted seeds in their fields and grapes in their vineyards,
    and they had a good harvest.
³⁸ God blessed them with many children
    and plenty of animals.
³⁹ But because of disaster and troubles,
    their families became small and weak.
⁴⁰ God shames even great leaders
    and makes them wander through empty deserts.
⁴¹ But he rescues the poor from their misery.
    He makes their families large like flocks of sheep.
⁴² Good people see this and are happy.
    But the wicked see it and don't know what to say.
⁴³ Whoever is wise will remember these things
    and begin to understand the Lord's faithful love.