Footsteps in the Sea

²³Some went down to the sea in ships,

doing business on the great waters;

²⁴they saw the deeds of the Lord,

his wondrous works in the deep.

²⁵For he commanded and raised the stormy wind,

which lifted up the waves of the sea.

²⁶They mounted up to heaven; they went down to the depths;

their courage melted away in their evil plight;

²⁷they reeled and staggered like drunken men

and were at their wits' end.2

²⁸Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,

and he delivered them from their distress.

²⁹He made the storm be still,

and the waves of the sea were hushed.

³⁰Then they were glad that the waters3 were quiet,

and he brought them to their desired haven.

³¹Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,

for his wondrous works to the children of man!

³²Let them extol him in the congregation of the people,

and praise him in the assembly of the elders.

³³He turns rivers into a desert,

springs of water into thirsty ground,

³⁴a fruitful land into a salty waste,

because of the evil of its inhabitants.

³⁵He turns a desert into pools of water,

a parched land into springs of water.

³⁶And there he lets the hungry dwell,

and they establish a city to live in;

³⁷they sow fields and plant vineyards

and get a fruitful yield.

³⁸By his blessing they multiply greatly,

and he does not let their livestock diminish.

³⁹When they are diminished and brought low

through oppression, evil, and sorrow,

⁴⁰he pours contempt on princes

and makes them wander in trackless wastes;

⁴¹but he raises up the needy out of affliction

and makes their families like flocks.

⁴²The upright see it and are glad,

and all wickedness shuts its mouth.

⁴³Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things;

let them consider the steadfast love of the Lord.