Psalms 104
104
Praise of God the Creator
I
1Bless the Lord, my soul!
Lord, my God, you are great indeed!
You are clothed with majesty and splendor,
2robed in light as with a cloak.
You spread out the heavens like a tent;#Prv 8:27–28; Jb 9:8; Is 40:22; Gn 1:6–7; Am 9:6.
3setting the beams of your chambers upon the waters.#Your chambers upon the waters: God’s heavenly dwelling above the upper waters of the sky, cf. Gn 1:6–7; Ps 29:10.
You make the clouds your chariot;
traveling on the wings of the wind.
4You make the winds your messengers;
flaming fire, your ministers.#Heb 1:7.
II
5#God places the gigantic disk of the earth securely on its foundation and then, as a warrior, chases away the enveloping waters and confines them under, above, and around the earth.You fixed the earth on its foundation,
so it can never be shaken.
6The deeps covered it like a garment;
above the mountains stood the waters.
7At your rebuke they took flight;
at the sound of your thunder they fled.#Ps 29:3.
8They rushed up the mountains, down the valleys
to the place you had fixed for them.
9You set a limit they cannot pass;
never again will they cover the earth.#Jer 5:22; Gn 9:11–15.
III
10You made springs flow in wadies
that wind among the mountains.
11They give drink to every beast of the field;#Ps 147:8–9.
here wild asses quench their thirst.
12Beside them the birds of heaven nest;
among the branches they sing.
13You water the mountains from your chambers;
from the fruit of your labor the earth abounds.
14You make the grass grow for the cattle
and plants for people’s work
to bring forth food from the earth,
15wine to gladden their hearts,
oil to make their faces shine,
and bread to sustain the human heart.
16#Even the exotic flora and fauna of the high mountains of the Lebanon range receive adequate water.The trees of the Lord drink their fill,
the cedars of Lebanon, which you planted.
17There the birds build their nests;
the stork in the junipers, its home.#Ez 31:6.
18The high mountains are for wild goats;
the rocky cliffs, a refuge for badgers.
IV
19You made the moon to mark the seasons,#Sir 43:6.
the sun that knows the hour of its setting.
20You bring darkness and night falls,
then all the animals of the forest wander about.
21Young lions roar for prey;
they seek their food from God.#Jb 38:39.
22When the sun rises, they steal away
and settle down in their dens.
23People go out to their work,
to their labor till evening falls.
V
24How varied are your works, Lord!
In wisdom you have made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.#Ps 92:6; Sir 39:16.
25There is the sea, great and wide!
It teems with countless beings,
living things both large and small.#Sir 43:26.
26There ships ply their course
and Leviathan,#Leviathan: a sea monster symbolizing primeval chaos, cf. Ps 74:14; Is 27:1; Jb 40:25. God does not destroy chaos but makes it part of the created order. whom you formed to play with.#Jb 3:8; 40:25, 29.
VI
27All of these look to you
to give them food in due time.#Ps 136:25; 145:15–16.
28When you give it to them, they gather;
when you open your hand, they are well filled.
29#On one level, the spirit (or wind) of God is the fall and winter rains that provide food for all creatures. On another, it is the breath (or spirit) of God that makes beings live.When you hide your face, they panic.
Take away their breath, they perish
and return to the dust.#Ps 90:3; Jb 34:14–15; Eccl 3:20.
30Send forth your spirit, they are created
and you renew the face of the earth.
VII
31May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
may the Lord be glad in his works!
32Who looks at the earth and it trembles,
touches the mountains and they smoke!#Ps 144:5.
33I will sing to the Lord all my life;
I will sing praise to my God while I live.#Ps 146:2.
34May my meditation be pleasing to him;
I will rejoice in the Lord.
35May sinners vanish from the earth,
and the wicked be no more.
Bless the Lord, my soul! Hallelujah!#Hallelujah: a frequent word in the last third of the Psalter. The word combines the plural imperative of praise (hallelu) with an abbreviated form of the divine name Yah(weh).
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Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc
Psalms 104
104
PSALM 104
The Lord’s Care over All His Works.
1Bless and affectionately praise the Lord, O my soul!
O Lord my God, You are very great;
You are clothed with splendor and majesty,
2[You are the One] who covers Yourself with light as with a garment,
Who stretches out the heavens like a tent curtain,
3Who lays the beams of His upper chambers in the waters [above the firmament],
Who makes the clouds His chariot,
Who walks on the wings of the wind,
4Who makes winds His messengers,
Flames of fire His ministers.
5He established the earth on its foundations,
So that it will not be moved forever and ever.
6You covered it with the deep as with a garment;
The waters were standing above the mountains.
7At Your rebuke they fled;
At the sound of Your thunder they hurried away.
8The mountains rose, the valleys sank down
To the place which You established for them.
9You set a boundary [for the waters] that they may not cross over,
So that they will not return to cover the earth.
10You send springs into the valleys;
Their waters flow among the mountains.
11They give drink to every beast of the field;
The wild donkeys quench their thirst there.
12Beside them the birds of the heavens have their nests;
They lift up their voices and sing among the branches.
13He waters the mountains from His upper chambers;
The earth is satisfied with the fruit of His works.
14He causes grass to grow for the cattle,
And all that the earth produces for cultivation by man,
So that he may bring food from the earth—
15And wine which makes the heart of man glad,
So that he may make his face glisten with oil,
And bread to sustain and strengthen man’s heart.
16The trees of the Lord drink their fill,
The cedars of Lebanon which He has planted,
17Where the birds make their nests;
As for the stork, the fir trees are her house.
18The high mountains are for the wild goats;
The rocks are a refuge for the #Small, shy, furry animals (Hyrax syriacus) found in the peninsula of the Sinai, northern Israel, and the region around the Dead Sea; KJV coney, orig NASB rock badgers.shephanim.
19He made the moon for the seasons;
The sun knows the [exact] place of its setting.
20You [O Lord] make darkness and it becomes night,
In which prowls about every wild beast of the forest.
21The young lions roar after their prey
And seek their food from God.
22When the sun arises, they withdraw
And lie down in their dens.
23Man goes out to his work
And remains at his labor until evening.
24O Lord, how many and varied are Your works!
In wisdom You have made them all;
The earth is full of Your riches and Your creatures.
25There is the sea, great and broad,
In which are swarms without number,
Creatures both small and great.
26There the ships [of the sea] sail,
And Leviathan [the sea monster], which You have formed to play there.
27They all wait for You
To give them their food in its appointed season.
28You give it to them, they gather it up;
You open Your hand, they are filled and satisfied with good [things].
29You hide Your face, they are dismayed;
You take away their breath, they die
And return to their dust.
30You send out Your Spirit, they are created;
You renew the face of the ground.
31May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
May the Lord rejoice and be glad in His works—
32He looks at the earth, and it trembles;
He touches the mountains, and they smoke.
33I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.
34May my meditation be sweet and pleasing to Him;
As for me, I will rejoice and be glad in the Lord.
35Let sinners be consumed from the earth,
And let the wicked be no more.
Bless and affectionately praise the Lord, O my soul.
Praise the Lord! (Hallelujah!)
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