Psalm 105
The full text of Psalm 105 in the Trinity Bible Version — clear modern English, translated from the original Hebrew. Free to read.
1 Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name;
make known his deeds among the peoples!
2 Sing to him, sing praises to him;
tell of all his wondrous works!
3 Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice!
4 Seek the LORD and his strength;
seek his presence continually!
5 Remember the wondrous works that he has done,
his miracles, and the judgments he uttered,
6 O offspring of Abraham, his servant,
children of Jacob, his chosen ones!
7 He is the LORD our God;
his judgments are in all the earth.
8 He remembers his covenant forever,
the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations,
9 the covenant that he made with Abraham,
his sworn promise to Isaac,
10 which he confirmed to Jacob as a statute,
to Israel as an everlasting covenant,
11 saying, 'To you I will give the land of Canaan
as your portion for an inheritance.'
12 When they were few in number,
of little account, and sojourners in it,
13 wandering from nation to nation,
from one kingdom to another people,
14 he allowed no one to oppress them;
he rebuked kings on their account,
15 saying, 'Touch not my anointed ones,
do my prophets no harm!'
16 When he summoned a famine on the land
and broke all supply of bread,
17 he had sent a man ahead of them,
Joseph, who was sold as a slave.
18 His feet were hurt with fetters;
his neck was put in a collar of iron;
19 until what he had said came to pass,
the word of the LORD tested him.
20 The king sent and released him;
the ruler of the peoples set him free;
21 he made him lord of his house
and ruler of all his possessions,
22 to bind his princes at his pleasure
and to teach his elders wisdom.
23 Then Israel came to Egypt;
Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham.
24 And the LORD made his people very fruitful
and made them stronger than their foes.
25 He turned their hearts to hate his people,
to deal craftily with his servants.
26 He sent Moses, his servant,
and Aaron, whom he had chosen.
27 They performed his signs among them
and miracles in the land of Ham.
28 He sent darkness, and made the land dark;
they did not rebel against his words.
29 He turned their waters into blood
and caused their fish to die.
30 Their land swarmed with frogs,
even in the chambers of their kings.
31 He spoke, and there came swarms of flies,
and gnats throughout their country.
32 He gave them hail for rain,
and fiery lightning bolts through their land.
33 He struck down their vines and fig trees,
and shattered the trees of their country.
34 He spoke, and the locusts came,
young locusts without number,
35 which devoured all the vegetation in their land
and ate up the fruit of their ground.
36 He struck down all the firstborn in their land,
the firstfruits of all their strength.
37 Then he brought out Israel with silver and gold,
and there was none among his tribes who stumbled.
38 Egypt was glad when they departed,
for dread of them had fallen upon it.
39 He spread a cloud for a covering,
and fire to give light by night.
40 They asked, and he brought quail,
and gave them bread from heaven in abundance.
41 He opened the rock, and water gushed out;
it flowed through the desert like a river.
42 For he remembered his holy promise,
and Abraham, his servant.
43 So he brought his people out with joy,
his chosen ones with singing.
44 And he gave them the lands of the nations,
and they took possession of the fruit of the peoples' toil,
45 that they might keep his statutes
and observe his laws.
Praise the LORD!
Translation notes (7)
- Psalm 105:15a Meshichai (מְשִׁיחָי), 'my anointed ones', here designates the patriarchs, an unusual application of a term elsewhere reserved for kings and priests who were literally anointed with oil. The word marks Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as persons set apart under divine protection, a status the parallel line reinforces by also calling them prophets.
- Psalm 105:18a Hebrew barzel ba'ah nafsho is literally 'his soul came into iron'. Because nefesh, commonly 'soul' or 'life', can also denote the throat or neck (compare Jonah 2:6), the clause is rendered here as 'a collar of iron' upon the neck. The proverbial English phrase 'the iron entered into his soul' descends from the Latin Psalter, which reversed subject and object.
- Psalm 105:19a Hebrew devaro, 'his word', is ambiguous: it may denote Joseph's own prophetic dreams or the LORD's promise concerning him, and this rendering preserves that openness. The verb tsaraph, 'tested', is a metallurgical term, literally to refine or smelt, presenting the imprisonment of the previous verse as a refining fire.
- Psalm 105:23a The phrase erets Cham, 'land of Ham', is a poetic designation for Egypt, reflecting the genealogy of Genesis 10:6, where Mitsrayim ('Egypt') is listed among the sons of Ham. The same expression recurs in Psalm 105:27 and Psalm 106:22, and a similar phrase, 'tents of Ham', appears in Psalm 78:51.
- Psalm 105:28a The Masoretic Text reads velo maru, 'and they did not rebel', the subject most naturally being Moses and Aaron, who obeyed the commands of the plagues. The Septuagint and the Syriac lack the negative, yielding 'they rebelled against his words', with the Egyptians as subject. This translation follows the Hebrew as it stands.
- Psalm 105:36a Hebrew reshit, 'firstfruits' or 'beginning', pairs with bekhor, 'firstborn', and on, 'vigor' or 'strength', echoing Jacob's words over Reuben in Genesis 49:3, where the firstborn is called the firstfruits of his father's strength. The line thus casts Egypt's firstborn as the choicest portion of the nation's generative power.
- Psalm 105:41a The verse recalls the water from the rock at Rephidim (Exodus 17:6) and Meribah (Numbers 20:11), though here God himself, not Moses, opens the rock. The Hebrew verb zuv, 'to gush' or 'to flow', is elsewhere used of the land 'flowing' with milk and honey, casting the desert miracle as a foretaste of the promised land's abundance.
About this translation
You are reading the Trinity Bible Version (TBV) — an original 2026 translation made straight from the Hebrew, in clear modern English, exclusive to Trinity Bible. Every chapter of every book is free to read online. For the study edition — with Hebrew and Greek on every verse and the full translation notes — open Psalms in the Trinity Bible app.
Continue: Psalm 106 → · All of Psalms · About the TBV · Read Psalm 105 in the KJV
Get the app: iOS · Android · Trinity Plus