Thank the Lord for his kindness,
for his mercy endures forever.
Let those who were rescued from disaster
acknowledge the mercy of the Lord.
Some lost their way in the desert
and wandered in the barren wastes.
They were dying of thirst and hunger;
their spirits melted within them.
So they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
and he rescued them from their distress.
He led them on a straight path
till they reached an inhabited city.
Let them thank the Lord for his mercy,
for the miracle he performed.
For he satisfies the longing soul,
and he fills the hungry with good things.
Some sat in despair and darkness,
shackled with iron chains.
Their spirits bent low with hard labor;
they staggered under their burden.
So they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
and he rescued them from their distress.
He brought them out of the darkness;
he freed them and broke their chains.
Let them thank the Lord for his mercy,
for the miracle he performed.
For he bursts the bronze doors open
and cuts through the iron bars.
Some were mortally ill,
gripped by unceasing pain.
They sickened at the sight of food;
they drew near the gates of death.
So they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
and he rescued them from their distress.
He sent his spirit to heal them
and snatched their lives from the pit.
Let them thank the Lord for his mercy,
for the miracle he performed.
Let them thank him with songs of gratitude
and shout his wonders with great joy.
Some went to the sea in ships
and plied their trade on the ocean.
They saw the works of the Lord,
his miracles on the deep waters.
At his word a storm-wind arose
and churned the waves to a frenzy.
They were lifted high up, they fell
to the depths, they fainted in terror.
They reeled and staggered like drunks;
all their knowledge was useless.
So they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
and he rescued them from their distress.
He stilled the storm to a whisper
and smoothed out the waves of the sea.
They rejoiced that the water was calm,
and he brought them safe to their harbor.
Let them thank the Lord for his mercy,
for the miracle he performed.
Let them sing his praise to all people
and tell of his wonders with awe.
He turns great rivers into deserts
and farms into barren lands.
He makes rich soil out of wilderness,
and he fills the desert with streams.
He brings the hungry to live there;
they build their houses and barns.
They sow fields and plant vineyards;
their work makes the land rejoice.
He blesses them with abundance
and enlarges their flocks and herds.
In times of desperate trouble,
he lifts them from their distress.
His mercy fills them with gratitude,
and they thank him with songs of praise.
Let all who are searching for wisdom
consider the great mercy of the Lord.