Year One, October 12

O LORD My God, You Are Very Great!1

This is another of David’s grandest psalms. Our space forces us to include only a few comments.

  

Psalm 104

1 Bless the LORD, O my soul!

O LORD my God, you are very great!

You are clothed with splendor and majesty,

2 covering yourself with light as with a garment,

stretching out the heavens like a tent.

3 He lays the beams of his chambers on the waters;

he makes the clouds his chariot;

he rides on the wings of the wind;

4 he makes his messengers winds,

his ministers a flaming fire.

5 He set the earth on its foundations,

so that it should never be moved.

6 You covered it with the deep as with a garment;

the waters stood above the mountains.

He is probably referring to the great flood of Noah’s day.

7 At your rebuke they fled;

at the sound of your thunder they took to flight.

8 The mountains rose, the valleys sank down

The force of the water was so great that mountains were pushed upwards, causing valleys to sink lower.

to the place that you appointed for them.

9 You set a boundary that they may not pass,

so that they might not again cover the earth.

10 You make springs gush forth in the valleys;

they flow between the hills;

11 they give drink to every beast of the field;

the wild donkeys quench their thirst.

12 Beside them the birds of the heavens dwell;

they sing among the branches.

13 From your lofty abode you water the mountains;

the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work.

14 You cause the grass to grow for the livestock

and plants for man to cultivate,

that he may bring forth food from the earth

15 and wine to gladden the heart of man,

oil to make his face shine

and bread to strengthen man’s heart.

16 The trees of the LORD are watered abundantly,

the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.

17 In them the birds build their nests;

the stork has her home in the fir trees.

18 The high mountains are for the wild goats;

the rocks are a refuge for the rock badgers.

Each place has its creature and each creature its place. Even the loneliest spots on earth abound with wildlife.

19 He made the moon to mark the seasons;

the sun knows its time for setting.

20 You make darkness, and it is night,

when all the beasts of the forest creep about.

21 The young lions roar for their prey,

seeking their food from God.

22 When the sun rises, they steal away

and lie down in their dens.

23 Man goes out to his work

and to his labor until the evening.

Night and day each have their purpose. The wheels of providence2 never stand still.

24 O LORD, how manifold are your works!

In wisdom have you made them all;

the earth is full of your creatures.

25 Here is the sea, great and wide,

which teems with creatures innumerable,

living things both small and great.

26 There go the ships,

and Leviathan, which you formed to play in it.

27 These all look to you,

to give them their food in due season.

28 When you give it to them, they gather it up;

when you open your hand, they are filled with good things.

29 When you hide your face, they are dismayed;

when you take away their breath, they die

and return to their dust.

30 When you send forth your Spirit, they are created,

and you renew the face of the ground.

God oversees all things, great or small. He has not left the world to mere laws and forces of nature. He is always working everywhere. Let us see his hand in all things and adore him.

31 May the glory of the LORD endure forever;

may the LORD rejoice in his works,

If the Lord rejoices in his works, we would not be wise to close our eyes to nature’s beauties or think they just happened by some huge accident.

32 who looks on the earth and it trembles,

who touches the mountains and they smoke!

33 I will sing to the LORD as long as I live;

I will sing praise to my God while I have being.

34 May my meditation be pleasing to him,

for I rejoice in the LORD.

35 Let sinners be consumed from the earth,

and let the wicked be no more!

For they alone damage creation and spoil the Maker’s handiwork.

Bless the LORD, O my soul!

Praise the LORD!

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¹ Psalm 104:1

² Providence  - Usually, when used with a capital “P” it refers to God; when used with a lower case “p”, it refers to God’s will, his divine intervention, and his predetermination (predestination).