Wonder at creation which God has made
The Book of Psalm has 5 sections (books) within it. Psalm 104, 105, 106 are the last three psalms of Book IV. And they tell a linked story – Psalm 104 (God the Provider); Psalm 105 (God’s faithfulness to the people of God); and Psalm 106 (acknowledgment of the people of God turning their back on the creator and faithful God). Those are the three psalms we are reading this week.
Psalm 104 (Selected verses)
1 Bless the Lord, O my soul.
O Lord my God, you are very great.
You are clothed with honour and majesty,
2 wrapped in light as with a garment.
You stretch out the heavens like a tent,
3 you set the beams of your chambers on the waters,
you make the clouds your chariot,
you ride on the wings of the wind,
4 you make the winds your messengers,
fire and flame your ministers.
5 You set the earth on its foundations, so that it shall never be shaken….
10 You make springs gush forth in the valleys; they flow between the hills,
11 giving drink to every wild animal; the wild asses quench their thirst….
14 You cause the grass to grow for the cattle,
and plants for people to use, to bring forth food from the earth,
15 and wine to gladden the human heart, oil to make the face shine,
and bread to strengthen the human heart.
16 The trees of the Lord are watered abundantly,
the cedars of Lebanon that he planted….
18 The high mountains are for the wild goats;
the rocks are a refuge for the coneys.
19 You have made the moon to mark the seasons;
the sun knows its time for setting….
24 O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.
25 Yonder is the sea, great and wide, creeping things innumerable are there,
living things both small and great….
27 These all look to you to give them their food in due season;
28 when you give to them, they gather it up;
when you open your hand, they are filled with good things.
29 When you hide your face, they are dismayed;
when you take away their breath, they die and return to their dust.
30 When you send forth your spirit, they are created;
and you renew the face of the ground.
31 May the glory of the Lord endure for ever;
may the Lord rejoice in his works—
32 who looks on the earth and it trembles,
who touches the mountains and they smoke.
33 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
34 May my meditation be pleasing to him,
for I rejoice in the Lord….
Bless the Lord, O my soul. Praise the Lord!
The reading has been shortened due to the length of the psalm.
This hymn of praise for God’s work in creation masterfully lays out the work of God’s hand in creation – from sun. moon, and stars to making dry land and on to the living things on the dry land – and then finally people.
Vs. 27 reminds us that the God who made all of this did not just wind-up creation and walk away. In fact, creation depends moment by moment on God for its survival. All of creation, everything cited in the opening 26 verses of the psalm look to God to get what they need for life. When God hides God’s face, the creation is “dismayed” – but when God turns again to pay attention to the creation, life is renewed. Thus even the changing of the seasons are in God’s hands, that is how deeply connected God is to the life of the creation.
So what response is there but that of vs. 33 – “I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being.” Songs of praise are the only reasonable response to the good God has done, and to the beauty of creation that we are witness to. In wonder at what God has done we sing our praise, in wonder and awe at the majesty and the elegance of creation praise burst forth from us.
PRAYER:
God of glory and wonder, you have brought creation into being, and you continue to bring new life to creation. We are in awe of your creativity, the beauty you have made, the majesty and elegance of your work – we sing our praise, declare our wonder, shout aloud our worship, for you have made all things well. In Jesus’ name. Amen.