Psalms 104
104
In Praise of the Creator
1Praise the LORD, my soul!
O LORD, my God, how great you are!
You are clothed with majesty and glory;
2you cover yourself with light.
You have spread out the heavens like a tent
3and built your home on the waters above.#104.3 the waters above: A reference to the waters above the celestial dome (Gen 1.6–7).
You use the clouds as your chariot
and ride on the wings of the wind.
4 #
Heb 1.7
You use the winds as your messengers
and flashes of lightning as your servants.
5You have set the earth firmly on its foundations,
and it will never be moved.
6You placed the ocean over it like a robe,
and the water covered the mountains.
7When you rebuked the waters, they fled;
they rushed away when they heard your shout of command.
8They flowed over the mountains and into the valleys,
to the place you had made for them.
9You set a boundary they can never pass,
to keep them from covering the earth again.
10You make springs flow in the valleys,
and rivers run between the hills.
11They provide water for the wild animals;
there the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12In the trees near by,
the birds make their nests and sing.
13From the sky you send rain on the hills,
and the earth is filled with your blessings.
14You make grass grow for the cattle
and plants for human beings to use,
so that they can grow their crops
15and produce wine to make them happy,
olive oil to make them cheerful,
and bread to give them strength.
16The cedars of Lebanon get plenty of rain —
the LORD's own trees, which he planted.
17There the birds build their nests;
the storks nest in the fir trees.
18The wild goats live in the high mountains,
and the rock-badgers hide in the cliffs.
19You created the moon to mark the months;
the sun knows the time to set.
20You made the night, and in the darkness
all the wild animals come out.
21The young lions roar while they hunt,
looking for the food that God provides.
22When the sun rises, they go back
and lie down in their dens.
23Then people go out to do their work
and keep working until evening.
24 LORD, you have made so many things!
How wisely you made them all!
The earth is filled with your creatures.
25There is the ocean, large and wide,
where countless creatures live,
large and small alike.
26 #
Job 41.1; Ps 74.14; Is 27.1 The ships sail on it, and in it plays Leviathan,
that sea monster which you made.#104.26 in it plays… made; or Leviathan is there, that sea monster you made to amuse you.
27All of them depend on you
to give them food when they need it.
28You give it to them, and they eat it;
you provide food, and they are satisfied.
29When you turn away, they are afraid;
when you take away your breath, they die
and go back to the dust from which they came.
30But when you give them breath,#104.30 give them breath; or send out your spirit. they are created;
you give new life to the earth.
31May the glory of the LORD last for ever!
May the LORD be happy with what he has made!
32He looks at the earth, and it trembles;
he touches the mountains, and they pour out smoke.
33I will sing to the LORD all my life;
as long as I live I will sing praises to my God.
34May he be pleased with my song,
for my gladness comes from him.
35May sinners be destroyed from the earth;
may the wicked be no more.
Praise the LORD, my soul!
Praise the LORD!
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Psalms 104: GNBUK
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.
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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