Psalms 106:13-14
But they soon forgot his works; they did not wait for his counsel. But they had a wanton craving in the wilderness, and put God to the test in the desert;
English Standard Version (ESV)
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The phrasing "they made haste, they forgot" suggests their forgetting wasn't passive but an active choice, a rapid turning away from God's mighty deeds. This reveals how quickly impatience can lead us to abandon trust, rushing ahead of God's timing and His wisdom for us.
The psalmist is recounting Israel's repeated failures in the wilderness shortly after their miraculous deliverance from Egypt. Despite witnessing God's mighty acts and receiving His guidance through Moses, they quickly forgot His faithfulness and grew impatient. This verse sets the stage for a litany of their grumbling, lusting, and rebellion, illustrating a pattern of forgetting God's past provision and refusing to trust His future counsel.
Think about the last time something amazing happened to you. How long did that feeling of awe last? For the Israelites, it was alarmingly short.
The verse highlights a critical flaw: forgetting.
Rapid Amnesia
It wasn't just a casual forgetting; the text implies a hasty forgetting. The Hebrew suggests they "made haste to forget." Imagine the awe of crossing the Red Sea – a monumental act of divine power! Yet, within mere days, facing a new challenge (thirst at Marah), this awe evaporated. This wasn't just a memory lapse; it was an active, rapid discarding of God's mighty deeds.
Forgetting God's Works Means
We all like to have a plan. But what happens when our plan bypasses God's wisdom?
The second part of the verse points to a deliberate refusal to wait for God's guidance.
Impatience Over Counsel
"They did not wait for his counsel." This speaks volumes about their mindset. They weren't willing to pause, seek God's direction, or trust His timing. They had their own desires, their own expectations (like reaching Canaan immediately), and they wanted God to conform to their timeline and their methods.
Waiting on God Means
Understand the original words
ma'aseh · Hebrew Noun
Acts or deeds of God performed in history to deliver, sustain, or judge His people. These serve as objective evidence of His sovereignty, grace, and power.
etsah · Hebrew Noun
The divine wisdom, purpose, or instruction that God provides for His people. Failing to wait for this implies impatience and a refusal to trust in God's timing and guidance.
ta'avah · Hebrew Noun
A strong, often sinful desire or intense appetite for something outside of God’s provided boundaries. It denotes a lack of contentment and a turning toward worldly gratification.
nasah · Hebrew Verb
To challenge or provoke God to prove His presence, power, or goodness. This is an act of unbelief, doubting God's faithfulness despite evidence of His previous intervention.
This verse captures a foundational moment of Israel's faith journey: the immediate shift from awe at God's deliverance to impatience and forgetting His power, highlighting the human tendency to quickly forget divine help when faced with hardship.
c. 1446 BC
Israel Exits Egypt
Under Moses' leadership, the Israelites leave slavery in Egypt, experiencing God's mighty acts of deliverance.
c. 1446 BC— this verse
Bitter Waters at Marah
Just three days after the Red Sea crossing, the Israelites find the water at Marah undrinkable and immediately complain to Moses and God.
c. 1446 BC
Manna and Quail Provided
When the Israelites complain about lack of food, God provides manna, and later, quail, but they struggle to trust His provision.
c. 1445-1406 BC
Wilderness Wanderings
The Israelites spend 40 years in the desert due to their repeated disobedience and lack of faith, a period marked by grumbling and rebellion.
This passage immediately follows the miraculous crossing of the Red Sea, showing the Israelites' quick turn to complaining about lack of water, mirroring their rapid forgetting of God's mighty works in Psalm 106:13.
Numbers 11:4-6This shows the Israelites lusting for meat and recalling the 'food' of Egypt, demonstrating a specific instance of them not waiting for God's provision (manna) and forgetting His past faithfulness in their desire for something else.
Deuteronomy 8:2-3Moses reminds the people that God allowed them to hunger and then provided manna to teach them to rely on His word, directly addressing the failure to wait for God's counsel and provision described in the Psalm.
Hebrews 3:7-19The author of Hebrews explicitly warns believers against hardening their hearts like the Israelites in the wilderness, who forgot God's works and did not obey His voice, connecting the ancient failure to a modern spiritual danger.
bensonPsalms 106:13: "They soon forgat his works; they waited not for his counsel:"
Psalm 106:13-15 . They soon forgat his works — Even within three days, Exodus 15:22 , and lost the impressions those works had made upon them. They that do not improve God’s mercies to them, nor endeavour, in some measure, to render to him according to the benefits done unto them, do indeed forget them. Hebrew, מהרו שׁכחו , meharu shachechu, they made haste, they forgat. So the margin. They turned aside quickly, as it…
gillPsalms 106:13: "They soon forgat his works; they waited not for his counsel:"
They soon forgat his works,.... The miracles he wrought in Egypt, the deliverance of them from thence with a mighty hand and outstretched arm, and the leading them through the Red sea as on dry land, and destroying all their enemies; all these they soon forgot, for they had gone but three days' journey into the wilderness after this, ere they began to murmur and show distrust of the power and providence of God, Exodus…
The phrasing "they made haste, they forgot" suggests their forgetting wasn't passive but an active choice, a rapid turning away from God's mighty deeds. This reveals how quickly impatience can lead us to abandon trust, rushing ahead of God's timing and His wisdom for us.
The psalmist is recounting Israel's repeated failures in the wilderness shortly after their miraculous deliverance from Egypt. Despite witnessing God's mighty acts and receiving His guidance through Moses, they quickly forgot His faithfulness and grew impatient. This verse sets the stage for a litany of their grumbling, lusting, and rebellion, illustrating a pattern of forgetting God's past provision and refusing to trust His future counsel.
The psalmist is recounting Israel's repeated failures in the wilderness shortly after their miraculous deliverance from Egypt. Despite witnessing God's mighty acts and receiving His guidance through Moses, they quickly forgot His faithfulness and grew impatient. This verse sets the stage for a litany of their grumbling, lusting, and rebellion, illustrating a pattern of forgetting God's past provision and refusing to trust His future counsel.
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When we refuse to wait, we often rush into decisions based on our own limited perspective, leading to the very struggles we were trying to avoid.
"But they soon forgot his works; they did not wait for his counsel. But they had a wanton craving in the wilderness, and put God to the test in the desert;" — The phrasing "they made haste, they forgot" suggests their forgetting wasn't passive but an active choice, a rapid turning away from God's mighty deeds. This reveals how quickly impatience can lead u…
