“Remember His miraculous works, which He has done;

His signs and the judgments of His mouth.”

(Psalm 105:5)

Once again we find the language of the miracles of God. In verse 2, we were called upon to sing of these works. Here, the psalmist calls upon us to remember them. And, for much of the rest of the psalm, we have a procession of the mighty things that God has done in the life of the people. These are reasons to sing praises to Him. These are things to remember, that we may be encouraged of God’s covenant faithfulness during times of great sorrow and distress. What is very interesting is that in the second clause of this verse, David speaks of two aspects of God’s miraculous deeds: His signs and His judgments.

When we hear the language of “signs,” we often think of John’s Gospel in the New Testament. There, whenever Jesus would do a miraculous work, John referred to it as a “sign.” Why a sign? These were considered signs because they pointed to the person who Jesus is. Who can make the waves stand still? Who can multiply the loaves and fishes? Who can heal the blind? God alone can do these things, hence Jesus is God alone in the flesh. Because of this, we often think of these “signs” as being a New Testament phenomenon, yet thirty-five times, the word מוֹפֵת (mopheth) is used in the Old Testament to speak of the miraculous works of God done either by Him or through one of His prophets. 

The second thing that the psalmist lists is the judgments of God. Often, we do not think of God’s judgments as “miraculous” things. Sadly, rather than welcoming the commands and judgments of God, we often grumble and groan about them. Now, while we ought not groan over God’s Laws because they teach us how to live in perfect blessedness, what is more important to our text is to recognize that they are a miraculous thing in and of themselves.

When God gave His commands, whether through a prophet or directly from Mount Sinai as He did with Moses and Elijah, we should recognize that act in and of itself as a miraculous thing. Here, the one who is transcendent and who is not a part of the natural order, is breaking through the metaphysical barriers and engaging with us in this fallen world. It is an impossible thing for us to ascend to heaven to engage in dialogue with God; He must descend to us to reveal His will for our life and practice. It is indeed, a miraculous thing.

One of the clearest illustrations of this principle can be found in Deuteronomy 30:11-20. There, Moses is speaking to the people and exhorting them toward obedience. In doing so, he states that the laws of God are not inaccessible to the people — they are not hidden in heaven that they cannot be discovered. No, they have been revealed so that they may be obeyed. Therefore, Moses continues, “Choose life that your descendants may live…”

And thus, when we meditate upon, when we remember, and when we sing about the miraculous things of God, we should sing not only about the works but the Law of God. Thus, while much of the content of the following verses speaks of the signs of God, do not fail to note the conclusion: observe His laws. Why? They too are miraculous works of God.