Psalms 107:27

“They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, etc.] Through the agitation of the water, and motion of the ship, not being able to stand upon deck. And are at their wit’s end; or, “all their wisdom is swallowed up” f1544; their wisdom in naval affairs, their art of navigation, their skill in managing ships, all nonplussed and baffled; they know not what method to take to save the vessel and themselves; their knowledge fails them, they are quite confounded and almost distracted. So Apollinarius paraphrases it, “they forget navigation, and their wise art does not appear;” so Ovid, describing a storm, uses the same phrase, “deficit ars”, “art fails.””

“They reel to and fro - The word used here - חגג châgag - means to dance as in a circle; then, to reel, or be giddy as drunkards are. And stagger ... - This word means to move to and fro; to waver; to vacillate; and it is then applied to a man who cannot walk steadily - a drunkard. So the vessel, with the mariners on board, seems to stagger and reel in the storm. And are at their wit’s end - Margin, as in Hebrew, “All their wisdom is swallowed up.” That is, They have no skill to guide the vessel. All that has been done by the wisdom of naval architecture in constructing it, and all that has been derived from experience in navigating the ocean, seems now to be useless. They are at the mercy…”

“stagger: Job 12:25; Isa 19:14, Isa 29:9 are at their wit's end: Heb. all their wisdom is swallowed up, Job 37:20; Isa 19:3 \*marg. Act 27:15-20 Psalms 107:28”