The glory of the Lord revealed in Earth created and Earth renewed

The mind of the psalmist traverses the created order, and encompasses the earth, elements, heavens and the seas and all that is therein. He wonders at, and admires the manifold expressions of God’s works and wisdom. Creation indeed, is an eloquent book! It openly displays His glory, beauty, power and wisdom.

These praise-inspiring thoughts are as a consequence of meditating on his surroundings, and tracing their origin to their glorious Author. Such an exercise produces sweetness in the soul, and a volunteered gladness. The only marring ingredient before his view is sin. It is sin and sinners that disrupt and spoil nature itself, and brings discord and judgment. The psalmist addresses himself to Christ, as shown from the use of v. 4 in Hebrews 1:7. Sin will be dealt with by Him, and unrepentant sinners banished to their own place.

Pastor Jeff O’ Neil

Recommended Tune: St Peter

Psalm 104

¹Bless GOD, my soul. O LORD my God,
Thou art exceeding great;
With honour and with majesty
Thou clothed art in state.

²With light, as with a robe, thyself
Thou coverest about;
And, like unto a curtain, thou
The heavens stretchest out.

³Who of his chambers doth the beams
Within the waters lay;
Who doth the clouds his chariot make,
On wings of wind make way.

⁴Who flaming fire his ministers,
His angels sp’rits, doth make:
⁵Who earth’s foundations did lay,
That it should never shake.

⁶Thou didst it cover with the deep,
As with a garment spread:
The waters stood above the hills,
When thou the word but said.

⁷But at the voice of thy rebuke
They fled, and would not stay;
They at thy thunder’s dreadful voice
Did haste them fast away.

⁸They by the mountains do ascend,
And by the valley-ground
Descend, unto that very place
Which thou for them didst found.

⁹Thou hast a bound unto them set,
That they may not pass over,
That they do not return again
The face of earth to cover.

¹⁰He to the valleys sends the springs,
Which run among the hills:
¹¹They to all beasts of field give drink,
Wild asses drink their fills.

¹²By them the fowls of heav’n shall have
Their habitation,
Which do among the branches sing
With delectation.

¹³He from his chambers watereth
The hills, when they are dried:
With fruit and increase of thy works
The earth is satisfied.

¹⁴For cattle he makes grass to grow,
He makes the herb to spring
For th’ use of man, that food to him
He from the earth may bring;

¹⁵And wine, that to the heart of man
Doth cheerfulness impart,
Oil that his face makes shine, and bread
That strengtheneth his heart.

¹⁶The trees of GOD are full of sap;
The cedars that do stand
In Lebanon, which planted were
By his almighty hand.

¹⁷Birds of the air upon their boughs
Do choose their nests to make;
As for the stork, the fir-tree she
Doth for her dwelling take.

¹⁸The lofty mountains for wild goats
A place of refuge be;
The conies also to the rocks
Do for their safety flee.

¹⁹He sets the moon in heav’n, thereby
The seasons to discern:
From him the sun his certain time
Of going down doth learn.

²⁰Thou darkness mak’st, ’tis night, then beasts
Of forests creep abroad.
²¹The lions young roar for their prey,
And seek their meat from God.

²²The sun doth rise, and home they flock,
Down in their dens they lie.
²³Man goes to work, his labour he
Doth to the ev’ning ply.

²⁴How manifold, LORD, are thy works!
In wisdom wonderful
Thou ev’ry one of them hast made;
Earth’s of thy riches full:

²⁵So is this great and spacious sea,
Wherein things creeping are,
Which number’d cannot be; and beasts
Both great and small are there.

²⁶There ships go; there thou mak’st to play
That leviathan great.
²⁷These all wait on thee, that thou may’st
In due time give them meat.

²⁸That which thou givest unto them
They gather for their food;
Thine hand thou open’st lib’rally,
They filled are with good.

²⁹Thou hid’st thy face; they troubled are,
Their breath thou tak’st away;
Then do they die, and to their dust
Return again do they.

³⁰Thy quick’ning spirit thou send’st forth,
Then they created be;
And then the earth’s decayed face
Renewed is by thee.

³¹The glory of the mighty LORD
Continue shall for ever:
The Lord JEHOVAH shall rejoice
In all his works together.

³²Earth, as affrighted, trembleth all,
If he on it but look;
And if the mountains he but touch,
They presently do smoke.

³³I will sing to the LORD most high,
So long as I shall live;
And while I being have I shall
To my God praises give.

³⁴Of him my meditation shall
Sweet thoughts to me afford;
And as for me, I will rejoice
In God, my only Lord.

³⁵From earth let sinners be consum’d,
Let ill men no more be.
O thou my soul, bless thou the LORD.
Praise to the LORD give ye.