Psalm 116:7
Return to your rest, O my soul, for the LORD has been good to you.
Return
The Hebrew word used here is "שׁוּב" (shuv), which means to turn back or return. This word is often used in the context of repentance or turning back to God. In the broader biblical narrative, it signifies a call to restoration and renewal. The psalmist is urging his soul to return to a state of peace and trust in God, suggesting a previous experience of distress or wandering. This reflects the biblical theme of God as a shepherd who brings His people back to safety and rest.

to your rest
The phrase "to your rest" implies a state of tranquility and peace. The Hebrew word for rest, "מְנוּחָה" (menuchah), is often associated with the rest that God provides, reminiscent of the Sabbath rest. It is a rest that is not merely physical but spiritual, a deep-seated peace that comes from trusting in God's providence and care. This rest is a gift from God, a promise of His presence and protection, as seen throughout the scriptures, particularly in the context of the Promised Land being a place of rest for the Israelites.

O my soul
The term "soul" here is "נֶפֶשׁ" (nephesh) in Hebrew, which refers to the whole being of a person, encompassing mind, will, and emotions. The psalmist is speaking to his own soul, indicating an introspective dialogue. This reflects the biblical understanding that true peace and rest are internal states that come from a relationship with God. The soul's rest is found in God alone, emphasizing the personal and intimate nature of faith.

for the LORD
The use of "LORD" in all capitals indicates the Hebrew name "יהוה" (YHWH), the covenant name of God. This name is deeply significant, representing God's eternal, self-existent nature and His faithfulness to His promises. The psalmist's confidence and call for his soul to return to rest are grounded in the character and covenant faithfulness of YHWH. It is a reminder of God's unchanging nature and His commitment to His people.

has been good
The phrase "has been good" is derived from the Hebrew word "גָּמַל" (gamal), which means to deal bountifully or to reward. This reflects the psalmist's acknowledgment of God's past faithfulness and benevolence. The goodness of God is a recurring theme in the Bible, highlighting His grace, mercy, and provision. The psalmist's assurance of rest is based on the experiential knowledge of God's goodness, which has been evident in his life.

to you
The personal pronoun "you" emphasizes the individual experience of God's goodness. The psalmist is reflecting on his personal journey and relationship with God. This personal testimony serves as an encouragement to others, demonstrating that God's goodness is not just a general truth but a personal reality for each believer. It underscores the intimate relationship between the believer and God, where God's goodness is experienced personally and profoundly.

Persons / Places / Events
1. The Psalmist
The author of Psalm 116, traditionally believed to be King David, who often expressed his personal experiences and emotions in his psalms.

2. The LORD (Yahweh)
The covenant name of God, emphasizing His eternal presence and faithfulness to His people.

3. The Soul
Represents the inner being of the psalmist, encompassing his emotions, thoughts, and spiritual state.
Teaching Points
Rest in God's Goodness
The psalmist encourages his soul to return to rest, highlighting the importance of finding peace in the assurance of God's goodness and faithfulness.

Reflect on Past Deliverance
Remembering how God has been good in the past can strengthen our faith and provide comfort in present trials.

Trust in God's Provision
Trusting in God's provision allows us to release our anxieties and find true rest, knowing that He cares for our needs.

Cultivate a Grateful Heart
Gratitude for God's goodness fosters a restful spirit, as we focus on His blessings rather than our burdens.

Seek Spiritual Renewal
Regularly seek spiritual renewal through prayer, worship, and meditation on God's Word to maintain a restful soul.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the psalmist's call for his soul to return to rest challenge your current approach to stress and anxiety?

2. In what ways have you experienced God's goodness in your life, and how can these experiences encourage you to trust Him more?

3. How does the concept of rest in Psalm 116:7 compare to Jesus' invitation in Matthew 11:28-30?

4. What practical steps can you take to cultivate a grateful heart and find rest in God's provision?

5. How can reflecting on God's past deliverance help you face current challenges with a restful spirit?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Psalm 23
This psalm also speaks of the Lord as a shepherd who provides rest and refreshment for the soul, illustrating God's care and provision.

Matthew 11:28-30
Jesus invites those who are weary to come to Him for rest, echoing the theme of finding rest in God's goodness.

Philippians 4:6-7
Paul speaks of the peace of God that guards our hearts and minds, similar to the rest and peace the psalmist finds in God's goodness.
God, the Rest of the SoulS. Conway Psalm 116:7
RestS. Conway Psalm 116:7
Rest Won and Re-WonR. Tuck Psalm 116:7
Return unto Thy RestPsalm 116:7
Soul RestHomilistPsalm 116:7
Spiritual RestJ. Caird, D.D.Psalm 116:7
The Christian's Disposition Under a Sense of Mercies ReceivedJ. Witherspoon, D.D.Psalm 116:7
The Gate to RestM. R. Vincent, D.D.Psalm 116:7
The Rest of the SoulR. Watson.Psalm 116:7
The Soul's RestW. J. Potter.Psalm 116:7
The Soul's RestNewman Hall, LL.B.Psalm 116:7
The Soul's Resting-PlaceW. L. Watkinson.Psalm 116:7
God the DelivererC. Short Psalm 116:1-9
Christian Experience and its ResultsW. Hancock, B. D.Psalm 116:1-19
Love of God in the HeartJ. Robertson.Psalm 116:1-19
Prayer Answered, Love NourishedPsalm 116:1-19
Reality of Answer to PrayerJ. Robertson.Psalm 116:1-19
The Religion of GratitudeHomilistPsalm 116:1-19
God Works in Our Human LivesR. Tuck Psalm 116:7, 8
People
Psalmist
Places
Jerusalem
Topics
Benefits, Bountifully, Conferred, Dealt, O, Rest, Return, Reward, Soul, Turn
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Psalm 116:7

     5020   human nature
     5058   rest, spiritual

Psalm 116:1-19

     8609   prayer, as praise and thanksgiving

Library
Requiting God
'What shall I render unto the Lord for all His benefits toward me? 13. I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord.'--PSALM cxvi. 12, 13. There may possibly be a reference here to a part of the Passover ritual. It seems to have become the custom in later times to lift high the wine cup at that feast and drink it with solemn invocation and glad thanksgiving. So we find our Lord taking the cup--the 'cup of blessing' as Paul calls it--and giving thanks. But as there is no record
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Experience, Resolve, and Hope
'Thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling. 9. I will walk before the Lord in the land of the living.'--PSALM cxvi. 8, 9. This is a quotation from an earlier psalm, with variations which are interesting, whether we suppose that the Psalmist was quoting from memory and made them unconsciously, or whether, as is more probable, he did so, deliberately and for a purpose. The variations are these. The words in the original psalm (lvi.) according to the Revised
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Precious Deaths
The text informs us that the deaths of God's saints are precious to him. How different, then, is the estimate of human life which God forms from that which has ruled the minds of great warriors and mighty conquerors. Had Napoleon spoken forth his mind about the lives of men in the day of battle, he would have likened them to so much water spilt upon the ground. To win a victory, or subdue a province, it mattered not though he strewed the ground with corpses thick as autumn leaves, nor did it signify
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 18: 1872

Prayer Answered, Love Nourished
"Oh the transporting, rapturous scene That rises to my sight! Sweet fields arrayed in living green, And rivers of delight. Filled with delight my raptured soul Would here no longer stay, Though Jordan's waves around me roll, Fearless I'd launch away." Yet nevertheless the Christian may do well sometimes to look backward; he may look back to the hole of the pit and the miry clay whence he was digged--the retrospect will help him to be humble, it will urge him to be faithful. He may look back with
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 5: 1859

Personal Service
THESE SENTENCES SUGGEST a contrast. David's religion was one of perfect liberty;--"Thou hast loosed my bonds." It was one of complete service;--"Truly l am thy servant. I am thy servant and the son of thine handmaid." Did I say the text suggested a contrast? Indeed the two things need never be contrasted, for they are found to be but part of one divine experience in the Jives of all God's people. The religion of Jesus is the religion of liberty. The true believer can say, when his soul is in a healthy
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 6: 1860

Called Up
"Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints."--Ps. cxvi. 15. Mechthild of Hellfde, 1277. tr., Emma Frances Bevan, 1899 He laid him down upon the breast of God In measureless delight-- Enfolded in the tenderness untold, The sweetness infinite.
Frances Bevan—Hymns of Ter Steegen and Others (Second Series)

What Shall I Render Ps 116:12,13
What shall I render Ps 116:12,13 [5] For mercies, countless as the sands, Which daily I receive From Jesus, my Redeemer's hands, My soul what canst thou give? Alas! from such a heart as mine, What can I bring him forth? My best is stained and dyed with sin, My all is nothing worth. Yet this acknowledgment I'll make For all he has bestowed; Salvation's sacred cup I'll take And call upon my God. The best returns for one like me, So wretched and so poor; Is from his gifts to draw a plea, And ask
John Newton—Olney Hymns

But this Only Son of God, the Father Almighty...
6. But this Only Son of God, the Father Almighty, let us see what He did for us, what He suffered for us. "Born of the Holy Ghost and of the Virgin Mary." He, so great God, equal with the Father, born of the Holy Ghost and of the Virgin Mary, born lowly, that thereby He might heal the proud. Man exalted himself and fell; God humbled Himself and raised him up. Christ's lowliness, what is it? God hath stretched out an hand to man laid low. We fell, He descended: we lay low, He stooped. Let us lay hold
St. Augustine—On the Creeds

"O Lord! I Beseech Thee, Deliver My Soul. " --Ps. cxvi. 4
"O Lord! I beseech Thee, deliver my Soul."--Ps. cxvi. 4. O take away this evil heart; This heart of unbelief renew; So prone, so eager to depart From Thee, the living God and true. O crucify this carnal mind, 'Tis enmity, my God, to Thee; I cannot love Thee, till I find The mind that was in Christ in me. O sanctify this sinful soul; Health to the dying leper give; Thou, if Thou wilt, canst make me whole; Speak but the word, and I shall live. O disenthrall this captive will, (Free only when Thou
James Montgomery—Sacred Poems and Hymns

Rest for the Soul --Psalm cxvi. 7
Rest for the Soul--Psalm cxvi. 7. Return, my soul, unto thy rest, From vain pursuits and madd'ning cares, From lonely woes that wring thy breast, The world's allurements,--Satan's snares. Return unto thy rest, my soul, From all the wanderings of thy thought, From sickness unto death made whole, Safe through a thousand perils brought. Then to thy rest, my soul, return From passions every hour at strife; Sin's works, and ways, and wages spurn, Lay hold upon eternal life. God is thy Rest,--with
James Montgomery—Sacred Poems and Hymns

Gratitude for Redemption. --Ps. cxvi.
Gratitude for Redemption.--Ps. cxvi. I love the Lord;--He lent an ear, When I for help implored; He rescued me from all my fear, Therefore I love the Lord. Bound hand and foot with chains of sin, Death dragg'd me for his prey; The pit was moved to take me in, All hope was far away. I cried in agony of mind, "Lord, I beseech Thee, save:" He held me;--Death his prey resign'd, And Mercy shut the grave. Return, my soul, unto thy rest, From God no longer roam: His hand hath bountifally blest, His
James Montgomery—Sacred Poems and Hymns

That we must not Believe Everyone, and that we are Prone to Fall in Our Words
Lord, be thou my help in trouble, for vain is the help of man.(1) How often have I failed to find faithfulness, where I thought I possessed it. How many times I have found it where I least expected. Vain therefore is hope in men, but the salvation of the just, O God, is in Thee. Blessed be thou, O Lord my God, in all things which happen unto us. We are weak and unstable, we are quickly deceived and quite changed. 2. Who is the man who is able to keep himself so warily and circumspectly as not
Thomas A Kempis—Imitation of Christ

But Some Man Will Say, Would Then those Midwives and Rahab have done Better...
34. But some man will say, Would then those midwives and Rahab have done better if they had shown no mercy, by refusing to lie? Nay verily, those Hebrew women, if they were such as that sort of persons of whom we ask whether they ought ever to tell a lie, would both eschew to say aught false, and would most frankly refuse that foul service of killing the babes. But, thou wilt say, themselves would die. Yea, but see what follows. They would die with an heavenly habitation for their incomparably more
St. Augustine—Against Lying

But Sometimes a Peril to Eternal Salvation Itself is Put Forth against Us...
40. But sometimes a peril to eternal salvation itself is put forth against us; [2466] which peril, they cry out, we by telling a lie, if otherwise it cannot be, must ward off. As, for instance, if a person who is to be baptized be in the power of impious and infidel men, and cannot be got at that he may be washed with the laver of regeneration, but by deceiving his keepers with a lie. From this most invidious cry, by which we are compelled, not for a man's wealth or honors in this world which are
St. Augustine—Against Lying

Palestine Eighteen Centuries Ago
Eighteen and a half centuries ago, and the land which now lies desolate--its bare, grey hills looking into ill-tilled or neglected valleys, its timber cut down, its olive- and vine-clad terraces crumbled into dust, its villages stricken with poverty and squalor, its thoroughfares insecure and deserted, its native population well-nigh gone, and with them its industry, wealth, and strength--presented a scene of beauty, richness, and busy life almost unsurpassed in the then known world. The Rabbis never
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life

The Puritan Innovations
The causes which led to the further change. The Revised Prayer-book, after the opposition in Devonshire and Norfolk had subsided, received very general recognition. Of course there were some who, while grateful for the reforms which had been effected, could ill suppress their conviction that the hands of the Reformers had been stayed too soon. These, however, in England at least, were not a numerous body; and if no influence from without had been brought to bear upon them, they would probably have
Herbert Mortimer Luckock—Studies in the Book of Common Prayer

John Bunyan on the Terms of Communion and Fellowship of Christians at the Table of the Lord;
COMPRISING I. HIS CONFESSION OF FAITH, AND REASON OF HIS PRACTICE; II. DIFFERENCES ABOUT WATER BAPTISM NO BAR TO COMMUNION; AND III. PEACEABLE PRINCIPLES AND TRUE[1] ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. Reader, these are extraordinary productions that will well repay an attentive perusal. It is the confession of faith of a Christian who had suffered nearly twelve years' imprisonment, under persecution for conscience sake. Shut up with his Bible, you have here the result of a prayerful study of those holy
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

The Dryness of Preachers, and the Various Evils which Arise from their Failing to Teach Heart-Prayer --Exhortation to Pastors to Lead People Towards this Form Of
If all those who are working for the conquest of souls sought to win them by the heart, leading them first of all to prayer and to the inner life, they would see many and lasting conversions. But so long as they only address themselves to the outside, and instead of drawing people to Christ by occupying their hearts with Him, they only give them a thousand precepts for outward observances, they will see but little fruit, and that will not be lasting. When once the heart is won, other defects are
Jeanne Marie Bouvières—A Short Method Of Prayer And Spiritual Torrents

Letter Xlix to Romanus, Sub-Deacon of the Roman Curia.
To Romanus, Sub-Deacon of the Roman Curia. He urges upon him the proposal of the religious life, recalling the thought of death. Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux, to his dear Romanus, as to his friend. MY DEAREST FRIEND, How good you are to me in renewing by a letter the sweet recollection of yourself and in excusing my tiresome delay. It is not possible that any forgetfulness of your affection could ever invade the hearts of those who love you; but, I confess, I thought you had almost forgotten yourself
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux—Some Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux

Out of the Deep of Death.
My heart is disquieted within me, and the fear of death has fallen upon me.--Ps. iv. 4. My flesh and my heart faileth, but God is the strength of my heart.--Ps. lxiii. 25. Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me.--Ps. xxiii. 4. Thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling.--Ps. cxvi. 8. What will become of us after we die? What will the next world be like? What is heaven like? Shall I be able
Charles Kingsley—Out of the Deep

Out of the Deep of Loneliness, Failure, and Disappointment.
My heart is smitten down, and withered like grass. I am even as a sparrow that sitteth alone on the housetop--Ps. cii. 4, 6. My lovers and friends hast Thou put away from me, and hid mine acquaintance out of my sight--Ps. lxxviii. 18. I looked on my right hand, and saw there was no man that would know me. I had no place to flee unto, and no man cared for my soul. I cried unto Thee, O Lord, and said, Thou art my Hope. When my spirit was in heaviness, then Thou knewest my path.--Ps. cxlii. 4, 5.
Charles Kingsley—Out of the Deep

"Nunc Dimittis"
We shall note, this morning, first, that every believer may be assured of departing in peace; but that, secondly, some believers feel a special readiness to depart now: "Now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace;" and, thirdly, that there are words of encouragement to produce in us the like readiness: "according to thy word." There are words of Holy Writ which afford richest consolation in prospect of departure. I. First, then, let us start with the great general principle, which is full of comfort;
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 17: 1871

A Treatise on Good Works
I. We ought first to know that there are no good works except those which God has commanded, even as there is no sin except that which God has forbidden. Therefore whoever wishes to know and to do good works needs nothing else than to know God's commandments. Thus Christ says, Matthew xix, "If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments." And when the young man asks Him, Matthew xix, what he shall do that he may inherit eternal life, Christ sets before him naught else but the Ten Commandments.
Dr. Martin Luther—A Treatise on Good Works

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