Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Psalms 104:1

Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honor and majesty.

1. The verbs (not adjectives or participles as in Psa 96:4) of the Heb. express an act rather than a state: thou hast made thyself very great thou hast clothed thyself &c. It is not, so to speak, God’s eternal and immutable greatness which the poet celebrates, but the revelation of His greatness, the assumption, as it were, of a new robe of imperial majesty in the creation of the world. Honour and majesty are the attributes of a king. Cp. Psa 96:6; Psa 21:5; Psa 8:1. For the phrase of line 3 cp. Job 40:10; Psa 93:1.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

1 4. The greatness and majesty of Jehovah exhibited in creation.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

Bless the Lord, O my soul – See Psa 103:1.

O Lord my God, thou art very great – This is a reason why the psalmist calls on his soul to bless God; namely, for the fact that he is so exalted; so vast in his perfections; so powerful, so wise, so great.

Thou art clothed with honor and majesty – That is, with the emblems of honor and majesty, as a king is arrayed in royal robes. Creation is the garment with which God has invested himself. Compare the notes at Psa 93:1.

Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible

Psa 104:1-35

O Lord my God, Thou art very great.

A hymn of praise to God in Nature

I. The universality of Gods workings in Nature.

1. In the domain of dead matter. He is operating in the waters as they sail in the clouds, come down in the showers, etc. He is operating on the crusted earth, laying its foundations, touching its soil into verdure, and shaking it by volcanic fires. He looketh on the earth and it trembleth, etc.

2. In the domain of living matter,

(1) He works in all vegetable life–in the smallest blade as well as in the mightiest monarchs of the forest.

(2) He works in all sentient life–feeds every beast of the field, etc.

3. In the domain of rational existence. God works in all moral minds, from the highest angel to the humblest soul on earth.

II. The personality of Gods workings in Nature.

1. He works sublimely. If we take the telescope, we are struck with mute amazement at the vastness and splendour of the stellar systems; if we take the microscope and look at the wing of the smallest insect, or even at an atom of metallic dust, what brilliancy and perfection we discover. He paints His beauty on an insects wing, and wheels His throne upon the rolling worlds.

2. He works incessantly. There is no pause in His exertions; He neither slumbers nor sleeps, always at work, and at work everywhere and in everything. It takes as much life, says Emerson, to conserve as to create the universe.

3. He works benevolently. His desire to communicate His blessedness to other beings is the philosophy of the universe.

4. He works wisely. The Great Author never revises His books, the Great Architect never alters His plans.

5. He works in nature morally.

(1) The inspiring of the human soul with rapturous worship (verse 34). There is no true happiness without true worship; and God so appears in Nature as to awaken all souls into an anthem of praise.

(2) To clear from the soul all moral wrong (verse 35). Gods purpose, in all His operations on the earth as well as in the truths of His Gospel, is to make this world morally better and happier. (Homilist.)

A psalm of Providence

This and the psalm immediately foregoing are closely connected. The one sings of God in salvation, the other of God in creation. The first is a hymn; the second, a poem. The first is the peculiar song of the Church; the second, of all His manifold works. The opening of the psalm conveys a sense of being bowed down with the greatness of the Divine Majesty. No description of God is attempted. Only His robe is seen. Light is the robe of God, with which He has covered Himself. And water is the robe of earth, with which God has covered it. This thought governs the chief part of the poem. It might be called the water psalm. For physical life, as we know it, water is essential. God may have creatures formed of fire and living in the fierce stars. God has, we believe, beings of a spiritual nature. But in the natural universe it is only in that small region where water can exist that vegetable, animal, and human life are found. We can but live in earths water robe. And grandly the psalmist describes it. In clouds the waters gather above the mountains, and await the Divine bidding. Then they hasten to their appointed work. Some roll up the hill sides in mists, some stream down in rivulets; all go to the place God has appointed them. In the deep seas they dance in waves, and roar on the beach, but keep their bounds. With splendid vivacity the poet then describes the water at work in sustaining life. The wild ass drinks, and his strength is renewed. The cedars of Lebanon have their draughts. The great trees, water sustained, provide homes for the singing birds. In them the stork has her house. Grass for cattle, bread and wine and oil for men, supplying varied needs, are produced. In the far-stretching sea there is vigorous life in many and varied forms. And as thus the waters are seen to obey their first command, to bring forth abundantly, there comes the beautiful remark, These all wait upon Thee, O God, etc. The 104th psalm is very evidently a paraphrase of the 1st chapter of the Book of Genesis. There is this great difference, the psalm before us is rather a song of Providence than of creation. It does not speak of God as completing the machinery of earth and then setting it in motion and retiring for rest. It is God ever living, ever watching, ever at work. This psalm is the necessary supplement to Genesis. In the panorama at the opening of Holy Scripture there is calm and restfulness, but in the picture here all is movement. In the one God looks, and again and again pronounces all to be good. But here there are signs of the entrance of some element of restlessness and disorder. The mountain streams suffer rebuke–they are chased by thunder to their appointed place. When night comes the young lions are heard roaring after their prey. When the sun leads in the dawn man has to go to his toil and labour until the evening. There is something wrong. Signs of manifold wisdom are apparent, but there are darkness, want, toil, trouble, and death. A discord has evidently entered, and the perfect harmony is gone. Here then is a great mystery. Looking abroad upon nature, the prospect is that of a glorious creation, but with something wrong. It has been compared to a perfect chronometer into the works of which a pin has fallen. Science cannot but see much that is mysterious, and at times seem baffled. Creation tells of marvellous wisdom, but all is not right. It shows vast arrangements for happiness which something has marred. This world is a vase of exceeding loveliness, but it has fallen and lies shattered with jagged edges and points. The study of nature ever leads to the conclusion that it is the work of infinite wisdom, but spoiled in some mysterious manner. Everywhere are there signs of the handiwork of One who wrought for purity and peace and love, and everywhere is foulness and disorder and war. Fact or poem, Genesis gives the only solution. Sin has entered, and the splendid work is shattered. With a truer science than many of those who profess to study nature, the psalmist recognizes this and breathes the prayer, May sinners pass away from the earth and evil-doers be no more. Bless the Lord, O my soul. Hallelujah. St. Augustine of Hippo, in his very remarkable series of sermons on this psalm, comes to the conclusion that a spiritual meaning must be sought. He will have water here to allude to the love of God which is shed abroad on our hearts by the Holy Spirit which is given us. By the world which He hath so founded that it shall not be moved for ever and ever, he says I understand the Church. As light is the garment of God, and water the garment of earth, so is love the garment of the Church. It is only as she is robed in this that she is attired with beauty. It is her wedding garment, for he that loveth not is not in Christ. It is in love that God lays the beams of the chambers of His home where there are many mansions. It is love that flows up over the lofty mountains and down in cascades to the humble valleys, sometimes in rushing torrents, and sometimes in hidden springs. It is love that gives verdure and refreshment, and through which souls find a home. Love which is like a mighty sea wherein live creatures innumerable. In Gods works in nature are seen His glory and majesty. In the Church is manifest His love. And it is as we consider this, that with sweetest notes we sing, My meditations of Him shall be sweet, I will be glad in the Lord. (J. H. Cooke.)

The greatness of God

I. In comparison with the kings of the earth. We read of Alexander the Great, of Constantine the Great, and Frederick the Great, but, verily, in comparison with the God of heaven, their greatness dwindles into insignificance–dwindles into nothing! Have they thrones? Their thrones are upon the earth; Gods throne is in the heavens, high above all height. Have they robes? Gods robes are robes of light and majesty. Have they pavilions? He stretcheth forth the heavens as His pavilion, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in. Have they chariots? He maketh the clouds His chariot–He walketh upon the wings of the wind. Have they kingdoms? The whole universe is Gods kingdom, and literally He ruleth over all.

II. In certain passages of Scripture which speak sublimely of Him (Hab 3:3-6; Psa 18:6-15; Isa 40:12; Isa 40:15-17; Rev 20:11-12).

III. In certain attributes ascribed to Him.

1. He is uncreated and eternal.

2. Omniscient.

3. Omnipotent.

4. Omnipresent.

IV. In the mighty work of creation. We have spoken of His omnipotence as an attribute; here we have its sublime demonstration. How vast is this creation, and how wonderful in all its parts!

V. In the world of redemption. This exhibits His moral grandeur; and it is this which makes Him emphatically and supremely great indeed. Infinitely great in goodness as He is infinitely great in power; infinitely great in all His moral as in all His natural perfections; so that, in the sublimest sense, it may be said of Him that He is a God, all oer consummate, absolute, full orbed, in His whole round of rays complete. Inferences.

1. How reasonable it is that we should worship and serve this only living and true God.

2. How dreadful a thing it must be to have this great God for an enemy.

3. How blessed it is to have God upon our side. (D. Baker, D.D.)

Nature

Nature has two great revelations,–that of use and that of beauty; and the first thing we observe about these two characteristics of her is, that they are bound together, and tied to each other. The beauty of nature is not, as it were, a fortunate accident, which can be separated from her use; there is no difference in the tenure upon which these two characteristics stand; the beauty is just as much a part of nature as the use; they are only different aspects of the self-same facts. It is worth observing, in the history of the mind of this country, the formation of a kind of passion for scenery and natural beauty. Though it might sometimes appear that there is nothing particularly serious in the current fashion, still the general sentiment shows a serious passion existing in the poetry and thought of the age, which it follows and copies. What is the religious bearing, then, of this modern passion for nature in its pictorial aspect? First, then, with respect to the place which the beauty of nature has in the argument of Design from nature. When the materialist has exhausted himself in efforts to explain utility in nature, it would appear to be the peculiar office of beauty to rise up suddenly as a confounding and baffling extra, which was not even formally provided for in his scheme. Nature goes off at a tangent which carries her farther than ever from the head under which he places her, and shows the utter inadequacy of that head to include all that has to be included in it. The secret of nature is farther off than ever from what he thinks of it. Physical science goes back and back into nature, but it is the aspect and front of nature which gives the challenge; and it is a challenge which no backward train of physical causes can meet. But again, nature is partly a curtain and partly a disclosure, partly a veil and partly a revelation; and here we come to her faculty of symbolism, which is so strong an aid to, and has so immensely affected, the principles of worship. It is natural for us to regard the beauty and grandeur of nature as not stopping with itself, but bearing a relation to something moral, of which it is the similitude and type. Certainly no person has a right to fasten his own fancies upon the visible creation, and say that its various features mean this and that, resemble this or that in the moral world; but if the association is universal, if we cannot even describe nature without the help of moral terms–solemn, tender, awful, and the like–it is evidence of a natural and real similitude of physical things to moral. Nature is sometimes spoken of in a pantheistic corporeal manner; as if it were a kind of bodily manifestation of the Divine Being, analogous to that garment of the flesh which encircles the human soul, and is the instrument of expression to it. But the manifestation of the Deity which takes place in the beauty of nature rests upon the ground and the principle of language. It is the revelation of the character of God in the way a material type or similitude can be. But a type is a kind of distinct language–the language of oblique and indirect expression, as contrasted with direct. While we do not worship the material created sign, for that would be idolatry, we still repose on it as the true language of the Deity. In this peculiar view of nature there are two points in striking concurrence with the vision-language of Scripture. First, Scripture has specially consecrated the faculty of sight, and has partly put forth, and has promised in a still more complete form, a manifestation of the Deity to mankind, through the medium of a great sight. This view only breaks out in fragments in the Old Testament. It emerges into light when nature is spoken of as the garment and robe of the Deity, when the glory of the Lord covers the tabernacle; when Moses is permitted to behold from the cleft in the rock the skirts of the Divine glory. Especially does the idea of a visible manifestation come out in the prophetic visions, where the splendid gleams and colours of nature, sapphire and amber, rainbow and flame, are collected together, and combined in an emblematic figure and shape, in order to make the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. And when I saw, says the Prophet, I fell on my face, and I heard the voice of one that spake. But the scattered rays of pictorial representation which only occasionally pierce through the clouds of the Old Testament, are gathered into one focus in the New, they converge and are absorbed into an ineffable, eternal appearance, in which God will ever be seen as He is, and they issue in the doctrine of the Visio Dei. Secondly, it must be remarked, as another principle in the Scriptural representation, that the act of seeing a perfectly glorious sight or object is what constitutes the spectators and beholders own glory. The future life is called a state of glory in Scripture, and it is called such not only in reference to the world in which it will be enjoyed, which is a glorious world, but also with regard to those who enjoy it; who attain to glory as a personal state. This personal state is enjoyed by them on this principle, that they are glorified as spectators of glory, that beholding Majesty is their own exaltation, and adoration their own ascent. But this latter is certainly the principle of nature and it is inculcated by all who vindicate the place and office of nature as a spectacle. No one was ever struck with wonder and admiration in beholding the works of God, no one was ever impressed strongly by the beauty and majesty of the visible creation, without at the same time feeling an accession of rank and elevation to himself from the act. (J. B. Mozley, D.D.)

Natures teaching

Nothing is more obvious than that the writers of the Psalms were attracted by the beauty, influence, and fecundity of the earth. Now beauty, apart from all else, is something which must for ever attract us. Beauty is something so subtle, so incomprehensible, that there is no language we can employ or discover which can in any way enable us to understand what is the common root and ground out of which all the beauty springs. And this particular view of nature is very highly important in this materialistic age, when men are so disposed to teach that there is nothing beyond what we see; and so lead our minds to the contemplation of what is material, to give an explanation of all the wonders of nature, the causes of their wonderful operations, and the secret of their power. Wherever you travel with a man of science, and you draw his attention to something in the universe, he will have ready to hand an explanation of what you have pointed out, and a ready answer to the difficulties in your mind. If you are travelling, for instance, in Switzerland, and you point out the grandeur and glory of the mountain range, he will at once begin to explain to you how they arose and got their present configuration, and be extremely learned with regard to the properties of which they consist. After he has dilated at great length, with all learning and profundity, on these aspects of nature, you suddenly turn to him and say, All you tell me may be very true; your explanation may be very profound, and your science may be very subtle, but I would like to ask you one question. Can you tell me what the beauty of the mountains is? Is it the height, or the depth; is it the light or the shade? Is it the cloud above, or the earth beneath, which constitutes its beauty? He looks at you and says, That is beyond me. For what is beauty? No man can describe it, or tell us what it is. It has no real existence apart from intelligence; for you must recollect that the beauty of nature is as much open and exposed to the brute as it is to you and to me. I am, therefore, left to draw a single inference, and that is this–The beauty of nature is not a mere accident; the beauty of nature is not something painted on the surface of nature. The beauty of nature is some integral part of its whole working; and while it is working as a machine it is sleeping as a picture. In the Bible you always find the writer draws the attention of the reader to the soul. The psalmist, after contemplating the glory of God, and that spectacle of light, felt there was a mystery beyond all explanation; and he called on his higher nature to rejoice. (Canon Barker.)

Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell

PSALM CIV

The majesty and power of God manifested in the creation of the

heavens and the atmosphere, 1-3;

of the earth and sea, 4-9;

of the springs, fountains, and rivers, 10-13;

of vegetables and trees, 14-18;

of the sun and moon, 19;

of day and night, and their uses, 20-23;

of the riches of the earth, 24;

of the sea, its inhabitants, and its uses, 25, 26;

of God’s general providence in providing food for all kinds of

animals, 27-31;

of earthquakes and volcanoes, 32.

God is praised for his majesty, and the instruction which his

works afford, 33, 34.

Sinners shall be destroyed, 35.

NOTES ON PSALM CIV

This Psalm has no title either in the Hebrew or Chaldee; but it is attributed to David by the Vulgate, Septuagint, AEthiopic, Arabic, and Syriac. It has the following title in the Septuagint, as it stands in the Complutensian Polyglot: “A Psalm of David concerning the formation of the world.” The Syriac says it is “A Psalm of David when he went with the priests to adore the Lord before the ark.” It seems a continuation of the preceding Psalm; and it is written as a part of it in nine of Kennicott’s and De Rossi’s MSS. It is properly a poem on the works of God in the creation and government of the world; and some have considered it a sort of epitome of the history of the creation, as given in the book of Genesis.

Verse 1. O Lord my God, thou art very great] The works of God, which are the subject of this Psalm, particularly show the grandeur and majesty of God. The strongest proofs of the being of God, for common understandings, are derived from the works of creation, their magnitude, variety, number, economy, and use. And a proper consideration of those works presents a greater number of the attributes of the Divine nature than we can learn from any other source. Revelation alone is superior.

Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible

Thou art very great, as in thy own nature and perfections, so also in the glory of thy works.

Clothed; surrounded and adorned.

With honour and majesty; with honourable majesty.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

1. God’s essential glory, andalso that displayed by His mighty works, afford ground for praise.

Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

The first decastich begins the celebration with work of the first and second days. here is not the doxa belonging to God (Jud 1:25), but the doxa which He has put on (Job 40:10) since He created the world, over against which He stands in kingly glory, or rather in which He is immanent, and which reflects this kingly glory in various gradations, yea, to a certain extent is this glory itself. For inasmuch as God began the work of creation with the creation of light, He has covered Himself with this created light itself as with a garment. That which once happened in connection with the creation may, as in Amo 4:13; Isa 44:24; Isa 45:7; Jer 10:12, and frequently, be expressed by participles of the present, because the original setting is continued in the preservation of the world; and determinate participles alternate with participles without the article, as in Isa 44:24-28, with no other difference than that the former are more predicative and the latter more attributive. With Psa 104:2 the poet comes upon the work of the second day: the creation of the expanse ( ) which divides between the waters. God has spread this out (cf. Isa 40:22) like a tent-cloth (Isa 54:2), of such light and of such fine transparent work; here rhymes with . In those waters which the “expanse” holds aloft over the earth God lays the beams of His upper chambers ( , instead of which we find in Amo 9:6, from , ascent, elevation, then an upper story, an upper chamber, which would be more accurately after the Aramaic and Arabic); but not as though the waters were the material for them, they are only the place for them, that is exalted above the earth, and are able to be this because to the Immaterial One even that which is fluid is solid, and that which is dense is transparent. The reservoirs of the upper waters, the clouds, God makes, as the lightning, thunder, and rain indicate, into His chariot ( ), upon which he rides along in order to make His power felt below upon the earth judicially (Isa 19:1), or in rescuing and blessing men. (only here) accords in sound with , Psa 18:11. For Psa 104:3 also recalls this primary passage, where the wings of the wind take the place of the cloud-chariot. In Psa 104:4 the lxx (Heb 1:7) makes the first substantive into an accusative of the object, and the second into an accusative of the predicate: . It is usually translated the reverse say: making the winds into His angels, etc. This rendering is possible so far as the language is concerned (cf. Psa 100:3 Chethb, and on the position of the worlds, Amo 4:13 with Psa 5:8), and the plural is explicable in connection with this rendering from the force of the parallelism, and the singular from the fact that this word has no plural. Since, however, with two accusatives usually signifies to produce something out of something, so that the second accusative (viz., the accusative of the predicate, which is logically the second, but according to the position of the words may just as well be the first, Exo 25:39; Exo 30:25, as the second, Exo 37:23; Exo 38:3; Gen 2:7; 2Ch 4:18-22) denotes the materia ex qua , it may with equal right at least be interpreted: Who makes His messengers out of the winds, His servants out of the flaming or consuming (vid., on Psa 57:5) fire ( , as in Jer 48:45, masc.). And this may affirm either that God makes use of wind and fire for special missions (cf. Psa 148:8), or (cf. Hofmann, Schriftbeweis, i. 325f.) that He gives wind and fire to His angels for the purpose of His operations in the world which are effected through their agency, as the materials of their outward manifestation, and as it were of their self-embodiment,

(Note: It is a Talmudic view that God really makes the angels out of fire, B. Chagiga, 14 a (cf. Koran, xxxviii. 77): Day by day are the angels of the service created out of the stream of fire ( ), and sing their song of praise and perish.)

as then in Psa 18:11 wind and cherub are both to be associated together in thought as the vehicle of the divine activity in the world, and in Psa 35:5 the angel of Jahve represents the energy of the wind.

Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament

The Divine Majesty.

      1 Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty.   2 Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain:   3 Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters: who maketh the clouds his chariot: who walketh upon the wings of the wind:   4 Who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire:   5 Who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed for ever.   6 Thou coveredst it with the deep as with a garment: the waters stood above the mountains.   7 At thy rebuke they fled; at the voice of thy thunder they hasted away.   8 They go up by the mountains; they go down by the valleys unto the place which thou hast founded for them.   9 Thou hast set a bound that they may not pass over; that they turn not again to cover the earth.

      When we are addressing ourselves to any religious service we must stir up ourselves to take hold on God in it (Isa. lxiv. 7); so David does here. “Come, my soul, where art thou? What art thou thinking of? Here is work to be done, good work, angels’ work; set about it in good earnest; let all the powers and faculties be engaged and employed in it: Bless the Lord, O my soul!” In these verses,

      I. The psalmist looks up to the divine glory shining in the upper world, of which, though it is one of the things not seen, faith is the evidence. With what reverence and holy awe does he begin his meditation with that acknowledgment: O Lord my God! thou art very great! It is the joy of the saints that he who is their God is a great God. The grandeur of the prince is the pride and pleasure of all his good subjects. The majesty of God is here set forth by various instances, alluding to the figure which great princes in their public appearances covet to make. Their equipage, compared with his (even of the eastern kings, who most affected pomp), is but as the light of a glow-worm compared with that of the sun, when he goes forth in his strength. Princes appear great, 1. In their robes; and what are God’s robes? Thou art clothed with honour and majesty, v. 1. God is seen in his works, and these proclaim him infinitely wise and good, and all that is great. Thou coverest thyself with light as with a garment, v. 2. God is light (1 John i. 5), the Father of lights (Jam. i. 17); he dwells in light (1 Tim. vi. 16); he clothes himself with it. The residence of his glory is in the highest heaven, that light which was created the first day, Gen. i. 3. Of all visible beings light comes nearest to the nature of a spirit, and therefore with that God is pleased to cover himself, that is, to reveal himself under that similitude, as men are seen in the clothes with which they cover themselves; and so only, for his face cannot be seen. 2. In their palaces or pavilions, when they take the field; and what is God’s palace and his pavilion? He stretches out the heavens like a curtain, v. 2. So he did at first, when he made the firmament, which in the Hebrew has its name from its being expanded, or stretched out, Gen. i. 7. He made it to divide the waters as a curtain divides between two apartments. So he does still: he now stretches out the heavens like a curtain, keeps them upon the stretch, and they continue to this day according to his ordinance. The regions of the air are stretched out about the earth, like a curtain about a bed, to keep it warm, and drawn between us and the upper world, to break its dazzling light; for, though God covers himself with light, yet, in compassion to us, he makes darkness his pavilion. Thick clouds are a covering to him. The vastness of this pavilion may lead us to consider how great, how very great, he is that fills heaven and earth. He has his chambers, his upper rooms (so the word signifies), the beams whereof he lays in the waters, the waters that are above the firmament (v. 3), as he has founded the earth upon the seas and floods, the waters beneath the firmament. Though air and water are fluid bodies, yet, by the divine power, they are kept as tight and as firm in the place assigned them as a chamber is with beams and rafters. How great a God is he whose presence-chamber is thus reared, thus fixed! 3. In their coaches of state, with their stately horses, which add much to the magnificence of their entries; but God makes the clouds his chariots, in which he rides strongly, swiftly, and far above out of the reach of opposition, when at any time he will act by uncommon providences in the government of this world. He descended in a cloud, as in a chariot, to Mount Sinai, to give the law, and to Mount Tabor, to proclaim the gospel (Matt. xvii. 5), and he walks (a gentle pace indeed, yet stately) upon the wings of the wind. See Psa 18:10; Psa 18:11. He commands the winds, directs them as he pleases, and serves his own purposes by them. 4. In their retinue or train of attendants; and here also God is very great, for (v. 4) he makes his angels spirits. This is quoted by the apostle (Heb. i. 7) to prove the pre-eminence of Christ above the angels. The angels are here said to be his angels and his ministers, for they are under his dominion and at his disposal; they are winds, and a flame of fire, that is, they appeared in wind and fire (so some), or they are as swift as winds, and pure as flames; or he makes them spirits, so the apostle quotes it. They are spiritual beings; and, whatever vehicles they may have proper to their nature, it is certain they have not bodies as we have. Being spirits, they are so much the further removed from the encumbrances of the human nature and so much the nearer allied to the glories of the divine nature. And they are bright, and quick, and ascending, as fire, as a flame of fire. In Ezekiel’s vision they ran and returned like a flash of lightning, Ezek. i. 14. Thence they are called seraphim–burners. Whatever they are, they are what God made them, what he still makes them; they derive their being from him, having the being he gave them, are held in being by him, and he makes what use he pleases of them.

      II. He looks down, and looks about, to the power of God shining in this lower world. He is not so taken up with the glories of his court as to neglect even the remotest of his territories; no, not the sea and dry land.

      1. He has founded the earth, v. 5. Though he has hung it upon nothing (Job xxvi. 2), ponderibus librata suis–balanced by its own weight, yet it is as immovable as if it had been laid upon the surest foundations. He has built the earth upon her basis, so that though it has received a dangerous shock by the sin of man, and the malice of hell strikes at it, yet it shall not be removed for ever, that is, not till the end of time, when it must give way to the new earth. Dr. Hammond’s paraphrase of this is worth noting: “God has fixed so strange a place for the earth, that, being a heavy body, one would think it should fall every minute; and yet, which way soever we would imagine it to stir, it must, contrary to the nature of such a body, fall upwards, and so can have no possible ruin but by tumbling into heaven.”

      2. He has set bounds to the sea; for that also is his. (1.) He brought it within bounds in the creation. At first the earth, which, being the more ponderous body, would subside of course, was covered with the deep (v. 6): The waters were above the mountains; and so it was unfit to be, as it was designed, a habitation for man; and therefore, on the third day, God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered to one place, and let the dry land appear, Gen. i. 9. This command of God is here called his rebuke, as if he gave it because he was displeased that the earth was thus covered with water and not fit for man to dwell on. Power went along with this word, and therefore it is also called here the voice of his thunder, which is a mighty voice and produces strange effects, v. 7. At thy rebuke, as if they were made sensible that they were out of their place, they fled; they hasted away (they called, and not in vain, to the rocks and mountains to cover them), as it is said on another occasion (Ps. lxxii. 16), The waters saw thee, O God! the waters saw thee; they were afraid. Even those fluid bodies received the impression of God’s terror. But was the Lord displeased against the rivers? No; it was for the salvation of his people,Hab 3:8; Hab 3:13. So here; God rebuked the waters for man’s sake, to prepare room for him; for men must not be made as the fishes of the sea (Hab. i. 14); they must have air to breathe in. Immediately therefore, with all speed, the waters retired, v. 8. They go over hill and dale (as we say), go up by the mountains and down by the valleys; they will neither stop at the former nor lodge in the latter, but make the best of their way to the place which thou hast founded for them, and there they make their bed. Let the obsequiousness even of the unstable waters teach us obedience to the word and will of God; for shall man alone of all the creatures be obstinate? Let their retiring to and resting in the place assigned them teach us to acquiesce in the disposals of that wise providence which appoints us the bounds of our habitation. (2.) He keeps it within bounds, v. 9. The waters are forbidden to pass over the limits set them; they may not, and therefore they do not, turn again to cover the earth. Once they did, in Noah’s flood, because God bade them, but never since, because he forbids them, having promised not to drown the world again. God himself glorifies in this instance of his power (Job xxxviii. 8, &c.) and uses it as an argument with us to fear him, Jer. v. 22. This, if duly considered, would keep the world in awe of the Lord and his goodness, That the waters of the sea would soon cover the earth if God did not restrain them.

Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary

Psalms 104

Praise to the Creator and sustainer

Scripture v. 1-35:

Verse 1 calls on David to bless the Lord deep down in his soul. He vows that his soul should do this because He was so great, as his and Israel’s God, who had clothed Himself in honor and majesty, with royal apparel, from the dawn of creation, Psa 19:1-4.

Verse 2 adds that He covers himself daily, continually, perpetually by the sustaining light of the sun, as His physical glory-garment, Gen 1:3. He continually, perpetually, spreads out or stretches out the heavens like a curtain, as the covering of a tent, as the tabernacle was covered. This he first did on the second day of creation, by the word of His power, Gen 1:6-8; Isa 54:2; Isa 40:22.

Verse 3 attributes to the royal-robed Creator the beam-laying of his upper chambers with waters, the upper expanse, Gen 1:7; ft is an upper expanse, a firm citadel palace, “strong as molten glass,” Job 37:18; Amo 9:6. From those chambers He waters the hills with rain, v. 13. He makes the clouds to be His chariots, driving them to do His will, to deliver rain, at His bidding, as a king drives a chariot. He walks or goes forth upon the fleet wings of the wind to do His pleasure, Isa 19:1; Psa 18:10.

Verse 4 relates that He “makes his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire.” The idea is that wherever He rides, at His royal, majestic pleasure, on the wind and on the clouds, His lightning like angelic ministers go before and accompany Him to do His service, as expressed Heb 1:7; Deu 33:2; Dan 7:10; Jdg 13:20; Psa 103:20-21.

Verses 5, 6 assert that He too laid the foundations of the earth so securely that it could not be disturbed from its support for ever. As the heaven’s were in God’s upper chambers v. 2, 3, firmly held like molten glass, so that they are well supported; So the earth is the lower part of His creation, firmly supported by His own power of omnipotence, called gravity by men today. Thus Job in ancient times wrote, “He hangeth (continually supports) the earth upon nothing,” nothing visible; just the power of His own will, Job 26:7-8; Job 38:4-6.
Verse 6 adds that He covered the foundation of the earth with the deep, the flood-waters, so that they stood above the mountains, until the flood brought back the earth to its former state, Gen 7:19-20.

Verses 7, 8 relate that the majestic Creator’s rebuke of the waters, at His thunder-like order, they retreated or receded to their own place, going up by the mountains (in vapor, till today) and “down by the valleys,” as fallen rain. They do His bidding, even as the winds and waves obeyed our Lord’s bidding, Mar 4:39. They (the waters) go down unto the place, valleys and streams and the sea God assigned them, Gen 1:9; Psa 102:25; Psa 107:26.

Verse 9 certifies that God set, fixed, or placed a bound that the waters might not pass over, that they may no more flood the earth, Gen 9:11; Gen 9:15; Job 26:10; Job 38:8; Job 38:11; Jer 5:22.

Verses 10, 11 declare that He sends the springs into the valleys, that cut their way among the hills, giving drink to every domestic beast of the field and even quenching the thirst of the wild ass, satisfying also the thirst of the wild beasts, and “causing it to rain on the just and the unjust,” since the flood days, Job 5:10; Mat 5:45.

Verses 12-15 attribute to God the gracious provision that through His waters the fowls of the heaven sing with a sound of joy among the branches of their habitations; The earth is satisfied with the waters that come forth from his chambers upon the hills, as the fruit of His works. For He is the cause that makes: a) grass to grow for cattle; b) herbs for the service of man; and c) food to grow forth out of the earth, as set forth Gen 1:29-30; Psa 147:8; Job 28:5; Mat 6:26.
Verse 15 adds that as a result of the rain and water from earth’s fountains He causes men to have glad hearts with an abundance of wine, their faces to shine because of bread and oil, and their hearts to be strengthened because of bread aplenty, Jdg 9:13; Psa 23:5; Job 28:5; Pro 31:6-7; Gen 18:5.

Verses 16, 17 describe the large trees of the Lord as full of sap even the cedars of Lebanon, which He has planted (not man) Num 24:6; Psa 36:6. For it is asserted that there in those high cedars of Lebanon, the birds make their nests, with the stork making her residence in the fir trees instead of the cedars.

Verse 18 adds that the “high hills are. (exist as) a refuge for the wild goats, and the rocks for the conies as described Deu 14:17.

Verses 19-28 relate that God appointed the moon for season regulations, Gen 1:14; even before the sun, Deu 4:19; Job 31:21; Job 38:12; and the sun “knows its going down,” Job 38:12. He continually causes the darkness and its night, by which all the beasts of the forests do creep forth, prowl, and secure their food, Isa 45:7. It is then that the “young lions roar after this prey, and seek their meat from God’s gracious provision, Job 38:39; Joe 1:10. They then go to their dens, to stay near their prey, at sunrise.

Verses 23, 24 add that man goes forth to his work and to his labor “until the evening,” in the light of the sun, not the dimness of the moon, by God’s direction, Gen 3:19. God cares for man, above that of the wild creatures of the night. Verse 24 extols “O Lord, how manifold (innumerable) are thy works!” adding that “in wisdom hast thou made them all; the earth is full of thy riches,” thy wealth of creation, Gen 1:20-22; Deu 33:14-16; Pro 3:19; See also Psa 50:12; 1Co 10:26.

Verses 25, 26 describe God’s wisdom and devotion in creation and sustaining the great, wide sea, with innumerable creeping, crawling things, both small and great beast-creatures, as related Gen 1:21; Psa 69:34. There in and upon the great, wide, deep sea sail and glide the ships; and there in her depths leviathan, the King of sea-beasts plays, where He provided her a play-ground; Gen 49:13. The whale, the porpoise, and the manatee are sea beasts.

Verses 27-29 describe the Lord as daily caring for these living creatures on land and on sea. They wait upon (trust) Him, that He may give them food, before it is too late, Rom 11:36; Psa 145:15; Ecc 3:1. He feeds animals of land and sea, daily, as surely as He fed Israel with manna and quail in the wilderness, with an open hand, with plenty to satisfy their needs, Deu 8:3.
Verse 29 declares that when God hides His face, turns His back they are troubled; Their breath departs; they die, man and beast, La 3:22, 23; Act 17:28. See also Job 34:14-15; Ecc 12:7; Act 17:25; Gen 3:19; See too Psa 90:7; Num 16:22.

Verse 30 explains that God sends His spirit to create or quicken to life all creatures; and by His mercy and grace He renews, sustains the whole face of the earth, Job 26:13; Isa 32:15; Eze 37:9; Eph 2:1; Tit 3:5.

Verses 31, 32 assert that the Lord’s glory shall exist forever, as He shall rejoice in His works, even that of all redeemed men, and His church, as He receives glory in and Through them 1Co 10:31; Eph 3:21; Rev 19:5-9; Psa 19:1. ft is added that at a stern look from God, or His mandating voice, the earth trembles, and at the touch of His hand the hills smoke, as at Sinai, for fear, Exo 19:18; Deu 32:22; Jdg 5:5; Psa 78:8; Psa 144:5; Hab 3:5; Hab 3:10.

Verses 33, 34 recount David’s resolve to sing praise to the Lord as long as he lived, had his existence, both because of who God is in His power, character, and deeds. His meditation on the Lord (nourishment) in Him would be sweet, as he would live with gladness in the Lord, always, before death, Psa 63:4; Psa 88:10.

Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary

1 Bless Jehovah, O my soul! After having exhorted himself to praise God, the Psalmist adds, that there is abundant matter for such an exercise; thus indirectly condemning himself and others of ingratitude, if the praises of God, than which nothing ought to be better known, or more celebrated, are buried by silence. In comparing the light with which he represents God as arrayed to a garment, he intimates, that although God is invisible, yet his glory is conspicuous enough. In respect of his essence, God undoubtedly dwells in light that is inaccessible; but as he irradiates the whole world by his splendor, this is the garment in which He, who is hidden in himself, appears in a manner visible to us. The knowledge of this truth is of the greatest importance. If men attempt to reach the infinite height to which God is exalted, although they fly above the clouds, they must fail in the midst of their course. Those who seek to see him in his naked majesty are certainly very foolish. That we may enjoy the light of him, he must come forth to view with his clothing; that is to say, we must cast our eyes upon the very beautiful fabric of the world in which he wishes to be seen by us, and not be too curious and rash in searching into his secret essence. Now, since God presents himself to us clothed with light, those who are seeking pretexts for their living without the knowledge of him, cannot allege in excuse of their slothfulness, that he is hidden in profound darkness. When it is said that the heavens are a curtain, it is not meant that under them God hides himself, but that by them his majesty and glory are displayed; being, as it were, his royal pavilion.

Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary

INTRODUCTION

This Psalm, says Calvin, differs from the last, in that it neither treats of Gods special mercies bestowed on His Church, nor lifts us to the hope of a heavenly life; but painting for us in the frame of the world, and the order of nature, the living image of Gods wisdom, power, and goodness, exhorts us to praise Him, because in this our frail mortal life He manifests Himself to us as a Father. In the former Psalm God is praised as the God of grace, in this as the God of naturethe Creator and Sustainer of the universe.
In its main outline the poem follows the story of creation contained in the first chapter of Genesis. There manifestly is the source whence the Psalmist drew. Meditating on that sublime description, itself a poem, he finds in it his subject and his inspiration. And yet the Psalm is not a mere copy of the original. Breathing the same lofty spirit, it has a force and an originality of its own. In some respects the Psalm, even more strikingly than the early record, exhibits the infinite greatness, the order, the life of the universe. But the creation of Genesis is a creation of the past; the creation of the Psalm is a creation of the present. The one portrays the beginning of the eternal order, the other its perpetual, living spectacle. Hence, too, the Ode has far more animation than the Record. The latter is a picture of still life; the former is crowded with figures full of stir and movement. In the Psalm we have a picture which for truth and depth of colouring, for animation, tenderness, and beauty, has never been surpassed.Perowne.

In the Hebrew the Psalm has no superscription; and there are no means for determining by whom or when the Psalm was composed.

THE MAJESTY OF GOD IN CREATION

(Psa. 104:1-5)

The Psalmist expresses his thoughts and feelings in a strain of poetry of unsurpassed sublimity. Underlying the glorious imagery of these verses is the brilliant display in which Eastern princes delighted, in their robes and equipages and attendants. The majesty of the appearance of the Divine King, Jehovah, far exceeds their most gorgeous displays. The Poet sets before us

I. The glorious vesture of the Lord. Thou coverest Thyself with light as with a garment. St. Paul represents the Lord as dwelling in the light. And Milton

Hail, holy light, offspring of heaven first-born;
Or of th Eternal co-eternal beam,
May I express thee, unblamed? Since God is light,
And never but in unapproached light,
Dwelt from eternity, dwelt then in thee,
Bright effluence of bright essence increate.

But the reference in the text is not to the unapproachable, the concealing light, but to the revealing light. In the light which daily shines upon us God unfolds to us glimpses of His glory. He apparels Himself with light. There is nothing in the universe so fitted to be the robe of God as light.

1. Light is an emblem of His own nature. God is light. Light unites in itself purity and clearness, and beauty and glory, as no other material object does: it is the condition of all material life, and growth, and joy; and the application to God of such a predicative requires no transference. He is Light, and the Fountain of light material and light ethical. In the one world, darkness is the absence of light; in the other, darkness, untruthfulness, deceit, falsehood, is the absence of God.Alford.

2. Light is essential to life and growth. Without it the earth would speedily become one vast sepulchre.

3. Light is pure and purifying. Milton: Light ethereal, first of things, quintessence pure.

4. Light is joy-inspiring.

Prime cheerer, light!

Of all material beings, first and best!

Thomson.

How fitting, then, for to be the robe of Deity.

II. The splendid palace of the Lord.

Thou spreadest out the heavens like a curtain, &c. (Psa. 104:2-3). The heavens are the expanse or firmament which God has spread to divide the waters which are under it from the waters which are above it. And in the waters which are above it God is represented as laying the beams of His chambers, the floor of His palace. His palace He has built above the expanse in the lofty and glorious heavens. He has fixed His abode in the most exalted and brilliant place in the universe. The most stately and magnificent of earthly palaces is mean in comparison of this.

III. The sublime chariot of the Lord. Who maketh the clouds His chariot, who walketh upon the wings of the wind. The clouds appear as the chariot of God, because He drives them about at His pleasure, as a king his car.Hengstenberg. Jehovah came in a thick cloud at Sinai. God appeared in a bright cloud upon Hermon at the Transfiguration. In the last day He will come with clouds. On the sublime aspects of clouds, and their fitness to inspire reverence towards God, see a fine passage in Ruskins Modern Painters (1 Peter 2 sec. 3, ch. 4 3538). He walketh upon the wings of the wind, controlling and directing them as He will, and they obey Him as horses do an earthly king, except that the winds never contest His authority or deviate from His will.

IV. The wonderful messengers of the Lord. Verse four is of disputed interpretation. Some of the ablest commentators renders it: Who maketh the winds His messengers, the flaming fire His ministers. But in this rendering the order of the words is inverted. Perowne: The natural order in Hebrew, as in English, is verb, object, predicate, and no instance has as yet been alleged in which the predicate stands after the verb before the object. Unless the grammatical difficulty can be removed, we must render, He maketh His messengers winds, His ministers a flaming fire; i.e., He clothes His messengers with the might, the swiftness, the all-pervading subtilty of wind and fire.Alford advocates this view. See Perownes Critical Note in loco, and Alford on Heb. 1:7. The Lord has countless messengers. He can use any of His creatures as His servants; and He can clothe His messengers with the attributes of wind and fire. His attendants are characterised by power and celerity, like the wind; by purity, like the fire; and by pervasiveness, like both wind and fire. The most numerous and splendid retinue of earthly princes, or all their retinues combined, are as nothing when compared with the countless and wonderful messengers of the Lord.

V. The firm footstool of the Lord. He laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed for ever. Margin: He hath founded the earth upon her bases. The earth is held as firm by the omnipotence of God, without a foundation, as if it had one; He has given to the earth, which is propped up by nothing, a firm existence, like a building which rests on a solid foundation.Hengstenberg. Job: He hangeth the earth upon nothing. Milton: And earth self-balanced from her centre hung. Ovid: Ponderibus librata suis,poised by its own weight. Yet it is immovably firm and secure. How unsearchable is His wisdom, and how unlimited His power, who thus wonderfully sustains the world! And how glorious is His majesty as manifested in the heavens and the earth!

Our text warrants the following remarks:
First: The universe is a Divine creation. It is not eternal, not self-originated, not the product of chance or fate; but it is the creation of the Almighty.

Second: The creative energy of the Lord is in continual exercise. The participles denote continued action, and teach us to regard the exercise of the creative energy of the Lord as a present thing. Every morning God, as it were, arrays Himself anew in His robe of light, &c. The Supreme Worker is ever working. Creation is a continuous process.

Third: That the Divine creations are effected with consummate ease. With the same ease with which a man spreads out a tent curtain, God spreads the expanse of heavennay, with far greater ease: He spake, and it was done, &c.

Fourth: The universe is invested with profound significance. To the devout student it is a revelation of infinite wisdom, almighty power, Divine beneficence, &c.

Fifth: The universe is invested with Divine sanctity. It is the garment of the great Goda scene of Divine manifestation. Rightly understood the earth is a temple, instinct with the presence and resounding with the voice of God. Therefore, Bless the Lord, O my soul. O Lord, my God, Thou art very great; Thou art clothed with honour and majesty.

THE PRAISE OF THE LORD

(Psa. 104:1)

I. The Lord should be praised with the soul. Bless the Lord, O my soul. The Lord looketh at the heart.

II. The Lord should be praised because of His attributes. O Lord, my God, Thou art very great. We should honour Him not only from motives of gratitude, but from motives of esteem. In Himself He is worthy of all homage.

III. The Lord should be praised because of His work in creation. This is a great hymn of creation. His works in nature are worthy of praise. We should regard them with admiration and reverence for the Great Worker. We do well to celebrate the glories of redemption, but not to the exclusion of the glories of creation.

IV. The Lord should be praised both for what He reveals and what He conceals of Himself. Thou art clothed with honour and majesty. Creation is the vesture of Deity. Nature half reveals and half conceals the SOUL within. We should be thankful for both the hiding and the disclosing. Both are merciful.

V. That man is best qualified for this service whose God is the Lord. O Lord, my God. He who trusts in and communes with God will find praise a natural and joyous service.

CREATION A REVELATION OF THE LORD

(Psa. 104:6-18)

These verses suggest the following observations:

I. The work of the Lord in creation displays His absolute power. This is manifest

1. Over the waters. At Thy rebuke they fled, at the voice of Thy thunder they hasted away, &c. (Psa. 104:7-10). His control over the waters is seen

(1) in setting boundaries for them. The Psalmist represents the earth as completely enveloped in water. Thou coverest it with the deep as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains. And Milton

The earth was formed, but in the womb as yet
Of waters, embryon immature involved,
Appeared not: over all the face of earth
Main ocean flowed.

At the command of God the water finds its appointed place and is confined there. This is very poetically represented as the effect of the Divine rebuke and thunder: thrown into a state of tumultuous excitement, the waters quickly again ascend the mountains, their high abode, from which the rebuke of God had brought them down; but unable to keep themselves there they go down to the valleys, until they find themselves in their proper situation, and enter into the place where God designs them to be.Hengstenberg. And there God imprisons them. Thou hast set a bound that they may not pass over, that they turn not again to cover the earth. Though the waters of the sea are higher than the earth, yet is it confined in its decreed place by the command of God. He says, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further; and here shall thy proud waves be stayed. The Lords control over the waters is seen

(2) in distributing them. He sendeth the springs into the valleys, which run among the hills. God has wisely and wonderfully distributed the waters, and in so doing has provided for the watering of the earth and the creatures that dwell thereon. The way in which this is done is among the most wonderful and most benevolent in nature,by that power derived from heat, by which the waters of the ocean, contrary to the natural law of gravitation, are lifted up in small particlesin vapourand carried by the clouds where they are needed, and let fall upon the earth to water the plants, and to form fountains, rivulets, and streamsand borne thus to the highest mountains, to be filtered through the ground to form springs and streams below.Barnes.

2. Over the earth. He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man. The fruitfulness of the earth is an effect of the Divine power. The earth, with its mountains and valleys, barren rocks and fruitful fields; the seas and lakes, the rivers and streams; and the heavens, with its wind-driven clouds and its glorious orbs, all display the almighty power of the Creator.

II. The work of the Lord in creation displays His delight in beauty. In this poem of creation the Psalmist brings into view the mountains and valleys, the seas and rivers, the fountains and streams, the herbs and trees, the beasts and birds; and all these contribute to the beauty of the world. That God delights in the beautiful in form and in colour is clearly manifested in His works. It is possible to conceive a world in which utility alone was aimed at, and beauty entirely ignored. But such a world would form a complete contrast to the creations of God. To take only one feature, think of the wonderful beauty and sublimity of the mountains. Loveliness of colour, perfectness of form, endlessness of change, wonderfulness of structure, are precious to all undiseased human minds; and the superiority of the mountains in all these things to the lowlands is as measurable as the riches of a painted window matched with a white one, or the wealth of a museum compared with that of a simply furnished chamber. They seem to have been built for the human race, as at once their schools and cathedrals; full of treasures of illuminated manuscript for the scholar, kindly in simple lessons to the worker, quiet in pale cloisters for the thinker, glorious in holiness for the worshipper. These great cathedrals of the earth, with their gates of rock, pavement of cloud, choirs of stream and stone, altars of snow, and vaults of purple, traversed by the continual stars! (See the whole passage, of which the foregoing is only a fragment, in Ruskins Modern Painters, IV. pt. V. ch. XX. 3, 4, 5, 9). The beauty of creation

(1) increases our obligations to the Creator;

(2) should incite to holiness, which is spiritual beauty. Gods delight in spiritual beauty is greater than His delight in material beauty.

III. The work of the Lord in creation displays His great law of service. Everything which He has made has its uses. Everything has relations, is dependent, and is designed to be ministrant. The sea is made to serve man by supplying the air with ozone, man with food, &c. Fountains and streams water the earth, and quench the thirst of men and animals. The earth produces food in abundance for man and beast, and wine for the rejoicing of mans heart. And birds, trees, mountains, rocks, all have their uses. Usefulness as well as beauty characterises all the creations of the Divine Hand.

Oh! not in vain doth He create

Aught from His affluent love proceeding;

The meanest hath appointed state,

If only for the mightiests needing.

The meteor and the thunder-stone

Have use and mission of their own.

Punshon.

Man is no exception to this rule. We are created by God to serve others. A useless man is a self-perversion of the idea of the Creator. He frustrates the Divine idea of his life. Are we fulfilling our part in the universal law of service?

IV. The work of the Lord in creation displays His regard for all His creatures. Psa. 104:11-18. There is no uncared-for creature. The wild asses, the fowls of the heaven, the cattle, the wild goats, the conies, all are provided for by God. The earth produces the endless varieties and the immense quantities of food required for the creatures that dwell upon it. And in trees, rocks, mountains, &c. they find suitable homes. Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, &c. (Mat. 6:26.)

V. The work of the Lord in creation displays His supreme regard for man. And wine that maketh glad, &c. God gives to man not only the necessaries but the luxuries of life. Here is bread for his sustenance. Here is wine for his enjoyment. Here is wine, says Matthew Henry, that makes glad the heart, refreshes the spirits, and exhilarates them, when it is soberly and moderately used, that we may not only go through our business, but go through it cheerfully. It is a pity that that should be abused to overcharge the heart, and unfit men for their duty, which was given to revive their heart and quicken them in their duty. Here is oil expressive of gladness. On festive occasions they were accustomed to anoint their heads with oil. The face is said to shine because the radiancy of joy is seen there. The face shines not because of the oil, but because the heart is glad. God gives to man not only support in life, but joy. He manifests special regard for mans interests. At the Creation He gave him dominion over the earth with all its tenants and all its productions. In Christ He has displayed His interest in human well-being in a still clearer and more conclusive manner.

CONCLUSION.The subject supplies

1. An argument for humility. We are dependent creatures. We have no resources but such as are in God.

2. An argument for obedience. We are parts of a great and orderly system, having intimate relations and dependencies, and designed for mutual service. Let us not violate the order and harmony; let us fulfil our service, &c.

3. An argument for gratitude. The Divine regards claim suitable and proportionate acknowledgment.

4. An argument for trust. The Lord cares for the wild asses; will He not much more care for man who was made in His own image?for man, redeemed by the precious blood of His Son Jesus Christ?

THE USES OF THE SEASONS

(Psa. 104:19-23)

The Psalmist here refers to the work of creation on the fourth day, as stated in the Mosaic record. The sun and moon were appointed not only to give light, but for the measurement and division of time, and the indication of seasons. Of these, twonight and dayare mentioned, and their uses pointed out.

I. The uses of day.

1. The day is the season of work for man. Man goeth forth unto his work and to his labour. Labour is a Divine institution, and the day is the fitting time for engaging in it.

(1) Man is urged to work by his necessities. He needs food, raiment, a dwelling; and to obtain these he must work. He has to encounter difficulties, he requires knowledge and skill; and to acquire these he must work. He needs pardon, moral purity, and power; and for these also he must work.

(2.) Man is fitted for work by his faculties. He has arms and hands admirably adapted for labour, brain for mental exertion, and the soul with its wondrous faculties for spiritual effort.

(3) Man is commanded to work by his Maker. Unfallen man was placed in a garden to dress it and to keep it. Six days shalt thou labour is a Divine command. This we commanded you, that if any man would not work neither should he eat. God Himself is the Supreme Worker. MY FATHER worketh hitherto and I work. The law of nature is, says Ruskin, that a certain quantity of work is necessary to produce a certain quantity of good, of any kind whatever. If you want knowledge, you must toil for it; if food, you must toil for it; and if pleasure, you must toil for it. But men do not acknowledge this law, or strive to evade it, hoping to get their knowledge, and food, and pleasure for nothing; and in this effort they either fail of getting them, and remain ignorant and miserable, or they obtain them by making other men work for their benefit; and then they are tyrants and robbers. And Carlyle: All true work is sacred; in all true work, were it but true hand-labour, there is something of divineness. Labour, wide as the earth, has its summit in heaven. AgainThe modern majesty consists in work. What a man can do is his greatest ornament, and he always consults his dignity by doing it. The day is the season for work. Our Lord recognised this fact in His pregnant utterance, I must work the works of Him that sent me while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.

2. The day is the season of retirement for wild beasts. The sun ariseth, they gather themselves together, and lay them down in their dens. We see in this

(1) An evidence of mans original sovereignty over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. The wild beasts still have some dread of him, and hide themselves in their dens during the hours of the day when he is most abroad.

(2) An arrangement for mans safety. The sluggard cannot excuse himself from daily labour by saying, There is a lion in the way.

II. The uses of night.

1. Night is the season of rest for man. Labour until the evening. Man was not fitted for incessant toil. He needs frequent rest. And night is the season marked out by God for this. Its shade is a relief after the brightness, and its cool after the heat of the day. These conduce to sleep; and so man is invigorated for further toil.

Night is the time for rest;
How sweet when labours close.

To gather round an aching heart

The curtain of repose,

Stretch the tired limbs, and lay the head
Upon our own delightful bed.

J. Montgomery.

2. Night is the season of activity for wild beasts. It is night, wherein all the beasts of the forest do creep forth. The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their meat from God. Observe:

(1) Their dependence upon God. They seek their food from Him. The roaring of the young lions, like the crying of the young ravens, is interpreted asking their meat of God. The natural cries of the distressed creatures are in substance natures prayer to its Maker for relief and help. Here we have a hint on prayer. If God so interprets the cries of the young lions, shall He not much more regard favourably the broken cries of His children?

(2) Gods provision for them. He makes the darkness in which they go forth in quest of food, and He provides the food for them; otherwise they would go forth in vain. Here is a hint on Providence. Shall the Lord provide for the beasts of the forest, and shall He not much more supply all the needs of His people who trust in Him?

III. The moral uses of the seasons. By them He teaches us

1. The measurement of time. He has made the very universe to be the clock of the universe, and admonish every mortal heart of the sure and constant passage of time. We are not left to our inward judgments. Time has its measures without, in the most palpable and impressive visitations of the senses. Every twilight tells us that a day is gone, and that by a sign as impressive as the blotting out of the sun! One season tells us that another is gone; and, when the whole circle of seasons is completed and returned into itself, the new year tells us that the old is gone. And a certain number of these years, we know, is the utmost bound of life.

2. The preciousness of time. He appointed the sun and moon for signs and for seasons to declare to every creature, in every world, the certain flight of time, and signify its sacred value. The gems He has buried in the sands of His rivers; on the gold He has piled His mountains of rock; the pearls He has hid in the depth of the sea; but time,time is out on the front of all created magnificence. Thus He silently proclaims to us constantly that time is the most precious of His gifts.

3. The fitness of certain times for certain duties. The tradesman observes the seasons. The husbandman watches them for his life. Whatever we do, must be done in its time. You cannot plant in the winter, nor gather fruit in the spring. Gods times are set, and the seasons of His mercy all ordained from the beginning. There is no time of salvation but the time of God. [2]

[2] See a very suggestive and striking Sermon by Dr. Bushnell on The Great Time-Keeper. Gen. 1:14

THE LORD AND HIS UNIVERSE

(Psa. 104:24-30)

In these verses there is allusion to the work of the fifth day of creation; and an expression of devout admiration of the number of the works of the Lord, and the wisdom displayed therein. The Poet very clearly sets forth certain aspects of the relation of the Lord to the universe.

I. The Lord as the Creator of all things. O Lord, how manifold are Thy works! &c. The Divine creations are here represented as characterised by

1. Their multitudinousness. O Lord, how manifold are Thy works! This great and wide sea wherein are things creeping innumerable, both small and great beasts. The earth, the air, and the sea all teem with life, in endless variety. The sea with its life is specially mentioned here. In its depths there is abundant life of things small and great, a life of the coral insect, as well as of the whale, and also a life on its surface, where go the ships carrying the thoughts and the passions, the skill and the enterprise of human hearts.

2. Their wisdom. In wisdom hast Thou made them all. Every creature which God has made, in its adaptations to the ends of its existence, presents the most admirable indications of the wisdom of its Creator. How immeasurably great the wisdom represented in the whole of His countless and infinitely varied productions!

3. Their greatness. This great and wide sea. To us the earth seems vast, the sea vaster. But when the astronomer discourses to us, we are overwhelmed with the vastness of the heavens, and the earth and sea shrink into comparative littleness and obscurity.

4. Their usefulness. To some persons the sea seems a great waste. It is really far otherwise. It is the great highway of the world, and from its waters man draws a great portion of his food. In all the creations of God there is no useless creature, no useless thing.

5. Their continuity. Thou sendest forth Thy Spirit, they are created; and Thou renewest the face of the earth. The miracle of creation is constantly going on in the world. Men die, but man remains. Generation passeth away, and generation cometh. Life succeeds death. Out of the grave of winter ariseth the bright and blooming spring.

II. The Lord as the Proprietor of all things. The earth is full of Thy richesliterally, Thy possessions. All things in earth, air, and sea belong unto the Lord. The fact of creatorship establishes the most indefeasible claim to proprietorship. The fact of the Lords proprietorship of all things should

1. Inspire us with gratitude. How bountifully has He enriched us out of His storehouse!

2. Teach us humility. Our utter dependence upon the Divine resources should strip us of every vestige of pride.

3. Encourage our confidence. The resources of the Lord are inexhaustible. Depending upon Him we can never lack support.

III. The Lord as the Sustainer of all things. These wait all upon Thee, that Thou mayest give them their meat in due season. All creatures are dependent upon His bounty. He supplieth the wants of all creatures. The Divine support of the universe is marked by three things:

1. Regularity. He gives them their meat in due season. As want returns the Divine provision is bestowed.

2. Ease. Thou openest Thine hand, they are filled with good. The sustenance of the entire universe imposes not the slightest strain upon His resources. He has but to open His hand, and the needy millions are satisfied.

3. Plenteousness. They are filled with good. In the dispensation of His gifts the Lord is bounteous. He giveth to all His creatures liberally, and they are satisfied.

IV. The Lord is the absolute Sovereign of all things.

1. In His hand are joy and trouble. He opens His hand, and His creatures are satisfied. In His favour is life, and joy. He hides His face, they are troubled. Let Him avert His face and withdraw the tokens of His favour, and His creatures are terrified; they are filled with consternation, as of one in the presence of inevitable and utter ruin. His smile is the joy and beauty of the universe; His frown would blast and terrify it into death.

2. In His hand are life and death. Thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust. Thou sendest forth Thy Spirit, they are created. When God withdraws His support from any of His creatures, death instantly supervenes. He is the God of the spirits of all flesh. All life has its origin in Him, and is in His hand. In Him we live, and move, and have our being. Over the birth and death of individuals, over the coming and going of generations, He presides in infinite wisdom and goodness.

CONCLUSION.What is our acquaintance with this great Being? To know Him simply as Creator, Sustainer, and Sovereign, is not enough for us. We have violated the order of the Creator, abused the bounty of the Sustainer, and defied the authority of the Sovereign. But blessed be His name, He who is the Creator of all things is also the Saviour of men. Do we know Him as such? Our most urgent necessity and imperative duty is first to approach the Redeemer by faith; and then, without any faltering of the tongue or misgiving of the heart, we may join in this Hymn of Creation.

VOICES OF CREATION

(Psa. 104:24; Psa. 104:27-28)

There are three preliminary pointsFirst: That this world is not unfavour able to moral culture. The Psalmist is holy on a planet which has been cursed, and even through the darkness of the Divine frown can see gleamings and blazings of true glory.

Second: That all agencies are under the control of an Infinite Intelligence. All forces are under the management of Divine wisdom and paternal love. Our Father knows every tempest that sweeps through the airnotes every dew-drop that quivers on the opening flowerand is acquainted with every breeze that stirs the atmosphere.

Third: That the Divine resources are equal to every exigency. The necessities of nature are endless. In all parts of the universe there are mouths opened, eyes upturned, and hands outstretched to a central Being. And what is His reply to this million-tongued appeal? Thou openest Thine hand, they are filled with good. Note the sublime ease which is here indicated. Compare it with the anxiety and fretfulness of man when besieged with numerous appeals. The Divine Benefactor simply opens His hand, and the universe is satisfied.

The Psalm suggests

I. That the Divine existence is to constitute the central fact in all our contemplations of the universe. GOD was the central fact in the Psalmists contemplations. This fact serves three purposes

First: It disproves the speculations of Pantheism. Pantheism teaches the identity of God and nature; but in this Psalm we have more than fifty references, by noun or pronoun, to the existence and attributes of a personal agent. The Psalmist distinctly teaches the existence of a Being who is infinitely above the powers and glories of nature, and for whose pleasure they are and were created.

Second: It undermines the materialistic theory. This theory teaches the non-existence of mind. What we call mind, it denominates a refinement of matter. The entire Psalm, however, proclaims and celebrates the presence of Infinite Mind.

Third: It invests the universe with a mystic sanctity. Everywhere we behold the Divine handiwork. As the architect embodies his genius in the stupendous temple or noble mansion, so has God materialised His wisdom and power in the physical creation. To me the wind becomes sacred, as I remember that it is written, HE WALKETH UPON THE WINGS OF THE WIND.

II. That the principle of dependence is everywhere developed in the universe. These all wait upon Thee, &c. The Psalmist ignores the presence of chance, or accident; in his view GOD is enthroned, and the Divine dominion is over all! We infer, then

First: The existence of an absolutely self-dependent power. Finite conception is totally unequal to the comprehension of such an existence. Our want of comprehension, however, does not affect the sublime doctrine of Gods infinite independence.

Second: The special mission of each part of the universe. The Psalmist in his wide excursion and minute observation detects nothing that is wanting in purpose.

Third: The profound humility by which every intelligence should be characterised. Seeing that we are dependent on God for life, and breath, and all things, it becometh us to dwell in the dust of humility. Men of genius! Men of money! What have you that ye have not received?

III. That a devout contemplation of the universe is calculated to increase mans hatred of sin. Having beheld the symmetry, the adaptation, and the unity of the Divine works, the Psalmist directs his gaze to the moral world, and, beholding its hideous deformity and loathsomeness, he exclaims, Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more; as though he had said, There is one foul blot on this glorious picture; one discordant note in this enrapturing anthem. Let this spot be removed, and the picture will be perfect; bring this note into harmony, and the melody will be soul-enthralling I would consume the sinner by consuming his wickedness. Christ came to consume the sinner by taking away the sin of the world.

CONCLUSION.First: God must be the central fact in your being. Second: What is the highest relationship you sustain to the Creator? You must sustain one relationship to God, viz., that of a dependant. The worm beneath your feet, if gifted with utterance, would say, I, too, am a dependant. I call you to be the sons and daughters of the Lord Almighty. Third: This beneficent Creator also reveals Himself as mans Saviour. You revere the God of nature; I ask you to accept Him as the God of salvation. Fourth: The extinction of sin should be the good mans supreme object. He who converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save, &c. They that turn many to righteousness shall shine as the stars for ever and ever.Joseph Parker, D.D.Abridged from The Cavendish Pulpit.

THE RENEWAL OF THE FACE OF THE EARTH AN ILLUSTRATION OF THE RENEWAL OF THE SOUL

(Psa. 104:30. Thou renewest the face of the earth.)

The renewal of the face of the earth which takes place every spring speaks to us

(1) Of the presence of God. He effects the great and beautiful change. Thou renewest.

(2) Of the faithfulness of God. (Gen. 8:22.) Every returning spring is an additional witness to the Divine constancy.

(3) Of the tenderness of God. How tender are the young leaf, the primrose, and the violet! Faintly, yet truly, they mirror forth the tenderness of God. The Lord is very pitiful and of tender mercy. Thy gentleness hath made me great.

(4) Of the Divine delight in beauty. All the beauty of the season is an outflow of the Divine beauty; it tells us that God loves beauty, that God is beauty and love itself. We regard the renewal of the face of the earth as an illustration of the renewal of the soul.

I. The renewal of the face of the earth succeeds to the dreary and seemingly dead state of nature in winter. Black, bleak, barren, and lifeless is the aspect of the earth in winter. The unrenewed soul is dead in trespasses and sins. Apart from the renewing influence of the Divine Spirit there is no beauty, no love, no life in the human soul.

II. The renewal of the face of the earth is marked by life and freshness. Buds, leaves, blossoms, grass, all are fresh and new in spring. The man who has passed from the winter of sin and death into the spring of life and grace is a new creation, old things have passed away, all things have become new. He is created in Christ Jesus unto good works; he enters upon a new career, having new sympathies, new purposes, new delights, new fellowships, new conduct.

III. The renewal of the face of the earth is very gradual. Only by slow degrees does spring vanquish winter, and cover the earth with the proofs of her gracious reign. So is it with the renewal of the soul. Though the soul is quickened into divine life, yet the full beauty and promise of the spiritual spring will not be manifest until many a battle has been waged with the sinful tendencies and habits that formerly ruled in us. The work of God both in nature and in grace is very gradual.

IV. The renewal of the face of the earth is irresistible. However reluctant winter may be to relinquish his reign in favour of spring, relinquish it he must. So with the renewed soul. Its progress may be very gradual, but it is certain. If the life of grace is in the soul, it will produce the flowers and fruits of grace.

V. The renewal of the face of the earth is initiatory to a glorious season of maturity. Spring prepares the way for the bright and beauteous summer, and the bounteous and beneficent autumn. This is the spring-time of our spiritual life. And God will lead us on into the summer and autumn, into the beauty and perfection of our life. Only we must use the spring-time and its opportunities well. If we would reap bountifully we must sow bountifully.

The most glorious of all renewals is yet in the future. The spring-time of the world is not yet, but it comes on apace. (Isa. 61:11; Psa. 85:11.) The whole world shall be arrayed in the freshness and beauty of spiritual and divine life.

THE HARMONY OF CREATION RESTORED

(Psa. 104:31-35)

The poet brings the Psalm to a close with the expression of the desire that the glory of God may be universal and perpetual. In so doing he presents for our consideration

I. The glory of the Lord in His works. The glory of the Lord shall endure for ever, &c.

1. He manifests His great power in His works. He looketh on the earth, and it trembleth; He toucheth the hills, and they smoke. When the Lord came down upon Sinai the smoke ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked greatly. So great are His majesty and power that He has, as it were, merely to look upon the earth, and it is awed and fearful before Him; He has but to touch the mountains, and they smoke as with His wrath. By His omnipotence He sustains the universe, and in a moment He could blot it out of existence.

2. He realises joy in His works. The Lord shall rejoice in His works. When He created the world, He looked upon His works with complacency, and pronounced them very good. He still rejoices in the order, beneficence, and beauty of His creations. In His redemptive works also He realises great joy.

3. He is praised by His intelligent and loyal creatures. I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have my being. With joy the godly man resolves

Ill praise Him while He lends me breath;
And when my voice is lost in death,

Praise shall employ my nobler powers:

My days of praise shall neer be past,
While life and thought and being last,

And immortality endures.Watts.

4. This glory is perpetual. The glory of the Lord shall endure for ever. The glory of man and of his works passeth away, but the glory of the Lord shall continue and increase for ever.

II. The joy of the righteous in the Lord. My meditation of Him shall be sweet; I will be glad in the Lord. Hengstenberg: May my meditation be acceptable unto Him. Perowne: Let my meditation be sweet unto Him. The desire of the Psalmist is that his meditation on the works of the Lord may be an acceptable offering unto Him. He rejoiced in the Lord. All his joys centred in the Lord. Such joys are pure. They are one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit. (Gal. 5:22.) Strengthening. The joy of the Lord is your strength. Constant. That My joy might remain in you, and your joy might be full. Your joy no man taketh from you. Perpetual. In Thy presence is fulness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. This is the truest, highest harmony of creation; God finding pleasure in His creatures, His reasonable creatures finding their joy in Him.

III. The desire of the righteous concerning the wicked. Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more. The glorious harmony of creation has been rudely broken; the sweet notes of the vast instrument of the universe are jangled out of tune. Sin is the discord of the world. Sin has changed the order () into disorder. Hence the prophetic hope that sinners shall be consumed, that the wicked shall be no more, that thus the earth shall be purified, the harmony be restored, and God once more, as at the first, pronounce His creation very good.Perowne. The eradication of evil should be the earnest desire of every good man. (See the remarks of Dr. Parker on this point in his sermon on Voices of Creation, on a preceding page.)

CONCLUSION. Here is a glorious prospect. The broken harmonies of creation shall be restored. The Very good of ancient time shall again be heard; and heard over a world never more to be marred by sin. For the realisation of this prospect let us pray and labour.

Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell

Psalms 104

DESCRIPTIVE TITLE

A Creation Hymn.

ANALYSIS

It is difficult to frame an Analysis of this psalm. The course of thought and observation followed therein bears Some Resemblance to the Method Pursued in Gen. 1:1 to Gen. 2:3; but the Differences are Considerable. So far as the psalm submits itself to external measurement, it may be said that 10-line stanzas prevail; but two out of the six run up to 20 and 17 lines respectively. The chief refrain of the previous psalm is repeated here. There is here no Superscribed Line, as to the previous psalm there was no Subscribed Line: probably furnishing evidence that the Two Psalms at an early time became Practically One.

(Lm. None)

1

Bless Jehovah O my soul!

Jehovah my God thou art exceeding great,
Majesty and state hast thou put on:

2

Wrapping thyself in light as a mantle,

stretching out the heavens as a tent-curtain:

3

who layeth in the waters the beams of his upper-chambers,

who maketh the clouds his chariot,

who walketh on the wings of the wind:

4

Making his messengers winds,[387]

[387] Or: Making his messengers of winds His attendants of fire and flame.

his attendants fire and flame.[387]

5

He hath founded the earth on its bases,

it shall not be shaken to the ages and beyond:

6

With the deep as a garment hast thou covered it,

above the mountains the waters take their stand:

7

At thy rebuke they flee,

at the voice of thy thunder they hurry away

8

Mountains rise valleys between them sink

into the place which thou hast founded for them:

9

A boundary hast thou set they shall not overpass,

they shall not again cover the earth.

10

Who sendeth forth springs into the torrent-beds,

Between the mountains they flow along:

11

They give drink to all the wild beasts of the plain,

the wild asses break their thirst:

12

Above[388] them the bird of the heaven settleth down

[388] Or: Beside.

from amidst the foliage they utter a voice.

13

He watereth[389] the mountains out of his upper chambers,

[389] Ml.: Watering.

of the fruit of thy works the earth taketh her fill.

14

He causeth[390] grass to spring up for the cattle,

[390] Ml.: Causing.

and herb for the service of man,[391]

[391] Or: mankind.

that he may bring forth[392] bread out of the earth;

[392] Or simply: To bring forth.

15

And wine rejoiceth mans heart,

that he may cause[393] [his] face to shine with oil;

[393] Or Simply: To cause.

and bread sustaineth mans heart.

16

The trees of Jehovah take their fill,

the cedars of Lebanon which he hath planted:

17

Where the birds build their nests,

as for the stork fir trees[394] are her house:

[394] Or: cypresses.

18

Mountains that are high are for the wild-goats,

the crags are a refuge for the rock-badger.[395]

[395] So Del. (adding rather Hyrax syriacus) Rock-rabbitDr.

19

He hath made the moon for stated seasons,

the sun knoweth his place for going in:

20

Cause thou darkness and it becometh night,

in it creepeth forth every wild beast of the forest:

21

The young lions are roaring for prey,

and seeking from GOD their food:

22

Let the sun arise they withdraw,

and in their lairs they lay them down:

23

Forth goeth man to his work,

and to his labour until evening.

24

How many are thy works O Jehovah!

all of them in wisdom hast thou made;
the earth is full of thy possessions.[396]

[396] Or: acquisitions. Or (Dr.) productions. Some authorities have the word in the sing.

25

Yonder is the sea great and broad on both hands,

There are gliding things innumerable;

Living things small with great:

26

There ships sail along,

leviathan[397] which thou hast formed to play therein:[398]

[397] WhaleO.G. A general term for all sea-monstersPer.
[398] Or: with him.

27

All of them for thee do wait,

that thou mayest give [them] their food in its season:

28

Thou givest unto them they gather,

thou openest thy hand, they are satisfied with good:

29

Thou hidest thy face they are dismayed,

thou withdrawest their spirit[399] they cease to breathe.

[399] Or: breathso Dr. and Per. twice. Shd. be both alike.

and unto their dust do they return:

30

Thou sendest forth thy Spirit13 they are created,

and thou renewest the face of the ground.

31

Let the glory of Jehovah be age-abiding,

let Jehovah rejoice in his works:

32

Who looketh on the earth and it trembleth,

he toucheth the mountains and they smoke.

33

I would fain sing to Jehovah while I live,

I would harp to my God while I continue:

34

Pleasing unto him be my soliloquy,

I myself will rejoice in Jehovah.

35

Let sinners come to an end[400] out of the earth,

[400] Be consumedPer., Dr. VanishDel.

and lawless ones no longer exist.

Bless Jehovah O my soul!

(Nm.)[401]

[401] See 105 (beginning).

PARAPHRASE

Psalms 104

I bless the Lord: O Lord my God, how great You are! You are robed with honor and with majesty and light! You stretched out the starry curtain of the heavens,
3 And hollowed out the surface of the earth to form the seas. The clouds are His chariots! He rides upon the wings of the wind!
4 The angels[402] are His messengersHis servants of fire!

[402] Literally, spirits.

*

*

*

*

*

5 You bound the world together so that it would never fall apart.
6 You clothed the earth with floods of waters covering up the mountains.
7, 8 You spoke, and at the sound of Your shout the water collected into its vast ocean beds, and mountains rose and valleys sank to the levels You decreed.
9 And then You set a boundary for the seas, so that they would never again cover the earth.

*

*

*

*

*

10 He placed springs in the valleys, and streams that gush from the mountains.
11 They gave water for all the animals to drink. There the wild donkeys quench their thirst,
12 And the birds nest beside the streams and sing among the branches of the trees.
13 He sends rain upon the mountains and fills the earth with fruit.
14 The tender grass grows up at His command to feed the cattle, and there are fruit trees, vegetables and grain for man to cultivate,
15 And wine to make him glad, and olive oil as lotion for his skin, and bread to give him strength.
16 The Lord planted the cedars of Lebanon. They are tall and flourishing.
17 There the birds make their nests, the storks in the firs.
18 High in the mountains are pastures for the wild goats; and rock-badgers burrow in among the rocks and find protection there.
19 He assigned the moon to mark the months, and the sun to mark the days.
20 He sends the night and darkness, when all the forest folk come out.
21 Then the young lions roar for their food; but they are dependent on the Lord.
22 At dawn they slink back into their dens to rest,
23 And men go off to work until the evening shadows fall again.
24 O Lord, what a variety You have made! And in wisdom You have made them all! The earth is full of Your riches.
25 There before me lies the mighty ocean, teeming with life of every kind, both great and small.
26 And look! See the ships! And over there, the whale You made to play in the sea!
27 Every one of these depends on You to give them daily food.
28 You supply it, and they gather it! You open wide Your hand to feed them and they are satisfied with all Your bountiful provision.
29 But if You turn away from them, then all is lost. And when You gather up their breath, they die and turn again to dust.
30 Then You send Your Spirit, and new life is born[403] to replenish all the living of the earth.

[403] Literally, created.

31 Praise God forever! How He must rejoice in all His work!
32 The earth trembles at His glance; the mountains burst into flame at His touch.
33 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live! I will praise God to my last breath!
34 May He be pleased by all these thoughts about Him, for He is the source of all my joy.
35 Let all sinners perishall who refuse to praise Him. But I will praise Him. Hallelujah!

EXPOSITION

In the words of Perowne, here we have a picture which for truth and depth of colouring, for animation, tenderness, beauty, has never been surpassed. Leaving the reader to mark and admire the poetic features of the psalm for himself, attention may be called to the weighty theological lessons here taught.
1. In the first place: Jehovah is here represented as BEFORE, ABOVE AND BEYOND his works. The honour and majesty in which he reveals himself are external to himselfhe puts them on; light is the mantle in which he enwraps himself. Yet there are means by which he makes himself known; and they suggest the idea of eyes needed to observe them, minds susceptible of being impressed by themthey are relative terms.

2. In the next place: Jehovah is revealed as PRESENT in the midst of his works. The space curtained in by the outspread heavens is his tent, wherein he dwells; for no other Presence is suggested in that connection. Yet he is himself unseen. The wind itself we see not, save in its effects: how much less can we behold him who walks on its wings. Even this tent, indeed, cannot contain him: he has upper chambers into which our eyes cannot penetrate.

3. Nevertheless, it is HERE that the interest of the psalm is CONCENTRATED. This sun and moon, these stars, these mountains, yonder sea, together with the living creatures large and small thus brought under our notice: these are sufficient to impress the psalmist with their number, with the wisdom displayed in their formation, with the richness of their Creator in possessing them, and with the pleasure he takes in them. It would be rash to infer, alone from this concentration of interest, that this world is eternal; but assuredly we are led to expect that it is destined to become the theatre of important Divine dealings.

4. Noting, in passing, that the position assigned to MAN in this psalm isif not exactly a subordinate onecertainly one less exalted than that assigned him in the Genesis accountit becomes the more observable how prominent a place is given to the ANIMAL WORLD. It is not simply that animals are here seen lovingly gathered around their Creator, feeding as it were out of his hand; but that, in them, the alternations of life and death are illustrated in a remarkably suggestive manner. Animals are sentient beings; they are breathing creatures, whose breath is in their nostrils; and in these respects they are akin to man. It would almost appear as though their kinship with man were utilised to furnish object-lessons for man himself. Animals live as long as they breathe: so do men. The breathing power of animals is a divine gift; and, when it is withdrawn, they cease to breathe: so it is with men. Mans breath or spirit, answers to, or is correlated with Gods breath or spirit. The same word ruah expresses either breath or spirit or both. The consecutive use of the term in this psalm is profoundly suggestive; because the law of continuity strongly operates to bring the breath of the creature into line with the breath of the Creator; and the breath of the Creator is itself creative. Thou withdrawest their ruah they cease to breathe: thou sendest forth thy ruah they are created It does not matter which English word is used, provided the continuity is kept up. Saytheir breath . . . thy breath, then the phrase thy breath is uplifted into the significance of thy life-giving spirit, for it cannot be less than that. Saytheir spirit . . . thy spirit, then spirit in the former member of the sentence must be lowered sufficiently to allow animals to partake of it, at least as a loan from God. To deny spirit to animals is to deny them life. To assert that, because man has spirit, therefore he is deathless, is by consequence to assert far too much of animals, unless we are prepared to affirm that they too are immortal. Beyond all this lies the weighty questionHow far spirit enters into the individuality of animalsthe personality of men: as to which, Biblical evidence must be elsewhere sought. But just here, in this and similar texts, the alphabet of the subject is to be foundat least if it is Biblical psychology we seek.

5. Of like interest and value is the side-light here thrown on the essential meaning of the word CREATION: Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created; Thou renewest the face of the ground. This is startling: it is nothing less than subversive of certain popular but very superficial views on the subject of creation. If creation is essentially the making of something out of nothing, then creation denies procreation; and assumes that every new generation of animals comes direct from God, without parentage after its kind; inasmuch as we have here presented, not the original stocking of the earth with animal life, but the renewal which is continually supplying the vacancies caused by death. The fact is, that God holds all life in his own hand: all living things live and move and have their being in him. If this is true of animals, much more is it true of men. God is the God of the spirits of all flesh: in every living thing save the first, concur both procreation and creation, the parental contribution and the divine. God is the father of our spirits. I am Gods creature, as well as my parents child. If to create is to make a new thingto embody an original ideathen there is something new and distinctive in every creature which Jehovah has made. Probably no two animals were ever perfectly alike: one may feel certain that no two men ever were. The differentia of men should amplify as well as radiate the glory of God.

6. There is something singularly IMPRESSIVE in the last stanza of this magnificent psalm. Therein the personality of the psalmist starts forth afresh into bold relief. The psalm started with emotion, brought over from the previous psalm. Then for a moment it flashed forth (in Psa. 104:1 b and following lines) with a direct address to Jehovah, so supplying an element remarkably wanting in the foregoing psalm. But, having offered this personal greeting to his God, the psalmists own personality quietly falls into the background; and, though you follow the pointing of his finger as he directs you to look at object after object, and do just perceive the vibration of his voice as he bursts out in adoration at Psa. 104:24, he gives you no time to turn round and look him in the face. Now, however, at Psa. 104:31, pent-up feeling rises to the poets lips, seeking an utterance which it scarce can find. As if apprehensive that Jehovah might lose some of the glory which is his due and in some way be grieved with his own handiwork, he adopts the language of desire: Let the glory of Jehovah be age-abiding, Let Jehovah rejoice in his works. As if admonished of the lowering possibility of Divine displeasure, he introduces a couplet which sounds like a dark hint: who looketh on the earth, and it trembleth; He toucheth the mountains, and they smoke. It is like the muttering of distant thunder, while as yet the sky is all blue. Then, as if unable to endure the thought of a hiding of Jehovahs face, he moves himself, by the significant cohortative mood, to keep voice and harp attuned to high praise: I would fain sing to Jehovah while I live, I would harp to my God while I continue. Pleasing unto him be my soliloquy, I myself will rejoice in Jehovah,drinking in my joy at the fount of his joyonly let him rejoice: but are there, then, works in which he cannot rejoice? I myself, he says with formal emphasis, I myself will rejoicewhatever others may do. So then, alas! there may bethere areothers not likeminded! Out of the blue, the bolt falls: Let sinners come to an end out of the earth, And lawless ones no longer exist. It was remarked above that the trend of this whole psalm seemed to betoken that this earth is designed to be the theatre of important Divine dealings. This ominous couplet confirms that impression: unless, indeed, we are warranted in thinking of sinners as merely banished to some other place, as if there were some such place not included in Jehovahs dominions (cp. Psa. 103:19). Still, that is not what is either said or suggested in this psalm; and it would seem dutiful to accept the natural interpretation of the solemn words before us. Suffice it that there is a future for the righteous (Psalms 37, 73); and that the overthrow of moral evil will So be accomplished as to call forth the self-incited refrainBless Jehovah, O my soul!

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

1.

What is the theme of this psalm?

2.

What purpose is seen in creation?

3.

What is meant by saying Jehovah is here represented as before, above, and beyond his works?

4.

What figures of speech are used to show God is present in His creation? Why suggested?

5.

This earth is made very important in this psalm. If it is all to be burned up, why so much emphasis?

6.

Do animals have a spirit? Are they the same as man? Discuss.

7.

This psalm could give a new meaning to the word creation. Discuss.

8.

What is impressive about the last stanza of the psalm?

9.

There is a dark hint of what?

10.

Are we to unavoidably conclude that this earth will be the theatre of Gods activities for all future time?

Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series

(1) Clothed.For the same metaphor see Psa. 93:1.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

(1-4) First and second days of Creation. Instead, however, of describing the creation of light, the poet makes a sublime approach to his theme by treating it as a symbol of the Divine majesty. It is the vesture of God, the tremulous curtain of His tent, whose supporting beams are based, not on the earth, but on those cloud-masses which form an upper ocean. This curtain is then, as it were, drawn aside for the exit of the Monarch attended by His throng of winged messengers.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

1. Compare first clause with Psa 104:35, and Psa 103:1; Psa 103:22.

Thou art very great It is fit to open an ode on creation and providence with an address to their ever blessed Author, and in these ascriptions of honour and majesty the poet not only strikes at once into the sublimest part of his theme, (as Psa 104:31-32,) but shows an example of reverence and piety.

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

Psalms 104

Psa 104:1  Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty.

Psa 104:1 Comments – Psalms 104 opens with praise and blessings to Almighty God (Psa 104:1; Psa 104:35). The body of this psalm reflects upon His creation as the clearest testimony given to mankind of God’s greatness, honour and majesty. The psalmist will acknowledge God’s greatness again in Psa 104:24, “O Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them,” and he will bless Him in Psa 104:33, “ I will sing unto the LORD as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.” All of creation testifies to God’s greatness, bearing witness to His eternal power and godhead (Rom 1:19-20), and declaring His glory (Psa 19:1-4). Psalms 104 will testify of God’s greatness by revealing God’s divine providence and care over His creation.

Rom 1:19-20, “Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:”

Psa 19:1, “To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge.”

Psa 104:2  Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain:

Psa 104:2 “who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain” Scripture Reference – Note a similar a statement in Isa 40:22, “It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain , and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in:”

Psa 104:4  Who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire:

Psa 104:4 Old Testament Quotes in the New Testament – Psa 104:4 is quoted in Heb 1:7.

Heb 1:7, “And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.”

Comments – We find examples of angels described as flaming fire in the story of Moses and the burning bush in Exo 3:2, “And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.”

We have the Holy Spirit described as burning lamps in Rev 4:5, “And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne , which are the seven Spirits of God.”

Psa 104:6-9 God’s Glory Revealed by the Flood – Psa 104:6-9 appears to describe the events of the Flood recorded in Genesis 6-8.

Psa 104:15  And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man’s heart.

Psa 104:15 Comments – Wine, oil, and bread were the stables of food for the children of Israel. Psa 104:15 reveals that each of these foods had a purpose.

Psa 104:30  Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created: and thou renewest the face of the earth.

Psa 104:30 “and thou renewest the face of earth” – Comments – The NET reads, “and you replenish the surface of the ground.” The context of Psa 104:30 implies that man begins to exist when he is created in the womb, and is born to replenish the earth, which reflects God first commandment to man to take dominion of the earth and fill it (Gen 1:26-28).

Psa 104:30 Comments – The Mormons believe in the pre-existence of man as a spirit with God before he is born on earth. [103] Psa 104:30 makes it clear that God creates man so that man has a beginning, a point of creation, so that there was a time before a man’s existence.

[103] James Talmage wrote the articles of faith for the Mormon church. In it he deals with the pre-existence of man, saying, “While existence is eternal and therefore to being there never was a beginning, never will be an end” and, “The pre-existent condition is not characteristic of human souls alone; all things of earth have a spiritual being, of which the temporal structure forms but the counterpart.” See James E. Talmage, The Articles of Faith: A Series of Lectures on the Principle Doctrines of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Salt Lake City, Utah: The Deseret News, 1899), 33, 199.

Psa 104:35 Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more. Bless thou the LORD, O my soul. Praise ye the LORD.

Psa 104:35 “Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more” Comments – God’s plan of redemption for mankind is designed to sustain righteousness upon earth while judging the wicked. However, redemption is not limited to mankind, but the rest of His creation as well; for the earth was made subject to vanity at the time of man’s fall. Paul the apostle tells us that all of creation groans and travails, awaiting the redemption of mankind so that it can be restored to perfect order (Rom 8:19-23). Thus, every aspect of God’s creation is designed to judge wickedness and man’s pride.

Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures

Praise of God for His Work in the Kingdom of Nature.

The psalmist, probably David, as in the preceding psalm, celebrates the glory of God in the works of His creation and providence.

v. 1. Bless the Lord, O my soul, a powerful self-encouragement, like in the preceding psalm. O Lord, my God, Thou art very great, full of royal splendor and majestic glory; Thou art clothed with honor and majesty, these constituting the royal garment visible in all parts of the created universe;

v. 2. who coverest Thyself with light as with a garment, shining forth in the light of His creation with His eternal power and Godhead. Gen 1:3-5; who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain, the firmament of the visible heavens being considered a tent-curtain reflecting His glory, Gen 1:6-8; Gen 40:22;

v. 3. who layest the beams of His chambers in the waters, the upper rooms of God’s dwelling being regarded as founded on the waters beyond the firmament; who maketh the clouds His chariot, when He comes forth to bless with His rain and to threaten and destroy with His thunder and lightning, Isa 19:1; who walketh upon the wings of the wind, in a glorious manifestation of His power;

v. 4. who maketh His angels spirits, His own messengers being present in the blessing and destroying power of the winds; His ministers a flaming fire, for they are active in and through the forces of nature, they are vehicles of God’s creative energy;

v. 5. who laid the foundations of the earth, establishing its pillars, a poetic mode of expression, to denote the stability of the earth as suspended freely in space, Job 26:7; Job 38:4, that it should not be removed forever, until the Lord Himself would choose to make the change toward a new heaven and a new earth.

v. 6. Thou coveredst it with the deep, with the waters of the original chaos, over which the Spirit of God moved at the time of creation, Gen 1:2, as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains.

v. 7. At Thy rebuke they fled, when His command separated the sea from the dry land; at the voice of Thy thunder they hasted away.

v. 8. They go up by the mountains; they go down by the valleys unto the place which Thou hast founded for them, literally, “Up rose mountains, down sank valleys to the place which Thou didst establish for them,” all this being done on that great third day of creation, Gen 1:9; for the mountains are as old as the earth and the waters, which originally covered it.

v. 9. Thou hast set a bound, fixed them a definite boundary, that they may not pass over, that they turn not again to cover the earth, Job 38:8-11; Jer 5:22.

v. 10. He sended the springs into the valleys, their source being in the mountains above, which run, have their regular course, among the hills, in the brooks and rivers.

v. 11. They give drink to every beast of the field; the wild asses quench their thirst.

v. 12. By them, that is, along their course, shall the fowls of the heaven have their habitation, which sing among the branches, literally, “out from between the branches they give their voice. ”

v. 13. He watered the hills from His chambers, from His habitation above the firmament, in abundant rains; the earth is satisfied with the fruit of Thy works, the rain causing every form of vegetation to grow and mature in its season.

v. 14. He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle and herb, food plants of every kind, for the service of man, so that they may cultivate them and enjoy their fruits; that He may bring forth food out of the earth, by the blessings of His rain,

v. 15. And wine, that maketh glad the heart of man, its proper use always being spoken of with approval in Holy Writ, and oil to make his face to shine, on account of the increased nutritive value which it gives to foods, and bread which strengthened man’s heart, giving vigor and energy to man, these three, grain for bread, wine, and oil, being considered the chief articles of food in the Orient.

v. 16. The trees of the Lord, the poet probably having in mind especially the cedars of Lebanon, are full of sap, the cedars of Lebanon, which He hath planted;

v. 17. where the birds make their nests; as for the stork, or the heron, the fir-trees, or the cypresses, are her house.

v. 18. The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats, called, for that reason, the mountain-goats, and the rocks for the conies, probably the rock-badger, a marmotlike animal, which has its home in rocky places.

v. 19. He appointed the moon for seasons, to measure the seasons of the year; the sun knoweth his going down, as originally established by the Lord, Gen 1:14.

v. 20. Thou makest darkness, and it is night, the night following upon day by His providential rule; wherein all the beasts of the forest, the beasts of prey, which spend the day in their dens, do creep forth.

v. 21. The young lions roar after their prey, as they seek their food, and seek their meat from God, who gave them the instinct to hunt for their food in this manner.

v. 22. The sun ariseth, they gather themselves together, withdrawing from the open spaces where they are in danger of meeting men, and lay them down in their dens.

v. 23. Man goeth forth unto his work, the day being allotted to him, and to his labor until the evening. Cf Job 24:5; Job 37:8; Job 38:40. In the next section of the psalm the poet summarizes the miracles of God in the sea.

v. 24. O Lord, how manifold are Thy works! In wisdom hast Thou made them all, being guided in His creative activity by His infinite all-wisdom; the earth is full of Thy riches, of His creatures.

v. 25. So is this great and wide sea, spreading out so far, to the distant horizon, wherein are things creeping innumerable, both small and great beasts.

v. 26. There go the ships, man venturing out on the ocean depths in pursuing his commercial activities; there is that leviathan, some sea-monster, probably the whale, whom Thou hast made to play therein.

v. 27. These, all the millions of creatures, wait all upon Thee, looking to the providence of God, that Thou mayest give them their meat, the food which they need, in due season, at the proper time.

v. 28. That Thou givest them they gather, from the various places where it is provided; Thou openest Thine hand, they are filled with good, plentifully supplied with all they need.

v. 29. Thou hidest Thy face, refusing, for a time, to recognize and supply their need, they are troubled, terrified, immediately feeling themselves forsaken; Thou takest away their breath, depriving them of what they need to sustain their life; they die and return to their dust, Gen 3:19; Ecc 12:14.

v. 30. Thou sendest forth Thy Spirit, the Holy Spirit, as active in the work of creation, Gen 1:3, they are created, and Thou renewest the face of the earth, with every new generation of creatures.

v. 31. The glory of the Lord shall endure forever, as manifested in His work of creation; the Lord shall rejoice in His works, as He did when He found them very good, Gen 1:31.

v. 32. He looketh on the earth, with a frown of anger, and it trembleth, in fear of His punishment; He toucheth the hills, and they smoke, set on fire at His will. Thus God could glorify His power in destruction if He so chose; therefore it is best for the believers to spend their lives in grateful praise of Him.

v. 33. I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.

v. 34. My meditation of Him, in considering all the miracles of His mercy and power, shall be sweet, acceptable to the Lord; I will be glad in the Lord. The same fine relation, according to the psalmist, ought to obtain everywhere, those who refuse to enter into fellowship with Jehovah being punished forever.

v. 35. Let the sinners, those who refuse Him faith and service, be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more. Bless thou the Lord, O my soul, the final self-admonition of the psalmist. Praise ye the Lord, or, “Hallelujah!” giving full expression to the emotions of the poet, and calling upon the Church of God of all ages to join him in his hymn of praise.

Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann

EXPOSITION

“THE psalmist, in a time of severe trouble, arising from the power of the heathen, seeks consolation in reflecting on the greatness of God in nature,” So Hengstenberg, correctly. The main topic of the psalm (Psa 104:2-32) is thus the greatness of God as seen in his works. A direct ascription of praise precedes (Psa 104:1) and follows (Psa 104:33-35) the description of God’s wonders in nature.

Psa 104:1

Bless the Lord, O my soul (see the comment on Psa 103:1). O Lord my God, thou art very great. The keynote is struck at once. All the rest will be nothing but a development of this vast themeGod’s greatness. Thou art clothed with honour and majesty; or “thou hast robed thyself in glory and grandeur” (Cheyne).

Psa 104:2

Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment. Light was the first thing created (Gen 1:3), before either the heaven (Gen 1:6-8) or the earth (Gen 1:9, Gen 1:10). In light God, the invisible, as it were, enshrouds himself, making it the image of his hidden glory. Who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain; or, “a canopy” (comp. Isa 40:22; Isa 42:5; Isa 44:25). The metaphor is taken from the stretching out or “spreading out” of a tent (see Isa 40:22).

Psa 104:3

Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters. God forms himself an upper chamber, as a dwelling place, in “the waters that are above the firmament” (Gen 1:7), as a man builds himself an upper chamber with beams and rafters. Who maketh the clouds his chariot (comp. Isa 19:1, “Behold, the Lord rideth upon a thick cloud”). Who walketh upon the wings of the wind (comp. Psa 18:10). The anthropomorphism will be pardoned for the sake of the beauty of the imagery.

Psa 104:4

Who maketh his angels spirits. Professor Cheyne renders, “Who maketh his messengers of winds;” and so (in substance) Jarchi, Aben. Ezra, Rosenmuller, Professor Alexander, and even Hengstenberg. The difficulty in adopting this rendering is that furnished by the application of the passage in Heb 1:7; but the arguments of Hengstenberg go far to meet that difficulty. It is to be noted that our Revisers, while admitting either rendering, have preferred that of Professor Cheyne. And his ministers a flaming fire; or, “his ministers of flame and fire.”

Psa 104:5

Who laid the foundations of the earth; rather, as in the margin, who founded the earth upon her bases; i.e. fixed the earth in its place, on basesnot necessarily material baseswhich keep it steadily where it is (comp. Job 26:7). That it should not be removed forever (comp. Psa 93:1).

Psa 104:6

Thou coveredst it with the deep, as with a garment (see Gen 1:9). A watery covering was spread at first over the whole earth, and enveloped it like a garment. The waters stood above the mountains. The highest inequalities of the land were concealed under the watery integument.

Psa 104:7

At thy rebuke they fled. It required only a few words from God (Gen 1:9) for the whole surface of the earth to be changed. The waters “fled”they shifted their placeremoved from some portions of the earth’s surface, and “gathered themselves together” into others, allowing the dry land to appear. Elevations and depressions of the land must have at the same time occurred. At the voice of thy thunder they hasted away (comp. Job 40:9, “Hast thou an arm like God, or canst thou thunder with a voice like his?“). The voice of God, especially when he speaks in “rebuke,” is as thunder,

Psa 104:8

They go up by the mountains; they go down by the valleys; rather, they went up mountains; they went down valleys. In the general commotion of the waters, as they “hasted away,” sometimes vast waves swept over mountain tops, sometimes huge floods washed down the courses of valleysa graphic description of the scene which no eye saw, but which the poet figures to himselfa turmoil and confusion beyond that even of the great Deluge itself (see Gen 7:17-19; Gen 8:1-3). Unto the place which thou hast (rather, hadst) founded for them. The ocean bed, which had, in intention, been already prepared to receive them.

Psa 104:9

Thou hast set (or, didst set) a bound that they may not (rather, might not) pass over (comp. Job 38:10, Job 38:11; Jer 5:22). The Deluge is for the time beyond the ken of the poet, who is singing God’s greatness in nature, and in the general laws under which he has placed it. Neither turn again to cover the earth. This law, once Broken by the miracle of the Deluge, was thenceforth made absolute and inviolable (Gen 9:15).

Psa 104:10

He sendeth the springs into the valleys; rather, into the water courses, or torrent bedsdry for the greater part of the year, but deriving life and beauty from the springs which, after rain has fallen, flow into them. Which run among the hills; literally, between the hills (i.e. the hill slopes on either side) they wend their way.

Psa 104:11

They give drink to every beast of the field. God’s mercy is “over all his works” (Psa 145:9). He careth for the whole animal creation (see Exo 20:10; Exo 23:19; Deu 25:4; Psa 104:27; Psa 145:15, Psa 145:16; Jon 4:11, etc.). The wild asses quench their thirst. Herodotus (4.192) says that wild asses are i.e. “do not drink” but modern travellers declare the contrary. They drink infrequently, and are so shy, that at such times they rarely fall under human observation.

Psa 104:12

By them; i.e. “by the springs” (see Psa 104:10). Shall the fowls of the heaven have their habitation. Birds need water as much as any other animals, and in dry tracts frequently congregate at the springs. Which sing (or, utter a voice) among the branches of the trees which in the East spring up wherever there is moisture.

Psa 104:13

He (i.e. God) watereth the hills from his chambers (comp. Psa 104:3). The mountains themselves, even their highest tops, are not left dry. Where springs cannot reach, rain falls from God’s “chambers” in the sky, and spreads equal refreshment. The earth is satisfied with the fruit of thy works. The whole earthmountains, hills, plains, valleysis thus “satisfied,” i.e. sufficiently supplied with water, by the means which God has elaborated.

Psa 104:14

He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle. The results of God’s careful arrangements are now spoken of. In the first place, grassfodder of every kindis provided for the beasts on which man’s life so greatly dependsa boon both to man and beast, of inestimable value. Next, there is brought forth herb for the service of mani.e. for his direct servicevegetables and fruits for his food; spicy shrubs for his delectation; flax, papyrus, saffron, aloes, etc; for his use. That he may bring forth food out of the earth. That man himself may by his labour, by the cultivation of the natural products, obtain from the earth the food suitable to him.

Psa 104:15

And wine that maketh glad the heart of man. The food suitable to man consists, first, of wine, which gladdens his heart (comp. Jdg 9:13); secondly, of oil to make his face to shine, or give him a cheerful countenance; and thirdly, of bread, which strengtheneth man’s heart, which is “the staff of life,” and the main sustenance of the entire body. It was the glory of the promised land to produce in abundance these three essentials (Deu 8:8; Deu 11:14; 2Ki 18:32).

Psa 104:16

The trees of the Lord are full of sap; rather, are satisfied, or have their fill; i.e. drink in sufficiently God’s rain, so that they grow up and flourish amazingly. Even the cedars of Lebanon (see Psa 29:5, Psa 29:6; Psa 92:11). These are particularized as the grandest of God’s vegetable productions known to the psalmist (comp. Jdg 9:15; 1Ki 4:33; 2Ki 14:19; Isa 2:13; Eze 31:3). Which he hath planted (comp. Num 24:6).

Psa 104:17

Wherein the birds make their nests (comp. above, Psa 104:10). As for the stork, the fir trees are her house. Again, God’s care for the animal creation is in the psalmist’s mind. As the grass is “caused to grow for the cattle“ (Psa 104:14), so treeseven the grandestare partly intended for the birds.

Psa 104:18

The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats. Even the desolate ranges of the higher mountains are designed by God for the good of his creatures. They furnish a refuge for the ibex, or wild goat, when the hunter presses ca him; and, if they cannot give him food, give him safety. And the rocks for the conies; rather, for the marmots. Marmots still inhabit Palestine, though they are rarely seen; “conies,” i.e. rabbits do not. The marmots are “a feeble folk, that make their houses in the rocks” (Pro 30:26).

Psa 104:19

He appointed the moon for seasons (comp. Gen 1:14). The Jewish festivals depended greatly on the moon, the Passover being celebrated at the time of the full moon of the first month (Exo 12:6), and the other festivals depending mostly on the Passover. And the sun knoweth his going down. Observes the laws, that is to say, appointed for him.

Psa 104:20, Psa 104:21

Thou makest darkness, and it is night. The mention of the moon and sun introduces a picture of night (Psa 104:20, Psa 104:21) and a picture of the day (Psa 104:22, Psa 104:23). The day draws indarkness descendsnight is come. At once there is a stir in the animal world. Man has gone to his rest; but the time is arrived wherein all the beasts of the forest do creep forth. The primeval jungle is alive with motion and sound. All the animals are on the alert. seeking their prey. The young lions are heard above all; they roar after their prey, and seek their meat from God. The awful sound of their hungry roar drowns almost all other sounds, and shakes with terror the hearts of those that hear. Suddenly, however, night turns into day

Psa 104:22, Psa 104:23

The sun ariseth. Bright beams of light flame up the eastern sky; and earth basks in the sun’s smile. But it is a signal to the lions and the other wild beasts to withdraw. They gather themselves together, and lay them down in their dens. Hiding themselves from the eye of day, and retreating into places where they are safe. Then it is the turn of humanity to reappear. Humanity wakes up; and man goeth forth auto his work and to his labour uutil the evening; i.e. man proceeds to his appointed task, which is “work”once a curse (Gen 3:17-19), now a blessing (Eph 4:28).

Psa 104:24

O Lord, how manifold are thy works! This is a parenthetic ejaculation, from which the psalmist cannot refrain, as he contemplates creation so far. It breaks the continuity of his description (Psa 104:2-32), but not unpleasingly. In wisdom hast thou made them all (comp. Pro 3:19, “The Lord by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens”). (On the “wisdom” of God, as shown in creation, see the whole series of ‘Bridgewater Treatises.’) The earth is full of thy riches; or possessions (comp. Psa 105:21). “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof” (Psa 24:1). Creation gives the right of ownership.

Psa 104:25

So is this great and wide sea; rather, yonder sea too (is thy work), so great and wide stretching. Wherein are things creeping (rather, moving things) innumerable. The abundant life of the sea, even in its depths, is the admiration of all naturalists. Tens of thousands of microscopic shells have been brought to light by the dredger’s labours almost everywhere. Both small and great beasts. Microscopic shellfish on the one hand; seals, walruses, sharks, whales, on the other.

Psa 104:26

There go the ships. These may seem out of place among the works of God. But are they not his, in a certain sense? Did he not contemplate them when he made the sea, and make it to some extent for them? And did he not give men wisdom to invent and perfect them? There is that leviathan. “Leviathan” is here probably the whale, which may in early times have frequented the Mediterranean. Which thou hast made to play therein; or, to play with him. So the LXX. ( ); and, among moderns, Ewald, Hitzig, Olshausen, Kay, Cheyne, and our Revisers. The anthropomorphism is not beyond that of other passages.

Psa 104:27

These wait all upon thee; that thou mayest give them their meat in due season (see Psa 104:14, Psa 104:23). As cattle have “grass,” and lions “meat,” from God, so every kind of animal receives from the same source its proper food.

Psa 104:28

That thou givest them they gather; literally, thou givest to them; they gather. Thou openest thine hand, they are filled with good; or, “are satisfied with good” (Kay, Revised Version).

Psa 104:29

Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled. If God withdraws the light of his countenance from any living thing, instantly it feels the loss. It is “troubled,” cast down, confounded (comp. Psa 30:7). Thou takest away their breath, they die. As the living things have life from God, so they have death from him. Not one of them perishes but he knows it, and causes it or allows it (see Mat 10:29). And return to their dust. Return, i.e; to the dead matter out of which they were created.

Psa 104:30

Thou sendest forth thy spirit; or, thy breath. As God “breathed into man’s nostrils the breath of life” (Gen 2:7), so it is an effluence from him that gives life to every living thing. They are created: and thou renewest the face of the earth. As after the Deluge (see Gen 7:4; Gen 8:17).

Psa 104:31

The glory of the Lord shall endure forever; rather, let the glory of the Lord, etc. The psalmist prays that there may be no further interruption of the glorious course of nature besides the Deluge, which has come into his thoughts in connection with the destruction of animal life (Psa 104:29). Henceforward he trusts and prays that the Lord shall rejoice in his works, and not again repent him that he has made them (Gen 6:7).

Psa 104:32

He looketh on the earth, and it trembleth (comp. Psa 18:7; Psa 114:7). The earth “trembles,” as knowing that it can be destroyed at any moment. He toucheth the hills, and they smoke; or, the mountainsthe strongest portions of the earth (Psa 36:6; Psa 65:6)”smoke” when he touches them (see Exo 19:18; Deu 4:11; Psa 144:5).

Psa 104:33-35

The peroration (like the opening) is simple praise of God himself, considered in himself. All his life the psalmist will praise God (Psa 104:33)his soul shall praise him (Psa 104:35), he will be glad in him (Psa 104:34); finally, he calls upon all men to join in his praise (Psa 104:35, last clause).

Psa 104:33

I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live (comp. Psa 63:4; Psa 146:2): I will sing praise to my God while I have my being. An echo of the preceding hemistich.

Psa 104:34

My meditation of him shall be sweet; rather, may my meditation be pleasing to him! (Kay, Cheyne, Revised Version). I be glad in the Lord (comp. Psa 32:11; Psa 33:1, etc.). Rejoicing in the Lord is a form of praising him.

Psa 104:35

Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth; i.e. “Let the great blot upon creationsin and sinnersexist no more. Let the harmony upon the earth be complete, by the elimination of this “one jarring string.” And let the wicked be no more. Repetition for the sake of emphasis. Bless thou the Lord, O my soul. Then, when this blot is removed, when the trials of the godly, from the persecutions and vexations of sinners, are over, it will be the part of my soul, with greater heartiness than ever, to “bless the Lord.” Praise ye the Lord. Then, too, all mankind may well be called upon to join in a chorus of praise and blessing, and to sing, as saints and angels sing in the courts of heaven, “Hallelujah!” (Rev 19:1, Rev 19:3, Rev 19:4, Rev 19:6).

HOMILETICS

Psa 104:1-35

The greatness of God.

This psalm, charged with the truest poetry, sings of the greatness of God (Psa 104:1) and of the heritage of man. The subjects are inseparably mingled. Of the former we have suggested to us –

I. HIS GLORY. (Psa 104:1, Psa 104:2, Psa 104:31.)

II. HIS POWER. (Psa 104:3-9.) The winds are his messengers; the fire is his servant; the clouds are his chariot; the waters flee at his command; the ocean stays at the bound he has drawn.

III. HIS WISDOM. (Psa 104:5, Psa 104:10.) Nowhere is his wisdom more apparent than in:

1. Providing for the security of the earth. The diurnal and annual rotation (with which we are familiar), giving us our change of night and day, and also of our seasons, in no way interferes with the sense of our security, while it brings into view the wonderful wisdom of God (see Psa 104:24).

2. In the provision of water for his thirsting creatures. The beautiful circulatory system, by which the vapour is drawn up from the seas and the lakes, carried as clouds by the winds, drawn down by the hills and the trees, purified by the earth through which it passes, comes forth as the springs which flow down in the streams and rivers through the land, and end their course by replenishing the sea,this is another striking instance of those “manifold works” “made in Divine wisdom.”

IV. HIS PROVIDENTIAL GOODNESS.

1. In supplying water for man and beast (Psa 104:10-13).

2. In providing nourishment (Psa 104:14-16).

3. In giving shelter and protection to the weakto the bird, to the goat, to the cony (Psa 104:17, Psa 104:18).

4. In dividing time into seasons (Psa 104:19; see Gen 1:14); so that we can calculate with perfect accuracy the incoming and outgoing of the tides, as well as the return of summer and winter.

5. In the amplitude of the gift of life. Not only are the air and the earth full of happy life, but so is the “great and wide sea” (Psa 104:25). All these innumerable hosts of living thingsinsects, birds, beasts, fishesare spending a happy life in their own element, and after their own instincts. Who can form any conception of the sum of sentient life and enjoyment at any moment upon this earth?

6. In providing the materials for locomotion. Those ships of Psa 104:26 are suggestive of all the forces at our command, every year becoming greater, for moving rapidly over land and sea, indefinitely promoting the circulation of produce and intercourse between man and man. All these instances of Divine beneficence are suggestive of

V. HIS GRACE to his human children. For:

1. If God cares so much for bird and beast, he will care very much more for us, his children by faith in Jesus Christ.

2. if he provides so bountifully with the necessaries of mortal life, we can well believe that he has made ample provision for our spiritual and eternal good.

Psa 104:1-35

The heritage of man.

The psalmist sings of the greatness of God (supra), and also of the fair heritage bestowed upon us. This includes

I. SUFFICIENCY AND VARIETY OF FOOD. “These [all the living creatures, including man, that have been specified] wait on thee, that thou mayest give them their food,” etc. (Psa 104:27); and the “herb” (Psa 104:14), for the service of man, stands for all the variety of fruits and vegetables with which our need is met and our taste is gratified. The constant supply of necessary and of palatable food is no small part of our heritage.

II. STRENGTH AND HEALTH. The gift of bread which “strengtheneth man’s heart” is suggestive of all the bountiful provision God has made for building up our bodily frame, raising it from infantile helplessness to manly vigour, and frequently restoring from the weakness of disease to the wholeness and capacity of health. Strength is the normal condition, and if we conformed to the laws of nature, i.e. to the will of God, it would be the general and the lasting condition.

III. HAPPINESS. The “wine that makes glad the heart of man” may well stand for all those gifts of God which stimulate and gladden the soul, which give sparkle and joyousness to human life; e.g. the good wine of human fellowship, and that of honourable enterprise, and that of generous helpfulness.

IV. LABOUR. For while oppressive toil is an evil and a part of the penalty of sin, wholesome and regular activity, developing muscle and nerve, ministering to health, conducing to moral soundness, resulting in many kinds of wealth, is a true blessing to our race.

V. REST. God makes the darkness, in which the wild beasts come forth for their prey (Psa 104:20, Psa 104:21), but in which also man lies down to rest; and the sleep which comes with the night is as welcome as the labour which comes with the day (Psa 104:23). The invigoration which comes between the evening and the morning, fitting the body and the mind for new life, is one of God’s kindest gifts to man.

VI. JOY IN GOD AND IN HIS SERVICE. (Psa 104:33, Psa 104:34.) The act of contemplation when God (with his loving kindness) is the Object of our thought, and the service of praise, are specified; but these are suggestive of all the blessedness which springs from piety and devotion. All reverent thought, all worship, all sacred study and sacred song, all Christian service rendered “as unto God,” all really religious offerings,all this is a large part of the human heritage. And it all demands of us the frequent utterance (Psa 104:1, Psa 104:35) as well as the deeply cherished spirit, of gratitude and praise.

Psa 104:28

God gives-we gather: harvest thanksgiving.

I. GOD‘S GIFT IN THE HARVEST. God gives:

1. The soil.

2. The seed.

3. The forces which make the seed extract the virtues of the soil.

4. The sunshine, the rain, and the wind, which minister to the growth of the blade, and which ripen the grain.

5. The intelligence which enables us to cultivate the ground, to acquire the art of agriculture (Isa 28:26).

II. OUR HUMAN SHARE IN IT. We “gather.” There are places where the gathering is all that man has to do; e.g. the bread fruit in the tropics. But usually “gathering” includes more than thatit includes the preparation of the soil, sowing, weeding, watering, etc. To the production of the harvest there goes not a little human thought, skill, labour. Where, then, is

III. GOD‘S GOODNESS IN IT?

1. Our share is very much the smaller.

2. God’s gifts are bestowed on us with such ceaseless constancy, never failing through all the ages of human existence, and in spite of the ingratitude, the atheism, or even the idolatry, of the husbandmen.

3. God’s requirement of our labour is an instance of Divine goodness, to be added to, not subtracted from, his other loving kindnesses (see supra).

HOMILIES BY S. CONWAY

Psa 104:1-35

God’s love for living creatures.

This psalm celebrates and proves it. For, see

I. HE HAS PLACED THEM EVERYWHERE. The sea, the air, the land, all teem with it, as this psalm tells. And the lower life points to the higher, and proclaims that when God’s will is done, that, too, shall fill earth and heaven.

II. HE HAS ABUNDANTLY PROVIDED FOR THEM. Food, habitation, refuge (Psa 104:16-18). And Christ came, that we might have life, and have it more abundantly. “He is able to save to the uttermost.” Full provision for fulness of life is made.

III. AND SUITABLY LIKEWISE. The trees for the birds’ nests, the hills and rocks for those creatures that dwell there. And so his grace is according to our need. He has a niche for each of us to fill, which will suit none else so well, and he prepares us for the place in which he would have us be.

IV. AND ALL HIS CREATURES BUT OURSELVES GLADLY ACCEPT HIS PROVISION. They never refuse his bounty, but depend on it always. Each makes its way to its own home. Christ is the soul’s home: shall we turn away from that?S.C.

Psa 104:1, Psa 104:2

The psalm of creation: the first day.

This psalm should he read in connection with the story of God’s creating the heaven and the earth.

I. IT BEGINS BY THE PSALMIST SEEKING TO ATTUNE HIS SOUL FOR HIS STUDY OF THE WORKS OF GOD.

1. He would that the Lord should be praised, and by himself especially. “O my soul” (cf. Psa 103:1-22.). If the study of nature were entered on with this desire, how far more fruitful it would be! None of the good that has resulted from that study would be lost, but much of the incidental ill that too often accompanies it would be avoided. Science would be transfigured into worship, with all the moral and spiritual advantages that worship brings.

2. Then there is the spirit of awe. “Thou art very great.”

3. Of adoration. “Clothed with honour and majesty.” It is not the mere power, skill, and ingenuity of the Creator that strike the psalmist’s soul, but the moral characteristics of God, which bring to him honour and majesty as they ought to do. A study so begun cannot but be fruitful of good.

II. THEN HE SPEAKS OF THE WORK OF THE FIRST DAYTHE CREATION OF THE LIGHT. He does not tell, as Genesis does, of what preceded that, but comes at once to the blessed and final result.

1. There had been a previous creation. “In the beginning God created,” etc. Without doubt it had all been fair and beautiful, as in the moral creation; for there, too, man was made in the image of God, perfect, upright, without sin.

2. But ere the light was formed, a sad change had come. We find that “the earth was without form,” etc. Chaos reigned. Moreover, the waters seem to have rushed in, and darkness brooded over all. What a true picture of the moral condition ere the spiritual light came! Disorder, subjection to sin, impenetrable ignorance, the darkness of the soul.

3. There must have been, ere this, some terrible shock which turned God‘s far off original creation into the hideous deformity of which Gen 1:2 tells. Certainly it is so with man’s moral nature. God made him in his own image. He is, until regenerated, the victim of a moral chaos. There must have been some “fall,” some terrible catastrophe, which changed man, made in God’s image, into what we know unregenerate human nature to be.

4. But, as with the earth and heavens, so with redeemed man, there has come a blessed change. God shed abroad the light, covered himself with it “as with a garment” (Gen 1:2). This is how God began the creation work. “Let there be light.” There had been, indeed, the Spirit brooding over the face of the deep, but the first manifestation of the creating work was in the creation of the light. And is it not ever so? Does not God always begin thus his regenerating work? The man comes to see himself as he really ishow wretched, miserable, apart from God; how hopeless, helpless, and every day getting worse; and then cometh the further light of God in Christ (2Co 4:6). And then, as the forlorn earth yielded itself to the plastic hand of the Creator, to be formed and fashioned as he willed, so, under the power of the light of the soul, it yields itself in like manner. And the Spirit of God is the Author of all this. We know not how long he may have been brooding over the darkness in the one case or the other, only that the light was through him. This impartation of light is ever his work. When he comes he convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment: that is the first and preparatory work. God says, “Let there be light,” and there is light. The result is that when God comes into the soul he seems to be clothed with light, so widespread, so intense, is the illumination of the soul. The peril is lest any should quench that light, or, having seen it, should cease to walk in it. What wonder, when the light is seen and welcomed, there should be a quickened conscientiousness, a scrupulosity and carefulness, which hitherto the soul had never known!

III. LET US PRAY THAT THAT FIRST DAY‘S WORK MAY BE DONE IN US. So only can we truly know ourselves in God; so only can we enter on that career which all along shall have the favour of God and end in the eternal rest.S.C.

Psa 104:2-4

The psalm of creation: the second day.

In Genesis we have simply the declaration of how God created the firmament, or the expanse, and what was effected by it. Here we have nothing said of the creation of the firmament, but only of its glory as the habitation of God. That firmamentthe glorious new-lit cloud-caprisoned and star-bespangled heavens, whose beauty and splendour far surpass all human power to set forth, and which is here spoken of as the palace of Godwas the creation of the second day. The close of the first day saw the creation of the light, but there was as yet no life possible. For that there was needed the gift of God which we call the atmosphere, the air we breathe, that without which no life of plant or animal could be. That wide expanse which surrounds our earth, and in which we live, and move, and have our being, “softer than the softest down, more impalpable than the finest gossamer, it leaves the cobweb undisturbed, and scarcely stirs the lightest flower that feeds on the dew it supplies; yet it bears the fleets of nations on its wings, and crushes the most refractory substances with its weight.” But that which is named in Genesis is its power to separate the waters that lie on the surface of the earth from those that float above it. And this it does, first drawing them up in vapour from the sea, and then suspending them in cisterns of clouds, but casting them down again in snow, rain, or dew, when they are required. But all this is full of sacred suggestion in regard to the things of the soul. And this

I. IN ITS UPLIFTING.

1. That which the atmosphere does for the cold dark waters which enshrouded the earth, those waters, fit type of the sin-laden soul of man,that does the blessed breath of God accomplish for the human soul. That desolate round earth was taught as it were the law of sacrifice, and yielded up itself to the encompassing breath of God. At once the vapours uprose along the unseen channels of the air, and are no longer desolate and deadly waters, but are transformed and transfigured into the glorious heavens.

2. And this is what is taught also by the ancient law of sacrifice. The worshipper brought his sacrifice, telling of his own will and desire to be surrendered to Godthe blood, symbol of the will, was poured out; the body that had thus yielded its very life was placed on the altar, and the fire fastened upon it and transformed that cold, material, dead body into a spiritual thing, so that it seemed on the wings of the fire to mount up to God.

3. And this is all true of the human soul. Let that yield itself to the breath of God, and give itself up to the will of God, rising up to him in that blessed self-surrender, and it will be indeed “born again.”

II. IN ITS GLORIFICATION.

1. See the glorious heavens.

2. See God dwelling in the place of sacrifice.

3. See the present indwelling of God in the surrendered soul, and the soul dwelling with God in the eternal glory hereafter.S.C.

Psa 104:5-18

The psalm of creation: the third day.

On all this the preacher will compare Milton’s magnificent lines (‘Paradise Lost’). The opening verse of this section was laid hold of by those who opposed Galileo, as with equal reasonableness or unreasonableness like verses are laid hold of in like controversies nowas utterly contradicting the conclusions to which his investigations had led him. Ever since there has been a clearer perception that the poetry of the Bible is poetry, and is to be judged by its appropriate laws. In the former homily we traced suggestions of the law of self-surrender to God; in this there are yet others on the same theme. The verses of this section tell of the separation of the land, the other part of the created earth, from the waters, and the fruitfulness that then followed. The deep mountains were still beneath the waters: “Above the mountains did the waters stand.” There has been already an uplifting of the waters by means of the creation of the atmosphere, and their glorification in consequence. How we are to see another aspect of the law of self-surrender in the blessed service of the waters, in the ministry they fulfil. In this section, therefore, as in the corresponding one in Genesis, which tells of the creation work of the third day, we have the twofold command.

I. TO THE WATERS.

1. They were to “be gathered together into one place.“ Here, in the psalm, this is poetically described as the result of the Divine rebuke. The terrible volcanic action by which the mountains were uplifted and the deep valleys hollowed out, and the consequent downrush of the waters, is told of as if it were the thunder voice of God bidding them haste away.

“Immediately the mountains huge appear
Emergent, and their broad, bare backs upheave
Into the clouds, their tops ascend the sky;
So high as heav’d the tumid hills, so low
Down sunk a hollow bottom, broad and deep,
Capacious bed of waters,” etc.

So Milton renders verse 7. “The mountains rose, the valleys sank down into,” etc. Thus by this emergence of the dry land the waters of the wild seas, hitherto flowing everywhere, are appointed their bounds, over which they may not pass. Straitened, shut in, subdued, and beaten back are they, as they never were before, for such is their Creator’s will. The life of the ocean wave seems a poor affair compared with what it was. But is it so?

2. See, now, the ministry of the waters. It is told of in verse 10 onwards. On the wings of the air the waters send up of their strength, and they thus mount on high, and in the form of snow, and dew, and rain they fall on mountain, valley, hill, and plain; and then, by means of moss and glacier and tree (see Hugh Macmillan’s beautiful sermon on ‘Mountain Springs’), God sendeth forth the springs along the valleys. Thus he “watereth the earth from his chambers: and the earth is satisfied with the fruit of his work” (verse 13). Thither come the beasts of the field, and from the branches of the trees, which love to dwell where the springs are, the birds fly down, and alike quench their thirst. And grass and herb, corn, vine, and olive, and the noblest trees, are sustained, and myriad creatures of God are blessed; and even the barren rocks, the steep precipices, and the high mountains, are for the good of somethe wild goats and the conies make these their home. Is it not all a parable? The waters, at the command of God, give up their strength, and they become the glorious heavens, the visible palace of God. And this is not all. They now render unspeakable service; life, and beauty, and strength, and joy spring into existence as the result of their ministry, and this psalm is the song thereof.

3. And so also is it with the surrendered soul. Yield it up to God in loving self-sacrifice, and he will glorify that soul and use it for the blessings of others far and wide.

II. TO THE LAND. Take it, as so often has been done, as a type of, or rather as suggestive of, man regenerate. See God’s will for him as pictured here.

1. He is to live a separate life. Hitherto earth and sea had been mingled together, as man in the world, but now God’s will is thisseparation.

2. And this separation is to be evident. “Let the dry land appear.“ There must be no hiding away, but open confession of God.

3. And fruitful of good. The earth was to yield “grass,” the common excellences of the renewed nature, and not these only, but those more precious, and yet more precious still (see verses 14-16). But all this:

4. Is the work of God. What God commands he is able to secure. Be but passive to his will, and all will be brought to pass.

5. The old life will seek to regain its power. (Verse 9.) But will not be able; for:

6. The new life will be sustained and kept satisfied in God. (Verse 13.)S.C.

Psa 104:19

The psalm of creation: the fourth day.

The order of Genesis is departed from, the moon being named first; nor does the psalm tell of the purpose for which the sun, moon, and stars were formed, as does Genesis; nor does it speak at all of the stars. Now, the relation which the “two great lights”the sun and moonbear to this earth sets forth the relation which Christ and his Church bear to the human soul. For

I. THE SUN IS A TRUE TYPE OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST.

1. He is called “the Sun of Righteousness,“ “the Light of the world,” and by other titles which are drawn from the sun and its relationship to the world. And when we think what that is, how all creature life and knowledge and joy seem to depend upon it, we cannot wonder that amongst the noblest of the heathen the sun was worshipped as a living deity. If it were not God, then it was “the brightness of his glory and the express image of his Person.” The heathen mind, ignorant of the revelation of Christ, could find no nearer embodiment of its thought of God.

2. See the avowed purpose wherefore the sun was made. It was to rule the day. How emphatically it does this we all know.

3. And in that condition of the enlightened soul, when it has passed out of the darkness and the day is come, the Divine idea is that Christ is to rulethat every thought and faculty are to be subject to him. As the psalm declares that there is nothing hid from the heat thereof, so there is nothing in our whole life and being that is not to come under Christ’s control.

4. The day is also the season of activity. We are to work while it is called today. Men do this in common life; and where Christ, the true Sun of the soul, has risen, that soul will arise and toil in him and for him. He prompts, he enables the activities of the spiritual life.

5. The day, with its light, stands also for joy and brightness. How the natural world rejoices in the light! And the gladness of the soul is in him who is the true Light. There can be no real gladness till he comes. “Thou hast put joy and gladness into my heart, more than,” etc. (Psa 4:7).

II. THE MOON.

1. The world is yet in darkness. That tells more truly of its spiritual condition than the day. We speak of this enlightened age, but the words are mockery when we remember man’s present alienation from God.

2. But as the moon was to give light by night, so in this darkness of man’s spiritual condition the Church of Christ is to give light. She is commissioned for this very end.

3. But as the moon gives light only when reflecting the light of the sun, so the Church can be the world‘s light only as she reflects the light of Christ. She has none of her own. But when she does, how fair and beautiful she is! and how great the service she renders (So Gen 6:10)!

4. And the purpose of these great lights is to divide the light from the darkness. How almost instantaneously Christ and those who are truly his act in the world as such dividers! It was said of Christ that through him “the thoughts of many hearts should be revealed” (Luk 2:35). Then

III. THE STARS. These represent the individual Christians, giving their light, as does the moon, by reflection. And all these are for signs to men.S.C.

Psa 104:25, Psa 104:26

The psalm of creation: the fifth day.

The corresponding verses to these are in Gen 1:20-23, and they tell of the creation of the inhabitants of the sea and of the airthe fish who, by means of fins, navigate the sea; and the birds who, by means of wings, navigate the air. But as it is in this psalm, so it is in Genesisthe creation of the terrestrial forms of animal life follow on that of the other forms, all of which are to be crowned by God’s highest work, the creation of man, which is the especial work of the sixth day. Let us, therefore, consider these different forms of animal life, all of which were to be made subject to man. They are in three groups.

I. THOSE OF THE SEA.

1. The sea, in the Scriptures, is continually taken as the symbol of that which is turbulent, tumultuous, restless, violent. (Psa 65:7.) And so the sea answers in our nature to those passions in man which are so like the sea. Oh, what shipwrecks they have caused! what widespread ruin and devastation! But when God recreates our nature, then even these strong and seemingly ungovernable passions shall be made to further his glory. Men wonder now that God has formed them with such wild, unruly tendencies. But we forget that these are for our discipline and spiritual education. They are given us to subdue and conquer, not that they should subdue us. And when we do conquer them, great is our reward. The wild, turbulent sea has been subdued by man, for see, “there go the ships;” man has made it his obedient servant, and it perpetually fulfils his will. And so shall it be with that part of our nature which is like the sea for turbulence. Passion wisely controlled, whether it be love, or anger, or ambition, shall bless, and not curse, as now, for want of such control, they too often do.

2. Look at the fruitfulness of the sea. The infinitely abundant and varied life it sustains, from the great seamonsters who play therein, down to the minutest insect which makes there its home.

3. And the sea has been termed “the life blood of the land.“ What do we not owe to it? And so, when God regenerates our nature, our passions, transformed into holy energies and Christ-like zeal, shall be for the glory of God and the good of our fellow men.

II. THE AIR. The sky, the firmament of heaven, so lofty, glorious, beautiful, may stand as the symbol of the imagination, that high endowment of the human soul. How often that has been made the home of that which is evil, unclean, and hateful to God! But, as at the first, this also, when regenerated, shall glorify God. The thought that soars, the love that sings, the heart made pure, shall each avail itself of this fair firmament, and “on wings, as eagles,” shall mount aloft to God.

III. THE EARTH. The new earth type of the renewed nature. We are told of the creatures that were formed. They tell, according to Scripture usage, of the dispositions and character of the regenerate nature: service, wisdom, strength. So we interpret the cattle, the serpent, the beast of the forest.S.C.

Psa 104:23

The psalm of creation: the sixth day-the creation of man.

We ask

I. WHY DID GOD CREATE MAN? Many think that life is not worth living. Existence is so much pure misfortune. The denial of the Christian faith and hopeless pessimism seem ever to go together. But a preliminary question may be asked

Why did God create anything?

II. WE REPLY:

1. God is love, and one necessity of such nature is that he should find objects on which to lavish that love. It cannot remain unexercised. Creation, therefore, seemed to be a necessity of love.

2. But another need is that such love should meet with response. Love yearns for response, to be met by an answering love. But this involved the necessity of the creation of beings who should not be moved by mere instinct, but should possess mind, intelligence, and the capacity of love. Hence was requisite something more than any of the already created inhabitants of the seas, the air, or the land, could supply. A different, a higher being had to be brought into existence; man was needed, since he only could render the response the heart of the Creator desired. All other creatures could obey the laws of their being; man could love the Law giver.

3. And yet another craving of the Divine love, as of all like pure love, is for worthy response. It cannot bear that the response it yearns for should be given to inferior objects; it desires to be chosen and preferred above all these. But such worthy response of deliberate choice can only be made when counter objects of attraction are present. Therefore, that such choice may be possible for us, we are placed in a world where all around us are myriad lures and baits appealing to all sides of our nature, and many of them with mighty power. Hence is it that the love of his people is so precious in his esteem, for it means that they have turned their backs upon all these rivals of God, and have given to him the love he asks for and deserves.

4. And even this low is capable of enhancement in his esteem. It is so when, as with Job, it clings to God in spite of sorest trial and distress; when the man is in the very depths, when to all outward appearance everything is lost and thrown away by such clinging to God; when it has to hang on by naked faith, as at some time or other it has had to do in all God’s saints, and with some of them, as in the martyr ages, it has had to be always so. But love like that, oh how precious is it! how grateful to the heart of God! We can understand somewhat of this when some dear child of ours, rather than grieve or disappoint us, has readily endured persecution and pain. What do we not think of that child? What proof of our love will we withhold from him?

5. But such proof of our love, or of that of God, cannot be given unless there has been the previous trial. And that is why we are placed in a world of trial, often cruel, prolonged, and severe. We are thus given the opportunity of winning the highest prizes of the kingdom of God. Hence man has to go “forth to his work, and to his labour until the evening” Life is no child’s play for him, no place of mere sensuous enjoyment. If he chooses to make it so, he shuts himself out of the kingdom of God. No cross, no crown. Only so can we win back the image of God in which we were first created. This is “the prize of our high calling.”S.C.

Psa 104:30

Voices of the sloping.

We are following a good Bible precedent, as welt as yielding to an almost irresistible suggestion, when we seek to listen awhile to some of these teachings of God which he addresses to us through the spring. The references to this season are frequent in the pages of Scripture. They tell of the sowing and the seed time, the springing of the corn, and the varied voices, scenes, and processes of the spring. He who wrote that sixty-fifth psalm had often noticed the earth upturned by the plough, and how the rain loosened the clods, and the hard ridges were made soft with showers, and settled down to the level of the furrows after the corn seed had been cast in, and so God blessed “the springing thereof.” And he who wrote this psalm from which our text is taken, had often witnessed the wonderful bursting forth of life after the winter was over and gone, and he here celebrates God’s mighty working: “Thou sendest forth thy Spirit, and they are created: thou renewest the face of the earth.” And the eye of our Lord, the great Teacher, once and again fell upon some sower in the springtime going forth to sow, and he tells, in the first of all his parables, of the varied fate of the scattered seed. And he tells, too, how the devil knows the fit season for sowing seed; for when the great husbandman had cast good seed into his field, then the enemy came and sowed tares, which, when the good seed sprang up, appeared along with it to its hurt and harm. From beginning to end, by our Lord and by his apostles, and by the holy men of old who spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost, the allusions to the seed time and the spring are constant, and they constitute a positive direction to us to keep open eye and mind and heart for the lessons such seasons have to impart. Those lessons are very many. We can but note a few of them. And

I. DOES NOT SPRING SPEAK TO US OF GOD AS THE LORD AND GIVER OF LIFE? For:

1. Life is starting from every pore of nature. The whole face of the earth heaves and throbs with an inexhaustible tide of life; every spot teems with the beginnings of new life. Who does not feel impressed with the unspeakable affluence of him who is its fountain? Every wood and grove, every hedgerow and field, every garden and pasture, bear witness to his bounty. Where but a few weeks before all was sombre and silent, bare, and seemingly lifeless, now, what a change has come over the scene! The grey clouds of winter have been replaced by the bright blue skies, the brown carpet of fallen leaves has yielded to the beautiful green with which the grass has covered the woodland ways. The till now hushed grove is resonant with song and the murmur of innumerable insects. The bare skeleton-like branches of the trees are laden with glorious foliage, and the stripped hedges are all clothed again with leaves and blossoms and flowers. Fulness of life everywhere; this is the common characteristic which meets the eye throughout the whole realm of nature at this beautiful season of the year.

2. And with what wondrous care all this is accomplished! As silently, as irresistibly as the tender blade pushes its way up through the heavy soil which, one would think, must forever hold it down. But slender as is that newly formed blade, yet to that which hath no might God increaseth strength, and so in due time it appears above ground, for God maketh it to grow.

3. And how quietly all this goes on! What a contrast to the noise and strain, the fret and toil, the loud din, and all the other accompaniments of man’s strenuous labour! Here, as was said of Solomon’s temple

“No hammer fell, no ponderous axes rung;
Like some tall palm the mystic fabric sprung.”

4. But whilst all this is interesting to observe in the natural world, it is yet more delightful to look upon the Divine energy of life which each spring tide shows as a promise and pattern of the higher spiritual life, which, with equal generosity, God shall one day cause to spring forth before all the nations. Why should it not be? If all this fulness of life be for the lower creation, shall the higher, the moral and spiritual, be left unblessed? “If God so clothes,” etc. True, the lower life has to do with material things, and the higher with spiritual. But can that be any bar to him who called us into being, even as each spring he calls into being the full life we see around us? If, in consistency with that lower nature, he gives the new life, can he not, in consistency with man’s higher nature, cause that also to be born again and to enter into the new and better life? He has done so already with one and another of us, even as he did with all the children of God in all the ages all along. In perfect harmony with man’s freedom, he yet found means to convert, regenerate, and fully sanctify such as Paul, John, and myriads more. Andall glory to his Name!he is doing this every day. Therefore we accept, not deny or doubt, the blessed prophecy of the spring. And let us each one take it for ourselves.

II. AS LOVING ALL THAT IS BEAUTIFUL. See the wealth of beauty which everywhere spring presents, in colour; song; fragrance; beauty everywhere. Then, if God so loves beauty, let him have it. In our worship, our sanctuaries, most of all in our character. In this last God himself will help us. The beauty of the Lord our God shall be upon us even as, and yet more than, it is upon all the grace of nature in this blessed spring tide.

III. AS PREDICTING AND PROMISING THE RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD. (cf. 1Co 15:1-58.) If God gives new life and form to bare grain, shall he not to human souls? “And to every seed its own body.” Spring is the perpetual resurrection parable.

IV. AS ADDRESSING TO US MOST EARNEST APPEAL. “Work while it is called today;” “Now is the accepted time,” etc. If the husbandman waste the spring season, what hope of harvest can he have? Its days run along, and will soon be gone.S.C.

Psa 104:30

The spiritual spring.

The natural is as the spiritual

I. IS WHAT IT IS. An awakening from seeming death. In regard to the soul, St. Paul speaks of its condition ere its spring as actually “dead.” Certainly to all appearances it was so. But when the grace of God comes to the soul, then it awakes, as doth the earth in spring. There had been long preparation for it. Christ uses all manner of means to accomplish this. It is all his work.

II. IN WHAT IT POSSESSES. New life. So in nature, so in grace. If the manifestations of the newlife in nature are beautiful, yet more are they in grace. See the fruits of the Spirit, “Love, joy, peace,” etc. And we are to go on to this; not to be satisfied with conversion only; there must be the new life. And Christ, who began the work, will carry it on.

III. IN WHAT IT LEADS TO. Spring is the forerunner of summer with all its flowers, and autumn with all its harvests. And so is the spiritual spring the forerunner of all the glorious possibilities of the spiritual harvest. All its holiness and joy of service, etc.S.C.

Psa 104:31

The Lord’s joy in his works.

Then joy is an element in God’s nature. He is “the happy and only Potentate.” When we see what a large element it is in our nature, how we delight in it, how we seek after it, we might argue that in being in the Divine image, God must rejoice; and in the text we are distinctly told he does. And

I. IN HIS WORKS IN THE NATURAL WORLD.

1. How beautiful they are! They clearly show the Divine love of beauty. The vision of beauty delights us; and the lavish bestowment of it shows that it delights God.

2. How innumerable! All powers of computation utterly break down when we try to enumerate the works of God. The psalm tells of many, but how far many more are left unnamed? God cannot turn his gaze in any direction but he will behold the works of his hand.

3. And how varied! “Lord, how manifold are thy works!” not many only.

4. And how successful! “In wisdom hast thou made them all.” What joy a human inventor has, when, after long study and toil, he at length has discovered how to secure the successful working of that which he has made! The old story of the ancient philosopher rushing from his bath, and crying “Eureka!” because he had hit upon the solution of some knotty problem which had long perplexed him, is an illustration of the inventor’s joy. And the observation of the smooth, successful working of his Divine plans cannot but be a further element of joy, even to him.

5. Yet more because so beneficent. His creatures are “filled with good” by what he has done. While they delight us they also delight him.

II. IN PROVIDENCE.

1. Here, perhaps, we pause. We think of the darker side of lifeof the unspeakable suffering, of the bitter sorrows, of the dread problem of evil. And of not a little of this we are compelled to say, “It is the Lord’s doing.” The beautiful other side of lifehappy homes, successful work, health, love, strength, and all the rest; we can see how fruitful of joy to both giver and receiver it must be; but this dark side, what of that? How can the Lord rejoice in that?

2. Well, remember, God sees the whole of life; we only a mere fragment of it. The shipbuilder enters his yard. Dust, din, clatter, intolerable noise, and dirt and disorder meet him on every hand. The gaunt ribs of some ship on the stocks are the occasion of all this. But the shipbuilder looks quite pleased. Why is this? Because he has in his mind the vision of the completed ship, when fair, graceful, strong, she spreads her sails, and, laden with rich cargo, she sails the ocean like a thing of life. He sees her in all her future glory, to which all that now is leads the way. The application is easy. We believe, with the poet

“That nothing walks with aimless feet;

That not one life shall be destroy’d,
Or cast as rubbish to the void,

When God hath made the pile complete.”

“Known unto God are all his works from the beginning;” and we stay our souls on that sure truth, and we spurn the atheistic suggestions which have no proof, and only land us in deeper darkness than before.

III. IN HIS SPIRITUAL WORKS. Forgiveness, peace, purity, power, eternal life. Do we cooperate with him in these?S.C.

Psa 104:34

The blessed meditation of God.

The text is true

I. BECAUSE SUCH MEDITATION SO AIDS BOTH KNOWLEDGE AND MEMORY.

II. IT WARMS THE HEART. “Whilst I was musing the fire burned,” etc. (Psa 39:1-13.).

III. DELIVERS US FROM SINFUL THOUGHTS.

IV. ROUSES THE ENERGIES OF OUR WILL FOR DUTY.

V. PROMOTES GREATLY OUR ADVANCE IN THE LIFE OF GOD.

VI. PROFITABLY FILLS UP THE MARGINS AND ODD MOMENTS OF OUR TIME.

VII. PURGES OUR EYESIGHT, So that we see the silver lining of the clouds that distress us.

VIII. ENABLES US TO CONVERSE WITH GOD, and to enjoy him, as otherwise we could not.S.C.

HOMILIES BY R. TUCK

Psa 104:2-4

Nature figures of the Divine glory.

These are of peculiar interest, because they appeal to man universally; the language of nature is the common, universal language. Only when men attempt to express their ideas and feelings by the languages of the tongue do they get into confusions and misunderstandings and separations. There is hope of reuniting humanity if it can be brought to heed the voice and witness of nature. Dr. Chalmers shows the connection of this psalm with the preceding one. “It begins, as does Psa 103:1-22; with the view of God’s goodness, but on a different subject; the former psalm being addressed to God, as sitting on a throne of grace; the present psalm to God, as sitting on a throne of nature and of creation; and never have the works of God, and his sovereignty over them, been so magnificently set forth. The glory of the Divine is made palpable, in this psalm, through the medium of the senses.”

I. THE LORD‘S VESTURE. Observe that no attempt is made in Scripture to describe God himself. He can only be known through revelations of himself that he is pleased to make. The immaterial can only be known through the material. God must take form, because man can only apprehend the formal. Moses could only see the “back parts,” the afterglow, when the sun had passed down beyond the edge. Eiders only saw a “paved work of sapphire.” Isaiah only saw an incense-veiled throne. We can see God’s garments, and argue from them what he must be who is clothed with such a vesture. What a glorious thing is light, sun rays, sunshine! Mysteriously pure; transcendently fine; surpassingly beautiful! It is the robe of God. Royal robes are supposed to represent, with some fitness, royalty. It is true of God that no conceivable robe can be worthy to represent him; it can do no more than suggest him. A young woman gained her sight at the age of twenty-three, by the help of a surgical operation. Looking out upon a sunlit landscape, she exclaimed, “Oh, how beautiful! I never dreamt of anything so beautiful as this.” What is he “whose robe is the light”?

II. THE LORD‘S TENT. By “the heavens” the psalmist means the firmament, the vast blue dome that spans the earth. No doubt the firmament was then conceived as a solid sheet spread out as are the curtains of a tent. The earth was as a tent floor, and those long lines of light which we see between heaven and earth in times of moisture, which do indeed seem to rest in or spring out of the sea, are thought of, by the psalmist, as the poles or pillars of the tent. After unfolding this figure, show that estimates of the wealth and greatness and power of a king are formed from the splendour of his palace and its appointments. Then what must he be whose “canopy is space”?

III. THE LORD‘S CHARIOT. It is not the terror of tempest clouds that is in the poet’s mind. It is the ever-fascinating sailing of the clouds across the sky, at the impulse of the upper winds. The moving of the vast masses of billowy clouds, ever taking fresh and more fantastic shapes, and now silvered with the midday sun, or tinted with wondrous colouring in the evening light, is a perpetual wonder and joy to all sensitive souls. We judge the status and wealth of our fellow men by their equipages. What, then, must he be who “maketh the clouds his chariot,” and, in place of mere horses, is borne away on “the wings of the wind”? So the nature figures bring home to our minds the sublimity of God. These thingsthe heavens, the light, the clouds, the windsare the sublimest things that come into the field of human knowledge and observation. They are not God, they are only something God has made; only something God uses; only something that may suggest what cannot be altogether conceived. Impress that rightly reverent, adoring, wondering views of God ought to be encouraged. We all need to have his glory as well as his grace ever kept before us. Professor Agassiz even points out the importance of right impressions of God to the scientific man. “I tell you that my experience in prolonged scientific investigations, convinces me that a belief in God, a God who is behind and within the chaos of vanishing points of human knowledge, adds a wonderful stimulus to the man who attempts to penetrate into the regions of the unknown.”R.T.

Psa 104:4

Nature forces are Divine ministries.

The precise rendering of this verse is discussed in the Exposition. Now we treat it as a poetical suggestion, which fits into the general plan of the psalm. It is a hymn of admirations of the eternal King. The first part of the psalm sees the glory of the King through the splendour of his court or palace surroundings. The second part of the psalm sees the glory of the King in the provisions, the order, the arrangements, the happiness, of his kingdom. At the court, the psalmist is moved by the sublimity of the “light” as God’s robe, the blue dome of the sky as God’s tent curtain, and the wind-driven clouds as his chariot. And he further notices the grandeur of the royal attendants, the courtiers, who wait to do the royal bidding. All the forces of nature are at the Divine command, and the force that represents them allthe force that is most mysterious and sublimeis the force of lightning. Illustrate what a marvel of human power and skill it seems to be that man has, in some measure, chained the lightning, and compelled it to yield him light, and to carry his messages. What, then, must he be who has used the lightning force in his service through all the long generations? The figure is a sublime and suggestive one. All the august and awful nature forces are conceived as ministrants in the court of the eternal King. Illustrate by the vision of Isaiah; the six attendant seraphim.

I. THE ROYAL MINISTERS DECLARE THE GLORY OF THE GREAT KING. When an impression is to be made on us of the magnificence of Solomon, we are told the number and the dignity of his attendants and courtiers. Their nobility assures us that he must be yet more noble on whom they wait. Then show how grand are the forces of naturephysical, chemical; rain, sunshine, wind, fire, electricity, etc.; or take storms, famine, plague. What must he be who is daily served by such ministrants?

II. THE ROYAL MINISTERS ILLUSTRATE THE OPERATIONS OF THE KING. They execute his behests, carry out his plans; they execute his thoughts; and so we can read his mind in their doings.

1. The multitude of his ministers suggests that he is continuously working, ceaselessly active. Some of these nature forces are always at work for him.

2. The skill of his ministers suggests that he is ever efficiently working. These nature forces can do what he wills.

3. And the mystery of his ministers reminds us how we are made to feel the surprises of the Divine wisdom.R.T.

Psa 104:5

The King is the Creator.

“Who laid the foundations of the earth.” Having filled his soul with adoring thoughts of God, by considering his palace, his surroundings, and his attendants, the psalmist goes out into the kingdom of this eternal King, to see what he can learn of him from the provisions, and order, and adaptations, and rule of his dominions. And then an introductory thought comes to him. This eternal King not only founded this kingdom, he actually made everything in it. “The sea is his, and he made it, and his hands formed the dry land.” High honour is given to the man who founds a kingdom. What honour is due to him who absolutely originates the great, mysterious, complex, nature kingdom? Bible writers see in the psalm a sketch of creation. Browne calls it “a bright and living picture of God’s creative power, pouring life and gladness throughout the universe.” But the reference to creation is only a brief, passing, introductory one; and what the psalmist fully dwells on is the marvel of the Divine order and rule in the earth sphere as created.

I. THE SHAPING OF THINGS IS THE ETERNAL KING‘S IDEA. Take but the infinite varieties of form for material thingsa crystal, a tree, a mountain, a weed; or for animated thingsa bacillus, a mammoth, a dragonfly, an albatross, a worm, a man;and our minds are overwhelmed by the effort to imagine the ideas of all forms fashioned in one intellect. There is no form of being that was not first of all a thought of God. He is the Foundation of all. If original forms modify and change, it is only according to God’s ordered laws.

II. THE POWER OF THINGS IS THE ETERNAL KING‘S ENDUEMENT. For there is nothing made that can really be called dead. Everything has a possibility of doing something. Even a stone can hold moisture on its under side. Metals have their chemical properties, and the very dust can at least combine. In higher ranges of being each creature has its power and its mission. And the power in things is ordered, not just developed. What must he be who is Source of power in everything?

III. THE RELATION OF THINGS IS THE ETERNAL KING‘S ARRANGEMENT. Everything is connected with everything else. Nothing in the world is isolated. Everywhere there is flux and reflux. Everything is touching something, and influencing it by the touch. What must he be who devised all relations and all their consequences?R.T.

Psa 104:6-13

Water witnesses to the glory of God.

The psalmist dwells most lovingly on the various wonders of God’s ways with the water; and nothing more readily influences us than masses of waters, or falling waters, or gentle streams, or pouring rains. Poetically, man is very sensitive to the manifold forms in which God arranges this one simple thingwater. And nothing brings to man such a sense of irresistible power as loosened waters.

I. THE LEVELLING OF THE WATERS. (Psa 104:5-8.) Evidently the poet is conceiving the original condition of the earth, when God dealt with it to make it the abode of man. Then it is conceived as a solid mass, surrounded by an envelope of watery mist, which rose higher than the tops of the mountains. The ancients did not apprehend the circular form of the earth, and so mists rising above the mountains presented to them no difficulty. The poet sees this mist dispelled by the command of God, and any one who has seen the mists roll away, in a mountain district, will fully appreciate his figures. They do seem to “go up by the mountains and down by the valleys.” But in the Divine leading, the issue is that the waters gather into their various appointed places, and the dry land appears. What intangible, fickle things these mists seem to be! Then how glorious must he be at whose bidding they move!

II. THE CONTROLLING OF THE WATERS. (Psa 104:9.) This impression is best associated with the sea. Sometimes, when it is driven high by wind and tide, its destructive possibilities seem overwhelming. Yet even then we calmly take our place on the tide line, and feel sure God’s bound of silver sand will be an effective defence. When he is pleased to loosen his control, the world is flooded again, as in Noah’s days. What must he be who holds in restraint the great wide sea?

III. THE EMPLOYING OF THE WATERS. Even more wonderful than the restraining of the sea in bounds is the storing of the waters in the thousandfold cisterns of the hills, whence they come forth in perennial springs to supply the creatures of God. More wonderful is the continuous uplifting of the great sea into the sky, where it may form the banks of clouds, which, at fit times and seasons, burst over the earth, and, falling in chemically enriched drops, fertilize the earth, and make it bring forth food for beast and man. What must be the glory of him who is the God of the springs, and the God of the rain, to whom the waters are but an ever-obedient ministry?R.T.

Psa 104:20

The Divine mission of the darkness.

“Thou makest darkness, and it is night.” What arrests the attention of the psalmist is the twofold mission of the darkness. It is a call to activity for some creatures; it is a call to rest for others. In a very striking article, Isaac Taylor showed that there were only one or two nights in each year that could be considered absolutely dark, and those few nights had a peculiar mission, which made them essentials in the economy of nature. Darkness is properly regarded as the resting time of the creatures. It is, indeed, a resting for the vegetable, as well as animal, creation; though the term “resting” can only be used in a limited sense, because there are activities maintained in the darkness. Too long continuance under one set of influences has a deteriorating effect on moral natures. The impressive illustration of this is the majesty of human transgression when men’s lives were prolonged by centuries. Darkness is sent to break men’s lives and relationships up into small pieces. God cannot trust frail man with mere than some twelve hours at a time.

I. DARKNESS PROVIDES REST FOR THE WEARY. Show the actual physical influence of darkness on men’s bodies, on the muscular and nervous systems. Rest is essential for man when his labour is merely routine labour of the body; but how much more essential is it in these modern conditions, when the toil overwears also the brain and the heart! Recumbency may restore wearied limbs; darkness alone is chemically efficient to restore wearied brains. But it is a thought full of seriousness, that nearly one-half of a man’s brief life is spent in unconsciousness. The wakeful hours in which rested faculties may find their spheres, ought to be jealously watched and wisely used. Man only “goeth forth to his work and to his labour until the evening.“

II. DARKNESS PROVIDES THE CHANCE OF BEGINNING AGAIN. It comes and stops a man, gives him the opportunity of looking at his work; it shunts him aside awhile; and then, with returning light, the man can try again. He need not keep on the bad way of yesterday. There has been a gap of darkness. He can do better today. Hope for man lies in beginning afresh day by day.R.T.

Psa 104:24

Poet thoughts concerning the Greater.

This psalm has been called a poetic version of Gen 1:1-31, “a panorama of the universe viewed by the eye of devotion.” It is connected with Psa 103:1-22; which reviews God’s dealings in the realm of grace. That psalm comes first, because only through our personal knowledge of God do we gain the true understanding of the God of nature. From nature alone man gains ideas of power, and even of malice; so he makes many gods, and they are chiefly gods to fear. The good man, through his faith in God, finds good in seemingly evil things, and fears nothing. But this psalm represents the poet’s observation of nature, not that of the scientific man. Sentiment, not minutely described fact, is befitting to a Psalmist. Science must always be for the few among us; pious-toned observation is for all of us. In this verse we have the impression produced by religious meditation, which dwells not on the things, but on God’s relation to the things.

I. THE WISDOM OF GOD SEEN IN HIS WORKS. Marvellous is the development of a few laws, and the harmonious interaction of these laws; they work into each other so that the order of the universe is never really broken. Then every individual thing is adjusted to its mission and its sphere. There is a strange and wonderful power of repair and recovery everywhere. Things do not really fail or die; they do but pass from one form of service to another.

II. THE RIGHTS OF GOD RECOGNIZED IN ALL HIS WORKS. “Thy possessions.” Then our so called “rights” are only “trusts.” We have nothing. Possession belongs only to God. We are the children born of a Father who owns a large estate. We enjoy, we use, we serve our Father in the use. But we can never enter into any sort of separate and individual “possession” while our Father lives. Are we, then, sensitive as a pious poet is in the midst of mighty and beautiful nature? Are we only interested, in a scientific sort of way, in things? or do we know how to enter into the very heart of things, and let them do their true workmake God precious to us?R.T.

Psa 104:24

The manifoldness of God’s works.

What profusion, what variety, there is in God’s works! How inexhaustible must be the Divine ideas! “When trees blossom, there is not a single breast pin, but a whole bosom full of gems. The leaves have so many suits, that they can throw them away to the winds all summer long. What unnumbered cathedrals has he reared in the forest shades, vast and grand, full of curious carvings, and haunted evermore by tremulous music! and in the heavens above how do stars seem to have flown out of his hands faster than sparks out of a mighty forge!” (Beecher). “Mineral, vegetable, animalwhat a range of works is suggested by these three names! No two, even of the same class, are exactly alike, and the classes are more numerous than science can number. Works in the heavens above, and in the earth beneath, and in the waters under the earth; works which abide the ages; works which come to perfection and pass away in a year; works which, with all their beauty, do not outlive a day; works within works, and works within these; who can number one of a thousand?”

I. MANIFOLD IMPLIES VARIETY. Here distinguish between the sameness of those creative and providential laws which regulate everything, and those multitudinous and ever-varied forms and shapes in which those ever-working laws can present things. God makes all things on principle, but no two things are precisely alike. The leaves of a tree and the faces of a flock are infinitely varied. What an impression we should have of God if a procession could pass before us of specimens only of every kind of insect form, or bird form, or beast form! What a mind to conceive these million shapes!

II. MANIFOLDNESS IMPLIES DESIGN. Once get the die stamped, and you make as many coins as you please to a pattern. But if every coin is different, there must have been a precise design in the making of each. Each coin would embody a thought. It must be true of the varying creatures of God. He must have planned each.

III. MANIFOLDNESS IMPLIES ADAPTATION. Everything has its place and relation. For nicety of fitting it is precisely shaped. God does not make mere things, but things to go into positions; and every variety of form and of force is the product of considerations and calculations of the Divine mind.R.T.

Psa 104:27

Absolute dependence upon God.

“These wait all upon thee, that thou mayest give them their meat in due season.” All vegetable and animal life depends on appropriate food; and though sometimes the food is at the creature’s hand, it usually has to be sought. God has arranged the economy of nature so that each creature is skilled to find its own food. The dependence of creation on the Creator may be made effective to an audience by an illustrative instance such as the following: The fox has sly and skilful movements; but it is not always noticed how God helps the fox apart from his cunning. The red colour of his coat is found to have a strangely paralyzing effect on his prey, so that they are quite unable to flee from him. The psalmist, in trying to raise high and adoring thoughts of the eternal King by examination of his kingdom, is especially impressed with the signs of the King’s presence, interest, care, and providing everywhere. It is not a creation set going, and left to go; it is sustained, provided for, continually.

I. FOR LIFE WE ARE DEPENDENT ON GOD. God. wakens us from nightly sleep, and sets new time upon our store.

II. FOR RENEWED POWERS WE ARE DEPENDENT ON GOD. Yet how seldom we thank God for our sound minds!

III. FOR HEALTH WE ARE DEPENDENT ON GOD. Modern discoveries concerning the germs of disease that float around us and thrive within us, make us wonder that health is retained so well and so long.

IV. FOR FOOD WE ARE DEPENDENT ON GOD. Since he gives us the means to get it, and provides it for us, year by year, as the harvest of his earth.

Visiting the Zoological Gardens, and noticing the variety of creatures, and the variety of food required to meet the needs and daily conditions of each one, we were set wondering over the Divine response to the dependence of all living things, he giveth “them,” each one, “their meat”that which is precisely suitable for each onein due season, or whenever the need of each one really rises into a cry. “Our sufficiency is of God.” Dependence on him meets with response from him, which claims our thankfulness and our service.R.T.

HOMILIES BY C. SHORT

Psa 104:30

Renewed life: a spring sermon.

I. SPRING AWAKENS IN US THE SENSE OF LIFE. The life of nature is a symbol of the spiritual renewal of the Christian. The renewal of the heart, the conscience, and the will.

II. AWAKENS THE SENSE OF BEAUTIFUL LIFE. What a banquet for the eye! what fragrance, as if an angel swung a censor full of the odours of celestial flowers! how the ear is regaled! The life of the believer in Christ ought to be the most beautiful below the skies. The serene and tender loveliness of spiritual affections and actions is nobler than all the graces of outward beauty.

III. THE SENSE OF PROGRESSIVE LIFE. It is the season of growth. A parable of spiritual life.

1. When growth ceases, then decay begins.

2. Material growth is spontaneous; spiritual growth the result of self-effort. The flowers of the field neither toil nor spin; but we grow by the power of will and purpose.

3. Material and spiritual growth are often irregular. Does not proceed at a uniform rate.

IV. IT IS PROPHETIC LIFE. The gardens and the fields prophesy a harvest of fruit and grain.

1. The present life is only a prophecy of our immortal life. Our knowledge, our desires, our powers of spiritual action, are all in their infancy; the summer glory of our being is to be reached elsewhere.

2. The present experience of the Christian is only a prophecy of future experience. As the bud and blossom predict the fruit; or the first ear of corn predicts the whole harvest. Admonitory thought to us. Spring is full of promise; but some of its promises will never be fulfilled. How many of the young never fulfil the promise of their early days, but turn out miserable abortions!S.

Fuente: The Complete Pulpit Commentary

Psalms 104.

A meditation upon the mighty power and wonderful providence of God. God’s glory is eternal. The prophet voweth perpetually to praise God.

THOUGH this psalm has no title in the original, it is said to be David’s by all the old versions, except the Chaldee; and certainly the thoughts and expressions of it throughout, and especially in the first part of it, are so lofty and grand, that they may well be supposed the composition of the Royal Prophet. However, be the author who he will, it is universally allowed to be one of the finest poems that we have upon the works of creation and the providence of God: and as it is upon so general a subject, it is proper to be used at all times. Bishop Lowth observes, that there is nothing extant which can be conceived more perfect than this psalm. See his 29th Prelection. Dr. Delaney imagines it, with great probability, to have been composed by David while he was in the forest of Hareth, where he was surrounded by those pastoral scenes which he so beautifully describes; for, after some general observations upon the works and wisdom of God in the creation, he descends to the following particulars: the rise of springs, the course of rivers, the retreats of fowls and wild beasts of the forests and mountains; the vicissitudes of night and day, and their various uses to the animal world; the dependance of the whole creation upon the Almighty for being and subsistence. He withdraws their breath, and they die; he breaths, and they revive; he but opens his hand, and he feeds; he satisfies them all at once. These are ideas familiar to him, and his manner of introducing them plainly shews them to be the effect of his most retired meditations in his solitary wanderings. Life of David, book 1: chap. 8.

Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke

Psalms 104

1Bless the Lord, O my soul.

O Lord my God, thou art very great;
Thou art clothed with honor and majesty:

2Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment:

Who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain:

3Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters:

Who maketh the clouds his chariot:
Who walketh upon the wings of the wind:

4Who maketh his angels spirits;

His ministers a flaming fire.

5Who laid the foundations of the earth,

That it should not be removed for ever.

6Thou coveredst it with the deep as with a garment:

The waters stood above the mountains.

7At thy rebuke they fled;

At the voice of thy thunder they hasted away.

8They go by the mountains;

They go down by the valleys
Unto the place which thou hast founded for them.

9Thou hast set a bound that they may not pass over;

That they turn not again to cover the earth.

10He sendeth the springs into the valleys,

Which run among the hills.

11They give drink to every beast of the field:

The wild asses quench their thirst.

12By them shall the fowls of the heaven have their habitation,

Which sing among the branches.

13He watereth the hills from his chambers:

The earth is satisfied with the fruit of thy works.

14He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle,

And herb for the service of man:
That he may bring forth food out of the earth;

15And wine that maketh glad the heart of man,

And oil to make his face to shine,

And bread which strengtheneth mans heart.

16The trees of the Lord are full of sap;

The cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted;

17Where the birds make their nests:

As for the stork, the fir trees are her house.

18The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats;

And the rocks for the conies.

19He appointed the moon for seasons:

The sun knoweth his going down.

20Thou makest darkness, and it is night:

Wherein all the beasts of the forest do creep forth.

21The young lions roar after their prey,

And seek their meat from God.

22The sun ariseth, they gather themselves together,

And lay them down in their dens.

23Man goeth forth unto his work

And to his labour until the evening.

24O Lord, how manifold are thy works;

In wisdom hast thou made them all:
The earth is full of thy riches.

25So is this great and wide sea,

Wherein are things creeping innumerable,

Both small and great beasts.

26There go the ships:

There is that leviathan, whom thou hast made to play therein.

27These wait all upon thee;

That thou mayest give them their meat in due season.

28That thou givest them they gather:

Thou openest thine hand, they are filled with good.

29Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled:

Thou takest away their breath; they die,
And return to their dust.

30Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created:

And thou renewest the face of the earth.

31The glory of the Lord shall endure for ever:

The Lord shall rejoice in his works.

32He looketh on the earth, and it trembleth:

He toucheth the hills, and they smoke.

33I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live:

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

34My meditation of him shall be sweet:

I will be glad in the Lord.

35Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth,

And let the wicked be no more.
Bless thou the Lord, O my soul.
Praise ye the Lord.

EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL

Contents and Division. The subject of praise in this psalm is Gods working in the kingdom of nature, as that of the preceding was His working in the kingdom of grace. The poet celebrates in his song the present continuance of the world ordained by God, having in mind His first creative work recorded in Gen 1:1 to Gen 2:3, and concludes with the desire that evil may be banished from this fair creation, which reveals universally, and in profusion, His power, wisdom, and goodness. (Delitzsch). It is scarcely to be doubted that the Biblical account of the creation forms in general the guiding thread of this poem. The seven groups, it is true, in which the related thoughts areset forth and placed in their connection, do not correspond exactly to the seven days of the week of creation. But the progress, on the whole, is the same, and the several representations bear a striking resemblance in various expressions. It is impossible to limit this resemblance to the modes of conception presented in the first group, or to explain it as though the writer followed two independent authors, holding to the same tradition, or belonging to the same school, (De Wette). The differences are to be ascribed to the fact that the subject was viewed from different standpoints. There an account is given of the course of creation. Here a hymn is sung to the praise of the Creator and Lord of the world, based upon that account, and having in view the course of the worlds history. But we are not therefore to divide this hymn, so as to refer Psa 104:6 ff. to the Deluge, and the whole psalm to the Providence of God the heavenly King, who will at last confirm His kingdom in its full power under the Messiah (Venema). Nor is the leading thought to be found in the first verse, and the object of the psalm, the strengthening of the assurance of the Church that the righteous shall finally triumph over the wicked (Hengst.). The last verse has certainly the earthy flavor of a special historical situation (Hitzig), yet with such generality, that no inference can be deduced from it as to the time of composition. There is no trace of a feeling of joyfulness over the restoration of the Second Temple (Ruding., Ven.). The linguistic peculiarities point in the general to a late age. The poetic beauty has always been acknowledged and very frequently praised.

Psa 104:1-2. Clothed (Psa 104:1), as in Job 11:10; Isa 51:9; Psa 93:1. This expression, like the participle which follows in the next verse: veiling [E. V.: who coverest thyself], shows that there is here described, not the eternal glory of Gods being (Jude Psa 104:25), nor the light that is inaccessible as Gods dwelling (1Ti 6:16), but the royal splendor and majestic glory that are reflected in the created universe (Psa 96:6). The heavens as a tent-curtain stretched out (Isa 40:22; Isa 42:5; Isa 44:22; Isa 54:2), afford the conception of the , that is, hat is extended.

Psa 104:3. The contradictory expressions, in which it is said that the upper rooms are framed with beams, and that the latter consist, of water, serve at once to show the error of any sensuous conception, and to represent the exaltation and immaterial nature of the heavenly King. [Alexander comments as follows: The first word means, laying beams or rafters. The next phrase may either mean in or with water. The first is more obvious, the last more striking, as it represents a solid building made of a liquid or a fluid material. In the other case, the waters meant are those of the firmament, see Gen 1:6-7; Psa 18:12, where the clouds and the wings of the wind are also mentioned in the same connection. The rendering in E. V. has not only the advantage of being the more obvious, it is also the only one consistent with the poetic taste of the author. Indeed Dr. Moll in his version of the Psalm, renders: Who frameth His upper room in the waters, but does not notice this translation in the exposition.J. F. M.]. There can be no allusion to the custom of erecting chambers upon the flat roofs of dwelling-houses (Amo 9:6; Jer 22:13), as places of privacy and withdrawing-rooms, for God is not viewed as concealing Himself, but as manifesting His glory.

Psa 104:4. The double accusative makes the true translation doubtful. According to the common construction we must render: He makes His messengers winds (Kster), and can then put angels in the place of messengers (Sept., Luther, Stier), as in Heb 1:7. But as there is no occasion to mention angels as heavenly ministers (Venema), in connection with the forces of nature, we are justified in approving the other construction, which is also admissible. [Who maketh the winds His messengers, as Dr Moll has it in his version.J. F. M.].

Psa 104:5-8. The Pillars [Psa 104:5. E. V.: foundation; see remarks on Psa 97:2.J. F. M.] of the earth are frequently mentioned as denoting, not literally, but by a poetic mode of expression, the stability of the earth as suspended freely in space (Job 26:7). The description which follows shows that the idea of a Chaos was not then entertained (Comp. Buttmann, Mythologus, I. p. 128). The mountains are as old as the earth, and the waters which originally covered it. According to this declaration in Psa 104:6, Psa 104:8 a is to be taken as uttered parenthetically, (Ewald, Hupf., Del.), and not to be connected immediately with Psa 104:8 b, (Hitzig and others). For though the rendering: the waters rose upon the mountains, sank into the valleys, agrees in sense with Psa 107:26, (Chald., Hengst.) yet it is incompatible with the statement in Psa 104:6, that the waters stood above the mountains. So also is the other explanation that the mountains and valleys, through upheavals and sinkings (Umbreit, Maurer, Hitzig), had adjusted themselves to the positions prepared for them by God. [Dr. Moll therefore renders Psa 104:7-8 :

Before Thy rebuke they fled,
Before Thy voice of thunder they trembled away
Mountains rose up, valleys sank down
To the place, which thou didst establish for them.J. F. M.].

Psa 104:10-13. We are perhaps to understand by the brooks, the valleys, ravines or wadys in which they flow (Sept. and others), but this is not linguistically certain. The fruit of thy works, Psa 104:13, is probably the rain, as produced by the clouds (Kimchi and most), or it may refer specially to the chambers which God has built for Himself, according to the translation: fruit of thy labor (Hupfeld). If plants are understood (Del.), then the earth must be used metonymically (Aben Ezra) for the dwellers on the earth, which can hardly be supposed, if we regard the preceding context.

Psa 104:15. The connection of Psa 104:15 b with what precedes, by with the infinitive, appears to describe a further effect of the wine, that it makes the face shine as with oil. But, apart from the circumstance that it is not the face, but the head which is anointed, we must translate in its comparative construction literally: than oil; and thus oil would be mentioned in a way strange to the context. But oil, together with bread-corn and wine, is one of the chief products of the soil in Palestine, and is employed more than anything else to give flavor and richness to food. Most therefore assume rightly a looser connection of the sentence, as the same thing occurs often throughout the strophe. [Alexander: And wine gladdens the heart of man,(so as) to make his face shine more than oiland bread the heart of man sustains. The text of the English Bible makes oil a distinct item in the catalogue, and oil to make his face to shine. But this is an impossible construction of the Hebrew, in which the infinitive (to make shine) bears the same relation to what goes before as the infinitive (to bring forth) in the verse preceding, and is therefore expressive, not of a distinct cause and effect, but of a consequence resulting from the one just mentioned. The true construction is given in the margin in the English Bible, to make his face shine with oil, or, more than oil. To the first of these alternative translations it may be objected, that wine cannot make mens faces shine with oil, unless there is allusion to the festive unctions of the ancients, which, however, were restricted to the head. The other therefore seems to be the true sense, in which oil is merely mentioned as a shining substance. The description of food as sustaining the heart is very ancient. See Gen 18:5; Jdg 19:8.J. F. M.].

Psa 104:16-18. It is uncertain whether the expression: trees of Jehovah, Psa 104:16, is intended to imply that they overtop all others, or that they grow wild as contrasted with those planted by men. The name (Psa 104:17) is applied to a bird with great wide-spreading wings, (Zec 5:9), which builds its nest upon the lofty cypresses (according to others: firs), which has regular seasons of arriving and migrating (Jer 8:7), and belongs to the unclean birds (Lev 11:19; Deu 14:18), and is perhaps mentioned in Job 38:13, along with the pelican. According to the etymology which is assumed, it may mean a bird of a curved neck, or of kind disposition, and is therefore supposed to be either the heron (Sept., Aquila, Symm., Theodotius), or the white dove-falcon (Chald., Kimchi), or the stork (Isaaki and most). (Psa 104:18) cannot denote the stag (Sept.) nor the gazelle (Schegg),but (according to the etymology: the climber) the wild or the mountain goat (Job 39:1; 1Sa 24:3). that is, gnawer, is mentioned in Lev 11:5, as an unclean ruminant, and in Pro 30:26 as a sagacious animal living in flocks in the clefts of the rooks, and in Deu 14:7 is distinguished from the hare. The coney(Rabbins) is scarcely meant, even if it be true that the Phoenicians gave the name Spain to the Iberian peninsula from the number of these little animals that were found there, still less the rough and spiny hedge-hog (Sept., Vulg.). The leaping-hare or leaping-mouse, (Chald.) has more in its favor. But the rock-badger is most probably meant, which resembles the marmot, and is common on Lebanon and the districts about the Jordan. [The Hyrax Syriacus, See the article Coney in Smiths Dictionary of the Bible. I cannot find any support for the explanation, gnawer, given above. The root is undoubtedly , an obsolete form, but cognate in meaning with to hide.J. F. M.].

Psa 104:19-26. For time-measuring [E. V.: seasons), literally: for appointed times, or: for sacred seasons (Gen 1:14; Lev 23:4; Sir 43:7). Psa 104:21-23 allude to Job 24:5; Job 37:8; Job 38:40. The riches in Psa 104:24 are the sum of all that has been brought into being by the creative power of God. (Gen 14:19), The word is parallel to works before mentioned, and is therefore in sense=created things, yet this not simply as such, but as including also the accessory idea of divine ownership, by which they are indicated as all belonging to God and subject to His disposal. Hence the translation: property (Luther), which is not quite accurate, but throws light upon the word. The ancient translators also are divided between and . The singular is recommended by all the ancient versions, very many codices, and many good editions, among which are the latest of Heidenheim and Baer.The leviathan is not the crocodile, as in Job 40, but, according to the etymology, a sea-monster of immense length. does not mean in Psa 104:26 : with it (Isaaki, Ewald, Hitzig), as in Job 40:29, but in it, Psa 104:20 (Job 40:20 f.).The names applied to ships hani and ana in ancient Egyptian, are worthy of note, as compared with the Hebrew

Psa 104:30. It is not the Holy Spirit that is referred to (Geier, J. H. Mich.), nor the resurrection (the Rabbins), nor the future renovation of the universe (Stier), nor the type and security of a perpetual renewing and finally perfect regeneration of the Church (Hengst.). It is the breath of God that is spoken of, which is the breath of life to all creatures (Gen 2:7; Gen 3:19; Job 33:4; Job 34:14 : Ecc 12:7;Psa 144:4). It is for the same reason that Jehovah is called the God of the spirits of all flesh (Num 16:22; Num 27:16; Heb 12:9). The perpetual renewing of created life in the mutations of time and races is alluded to.

Psa 104:35. Hallelujah. A cry of devotion found only in the Psalter, really consisting of two words (praise Jehovah) which, however, occur only in Psa 135:3, and are designated unicum by the Masora. The usual mode of writing according to the Masora (comp. Baer, Psalterium, p. 132) is , but in the passage before us, where it occurs for the first time, the final letter s written not but , that is, instead of the sign Mappik there is Raphe. Even in the Talmud the learned dispute whether the two words should be united or separated. If they are to be united, we must suppose the final syllable to have been considered not as a real name of God, but as an addition for the purpose of giving emphasis to the call for praise (Geiger, Urschrift, p. 275). [Comp. a similar instance in Psa 118:5. Delitzsch cites an observation in the Talmud, that this first hallelujah is coupled significantly with the prospect of the destruction of the wicked.J. F. M.].

DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL

1. The wonders which are exhibited to us in the heavens, and upon earth, and among our race, are all the work of God, and are, on the one hand, to serve as a manifestation of His glory, and on the other, to be the occasion of our admiring gratitude, adoring praise, and of the believing and obedient surrender of ourselves to Him. For the whole creation is formed to be a mirror of His glory, and all creatures are the objects of His care and witnesses to His power, wisdom, and goodness. But man is the only one of them all who can gain a knowledge of this, and give to God the glory which such knowledge demands.
2. What God has created He will also preserve. And therefore does He daily and richly provide for all creatures, and give to them according to their nature and needs, as long as they continue to exist by His will, and by the power of His creative breath. They all enjoy their existence, perform their different parts, and act as it was intended they should. But man alone, among all creatures, in distinction from the involuntary instruments of the Almighty, has a real daily work. He has a definite part to play in life, and can recognize it. And in undertaking it, he becomes a servant of God, does what he should do, and finds enjoyment in God, His works, and His service, and thus gives to his life in time an eternal significance.
3. The order of nature, the gradation of created being, the whole contents of the created universe, afford to men much to meditate upon and to be grateful for. And when they recognize in them Gods working and His disposing power, they are taught by the contemplation of His works many things which lead them beyond the sphere of the visible and sensible to another world. But even the light, by which the dividing of the elements began, and through which we are enabled to become acquainted with and understand the creation, is only the royal mantle of the Divine glory, the shining garment by which we come to know the Invisible, but which veils the Eternal from the eyes of mortals.

4. If any one has a sincere and lively joy in Gods works and, still more, in God Himself, he will also keep near his heart the thought that God can always take delight in the world which He has formed, as He took delight in its creation. But this feeling is disturbed by the reflection that everything in the world is not in accordance with Gods will and to His satisfaction. This justifies the wish that the wicked may disappear. For they not only interfere with the joy and work of God and His servants, but also contradict the design of the creation, and imperil the duration of the order of the world.

HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL

The glory of God in the vastness, beauty, and order of His works.For the light, through which God makes Himself known, there is needed an eye to observe and a mind to interpret it.All things must be disposed according to Gods will, but man must be a willing servant of the Highest, as he is the crown of creation.As we live and continue in being only by the breath and will of God, so must we also work for Him and for His cause, and take delight in Him and His works.God does not merely preserve the world which He has created: He governs it also, and therefore the wicked cannot endure before Him.We are permitted to delight ourselves in the works of God, and enjoy His gifts, but only so that both should be well-pleasing to Him.If we are at the head of the orders of created beings, we should also take the lead in Gods service.The earth is full of the goodness and possessions of the Lord; it is our part to thank Him for this, and to use according to His will what He has bestowed.

Starke: It is to be lamented that the book of Nature is so little read and still less understood.When faith lives and glows in the heart, nothing but praise to God flows from it.To praise God for His own sake, because He is such a great and glorious God, is surely something greater than to praise Him only because of the benefits which He has conferred upon us.The real pillar and foundation on which the world stands is the Omnipotence of God.If God preserves that which is great, can and will He not also preserve thee, O thou of little faith?If the earth stands by the almighty word of God without visible support (Heb 1:3), why should my faith demand visible pillars for its foundation? Why should it not ground itself surely upon the gracious word of truth?The depth of the waters may well suggest to us the depth of our sins, and the great depth also of Gods compassion.He who can place bounds to the raging sea, can still also all the waters and waves of affliction, yes, even check the burning sea of hell.If meat and drink daily renew the vigor of thy life, let them also strengthen thee in the resolution to live to the glory of the Lord.The wisdom and goodness of God are His comforting attributes, of which all creatures preach to men for the confirmation of their faith.If the transitory earth is so full of the good things of God, what will we have when we come to the land of the living?Fish, great and small, sport and play in their element, but as soon as they are brought out of it, they languish and die. Mark, O soul! what thy element is, if thou wouldst live joyful and blessed.Creatures devoid of reason do not know who feeds them, but God knows their wants and their desires, and gives to them richly.The chief design of the worlds creation was the glory of God. Let this be our highest aim in all our actions.If God takes pleasure in His works, beware lest thou misuse any of His creatures for the purposes of sin against Him; and as thou art His noblest creature, aspire to be not displeasing to Him, but well-pleasing in Christ.The desires and thoughts of all believers should ever be directed to the lessening of the number of the ungodly and to their conversion.

Menzel: We can give to God nothing but adoration and praise, that He may have the glory. For all we have is His before He gives it.Renschel: God has created it by His power, His wisdom has assigned its order, His goodness has in it remembered us. Blessed is he who lays that to heart, who ascribes praise and glory to God.Arndt: God acts like a wise father who calls his child to himself. He does not rest with calling us to Himself with such kind and gracious words as the prophets and apostles speak to us. He gives, yea, showers down upon us many good gifts in nature.Tholuck: Food can come to all creatures from no other hand than that from which came their life.Diedrich: He who has created all these things for us, and upholds them so mightily day by day, must have something good besides in store for us. He will give us yet to praise and adore Him without sin and with an overflowing heart.Taube: The greatness of the Creator and Preserver of the world, in the manifestation of His omnipotence, wisdom, and goodness, in the greatest as well as in the least of His works, must be joyfully celebrated by human tongues that are formed for His praise, though a sigh must be uttered over the false notes of sin, which disturb the harmony of the order of creation.

[Matt. Henry: The roaring of the young lions, like the cry of the ravens is interpreted. Doth God put this construction upon the language of mere nature, and shall He not much more interpret favorably the language of grace in His own people, though it be weak and broken groaning which cannot be uttered?There is the work of every day, which is to be done in its day, which man must apply to every morning; for the lights are set up for us to work by and not to play by; and which he must stick to till evening; it will be time enough to rest when the night comes, when no man can work.

Bishop Horne: Let the unruly and disobedient reflect upon the terrors of His power and the terrors of His vengeance, who with a look can shake the earth, and with a touch can fire the mountains, as when He once descended upon Sinai.

Scott: The less we can comprehend the manner in which the Creator retains the earth in its course and the seasons in their order, the more we should admire and adore His power, wisdom, and goodness.

Hengstenberg: In consequence of the numerous works of God which are made according to the necessities of His various creatures, the earth is full of the good things by which He supports them. How should Zion alone starve in the midst of these riches of her God?J. F. M.]

Fuente: A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical by Lange

CONTENTS

This is a divine Psalm, in point of sublimity of thought, as well as devotion. It celebrates, like the former, the glories of God: and probably, though not said to be so, was written by the same hand, as the penman of the Holy Ghost.

Psa 104:1

In the opening of this psalm, I would call upon my soul, as the prophet did on his, to bless Jehovah. And I would desire to have it impressed upon my heart, both in the reading of this scripture, and all others of a like nature, that when Jehovah is blessed and praised, in a review of any of his sovereign acts, whether in creation, providence, or grace, it is Jehovah in his threefold character of person, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost: for as all the persons of the Godhead are in scripture declared to be the joint authors of all these mercies, so are they together properly the united one glorious object of adoration, obedience, love, and praise.

Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

Psa 104

The 104th Psalm was a favourite with Alexander von Humboldt. After speaking in his Cosmos of the exalted views of nature given in the Old Testament, as the living expression of the omnipresence of God in the visible world, he refers specially to this Psalm: ‘We are astonished to find, in a lyrical form of such limited compass, the whole universe, the heavens and the earth, sketched with a few bold touches. The toilsome labour of man, from the rising of the sun to his setting, when his daily work is done, is contrasted with the moving life of the elements of nature. This contrast and generalization of the action of the natural world, and this vision of an omnipresent invisible power which can renew the earth or crumble it to dust, are not so much a glowing and gentle, as a solemn and exalted conception of creation!’ Humboldt names Psa 65:6-13 ; Psa 74:15-17 , as having similar features in softer form.

Verses 19-24 are the Evensong of the Russian Church. J. K.

The Powers of Nature

Psa 104:4

When we survey Almighty God surrounded by His holy angels, His thousand thousands of ministering Spirits, and ten thousand times ten thousand standing before Him, the idea of His awful Majesty rises before us more powerfully and impressively. We begin to see how little we are, how altogether mean and worthless in ourselves, and how high He is, and fearful. The very lowest of His angels is indefinitely above us in this our present state; how high then must be the Lord of angels! The very seraphim hide their faces before His glory while they praise Him; how shamefaced then should sinners be when they come into His presence!

It is a motive to our exertions in doing the will of God to think that, if we attain to heaven, we shall become the fellows of the blessed angels. Indeed, what do we know of the courts of heaven, but as peopled by them? and therefore doubtless they are revealed to us that we may have something to fix our thoughts on when we look heavenwards. Heaven, indeed, is the palace of Almighty God, and of Him doubtless we must think in the first place; and again of His Son our Saviour, who died for us, and who is manifested in the Gospels, in order that we may have something definite to look forward to: for the same cause, surely, the angels also are revealed to us, that heaven may be as little as possible an unknown place in our imaginations.

J. H. Newman.

The Day’s Work

Psa 104:23

I. What are we in the World for? Why are we here and what for? He is a little man in a little world who thinks he can give a complete answer to this question. This mystery is great, but it is plainly the purpose of the mystery to challenge our courage and to lead the human mind onward step by step to the conquest of the unknown. We are here, must it not be? as parts of this great creation, to fill our place in it as faithfully as we can; to contribute to the development of its purpose by bringing our individual life with all its peculiar endowments and opportunities, relations, and interest into correspondence with that purpose; to work in harmony with the power, the wisdom, the goodness which most manifestly pervade the world, and are slowly building it up into strength and beauty.

II. Man’s Creative Power. We are here to share the work of God in creating the world called not only to subdue and control but to create. Creation is not finished but is always proceeding. And in this continuous and never-ceasing work of creation man can help or hinder, develop or retard, the creative purpose and process. The one great teaching of modern knowledge is that not anything above a certain low level of excellence comes by natural law unaided by man. That all best things in the world of nature today are the result of his thought and toil. Man is not only a factor in evolution but an instrument. He has his contribution to make toward the finishing and perfecting of the material universe.

III. Man’s Share in Making Himself. In his own making and saving, in the development of personal faculty and character, man is called to work and to labour until the evening. What he can do for the earth and for the creatures and things which live upon it he can do for himself, fulfil and finish the Creator’s purpose and plan. God makes nothing right away and perfect at once. Like the rest of His work man was left unfinished that man himself might complete what God began. We can do nothing ourselves without cooperation. To an extent practically unlimited we can make or mar ourselves. We cannot be passive recipients of the Divinest blessing of life. The salvation that costs us nothing is worth nothing, an unreal rescue from an unreal danger. God needs our cooperation or He will fail of His saving purpose.

IV. Man’s Share in Christ’s Work. In redeeming the world even more than in creating it God works through men and in human ways. God the Saviour must be helped even more than God the Creator. It is through men God helps and saves men and creates His new heaven and His new earth. They are the hiding-place of His power, and through their hands He reaches forth to save and heal His wandering children.

Theology and Science

Psa 104:24

This Psalm is a beautiful poem on Natural Theology. Natural Theology (by which is meant the knowledge of God to be obtained from the study of nature) was in much worse favour during the first half of the nineteenth century than it has been since. When, however, the science of geology became developed, the system of Natural Theology which has been so popular, received a rude shock. It was shown by the geological records within the rocks, i.e. by the fossils there preserved, that the world instead of being as chronologists had supposed only about 6000 years old, must have existed untold ages, and that instead of the work of creation being confined to six literal days, life has existed upon the earth for many millions of years. The result of this revelation on the part of natural science led many good people to denounce it as being contrary to the revelation in God’s word. For some twenty or thirty years the battle was hot between the theologians and scientists. Of late, however, the noise of battle has grown less loud. We have come to recognize the fact that revelation and nature are two parts of one whole: that both books are written by God Himself: and that He does not contradict in one what He has written in another, but one is the compliment of the other the other part without which it cannot be fully understood. Nature without the Bible is certainly not complete: and the Bible in many respects becomes a much more intelligible book when it is read in the light which a knowledge of nature gives. Let me give an example on both sides.

I. First, on the need of revelation to supplement the teaching of nature. From none of the records in the book of nature do we gain any light whatever on the origin of matter, or of life in the first instance. We see as it were the working of the machinery but do not see or understand the motive power. There must be, as even Mr. Herbert Spencer freely admits, a power behind all the operations of nature, the existence of which the man of science cannot ignore, although he cannot find out by his science what it is. Now here comes in revelation with the explanation which nature does not give. Here God reveals Himself as the Power, the Force, whose existence the man of science admits. He is the first great cause. Here then in the teaching of this book we find the counterpart of nature.

II. Now on the other side, let me give an example of the advantage which the believer in revelation may derive from the study of nature: how it helps us to interpret and to understand the Bible. So far from Scripture and physical science being at variance, we shall find that the two harmonize most perfectly. Just as modern researches into the history of ancient nations such as Assyria, Babylon, Egypt are continually throwing new light upon Bible history and prophetic teaching, so also the researches of our scientific men are constantly helping us better to understand the Scriptures. Instead of warning young people against the study of physical science lest it should lead them to scepticism and agnosticism, I would advise all who can to study nature. Accept the fact that the force, which as Herbert Spencer admits, lies behind all phenomena is the great God; believe that in His infinite mind the conception of nature existed before the facts of nature were wrought out, even as the conception of a piece of machinery exists in the mind of the inventor before it is formed. Study nature in this reasonable spirit, and everywhere you will see more and more clear evidence of the working of an intelligent, omniscient mind; and you will be constrained to say, ‘O Lord, how manifold are Thy works! in wisdom hast Thou made them all: the earth is full of Thy riches’.

S. J. Whitmee, British Weekly Pulpit, p. 217.

References. CIV. 24. W. F. Shaw, Sermon Sketches, p. 30. A. Jessopp, Norwich School Sermons, p. 64. T. Sadler, Sermons for Children, p. 155. G. S. Barrett, Old Testament Outlines, p. 140. C. Kingsley, Village Sermons, p. 1. CIV. 26. J. D. Burns, Christian World Pulpit, 1891, p. 314. Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xxi. No. 1259. CIV. 28. G. A. Sowter, Sowing and Reaping, p. 37. CV 1, 2. B. F. Westcott, Village Sermons, p. 333. CV. 17. H. J. Buxton, God’s Heroes, p. 20. CV. 17-19. G. Trevor, Types and the Antitype, p. 71.

The Spirit of Thanksgiving

Psa 104:28 ; Psa 104:33

The intention of Providence includes a response as well as a gift an appeal or a claim made on us as well as the meeting our appeal. Providence towards mankind requires a personal and kindred return from men. It is not satisfied by some recognition in the way of religious routine, or by men in believing that it is Divine and benevolent. ‘Lord, Lord,’ is not enough. Nothing is enough unless God hears His bounty answered by the Spirit of His Son saying in our hearts, Abba, Father, and unless He receives the service of our redeemed.

I. Life and Duty. Religion is practically two things: Life and Duty. It comes from God as Life. It goes to Him still alive ‘a living sacrifice, acceptable to God, a reasonable service’ as Duty. In the power of the life that it receives it keeps the Commandments, it obeys and tends to sympathize with the Divine purpose and intention. The Spirit of Christ speaking through its heart says, ‘Abba, Father’. The same Spirit, working in its life, does the Father’s will. And so keeping the Commandments it becomes more than a recipient of life and a pensioner on bounty; it ‘enters into life,’ it exercises the citizenship of the kingdom of heaven. How much good there is in the world that seems to miss completion and life because it keeps out of this great vital cycle. God is ceaselessly pouring upon our lives and out of His open hand and yearning heart stimulus and opportunity and cheer. And we only occasionally allow the life that He is giving to go back to him in communion and service. Truth springs from the earth and righteousness looks down from heaven. But the truth sinks back to earth again, failing of contact with that which claims it from above and could alone complete it. On all sides we can see so much that is so good accomplishing so little because it does not go up alive to God repentances that stick fast in the mire; strength that beats the air or builds on sand; sacrifices that are mainly losses; faith that sings no songs. And for this great sad fact of wasted goodness and exhausting effort there is but one sufficient explanation the absence or the lack of life.

II. The Cycle of God’s Providence. Nothing surely can make our lives satisfactory outside the cycle of God’s loving Providence, and nothing can really frustrate them if they be making their true answer to God, uttering their Abba, Father. This is the purpose of our being and of that Father by Providence which works continually to bring us into harmony, communion, fellowship with God. If we will consent to it, and come willingly into its cycle of blessing, nothing can stay us from singing to the Lord. For underneath all our singing will be the gladness of a speech that must for ever make for praise the voice of the Spirit in our hearts, saying Abba, Father.

References. CIV. 30. J. M. Neale, Readings for the Aged (4th Series), p. 122. Ibid. Sermons Preached in Sackville College Chapel, vol. i. p. 382. J. E. Vaux, Sermon Notes (4th Series), p. 62. J. Keble, Sermons for Ascension Day to Trinity Sunday, p. 164. CIV. International Critical Commentary, vol. ii. p. 329. Expositor (2nd Series), vol. i. p. 174.

Fuente: Expositor’s Dictionary of Text by Robertson

Voices of Creation

Psa 104:24-28

This is a great intellect in a contemplative mood. The appreciation of nature is the work of intellect; hence, in proportion as the human mind is cultivated, is nature found to be teeming with instruction and sources of enjoyment. Never, perhaps, was nature more graphically described than in the psalm before us. Facts are here turned into poetry. Divine power is celebrated in strains the most elevated and inspiring, while the exquisite adaptations of nature are indicated with the minuteness and delicacy of the most analytic observation.

The opening reference presents a stroke of true sublimity: the Psalmist describes light as the garment of Deity. He speaks of the heavens being stretched out as a curtain of God making the clouds his chariot and walking upon the wings of the wind; he lays bare the foundations of the earth, and sounds the depths of the great waters looking down the sides of the mountains, he notes the springs gushing in music and beauty he marks the wild ass quenching its thirst, and hears the fowls of heaven singing among the branches he observes the sap circling in the trees of the Lord, and is impressed with the majesty of the noble cedars that adorn the crest of Lebanon; he notes the bird building its nest, the wild goat bounding over the rugged hills, and the feeble coney finding its lodgment in the rock. Having taken this survey, he turns his gaze towards the heavens, and watches the moon as she keeps her seasons, and bursts into rapture as the glory of the setting sun sheds its beams upon his vision and, again reverting to earth, he hears the roar of the lion as he shakes the forest in searching for his prey next he beholds the great deep with its gallant navy, and the dread leviathan! We cannot wonder, therefore, that the amazement and gratitude of the Psalmist should break into the exclamation, “O Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all.”

This world is not unfavourable to moral culture. It has been described as a “vale of tears,” and as a “waste howling wilderness,” and, to some extent, the description is accurate. We must ever remember, however, that our consciousness of guilt has perverted our vision and our taste, and that in proportion as we become godlike, will fresh beauties strike our eye, and new charms challenge our admiration. The Psalmist is holy on a planet which has been cursed, and even through the darkness of the divine frown can see gleamings and blazings of true glory.

All agencies are under the control of an Infinite Intelligence. Speaking of the waters that stood above the mountains, the Psalmist declares, “At thy rebuke they fled; at the voice of thy thunder they hasted away.” In this he asserts the great principle that all forces are under the management of divine wisdom and paternal love. We have the assurance, therefore, that our Father knows every tempest that sweeps through the air notes every dew-drop that quivers on the opening flower and is acquainted with every breeze that stirs the atmosphere. Conscious of this, we may accept without hesitation the exceeding great and precious promise: “He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.” You will observe that God speaks of these with the familiarity of one to whose will they immediately bow.

The divine resources are equal to every exigency. The necessities of nature are endless. In all parts of the universe there are mouths opened, eyes upturned, and hands outstretched. Mouths, eyes, and hands are directed to a central Being, and what is his reply to this million-tongued appeal? Is there hurry or confusion in his palace? Is he surprised by some unexpected exigency? Does he ask the suppliant throngs to pause until the excitement of their appeal has subsided? Nay! Hear the explanation of the Psalmist: “Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing”! Mark the sublime ease which is here indicated. Could that ease have been more significantly expressed? Compare it with the anxiety and fretfulness of man when besieged with numerous appeals! How soon are his resources exhausted! How early does he cry for relief and rest! Yet as the universe takes its seat, so to speak, at the table of the Lord, the divine Benefactor simply opens his hand, and the universe is satisfied!

The divine existence is to constitute the central fact in all our contemplations of the universe. The Psalmist is not content with looking at nature: in the highest sense he “looks through nature up to nature’s God;” hence he opens the psalm with the cry, “Bless the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty.” Having taken a survey of nature, he exclaims, “O Lord, how manifold are thy works!” And, having completed his inspection, he again turns upon his soul, and invokes it to praise the Lord. You hence perceive that God was the central fact in the Psalmist’s contemplations. He never passed into a region whence he was unable to behold the Maker of all! When he looked at light he saw it as the robe of God when he watched the refreshing shower he exclaimed, “he watereth the hills from his chambers” from the fir-trees as the house of the stork, and the rocks as the dwelling of the coney, the Psalmist beholds the palace of the Eternal!

This fact serves three purposes: (1) It disproves the speculations of pantheism. Pantheism teaches the identity of God and nature; but in this psalm we have more than fifty references, by noun or pronoun, to the existence and attributes of a personal agent! Behind all and over all the Psalmist describes a personal power as presiding; he sees, as it were, the mysterious hand that has lighted the countless orbs which shine in the diadem of night; and amid the calm regularity of the universe he hears the sound of the divine “going.” The Psalmist, therefore, distinctly teaches the existence of a Being who is infinitely above the powers and glories of nature, and for whose pleasure they are, and were created.

(2) It undermines the materialistic theory. This theory teaches the non-existence of mind. What we call mind, it denominates a refinement of matter. The entire psalm, however, proclaims and celebrates the presence of Infinite Mind. It sings the honour of a Being who ponders the wants of his creatures, and who has delicately balanced the adaptations of nature and moral existences. Not only so, but every note that breaks from the Psalmist’s inspired tongue proclaims the presence and the capabilities of mind. Regarding the psalm, therefore, as authoritative on the question, the materialistic theory is reduced to an absurdity.

(3) It invests the universe with a mystic sanctity. Everywhere we behold the divine handiwork. As the architect embodies his genius in the stupendous temple or noble mansion, so, as we have repeatedly affirmed, has God materialised his wisdom and power in the physical creation. You hold certain possessions dear on account of the mind which they represent, or the hands which they memorialise, and shall not the child of God appreciate the wonders of creative power, as he realises the fact that they testify to his Father’s wisdom and love? to the Christian the wind becomes sacred, as he remembers that it is written, “he walketh upon the wings of the wind.”

We see, then, in what mood the Psalmist conducted his contemplations of nature. Creation was to his spirit the very gate of heaven. He found an altar everywhere. The world was transformed into a “solemn temple.” He did not walk through the world-museum as a mere utilitarian, though in nature’s sublimest poetry he found the highest moral usefulness. Let us always survey creation with the eye of a Christian: surveying it with such an eye, we shall never fail to realise the most exquisite enjoyment on every hand beauty will appeal to the eye, and in every season music will present her offering to the ear. Loneliness will thus become an impossibility. The mysterious ladder, connecting earth with heaven, will ever be visible. While the ascetic and the misanthrope are breathing dolorous strains, we shall be uttering doxologies of thankfulness while the cheerless mourner is describing earth as a barren desert, and a vale of tears, we shall be gratefully exclaiming,

The principle of dependence is everywhere developed in the universe. This assertion is abundantly sustained by such expressions as: “These wait all upon thee; that thou mayest give them their meat in due season.” “That thou givest them they gather.” “Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled: thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust.” “Thou sendest forth thy Spirit they are created: and thou renewest the face of the earth.” It is thus shown that every natural phenomenon is traceable, directly or indirectly, to the divine purpose or government. The varied natural changes are attributed to the Spirit of the Lord: when the flowers grace the earth, the Psalmist exclaims, “Thou sendest forth thy Spirit, they are created;” and when generations are consigned to the tomb he adds, “Thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust.” The Psalmist, therefore, ignores the presence of “chance,” or “accident;” in his view God is enthroned, and the divine dominion is over all!

We infer, then, First: The existence of an absolutely self-dependent power. Finite conception is totally unequal to the comprehension of such an existence. We have sung

Second: The special mission of each part of the universe. The Psalmist in his wide excursion and minute observation detects nothing that is wanting in purpose. Man alone is failing in the exercise of his true function. All nature proclaims his shame, not by direct reference, but by self-consistency. From the grass-blade to the vastest planet that shines in the firmament there is harmony with the divine will; but in man there is impurity; in his arm rebellion rules! The sun never fails to pour splendour on the worlds which claim him as a centre; but man who is the glory of this lower scene has quenched his light, and now lurks in darkness, because his deeds are evil!

Third: The profound humility by which every intelligence should be characterised. Seeing that we are dependent on God for “life and breath, and all things,” it becometh us to dwell in the dust of humility. There is one question which may well smite human pride, and bring human consciousness to an estimate of man’s actual position, viz.: “What hast thou that thou hast not received?” Men of genius! Ye who boast of your power to rule the mind of multitudes, or betake yourselves into lofty regions, where you can be free from the intrusions of vulgarity; what have you that ye have not received? Your genius never sheds a single ray which is not borrowed from the Infinite Light, nor could it ever exalt you into those sacred realms of enjoyment, except by the power of the Infinite Arm! Men of money! What have you that ye have not received? Remember, that the silver and the gold are God’s, and the cattle upon a thousand hills: the tact, the energy, the forethought, to which you attribute your success, are as truly a divine creation, as is the sun in whose light you conducted your toils. “Every good gift and every perfect gift cometh down from the Father of lights.” It little becomes us, therefore, to assume the airs of arrogancy, or to use the rod of despotism. We are all dependent! Our breath is in our nostrils. The divine will determines the measure of our days; let us, therefore, in genuine humility, conduct the business of life, and prove our Christian discipleship, by reflecting his beauty who was meek and lowly in heart. Our rejoicing is this that we depend on One who cannot fail; on One who has only to open his hand, in order that his creatures may be filled with good: we need entertain no alarm as to the resources which are under God’s control; for when the abundance of the physical universe is exhausted, we have yet in reserve, the unsearchable riches of Christ.

A devout contemplation of the universe is calculated to increase man’s hatred of sin. This is strikingly evident from the concluding language of the Psalmist. Having beheld the symmetry, the adaptation, and the unity of the divine works, he directs his gaze to the moral world, and, beholding its hideous deformity and loathsomeness, he exclaims, “Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more;” as though he had said, “There is one foul blot on this glorious picture; one discordant note in this enrapturing anthem. Let this spot be removed and the picture will be perfect; bring this note into harmony, and the melody will be soul-enthralling!” Have not kindred feelings agitated our own breasts as we have gazed on the landscape, or listened to the “melody of nature’s choir,” or praisefully watched the rising sun, “as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoicing as a strong man to run a race”? Has not a verdict on our species escaped our lips as we have mused on nature’s magnificence, and that verdict assumed the well-known form “only man is vile”? If so, we can sympathise with the Psalmist as he longs for the utter extinction of iniquity. When we cry out: “Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more,” in what sense do we pray for their annihilation? Certainly not as commanding fire from heaven to consume those who obey not the Gospel; nor as praying that God would “stir up all his wrath,” and consign his foes to eternal ruin. God and Christ, reason and mercy, alike forbid! We would consume the sinner by consuming his wickedness. We would terminate the generation of evildoers by expelling iniquity from the moral creation. But can this be done? Is not the extinction of evil a Utopian dream? Nay! Blessed be God, “there is a fountain opened in the house of David for sin and uncleanness;” and again, “the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin”! Christ came to consume the sinner by taking away the sin of the world; and all who exercise faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, having truly repented of sin, become children of light, and heirs of everlasting riches, being brought into harmony with the nature of God.

We conclude with a few words of a directly practical nature: First: God must be the central fact in our being. As he is everywhere influentially visible in creation, so should he be manifest in our daily demeanour. While engaged in the transitory affairs of earth, we should walk as those who “have no continuing city, but seek one to come;” and amid the restlessness of sublunary irritation, we should be fixed on the immovable Rock; the Rock Christ Jesus. “Ye cannot serve God and Mammon;” this declaration we have on the highest authority. Let us, therefore, not squander our time in attempting the experiment, but accept the assurance as an infallible certainty. Let us take this as a fundamental principle, and if it produce its true effect, we shall love the Lord our God, with all our heart, and mind, and strength.

Second: What is the highest relationship we sustain to the Creator? We must, as we have seen, sustain one relationship to God, viz., that of dependant. No spirit, however self-sufficient, can find a region in which he can truthfully affirm “I have no need of God!” But is this the highest relationship which any of us sustain? God forbid! The worm beneath our feet, if gifted with utterance, would say, “I, too, am a dependant.” Has it, then, come to this, that man created in the image and likeness of God, is reduced to the level of the reptile? Are we content to be the mere “pensioners on the bounty of an hour”? We are called to a higher standing: to be the sons and daughters of the Lord Almighty. This lofty privilege we may achieve through the infinite merits of the Saviour’s sacrifice, for “the Son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Third: This beneficent Creator also reveals himself as man’s Saviour. God, through Christ, created the worlds, and through him also he renews the moral creation. We, therefore, worship God in Christ. It is not to the Creator, as such, that the penitent draws near in quest of pardon it is to God as presented in the character and sacrifice of Christ that he directs his application. We revere the God of Nature; may we accept him as the God of our Salvation: we tremble at the power of the Creator; may we repent while beholding the tenderness of Christ. Reverence for the Creator will never save us, for there is no name given among men whereby we can be saved but that of Christ Jesus.

Fourth: The extinction of sin should be the good man’s supreme object. He who converts a sinner from the error of his way, saves a soul from death, and hides a multitude of sins. They that turn many to righteousness shall shine as the stars in the firmament, for ever and ever. It is not for us to make light of sin. We are to regard it as God regards it, and of him it is declared that he cannot behold sin with the least degree of allowance. Let us, by divine grace, aid in the extinction of iniquity. The cry for our help is loud and urgent it rises not only from distant shores, but from the heart of our own country, and every Christian can have no difficulty in interpreting its message into the oft-repeated language “Come up to the help of the Lord, to the help of the Lord against the mighty.”

Prayer

Almighty God, we cannot tell how many are thy mercies; they are continual, they are more than the sands upon the seashore, and the stars are not so many in multitude as are the compassions of the Lord towards the children of men. Thou dost love us: thou didst so love the world as to give thine only begotten Son to save it. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that God loved us; and while we were yet enemies his Son died for us. We cannot understand this: it blinds our reason with an infinite light; we see not why it should have been: we can understand thine anger better than we can comprehend thy love, for we know that we have incurred the one and have not deserved the other. We forget God; we do not retain God in our thoughts: thou art the trouble of our life if not its supreme joy, thou art our hell if not our heaven. Thou knowest the world in which we are placed: behold, thou hast set us herein to dress it and to keep it, and we are idle men. No hireling ever misspent his hours as we have wasted the time thou hast given unto us. We have considered ourselves, we have consulted oracles that would flatter us, we have sought out the lie that would please us most for the passing moment, and we have listened to that lie rather than to the gospel of thy judgment and thy love. It well becometh us, therefore, to shut our eyes in shame, to run away into the darkness of the night, to put our hand upon our mouth and to say, each for himself, “God be merciful unto me a sinner.” This we now say: every heart says it, every soul utters the penitential cry surely thou wilt answer us as with trumpets and mighty voices from heaven, and the angels shall cry unto us that our iniquity is pardoned. We love the Saviour, though we often forget him: deep down in our hearts is a very tender love for his Cross. We can say to him, “Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that we love thee.” Our sins are not greater than our love: our guilt is black, but our love is greater than our guilt. O wondrous mystery of the heart, yet so true. Lord, answer us, not according to the measure of our guilt, but according to the desire and yearning of our life. Amen.

Fuente: The People’s Bible by Joseph Parker

PSALMS

XI

AN INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOK OF PSALMS

According to my usual custom, when taking up the study of a book of the Bible I give at the beginning a list of books as helps to the study of that book. The following books I heartily commend on the Psalms:

1. Sampey’s Syllabus for Old Testament Study . This is especially good on the grouping and outlining of some selected psalms. There are also some valuable suggestions on other features of the book.

2. Kirkpatrick’g commentary, in “Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges,” is an excellent aid in the study of the Psalter.

3. Perowne’s Book of Psalms is a good, scholarly treatise on the Psalms. A special feature of this commentary is the author’s “New Translation” and his notes are very helpful.

4. Spurgeon’s Treasury of David. This is just what the title implies. It is a voluminous, devotional interpretation of the Psalms and helpful to those who have the time for such extensive study of the Psalter.

5. Hengstenburg on the Psalms. This is a fine, scholarly work by one of the greatest of the conservative German scholars.

6. Maclaren on the Psalms, in “The Expositor’s Bible,” is the work of the world’s safest, sanest, and best of all works that have ever been written on the Psalms.

7. Thirtle on the Titles of the Psalms. This is the best on the subject and well worth a careful study.

At this point some definitions are in order. The Hebrew word for psalm means praise. The word in English comes from psalmos , a song of lyrical character, or a song to be sung and accompanied with a lyre. The Psalter is a collection of sacred and inspired songs, composed at different times and by different authors.

The range of time in composition was more than 1,000 years, or from the time of Moses to the time of Ezra. The collection in its present form was arranged probably by Ezra in the fifth century, B.C.

The Jewish classification of Old Testament books was The Law, the Prophets, and the Holy Writings. The Psalms was given the first place in the last group.

They had several names, or titles, of the Psalms. In Hebrew they are called “The Book of Prayers,” or “The Book of Praises.” The Hebrew word thus used means praises. The title of the first two books is found in Psa 72:20 : “The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.” The title of the whole collection of Psalms in the Septuagint is Biblos Psalman which means the “Book of Psalms.” The title in the Alexandrian Codex is Psalterion which is the name of a stringed instrument, and means “The Psalter.”

The derivation of our English words, “psalms,” “psalter,” and “psaltery,” respectively, is as follows:

1. “Psalms” comes from the Greek word, psalmoi, which is also from psallein , which means to play upon a stringed instrument. Therefore the Psalms are songs played upon stringed instruments, and the word here is used to apply to the whole collection.

2. “Psalter” is of the same origin and means the Book of Psalms and refers also to the whole collection.

3. “Psaltery” is from the word psalterion, which means “a harp,” an instrument, supposed to be in the shape of a triangle or like the delta of the Greek alphabet. See Psa 33:2 ; Psa 71:22 ; Psa 81:2 ; Psa 144:9 .

In our collection there are 150 psalms. In the Septuagint there is one extra. It is regarded as being outside the sacred collection and not inspired. The subject of this extra psalm is “David’s victory over Goliath.” The following is a copy of it: I was small among my brethren, And youngest in my father’s house, I used to feed my father’s sheep. My hands made a harp, My fingers fashioned a Psaltery. And who will declare unto my Lord? He is Lord, he it is who heareth. He it was who sent his angel And took me from my father’s sheep, And anointed me with the oil of his anointing. My brethren were goodly and tall, But the Lord took no pleasure in them. I went forth to meet the Philistine. And he cursed me by his idols But I drew the sword from beside him; I beheaded him and removed reproach from the children of Israel.

It will be noted that this psalm does not have the earmarks of an inspired production. There is not found in it the modesty so characteristic of David, but there is here an evident spirit of boasting and self-praise which is foreign to the Spirit of inspiration.

There is a difference in the numbering of the psalms in our version which follows the Hebrew, and the numbering in the Septuagint. Omitting the extra one in the Septuagint, there is no difference as to the total number. Both have 150 and the same subject matter, but they are not divided alike.

The following scheme shows the division according to our version and also the Septuagint: Psalms 1-8 in the Hebrew equal 1-8 in the Septuagint; 9-10 in the Hebrew combine into 9 in the Septuagint; 11-113 in the Hebrew equal 10-112 in the Septuagint; 114-115 in the Hebrew combine into 113 in the Septuagint; 116 in the Hebrew divides into 114-115 in the Septuagint; 117-146 in the Hebrew equal 116-145 in the Septuagint; 147 in the Hebrew divides into 146-147 in the Septuagint; 148-150 in the Hebrew equal 148-150 in the Septuagint.

The arrangement in the Vulgate is the same as the Septuagint. Also some of the older English versions have this arangement. Another difficulty in numbering perplexes an inexperienced student in turning from one version to another, viz: In the Hebrew often the title is verse I, and sometimes the title embraces verses 1-2.

The book divisions of the Psalter are five books, as follows:

Book I, Psalms 1-41 (41 chapters)

Book II, Psalms 42-72 (31 chapters)

Book III, Psalms 73-89 (17 chapters)

Book IV, Psalms 90-106 (17 chapters)

Book V, Psalms 107-150 (44 chapters)

They are marked by an introduction and a doxology. Psalm I forms an introduction to the whole book; Psa 150 is the doxology for the whole book. The introduction and doxology of each book are the first and last psalms of each division, respectively.

There were smaller collections before the final one, as follows:

Books I and II were by David; Book III, by Hezekiah, and Books IV and V, by Ezra.

Certain principles determined the arrangement of the several psalms in the present collection:

1. David is honored with first place, Book I and II, including Psalms 1-72.

2. They are grouped according to the use of the name of God:

(1) Psalms 1-41 are Jehovah psalms;

(2) Psalms 42-83 are Elohim-psalms;

(3) Psalms 84-150 are Jehovah psalms.

3. Book IV is introduced by the psalm of Moses, which is the first psalm written.

4. Some are arranged as companion psalms, for instance, sometimes two, sometimes three, and sometimes more. Examples: Psa 2 and 3; 22, 23, and 24; 113-118.

5. They were arranged for liturgical purposes, which furnished the psalms for special occasions, such as feasts, etc. We may be sure this arrangement was not accidental. An intelligent study of each case is convincing that it was determined upon rational grounds.

All the psalms have titles but thirty-three, as follows:

In Book I, Psa 1 ; Psa 2 ; Psa 10 ; Psa 33 , (4 are without titles).

In Book II, Psa 43 ; Psa 71 , (2 are without titles).

In Book IV, Psa 91 ; Psa 93 ; Psa 94 ; Psa 95 ; Psa 96 ; Psa 97 ; Psa 104 ; Psa 105 ; Psa 106 , (9 are without titles).

In Book V, Psa 107 ; III; 112; 113; 114; 115; 116; 117; 118; 119; 135; 136; 137; 146; 147; 148; 149; 150, (18 are without titles).

The Talmud calls these psalms that have no title, “Orphan Psalms.” The later Jews supply these titles by taking the nearest preceding author. The lack of titles in Psa 1 ; Psa 2 ; and 10 may be accounted for as follows: Psa 1 is a general introduction to the whole collection and Psa 2 was, perhaps, a part of Psa 1 . Psalms 9-10 were formerly combined into one, therefore Psa 10 has the same title as Psa 9 .

QUESTIONS

1. What books are commended on the Psalms?

2. What is a psalm?

3. What is the Psalter?

4. What is the range of time in composition?

5. When and by whom was the collection in its present form arranged?

6. What the Jewish classification of Old Testament books, and what the position of the Psalter in this classification?

7. What is the Hebrew title of the Psalms?

8. Find the title of the first two books from the books themselves.

9. What is the title of the whole collection of psalms in the Septuagint?

10. What is the title in the Alexandrian Codex?

11. What is the derivation of our English word, “Psalms”, “Psalter”, and “Psaltery,” respectively?

12. How many psalms in our collection?

13. How many psalms in the Septuagint?

14. What about the extra one in the Septuagint?

15. What is the subject of this extra psalm?

16. How does it compare with the Canonical Psalms?

17. What is the difference in the numbering of the psalms in our version which follows the Hebrew, and the numbering in the Septuagint?

18. What is the arrangement in the Vulgate?

19. What other difficulty in numbering which perplexes an inexperienced student in turning from one version to another?

20. What are the book divisions of the Psalter and how are these divisions marked?

21. Were there smaller collections before the final one? If so, what were they?

22. What principles determined the arrangement of the several psalms in the present collection?

23. In what conclusion may we rest concerning this arrangement?

24. How many of the psalms have no titles?

25. What does the Talmud call these psalms that have no titles?

26. How do later Jews supply these titles?

27. How do you account for the lack of titles in Psa 1 ; Psa 2 ; Psa 10 ?

XII

AN INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOK OF PSALMS (CONTINUED)

The following is a list of the items of information gathered from the titles of the psalms:

1. The author: “A Psalm of David” (Psa 37 ).

2. The occasion: “When he fled from Absalom, his son” (Psa 3 ).

3. The nature, or character, of the poem:

(1) Maschil, meaning “instruction,” a didactic poem (Psa 42 ).

(2) Michtam, meaning “gold,” “A Golden Psalm”; this means excellence or mystery (Psa 16 ; 56-60).

4. The occasion of its use: “A Psalm of David for the dedication of the house” (Psa 30 ).

5. Its purpose: “A Psalm of David to bring remembrance” (Psa 38 ; Psa 70 ).

6. Direction for its use: “A Psalm of David for the chief musician” (Psa 4 ).

7. The kind of musical instrument:

(1) Neginoth, meaning to strike a chord, as on stringed instruments (Psa 4 ; Psa 61 ).

(2) Nehiloth, meaning to perforate, as a pipe or flute (Psa 5 ).

(3) Shoshannim, Lilies, which refers probably to cymbals (Psa 45 ; Psa 69 ).

8. A special choir:

(1) Sheminith, the “eighth,” or octave below, as a male choir (Psa 6 ; Psa 12 ).

(2) Alamoth, female choir (Psa 46 ).

(3) Muth-labben, music with virgin voice, to be sung by a choir of boys in the treble (Psa 9 ).

9. The keynote, or tune:

(1) Aijeleth-sharar, “Hind of the morning,” a song to the melody of which this is sung (Psa 22 ).

(2) Al-tashheth, “Destroy thou not,” the beginning of a song the tune of which is sung (Psa 57 ; Psa 58 ; Psa 59 ; Psa 75 ).

(3) Gittith, set to the tune of Gath, perhaps a tune which David brought from Gath (Psa 8 ; Psa 81 ; Psa 84 ).

(4) Jonath-elim-rehokim, “The dove of the distant terebinths,” the commencement of an ode to the air of which this song was to be sung (Psa 56 ).

(5) Leannoth, the name of a tune (Psa 88 ).

(6) Mahalath, an instrument (Psa 53 ); Leonnoth-Mahaloth, to chant to a tune called Mahaloth.

(7) Shiggaion, a song or a hymn.

(8) Shushan-Eduth, “Lily of testimony,” a tune (Psa 60 ). Note some examples: (1) “America,” “Shiloh,” “Auld Lang Syne.” These are the names of songs such as we are familiar with; (2) “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” and “There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood,” are examples of sacred hymns.

10. The liturgical use, those noted for the feasts, e.g., the Hallels and Hallelujah Psalms (Psalms 146-150).

11. The destination, as “Song of Ascents” (Psalms 120-134)

12. The direction for the music, such as Selah, which means “Singers, pause”; Higgaion-Selah, to strike a symphony with selah, which means an instrumental interlude (Psa 9:16 ).

The longest and fullest title to any of the psalms is the title to Psa 60 . The items of information from this title are as follows: (1) the author; (2) the chief musician; (3) the historical occasion; (4) the use, or design; (5) the style of poetry; (6) the instrument or style of music.

The parts of these superscriptions which most concern us now are those indicating author, occasion, and date. As to the historic value or trustworthiness of these titles most modern scholars deny that they are a part of the Hebrew text, but the oldest Hebrew text of which we know anything had all of them. This is the text from which the Septuagint was translated. It is much more probable that the author affixed them than later writers. There is no internal evidence in any of the psalms that disproves the correctness of them, but much to confirm. The critics disagree among themselves altogether as to these titles. Hence their testimony cannot consistently be received. Nor can it ever be received until they have at least agreed upon a common ground of opposition.

David is the author of more than half the entire collection, the arrangement of which is as follows:

1. Seventy-three are ascribed to him in the superscriptions.

2. Some of these are but continuations of the preceding ones of a pair, trio, or larger group.

3. Some of the Korahite Psalms are manifestly Davidic.

4. Some not ascribed to him in the titles are attributed to him expressly by New Testament writers.

5. It is not possible to account for some parts of the Psalter without David. The history of his early life as found in Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1and 2 Chronicles, not only shows his remarkable genius for patriotic and sacred songs and music, but also shows his cultivation of that gift in the schools of the prophets. Some of these psalms of the history appear in the Psalter itself. It is plain to all who read these that they are founded on experience, and the experience of no other Hebrew fits the case. These experiences are found in Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles.

As to the attempt of the destructive critics to rob David of his glory in relation to the Psalter by assigning the Maccabean era as the date of composition, I have this to say:

1. This theory has no historical support whatever, and therefore is not to be accepted at all.

2. It has no support in tradition, which weakens the contention of the critics greatly.

3. It has no support from finding any one with the necessary experience for their basis.

4. They can give no reasonable account as to how the titles ever got there.

5. It is psychologically impossible for anyone to have written these 150 psalms in the Maccabean times.

6. Their position is expressly contrary to the testimony of Christ and the apostles. Some of the psalms which they ascribe to the Maccabean Age are attributed to David by Christ himself, who said that David wrote them in the Spirit.

The obvious aim of this criticism and the necessary result if it be Just, is a positive denial of the inspiration of both Testaments.

Other authors are named in the titles, as follows: (1) Asaph, to whom twelve psalms have been assigned: (2) Mosee, Psa 90 ; (3) Solomon, Psa 72 ; Psa 127 ; (4) Heman, Psa 80 ; (5) Ethem, Psa 89 ; (6) A number of the psalms are ascribed to the sons of Korah.

Not all the psalms ascribed to Asaph were composed by one person. History indicates that Asaph’s family presided over the song service for several generations. Some of them were composed by his descendants by the game name. The five general outlines of the whole collection are as follows:

I. By books

1. Psalms 1-41 (41)

2. Psalms 42-72 (31)

3. Psalms 73-89 (17)

4. Psalms 90-106 (17)

5. Psalms 107-150 (44)

II. According to date and authorship

1. The psalm of Moses (Psa 90 )

2. Psalms of David:

(1) The shepherd boy (Psa 8 ; Psa 19 ; Psa 29 ; Psa 23 ).

(2) David when persecuted by Saul (Psa 59 ; Psa 56 ; Psa 34 ; Psa 52 ; Psa 54 ; Psa 57 ; Psa 142 ).

(3) David the King (Psa 101 ; Psa 18 ; Psa 24 ; Psa 2 ; Psa 110 ; Psa 20 ; Psa 20 ; Psa 21 ; Psa 60 ; Psa 51 ; Psa 32 ; Psa 41 ; Psa 55 ; Psa 3:4 ; Psa 64 ; Psa 62 ; Psa 61 ; Psa 27 ).

3. The Asaph Psalms (Psa 50 ; Psa 73 ; Psa 83 ).

4. The Korahite Psalms (Psa 42 ; Psa 43 ; Psa 84 ).

5. The psalms of Solomon (Psa 72 ; Psa 127 ).

6. The psalms of the era of Hezekiah and Isaiah (Psa 46 ; Psa 47 ; Psa 48 )

7. The psalms of the Exile (Psa 74 ; Psa 79 ; Psa 137 ; Psa 102 )

8. The psalms of the Restoration (Psa 85 ; Psa 126 ; Psa 118 ; 146-150)

III. By groups

1. The Jehovistic and Elohistic Psalms:

(1) Psalms 1-41 are Jehovistic;

(2) Psalms 42-83 are Elohistic Psalms;

(3) Psalms 84-150 are Jehovistic.

2. The Penitential Psalms (Psa 6 ; Psa 32 ; Psa 38 ; Psa 51 ; Psa 102 ; Psa 130 ; Psa 143 )

3. The Pilgrim Psalms (Psalms 120-134)

4. The Alphabetical Psalms (Psa 9 ; Psa 10 ; Psa 25 ; Psa 34 ; Psa 37 ; 111:112; Psa 119 ; Psa 145 )

5. The Hallelujah Psalms (Psalms 11-113; 115-117; 146-150; to which may be added Psa 135 ) Psalms 113-118 are called “the Egyptian Hallel”

IV. Doctrines of the Psalms

1. The throne of grace and how to approach it by sacrifice, prayer, and praise.

2. The covenant, the basis of worship.

3. The paradoxical assertions of both innocence & guilt.

4. The pardon of sin and justification.

5. The Messiah.

6. The future life, pro and con.

7. The imprecations.

8. Other doctrines.

V. The New Testament use of the Psalms

1. Direct references and quotations in the New Testament.

2. The allusions to the psalms in the New Testament. Certain experiences of David’s life made very deep impressions on his heart, such as: (1) his peaceful early life; (2) his persecution by Saul; (3) his being crowned king of the people; (4) the bringing up of the ark; (5) his first great sin; (6) Absalom’s rebellion; (7) his second great sin; (8) the great promise made to him in 2Sa 7 ; (9) the feelings of his old age.

We may classify the Davidic Psalms according to these experiences following the order of time, thus:

1. His peaceful early life (Psa 8 ; Psa 19 ; Psa 29 ; Psa 23 )

2. His persecution by Saul (Psa 59 ; Psa 56 ; Psa 34 ; Psa 7 ; Psa 52 ; Psa 120 ; Psa 140 ; Psa 54 ; Psa 57 ; Psa 142 ; Psa 17 ; Psa 18 )

3. Making David King (Psa 27 ; Psa 133 ; Psa 101 )

4. Bringing up the ark (Psa 68 ; Psa 24 ; Psa 132 ; Psa 15 ; Psa 78 ; Psa 96 )

5. His first great sin (Psa 51 ; Psa 32 )

6. Absalom’s rebellion (Psa 41 ; Psa 6 ; Psa 55 ; Psa 109 ; Psa 38 ; Psa 39 ; Psa 3 ; Psa 4 ; Psa 63 ; Psa 42 ; Psa 43 ; Psa 5 ; Psa 62 ; Psa 61 ; Psa 27 )

7. His second great sin (Psa 69 ; Psa 71 ; Psa 102 ; Psa 103 )

8. The great promise made to him in 2Sa 7 (Psa 2 )

9. Feelings of old age (Psa 37 )

The great doctrines of the psalms may be noted as follows: (1) the being and attributes of God; (3) sin, both original and individual; (3) both covenants; (4) the doctrine of justification; (5) concerning the Messiah.

There is a striking analogy between the Pentateuch and the Psalms. The Pentateuch contains five books of law; the Psalms contain five books of heart responses to the law.

It is interesting to note the historic controversies concerning the singing of psalms. These were controversies about singing uninspired songs, in the Middle Ages. The church would not allow anything to be used but psalms.

The history in Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles, and in Ezra and Nehemiah is very valuable toward a proper interpretation of the psalms. These books furnish the historical setting for a great many of the psalms which is very indispensable to their proper interpretation.

Professor James Robertson, in the Poetry and Religion of the Psalms constructs a broad and strong argument in favor of the Davidic Psalms, as follows:

1. The age of David furnished promising soil for the growth of poetry.

2. David’s qualifications for composing the psalms make it highly probable that David is the author of the psalms ascribed to him.

3. The arguments against the possibility of ascribing to David any of the hymns in the Hebrew Psalter rests upon assumptions that are thoroughly antibiblical.

The New Testament makes large use of the psalms and we learn much as to their importance in teaching. There are seventy direct quotations in the New Testament from this book, from which we learn that the Scriptures were used extensively in accord with 2Ti 3:16-17 . There are also eleven references to the psalms in the New Testament from which we learn that the New Testament writers were thoroughly imbued with the spirit and teaching of the psalms. Then there are eight allusions ‘to this book in the New Testament from which we gather that the Psalms was one of the divisions of the Old Testament and that they were used in the early church.

QUESTIONS

1. Give a list of the items of information gathered from the titles of the psalms.

2. What is the longest title to any of the psalms and what the items of this title?

3. What parts of these superscriptions most concern us now?

4. What is the historic value, or trustworthiness of these titles?

5. State the argument showing David’s relation to the psalms.

6. What have you to say of the attempt of the destructive critics to rob David of his glory in relation to the Psalter by assigning the Maccabean era as the date of composition?

7. What the obvious aim of this criticism and the necessary result, if it be just?

8. What other authors are named in the titles?

9. Were all the psalms ascribed to Asaph composed by one person?

10. Give the five general outlines of the whole collection, as follows: I. The outline by books II. The outline according to date and authorship III. The outline by groups IV. The outline of doctrines V. The outline by New Testament quotations or allusions.

11. What experiences of David’s life made very deep impressions on his heart?

12. Classify the Davidic Psalms according to these experiences following the order of time.

13. What the great doctrines of the psalms?

14. What analogy between the Pentateuch and the Psalms?

15. What historic controversies concerning the singing of psalms?

16. Of what value is the history in Samuel, 1 Kings and 2 Chronicles, and in Ezra and Nehemiah toward a proper interpretation of the psalms?

17. Give Professor James Robertson’s argument in favor of the Davidic authorship of the psalms.

18. What can you say of the New Testament use of the psalms and what do we learn as to their importance in teaching?

19. What can you say of the New Testament references to the psalms, and from the New Testament references what the impression on the New Testament writers?

20. What can you say of the allusions to the psalms in the New Testament?

XVII

THE MESSIAH IN THE PSALMS

A fine text for this chapter is as follows: “All things must be fulfilled which were written in the Psalms concerning me,” Luk 24:44 . I know of no better way to close my brief treatise on the Psalms than to discuss the subject of the Messiah as revealed in this book.

Attention has been called to the threefold division of the Old Testament cited by our Lord, namely, the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms (Luk 24:44 ), in all of which were the prophecies relating to himself that “must be fulfilled.” It has been shown just what Old Testament books belong to each of these several divisions. The division called the Psalms included many books, styled Holy Writings, and because the Psalms proper was the first book of the division it gave the name to the whole division.

The object of this discussion is to sketch the psalmist’s outline of the Messiah, or rather, to show how nearly a complete picture of our Lord is foredrawn in this one book. Let us understand however with Paul, that all prophecy is but in part (1Co 13:9 ), and that when we fill in on one canvas all the prophecies concerning the Messiah of all the Old Testament divisions, we are far from having a perfect portrait of our Lord. The present purpose is limited to three things:

1. What the book of the Psalms teaches concerning the Messiah.

2. That the New Testament shall authoritatively specify and expound this teaching.

3. That the many messianic predictions scattered over the book and the specifications thereof over the New Testament may be grouped into an orderly analysis, so that by the adjustment of the scattered parts we may have before us a picture of our Lord as foreseen by the psalmists.

In allowing the New Testament to authoritatively specify and expound the predictive features of the book, I am not unmindful of what the so-called “higher critics” urge against the New Testament quotations from the Old Testament and the use made of them. In this discussion, however, these objections are not considered, for sufficient reasons. There is not space for it. Even at the risk of being misjudged I must just now summarily pass all these objections, dismissing them with a single statement upon which the reader may place his own estimate of value. That statement is that in the days of my own infidelity, before this old method of criticism had its new name, I was quite familiar with the most and certainly the strongest of the objections now classified as higher criticism, and have since patiently re-examined them in their widely conflicting restatements under their modern name, and find my faith in the New Testament method of dealing with the Old Testament in no way shattered, but in every way confirmed. God is his own interpreter. The Old Testament as we now have it was in the hands of our Lord. I understand his apostle to declare, substantially, that “every one of these sacred scriptures is God-inspired and is profitable for teaching us what is right to believe and to do, for convincing us what is wrong in faith or practice, for rectifying the wrong when done, that we may be ready at every point, furnished completely, to do every good work, at the right time, in the right manner, and from the proper motive” (2Ti 3:16-17 ).

This New Testament declares that David was a prophet (Act 2:30 ), that he spake by the Holy Spirit (Act 1:16 ), that when the book speaks the Holy Spirit speaks (Heb 3:7 ), and that all its predictive utterances, as sacred Scripture, “must be fulfilled” (Joh 13:18 ; Act 1:16 ). It is not claimed that David wrote all the psalms, but that all are inspired, and that as he was the chief author, the book goes by his name.

It would be a fine thing to make out two lists, as follows:

1. All of the 150 psalms in order from which the New Testament quotes with messianic application.

2. The New Testament quotations, book by book, i.e., Matthew so many, and then the other books in their order.

We would find in neither of these any order as to time, that is, Psa 1 which forecasts an incident in the coming Messiah’s life does not forecast the first incident of his life. And even the New Testament citations are not in exact order as to time and incident of his life. To get the messianic picture before us, therefore, we must put the scattered parts together in their due relation and order, and so construct our own analysis. That is the prime object of this discussion. It is not claimed that the analysis now presented is perfect. It is too much the result of hasty, offhand work by an exceedingly busy man. It will serve, however, as a temporary working model, which any one may subsequently improve. We come at once to the psalmist’s outline of the Messiah.

1. The necessity for a Saviour. This foreseen necessity is a background of the psalmists’ portrait of the Messiah. The necessity consists in (1) man’s sinfulness; (2) his sin; (3) his inability of wisdom and power to recover himself; (4) the insufficiency of legal, typical sacrifices in securing atonement.

The predicate of Paul’s great argument on justification by faith is the universal depravity and guilt of man. He is everywhere corrupt in nature; everywhere an actual transgressor; everywhere under condemnation. But the scriptural proofs of this depravity and sin the apostle draws mainly from the book of the Psalms. In one paragraph of the letter to the Romans (Rom 3:4-18 ), he cites and groups six passages from six divisions of the Psalms (Psa 5:9 ; Psa 10:7 ; Psa 14:1-3 ; Psa 36:1 ; Psa 51:4-6 ; Psa 140:3 ). These passages abundantly prove man’s sinfulness, or natural depravity, and his universal practice of sin.

The predicate also of the same apostle’s great argument for revelation and salvation by a Redeemer is man’s inability of wisdom and power to re-establish communion with God. In one of his letters to the Corinthians he thus commences his argument: “For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this world? Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? -For after that in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preach-ing to save them that believe.” He closes this discussion with the broad proposition: “The wisdom of this world is foolishness with God,” and proves it by a citation from Psa 94:11 : “The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain.”

In like manner our Lord himself pours scorn on human wisdom and strength by twice citing Psa 8 : “At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent and hast revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight” (Mat 11:25-26 ). “And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children that were crying in the temple and saying, Hosanna to the Son of David; they were sore displeased, and said unto him, Hearest thou what these say? And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?” (Mat 21:15-16 ).

But the necessity for a Saviour as foreseen by the psalmist did not stop at man’s depravity, sin, and helplessness. The Jews were trusting in the sacrifices of their law offered on the smoking altar. The inherent weakness of these offerings, their lack of intrinsic merit, their ultimate abolition, their complete fulfilment and supercession by a glorious antitype were foreseen and foreshown in this wonderful prophetic book: I will not reprove thee for thy sacrifices; And thy burnt offerings are continually before me. I will take no bullock out of thy house, Nor he-goat out of thy folds. For every beast of the forest is mine, And the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all of the birds of the mountains; And the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee; For the world is mine, and the fulness thereof. Will I eat the flesh of bulls, Or drink the blood of goats? Psa 50:8-13 .

Yet again it speaks in that more striking passage cited in the letter to the Hebrews: “For the law having a shadow of good things to come, not the very image of the things, can never with the same sacrifices year by year, which they offer continually, make the comers thereunto perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshipers, once purged should have no more consciousness of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance made of sins year by year. For it is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sins. Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldst not, But a body didst thou prepare for me; In whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hadst no pleasure: Then said I, Lo, I am come (In the roll of the book it is written of me) To do thy will, O God. Saying above, Sacrifice and offering and whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou wouldst not, neither hadst pleasure therein, (the which are offered according to the law), then hath he said, Lo, I am come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second” (Heb 10:1-9 ).

This keen foresight of the temporary character and intrinsic worthlessness of animal sacrifices anticipated similar utterances by the later prophets (Isa 1:10-17 ; Jer 6:20 ; Jer 7:21-23 ; Hos 6:6 ; Amo 5:21 ; Mic 6:6-8 ). Indeed, I may as well state in passing that when the apostle declares, “It is impossible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins,” he lays down a broad principle, just as applicable to baptism and the Lord’s Supper. With reverence I state the principle: Not even God himself by mere appointment can vest in any ordinance, itself lacking intrinsic merit, the power to take away sin. There can be, therefore, in the nature of the case, no sacramental salvation. This would destroy the justice of God in order to exalt his mercy. Clearly the psalmist foresaw that “truth and mercy must meet together” before “righteousness and peace could kiss each other” (Psa 85:10 ). Thus we find as the dark background of the psalmists’ luminous portrait of the Messiah, the necessity for a Saviour.

2. The nature, extent, and blessedness of the salvation to be wrought by the coming Messiah. In no other prophetic book are the nature, fullness, and blessedness of salvation so clearly seen and so vividly portrayed. Besides others not now enumerated, certainly the psalmists clearly forecast four great elements of salvation:

(1) An atoning sacrifice of intrinsic merit offered once for all (Psa 40:6-8 ; Heb 10:4-10 ).

(2) Regeneration itself consisting of cleansing, renewal, and justification. We hear his impassioned statement of the necessity of regeneration: “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts,” followed by his earnest prayer: “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me,” and his equally fervent petition: “Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. Purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean; wash me and I shall be whiter than snow” (Psa 51 ). And we hear him again as Paul describes the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputes righteousness without works, saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, And whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not reckon sin Psa 32:1 ; Rom 4:6-8 .

(3) Introduction into the heavenly rest (Psa 95:7-11 ; Heb 3:7-19 ; Heb 4:1-11 ). Here is the antitypical Joshua leading spiritual Israel across the Jordan of death into the heavenly Canaan, the eternal rest that remaineth for the people of God. Here we find creation’s original sabbath eclipsed by redemption’s greater sabbath when the Redeemer “entered his rest, ceasing from his own works as God did from his.”

(4) The recovery of all the universal dominion lost by the first Adam and the securement of all possible dominion which the first Adam never attained (Psa 8:5-6 ; Eph 1:20-22 ; Heb 2:7-9 ; 1Co 15:24-28 ).

What vast extent then and what blessedness in the salvation foreseen by the psalmists, and to be wrought by the Messiah. Atoning sacrifice of intrinsic merit; regeneration by the Holy Spirit; heavenly rest as an eternal inheritance; and universal dominion shared with Christ!

3. The wondrous person of the Messiah in his dual nature, divine and human.

(1) His divinity,

(a) as God: “Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever” (Psa 45:6 and Heb 1:8 ) ;

(b) as creator of the heavens and earth, immutable and eternal: Of old didst thou lay the foundation of the earth; And the heavens are the work of thy hands. They shall perish, but thou shalt endure; Yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment; As a vesture shalt thou change them, and they shall be changed. But thou art the same, And thy years shall have no end Psa 102:25-27 quoted with slight changes in Heb 1:10-12 .

(c) As owner of the earth: The earth is the Lord’s and the fulness thereof; The world, and they that dwell therein, Psa 24:1 quoted in 1Co 10:26 .

(d) As the Son of God: “Thou art my Son; This day have I begotten thee” Psa 2:7 ; Heb 1:5 .

(e) As David’s Lord: The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, Until I make thine enemies thy footstool, Psa 110:1 ; Mat 22:41-46 .

(f) As the object of angelic worship: “And let all the angels of God worship him” Psa 97:7 ; Heb 1:6 .

(g) As the Bread of life: And he rained down manna upon them to eat, And gave them food from heaven Psa 78:24 ; interpreted in Joh 6:31-58 . These are but samples which ascribe deity to the Messiah of the psalmists.

(2) His humanity, (a) As the Son of man, or Son of Adam: Psa 8:4-6 , cited in 1Co 15:24-28 ; Eph 1:20-22 ; Heb 2:7-9 . Compare Luke’s genealogy, Luk 3:23-38 . This is the ideal man, or Second Adam, who regains Paradise Lost, who recovers race dominion, in whose image all his spiritual lineage is begotten. 1Co 15:45-49 . (b) As the Son of David: Psa 18:50 ; Psa 89:4 ; Psa 89:29 ; Psa 89:36 ; Psa 132:11 , cited in Luk 1:32 ; Act 13:22-23 ; Rom 1:3 ; 2Ti 2:8 . Perhaps a better statement of the psalmists’ vision of the wonderful person of the Messiah would be: He saw the uncreated Son, the second person of the trinity, in counsel and compact with the Father, arranging in eternity for the salvation of men: Psa 40:6-8 ; Heb 10:5-7 . Then he saw this Holy One stoop to be the Son of man: Psa 8:4-6 ; Heb 2:7-9 . Then he was the son of David, and then he saw him rise again to be the Son of God: Psa 2:7 ; Rom 1:3-4 .

4. His offices.

(1) As the one atoning sacrifice (Psa 40:6-8 ; Heb 10:5-7 ).

(2) As the great Prophet, or Preacher (Psa 40:9-10 ; Psa 22:22 ; Heb 2:12 ). Even the method of his teaching by parable was foreseen (Psa 78:2 ; Mat 13:35 ). Equally also the grace, wisdom, and power of his teaching. When the psalmist declares that “Grace is poured into thy lips” (Psa 45:2 ), we need not be startled when we read that all the doctors in the Temple who heard him when only a boy “were astonished at his understanding and answers” (Luk 2:47 ); nor that his home people at Nazareth “all bear him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth” (Luk 4:22 ); nor that those of his own country were astonished, and said, “Whence hath this man this wisdom?” (Mat 13:54 ); nor that the Jews in the Temple marveled, saying, “How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?” (Joh 7:15 ) ; nor that the stern officers of the law found their justification in failure to arrest him in the declaration, “Never man spake like this man” (Joh 7:46 ).

(3) As the king (Psa 2:6 ; Psa 24:7-10 ; Psa 45:1-17 ; Psa 110:1 ; Mat 22:42-46 ; Act 2:33-36 ; 1Co 15:25 ; Eph 1:20 ; Heb 1:13 ).

(4) As the priest (Psa 110:4 ; Heb 5:5-10 ; Heb 7:1-21 ; Heb 10:12-14 ).

(5) As the final judge. The very sentence of expulsion pronounced upon the finally impenitent by the great judge (Mat 25:41 ) is borrowed from the psalmist’s prophetic words (Psa 6:8 ).

5. Incidents of life. The psalmists not only foresaw the necessity for a Saviour; the nature, extent, and blessedness of the salvation; the wonderful human-divine person of the Saviour; the offices to be filled by him in the work of salvation, but also many thrilling details of his work in life, death, resurrection, and exaltation. It is not assumed to cite all these details, but some of the most important are enumerated in order, thus:

(1) The visit, adoration, and gifts of the Magi recorded in Mat 2 are but partial fulfilment of Psa 72:9-10 .

(2) The scripture employed by Satan in the temptation of our Lord (Luk 4:10-11 ) was cited from Psa 91:11-12 and its pertinency not denied.

(3) In accounting for his intense earnestness and the apparently extreme measures adopted by our Lord in his first purification of the Temple (Joh 2:17 ), he cites the messianic zeal predicted in Psa 69:9 .

(4) Alienation from his own family was one of the saddest trials of our Lord’s earthly life. They are slow to understand his mission and to enter into sympathy with him. His self-abnegation and exhaustive toil were regarded by them as evidences of mental aberration, and it seems at one time they were ready to resort to forcible restraint of his freedom) virtually what in our time would be called arrest under a writ of lunacy. While at the last his half-brothers became distinguished preachers of his gospel, for a long while they do not believe on him. And the evidence forces us to the conclusion that his own mother shared with her other sons, in kind though not in degree, the misunderstanding of the supremacy of his mission over family relations. The New Testament record speaks for itself:

Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I sought thee sorrowing. And he said unto them. How is it that ye sought me? Knew ye not that I must be in my Father’s house? And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them Luk 2:48-51 (R.V.).

And when the wine failed, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. And Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? Mine hour is not yet come. Joh 2:3-5 (R.V.).

And there come his mother and his brethren; and standing without; they sent unto him, calling him. And a multitude was sitting about him; and they say unto him. Behold, thy mother and thy brethren without seek for thee. And he answereth them, and saith, Who is my mother and my brethren? And looking round on them that sat round about him, he saith, Behold, my mother and my brethren) For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother Mar 3:31-35 (R.V.).

Now the feast of the Jews, the feast of tabernacles, was at hand. His brethren therefore said unto him, Depart hence, and go into Judea, that thy disciples also may behold thy works which thou doest. For no man doeth anything in secret, and himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou doest these things, manifest thyself to the world. For even his brethren did not believe on him. Jesus therefore saith unto them, My time is not yet come; but your time is always ready. The world cannot hate you; but me it hateth, because I testify of it, that its works are evil. Go ye up unto the feast: I go not up yet unto this feast; because my time is not fulfilled. Joh 7:2-9 (R.V.).

These citations from the Revised Version tell their own story. But all that sad story is foreshown in the prophetic psalms. For example: I am become a stranger unto my brethren, And an alien unto my mother’s children. Psa 69:8 .

(5) The triumphal entry into Jerusalem was welcomed by a joyous people shouting a benediction from Psa 118:26 : “Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord” (Mat 21:9 ); and the Lord’s lamentation over Jerusalem predicts continued desolation and banishment from his sight until the Jews are ready to repeat that benediction (Mat 23:39 ).

(6) The children’s hosanna in the Temple after its second purgation is declared by our Lord to be a fulfilment of that perfect praise forecast in Psa 8:2 .

(7) The final rejection of our Lord by his own people was also clear in the psalmist’s vision (Psa 118:22 ; Mat 21:42-44 ).

(8) Gethsemane’s baptism of suffering, with its strong crying and tears and prayers was as clear to the psalmist’s prophetic vision as to the evangelist and apostle after it became history (Psa 69:1-4 ; Psa 69:13-20 ; and Mat 26:36-44 ; Heb 5:7 ).

(9) In life-size also before the psalmist was the betrayer of Christ and his doom (Psa 41:9 ; Psa 69:25 ; Psa 109:6-8 ; Joh 13:18 ; Act 1:20 ).

(10) The rage of the people, Jew and Gentile, and the conspiracy of Pilate and Herod are clearly outlined (Psa 2:1-3 ; Act 4:25-27 ).

(11) All the farce of his trial the false accusation, his own marvelous silence; and the inhuman maltreatment to which he was subjected, is foreshown in the prophecy as dramatically as in the history (Mat 26:57-68 ; Mat 27:26-31 ; Psa 27:12 ; Psa 35:15-16 ; Psa 38:3 ; Psa 69:19 ).

The circumstances of his death, many and clear, are distinctly foreseen. He died in the prime of life (Psa 89:45 ; Psa 102:23-24 ). He died by crucifixion (Psa 22:14-17 ; Luk 23 ; 33; Joh 19:23-37 ; Joh 20:27 ). But yet not a bone of his body was broken (Psa 34:20 ; Joh 19:36 ).

The persecution, hatred without a cause, the mockery and insults, are all vividly and dramatically foretold (Psa 22:6-13 ; Psa 35:7 ; Psa 35:12 ; Psa 35:15 ; Psa 35:21 ; Psa 109:25 ).

The parting of his garments and the gambling for his vesture (Psa 22:18 ; Mat 27:35 ).

His intense thirst and the gall and vinegar offered for his drink (Psa 69:21 ; Mat 27:34 ).

In the psalms, too, we hear his prayers for his enemies so remarkably fulfilled in fact (Psa 109:4 ; Luk 23:34 ).

His spiritual death was also before the eye of the psalmist, and the very words which expressed it the psalmist heard. Separation from the Father is spiritual death. The sinner’s substitute must die the sinner’s death, death physical, i.e., separation of soul from body; death spiritual, i.e., separation of the soul from God. The latter is the real death and must precede the former. This death the substitute died when he cried out: “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me.” (Psa 22:1 ; Mat 27:46 ).

Emerging from the darkness of that death, which was the hour of the prince of darkness, the psalmist heard him commend his spirit to the Father (Psa_31:35; Luk 23:46 ) showing that while he died the spiritual death, his soul was not permanently abandoned unto hell (Psa 16:8-10 ; Act 2:25 ) so that while he “tasted death” for every man it was not permanent death (Heb 2:9 ).

With equal clearness the psalmist foresaw his resurrection, his triumph over death and hell, his glorious ascension into heaven, and his exaltation at the right hand of God as King of kings and Lord of lords, as a high Driest forever, as invested with universal sovereignty (Psa 16:8-11 ; Psa 24:7-10 ; Psa 68:18 ; Psa 2:6 ; Psa 111:1-4 ; Psa 8:4-6 ; Act 2:25-36 ; Eph 1:19-23 ; Eph 4:8-10 ).

We see, therefore, brethren, when the scattered parts are put together and adjusted, how nearly complete a portrait of our Lord is put upon the prophetic canvas by this inspired limner, the sweet singer of Israel.

QUESTIONS

1. What is a good text for this chapter?

2. What is the threefold division of the Old Testament as cited by our Lord?

3. What is the last division called and why?

4. What is the object of the discussion in this chapter?

5. To what three things is the purpose limited?

6. What especially qualifies the author to meet the objections of the higher critics to allowing the New Testament usage of the Old Testament to determine its meaning and application?

7. What is the author’s conviction relative to the Scriptures?

8. What is the New Testament testimony on the question of inspiration?

9. What is the author’s suggested plan of approach to the study of the Messiah in the Psalms?

10. What the background of the Psalmist’s portrait of the Messiah and of what does it consist?

11. Give the substance of Paul’s discussion of man’s sinfulness.

12. What is the teaching of Jesus on this point?

13. What is the teaching relative to sacrifices?

14. What the nature, extent, and blessedness of the salvation to be wrought by the coming Messiah and what the four great elements of it as forecast by the psalmist?

15. What is the teaching of the psalms relative to the wondrous person of the Messiah? Discuss.

16. What are the offices of the Messiah according to psalms? Discuss each.

17. Cite the more important events of the Messiah’s life according to the vision of the psalmist.

18. What the circumstances of the Messiah’s death and resurrection as foreseen by the psalmist?

Fuente: B.H. Carroll’s An Interpretation of the English Bible

Psa 104:1 Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty.

Ver. 1. Bless the Lord, O my soul ] This was much in David’s mouth, as Deo gratias was in Austin’s. See Psa 103:1 ; Psa 103:22 , after which this psalm is fitly set. There he blesseth God for his benefits to himself and the whole Church; here, for his works of creation and government common to the whole world. The Greek and Latin translations prefix this title, David de generatione Mundi. , Continet opera Bereshith, saith Kimchi. It is of the same subject with the first chapter of Genesis, the first five days’ works are here after a sort considered and celebrated, as a mirror wherein God’s majesty may be clearly discerned. This psalm is by some called David’s natural theology.

Thou art very great ] Non molis dimensione, sed virtutis et rerum gestarum gloria, Thou hast made thee a great name by thy works of wonder.

Thou art clothed with honour and majesty ] i.e. With thy creatures, which are as a garment, both to hide thee in one respect, and to hold thee forth in another, to be seen.

Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

This is the connected and dependent outburst of praise, with a similar beginning (“of David” excepted), and here therefore in due place. The theme is Jehovah supreme over creation, the chiefdom in Col 1:15 asserted of Christ and this on evident and conclusive ground, because by (, in virtue of) Him were created all things ( . the universe), those in the heavens and those on the earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones, etc. The whole of them has been created through Him and for Him; and He is before all things; and the universe by Him subsists together. As the preceding psalm celebrated what Jehovah-Messiah is to Israel, from the individual widening out and upward, so this definitely views creation blessed after long bondage and growing vanity through sin, but now delivered through the Second man. So the scriptures show, when sinners shall be consumed out of the earth and wicked persons be no more. This result rationalism deprecates irreverently and unintelligently as “a glow of passion.” For man, not God, fills the unbelieving mind to the exclusion of His glory. But in the end of the age the darnel shall be rooted out, instead of growing together with the wheat as now. And this is meet and due to God: even those punished will own it vainly for their lot in that day.

This book closes with the next two psalms which are an evidently antithetical pair, each by a different route tending, and contributing, to the end of Jehovah, His mercy in saving Israel to His own praise.

Fuente: William Kelly Major Works (New Testament)

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Psa 104:1-4

1Bless the Lord, O my soul!

O Lord my God, You are very great;

You are clothed with splendor and majesty,

2Covering Yourself with light as with a cloak,

Stretching out heaven like a tent curtain.

3He lays the beams of His upper chambers in the waters;

He makes the clouds His chariot;

He walks upon the wings of the wind;

4He makes the winds His messengers,

Flaming fire His ministers.

Psa 104:1 Bless the Lord, O my soul This is the way that both Psalms 103, 104 begin and end (i.e., Piel imperatives). It is a praise to YHWH from the totality of His highest creation (humans, cf. Gen 1:26-27).

O Lord my God, You are. . . Psa 104:1 has two perfects describing God, followed by seven participles describing His actions.

1. You are very great – BDB 152, KB 178, Qal perfect, cf Deu 3:24; 2Sa 7:22; 1Ch 16:25; Psa 35:27; Psa 40:16; Psa 48:1; Psa 70:4; Psa 86:10; Psa 96:4; Psa 145:3; Mal 1:5

2. You are clothed – BDB 527, KB 519, Qal perfect

a. splendor (BDB 217, Job 40:10; Psa 96:6)

b. majesty (BDB 214, Psa 93:1)

Psalm 104 2-4 lists His activities in initial creation of the heavenly realm.

1. He covers Himself with light – BDB 741, KB 813, Qal participle, cf. Psa 36:9; Dan 2:22; 1Ti 6:16; Jas 1:17; 1Jn 1:5

2. He stretches out the heaven – BDB 639, KB 692, Qal participle, cf. Job 9:8; Job 37:18; Isa 40:22; Isa 42:5; Isa 45:12; Jer 10:12; Zec 12:1

3. he lays the beams of His upper chambers – BDB 900, KB 1138, Piel participle

4. He makes the clouds His chariot – BDB 962, KB 1321, Qal participle

5. He walks upon the wings of the wind – BDB 229, KB 246, Piel participle, cf. 2Sa 22:11; Psa 18:10

6. He makes the wind His messenger – BDB 793, KB 889, Qal participle

7. He makes flaming fire His ministers – verb from #6 assumed

a. flaming fire – BDB 529, KB 521, Qal participle

b. ministers – BDB 1058, KB 1661, Piel participle

Psa 104:2 Covering Yourself with light Because elsewhere in the Psalms the allusion is to Genesis 1, one wants to see this as referring to Gen 1:3-5, but notice it is God Himself who is being described, not a formless and void earth.

Light is a recurrent biblical theme of truth, healing, revelation, and goodness. God wears it and speaks it into our world!

like a tent curtain This is a common ancient Middle Eastern concept (cf. Isa 42:5; Job 9:8; Psa 104:2; Jer 10:12; Jer 51:15; Zec 12:1). In the Egyptian Book of the Dead, heaven is described as a skin. In the Rig Veda, heaven is described as stretched out like a hide. This is simply a metaphorical way of speaking of the vault of the heaven (i.e., the atmosphere of this planet) above the earth. It is the language of metaphor.

Psa 104:3 a This speaks of pillars sitting on the bedrock of the earth (cf. Psa 24:2; Psa 104:5; Job 38:4), upon which the heavens (i.e., atmosphere where moisture is stored) rest (cf. Amo 9:6).

However, this verse could also refer to pillars founded on the waters of the heavens (i.e., atmosphere, cf. Gen 1:7). The imagery is ambiguous, and not to be taken literally. Please read my commentary on Genesis 1-11 online for the genre of Genesis 1-11 at www.freebiblecommentary.org.

At this place in the discussion of YHWH creating His palace/temple above the waters of the atmosphere, I would like to mention a new book by John Walton, The Lost World of Genesis One, which has been so helpful to me in interpreting Genesis 1. He asserts that Genesis 1 is an ANE account of YHWH building His cosmic temple (cf. Heb 8:2; Heb 8:5; Heb 9:23-24). I think this text also speaks of that.

The AB suggests a connection with the verb (BDB 900, KB 1138) and storehouse (p. 34), and translates the line as who stored with water his upper chambers. Note Job 37:9 as a possible parallel (i.e., chamber); also note Job 38:22.

He makes the clouds His chariot The Septuagint makes this refer to angelic spirits and this is followed by Heb 1:7, but in context the Hebrew language almost demands that these are simply natural elements that God uses and controls for His own purposes (cf. Isa 19:1). The word wind, in both Hebrew and Greek, can refer to wind, breath, or spirit. See SPECIAL TOPIC: BREATH, WIND, SPIRIT .

Clouds are the traditional means of the transportation of deity (cf. Dan 7:13; Mat 24:30; Mat 26:64; Act 1:9-11; Rev 1:7). The image calls to remembrance the Shekinah cloud of the OT exodus experience (cf. Exo 13:21-22; Exo 14:19-20; Exo 14:24; Exo 16:10; Exo 19:9; Exo 19:16; Exo 24:15-16; Exo 24:18; Exo 34:5; Exo 40:34-38), which symbolizes God’s presence with His people.

He walks upon the wings of the wind See note online at Psa 18:10.

Psa 104:4 Physical creation (i.e., wind and fire, cf. Psa 148:8) is YHWH’s servant (cf. LXX, quoted in Heb 1:7, personifies the physical aspects into servants). This verse does not, in context, refer to natural revelation (cf. Psa 19:1-6), but YHWH’s intimacy with His physical creation, especially this planet. C. S. Lewis called earth, the touched planet.

The UBS Handbook (p. 879) has a good pictorial depiction of the ancient Hebrew imagery of the layers of this planet.

1. heaven above (God’s dwelling place)

2. water

3. firmament (hard dome with windows, cf. Psa 78:23; Mal 3:10)

4. atmosphere (clouds, birds)

5. pillars that support the heavens (cf. Psa 104:3)

6. earth (flat)

7. pillars of the earth in the deep (cf. 1Sa 2:8; Psa 75:3)

8. Sheol under the earth

See Contextual Insights B. #4.

fire See SPECIAL TOPIC: FIRE

Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley

Bless. Figure of speech Apostrophe.

the LORD. Hebrew. Jehovah. with ‘eth = Jehovah Himself. App-4.

my soul = I myself. Hebrew. nephesh.

LORD. Hebrew. Jehovah. App-4.

very great. The conception of Deity is grand; and the cosmogony is neither Hebrew nor Babylonian, but Divine.

clothed. Figure of speech Anthropopatheia. App-6. So throughout the Psalm.

Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics

Psa 104:1-35

And thus he begins the hundred and fourth psalm,

Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, you are very great; you are clothed with honor and majesty: You have covered yourself with light as with a garment: who stretched out the heaven like a curtain ( Psa 104:1-2 ):

I love this picturesque kind of speech. God covers Himself with light. The scripture speaks of God as dwelling in a light, unapproachable. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the light,” and who stretched out the heavens, like a curtain. I have always had an interest in astronomy. I’ve always loved looking up into the skies out in the desert where you are surrounded by the desert darkness. And where the stars form a beautify canopy overhead. I love to think of the vastness of the universe. I love to take the telescope and look at the planets and the galaxies. And realize the vastness of this universe in which we live. And then to think of this psalm, that God stretched it all out like a curtain.

Who laid the beams of the chambers in the waters: who made the clouds his chariot: who walks upon the wings of the wind: Who makes his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire: Who laid the foundations of the earth that it should not be removed for ever. Thou coveredst it with the deep as with a garment: and the waters stood above the mountains ( Psa 104:3-6 ).

He’s talking here about the flood that He sent.

At thy rebuke they fled; at the voice of thy thunder they hasted away. They go up to the mountains; they go down by the valleys into the place which you have founded for them. For you have set a bound that they may not pass over; that they turn not again to cover the eaRuth ( Psa 104:7-9 ).

And so God has set the boundaries for the oceans that they will never again cover the earth as they once did during the time of the flood and during the time before God brought the dry land out from a water-covered planet.

He sent the springs into the valleys, which run among the hills. They give drink to every beast of the field: and the wild donkeys quench their thirst. And by them shall the fowls of the heaven have their habitation, which sing among the branches. He waters the hills from his chambers: and the earth is satisfied with the fruit of they works. He causes the grass to grow for the cattle, and the vegetables for the service of men: that he may bring forth food out of the earth; And wine that makes glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face shine, and bread to strengthen man’s heart ( Psa 104:10-15 ).

That’s, of course, that good wheat bread that they made; fresh ground wheat, still had vitamin E in tact, which is very important for the strengthening of man’s heart.

The trees of the LORD are full of sap ( Psa 104:16 );

That is, they are fresh. They are vibrant.

the cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted; Where the birds make their nests: as the stork, the fir trees are her house. The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats; and the rocks for the conies ( Psa 104:16-18 ).

The little rabbit kind of an animal.

He appointed the moon for seasons: and the sun knoweth his going down. You make darkness, and it is night: wherein all the beasts of the forest do creep forth. The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their meat from God. The sun arises, they gather themselves together, and lay them down in their dens. Man goes forth unto his work and to his labor until the evening. O LORD, how manifold are all thy works! in wisdom you have made them all: and the earth is full of thy riches ( Psa 104:19-24 ).

Now, man in that day was much closer to nature than we are. And I think being much closer to nature, had a keener insight many times into spiritual things. I believe that a person who is close to nature is close to God, close to God’s creation. We live in a plastic society. We live in a world that is filled with man’s works. And we become so enamored with the works of man that so often we lose sight of the works of God. The result of man’s works: the automobiles, the combustion engines, the jet aircraft, the fossil fuel electrical plants, and so forth. You see by these things, the works of man’s hands, we’ve so polluted the skies that we don’t see the blueness of the sky much any more. We don’t see the stars so much any more. We’ve got man’s lights as we go outside that hide the stars, that diminish the brightness of the stars, as far as our visible eyes are concerned. Polluted air. And thus, we’re not overawed walking out into the night as they were. We’re not so conscious of the stars as they were. We’ve got all of these asphalt highways, all of these subdivisions, house joined upon house, and now condominiums and townhouses to where we have very little green space. So we’re not so conscious of the trees and the flowers, the vegetation, the works of God’s hands. But these people living in an agrarian culture, living close to nature, living in, living under the blue skies, and the clear skies, far more conscious of God and of God’s creative acts, and God’s creative power. And unfortunately, we lose sight of these things. That’s why it’s good to take a vacation and get out in the wilds if you can, get out in the desert or get out in the mountains. Get out among the trees, get out among the rivers and the lakes, get out in nature. Come in tune with nature again, the works of God, the works of God’s hands, and then again comes that reverence and that awe as I behold the works of God in nature.

And so the psalmist here… it’s a beautiful psalm, Psa 104:1-35 , as he speaks of all of these things. The observations of nature, the fowls, the stork, the bird, the trees, the donkeys, the springs, the flowers, the goats, the conies, the moon and the sun. All of the things of nature.

O LORD, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom you have made them all ( Psa 104:24 ):

For you see the wisdom of God in the design of a leaf, in the design of a deer or the animals, their capacities.

the earth is full of thy riches. So is this great and wide sea, wherein there are creeping innumerable [things that are creeping], both small and great beasts. Where the ships sail: and there is the leviathan ( Psa 104:24-26 ),

Some think that that is a reference to the whales.

who thou hast made to play therein. These all wait all upon thee; that you may give them their meat in due season. That which you give them they gather: and you open your hand, and they are filled with good. And you hide your face, and they are troubled: you take away their breath, and they die, and return to their dust ( Psa 104:26-29 ).

How dependent we are upon God. God takes away our breath; we die.

You send forth thy spirit, they are created: and you renew the face of the earth. The glory of the LORD shall endure for ever: the LORD shall rejoice in his works. He looks on the earth, and it trembles: he touches the hills, and they smoke. I will sing unto the LORD as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being. My meditation of him shall be sweet: I will be glad in the LORD ( Psa 104:30-34 ).

Having observed nature and the hand of God in nature, and the marvelous wisdom of God and the glory of God as He has expressed in nature it brings forth a song in the heart of the psalmist. A song unto the Lord, singing praises, the meditation of Him shall be sweet. I will be glad in the Lord.

Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more. Bless thou the LORD, O my soul. Praise ye the LORD ( Psa 104:35 ). “

Fuente: Through the Bible Commentary

I trust that we have already felt something of holy enjoyment while our hearts and voices have been praising the Lord our God. Perhaps this Psalm may help to keep us in a praising state of mind. First of all, David sang of the majesty of God in his works; then it seems as if the spirit of praise within him became like a strong-winged angel, and, mounting into the sky, he began to soar aloft over the varied landscapes of the world until the sun went down; and even then, he continued scudding along through the darkness till the sun arose again, and found him still praising his God. We will note, as we read the Psalm, this strange, mysterious flight of the spirit of praise.

Psa 104:1. Bless the LORD, O my soul.

There is the key-note. Strike it, my brethren, each one of you!

Psa 104:1-3. O LORD my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty. Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain: who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters:

Or, as we may read it from the Hebrew, who maketh his halls in the waters; those mysterious waters above the firmament are here pictured as being the cool, retired dwelling-place of the awful Deity.

Psa 104:3. Who maketh the clouds his chariot: who walketh upon the wings of the wind:

A masterly picture, as if the Lord stood erect upon the two wings of the wind, and as if the wind, like a mighty spirit, went flying round the world, with the great Jehovah standing upon its wings, and so riding along.

Psa 104:4-5. Who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire: who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed for ever.

Now comes a very graphic description of Noahs flood.

Psa 104:6. Thou coveredst it with the deep as with a garment: the waters stood above the mountains.

What a splendid act of divine energy, when the waters which, before, like tamed lions, slept in their dens, came hungry and fierce, and swallowed up the whole earth!

Psa 104:7-8. At thy rebuke they fled; at the voice of thy thunder they hasted away. They go up by the mountains; they go down by the valleys unto the place which thou hast founded for them.

At the sound of Gods voice, those mighty deeps went back in a great hurricane. Anyone who has seen water when it is traveling at a great rate, lashed with tempests, will have seen it tossed as into mountains, and then having huge holes like vast valleys in it; so, the waters rose up like mountains, and fell down like valleys, till they found the channels of the deep which God had founded for them.

Psa 104:9. Thou hast set a bound that they may not pass over; that they turn not again to cover the earth.

Jehovah puts the bit of sand into the mouth of the sea, and it comes no farther than its appointed bounds. Now you must suppose the psalmist is leaving the crowded streets, and the dingy, dusty, smoky haunts of men, and flying, on the wings of his gratitude and praise, away into the quiet of the fertile country.

Psa 104:10-12. He sendeth the springs into the valleys, which run among the hills. They give drink to every beast of the field: the wild asses quench their thirst. By them shall the fowls of the heaven have their habitation, which sing among the branches.

I know of no place that seems to bring out ones joy and praise better than when standing by the side of some rippling brook that tumbles down the fissure among the rocks, and seeing the animals come to drink, and hearing the birds blithely sing among the branches, or hang over and dip into the very stream. Even the reading of this Psalm may be like a cool and refreshing breeze to you at this time, and your soul may in imagination fly away with David, as you also praise and bless your God.

Psa 104:13. He watereth the hills from his chambers:

From those watery halls above the firmament he pours down the showers.

Psa 104:13-15. The earth is satisfied with the fruit of thy works. He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man: that he may bring forth food out of the earth; and wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth mans heart.

The spirit of praise is flying over the fields ploughed and tilled by man, over the fruitful vineyards red with clusters of grapes, and over the olive gardens and other places where mans handiwork has made the earth fertile. Now the psalmist mounts still higher, and gets into the woods.

Psa 104:16-17. The trees of the LORD are full of sap; the cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted; where the birds make their nests: as for the stork, the fir trees are her house.

Flying along over the tops of the trees, he looks down among them, and he notices the beasts as well as the birds

Psa 104:18. The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats; and the rocks for the conies.

So that there is not any part of the earth which is not full of Gods goodness; even the rocks, which yield nothing to the plough, furnish a refuge for the conies, and the high hills are a home for the wild goats, while the fertile earth beneath makes mans heart glad. As the spirit of praise flies over the tops of the mountains, the sun goes down. The psalmist witnesses that grand sight, an Eastern sunset.

Psa 104:19-20. He appointed the moon for seasons: the sun knoweth his going down. Thou makest darkness, and it is night:

Will he cease from his song now? No, for God does not cease to work.

Psa 104:20-21. Wherein all the beasts of the forest do creep forth. The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their meat from God.

So that even night has its mysterious music, and the roaring of the young lions is a tribute to the providence of the good God who cares even for the beasts that perish.

Psa 104:22. The sun ariseth, they gather themselves together, and lay them down in their dens.

You see, the psalmist does not cease his praise, but finds a theme for music even in the rest of the beasts.

Psa 104:23-24. Man goeth forth unto his work and to his labour until the evening. O LORD, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches.

The psalmist has made a long journey, flying along just where he could see everything upon the face of the earth, but he bethinks himself that he has not seen the half of Gods works yet, for yonder is the Mediterranean, glistening in the morning sunbeams, so he takes another flight.

Psa 104:25-26. So is this great and wide sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable, both small and great beasts. There go the ships:

That is, above the water; while in it-

Psa 104:26. There is that leviathan, whom thou hast made to play therein.

Some mighty fish leaps out of the sea; the psalmists eye catches a glimpse of it, and he puts even that monster into his hymn of praise.

Psa 104:27. These wait all upon thee; that thou mayest give them their meat in due season.

My brethren, what an idea we have here of God thus supplying all the creatures of the earth and the sea! They are all waiting upon him; they can go to no other storehouse but his, no other granary can supply their needs. Surely, we need not be afraid that he will fail us. If he feeds leviathan with his great wants, and the many birds with their little wants, he will not forget his children; he will never withhold any real good from them that walk uprightly.

Psa 104:28. That thou givest them they gather: thou openest thine hand, they are filled with good.

That is all he has to do, you see, just to open his hand. If that hand were once fast closed, they would all die; but, in order to supply the wants of all the creatures he has made, he has only just to open his hand.

Psa 104:29. Thou hidest thy face,

As if he did but put his hand before the brightness of his countenance,-

Psa 104:29-30. They are troubled: thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust. Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created: and thou renewest the face of the earth.

When God takes away the genial light of the summers sun, what multitudes of creatures die; and then, when the soft breath of spring blows upon the earth, how soon the multitudes of insects come teeming forth! Christian, here is comfort for you! Has God withheld his Spirit from you for a little while, and have many of your joys and comforts fallen dead? He has only to speak, and he can in a moment renew all your comforts.

Psa 104:31-35. The glory of the LORD shall endure for ever: the LORD shall rejoice in his works. He looketh on the earth, and it trembleth: he toucheth the hills, and they smoke. I will sing unto the LORD as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being. My meditation of him shall be sweet: I will be glad in the LORD. Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more.

It seems as if the spirit of praise had bred in the psalmist a spirit of indignation against sin, he could have no patience any longer with those who would not adore so great and so good a God, and therefore he utters this imprecation upon their heads, which is rather a prophecy of what will be their doom: Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more.

Psa 104:35. Bless thou the LORD, O my soul. Praise ye the LORD.

Thus the psalmist, like a good musician, ends with the keynote of his song of praise: Bless the Lord, O my soul. May each of us say the same!

Fuente: Spurgeon’s Verse Expositions of the Bible

Psa 104:1-5

GOD’S GREATNESS AS SEEN IN THE CREATION

Taking his information from the book of Genesis, the psalmist here elaborates the greatness of God’s works in the first five days of creation, this is the portion of the creation that concerns nature only, as distinguished from mankind.

Who authored the psalm is unknown, as is also the occasion of its being written. Barnes tells us that, “The LXX, the Latin, the Syriac and Arabic versions ascribe it to David, but do not cite any grounds for their doing so. Dummelow concluded that, “It was written by the same author as Psalms 103. However, he did not believe David was the author of either one. We believe that his remark supports the possibility that David was indeed the author of both.

Regarding the occasion, Rosenmuller and Hengstenberg suppose it was written in the times of the exile; and Briggs thought the tone of it reflected the times of the Maccabees. This writer can find nothing whatever in the psalm that definitely indicates either of those occasions; and we find full agreement with Barnes that, “It has nothing that would make it inappropriate at any time, or in any public service.

This writer never sees this psalm without remembering the unlearned man who got up to read it at church one Sunday, and being unable to decipher the Roman numerals in the big church Bible, gazed at the title, “Psalm CIV,” for a moment, and then said, “We are now going to read `PESSELLAM SIV'”!

The paragraphing we shall follow is that of the five days of creation as spoken of in this psalm.

Psa 104:1-5

THE FIRST DAY OF CREATION

“Bless Jehovah, O my soul.

O Jehovah my God, thou art very great;

Thou art clothed with honor and majesty.

Who covereth thyself with light, as with a garment;

Who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain;

Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters;

Who maketh the clouds his chariot;

Who walketh upon the wings of the wind;

Who maketh winds his messengers;

Flames of fire his ministers;

Who laid the foundations of the earth,

That it should not be moved forever.”

The focus of these lines is upon Gen 1:1-5. The creation of light and the heavens and the earth are mentioned in that passage.

“The heavens like a curtain” (Psa 104:2). This is an appropriate line indeed, because the atmospheric heavens are indeed a protective tent or curtain shielding the earth from the destructive debris from outer space. A glance at the moon, which has no atmosphere, shows what the earth would have looked like without that protective mantle of the atmosphere.

“The beams of his chambers in the waters” (Psa 104:3). The `waters’ here are those “above the firmament,” that is, the vaporous waters of the clouds mentioned in the same breath.

“His chambers … his chariot … walketh upon the wings of the wind” (Psa 104:3). These poetic expressions of God’s ubiquitousness and mobility are highly imaginative, but there is no ground whatever for criticizing them.

“Who maketh winds his messengers and flames of fire his ministers” (Psa 104:4). A marginal reading for “winds” is angels; Heb 1:7 sheds light on what is meant here. “And of the angels he saith, “Who maketh his angels winds, and his ministers a flame of fire.”

“Who laid the foundations of the earth” (Psa 104:5). It is not merely the creation of the earth but its stability and permanence which are stressed.

E.M. Zerr:

Psa 104:1. This verse starts with the same expression as Psa 103:1, and I request the reader to see my comments at that place. Honour has special reference to grandeur of appearance, and majesty refers especially to dignity.

Psa 104:2. To be covered with anything means to be completely surrounded by it. When light is used figuratively it means that which is good, pure and truthful. The Lord is thus equipped and hence he is properly possessed of power. This power gave him the ability to hold up the heavens or parts of the universe as easily as if they were so many curtains in the hands of a human being.

Psa 104:3. The clauses of this verse are figurative, and are intended to show the ease with which God manages the parts of His creation. The deep waters, the soaring clouds and the boisterous winds would baffle the limited power of man. But the great One who brought them into existence controls all with infinite might.

Psa 104:4. Happily the apostle Paul comments on this verse in Heb 1:7. And Heb 1:13-14 as well as the general connection, shows the passage has direct reference to the intelligent beings who live in Heaven with God. The Psalmist meant to show some more of the power or authority of God in that he had such control over these angels. For instance, he was able to use them as spirits (1Ki 22:19-24), or to make a flaming fire out of them (Exo 3:2). However, even in thus controlling these celestial creatures, God was bestowing a great honor upon them, which was the point the writer of Hebrews was making.

Psa 104:5. We do not think of the earth as having a foundation in the ordinary sense of that word. The verse has the idea that the existence of the earth is well founded as it is sustained by the almighty power of its Creator.

Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary

Again we have a great song of praise commencing and closing with the same note of personal praise. While in the former the dominant note is that of the mercy of Jehovah, here it is that of His majesty. The former is the song of love to Love. This is the song of loyalty to Royalty.

The psalm opens with a declaration of the essential greatness of God, and then proceeds in poetic language to describe the manifestations of His greatness in creation. All through, beneficent purpose is recognised. The springs among the valleys are for quenching of the thirst of birds and beasts. Grass and herbs are for service, and son on throughout.

Then in a burst of praise the singer recognises the dependence of all upon Jehovah. The hiding of His face is trouble, and if He withdraw breath, death ensues. Finally, he cries out for the continuity of the realisation of Divine purpose everywhere, in order that Jehovah may rejoice in His works. To this end he declares he will make the contribution of his personal worship. The conception is full of beauty. The widespread revelation of the power and glory of God makes its appeal to the individual responsibility of the one man.

Fuente: An Exposition on the Whole Bible

the Lords Wondrous Handiwork

Psa 104:1-12

The opening verses of this psalm appear to describe in sublime poetry the creation of the world. God is very great, because He created the heavens and the earth. He is clothed with honor and majesty, and yet He stooped to brood over the chaos and darkness which preceded the order and beauty of our earth. When He said, Let there be light, He robed Himself in its texture. The firmament of Gen 1:8 was the curtain of his tent. The clouds above and the seas beneath yielded his chariot and hid for Him the joists of His palace. See Gen 1:9-10. Compare Psa 103:4 and Heb 1:7.

The psalmist in Psa 104:6 seems to see the process which is described briefly and graphically in Gen 1:10. The waters had covered the world with their storm and welter; but at Gods command they poured down the mountain slopes to the ocean bed, there to be retained by banks of sand. What exquisite thoughtfulness is disclosed in Gods provision of the springs! He thinks for the wild asses and the fowls, and how much more will He care for you, O ye of little faith!

Fuente: F.B. Meyer’s Through the Bible Commentary

Psa 104:1.

Greatness, if you look at it as something separate from you, and away, still more if you have a consciousness that it may be against you, is a matter of awe and terror. If you mingle it with yourself, as a part of yourself, and yourself a part of it, greatness, becoming a possession, is a grand thought and a pleasant one. So we unite the two clauses of the text. David could not have said the second with gladness unless he could have said the first with confidence: “O Lord my God, Thou art very great.”

I. If it is great to be at one and the same time infinitely comprehensive and exquisitely minute, to fill the widest and yet to be occupied by the narrowest, then what a God is ours! The unspeakably large and the invisibly small are alike to Him; and we stand, and we marvel not at the one or at the other, but at the combination of the telescopic glance and the microscopic care; and we confess, “O Lord my God, Thou art very great.”

II. It is a great thing to stoop. He inhabiteth equally, at this very moment, eternity and that little heart of yours. The whole Gospel is only a tale of immense stooping-how the purest demeaned Himself to the vilest, and how, “though He was rich, yet for our sakes He became poor, that we through His poverty might be rich.”

III. Some one has said that continuity is the secret of the sublime; the eye goes on and on, and finds no break, and calls it sublimity. Then what a sublimity there is in Him who century after century, year by year, without the shadow of a turning, has continued the same, “yesterday, today, and for ever”!

IV. Look at the wonderful greatness of His plan of redemption. The length, and the breadth, and the depth, and the height are all passing knowledge; and we have nothing to do but to humble ourselves in the dust and say, “O Lord my God, Thou art very great.”

J. Vaughan, Fifty Sermons, 9th series, p. 257.

Psa 104:1-2

Nature has two great revelations: that of use and that of beauty; and the first thing we observe about these two characteristics of hers is that they are bound together and tied to each other. The beauty of nature is not, as it were, a fortunate accident, which can be separated from her use; there is no difference in the tenure upon which these two characteristics stand: the beauty is just as much a part of nature as the use; they are only different aspects of the selfsame facts. (2) But if the first thing we observe respecting use and beauty is that they are united in their source, the next thing we observe is that in themselves they are totally separate. We have not the slightest conception of the common root in which these enormous diversities unite, the unity to which they mount up, the ultimate heading out of which both branch, the secret of their identity. It is worth observing, in the history of the mind of this country, the formation of a kind of passion for scenery and natural beauty. This fact cannot well be without some consequences bearing on religion.

I. First, with respect to the place which the beauty of nature has in the argument of design from nature. When the materialist has exhausted himself in efforts to explain utility in nature, it would appear to be the peculiar office of beauty to rise up suddenly as a confounding and baffling extra, which was not even formally provided for in his scheme. There is this remarkable difference between useful contrivance and beauty as evidence of an intelligent cause, that contrivance has a complete end and account of itself, without any reference to the understanding of man; but it is essential to the very sense and meaning of beauty that it should be seen: and inasmuch as it is visible to reason alone, we have thus in the very structure of nature a recognition of reason and a distinct address to reason, wholly unaccountable unless there is a higher reason or mind to which to make it.

II. The beauty of nature is necessary for the perfection of praise; the praise of the Creator must be essentially weakened without it: it must be roused and excited by sight. (1) Beauty stands upon the threshold of the mystical world, and excites a curiosity about God. This curiosity is a strong part of worship and of praise. So long as a man is probing nature, and in the thick of its causes and operations, he is too busy about his own inquiries to receive this impress from her; but place the picture before him, and he becomes conscious of a veil and curtain which has the secrets of a moral existence behind it: interest is inspired, curiosity is awakened, and worship is raised. (2) Nature is partly a curtain and partly a disclosure, partly a veil and partly a revelation; and here we come to her faculty of symbolism, which is so strong an aid to, and has so immensely affected, the principles of worship. The Great Spirit, speaking by dumb representation to other spirits, intimates and signifies to them something about Himself, for if nature is symbolical, what it is symbolical about must be its Author. The Deity over and above our inward conscience wants His external world to tell us He is moral; He therefore creates in nature a universal language about Himself: its features convey signals from a distant country, and man is placed in communication with a great correspondent whose tablet He interprets. And thus is formed that which is akin to worship in the poetical view of nature. While we do not worship the material created sign-for that would be idolatry-we still repose on it as the true language of the Deity.

III. In this peculiar view of nature, the mind fastening upon it as a spectacle or a picture, it is to be observed that there are two points in striking concurrence with the vision language of Scripture. (1) Scripture has specially consecrated the faculty of sight, and has partly put forth, and has promised in a still more complete form, a manifestation of the Deity to mankind, through the medium of a great sight. (2) It must be remarked, as another principle in the Scriptural representation, that the act of seeing a perfectly glorious sight or object is what constitutes the spectator’s and beholder’s own glory.

IV. But though the outward face of nature is a religious communication to those who come to it with the religious element already in them, no man can get a religion out of the beauty of nature. There must be for the base of a religion the internal view, the inner sense, the look into ourselves, and recognition of an inward state: sin, helplessness, misery. If there is not this, outward nature cannot of itself enlighten man’s conscience and give him a knowledge of God. It will be a picture to him, and nothing more.

J. B. Mozley, University Sermons, p. 122.

Psa 104:2

I. There are two kinds of mystery: a mystery of darkness and a mystery of light. With the mystery of darkness we are familiar. Of the mystery of light we have not thought, perhaps, so much. With all deep things the deeper light brings new mysteriousness. The mystery of light is the privilege and prerogative of the profoundest things. The shallow things are capable only of the mystery of darkness. Of that all things are capable. Nothing is so thin, so light, so small, that if you cover it with clouds or hide it in half-lights, it will not seem mysterious. But the most genuine and profound things you may bring forth into the fullest light and let the sunshine bathe them through and through, and in them there will open ever-new wonders of mysteriousness. Surely of God it must be supremely true that the more we know of Him, the more He shows Himself to us, the more mysterious He must for ever be. The mystery of light must be complete in Him. Revelation is not the unveiling of God, but a changing of the veil that covers Him, not the dissipation of mystery, but the transformation of the mystery of darkness into the mystery of light. To the pagan God is mysterious because He is hidden in clouds, mysterious like the storm. To the Christian God is mysterious because He is radiant with infinite truth, mysterious like the sun.

II. The doctrine of the Trinity is not an easy, ready-made, satisfactory explanation of God, in which the inmost chambers of His life are unlocked and thrown wide open, that whoso will may walk there and understand Him through and through. There is a mystery concerning God to him who sees the richness of the Divine life in the threefold unity of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost which no man feels to whom God does not seem to stand forth from the pages of his Testament in that completeness. Not as the answer to a riddle which leaves all things clear, but as the deeper sight of God, prolific with a thousand novel questions which were never known before, clothed in a wonder which only in that larger light displayed itself, offering new worlds for faith and reverence to wander in, so must the New Testament revelation, the truth of Father, Son, and Spirit, one perfect God, offer itself to man.

Phillips Brooks, The Candle of the Lord, p. 305.

Reference: Psa 104:3.-J. Irons, Thursday Penny Pulpit, vol. viii., p. 8.

Psa 104:4

Consider what is implied in the text.

I. What a number of beautiful and wonderful objects does nature present on every side of us, and how little we know concerning them! Why do rivers flow? Why does rain fall? Why does the sun warm us? And the wind-why does it blow? Here our natural reason is at fault; we know that it is the spirit in man and in beast that makes man and beast move, but reason tells us of no spirit abiding in what is called the natural world, to make it perform its ordinary duties. Now here Scripture interposes, and seems to tell us that all this wonderful harmony is the work of angels. Those events which we ascribe to chance, as the weather, or to nature, as the seasons, are duties done to that God who maketh His angels to be winds, and His ministers a flame of fire. Nature is not inanimate; its daily toil is intelligent; its works are duties. Every breath of air and ray of light and heat, every beautiful prospect, is, as it were, the skirts of their garments, the waving of the robes of those whose faces see God in heaven.

II. While this doctrine raises the mind and gives it a matter of thought, it is also profitable as a humbling doctrine. Theories of science are useful, as classifying, and so assisting us to recollect, the works and ways of God and of His ministering angels. And again, they are ever most useful in enabling us to apply the course of His providence and the ordinances of His will to the benefit of man. Thus we are enabled to enjoy God’s gifts; and let us thank Him for the knowledge which enables us to do so, and honour those who are His instruments in communicating it. But if such a one proceeds to imagine that, because he knows something of this world’s wonderful order, he therefore knows how things really go on; if he treats the miracles of nature as mere mechanical processes, continuing their course by themselves; if in consequence he is what may be called irreverent in his conduct towards nature, thinking (if I may so speak) that it does not hear him, and see how he is bearing himself towards it; and if, moreover, he conceives that the order of nature, which he partially discerns, will stand in the place of the God who made it, and that all things continue and move on not by His will and power and the agency of the thousands and ten thousands of His unseen servants, but by fixed laws, self-caused and self-sustained, what a poor weak worm and miserable sinner he becomes! When we converse on subjects of nature scientifically, repeating the names of plants and earths and describing their properties, we should do so religiously, as in the hearing of the great servants of God, with the sort of diffidence which we always feel when speaking before the learned and wise of our own mortal race, as poor beginners in intellectual knowledge as well as in moral attainments.

J. H. Newman, Parochial and Plain Sermons, vol. ii., p. 358.

Psa 104:4

In the present day a large number of scientific men maintain that the appearance of design in nature is an appearance only, not a reality. This view is supposed to be established in two ways: first, by the general doctrine of the universal reign of law; and secondly, by the particular theory of evolution.

I. Look, first, at the argument drawn from the universality of law. Law is a very misleading word. Law only means invariable sequence. You will sometimes hear it said, the universe is governed by laws. The universe is not governed by laws. It is governed according to laws, but no one can suppose that the laws make themselves; no one can imagine, for example, that water determines of its own accord always to freeze at one temperature and to boil at another, that snowflakes make up their minds to assume certain definite and regular shapes, or that fire burns of malice aforethought. The sequences of nature do not explain themselves. The regularity of nature, then, needs to be explained. It cannot explain itself, nor can it disprove the existence of a controlling will. The only reign of law incompatible with volition would be the reign of the law of chaos.

II. Look at the bearing of the theory of evolution upon theology. We will suppose, for argument’s sake, that even in its most comprehensive shape the doctrine has been proved true; what is the effect upon our theology? Why, simply that a certain mode of statement of a certain argument of Paley’s is seen to be unsound. And this unsoundness has been already recognised on other grounds. Paley maintained that every definite organ and portion of an organ throughout the world is specially, by a particular creative fiat, adapted to a certain end, just as every portion of a watch implies a special contrivance on the part of the watchmaker. But this, as every one now knows, is completely disproved by the existence in most animals of rudimentary and abortive organs, which are evidently not adapted to any end, as, for example, the rudiments of fingers in a horse’s hoof, the teeth in a whale’s mouth, or the eyes in an unborn mole. But though we no longer profess to trace Divine design in every minute fraction of an organism, this does not hinder us from seeing it in organisms regarded in their entirety and in nature considered as a whole.

The doctrine of the survival of the fittest does not account for the fact that there are fittest to survive. Evolution does not disprove a Designer; it only proves that He works in a different way from what had been supposed. There is no reason why things may not be made for their circumstances, though they are partly made by them. The fact that natural forces work together regularly and methodically does not prove that they have no master; it suggests rather His absolute control. The eternal evolution of the more desirable from the less cannot be logically accounted for except on the ground that it is effected by infinite power, and wisdom, and skill.

A. W. Momerie, The Origin of Evil, and Other Sermons, p. 271.

References: Psa 104:4.-J. J. S. Perowne, Expositor, 1st series, vol. viii., p. 461.

Psa 104:10

I. The incessant murmur of the mountain spring in the solitude speaks to the ear of the thoughtful of the wonderful rhythm of the universe. That spring seems the wayward child of uncertain parents; and yet it wells up with every beat of the pulse of nature, as it has welled up for thousands of years. As the blood circulates in the body continually, so does the water circulate on the earth. Not more certainly would life terminate in the body if the pulse ceased to beat than would the world be locked in everlasting sleep if the mountain spring ceased to throb. Calm and grand as when the morning stars sang together in the morning of creation, nature moves in her appointed orbit; and her blades of grass, and grains of sand, and drops of water tell us that we must be brought into concord with the beneficent law which they all obey so steadfastly and harmoniously or else perish. What nature does unconsciously and will-lessly let us do consciously and willingly; and learning a lesson even from the humble voice of the mountain spring, let us make the statutes of the Lord our song in the house of our pilgrimage.

II. Very mysterious seems the origin of a spring as it sparkles up from the bosom of the mountain, from the heart of the rock, into the sunshine. It stimulates our imagination. It seems like a new creation in the place. Through what dark fissures, through what fine veins and pores of the earth, have its waters trickled up to the central reservoir whose overflowing comes up to view, crystal-clear and crowned with light! The Hebrew name of a prophet was derived from the bubbling forth of the waters of a spring, implying that his utterances were the irresistible overflowings of the Divine fountain of inspiration in his soul. Beside the well of Sychar, incarnate in human form, in visible manifestation to the eyes of men, was the great Reality to whom all myths and symbols pointed, who thirsted Himself that He might give us to drink. And if our eyes be purged with spiritual eyesalve, we too shall see beside every spring the true Oracle, the great Prophet, the Divinity of the waters, who “sendeth the springs into the valleys which run among the hills.” As the natural spring stands between the living and the dead, between the sterility of desert plains and the bright verdure which it creates along its course, so He stands between our souls and spiritual death, between the desolation of sin and the peaceable fruits of righteousness which He enables us to produce.

H. Macmillan, Two Worlds are Ours, p. 117.

Psa 104:13-15

The Bible tells us not to be religious, but to be godly. Because we think that people ought to be religious, we talk a great deal about religion; because we hardly think at all that a man ought to be godly, we talk very little about God: and that good old Bible word “godliness” does not pass our lips once a month. A man may be very religious and yet very ungodly.

I. What is the difference between religion and godliness? Just the difference that there is between always thinking of self and always forgetting self, between the terror of a slave and the affection of a child, between the fear of hell and the love of God. Men are religious for fear of hell; but they are not godly, for they do not love God or see God’s hand in everything. They forget that they have a Father in heaven; that He sends rain, and sunshine, and fruitful seasons; that He gives them all things richly to enjoy in spite of all their sins. They talk of the visitation of God as if it was something that was very extraordinary, and happened very seldom, and when it came, only brought evil, harm, and sorrow. Every blade of grass grows by the “visitation of God.” Every healthy breath you draw, every cheerful hour you ever spent, every good crop you ever housed safely, came to you by the visitation of God.

II. The text teaches us to look at God as He who gives to all freely and upbraideth not. If we would but believe that God knows our necessities before we ask, that He gives us daily more than we ever get by working for it, if we would but seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, all other things would be added to us; and we should find that he who loses his life should save it.

C. Kingsley, Village Sermons, p. 10.

References: Psa 104:14.-Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xiii., No. 757. Psa 104:15.-F. Delitzsch, Expositor, 3rd series, p. 64. Psa 104:16.-Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. ix., No. 529; C. Kingsley, Westminster Sermons, p. 179; H. Macmillan, Bible Teachings in Nature, p. 65; Spurgeon, Morning by Morning, pp. 226, 298.

Psa 104:17

I. Nature, in all her departments, is a system of mutual accommodation. Every object affords hospitality to every other object. Nature places before us, in the kind shelter which the larger and more richly endowed objects afford to the smaller and poorer, a silent picture of what should be our own conduct in the intercourse of human life; and in the added beauty and charm which the exercise of this grace of hospitality imparts to the objects that bestow it, she teaches us that by receiving strangers we too may be entertaining angels unawares. As nature is ever defeating the plans of selfishness by making all her objects mutually dependent, none being allowed to live entirely for itself, so God, by the arrangements of His providence, is breaking down all human monopolies and enforcing a wide hospitality, allowing no man to live for himself alone.

II. In the plan of religion His intention is still more manifest. The growth of His kingdom on earth is like that of a mustard tree, which, springing from the smallest seed, develops into the grandest form, covering the earth with its shadow and lodging the birds of the air among its boughs, protecting the poorest and feeblest things which men may despise.

III. From every lonely, hungry soul Jesus seeks hospitality, standing at the door without, patiently waiting for the opening of it; and when He is welcomed in, there is a mutual feeling of love, and the Guest becomes a generous Host. And what His thoughts of hospitality to the race whom He has come to seek and redeem are is strikingly seen in that beautiful parable where the feast is spread, and the servants are sent first to individuals favoured by fortune and then to the poor and the outcast, to bid them all come, for all things are ready.

H. Macmillan, The Olive Leaf, p. 39.

Reference: Psa 104:17, Psa 104:18.- Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xvii., No. 1005.

Psa 104:20-21

I. Consider, with respect and admiration, the manful, cheerful view of pain and death, and indeed of the whole creation, which the psalmist has, because he has faith. There is in him no sentimentalism, no complaining of God, no impious, or at least weak and peevish, cry of “Why hast Thou made all things thus?” He sees the mystery of pain and death. He does not attempt to explain it, but he faces it-faces it cheerfully and manfully, in the strength of his faith, saying, This, too, mysterious, painful, terrible, as it may seem, is as it should be, for it is of the law and will of God, from whom come all good things, of the God in whom is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. Therefore to the psalmist the earth is a noble sight, filled to his eyes with the fruit of God’s works. What impresses his mind is just what would impress the mind of a modern poet, a modern man of science; namely, the wonderful variety, richness, and strangeness of its living things. He perceives, with the instinct of a true poet and a true philosopher, “These all wait upon Thee, O God, that Thou mayest give them meat in due season.”

II. Then he goes further still. He has looked into the face of life innumerable. Now he looks into the face of innumerable death, and sees there too the spirit and the work of God. “Thou hidest Thy face; they are troubled. Thou takest away their breath; they die, and are turned again to their dust.” The psalmist’s God was not merely a strong God or a wise God, but a good God, and a gracious God, and a just God, likewise a God who not only made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that therein is, but who keepeth His promise for ever, who helpeth them to right who suffer wrong, and feedeth the hungry. It is this magnificent conception of God’s living and actual goodness and justice which the psalmist had which made him trust God about all the strange and painful things which he saw in the world.

C. Kingsley, Westminster Sermons, p. 205.

Psa 104:20-23

I. “Thou makest darkness.” Darkness is a part of Divine order; at least, in the physical universe it is so: and I suppose in this respect, as in all other respects, the material universe represents the spiritual. Universal darkness is a house for light. Darkness is that upon which or through which the light shines. It is an essential part of God’s work.

II. “It is night, wherein all the beasts of the forest do creep forth.” (1) Darkness, as well as light, serves its own purposes. Light is good for flowers, but it is not so good for their roots. There would be no flowers long if the roots did not abide in darkness. (2) The beasts of the forest “creep” forth. For about the creatures whose element is darkness there is always something subtle and stealthy, as though they had no absolute authority for their existence. By slinking away before the light, they seem to confess, “We belong only to the strife and twilight of the universe. When the great day comes, we shall be no more.”

III. “The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their meat from God.” The young lions know not God; but God knows them, and understands the roar of their desire. God expects no meeker prayers from His wild beasts.

IV. “The sun ariseth,” etc. There are children of the day, and there are children of darkness. While the beasts had their sport man slept. Now the beasts sleep, and man rises and “goeth forth unto his work.”

V. Nature is a great darkness, in which the kingdom of God appears not. The true Light is not to be seen in nature’s skies. Nature is a huge organisation of night.

VI. The violent eagerness of our sensual instincts and passions may well be called “lions.” There is ever something ravenous about the desires of the natural man.

VII. So long as the appetites and passions are permitted to rule, it is night with the human spirit. “The sun ariseth.” Christ is man’s Sun.

VIII. “Man goeth forth,” etc. He is wakened out of sleep; he is risen from the dead. Christ has given him life. Man’s work is to work his way back out of fallen life, to work in unity with Christ his Saviour “until evening,” that he may then go home to the dear interior life and eternity.

J. Pulsford, Quiet Hours, p. 12.

Psa 104:23

It has been pretended by some teachers that works were only required under the Law, and grace comes instead under the Gospel; but the true account of the matter is this, that the Law enjoined works, and the grace of the Gospel fulfils them. The Law commanded, but gave no power; the Gospel bestows the power. Thus the Gospel is the counterpart of the Law. The Gospel does not abrogate works, but provides for them. “Man goeth forth unto his work and to his labour” from the morning of the world to its evening.

I. But here an objection may be drawn from the parable of the labourers, which requires notice. It may be said that the labourers, who represent the Jews, complain that those who were called in the evening-that is, Christians-had worked but a short time, and in the cool of the day. Hence it may be argued that Christians have no irksome or continued toil, but are saved, without their trouble, by grace. What is meant by the “burden and heat of the day “? It means that religion pressed heavily on the Jews as a burden, because they were unequal to it; and it was as the midday heat, overpowering them with its intensity, because they had no protection against it. But for us, Christ hath redeemed us from the burden and heat, and the curse of the Law, by being made a curse for us.

II. Nor, secondly, can we argue that our work is shorter from the labourer’s complaint, “These have wrought but one hour.” For we are called in the world’s evening, not in our own. By the eleventh hour is not meant that Christians have little to do, but that the time is short. Earth and sky are ever failing, Christ is ever coming, Christians are ever lifting up their heads and looking out; and therefore it is the evening.

III. “Until the evening.” Not in the daytime only, lest we begin to run well, but fall away before our course is ended. The end is the proof of the matter. When the sun shines, this earth pleases; but let us look towards that eventide and the cool of the day when the Lord of the vineyard will walk amid the trees of the garden, and say unto His steward, “Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first.” That evening will be the trial, when the heat, and fever, and noise of the noontide are over, and the light fades, and the prospect saddens, and the shades lengthen, and the busy world is still. May that day and that hour ever be in our thoughts.

J. H. Newman, Sermons on Subjects of the Day, p. 1.

I. Man goeth forth. Without any doubt, we wake up in a world of work. Work is a Divine sacrament. It is a sacrament of life, or it should be. (1) We are cultivated by work. Very plainly has God put us into such a universe that He can only shape us by work. All that reduces us to experience, all that stirs within us the sense of knowledge, partakes of the nature of work. (2) Work never ends with the act; it has a great beyond. (3) In the kingdom of grace there is still the kingdom of labour. Go forth; watch for Christ; work, labour, for Him: and when He comes, you may win His smile.

II. I turn from the thought of the work as a fact to the spirit in which it should be engaged in. (1) A nobleness of soul looks out from the words, Go forth. Man goeth forth; it means that he calls to patience, courage, perseverance, and good-temper to wait upon him. Toil, pain, doubt, terror, difficulty-these retreat before the recognition of a great life purpose. (2) Life may be purposeful; and there are comfortable views, most comfortable perspectives. Thou art a thought of God; thou art a man; thou art a soul with Divine intuitions and intentions-Divine forces working in thee: from them we gather the spirit which overlooks failure, for “what is failure here but a triumph’s evidence for the fulness of the days? “Hasten on, then, to the evening; to the sharpest pain there comes a close, to the roughest voyage an end.

E. Paxton Hood, Dark Sayings on a Harp, p. 69.

References: Psa 104:23.-H. J. Wilmot-Buxton, Waterside Mission Sermons, 1st series, p. 19.

Psa 104:24

I. Surely the man who wrote this Psalm must have thought very differently about this world, with its fields and woods, its beasts and birds, from what we think. David looked on the earth as God’s earth. We look on it as man’s earth, or nobody’s earth. To David the earth spoke of God, who made it; by seeing what this earth is like, he saw what God, who made it, is like. We see no such thing. David knew that this earth was his lesson-book; this earth was his work-field: and yet those same thoughts which showed him how he was made for the land round him, and the land round him was made for him, showed him also that he belonged to another world-a spirit-world; showed him that though his home and business were here on earth, yet that, for that very reason, his home and business were in heaven, with God, who made the earth.

II. “All things are God’s garment,” says the wise man-outward and visible signs of His unseen and unapproachable glory; and when they are worn out, He changes them, as a garment: and they shall be changed. But He is the same. He is there all the time. All things are His work. In all things we may see Him, if our souls have eyes. The man who is no scholar in letters may read of God as he follows the plough, for the earth he ploughs is his Father’s; there is God’s mark and seal on it, His name, which, though it be written in the dust, yet neither man nor fiend can wipe out. It would keep us from many a sin, and stir us up to many a holy thought and deed, if we could learn to find in everything around us, however small or mean, the work of God’s hand, the likeness of God’s countenance, the shadow of God’s glory.

C. Kingsley, Village Sermons, p. 1.

References: Psa 104:24.-Preacher’s Monthly, vol. vii., p. 47; A. Jessopp, Norwich School Sermons, p. 64. Psa 104:24, Psa 104:28-30.-C. Kingsley, Village Sermons, p. 18, and Westminster Sermons, p. 193. Psa 104:25.-Preacher’s Monthly, vol. v., p. 325. Psa 104:26.-Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xxi., No. 1259. Psa 104:28.-Clergyman’s Magazine, vol. iii., p. 282.

Psa 104:30

I. The first voice we hear speaks directly for God-for the Divine existence and presence with us in His works. “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.” Nature says in her heart, and in every colour and feature of her flushing face, “There is a God, and He is here!”

II. The spring sings a clear song of the Divine faithfulness. Every spring is with God the keeping of covenant. He is, as it were, conducting an argument as to His own fidelity. The argument began when Noah came out of the ark, and it will end only at the judgment day.

III. Spring tells us of God’s great goodness. It is not merely that He made a certain promise four thousand years ago, and must keep it. It is that He made the promise and loves to keep it. The chief joy of God’s existence is goodness. The Divine occupation for ever is to give.

IV. The season tells us softly and melodiously of Divine tenderness. God takes this season of the year to tell us especially what tenderness, what delicacy, what colourings of exquisite beauty, there are in His nature. In Him are all the archetypes of beauty and all the fountains of tenderness; we may therefore commit ourselves and all we have to His keeping.

V. Spring has a voice of good cheer to all who are serving God faithfully and seeking good ends for themselves or for others, although as yet with little apparent result. For when does it come? Immediately after the winter. This tells us never to despair, never to despond. God needs the winter for souls to prepare for the spring; but He never forgets to bring the spring when the time has come.

VI. The spring has another voice-a voice which sounds away into the far future, and foretells “the time of the restitution of all things.” God, in renewing the face of the earth, seems to give us a visible picture and bright image of that blessed moral renovation which is coming in the fulness of the time.

VII. Spring gives announcement of the general resurrection from the dead.

VIII. Spring tells us that all our earthly time is the spring season of our existence.

A. Raleigh, Quiet Resting-places, p. 347.

I. Spring is an awakening. We say, The year awakes from its winter sleep; nature opens its eyes. So is the turning of the soul to God. It was a soul asleep; it is a soul awake. It has heard a voice from heaven, saying, “Awake, thou that sleepest;” and it is opening its eyes on a new world, a new time, new thoughts, new possibilities, a blessed new life. Christ is the Prince whose touch awakens the soul from its winter sleep. The joy of the awakening soul is a new creation, by the word of Him who went near to lost souls to bring them to God.

II. Spring is the manifestation of life. It is life which sings among the branches. It is life which prattles in the brook. It is life which clothes the trees with verdure, and the furrows with the tender shoots of corn. It is life which stirs in the converted soul. Conversion itself is but a manifestation of life. The soul has been born again, has been revived, quickened, raised from the dead to newness of life. The life we are invited to live is nothing other, is nothing lower, than God’s own life. And this life has been given to us in Jesus Christ. In Him is the fountain of life.

III. Spring is also a gateway. It is the gateway to the harvest-seedtime first, then harvest. At the gateway of the year, a promise; at the end, fulfilment. In conversion the gateway is opened for the soul to go in and seek its fruit from God. The harvest of a single soul-can the worth of that be summed up?

A. Macleod, Days of Heaven upon Earth, p. 45.

I. The vast importance to us that this season should regularly and infallibly return in its time is obvious the instant it is mentioned. But it is not so instantly recollected how entirely we are at the mercy of the God of nature for its return.

II. Consider, next, this beautiful vernal season. What a gloomy and unpromising scene and season it rises out of! Might we not take instruction from this to correct the judgments we are prone to form of the Divine government?

III. How welcome are the early signs and precursory appearances of the spring! The operation of the Divine Spirit in renovating the human soul, effecting its conversion from the natural state, is sometimes displayed in this gentle and gradual manner, especially in youth.

IV. The next observation on the spring season is, How reluctantly the worse gives place to the better. It is too obvious to need pointing out how much resembling this there is in the moral state of things.

V. We may contemplate the lavish, boundless diffusion, riches, and variety of beauty in the spring. Reflect what a display is here of the boundless resources of the great Author. Such unlimited profusion may well assure us that He who can afford thus to lavish treasures so far beyond what is simply necessary can never fail of resources for all that is, or ever shall be, necessary.

VI. This pleasant season has always been regarded as obviously presenting an image of youthful life. The newness, liveliness, fair appearance, exuberance, of the vital principle, rapid growth-such are the fair points of likeness. But there are also less pleasing circumstances of resemblance: the frailty and susceptibility, so peculiarly liable to fatal injury from inauspicious influences, blights, and diseases.

VII. To a person in the latter stages of life, if destitute of the sentiments and expectations of religion, this world of beauty must lose its captivations; it must even take a melancholy aspect, for what should strike him so directly and forcibly as the thought that he is soon to leave it? On the contrary, and by the same rule, this fair display of the Creator’s works and resources will be gratifying the most and the latest to the soul animated with the love of God and the confidence of soon entering on a nobler scene.

J. Foster, Lectures, 1st series, p. 128.

Psa 104:30

The breath of the Most High, mentioned in the text, is the Holy Spirit of the Father and the Son, the Third Person in the Trinity, proceeding from the Father and the Son to give life, and order, and harmony to His creatures, especially to make His reasonable creatures, angels and men, partakers of His unspeakable holiness.

I. If this parable of breath be well considered, it may seem to account for other like parables, so to call them, by which Holy Scripture teaches us to think of this our most holy Comforter. For instance, the Holy Spirit is sometimes compared to the wind, as in the discourse of our Saviour to Nicodemus. Thus the wind, when we hear or feel it, may remind us of the breath of Almighty God; and the effects of the wind-the clouds which it brings over the earth, the moisture which the air takes up, the dews which descend, the rains which pour down, the springs which gush out, the waters which flow over the earth-all these are in Scripture tokens of the same Spirit, showing Himself in gifts and sanctifying graces and communicating spiritual life to His people.

II. We are hereby taught to think of our own spiritual and hidden life, the life which we have concealed and laid up for us with Christ in God, the life which is altogether of faith, not at all of sight. Whatever puts us in mind of the Holy Spirit puts us in mind of that life, for He is “the Lord and Giver of life.” The natural life of the first Adam was a gift of the Spirit, a token of His Divine presence, but much more so the spiritual life which Christians have by union with the second Adam.

III. Whatever else we do, then, or refrain from doing, let us at least endeavour to open our eyes and contemplate our real condition. The outward world indeed is to us the same as if we were no Christians; the breath of heaven is around us, the dew falls, the winds blow, the rain descends, the waters gush out, and all the other works of nature go on as if we had never been taken out of this wicked world and placed in the kingdom of God: but in reality we know that there is a meaning and power in all these common things which they can have to none but Christians. The good Spirit is around us on every side; He is within us; we are His temples: only let us so live, that we force Him not to depart from us at last.

Plain Sermons by Contributors to “Tracts for the Times,” vol. vii., p. 144.

References: Psa 104:30.-J. E. Vaux, Sermon Notes, 4th series, p. 52; J. Keble, Sermons from Ascension Day to Trinity Sunday, p. 164; A. J. Griffith, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xii., p. 8; H. Wonnacott, Ibid., vol. xvii., p. 314; G. Avery, Ibid., vol. xxvii., p. 269; R. D. B. Rawnsley, Ibid., vol. xxx., p. 172; J. M. Neale, Sermons in Sackville College, vol. i., p. 382.

Psa 104:31-33

I. In God, in the ever-blessed Trinity-Father, Son, and Holy Ghost-we and every living thing live, and move, and have our being. He is the Infinite, whom nothing, however huge, and vast, and strong, can comprehend; that is, take in and limit. He takes in and limits all things, giving to each thing form according to its own kind, and life and growth according to its own law. Therefore everything which we see is a thought of God’s, an action of God’s, a message to us from God. We can look neither at the sun in the sky nor at the grass beneath our feet without being brought face to face with God, the ever-blessed Trinity.

II. If God be so awful in the material world, of which our five senses tell us, how much more awful is He in that spiritual and moral world of which our senses tell us nought! How awful is God in that eternal world of right and wrong, wherein cherubim, seraphim, angel, and archangel cry to Him for ever, not merely “Mighty! mighty! mighty!” but “Holy! holy! holy!” so awful that we might well be overwhelmed with dread and horror at the sight of God’s righteousness and our sinfulness were it not for the gracious message of revelation that tells us that God the Father of heaven is our Father likewise, who so loved us that He gave for us His only-begotten, God the Son, that for His sake our sins might be freely forgiven us; that God the Son is our Atonement, our Redeemer, our King, our Intercessor, our Example, our Saviour in life and death, and God the Holy Ghost our Comforter, our Guide, our Inspirer, who will give to our souls the eternal life which will never perish, even as He gives to our bodies the mortal life which must perish.

C. Kingsley, All Saints’ Day, and Other Sermons, p. 142.

References: Psa 104:33.-Expositor, 3rd series, vol. iv., p. 273. Psa 104:33-35.-Clergyman’s Magazine, vol. xxi., p. 338.

Psa 104:34

Meditation is the calm and quiet dwelling of the mind upon a great fact till that fact has time to get into the mind and pervade it with its influence. Meditation is the quiet thinking on single truths, the steady setting of attentive thought drawn away from other things and concentrated on this alone.

I. The words of the text imply a personal relationship; that is, the relation of the human person who thinks towards a Divine Person on whom he meditates. All through it is the personal, living God whom the psalmist saw, the God who thought, and felt, and schemed, and ruled, and loved, and with whom the psalmist himself was brought into relation. Not an abstract or distant Deity is He who calls out the adoration of His human creatures, but One in whom we live, and move, and have our being, round about our path and about our bed, and searching out all our ways.

II. Consider whence comes the sweetness of this exercise of the head and heart. (1) It is sweet to think of the love of Christ, and especially to realise that we, with all our conscious unworthiness, are the objects of it. (2) It is sweet to dwell on the love-tokens of our absent Saviour. (3) It is sweet to anticipate the time when we shall meet Him, “whom, having not seen, we love; in whom, though now we see Him not, yet believing, we rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.”

E. Garbett, Experiences of the Inner Life, p. 191.

References: Psalm 104-P. Thomson, Expositor, 2nd series, vol. i., p. 174; Preacher’s Monthly, vol. iv., p. 60.

Fuente: The Sermon Bible

Psalm 104

Creations Praise

1. The Creator (Psa 104:1-4)

2. The foundations of the earth (Psa 104:5-9)

3. His works manifesting His kindness (Psa 104:10-23)

4. How manifold are Thy works (Psa 104:24-30)

5. Rejoicing in His works: Hallelujah! (Psa 104:31-35)

He is now praised as the Creator by creation. He is seen in His creator-glory. When the kingdom is established that glory will then be manifested. Psa 104:4 is quoted in Heb 1:1-14 showing that the glory of the risen Christ is here likewise revealed. The angels of God will ascend and descend upon the Son of Man. Then creation will be in its rightful place and man will see His glory there. The earth will be filled with His Riches (Psa 104:24). Then too sinners will be consumed out of the earth and the wicked be no more for He is King. The Psalm ends with hallelujah. His people and all creation will praise Him.

Fuente: Gaebelein’s Annotated Bible (Commentary)

Bless: This sublime poem on the works of God in creation and providence, is ascribed to David in the LXX, Vulgate, Ethiopic, Syriac, and Arabic; and as it opens and closes with the same words as the preceding psalm, it is probable that it was composed on the same occasion; and it is written as part of it in nine manuscripts Psa 104:35, Psa 103:1, Psa 103:2, Psa 103:22

O Lord: Psa 7:1, Dan 9:4, Hab 1:12

art very great: Psa 145:3, Jer 23:24, Jer 32:17-19, Rev 1:13-20

clothed: Psa 93:1, Isa 59:17, Dan 7:9

honour: Psa 29:1-4, Psa 96:6

Reciprocal: 1Ch 29:11 – majesty Job 37:22 – with Job 39:19 – clothed Job 40:10 – Deck Psa 45:3 – glory Psa 62:5 – soul Psa 96:2 – bless Psa 132:9 – thy priests Psa 145:5 – will speak Psa 146:1 – Praise the Lord Dan 4:30 – and for Mar 9:3 – his raiment Heb 8:1 – the Majesty

Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

Nature’s tribute to Jehovah.

We are now in a position to realize as never before what creation is. Redemption is the key, and the only key, that will fully unlock its treasures; for redemption alone can remove the shadow which, after all, invests its brightest scenes, and lift the sadness which will intrude itself upon every contemplation of it. Nor only so: unbelieving suspicions find their lurking-places amid these shadows, and give bitterness to this sadness. Nature, pervaded by law, as the science of the day more and more assures us, seems cast in a rigid mould from which we shrink inevitably. The more perfect as a machine, the less we find heart in it; and the smiles with which it decks itself seem often but very cruelty and hypocrisy, as we realize it to be the monster that without remorse consumes day by day its own offspring. The more we grow in knowledge, the more impossible it seems to escape the conviction that this is no effect of moral ruin introduced by Adam into what was before a deathless paradise. Death seems wrought into the constitution of things from the beginning. We have in the geological strata a history of the earth stretching long ages back of Adam; and far down as we may pierce, nothing but convulsion and ruin can be discerned. We dwell upon the accumulated dust of multitudinous generations, which sometimes constitute in fact the very substance of the strata themselves. Not merely individuals but countless types of form have passed away; and the “fittest” that “survive” -if they do survive -have been (according to the theory) produced at the cost of a prodigal waste of life on the part of the less perfect which have yielded them only temporarily the place which in a brief time they too must yield to others.

Is it possible then to have any more a “psalm of creation”? is it possible any more to sing with the understanding these songs of another age? Yes, surely, if we have learned, and not unless we have learned, redemption as the key to the mysteries of creation. If we realize God to be a Saviour, and can write Jehovah-Saviour in brief as “Jesus,” we have a light bright enough to dispel all shadow from the soul and bathe it in eternal glory. A record of conflict and of ruin as connected with the creature will no more be strange or stumbling, but familiar truth; while the up-rise of a higher form of life out of what has perished and passed away will be but as a prophecy of a better resurrection and the final victory of God over the evil, the Son of God being glorified thereby.

[FWG here gives credence to ‘death before the fall’ and evolution (see elsewhere that he does not believe this), and is on extremely shaky ground. This interpretation owes everything to ‘science’ and not to the revelation FWG believes. The geological record, if read as before Adam, would leave no evidence of the catastrophic worldwide flood of Noah, as well as introducing more problems than it appears to solve. The reader is invited to visit www.answersingenesis.org for another understanding. Ed. STEM]

1. Jehovah the Redeemer is what the last psalm has proclaimed to us. Divine Love could not give to another the glory of this salvation; nor find one capable of the stupendous sacrifice that it involved. In the psalm before us Jehovah is the Creator also, and Nature brings its tribute of praise to swell the anthem of redemption. Only thus can we realize its glorious harmony.

The psalm begins with celebrating the greatness of Jehovah: He is clothed with honor and majesty. Inaccessible in His own essential glory, He covers Himself with light as with a garment, and stretches out the heavens like the curtain (of a tent). The visible is thus the robe of the Invisible. He indwells it, and through it we may discern, if dimly, His glorious Form.

Yet this dimness itself is Light; and there is no hiding, save the better to make known; just as when; because of the feebleness of our sight, through a darkened glass we behold the sun. The tremulous curtain of the heavens stretched out is, as it were, interwoven with its iris-rays. In the waters of the expanse He frames His upper chambers; the dark clouds moving on the wings of the wind being the chariot in which He rides.

It is plain that the psalmist refuses mere matter and motion as a sufficient account of heavenly phenomena, and that to him all these are instinct with the Presence and Will of a Divine Being, whom they in some sense disclose. Nor has the discovery of some of the mechanics involved in them done one whit to disprove the psalmist’s belief. Certainly the description given may be allowed to be poetical, but its meaning is not difficult to understand, nor can it be proved superstitious. Superstition thrives in the dark, is incongruous, fantastic, irrational. To claim as manifestations of Mind what has been proved to be so perfectly rational, or of a Divine Governor what is so plainly authoritative as to be owned as “law,” -this has no character of superstition at all. Divine action, identified with such phenomena, is God thus far in the light, and appealing to the rational nature of His creatures for recognition.

The acceptance and use of the Septuagint translation of the next verse by the writer of the epistle to the Hebrews (Heb 1:7) would quite preclude the adoption of any other. “He maketh His angels spirits” is, according to the apostle, a fact affirmed of the nature of angels; and of course a much higher fact than “making the winds His messengers.” As it might be translated either way, the meaning must be decided otherwise than by the language. Nor is it a disproportion in thought, that while the material instrument is contemplated as directly in the hands of God, the spiritual beings should be His messengers. This shows, on the one hand, that no part of His creation is to be conceived as separate from Him; no physical agency that is not the embodiment of His will, while, on the other hand, the “spirits” with a responsibility of their own represent Him and are subject to Him, receiving their character and endowment from Him, according to His will. There would be indeed a lack in the representation of Jehovah the Creator, were only physical forces -clouds, winds, etc -spoken of, and not His creative power in the domain of spirit.

2. The psalmist now recites the story of the preparation of the earth for man. Divine delight in man, and so His “rejoicing in the habitable parts of his earth” are evidently the theme, while the rebuke and bounding of the overflowing waters may be read as a parable of the strife of which the world has ever been the scene, and which receives its final rebuke when the Prince of peace shall come. The first verse declares the absolute security of the dry land for ever, in the strongest expression for eternity that the Old Testament knows (le-olam va-ed). The deluge (of which we are beginning to have some knowledge geologically*) altered nothing essentially as to the structure of the earth in this way; and the purification by fire which awaits it before the eternal condition of the “new earth” can be reached, need not do so either although there will then be “no more sea” (Rev 21:1). Whatever may be the changes, God adheres to His first plan all through, and builds for eternity.

{*See an exceedingly interesting volume by Sir J. W. Dawson, which gives in brief the evidence: “The Meeting-place of Geology and History.” (Religious Tract Society, England.)}

But at first, as we read in Genesis, the reign of water had been universal: “Thou hadst covered it with the deep as with a garment: the waters stood above the mountains.” Geology knows well this condition; which Moses somehow knew before geology. The earth man lives upon; like man from the womb, was born out of water; and the structure of the earth was there “mountains,” and by implication valleys -before it was thus born.

The third verse implies (what the number seems to indicate) the resurrection of the earth; but the psalmist speaks of the rebuke of the waters; which I suppose is continued in the following verse. It is objected that we cannot say, “They ascended the mountains,” which (while in itself unnatural) is forbidden by the fact that they already stood above them. Most, therefore, read “The mountains rose; the valleys sank,” and suppose it parenthetical: for the rest of the verse, as well as the following one, speaks again of the waters. The “place appointed” is evidently the “one place” into which the waters are gathered on the third day, and does not refer to either mountains or valleys; on the other hand, it is awkward to take the first half of the verse as a parenthesis. But there seems no reason why we should not translate, “Mountains ascended: they went down the valleys”; which preserves the connection; and makes the language vividly pictorial.

The next verse speaks then of the bound assigned by God to the retreating waters, so as to prevent their return again. Thus man’s earth has been recovered and is preserved for him: the typical aspect of it has been pointed out elsewhere (Gen 1:1-31 : notes). The more we study this, the more we shall be satisfied that the typical meaning is no arbitrary accommodation of the facts to spiritual illustration; but one deeply grounded in the nature of things: in short, we shall realize what the psalm before us emphasizes, that the Redeemer and the Creator are One.

3. But it is not enough that man’s abode should be separated from the waters. Merely separated, the dry land would be for him but indeed a barren possession; upon which he could not sustain himself a few brief days. Earth (and therefore man) is dependent on heaven; a deeply spiritual truth, of which all nature is full; and to this now we come, the springs of refreshing which, though they are ministered from the earth, are not of earth. “He sendeth the springs into the valleys: they run among the mountains.” The well-known type of the Spirit is the “living water” -water that has in it the power which is first of all derived from its descent from heaven; though it come by whatever underground channels to the place in which we find it. “They give drink to every beast of the field: the wild asses quench their thirst.” How free are all God’s gifts; and the most absolutely necessary are just the freest. Fresh air, sunshine, the streams that water the earth: these are as generally distributed, as they are everywhere needful. The “wild asses” are the very type of rebellious intractability; but “He maketh His sun to shine upon the evil and upon the good; and sendeth rain upon the just and on the unjust.” And He who has ascended up on high and received gifts for men; has done so “for the rebellious also, that the Lord God might dwell among them.”

And beside these springs the birds of the heavens dwell; and give voice among the branches. Natural worshipers as we may say, no song-bird was by the law of Leviticus ever unclean; and their notes, however various are ever harmonious. Attracted by the water, they dwell above our heads, and sustain themselves upon their wings in unobstructed flight through paths in which no beast of earth can follow them.

Next, we have God’s irrigation-system for the earth, in which the hills have their part in turning hither or thither the rain of God’s “upper chambers,” so that the rivers spread abroad to water the land. That which is nearest to heaven attracts most the rain of heaven; while by the law of its nature it cannot keep it, but must pass it on to others. Thus “the earth is satisfied,” -that which receives and is made fruitful by it being just that which, not as rock or sand, resists the force that would disintegrate, but the contrary: that which yields and crumbles as the humble and contrite heart yields to the divine Husbandman.

So the grass grows for cattle and herb for the service of man; God bent upon maintaining the creature, whom He has set in dignity upon the earth as His image and likeness, to know Him and to be for Him; and made him thus of all most thoroughly dependent, even because master of all. Where is there a creature ordained to frailty and long helplessness like a human babe? Where is there one so defenceless naturally, with neither tooth nor claw nor strength nor speed and with his very skin denuded to the blast, as is man in his prime? It is spirit in him that is to manifest itself and does, but by the recognition of his dependence and his careful use of all God’s gifts.

Truly he is “frail man” (enosh); but now, alas! called to know a frailty to which not creation but his sin destines him. Now there is discipline for him in it, which he needs, and in which still divine love acts. While that additional need has brought out as never before God’s tenderness in it: the wine that gladeneth frail man’s heart, the bread that strengtheneth frail man’s heart, -how the words, and the repetition of the words, breathe of God’s thoughtful care in upholding one who may so easily give way in discouragement! Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish, and wine unto the bitter in soul: let him drink and forget his poverty, and remember his misery no more.” (Pro 31:6-7.)

Bread and wine: may we not find symbol here? And with these, “oil to make his face to shine!” Christ and the Spirit! we do no violence to the work of the Redeemer-Creator when we find these here.

4. The fourth section -of but three verses -seems to add, to what we have just had, a brief lesson of experience as to this care of God for the creatures He has made. It is briefer, I suppose because it is so much in the general line of thought in this creation-psalm. Beyond it there are problems that must be faced, and which will occupy much more time; and for which we will do well to be well furnished.

The lessons -for there are more than one -are all the more such and suited for refreshment by their simplicity. It is good to see how all around us are the assurances of divine loving-kindness. In the buoyant happiness of childhood, in the fragrance and delicate tints of a common flower, in the hues of sunset, in every direction; in short, that we may look, apart from effects of sin; we find abundant evidence of One who has thought, not merely of the preservation but of the enjoyment of His creatures: pleasures of sense, pleasures for the mind, pleasures for the heart, quite beyond any need of theirs, if we think merely of what is implied in the necessity of things going on (if that in fact should be a necessity). The eye, the ear, the man in his whole being, finds without seeking, without soliloquizing about it, constant sources of enjoyment. Something of this sort, though objectively considered, we have here. “The trees of Jehovah are full:” strength, beauty, delicacy of workmanship, are in those “cedars of Lebanon which He has planted.” And then they do not grow for themselves simply, but minister to the birds that rejoicingly flock to and nest in their covert; while the gloomy fir gives hospitable shelter to the home-loving stork. The high hills, too, furnish a refuge for feet like those of the wild goat, specially prepared for them; and the very clefts of the rock provide one for the timid and feeble hyrax. Thus the earth is a house of many chambers, in which her various inhabitants find various provision God is the great host of multitudinous tenantry.

5. But we come now to consider His government; in which there are difficulties that give room and exercise for faith. His appointed times contemplate darkness as well as light. This is plainly the point in question; and thus the moon is mentioned before the sun; and as to the latter simply his going down. Yet the moon shows darkness not unrelieved; and not relieved by haphazard. Darkness, however, is of His appointment; which is comfort and yet mystery: and at His appointment, too, the night brings the wild beasts from their lairs. The young lions are cared for, as the innocent sheep, and roaring after prey, seek it and find it from God. Thus the devourer is provided for, as all else: there is no shirking that; and nature witnesses plainly as to it: tooth, claws, and tongue bear witness for the lion. Who gave them to him? The Same who gave to the lion’s prey the agility for escape. An equal hand has been at work for both, as it if were designed to have the world a battlefield of not very unequal forces, each cared for and sustained. If the fittest do survive, as some say, it is hard enough to tell who are the fittest. The giants perish, and the pigmies live. “The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong.” If there be design; then strife seems designed: as if the good and the evil, with the inevitable conflict arising from their co-existence, must have its counterpart and reflection in the whole frame of things amid which man is found; as it must, if nature at large be in any sense a parable of spiritual things -if the analogies between them be otherwise than mere deceptions.

The rein is kept upon this strife, even in the ordinances of day and night, with all that these imply: “the sun ariseth, they gather together and lay them down in their dens.” And under this same subjection man is, with the addition of the toil which marks him as the responsible creature under the discipline of God: he “goeth forth unto his work and unto his labor, until the evening.” His work is to be in the light, and not in darkness; and yet the darkness limits and controls him also in its measure. But it has its measure.

6. The next section, in its seven verses, emphasizes the full mastery of all things possessed by God. It opens with a declaration of the Creator’s wisdom in all His works: manifold works, and every one showing His wisdom. Can anyone produce one that does not? But this wisdom itself implies control of material: the mind must be sustained by the hand that it may be shown. Truly “the earth is full of Thy riches.”

And so, too, is the at first sight barren sea, full of life in innumerable forms; where, above, the ships tossed upon its surface yet make it the highway of man, God’s noblest workmanship; while beneath, the sea-monster sports in its depths. All these must be fed at His table, gather from His hand, be filled with what He gives; or, if He hide His face, suffer; if He take away their breath, go back to the dust from which they came. Yet is He the fountain of life, from which, if He send forth His Spirit, a new creation replaces these vanished forms, and the earth is renewed.

7. From all this the soul justifies its confidence in God, who is Jehovah the Eternal. His glory then shall last forever; and His works are not the playthings of His might, but He rejoices in them. Eternity will be thus the seal upon that final condition with which He at last shall be well pleased.

For thus even now does creation depend on Him; and sympathize with His every thought. If He look upon the earth it trembles; if He touch the mountains they are asmoke. How dreadful this almightiness of His, if He be unknown! If He be realized as what He is, how good that He should be sovereign absolutely! So the psalmist breaks out in a praise which can end but with his being. Nor is it a mere unreasoning emotion: his meditation upon Him shall be sweet, the knowledge of Jehovah shall make glad his heart. The one blot upon God’s works shall disappear: “sinners shall be consumed out of the earth, and the wicked shall be no more.” Then shall His works glorify Him indeed; and in the anticipation of it the heart praises Him.

Thus the song of creation ends. We may perhaps be disappointed after all, that there is no further attempt to lift the curtain of mystery that must be confessed to hang so thickly over much of God’s governmental ways. But here Scripture always declares that “clouds and darkness are round about Him.” Nor, though Christianity reveals Him as in the light, is this essentially altered. Still we are called to walk by faith, and to glorify Him by submission where we cannot penetrate His meaning. The difference that Christianity makes is that God is in the light -not all His acts or ways: which faith knows to be worthy of Him; even where it knows not how they are. Here the cross is indeed the bow in the cloud; and redemption shows the relation of God to sin itself, in perfect holiness and yet in love; and this is found here in the hundred and second psalm; Jehovah seen in the Man cut off in the midst of His days, yet the Creator of all, whose years shall have no end. This then throws its light over the darkest mysteries; and even the conflict of opposites which we discern in nature begins to be intelligible, as bringing it into accordance with earth’s fallen head, and making it the symbolic utterance of spiritual things. True it is we know but little of nature in this character of it: we have mere glimpses of what the glorious vision should be. But what wonder when we have allowed Scripture itself to be practically so much hidden as it still must be confessed to be? Alas, we have not yet the key that shall completely open the door, and set us face to face with the unveiled mysteries. Thank God for what we know; but shall we not press on to what yet we know not?

Fuente: Grant’s Numerical Bible Notes and Commentary

Psa 104:1-2. O Lord my God, thou art very great As in thine own nature and perfections, so also in the glory of thy works; thou art clothed Surrounded and adorned, with honour and majesty With honourable majesty: who coverest, or clothest, thyself with light Either, 1st, With that light which no man can approach unto, as it is described 1Ti 1:10 : wherewith, therefore, he may well be said to be covered, or hid, from the eyes of mortal men. Or, 2d, He speaks of that first created light, mentioned Gen 1:3, which the psalmist properly treats of first, as being the first of all Gods visible works. Of all visible beings light comes nearest to the nature of a spirit, and therefore with that, God, who is a spirit, is pleased to clothe himself, and also to reveal himself under that similitude, as men are seen in the clothes with which they cover themselves. Who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain Forming a magnificent canopy or pavilion, comprehending within it the earth, and all the inhabitants thereof; enlightened by the celestial orbs suspended in it, as the holy tabernacle was by the lamps of the golden candlestick. Now God is said to stretch this out like a curtain, to intimate that it was originally framed, erected, and furnished by its maker, with more ease than man can construct and pitch a tent for his own temporary abode. Yet must this noble pavilion also be taken down; these resplendent and beautiful heavens must pass away and come to an end. How glorious, then, shall be those new heavens which are to succeed them and endure for ever! Horne.

Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

This psalm has no title in the Hebrew, but it is ascribed to David by the LXX, and by most of the Versions. It celebrates the works of God in the creation of the world, and in strains worthy of the royal psalmist.

Psa 104:2. With light as with a garment. St. Paul says, he dwelleth in light. He said in the creation, Let there be light. He appeared of old in glory, and in a cloud. The heathen poets represent the gods as appearing clothed in luminous clouds, or with a rainbow.

Psa 104:3. Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters; who maketh the clouds his chariot. See on Deu 33:26. The dense clouds are represented as the secret chambers of the Most High, where he prepares the rain, and whence he utters his voice in thunders.

Psa 104:4. Who maketh his angels spirits, like the soul of man. Gen 2:7. The French bibles read, He makes winds his angels, [messengers] and burning fire his servants. How does he do that? Answer; He bade the fires burn Sodom and Gomorrah. He blew with his wind, and the sea was divided. But if these ideas be all, why does he say spirits, in the plural number, while the elements, wind and fire, are in the singular? He rode on the wings of the wind:the Highest gave his voice, hailstones and coals of fire. Did not hosts of angels attend his chariot; and are not the seraphim his burning ones? The angels in the cloud of his presence are the shining of a flaming fire. There can be no doubt but St. Paul, who wrote to the Hebrew christians with the utmost caution and care, had the highest rabbinical authority for applying this text to angels in the plural number, and not to wind and fire. The rabbins are all agreed that the angels are servants of the Messiah, and swell the glory of his train.

Psa 104:6-8. The waters stood above the mountains. At thy rebuke they fled they go up by the mountains; they go down by the valleys. This alludes to the play of the tides for the long space of about three hundred days, during the flood of Noah, by which the old world perished, and new hills were made. See on Gen 8:3; Gen 9:13. Mr. Merrick, in his new version of the Psalms, has correctly preserved this idea, which has the sanction of De Saussure, of the Abbe la Pluche, and of Humboldt.

He spakeand oer the mountain head,

The deep its watry mantle spread;

And first adown their bending side,

With refluent stream the current tide.

Psa 104:13. He watereth the hills, dry and thirsty, with a double portion of rain; for the clouds which float over the plains, not only rain, but descend on the mountain ranges. Such is the wisdom of God.

Psa 104:16. The trees of the Lord, planted with his own hand, grow to the highest perfection. A solemn grandeur is found in the primitive forests, which cannot be equalled by the arts of the nursery; and which powerfully attracts the aboriginals to the native woods.

Psa 104:18. The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats. There they find proper food; and in time of danger they can make vast leaps from rock to rock, and leave the dogs and wolves far behind. Such is the care of their Creator. The Hebrew word, in some Versions, is translated deer.

Psa 104:26. Leviathan. Literally one that scoffs and derides; the crocodile, as described at large, Job 42.

Psa 104:30. Thou renewest the face of the earth with vernal beauties. This text is cited by the rabbins in succession, to prove the resurrection of the dead. The learned Maness Ben Israel writes on it as under: When God takes away their breath, and the body is reduced to ashes, if the spirit be sanctified, it will a second time return to the body; which obviously refers to the resurrection of the dead.

Psa 104:32. He toucheth the hills, and they smoke. A sublime figure, derived from the smoke and vapours emitted from those mountains on the summits of which volcanoes have opened their craters. He kindled these fires, and they are under his controul. He reserves them for that day when the heavens and the earth shall be burnt up. 2Pe 3:7.

REFLECTIONS.

The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth his handy work. They announce his perfections, and publish his praise. They absorb the mind in contemplation, and inspire it with the tenderest sentiments of piety. Whether we begin, as in this psalm, by contemplating the orbs, and the celestial influences of the heavens, and then descend to the minuter objects of the earth; or whether we begin by investigating an insect or a flower, and thence rise to man, and to all the celestial objects which strike the sight, reflections crowd on the mind, and discover a universe filled with God.

In the style and character of this and some of the succeeding psalms, in an age when astronomy was simple, and the study of nature an infant science, we cannot but admire the aid which is afforded to devotion. The style is natural, the transitions easy, and the sentiments sublime. The sacred author begins with the glory and majesty of God; the splendours of the heavens are his robes, the ethereal skies his curtains, the clouds his chariots, tempests and lightnings, figurative of angels, are the ministers of his vengeance.

From the glories of the higher heavens he descends to the minuter beauties of the earth. Here the fertilizing springs, the luxuriant soil, and the stately trees alike display the glory of God. The sea, not less than the land, where leviathan sports as prince of the finny tribes, displays the wonderful works of the Lord. The seasons, here represented as the hiding of Gods face in winter, and the blowing of his breath in the spring, equally unfold the wisdom and care of providence. The spring opens his treasures, the summer displays his beauty, the autumn bestows his bounty, and rude winter gives repose to nature, and prepares her for all the vigour of the returning year. Thus the whole creation is an overflowing of the divine goodness, said a high display of his perfections. Consequently, the sole duty of man is to contemplate, to adore, and conform his heart and life to the divine pleasure. He should learn of angels to cry continually, holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.

The man, whether learned or unlearned, who studies nature without devotion; who sees all these glorious works without giving glory to God, who suffers scepticism to enter his mind, and corruption to captivate his heart, shall be consumed. What has he to do to treat of science, and lead astray the rising age? His learning makes his folly conspicuous; but not so conspicuous as the judgments which await the depravity of his heart.

Fuente: Sutcliffe’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

CIV. The Glory of the Creator.

Psa 104:1-4. Yahwehs power in the heavens. He is clothed in the light which God made first (Gen 1:3) before the heavenly bodies. He lays the foundation of His dwelling in the waters above the firmament (Gen 1:7*). Thence He issues from time to time in person riding on the clouds (Isa 19:1), or else sends His message by wind or flame.

Psa 104:5-9. Separation of land and sea.

Psa 104:10-18. Gods care for man and beast.

Psa 104:13 b. The emendation, The earth is satisfied from thy clouds, i.e. with the rain which falls from them, implies the use of a word for clouds which means vapours rather than actual rain.

Psa 104:14. service of man: rather, for mans work, i.e. in tilling the ground and so raising grain.

Psa 104:16. The cedars of Lebanon are so great that only God could have planted them.

Psa 104:18. conies: Pro 30:26*.

Psa 104:19-23. The night.

Psa 104:19. for seasons: especially holy seasons such as Passover, etc.

Psa 104:24-30. The poet begins with the sea and passes to the thought of God as giving and renewing all life.

Psa 104:26. Read perhaps, There go the dragons. This preserves the parallelism.leviathan: a mythical sea monster (see Job 40:24 to Job 41:34) with features borrowed from the crocodile and the whale.

Psa 104:31-35. Ascription of glory to God who Himself rejoices in His works.

Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible

PSALM 104

Praise to Jehovah as the Creator. A millennial song of the godly when the enemies have been consumed out of the land, and the wicked are no more.

In Genesis 1 we have the record of creation; in this psalm the song of creation. The psalm in its main outline follows the story of creation. The record presents the creation in its beginning: the song sets forth the creation in its present active organization. One portrays the beginning of the eternal order, the other its perpetual living spectacle. Hence, too, the Ode has far more animation than the Record. The latter is a picture of still life: the former is crowded with figures full of stir and movement (Perowne).

(vv. 1-4) The psalm opens with an ascription of praise to the Creator by one, who, according to the previous psalm, already knows Jehovah as Redeemer, and, therefore, can say, O Lord my God, thou art very great. In the opening verses there arises before the psalmist a view of creation that corresponds with the first and second days of creation. God, who is light, divides the waters from the waters, stretching out the heavens above over the waters beneath. In all this great work God is seen, not only as creating, but moving in His own creation, He maketh the clouds his chariot, and walketh upon the wings of the wind. Angels wait upon Him as His ministers.

(vv. 5-9) In the verses that follow the psalmist recalls the first portion of the third day’s work. He thinks of the day when at the rebuke of the Lord the waters were gathered into one place, and the dry land appeared, when the mountains rose, the valleys sank, unto the place which God had founded for them, when God set the bounds of the seas that they may not pass over.

(vv. 10-18) Further the psalmist sings of the rich provision that God has made for His creatures. He sees the streams springing from the earth, and the rain from His chambers above falling upon the hills and flowing down to the earth to quench the thirst of His creatures (vv. 10-13). He sees the grass and herbs for the food of His creatures and the trees and the high hills for their shelter (vv. 14-18). All this speaks of the latter portion of the third day’s work viewed in its provision for God’s creatures. Moreover the psalmist does not think of the Creator only in His past work as the Originator of all, but in His present work as the Sustainer of His creation. Thus the psalmist can say, He sendeth the springs; not simply that He sent them in the past; He does so now. Again he says, He watereth the hills, and He causeth the grass to grow. It is the present sustaining mercy of the Creator that fills the soul with praise. Moreover the creation is viewed in the fullness of its life and activity. The springs are not simply made – they run among the hills. The wild beasts quench their thirst at the streams; the birds sing and make their nests in the branches of the trees.

(vv. 19-23) The psalmist passes on to sing the praise of God in connection with the heavenly bodies of the fourth day’s work, here viewed in their present ceaseless activity in relation to the needs of God’s creatures.

(v. 24) The psalmist pauses in his description of God’s works to exclaim upon the manifold character of them, all displaying the wisdom of the Creator, and the wealth of His resources.

(vv. 25-30) The psalmist resumes his song with a description of the sea, bringing us to the fifth day’s work. Therein are things great and small, wholly dependent upon God for their existence, sustenance and replenishment.

(vv. 31-35) From the glory of creation the psalmist turns to the glory of the Creator. The whole creation will redound to His eternal glory, and in His works shall the Lord rejoice. Redemption has delivered the groaning creation from the bondage of sin so that the Lord can again rejoice in His works. Such is His majesty He has but to look on the earth and it trembles; He has but to touch the hills and they smoke. Thus the psalm closes with the Lord, rejoicing in His works; the godly rejoicing in the Lord, and the sinners consumed out of the earth, the wicked ceasing to have place any more.

Fuente: Smith’s Writings on 24 Books of the Bible

104:1 Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great; thou art {a} clothed with honour and majesty.

(a) The prophet shows that we do not need to enter into the heavens to seek God, for as much as all the order of nature, with the propriety and placing of the elements, are living mirrors to see his majesty in.

Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes

Psalms 104

This psalm of descriptive praise is quite similar to Psalms 103. Both begin and end with similar calls to bless God. However, God’s dealing with people is the subject of praise in Psalms 103, whereas His creation and sustenance of the world are the theme of Psalms 104.

"The structure of the psalm is modelled [sic] fairly closely on that of Genesis 1, taking the stages of creation as starting-points for praise. But as each theme is developed it tends to anticipate the later scenes of the creation drama, so that the days described in Genesis overlap and mingle here. . . . One of our finest hymns, Sir Robert Grant’s ’O worship the King’, takes its origin from this psalm, deriving its metre (but little else) from William Kethe’s 16th-century paraphrase, ’My soul, praise the Lord’ (the Old 104th)." [Note: Kidner, Psalms 73-150, p. 368.]

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

2. Praise for the creation 104:1b-23

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

The writer pictured God creating the heavens. Splendor and majesty clothe God in the sense that they manifest Him as clothing makes a statement about the person who wears it. Light is good because it brings life and blessing. When God created light He communicated part of His nature to His creation (Gen 1:3-5). God created the sky as a tent above man’s head.

"As a camper readily pitches his tent somewhere, so God without exertion prepared the earth for habitation." [Note: VanGemeren, p. 658.]

The writer pictured God building a loft for Himself beyond the water above, namely, above the clouds. Riding on the clouds and wind symbolize God’s majestic authority (cf. Psa 68:4). Psa 104:4 is a poetic description of the angels (cf. Heb 1:7). Angels do His bidding as wind and fire carry out the will of God on earth.

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

1. Prologue 104:1a

The unnamed psalmist exhorted himself to bless God. The reasons he should do so follow.

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

Psa 104:1-35

LIKE the preceding psalm, this one begins and ends with the psalmists call to his soul to bless Jehovah. The inference has been drawn that both psalms have the same author, but that is much too large a conclusion from such a fact. The true lesson from it is that Nature, when looked at by an eye that sees it to be full of God. yields material for devout gratitude no less than do His fatherly “mercies to them that fear Him.” The keynote of the psalm is struck in Psa 104:24, which breaks into an exclamation concerning the manifoldness of Gods works and the wisdom that has shaped them all. The psalm is a gallery of vivid Nature pictures, touched with Wonderful grace and sureness of hand. Clearness of vision and sympathy with every living thing make the swift outlines inimitably firm and lovely. The poets mind is like a crystal mirror, in which the Cosmos is reflected. He is true to the uniform Old Testament point of view, and regards Nature neither from the scientific nor aesthetic standpoint. To him it is the garment of God, the apocalypse of a present Deity, whose sustaining energy is but the prolongation of His creative act. All creatures depend on Him; His continuous action is their life. He rejoices in His works. The Creation narrative in Genesis underlies the psalm, and is in the main followed, though not slavishly.

Psa 104:1 would be normal in structure if the initial invocation were omitted, and as Psa 104:35 would also be complete without it, the suggestion that it is, in both verses, a liturgical addition is plausible. The verse sums up the whole of the creative act in one grand thought. In that act the invisible God has arrayed Himself in splendour and glory, making visible these inherent attributes. That is the deepest meaning of Creation. The Universe is the garment of God.

This general idea lays the foundation for the following picture of the process of creation which is coloured by reminiscences of Genesis. Here, as there, Light is the firstborn of Heaven; but the influence of the preceding thought shapes the language, and Light is regarded as Gods vesture. The Uncreated Light, who is darkness to our eyes, arrays Himself in created light, which reveals while it veils Him. Everywhere diffused, all-penetrating, all-gladdening, it tells of the Presence in which all creatures live. This clause is the poetic rendering of the work of the first creative day. The next clause in like manner deals with that of the second. The mighty arch of heaven is lifted and expanded over earth as easily as a man draws the cloth or skin sides and canopy of his circular tent over its framework. But our roof is His floor; and, according to Genesis, the firmament (lit. expanse) separates the waters above from those beneath. So the psalm pictures the Divine Architect as laying the beams of His upper chambers (for so the word means) in these waters, above the tent roof. The fluid is solid at His will, and the most mobile becomes fixed enough to be the foundation of His royal abode. The custom of having chambers on the roof, for privacy and freshness, suggests the image.

In these introductory verses the poet is dealing with the grander instances of creative power, especially as realised in the heavens. Not till Psa 104:5 does he drop to earth. His first theme is Gods dominion over the elemental forces, and so he goes on to represent the clouds as His chariot, the wind as bearing Him on its swift pinions, and, as the parallelism requires, the winds as His messengers, and devouring fire as His servants. The rendering of Psa 104:4 adopted in Hebrews from the LXX is less relevant to the psalmists purpose of gathering all the forces which sweep through the wide heavens into one company of obedient servants of God, than that adopted above, and now generally recognised. It is to be observed that the verbs in Psa 104:2-4 are participles, which express continuous action. These creative acts were not done once for all, but are going on still and always. Preservation is continued creation.

With Psa 104:6 we pass to the work of the third of the Genesis days, and the verb is in the form which describes a historical fact. The earth is conceived of as formed, and already moulded into mountains and valleys, but all covered with “the deep” like a vesture-a sadly different one from the robe of Light which He wears. That weltering deep is bidden back to its future appointed bounds; and the process is grandly described, as if the waters were sentient, and, panic struck at Gods voice took to flight. Psa 104:8 a throws in a vivid touch, to the disturbance of grammatical smoothness. The poet has the scene before his eye, and as the waters flee he sees the earth emerging, the mountains soaring, and the vales sinking, and he breaks his sentence, as if in wonder at the lovely apparition, but returns, in Psa 104:8 b, to tell whither the fugitive waters fled-namely, to the ocean depths. There they are hemmed in by Gods will, and, as was promised to Noah, shall not again run wasting over a drowned world.

The picture of the emerging earth, with its variations of valleys and mountains, remains before the psalmists eye throughout Psa 104:10-18, which describe how it is clothed and peopled. These effects are due to the beneficent ministry of the same element, when guided and restrained by God, which swathed the world with desolation. Water runs through the vales, and rain falls on the mountains. Therefore the former bear herbs and corn, vines and olives, and the latter are clothed with trees not planted by human hand, the mighty cedars which spread their broad shelves of steadfast green high up among the clouds. “Everything lives whithersoever water cometh,” as Easterns know. Therefore round the drinking places in the vales thirsty creatures gather, birds flit and sing; up among the cedars are peaceful nests, and inaccessible cliffs have their sure-footed inhabitants. All depend on water, and water is Gods gift. The psalmists view of Nature is characteristic in the direct ascription of all its processes to God. He makes the springs flow, and sends rain on the peaks. Equally characteristic is the absence of any expression of a sense of beauty in the sparkling streams tinkling down the gloomy wadies, or in the rainstorms darkening the hills, or in the green mantle of earth, or in the bright creatures. The psalmist is thinking of use, not of beauty. And yet it is a poets clear and kindly eye which looks upon all, and sees the central characteristic of each, -the eager drinking of the wild ass; the music of the birds blending with the brawling, of the stream, and sweeter because the singers are hidden among the branches; the freshly watered earth, “satisfied” with “the fruit of Thy works” (i.e., the rain which God has sent from His “upper chambers”), the manifold gifts which by His wondrous alchemy are produced from the ground by help of one agency, water; the forest trees with their foliage glistening, as if glad for the rain; the stork on her nest; the goats on the mountains; the “conies” (for which we have no popular name) hurrying to their holes in the cliffs. Man appears as depending, like the lower creatures, on the fruit of the ground; but he has more varied supplies, bread and wine and oil, and these not only satisfy material wants, but “gladden” and “strengthen” the heart. According to some. the word rendered “service” in Psa 104:14 means “tillage,” a meaning which is supported by Psa 104:23, where the same word is rendered “labour,” and which fits in well with the next clause of Psa 104:14, “to bring forth bread from the earth,” which would describe the purpose of the tillage. His prerogative of labour is mans special differentia in creation. It is a token of his superiority to the happy, careless creatures who toil not nor spin. Earth does not yield him its best products without his cooperation. There would thus be an allusion to him as the only worker in creation similar to that in Psa 104:23, and to the reference to the “ships” in Psa 104:26. But probably the meaning of “service,” which is suggested by the parallelism, and does not introduce the new thought of cooperation with Nature or God, is to be preferred. The construction is somewhat difficult, but the rendering of Psa 104:14-15 given above seems best. The two clauses with infinitive verbs (to bring forth and to cause to shine) are each followed by a clause in which the construction is varied into that with a finite verb, the meaning remaining the same; and all four clauses express the Divine purpose in causing vegetation to spring. Then the psalmist looks up, once more to the hills. “The trees of Jehovah” are so called, not so much because they are great, as because, unlike vines and olives, they have not been planted or tended by man, nor belong to him. Far above the valleys, where men and the cattle dependent on him live on earths cultivated bounties, the unowned woods stand and drink Gods sift of rain, while wild creatures lead free lives amid mountains and rocks.

With Psa 104:19 the psalmist passes to the fourth day, but thinks of moon and sun only in relation to the alternation of day and night as affecting creatural life on earth. The moon is named first, because the Hebrew day began with the evening. It is the measurer, by whose phases seasons (or, according to some, festivals) are reckoned. The sun is a punctual servant, knowing the hour to set and duly keeping it. “Thou appointest darkness and it is night.” God wills, and His will effects material changes. He says to His servant Night, “Come,” and she “comes.” The psalmist had peopled the vales and mountains of his picture. Everywhere he had seen life fitted to its environment; and night is populous too. He had outlined swift sketches of tame and wild creatures, and now he half shows us beasts of prey stealing through the gloom. He puts his finger on two characteristics-their stealthy motions, and their cries which made night hideous. Even their roar was a kind of prayer, though they knew it not; it was God from whom they sought their food. It would not have answered the purpose to have spoken of “all the loves, Now sleeping in those quiet groves.” The poet desired to show how there were creatures that found possibilities of happy life in all the variety of conditions fashioned by the creative Hand, which was thus shown to be moved by Wisdom and Love. The sunrise sends these nocturnal animals back to their dens. and the world is ready for man. “The sun looked over the mountains rim,” and the beasts of prey slunk to their lairs, and mans day of toil began-the mark of his preeminence, Gods gift for his good, by which he uses creation for its highest end and fulfils Gods purpose. Grateful is the evening rest when the day has been filled with strenuous toil.

The picture of earth and its inhabitants is now complete, and the dominant thought which it leaves on the psalmists heart is cast into the exultant and wondering exclamation of Psa 104:24. The variety as well as multitude of the forms in which Gods creative idea is embodied, the Wisdom which shapes all, His ownership of all, are the impressions made by the devout contemplation of Nature. The scientist and the artist are left free to pursue their respective lines of investigation and impression, but scientist and artist must rise to the psalmists point of view, if they are to learn the deepest lesson from the ordered kingdoms of Nature and from the beauty which floods the world.

With the exclamation in Psa 104:24 the psalmist has finished his picture of the earth, which he had seen as if emerging from the abyss, and watched as it was gradually clothed “with fertility and peopled with happy life. He turns, in Psa 104:25-26, to the other half of his Vision of Creation, and portrays the gathered and curbed waters which he now calls the “sea.” As always in Scripture, it is described as it looks to a landsman, gazing out on it from the safe shore. The characteristics specified betray unfamiliarity with maritime pursuits. The far-stretching roll of the waters away out to the horizon, the mystery veiling the strange lives swarming in its depths, the extreme contrasts in the magnitude of its inhabitants, strike the poet. He sees “the stately ships go on.” The introduction of these into the picture is unexpected. We should have looked for an instance of the “small” creatures, to pair off with the “great” one, Leviathan, in the next words. “A modern poet,” says Cheyne, in loc., ” would have joined the mighty whale to the fairy nautilus.” It has been suggested that “ship” here is a name for the nautilus, which is common in the Eastern Mediterranean. The suggestion is a tempting one, as fitting in more smoothly with the antithesis of small and great in the previous clause. But, in the absence of any proof that the word has any other meaning than “ship,” the suggestion cannot be taken as more than a probable conjecture. The introduction of “ships” into the picture is quite in harmony with the allusions to mans works in the former parts of the psalm, such as Psa 104:23, and possibly Psa 104:14. The psalmist seems to intend to insert such reference to man, the only toiler, in all his pictures. “Leviathan” is probably here the whale. Ewald, Hitzig, Baethgen, Kay, and Cheyne follow the LXX and Vulgate in reading “Leviathan whom Thou hast formed to sport with him,” and take the words to refer to Job 41:5. The thought would then be that Gods power can control the mightiest creatures plunges; but “the two preceding theres are in favour of the usual interpretation, therein” (Hupfeld), and consequently of taking the “sporting” to be that of the unwieldy gambols of the sea monster.

Psa 104:27-30 mass all creatures of earth and sea, including man, as alike dependent on God for sustenance and for life. Dumbly these look expectant to Him, though man only knows to whom all living eyes are directed. The swift clauses in Psa 104:28-30, without connecting particles, vividly represent the Divine acts as immediately followed by the creatural consequences. To this psalmist the links in the chain were of little consequence. His thoughts were fixed on its two ends-the Hand that sent its power thrilling through the links, and the result realised in the creatures life. All natural phenomena are issues of Gods present will. Preservation is as much His act, as inexplicable without Him, as creation. There would be nothing to “gather” unless He “gave.” All sorts of supplies, which make the “good” of physical life, are in His hand, whether they be the food of the wild asses by the streams, or of the conies among the cliffs, or of the young lions in the night, or of Leviathan tumbling amidst the waves, or of toiling man. Nor is it only the nourishment of life which comes straight from God to all, but life itself depends on His continual inbreathing. His face is creations light; breath from Him is its life. The withdrawal of it is death. Every change in creatural condition is wrought by Him. He is the only Fountain of Life, and the reservoir of all the forces that minister to life or to inanimate being. But the psalmist will not end his contemplations with the thought of the fair creation returning to nothingness. Therefore he adds another verse (Psa 104:30); which tells of “life reorient out of dust.” Individuals pass; the type remains. New generations spring. The yearly miracle of Spring brings greenness over the snow-covered or brown pastures and green shoots from stiffened boughs. Many of last years birds are dead, but there are nests in the cypresses, and twitterings among the branches in the wadies. Life, not, death, prevails in Gods world.

So the psalmist gathers all up into a burst of praise. He desires that the glory of God, which accrues to Him from His works, may ever be rendered through devout recognition of Him as working them all by man, the only creature who can be the spokesman of creation. He further desires that, as God at first saw that all was “very good,” He may ever continue thus to rejoice in His works, or, in other words, that these may fulfil His purpose. Possibly His rejoicing in His works is regarded as following upon mans giving glory to Him for them. That rejoicing, which is the manifestation both of His love and of His satisfaction, is all the more desired, because, if His works do not please Him, there lies in Him a dread abyss of destructive power, which could sweep them into nothingness. Superficial readers may feel that the tone of Psa 104:32 strikes a discord, but it is a discord which can be resolved into deeper harmony. One frown from God, and the solid earth trembles, as conscious to its depths of His displeasure. One touch of the hand that is filled with good, and the mountains smoke. Creation perishes if He is displeased. Well then may the psalmist pray that He may forever rejoice in His works, and make them live by His smile.

Very beautifully and profoundly does the psalmist ask, in Psa 104:33-34, that some echo of the Divine joy may gladden his own heart, and that his praise may be coeval with Gods glory and his own life. This is the Divine purpose in creation-that God may rejoice in it and chiefly in man its crown, and that man may rejoice in Him. Such sweet commerce is possible between heaven and earth; and they have learned the lesson of creative power and love aright who by it have been led to share in the joy of God. The psalm has been shaped in part by reminiscences of the creative days of creation. It ends with the Divine Sabbath, and with the prayer, which is also a hope, that man may enter into Gods rest.

But there is one discordant note in creations full-toned hymn, “the fair music that all creatures made.” There are sinners on earth: and the last prayer of the psalmist is that that blot may be removed, and so nothing may mar the realisation of Gods ideal, nor be left to lessen the completeness of His delight in His work. And so the psalm ends, as it began, with the singers call to his own soul to bless Jehovah.

This is the first psalm which closes with Hallelujah (Praise Jehovah). It is appended to the two following psalms, which close Book 4, and is again found in Book 5, in Psa 111:1-10; Psa 112:1-10; Psa 113:1-9; Psa 115:1-18; Psa 116:1-19; Psa 117:1-2, and in the final group, Psa 146:1-10; Psa 147:1-20; Psa 148:1-14; Psa 149:1-9; Psa 150:1-6. It is probably a liturgical addition.

Fuente: Expositors Bible Commentary