From desperation to adoration : Reading Psalm 107 as a transforming spatial journey

Critical spatiality opens avenues to investigate the transforming power of the authors/redactors of the Hebrew Bible’s spatial imagination. I read Psalm 107 as a spatial journey bridging the divide between the desperation of the exile and the longing of the Psalter’s post-exilic authors/ redactors for Israel’s complete restoration and the universal adoration of Yhwh. Psalm 107 plays a crucial role in the transition between Books IV (Pss. 90-106) and V (Pss. 107-145) and acts as a “bridge” between the desperation of the exile and the call to the universal adoration of Yhwh in the post-exilic period. Psalm 107 hints at a continuous transforming spatial journey between present realities and the longed-for eschatological establishment of a universal, divine kingdom.


INTRODUCTION
As the first poem in Book V of the Psalter, Psalm 107 plays an important role in the book's overall architecture (Hossfeld & Zenger 2011:101-102). The connection between the urgent prayer for salvation, in order that Yhwh may be thanked and praised by his people in Psalm 106:47, and the call to thanksgiving by those who experienced his acts of salvation in Psalm 107:1-3 speaks for itself. The command ‫ליהוה‬ ‫הודו‬ (Ps. 107:1a) also occurs in Psalms 105:1 and 106:1. In both Psalms 106 and 107, the call is accompanied by a double motivation ‫כי-טוב(‬ and ‫חסדו‬ ‫לעולם‬ ‫.)כי‬ The same call frames Psalm 118 (vv. 1, 29) and introduces Psalm 136 (v. 1). The phrase ‫חסדו‬ ‫לעולם‬ ‫כי‬ also occurs in Psalm 118:2-4 and Psalm 136:2-26. Psalm 107 thus has links backward to Book IV and forward to Book V (Leuenberger 2004:283-285) and acts as a "bridge" between the two books (Stone 2013:40). 1 The Psalter's narrative plot confirms this bridging function (Kratz 1996:21-28;deClaissé-Walford 2004:56;Stone 2013:41). Books I-III (Pss. 3-89) reflect on the establishment, flowering, and failure of the Davidic monarchy. Book III concludes with a prayer that Yhwh should not hide his presence , but remember his former deeds of loyalty Psalm 107's bridging function surpasses the literary and compositional levels to include a spatial perspective. Critical spatiality and narratology provide useful avenues to investigate the transforming power of the authors/ redactors of the Hebrew Bible's spatial imagination. Critical spatiality's notion of "lived space as a strategic location from which to encompass, understand, and potentially transform all spaces simultaneously" (Soja 1996:68), 2 and narratology's notion of verbal story space [as something] the reader is prompted to create in imagination … on the basis of the characters' perceptions and/or the narrator's reports (Chatman 1978:104) 3 enable us to read Psalm 107 through an imaginative spatial lens. It describes a spatial journey bridging the divide between the desperation of the exile and post-exilic Israel's longing for its complete restoration and the universal adoration of Yhwh. Psalm 107 transforms the historical realities facing inhabitants of the Persian province of Yehud, the oppressive imperial-colonial ideology of the Persian empire, and the adverse lived experiences of Yehud's marginalised inhabitants (Tucker 2014:59-68, see §6). Psalm 107 re-imagines post-exilic Israel's place in the world as a spatial journey under the guidance of Yhwh, the universal king. He accompanies his people, and all peoples, on their voyage between desperation and adoration.
My analysis of Psalm 107 is informed by cultural semiotics, notably by Yuri Lotman's insistence that textual interpretation depends on the deciphering of a complex network of codes that are socially determined. Literary analyses address "questions of content, meaning, the social and ethical value of art and its ties with reality" (Lotman 1977:32). Comprehension demands an analysis of a text's intricate intratextual and all its extratextual relations, both literary (intertextual) and non-literary (extratextual) (Lotman 1977:103). I combine textual analysis (intratextuality; see §3 and §4) with an analysis of Psalm 107's literary (intertextuality; see §5) and socio-historical context(s) (extratextuality, see §6). My intertextual analysis is informed by Fishbane's (1988) notion of inner-biblical allusion and exegesis (i.e. author-intended intertextuality). 4 My extratextual analysis focuses on concepts of place, space, and ancient Near Eastern world view(s) and spatial orientation(s). This analysis is informed by theoreticians in the field of narratology (Genette 1980) and critical spatiality (Tuan 1977;Lefebvre 1991;Soja 1996; see §2).

ON SPATIAL READINGS OF HEBREW BIBLE TEXTS
In previous publications, I elucidated theoretical approaches towards space and spatiality and applied them to Hebrew Bible texts (see Prinsloo   3 My emphasis, see §2. 4 For the distinction between reader-oriented and author-intended approaches to intertextuality, see Miller (2011:283-309) and Kynes (2012:17-60). For author-intended intertextuality, Kynes (2012:59) provides useful criteria for determining the direction of influence.
First, I interpret spatial references in the poem as examples of narrative space. 5 The act of narration creates a world of words that is related to the real world, but not identical to it (Thompson 1978:3-4). In this world, references to space are not mere descriptions of physical locations (settings); they are representational spaces intended to affect and change the perspective of the reader/listener (focal spaces) (Van Eck 1995:137-139).
Secondly, I interpret spatial references in the poem in light of critical spatiality's notion of space as a "three-dimensional" concept. 6 Lefebvre (1991:1) argued that "space" is not a geometrical concept, but a social phenomenon produced in the interaction between human beings and their environment. It is at the same time a physical, mental, and social construct. 7 For this trialectic of spaces, Soja (1996:66-67) coined the terms "Firstspace", "Secondspace", and "Thirdspace". Soja (1996:68) regards Thirdspace as the terrain for the generation of 'counterspaces,' spaces of resistance to the dominant order … to lived space as a strategic location from which to encompass, understand, and potentially transform all spaces simultaneously. Spatial references in Psalm 107 are representations of lived experiences. My spatial analysis is a thirdspatial exercise highlighting the transforming power of the poet's (re)imagination of Israel's place in the world.
Thirdly, spatial references in Psalm 107 are interpreted in light of ancient Near Eastern world view(s) and spatial orientation(s), 8 which -in broad terms -can be plotted along a horizontal and vertical axis (Wyatt 2001:35-40). Horizontally, orientation is towards the east. "In front" is 5 For narrative theory, see Genette (1980:25-27); Rimmon-Kenan (2002:1-5). 6 For critical spatiality, see Berquist (2002:14-29). Critical spatiality can be defined as "those theories that self-consciously attempt to move beyond modernist, mechanistic, essentialist understandings of space. Critical spatiality understands all aspects of space to be human constructions that are socially contested" (Berquist 2002:15) 7 See Lefebvre (1991:38-39). Lefebvre calls physical space "perceived space", i.e. nature, cosmos, place. Mental space is "conceived space", i.e. representations of space or conceptualised space. Social space is "lived space", i.e. spaces of representation, space as experienced. 8 For ancient Near Eastern world view(s), see Berlejung (2006:65-72). Janowski (2001:3-26) warns against over-simplified attempts to reconstruct the biblical world view. Views on ancient Near Eastern cosmology developed and changed over time and no single, systematic description of this cosmology ever existed (Houtman 1993:283).
east, "behind" is west, "right" is south, "left" is north. "Far" and "near" are key concepts: to be far is negative, to be near is positive. Vertically, the cosmos is imagined as consisting of three building blocks: heaven, earth and netherworld (Horowitz 1998:xii). 9 Earth lies as a flat plate … horizontally at the centre of a great sphere. Outside this sphere, above, below, and around … lies the 'cosmic ocean' (Wyatt 2001:55), which symbolises the primeval waters of chaos and is an extension of the netherworld. "Up" and "down" are key concepts: to ascend is positive, entering the realm of the gods; to descend is negative, entering the realm of the netherworld and cutting off contact with the divine sphere (Wyatt 2001:40). The cosmic centre, usually conceptualised as a mountain, lies at the intersection of the horizontal and vertical axes. This cosmic mountain "is the point of access to heaven" (Wyatt 2001:147), where the temple of the high god stands. It represents sacred space, the meeting point of the divine and human spheres (Janowski 2002:34-37). The far-near and ascend-descend dichotomy leads to the idea of boundaries between spaces. The city is regarded as a safe space, the steppe outside as unsafe, an area where robbers and demons lurk. The temple in the heart of the city is a holy place, the world outside is unholy (Berlejung 2006:66-67).
He sent forth his word, and he healed them, 16 Masoretic manuscripts mark some verses by so-called inverted nûnîm (Tov 2001:54-55

PSALM 107: AN INTRATEXTUAL READING
Psalm 107 commences with an exhortation (v. 1) that also occurs at the end of Book IV, permeates Book V and, together with verbs from the sematic field "praise" ‫וירממוהו(‬ and ‫,יהללוהו‬ v. 32), set the tone for the entire collection (Tucker 2014:59). 18 The poem is surprisingly vague. It displays a "they-he" communicative pattern between an unidentified group of people and Yhwh. 19 Behind the scenes, a third character lurks, namely multiple manifestations of powers of chaos and death. The lack of specificity indicates that Psalm 107 "is a programmatic opening" to Book V, developing the message of the rescue of Israel from exile that is already happening and its miraculous restoration as Yhwh's people, Yhwh's household and family (Hossfeld & Zenger 2011:112).
Verbs associated with the "they" group belong to the semantic fields suffering/distress, sin/transgression, salvation/restoration, and thanksgiving/devotion, 20 while verbs associated with the fields salvation/ care, punishment, and acts in nature/history characterise Yhwh's actions. 21 Psalm 107 describes the collective experiences of people in distress. They suffered severely, often due to their own sinful behaviour. However, when they called upon Yhwh for help, he displayed his loyalty by saving them. They are now under an obligation to perform acts of thanksgiving and devotion.
It contains the command ‫ליהוה‬ ‫הודו‬ "give thanks to Yhwh", and two motivations ‫כי-טוב(‬ "for he is good"; ‫חסדו‬ ‫לעולם‬ ‫כי‬ "because forever is his love"; v. 1). Strophe 1.2, verses 2-3 provides the reason for the call to praise. The ‫יהוה‬ ‫גאולי‬ "the redeemed of Yhwh" who experienced redemption ‫מיד-צר‬ "from the hand of an adversary" (v. 2) when Yhwh "gathered them from the lands" ‫קבצם(‬ ‫,ומארצות‬ v. 3) are obliged to give thanks to him. Two antithetical word pairs ‫ומערב(‬ ‫ממזרח‬ "from east and from west"; ‫ומים‬ ‫מצפון‬ "from north and from sea") 22 suggest that this ingathering occurred from 22 Weber (2003:207) indicates that ‫ממזרח‬ refers literally to the "rising (of the sun)" and, in this instance, symbolises the eastern desert (see vv. 4-9). ‫מערב‬ refers to the "setting (of the sun)" and symbolises darkness and the realm of the netherworld (see vv. 10-16). ‫מצפון‬ refers to the north, historically associated with attacks upon Israel (Jer. 1:13-14; 4:6-7, 15-17; 6:1, 22-23), but mythologically associated with the mountain of the gods and the location of the final battle between forces of chaos and the divine (Ezek. 38-39, see vv. 17-22). Finally, ‫מים‬ refers to the the extremities of the universe. On the horizontal ‫ומערב(‬ ‫)ממזרח‬ and vertical ‫ומים(‬ ‫)מצפון‬ levels, verse 3 expresses a complete spatial "transportation" -people who were far away, off-centre, at the universe's extremities, in danger, and confronted by death are redeemed by Yhwh and gathered at the centre (Hossfeld & Zenger 2011:104).
In four sub-stanzas, Stanza 2 (vv. 4-32) expands the notion that Yhwh gathered people from four dangerous extremities of the universe (v. 3). 23 The stanza contains symbolic scenes of mortal danger inflicted upon people and Yhwh's salvific intervention when they called for help (Goulder 1998:117 Each sub-stanza reflects the spatial movement hinted at in Stanza 1. Those who were far from Yhwh, in distress, confronted by hardship and death and off-centre called upon Yhwh and he saved them. They are now close to Yhwh, at the centre. For this reversal of fortunes, they should thank him. The stylised form of the sub-stanzas warns against attempts to identify specific and different historical situations behind each scene. They represent the extremities of creation, where ‫ינב‬ ‫םדא‬ "human beings" (vv. 8, 15, 21, 31) discovered the saving and protective presence of Yhwh at the centre (Weber 2003:206). 24 Sub-stanzas 2.1 (vv. 4-9) and 2.3 (vv. 17-22) contain six lines; substanza 2.2 (vv. 10-16) seven lines, and sub-stanza 2.4 (vv. 23-32) ten lines. Gradually, the people's distress receives more emphasis, and as the distress increases, so does the grace of Yhwh (Van der Ploeg 1974:225).
Stanza 3 (vv. 33-41) shares links with the first and last sub-stanzas of stanza 2. With both, it shares the intervention of Yhwh in nature. With substanza 2.1, it shares the themes of wandering in a wilderness, but in the end finding a habitable city. With 2.4, it shares the theme of water, both as a life-giving and sustaining gift, as in sub-stanza 2.1, and as a negative and life-threatening force, as in sub-stanza 2.4. Stanza 3 applies the theme of the reversal of fortunes in general terms with reference to Yhwh's absolute power over nature and history. Yhwh turns positive situations into negative and negative situations into positive. Strophe 3.1 (vv. 33-35) illustrates Yhwh's power over creation. The movement is from negative (sub-strophe 3.1.1, vv. 33-34) to positive (sub-strophe 3.3.2, v. 35), with an inclusio created by the repetition of ‫שים‬ ‫,ישם (‬ vv. 33, 35). 25 A negative turn is always a real possibility ‫בה‬ ‫ישבי‬ ‫מרעת‬ "because of the evil of those who lived there" (v. 34). In strophes 3.2 (vv. 36-39) and 3.3 (vv. 40-41), Yhwh's transformative power is applied to the history of Israel. 26  The first three stanzas share the theme of a reversal of fortunes in spatial terms, while the last stanza urges the readers/listeners to take this phenomenon to heart and learn a lesson from it.

PSALM 107: INTERTEXTUAL ACCENTS
The intratextual reading of Psalm 107 raises the question as to in what kind of social-historical context such a text would have communicated effectively. The immediate and remote literary context(s) suggest that the experience of exile and restoration resonates in Psalm 107 (Goulder 1998:119).
Intertextual links between Psalm 107 and the closing poems of Book IV and poems in Book V, emphasising the notion of universal thanksgiving, have already been noted (see §1). Significant are the exact parallels between Psalm 107:1 and Psalms 118:1, 29 and 136:1. With a slight variation, the verse also occurs in Psalm 136:26. The phrase ‫חסדו‬ ‫לעולם‬ ‫כי‬ (Ps. 107:1b) also occurs in Psalms 118:2-4 and 136:2-25. These repetitions create a "hermeneutically significant" compositional "arc" between Psalms 107, 118 and 136 (Hossfeld & Zenger 2011:110). Psalm 118 is the closing poem of the Egyptian Hallel , and the twin poems Psalms 135-136 conclude the Songs of Ascents (Pss. 120-134). Psalms 107, 118 and 136 become part of a great literary (fictional) liturgy of thanksgiving for Israel's rescue, restoration, and renewal that had begun as a second exodus (Psalms 113-118) and continues in the pilgrimage to Zion as the center of Israel (Psalms 120-134) (Hossfeld & Zenger 2011:110).
In Isaiah 40-66, the royal oracles reflect perhaps the earliest attempt in the Hebrew Bible to blend Persian imperial ideology … with that of Judean royal ideology (Tucker 2014:55).
In Psalms 107-150, "the psalmists provide a thoroughly negative assessment of political power in toto" (Tucker 2014:58). Psalm 107 utilises the language of Isaiah 40-66 to introduce Book V of the Psalter metaphorically by associating empires and powers with places of chaos and destruction, but, nevertheless, places that are not beyond the ‫ד‬ ‫סֶ‬ ‫חֶ‬ of Yahweh (Tucker 2014:62).
Secondly, Psalm 107:43 is a typical wisdom exhortation comparable to the closing verse of the book of Hosea (Hos. 14:10). The exhortations share the noun ‫חכם‬ "wise" and the verb ‫בין‬ "to understand". Hosea 14:10 adds that contemplating "wisdom" reveals that "the ways of Yhwh are straight" ‫יהוה(‬ ‫דרכי‬ ‫;כי-ישרים‬ see Ps. 107:42) and that the act of contemplation also distinguishes the "righteous" ‫)צדיקים(‬ from the "transgressors" ‫;פשעים(‬ see Ps. 107:42). These similar closing lines are indicative of the growing "sapientalisation" of the Hebrew Bible in the post-exilic period (Roffey 1997:62). In Hosea, the closing admonition is a redactional addition actualising the message of the pre-exilic prophet in new socio-historical circumstances, urging post-exilic Israel to take a lesson for right living from her past sinful behaviour and adverse experiences. In Psalm 107:42-43, the admonition is part of a deliberate composition exhorting the postexilic community to thank Yhwh constantly for the already experienced, but yet incomplete (see Pss. 126; 137) restoration of Israel and the nations (Sheppard 1980:129-136;Stone 2013:41).
Psalm 107's bridging function is enhanced by the fact that it influenced other texts, notably in the "pessimistic" application of phrases in the poem's closing lines in the book of Job and in subtle allusions to the stormat-sea images (vv. 23-32) in the book of Jonah. Three parallels with Job are noteworthy. First, the phrase ‫וצלמות‬ ‫חשך‬ "darkness and deep gloom" (107:10, 14) occurs elsewhere only in Job 10:21. Secondly, Job 12:21a quotes Psalm 107:40a, and Job 12:24b quotes Psalm 107:40b. Thirdly, Job 5:16b alludes to Psalm 107:42b, and Job 22:19a to Psalm 107:42a. Some interpret these parallels as an indication that Psalm 107 is dependent upon Job (Beyerlin 1979:13-14). A more nuanced approach suggests that Psalm 107 served as source text for the parallels in Job (Clines 1989:287;Kynes 2012:80-97) and that they are significantly reinterpreted in Job. In Psalm 107:10-16, those in ‫וצלמות‬ ‫חשך‬ are "brought out" ‫,יוציאם(‬ v. 14) by Yhwh, while that possibility does not exist in Job. The Job passages expand, qualify, and reinterpret Psalm 107:40 and 42. Job 12 contains a speech by Job where he argues that Yhwh acts arbitrarily when he reverses fortunes. Psalm 107 displays an "optimistic depiction of divine deliverance", while Job "challenges the norm" (Kynes 2012:96). In Job 5:16 and 22:19, Eliphaz uses Psalm 107:42 as "proof text" to reprimand Job for his pessimistic views and to support the optimistic depiction of divine deliverance (Kynes 2012:96-97). Psalm 107 highlights the positive possibilities of Yhwh's providence, while Job exploits its dark side.

READING PSALM 107 AS A SPATIAL JOURNEY
The intertextual reading suggests that Psalm 107 serves as bridge between the desperation of exile and the hopes of the restored postexilic community. A spatial reading confirms this bridging function. The experiences of the post-exilic community become a continuous and transforming journey between desperation and adoration. The firstspace and secondspace realities of the authors/redactors of Book V of the Psalter are decidedly negative. Their firstspace reality is that of a marginalised, small, exploited group in a vast and all-powerful Persian empire. Their secondspace context is the prevailing Persian ideology of a benevolent, universal dictatorship (Tucker 2014:26-40). Psalm 107 introduces Book V, by focusing on the world at large and on Yhwh's salvific intervention in the universe as the only benevolent, universal king (Tucker 2014:68).
Psalm 107 never mentions Israel by name, nor does it contain any specific reference to Jerusalem, Zion, or the temple (Jarick 1997:283). 29 Yhwh's salvific acts are directed ‫אדם‬ ‫לבני‬ "towards humankind" (vv. 8, 15, 21, 31) and aimed at them finding ‫מושב‬ ‫עיר‬ "a habitable city" (vv. 4, 7, 36) and ‫חפצם‬ ‫מחוז‬ "a place of their desire" (v. 30). Psalm 107 confronts its firstand secondspace realities and creates a world of words that transforms this world into another, indeed an other world, a world directed by ‫יהוה‬ ‫חסדי‬ "Yhwh's loyal deeds" (v. 43). Intertextual relations leave little doubt that the house of the Lord is the implied setting for the thanksgiving, and it is equally clear that the deliverance depicted in all four stanzas is deliverance from death (Jarick 1997:283).
Yet, in the poet's spatial imagination, Yhwh's power extends beyond the uniquely Israelite to include the entire universe. In his world of words, Psalm 107 bridges the divide between Israel and the nations.
This world of words opens avenues for new thirdspatial applications in the poet's spatial imagination. Psalm 107:1 and 43 acts as key to unlock this imagination. The poet departs from the ‫יהוה‬ ‫חסד‬ (v. 1) and the multiple manifestations of this ‫חסד‬ in nature and history (vv. 4-32; 33-41). He can, therefore, conclude his poem with reference to the ‫יהוה‬ ‫חסדי‬ (v. 43).
Between these two bookends, Psalm 107 contains a call for the thankful contemplation of Yhwh's numerous deeds of salvation experienced by ‫יהוה‬ ‫גאולי‬ "the redeemed of Yhwh" (v. 2). As the link with Isaiah 62:12 suggests, it alludes to those redeemed from the Exile (Bremer 2016:388), but as the poem's deliberate "vagueness" implies, Yhwh's loyal love is directed towards Israel as a collective, towards individual members of his people, and towards humanity ‫אדם(‬ ‫,לבני‬ vv. 8, 15, 21, 31), in general.
Everybody can confidently call upon him for help in present circumstances and build his/her hope for the (eschatological) future upon this foundation.
The central conceptual metaphor permeating the entire poem is the notion of Life is a Journey 30 (Kartje 2014:157). The journey is characterised by the already and the not yet, by Yhwh's absolute power to turn fortunes from negative to positive and, conversely, from positive to negative (vv. 33-41). The wise would contemplate this (v. 43), in order to make life's journey a meaningful exercise with a desirable outcome (Kartje 2014:138-164).
As verses 2-3 suggest, in the poet's spatial imagination he is at the centre. The exhortation to thanksgiving in verse 1 is given from the perspective of already experienced salvation and an already arrived-at destination (Weber 2003:206). It becomes the confession of the already redeemed ‫יהוה(‬ ‫,גאולי‬ v. 2) gathered ‫)קבץ(‬ from the dangerous horizontal and vertical extremities of the universe (v. 3; Bremer 2016:388). The redeemed already experienced the transforming spatial journey between desperation and adoration. They contemplate the ‫יהוה‬ ‫חסדי‬ (v. 43) from their at-the-centre perspective! The suggestion of spatial movement and arrival at a destination deserves special recognition. In sub-stanza 2.1 (vv. 4-9), the ‫יהוה‬ ‫גאולי‬ of stanza 1 (v. 2) is depicted as initially staggering in the wilderness on a desolate road, unable to find a habitable city (v. 4). Echoes of Israel's desert wandering at the time of the Exodus, and similarly of their state of desolation during the Exile are impossible to ignore. However, upon their cry for help (v. 6), Yhwh transformed their aimless wasteland wandering into a purposeful journey. He led them on a straight road to a habitable city (v. 7). They have already reached the desired at-the-centre destination. It is impossible not to regard the allusion to a habitable city as a veiled reference to Jerusalem, the centre of Israel's spatial universe. This stanza suggests a horizontal journey from far to near, from off-centre to at the centre.
The following two sub-stanzas (2.2, vv. 10-16; 2.3, vv. 17-22) contain four important spatial motifs. First, they emphasise the notion of an aimless journey, of people stumbling about without any helper (v. 12), of aimless travelling causing the travellers to arrive at the ends of the earth -literally at death's door (v. 18). A more off-centre location can hardly be imagined! Secondly, both sub-stanzas suggest that the people's predicament is the result of their own wrongdoing. They rebelled against the words of God (v. 11) and were suffering affliction because of their iniquities (v. 17). There are clear echoes of prophetic warnings to Israel of dire consequences, should they not heed Yhwh's warnings against their apostasy and stubbornness.
Thirdly, upon the people's call for help in their adversity, Yhwh intervenes by actions suggesting spatial movement. He brought them from darkness and deep gloom (v. 14), saved them from their distress (v. 19), sent forth his word and healed them (v. 20), and rescued them from their graves (v. 20). In this instance, movement is suggested on the vertical sphere, from the depths of the netherworld to the dizzying heights of Yhwh's salvific presence, from the extremes of being off-centre to the joy of being at the centre.
Fourthly, echoes of Jerusalem and thanksgiving ceremonies in the temple are unmistakeably present. Those who experienced Yhwh's transforming intervention should give thanks to Yhwh for his loyalty (vv. 15, 21), and the thanksgiving should find specific expression in thankofferings (v. 22) and the proclaiming of Yhwh's transforming works with shouts of joy (v. 22).
Significantly, in sub-stanza 2.4 (vv. 23-32), a dangerous and lifethreatening journey upon the chaotic waters of the sea is described in vivid detail. People experience the works of Yhwh and his wonderful deeds (v. 24) when they are in the gravest danger. The omnipotence of Yhwh is revealed in the life-threatening storm. He raises the tempest by simply speaking (v. 25) and renders human wisdom useless (v. 27). Yet, he stilled the storm to a whisper (v. 29a) and guided the people to their desired place of calm and safety (v. 30).
Stanza 3 (vv. 33-41) again emphasises the omnipotent transforming power of Yhwh. He turns rivers into a desert (v. 33), and -conversely -a desert into pools of water (v. 35). He brings the hungry there and enables them to establish a habitable city (v. 36), where they can flourish (vv. 37-38), but Yhwh's omnipotence also implies that he can reverse the situation. They can be decreased and humbled by oppression, calamity, and sorrow (v. 39). This should act as a warning to the nobles (v. 40). They can again be dispersed to wander in a wasteland without a road (v. 40). The poor, however, can expect to be uplifted and to thrive (v. 41).
In stanza 4 (vv. 42-43), the admonition to pay close attention and become wise turns all references to space in the poem into "focal space" intended to change behaviour. It serves as a commentary on, and application of Yhwh's ‫חסד‬ and salvific acts described earlier in the poem. It is a summons for the wise … to reflect upon the profound dialectic of God's grace and steadfast love ‫ד(‬ ‫סֶ‬ ‫)חֶ‬ extolled in the hymn. In this way, the hymn depicts the unresolved tensions between wrath and grace, which precipitate a final wisdom evaluation and an invitation to seek further understanding (Sheppard 1980:131-132).
Life at the centre implies to be aware of the ‫יהוה‬ ‫חסדי‬ and of his allpowerful ability to reverse fortunes. Only he can bring the ‫אביון‬ "poor" (v. 41) ‫חפצם‬ ‫אל-מחוז‬ "to the place of their desire" (v. 30). This stanza transforms the poem into a psalm of instruction based on thanksgiving: beginning with our memories of redemption, inviting a response of thanksgiving and finally moving towards reflection on the nature of God's steadfast love (Roffey 1997:74).
The poet of Psalm 107, indeed the authors/redactors of Book V, resisted Achaemenid imperial ideology. Yhwh "usurps" the universal powers of the Achaemenid king and the Persian gods -only Yhwh can turn rivers into a desert and flowing waters into thirsty ground (107:33). Israel can attest to collective and individual experiences of unbearable distress and unexpected salvation when they called for help (107:4-32; 33-41). Hope for the future does not reside in the perceived benevolent Persian hegemony, but in the often experienced and ever-present ‫יהוה‬ ‫חסדי‬ (107:1, 43).
Yhwh's people were (and often are) dispersed to the extremities of the world, in grave danger. They indeed experienced (and constantly experience) horrible, life-threatening circumstances. Their lived experience was (and is) negative to the extreme. Lost in the wilderness, locked in a dark dungeon, abandoned at death's door, exposed to the powers of chaos, they called for help and Yhwh saved them! God is the ultimate agent of change, the one who reverses fortunes. However, this goes both wayshe changes the negative to positive and the positive to negative. It is cause for careful reflection. Redemption elicits response and responsibility. The upright, those who experienced Yhwh's deeds of loyal love, should live life's journey with thanksgiving and public devotion.

CONCLUSION
On the levels of literary composition, redactional placement, and narrative representations of place and space, Psalm 107 bridges the divide