The Meaning of Psalms 106:9 Explained

Psalms 106:9

KJV: He rebuked the Red sea also, and it was dried up: so he led them through the depths, as through the wilderness.

YLT: And rebuketh the sea of Suph, and it is dried up, And causeth them to go Through depths as a wilderness.

Darby: And he rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up; and he led them through the deeps as through a wilderness.

ASV: He rebuked the Red Sea also, and it was dried up: So he led them through the depths, as through a wilderness.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

He rebuked  the Red  sea  also, and it was dried up:  so he led  them through the depths,  as through the wilderness. 

What does Psalms 106:9 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalms 106:1-15 - Unfailing Loving-Kindness
Who can utter? That is an unanswered question. Not even the leader of the heavenly choir can answer it. But what blessedness it brings to the heart of one who begins to recite the goodness and loving-kindness of God! When prayer goes heavily, begin to praise.
The theme of this psalm is God's redeeming grace. It contains a gruesome catalogue of sin. We have sinned"¦ we have committed iniquity"¦ our fathers understood not"¦ they remembered not"¦ but provoked"¦ they soon forgat"¦ they waited not"¦ but lusted exceedingly"¦ and tempted God. But side by side were the divine love and mercy: "Nevertheless He saved them for His name's sake," Psalms 106:8. God is bound to keep His Covenant, even to the children's children. He must act worthily of Himself. "Truth" is another spelling of "troth." When God has pledged His troth, as He did to Abraham, and has also to us, He cannot fail.
Notice the pathetic prayer of Psalms 106:4. Though we are more or less implicated in the sins of those around us, we, as Christians, may claim special favor and help, in order to be placed in a stronger position when we come to intercede for others. [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalms 106

1  The psalmist exhorts to praise God
4  He prays for pardon of sin, as God pardoned the fathers
7  The story of the people's rebellion, and God's mercy
47  He concludes with prayer and praise

What do the individual words in Psalms 106:9 mean?

And He rebuked the Sea Red and it dried up so He led them through the depths as through the wilderness
וַיִּגְעַ֣ר בְּיַם־ ס֭וּף וַֽיֶּחֱרָ֑ב וַיּוֹלִיכֵ֥ם בַּ֝תְּהֹמ֗וֹת כַּמִּדְבָּֽר

וַיִּגְעַ֣ר  And  He  rebuked 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: גָּעַר  
Sense: (Qal) to rebuke, reprove, corrupt.
בְּיַם־  the  Sea 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: יָם  
Sense: sea.
ס֭וּף  Red 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: סוּף  
Sense: reed, rush, water plant.
וַֽיֶּחֱרָ֑ב  and  it  dried  up 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: חָרֵב 
Sense: to be waste, lay waste, make desolate, be desolate, be in ruins.
וַיּוֹלִיכֵ֥ם  so  He  led  them 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular, third person masculine plural
Root: הָלַךְ  
Sense: to go, walk, come.
בַּ֝תְּהֹמ֗וֹת  through  the  depths 
Parse: Preposition-b, Article, Noun, common plural
Root: תְּהֹום  
Sense: deep, depths, deep places, abyss, the deep, sea.
כַּמִּדְבָּֽר  as  through  the  wilderness 
Parse: Preposition-k, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: מִדְבָּר 
Sense: wilderness.