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Commentary on Psalms 106 verses 13–33
This is an abridgment of the history of Israel's provocations in the wilderness, and of the wrath of God against them for those provocations: and this abridgment is abridged by the apostle, with application to us Christians (Co1 10:5, etc.); for these things were written for our admonition, that we sin not like them, lest we suffer like them.
I. The cause of their sin was disregard to the works and word of God, Psa 106:13. 1. They minded not what he had done for them: They soon forgot his works, and lost the impressions they had made upon them. Those that do not improve God's mercies to them, nor endeavour in some measure to render according to the benefit done unto them, do indeed forget them. This people soon forgot them (God took notice of this, Exo 32:8, They have turned aside quickly): They made haste, they forgot his works (so it is in the margin), which some make to be two separate instances of their sin. They made haste; their expectations anticipated God's promises; they expected to be in Canaan shortly, and because they were not they questioned whether they should ever be there and quarrelled with all the difficulties they met with in their way; whereas he that believeth does not make haste, Isa 28:16. And, withal, they forgot his works, which were the undeniable evidences of his wisdom, power, and goodness, and denied the conclusion as confidently as if they had never seen the premises proved. This is mentioned again (Psa 106:21, Psa 106:22): They forgot God their Saviour; that is, they forgot that he had been their Saviour. Those that forget the works of God forget God himself, who makes himself known by his works. They forgot what was done but a few days before, which we may suppose they could not but talk of, even then, when, because they did not make a good use of it, they are said to forget it: it was what God did for them in Egypt, in the land of Ham, and by the Red Sea, things which we at this distance cannot, or should not, be unmindful of. They are called great things (for, though the great God does nothing mean, yet he does some things that are in a special manner great), wondrous works, out of the common road of Providence, therefore observable, therefore memorable, and terrible things, awful to them, and dreadful to their enemies, and yet soon forgotten. Even miracles that were seen passed away with them as tales that are told. 2. They minded not what God had said to them nor would they depend upon it: They waited not for his counsel, did not attend his word, though they had Moses to be his mouth to them; they took up resolves about which they did not consult him and made demands without calling upon him. They would be in Canaan directly, and had not patience to tarry God's time. The delay was intolerable, and therefore the difficulties were looked upon as insuperable. This is explained (Psa 106:24): They believed not his word, his promise that he would make them masters of Canaan; and (Psa 106:25), They hearkened not to the voice of the Lord, who gave them counsel which they would not wait for, not only by Moses and Aaron, but by Caleb and Joshua, Num 14:6, Num 14:7, etc. Those that will not wait for God's counsel shall justly be given up to their own hearts' lusts, to walk in their own counsels.
II. Many of their sins are here mentioned, together with the tokens of God's displeasure which they fell under for those sins.
1.They would have flesh, and yet would not believe that God could give it to them (Psa 106:14): They lusted a lust (so the word is) in the wilderness; there, where they had bread enough and to spare, yet nothing would serve them but they must have flesh to eat. They were now purely at God's finding, being supported entirely by miracles, so that this was a reflection upon the wisdom and goodness of their Creator. They were also, in all probability, within a step of Canaan, yet had not patience to stay for dainties till they came thither. They had flocks and herds of their own, but they will not kill them; God must give them flesh as he gave them bread, or they will never give him credit, or their good word. They did not only wish for flesh, but they lusted exceedingly after it. A desire, even of lawful things, when it is inordinate and violent, becomes sinful; and therefore this is called lusting after evil things (Co1 10:6), though the quails, as God's gift, were good things, and were so spoken of, Psa 105:40. Yet this was not all: They tempted God in the desert, where they had had such experience of his goodness and power, and questioned whether he could and would gratify them herein. See Psa 78:19, Psa 78:20. Now how did God show his displeasure against them for this. We are told how (Psa 106:15): He gave them their request, but gave it them in anger, and with a curse, for he sent leanness into their soul; he filled them with uneasiness of mind, and terror of conscience, and a self-reproach, occasioned by their bodies being sick with the surfeit, such as sometimes drunkards experience after a great debauch. Or this is put for that great plague with which the Lord smote them, while the flesh was yet between their teeth, as we read, Num 11:33. It was the consumption of the life. Note, (1.) What is asked in passion is often given in wrath. (2.) Many that fare deliciously every day, and whose bodies are healthful and fat, have, at the same time, leanness in their souls, no love to God, no thankfulness, no appetite to the bread of life, and then the soul must needs be lean. Those wretchedly forget themselves that feast their bodies and starve their souls. Then God gives the good things of this life in love, when with them he gives grace to glorify him in the use of them; for then the soul delights itself in fatness, Isa 55:2.
2.They quarrelled with the government which God had set over them both in church and state (Psa 106:16): They envied Moses his authority in the camp, as generalissimo of the armies of Israel and chief justice in all their courts; they envied Aaron his power, as saint of the Lord, consecrated to the office of high priest, and Korah would needs put in for the pontificate, while Dathan and Abiram, as princes of the tribe of Reuben, Jacob's eldest son, would claim to be chief magistrates, by the so-much-admired right of primogeniture. Note, Those are preparing ruin for themselves who envy those whom God has put honour upon and usurp the dignities they were never designed for. And justly will contempt be poured upon those who put contempt upon any of the saints of the Lord. How did God show his displeasure for this? We are told how, and it is enough to make us tremble (Psa 106:17, Psa 106:18); we have the story, Num 16:32, Num 16:35. (1.) Those that flew in the face of the civil authority were punished by the earth, which opened and swallowed them up, as not fit to go upon God's ground, because they would not submit to God's government. (2.) Those that would usurp the ecclesiastical authority in things pertaining to God suffered the vengeance of heaven, for fire came out from the Lord and consumed them, and the pretending sacrificers were themselves sacrificed to divine justice. The flame burnt up the wicked; for though they vied with Aaron, the saint of the Lord, for holiness (Num 16:3, Num 16:5), yet God adjudged them wicked, and as such cut them off, as in due time he will destroy the man of sin, that wicked one, notwithstanding his proud pretensions to holiness.
3.They made and worshipped the golden calf, and this in Horeb, where the law was given, and where God had expressly said, Thou shalt neither make any graven image nor bow down to it; they did both: They made a calf and worshipped it, Psa 106:19.
(1.)Herein they bade defiance to, and put an affront upon, the two great lights which God has made to rule the moral world: - [1.] That of human reason; for they changed their glory, their God, at least the manifestation of him, which always had been in a cloud (either a dark cloud or a bright one), without any manner of visible similitude, into the similitude of Apis, one of the Egyptian idols, an ox that eateth grass, than which nothing could be more grossly and scandalously absurd, Psa 106:20. Idolaters are perfectly besotted, and put the greatest disparagement possible both upon God, in representing him by the image of a beast, and upon themselves, in worshipping it when they have so done. That which is here said to be the changing of their glory is explained by St. Paul (Rom 1:23) to be the changing of the glory of the incorruptible God. [2.] That of divine revelation, which was afforded to them, not only in the words God spoke to them, but in the works he wrought for them, wondrous works, which declared aloud that the Lord Jehovah is the only true and living God and is alone to be worshipped, Psa 106:21, Psa 106:22.
(2.)For this God showed his displeasure by declaring the decree that he would cut them off from being a people, as they had, as far as lay in their power, in effect cut him off from being a God; he spoke of destroying them (Psa 106:23), and certainly he would have done it if Moses, his chosen, had not stood before him in the breach (Psa 106:23), if he had not seasonably interposed to deal with God as an advocate about the breach or ruin God was about to devote them to and wonderfully prevailed to turn away his wrath. See here the mercy of God, and how easily his anger is turned away, even from a provoking people. See the power of prayer, and the interest which God's chosen have in heaven. See a type of Christ, God's chosen, his elect, in whom his soul delights, who stood before him in the breach to turn away his wrath from a provoking world, and ever lives, for this end, making intercession.
4.They gave credit to the report of the evil spies concerning the land of Canaan, in contradiction to the promise of God (Psa 106:24): They despised the pleasant land. Canaan was a pleasant land, Deu 8:7. They undervalued it when they thought it not worth venturing for, no, not under the guidance of God himself, and therefore were for making a captain and returning to Egypt again. They believed not God's word concerning it, but murmured in their tents, basely charging God with a design upon them in bringing them thither that they might become a prey to the Canaanites, Num 14:2, Num 14:3. And, when they were reminded of God's power and promise, they were so far from hearkening to that voice of the Lord that they attempted to stone those who spoke to them, Num 14:10. The heavenly Canaan is a pleasant land. A promise is left us of entering into it; but there are many that despise it, that neglect and refuse the offer of it, that prefer the wealth and pleasure of this world before it, and grudge the pains and hazards of this life to obtain that. This also was so displeasing to God that he lifted up his hand against them, in a way of threatening, to destroy them in the wilderness; nay, in a way of swearing, for he swore in his wrath that they should not enter into his rest (Psa 95:11; Num 14:28); nay, and he threatened that their children also should be overthrown and scattered (Psa 106:26, Psa 106:27), and the whole nation dispersed and disinherited; but Moses prevailed for mercy for their seed, that they might enter Canaan. Note, Those who despise God's favours, and particularly the pleasant land, forfeit his favours, and will be shut out for ever from the pleasant land.
5.They were guilty of a great sin in the matter of Peor; and this was the sin of the new generation, when they were within a step of Canaan (Psa 106:28): They joined themselves to Baal-peor, and so were entangled both in idolatry and in adultery, in corporeal and in spiritual whoredom, Num 25:1-3. Those that did often partake of the altar of the living God now ate the sacrifices of the dead, of the idols of Moab (that were dead images, or dead men canonized or deified), or sacrifices to the infernal deities on the behalf of their dead friends. Thus they provoked God to anger with their inventions (Psa 106:29), in contempt of him and his institutions, his commands, and his threatenings. The iniquity of Peor was so great that, long after, it is said, They were not cleansed from it, Jos 22:17. God testified his displeasure at this, (1.) By sending a plague among them, which in a little time swept away 24,000 of those impudent sinners. (2.) By stirring up Phinehas to use his power as a magistrate for the suppressing of the sin and checking the contagion of it. He stood up in his zeal for the Lord of hosts, and executed judgment upon Zimri and Cozbi, sinners of the first rank, genteel sinners; he put the law in execution upon them, and this was a service so pleasing to God that upon it the plague was stayed, Psa 106:30. By this, and some other similar acts of public justice on that occasion (Num 25:4, Num 25:5), the guilt ceased to be national, and the general controversy was let fall. When the proper officers did their duty God left it to them, and did not any longer keep the work in his own hands by the plague. Note, National justice prevents national judgments. But, Phinehas herein signalizing himself, a special mark of honour was put upon him, for what he did was counted to him for righteousness to all generations (Psa 106:31), and, in recompence of it, the priesthood was entailed on his family. He shall make an atonement by offering up the sacrifices, who had so bravely made an atonement (so some read it, Psa 106:30) by offering up the sinners. Note, It is the honour of saints to be zealous against sin.
6.They continued their murmurings to the very last of their wanderings; for in the fortieth year they angered God at the waters of strife (Psa 106:32), which refers to that story, Num 20:3-5. And that which aggravated it now was that it went ill with Moses for their sakes; for, though he was the meekest of all the men in the earth, yet their clamours at that time were so peevish and provoking that they put him into a passion, and, having now grown very old and off his guard, he spoke unadvisedly with his lips (Psa 106:33), and not as became him on that occasion; for he said in a heat, Hear now, you rebels, must we fetch water out of this rock for you? This was Moses's infirmity, and is written for our admonition, that we may learn, when we are in the midst of provocation, to keep our mouth as with a bridle (Psa 39:1-3), and to take heed to our spirits, that they admit not resentments too much; for, when the spirit is provoked, it is much ado, even for those that have a great deal of wisdom and grace, not to speak unadvisedly. But it is charged upon the people as their sin: They provoked his spirit with that with which they angered God himself. Note, We must answer not only for our own passions, but for the provocation which by them we give to the passions of others, especially of those who, if not greatly provoked, would be meek and quiet. God shows his displeasure against this sin of theirs by shutting Moses and Aaron out of Canaan for their misconduct upon this occasion, by which, (1.) God discovered his resentment of all such intemperate heats, even in the dearest of his servants. If he deals thus severely with Moses for one unadvised word, what does their sin deserve who have spoken so many presumptuous wicked words? If this was done in the green tree, what shall be done in the dry? (2.) God deprived them of the blessing of Moses's guidance and government at a time when they most needed it, so that his death was more a punishment to them than to himself. It is just with God to remove those relations from us that are blessings to us, when we are peevish and provoking to them and grieve their spirits.
"And they made a calf in Horeb, and worshipped the graven image" [Psalm 106:19]. "Thus they changed their glory, in the similitude of a calf that eats hay" [Psalm 106:20]. He says not "into" the likeness, but "in" the likeness. It is such a form of speech as where he said "and they believed in His words." With great effect in truth he says not, they changed the glory of God when they did this; as the Apostle also says, "They changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man:" [Romans 1:23] but "their glory." For God was their glory, if they would abide His counsel, and hasten not....
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SUMMARY
Psalms 106:20 serves as a profound and poignant indictment of Israel's spiritual failure during their wilderness wanderings, specifically highlighting the infamous incident of the golden calf. This verse encapsulates a pivotal moment of national apostasy where the chosen people, despite having witnessed God's awe-inspiring power and experienced His intimate presence, deliberately exchanged their unique and glorious relationship with the one true God—the very source of their honor, identity, and divine distinction—for a worthless, mundane, and utterly powerless idol, epitomized by the image of an ox dependent on earthly sustenance. This act represents the ultimate degradation of their spiritual standing, trading infinite, transcendent glory for finite, created insignificance.
CONTEXT
Literary Context: Psalm 106 is a historical psalm, functioning as a national confession of sin and a lament over Israel's repeated covenant infidelity. It belongs to Book IV of the Psalter (Psalms 90-106) and systematically recounts Israel's tumultuous history of rebellion and God's enduring faithfulness, beginning from the Exodus, through the wilderness wanderings, the conquest of Canaan, and the period of the judges. This psalm parallels the historical reviews found in Psalm 78 and Nehemiah 9. Verse 20 specifically hones in on the infamous incident at Mount Horeb (Sinai), detailed comprehensively in Exodus 32, where the people, impatient for Moses' return, compelled Aaron to fashion an idol. This act represented a direct and immediate violation of the very first commandments God had just delivered to them. The psalm's structure moves chronologically through Israel's transgressions, with this verse highlighting an early, foundational act of rebellion that tragically set a pattern for subsequent unfaithfulness throughout their history.
Historical & Cultural Context: The historical setting for Psalms 106:20 is immediately after the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai, a period of immense divine revelation. The Israelites had just been delivered from Egyptian bondage through a series of miraculous plagues and the parting of the Red Sea, and they had witnessed God's awe-inspiring presence on the mountain with thunder, lightning, and a thick cloud. Yet, within a remarkably short period, they demanded a visible god to lead them, demonstrating a profound lack of trust and spiritual discernment. Culturally, the surrounding nations, particularly Egypt, practiced widespread animal worship, including the veneration of bull deities like Apis, often associated with fertility and strength. This pervasive cultural influence likely contributed to Israel's choice of an "ox" image, despite God's explicit and recent prohibition against making graven images in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:4). The act was not merely a lapse in judgment but a direct affront to the covenant God who had just delivered them from a land steeped in such idolatry, underscoring their spiritual amnesia and susceptibility to pagan practices.
Key Themes: The central theme powerfully underscored by this verse is Idolatry and Apostasy, illustrating Israel's persistent tendency to abandon the living God for man-made substitutes. The "ox that eateth grass" serves as a potent and derogatory symbol of the mundane, earthly, and utterly powerless nature of idols when contrasted with the transcendent, self-existent Creator. This act also highlights the profound theme of Exchanging True Glory, emphasizing that Israel's unique glory was their covenant relationship with the one true God, who had chosen, delivered, and established His glorious presence among them. To trade this divine, inestimable relationship for a mere animal image was the ultimate spiritual degradation, a lamentable exchange that foreshadows the broader human condition described in Romans 1:23, where humanity "changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things." Furthermore, the verse implicitly points to Spiritual Blindness and Ingratitude, as despite overwhelming evidence of God's power, faithfulness, and unique nature, the people demonstrated a profound inability to discern His true character, choosing a visible, tangible, but lifeless object over the invisible, living God who had performed mighty deeds on their behalf.
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
The verse powerfully employs Contrast to highlight the profound spiritual error of Israel. A stark dichotomy is drawn between God's Glory—representing His transcendent majesty, infinite power, and unique covenant relationship with His people—and the "similitude of an ox that eateth grass," which symbolizes the base, earthly, dependent, and utterly powerless nature of the idol. This contrast is further amplified by Irony: the people who had just witnessed the awesome, unapproachable glory of God at Sinai (Exodus 19:16-19) immediately turned to worship a mundane animal image. The phrase "that eateth grass" functions as a potent Metonymy or Synecdoche, representing the entire class of created, dependent, and ultimately worthless idols. It also serves as a sharp Derogatory Epithet, diminishing the perceived power of the idol and underscoring the profound foolishness and spiritual degradation of those who worship it, reducing their divine glory to something as common and perishable as grass.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Psalms 106:20 profoundly illustrates the universal and timeless nature of idolatry, extending far beyond the literal worship of physical statues. It reveals the core theological problem of humanity's innate tendency to displace God from His rightful place of ultimate devotion, trust, and affection. True idolatry is not merely bowing before an image, but placing anything—be it wealth, career, relationships, self-image, comfort, control, or even religious rituals—in the position that only God should occupy as the ultimate source of worth, security, and meaning. This verse underscores the spiritual degradation inherent in exchanging the Creator for the created, trading the infinite, eternal, and all-sufficient God for finite, temporal, and ultimately unsatisfying substitutes. It serves as a perennial warning that when we seek our "glory" or ultimate fulfillment in anything "that eateth grass"—anything of this transient, earthly realm—we diminish our true identity, debase our spiritual standing, and sever our vital relationship with the divine. It is a call to recognize that true glory is found only in God.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Psalms 106:20 serves as a timeless mirror for self-examination, challenging us to identify what we truly consider our "glory" in the modern world. While we may not fashion golden calves, the human heart remains prone to idolatry, subtly elevating created things to the status of ultimate worth, security, and identity. Do we derive our sense of identity, worth, and purpose from our achievements, possessions, social status, the approval of others, or even our own perceived righteousness? Are we inadvertently exchanging the glory of God—our unique relationship with Him, His manifest presence, His divine purposes for our lives, and His all-sufficiency—for things that are ultimately "of the earth" and "eateth grass," meaning they are transient, dependent, unable to truly satisfy, and incapable of sustaining us through life's deepest challenges? This verse calls us to a radical reorientation of our affections and allegiances, to recognize that our true glory, our ultimate honor and distinction, lies solely in knowing, loving, serving, and being in covenant relationship with the living God. It urges us to dismantle the idols of our hearts, whether they be ambition, comfort, control, self-reliance, or even the pursuit of fleeting pleasures, and to reaffirm God as our supreme delight, our ultimate source of all good, and the singular object of our worship.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
What does "changed their glory" mean in this context?
Answer: In Psalms 106:20, "changed their glory" refers to Israel's profound spiritual betrayal and a radical reorientation of their worship. Their true "glory" was God Himself—His manifest presence, His unique covenant relationship with them, His power, and His splendor. He was their honor, their distinguishing mark among the nations, and the source of their identity and worth. By "changing their glory," they abandoned this inestimable, divine relationship and instead attributed ultimate worth, devotion, and trust to a man-made idol, the golden calf. It signifies a deliberate act of exchanging the infinite, transcendent God for a finite, created object, thereby debasing their own spiritual standing and rejecting the very source of their true honor. This act was a profound act of apostasy, a turning away from the living God to a lifeless substitute.
Why is the "ox that eateth grass" used as a descriptor for the idol?
Answer: This phrase is a powerful and derogatory descriptor used to highlight the utter insignificance, mundane nature, and powerlessness of the idol when compared to the living God. An ox is a common, dependent, mortal creature that consumes earthly sustenance ("eateth grass"). It is a creature, not the Creator. This contrasts sharply with the self-sufficient, eternal, and all-powerful God who provides sustenance for all creation. By describing the idol this way, the psalmist emphasizes the absurdity and spiritual degradation of exchanging the divine, life-giving God for a mere animal image. It underscores that the idol is a product of the earth, dependent on it, and ultimately lifeless and incapable of delivering or sustaining. This specific imagery directly alludes to the golden calf, which was likely a representation of a bull deity, common in surrounding pagan cultures, further highlighting Israel's descent into the very practices God had forbidden and the foolishness of such an exchange.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Psalms 106:20, with its stark depiction of Israel exchanging their divine glory for a mundane idol, finds its ultimate fulfillment and reversal in the person and work of Jesus Christ. While Israel debased their relationship with God by turning to an image "that eateth grass," Christ is revealed as the very "radiance of God's glory and the exact imprint of His nature" (Hebrews 1:3). He is the true and living image of the invisible God (Colossians 1:15), unlike the lifeless ox fashioned by human hands. Rather than clinging to His divine glory, Christ "emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men" (Philippians 2:6-8), descending to our level to restore humanity's access to true glory. Through His perfect obedience and atoning sacrifice, He redeems us from the idolatry of seeking our worth and satisfaction in created things and invites us into a restored, living relationship with God, where our true glory is found in Him. Believers, beholding the glory of the Lord in the face of Christ, are progressively "being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another" (2 Corinthians 3:18), no longer exchanging divine glory for earthly substitutes, but reflecting the very glory of God through the indwelling Spirit.