How does Psalm 107:24 connect to Jesus calming the storm in Mark 4?

Shared Setting: Sailors and Disciples at Sea

Psalm 107:23: “Others went out to sea in ships, conducting trade on the mighty waters.”

Mark 4:35: “That day, when evening came, He said to them, ‘Let us cross to the other side.’ ”

• Both passages open with God’s people embarking on ordinary, necessary journeys across open water.

• The sea, in Scripture, often pictures chaos and danger—places where human strength fails and divine help is needed (Psalm 89:9).

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Witnessing Divine Works in the Deep (Psalm 107:24)

Psalm 107:24: “They saw the works of the LORD and His wonders in the deep.”

• The psalmist insists that God’s “wonders” are most clearly displayed where human control ends—“in the deep.”

• These “works” include both the stirring of the storm (v. 25) and the calming of it (v. 29), proving that the LORD commands every wave.

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Jesus Reveals the Same Authority (Mark 4:35-41)

Mark 4:39: “Then Jesus got up and rebuked the wind and the sea. ‘Silence! Be still!’ And the wind died down, and it was perfectly calm.”

• By a word, Jesus performs what Psalm 107 attributes solely to the LORD.

• The disciples “were filled with great fear” (v. 41), echoing the seafarers in Psalm 107:27, who “reeled and staggered like drunken men; their skill proved useless.”

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Key Parallels Between the Passages

• Divine sovereignty over both the raising and the quieting of the storm (Psalm 107:25, 29; Mark 4:39).

• Human helplessness producing desperate cries—explicit in Psalm 107:28, implied in Mark 4:38 (“Teacher, don’t You care that we are perishing?”).

• Immediate, total calm following the divine command (Psalm 107:29; Mark 4:39).

• Fear turned to awe and worship (Psalm 107:30-31; Mark 4:41).

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Theological Implications: Identifying Jesus with the LORD

• Psalm 89:9: “You rule the raging of the sea…”—a prerogative of Yahweh alone.

• By exercising identical power, Jesus manifests His divine identity (Colossians 1:16-17).

• The psalmist calls seafarers to “give thanks to the LORD for His loving devotion” (Psalm 107:31); Mark shows the disciples moving toward that very recognition of Christ.

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Personal Application: Trusting the Master of the Storms

• Storms reveal our limitations but also God’s nearness (Isaiah 43:2).

• Because Jesus is the same LORD who performs “wonders in the deep,” believers may face every tempest—literal or figurative—with confidence (Philippians 4:6-7).