Psalms 104

1 My whole being, praise the Lord. Lord my God, you are very great. You are clothed with glory and majesty;

2 you wear light like a robe. You stretch out the skies like a tent.

3 You build your room above the clouds. You make the clouds your chariot, and you ride on the wings of the wind.

4 You make the winds your messengers, and flames of fire are your servants.

5 You built the earth on its foundations so it can never be moved.

6 You covered the earth with oceans; the water was above the mountains.

7 But at your command, the water rushed away. When you thundered your orders, it hurried away.

8 The mountains rose; the valleys sank. The water went to the places you made for it.

9 You set borders for the seas that they cannot cross, so water will never cover the earth again.

10 You make springs pour into the ravines; they flow between the mountains.

11 They water all the wild animals; the wild donkeys come there to drink.

12 Wild birds make nests by the water; they sing among the tree branches.

13 You water the mountains from above. The earth is full of the things you made.

14 You make the grass for cattle and vegetables for the people. You make food grow from the earth.

15 You give us wine that makes happy hearts and olive oil that makes our faces shine. You give us bread that gives us strength.

16 The Lord's trees have plenty of water; they are the cedars of Lebanon, which he planted.

17 The birds make their nests there; the stork's home is in the fir trees.

18 The high mountains belong to the wild goats. The rocks are hiding places for the badgers.

19 You made the moon to mark the seasons, and the sun always knows when to set.

20 You make it dark, and it becomes night. Then all the wild animals creep around.

21 The lions roar as they attack. They look to God for food.

22 When the sun rises, they leave and go back to their dens to lie down.

23 Then people go to work and work until evening.

24 Lord, you have made many things; with your wisdom you made them all. The earth is full of your riches.

25 Look at the sea, so big and wide, with creatures large and small that cannot be counted.

26 Ships travel over the ocean, and there is the sea monster Leviathan, which you made to play there.

27 All these things depend on you to give them their food at the right time.

28 When you give it to them, they gather it up. When you open your hand, they are filled with good food.

29 When you turn away from them, they become frightened. When you take away their breath, they die and turn to dust.

30 When you breathe on them, they are created, and you make the land new again.

31 May the glory of the Lord be forever. May the Lord enjoy what he has made.

32 He just looks at the earth, and it shakes. He touches the mountains, and they smoke.

33 I will sing to the Lord all my life; I will sing praises to my God as long as I live.

34 May my thoughts please him; I am happy in the Lord.

35 Let sinners be destroyed from the earth, and let the wicked live no longer. My whole being, praise the Lord. Praise the Lord.

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Psalms 104 Commentary

Chapter 104

God's majesty in the heavens, The creation of the sea, and the dry land. (1-9) His provision for all creatures. (10-18) The regular course of day and night, and God's sovereign power over all the creatures. (19-30) A resolution to continue praising God. (31-35)

Verses 1-9 Every object we behold calls on us to bless and praise the Lord, who is great. His eternal power and Godhead are clearly shown by the things which he hath made. God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. The Lord Jesus, the Son of his love, is the Light of the world.

Verses 10-18 When we reflect upon the provision made for all creatures, we should also notice the natural worship they render to God. Yet man, forgetful ungrateful man, enjoys the largest measure of his Creator's kindness. the earth, varying in different lands. Nor let us forget spiritual blessings; the fruitfulness of the church through grace, the bread of everlasting life, the cup of salvation, and the oil of gladness. Does God provide for the inferior creatures, and will he not be a refuge to his people?

Verses 19-30 We are to praise and magnify God for the constant succession of day and night. And see how those are like to the wild beasts, who wait for the twilight, and have fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness. Does God listen to the language of mere nature, even in ravenous creatures, and shall he not much more interpret favourably the language of grace in his own people, though weak and broken groanings 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, and which he must continue in till evening; it will be time enough to rest when the night comes, in which no man can work. The psalmist wonders at the works of God. The works of art, the more closely they are looked upon, the more rough they appear; the works of nature appear more fine and exact. They are all made in wisdom, for they all answer the end they were designed to serve. Every spring is an emblem of the resurrection, when a new world rises, as it were, out of the ruins of the old one. But man alone lives beyond death. When the Lord takes away his breath, his soul enters on another state, and his body will be raised, either to glory or to misery. May the Lord send forth his Spirit, and new-create our souls to holiness.

Verses 31-35 Man's glory is fading; God's glory is everlasting: creatures change, but with the Creator there is no variableness. And if mediation on the glories of creation be so sweet to the soul, what greater glory appears to the enlightened mind, when contemplating the great work of redemption! There alone can a sinner perceive ground of confidence and joy in God. While he with pleasure upholds all, governs all, and rejoices in all his works, let our souls, touched by his grace, meditate on and praise him.

Taken from Matthew Henry Commentary on the Whole Bible (Concise)

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 104

This psalm, though without a title, was probably written by David, since it begins and ends as the former does, as Aben Ezra observes; and to him the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, and all the Oriental versions, ascribe it. The inscription of the Syriac version is,

``a psalm of David, when he went to worship before the ark of the Lord with the priests; and as to us, it teaches us confession and prayer; and intimates to us the constitution of the beginning of the creatures; and declares some things concerning the angels.''

Some copies of the Septuagint version have it,

``a psalm of David concerning the constitution of the world;''

which indeed is the subject matter of it; for it treats of the creation of all things, of the heavens and the earth, and of all creatures in them; and of the providence of God in taking care of them. Christ is the divine Person addressed and described throughout the whole, as appears from the quotation of Ps 104:5 and the application of it to him in Heb 1:7.

\\Bless the Lord, O my soul\\ As for the blessings of grace and mercy expressed in the preceding psalm, so on account of the works of creation and providence, enumerated in this; in which Christ has an equal concern, as in the former.

\\O Lord my God, thou art very great\\; the Messiah, who is Jehovah our righteousness, Lord of all, truly God, and the God of his people; see Joh 20:28 and who is great, and very great, in his divine Person, being the great God, and our Saviour; great in all his works of creation, providence, and redemption; great in all his offices of Prophet, Priest, and King; a Saviour, and a great one; the great Shepherd of the Sheep; the Man, Jehovah's Fellow.

\\Thou art clothed with honour and majesty\\; being the brightness of his Father's glory, and having on him the glory of the only begotten of the Father, and a natural majesty in him as the Son of God and King of the whole universe; and, as Mediator, he has honour and majesty laid upon him by his Father, Ps 21:5, he has all the regalia and ensigns of royal majesty; he is on a throne, high and lifted up, even the same with his divine Father; he has a crown of glory on his head, he is crowned with glory and honour; he has a sceptre of righteousness in his hand, and is arrayed in robes of majesty; and, as thus situated, is to look upon like a jasper and sardine stone; or as if he was covered with sparkling gems and precious stones, Re 4:2,3 and, having all power in heaven and earth, over angels and men, honour and glory given him by both. 23531-950516-0908-Ps104.2

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible