The Lord Gives Freedom to the Prisoners

He Broke Their Chains in Pieces

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Long before Paul and Silas were locked up in Philippi, God’s people sang a song about prisoners. It is Psalm 107.

A song of thanks. The psalm begins, “Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever” (Psalm 107:1). Then it tells about people in trouble whom God rescued.

In the dark. One group were “those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, Bound in affliction and irons” (107:10). Irons means chains. They were prisoners.

Why they were there. “Because they rebelled against the words of God, And despised the counsel of the Most High” (107:11). They had turned away from God and His Word.

No one to help. “They fell down, and there was none to help” (107:12). They could not get free by themselves, and no one else could free them either.

They cried out. “Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, And He saved them out of their distresses” (107:13). God heard them, even though their trouble was their own fault.

Chains in pieces. “He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, And broke their chains in pieces” (107:14). God did not just loosen the chains. He broke them.

Gates and bars. “For He has broken the gates of bronze, And cut the bars of iron in two” (107:16). Bronze and iron were the strongest metals people used for gates. No lock is too strong for God.

Give thanks. “Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men!” (107:15). When God sets people free, they should thank Him.

At Philippi. God showed the same power for Paul and Silas: “all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed” (Acts 16:26). But Paul and Silas were in jail for doing good, not for turning away from God.

Chains we cannot see. Psalm 107 also shows what sin does to us. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Sin holds every one of us like chains, and we cannot break free by ourselves.

Jesus breaks the chains. Jesus never sinned, yet He died on the cross for our sins and rose again. “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18).

Cry out to Him. Like the prisoners in the psalm, you can cry out to the Lord. Trust Jesus, and He will forgive you and set you free.

What to do. Read Psalm 107:10-16 this week. Then thank God out loud for one way He has helped you.

Psalm 107 is a song of thanks for rescue. It describes four groups of people in trouble: wanderers, prisoners, the sick and sailors. Each group cries out, and each time the Lord saves.

The prisoners (107:10). “Those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, Bound in affliction and irons.” Darkness, the shadow of death and iron chains describe a person who is completely helpless.

The cause (107:11). “Because they rebelled against the words of God, And despised the counsel of the Most High.” Their prison was the result of their own rebellion. The psalm says so honestly.

Brought low (107:12). “Therefore He brought down their heart with labor; They fell down, and there was none to help.” God let them come to the end of their own strength.

The cry (107:13). “Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, And He saved them out of their distresses.” God answered people whose trouble was their own fault. That is mercy.

Natak (107:14). “He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, And broke their chains in pieces.” Broke in pieces is natak (say: nah-TAHK), to tear apart or snap. God did not loosen the chains a little; He snapped them.

Bronze and iron (107:16). “For He has broken the gates of bronze, And cut the bars of iron in two.” The strongest prison doors of the ancient world were nothing to Him.

Philippi. At Philippi “the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed” (Acts 16:26). The God of Psalm 107 had not changed. Yet Paul and Silas were there for obedience, not rebellion.

The deeper prison. Every person is bound by sin. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). No amount of effort can snap those chains.

The Deliverer. Christ died on the cross for sinners and rose again. “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love” (Colossians 1:13). Psalm 107:14 brought prisoners out of darkness; Christ brings believers out of the darkness of sin.

No one too far gone. The prisoners of Psalm 107 had brought their trouble on themselves, and still God heard them. No sinner is too far gone to cry out to Him.

Application. Cry out to the Lord, believe on Jesus, and then do what Psalm 107:15 asks: give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and tell others what He has done.

Whose Hope Is in the Lord

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Psalm 146 is a song of praise. It begins, “Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, O my soul!” (Psalm 146:1). Then it tells us whom to trust.

Not in princes. “Do not put your trust in princes, Nor in a son of man, in whom there is no help” (146:3). Princes are rulers. Even the strongest people cannot save us.

Rulers come and go. “His spirit departs, he returns to his earth; In that very day his plans perish” (146:4). Every ruler dies one day, and his plans end.

In Philippi. The magistrates of Philippi had the power to beat Paul and Silas and lock them up. By the next day, those same rulers “were afraid” (Acts 16:38). Their power was small next to God’s.

Happy. “Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, Whose hope is in the Lord his God” (146:5). Happy here means truly blessed by God.

Maker of all. He is the God “who made heaven and earth, The sea, and all that is in them” (146:6). Nothing is too hard for Him.

Freedom. “The Lord gives freedom to the prisoners” (146:7). The Lord also “opens the eyes of the blind” and “raises those who are bowed down” (146:8).

He loves. “The Lord loves the righteous” (146:8). God is not far away. He cares about His people when they are in trouble.

Not always the same way. God does not always open prison doors. In Acts 12 He freed Peter from prison, but James had died. God is still good, and He is with His people in every place.

Free inside. Even before the earthquake, Paul and Silas were praying and singing. Chains could not take away their hope in God.

The freedom we need most. Sin makes every one of us a prisoner. Jesus died on the cross for our sins and rose again. “For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Romans 10:13).

Hope that lasts. Rulers’ plans perish, but “The Lord shall reign forever” (146:10). If you trust Jesus, your hope is safe in Him.

What to do. This week, when you feel stuck or afraid, pray using Psalm 146:5. Tell God that your hope is in Him.

Psalm 146 is praise built on a contrast: trusting people or trusting the Lord.

Not princes (146:3-4). “Do not put your trust in princes, Nor in a son of man, in whom there is no help. His spirit departs, he returns to his earth; In that very day his plans perish.” Human power is real, but it is brief.

Philippi’s rulers. The magistrates could tear clothes, order rods and fasten stocks. Within hours they “were afraid when they heard that they were Romans,” and they came and pleaded with the prisoners (Acts 16:38-39). Their power shifted overnight; God’s did not.

The happy one (146:5). “Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, Whose hope is in the Lord his God.” The God of Jacob is the God who kept His promises to a weak and wandering man.

Creator and keeper (146:6). He “made heaven and earth, The sea, and all that is in them; Who keeps truth forever.” The One who laid the foundations of the earth can shake the foundations of a prison.

Mattir (146:7). “The Lord gives freedom to the prisoners.” Gives freedom is mattir (say: mah-TEER), from a word meaning to untie or set loose. The Lord loosens what binds His people.

Sight and lifting (146:8). “The Lord opens the eyes of the blind; The Lord raises those who are bowed down; The Lord loves the righteous.” Jesus did these very things during His ministry.

Honest hope. God does not always open the prison door. In Acts 12 He freed Peter, yet James had died. Psalm 146 does not promise an easy life. It promises a faithful God who will set everything right.

The greater freedom. Sin binds every person, and death follows it. Christ died on the cross and rose again so that all who believe are set free: “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

He reigns (146:10). “The Lord shall reign forever.” Magistrates come and go. The risen Christ reigns.

Application. Ask yourself where your hope rests: in people, in plans or in yourself? Put it in the Lord, and pray Psalm 146:5 when you feel bound.

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