Why Do the Psalms Say, ‘At Their Wits’ End’?

　　Psalm 107:27 says, "They reeled and staggered like drunkards; they were at their wits’ end." Since Psalm 107:27 says they were at their wits' end, what does that mean?

　　We have a common saying in the modern day that we are at our wits' ends, so it can cause us to question what the psalmist means when he says they were at their wits' end.

　　In order to understand what this Psalm means, it is best to understand the surrounding context rather than basing it solely on one verse.

　　

At Their Wits' End

The saying used nowadays of "at your wits' end" normally means you are frustrated and tired of what is going on. For most of us, we know what it feels like to be at our wits' end.

　　It could be you trying to help someone with a problem, and they are not listening to anything you are saying, or maybe you are in the process of trying to manage to live on your own, paying your own rent, and going to work every day while struggling with your mental health.

　　In other words, it is common for all of us to find ourselves at our wits' end every now and then.

　　Within the concept of Psalm 107:27, we have to look at the surrounding context to see why the people were at their wits' end. In the earlier verses of Psalm 107, we are told how the Lord saved the people out of their darkness, yet they always continued in their rebellious ways.

　　They would turn back to God; however, time after time, they would go against God in their sinful practices. In this way, many became "fools through their rebellious ways and suffered affliction because of their iniquities" (Psalm 107:17).

　　Going further in the passage, the psalmist continues by saying the people cried out for the Lord in their trouble, and God saved them. They give him thanks and sang of his wonderful deeds (Psalm 107:19-22).

　　From Psalm 107:23, we can see how they became closer to their wits' end. The psalmist says there were some who went out to sea on ships. The Lord spoke, and a tempest arose (Psalm 107:25). As the sea water roared and shook, the people's courage quickly melted away.

　　The people are described to reel and stagger like drunkards because they were at their wits' end (Psalm 107:27). In their distress, they called out to the Lord, and He stilled the storm. The people onboard the ship were thankful and offered praise to God (Psalm 107:28-32).

　　As we can see, those onboard, the ship are kept safe by the Lord and safely make it to their desired haven. However, what needs to be more carefully looked at is why the psalmist says the people were at their wits' end.

　　According to the NET Bible, the Hebrew word used here is only used once in the Old Testament. The NET Bible says, "Traditionally the form is derived from the verbal root בלע ('to swallow'), but HALOT 135 s.v. III בלע understands a homonym here with the meaning 'to be confused.'"

　　Therefore, when the psalmist says the people were at their wits' end, it could be that they were confused as to what was happening.

　　By looking at the passage of 107, we can see the people were onboard the ship; thus, they most likely would have been knowledgeable about the sea. Psalm 107:25 tells us that God causes a tempest to arise. As we can see, this tempest came unexpectedly upon the people.

　　They were expecting still, quiet waters, and God decided to bring about roaring waters. It could be the people were confused as to how the waters all of a sudden would be surging and in an uproar.

　　

God Is Good

Through this passage of Scripture, we can see how God can do whatever He pleases, even if it goes against the normal activities of nature. If God decides to cause a tempest in the waters, then He can do as He pleases. God is ultimately in control — we are not.

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　　We like to think we can control everything, but at the end of the day, God is in control. Nothing happens unless God allows it to happen.

　　While this can include surging waves, it can also include God's protection, guidance, and direction. In all things, God is good, and He will bring about our ultimate good even in difficult situations.

　　Other translations of the Bible translate Psalm 107:27 in other ways. As an example, the Christian Standard Bible translates Psalm 107:27 to be, "They reeled and staggered like a drunkard, and all their skill was useless."

　　In other words, their skill was useless because nothing they could do on the ship proved successful against the roaring waves.

　　Most likely, these individuals were trained sailors, yet even with being trained, they couldn't tame the waters. They couldn't tame the waters because God had caused the waters to surge.

　　Furthermore, the Douay-Rheims Bible translates Psalm 107:27 to be "They were troubled, and reeled like a drunken man; and all their wisdom was swallowed up." Similar to the Christian Standard Bible version, Douay-Rheims Bible connects their wisdom with being swallowed up or becoming useless.

　　These men were knowledgeable about the seas, yet God displayed the truth that they could not control His own creation. As humans, we often think we can control all things, which is not true. God is in control, and we can trust Him with everything in life.

　　These individuals would have been trying to do everything possible to stop the roaring waves, yet all of their efforts were futile. No matter what they tried, their work was shown to be ineffective.

　　Due to this, they were at their wits' end. They were confused and didn't know what to do to make the waves calm down. What they did know was to pray to God, and that is what they did.

　　They prayed to God, and the waves calmed down to still waters. In the same way, when we are at our wits' end, we need to pray to God and ask Him to still the waters in our life.

　　God is our loving and caring Father, who wants the best for us. Even though we will encounter difficult times, we never need to question His goodness. There will be storms throughout our lives, yet He will still them if we turn to Him. We might feel exactly how the sailors felt.

　　They were at their wits' end, they were confused, and even though they were knowledgeable about the issue, they were left feeling helpless. The good news is that we are never without help. Just as God was there for the sailors, so He will be there with us.

　　

What Does This Mean?

Thus, the psalmist says the people were at their wits' end in Psalm 107:27 because they were literally at their wits' end and were confused. They couldn't calm the waves even with all their training and knowledge of the sea.

　　They cried out to God to help, and He answered them. God didn't allow them to stay in the situation of feeling at their wits' end as He brought them out and once again brought them into a place of still waters.

　　For further reading:

　　50 Psalms Quotes for Any Situation

　　5 Reasons to Read the Book of Psalms

　　Why Are There Different Types of Psalms?