Psalm 104: 1 25 Creator And Provider

Target year level: Year Eight

Scripture text

Introduction

A psalm is a sacred song or hymn. The Book of Psalms in the Old Testament contains a variety of such songs and hymns. Psalm 104, God the Creator and Provider, is one of a category of psalms classified as Hymns or Songs of Praise. These psalms focus on praise for God’s wonderful works in the history of Israel, in creation and in the wider universe or cosmos. The 149/150 psalms the Book of Psalms may be classified as songs of praise; songs of Zion; psalms of Yahweh’s enthronement; psalms of lament and complaint; royal psalms; thanksgiving psalms; wisdom psalms and a number of smaller psalms genres and mixed types.

For more detailed information on the genre of Hymns or Songs of Praise and on other psalm genres see Literary Structure of the Psalms.

For a general introduction to the Book of Psalms see the The New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE), Introduction to the Psalms .

The numbering of individual psalms differs mostly by one digit, between the Hebrew (Masoretic) text and the Greek (Septuagint) text of the Old Testament. This can sometimes cause confusion in reading Psalms in different English Bible translations. For further information see Psalms Numbering.

World behind the text

The psalms were composed over a lengthy period of 500 years or more. When the psalms are read as a whole, the reader can imagine a wide range of situations in the individual and collective lives of the People of Israel out of which the composition of individual psalms arose and for which they were composed. Gatherings for worship, for prayer, for the celebration of festivals, for processions, for religious sacrifices, for times of harvest, for occasions of victory and defeat, for triumph and defeat in battle, for the ordinary joys, sorrows, certainties and doubts of ordinary life - these form the world behind the texts of the psalms.

World of the text

There is a strong connection between Genesis 1:1-31, dealing with God’s six days of creation and the Sabbath, and Psalm 104:1-25, that celebrates in poetic form that same divine creation of the universe. When the two texts are set out side by side it becomes evident that the sequencing of creation from the heavens/cosmos to the earth and then to the creatures of the earth is similar in both texts. There are also multiple correspondences in the imagery and the vocabulary used in both texts. Psalm 104:1-25 also follows the literary structure for a Hymn or Song of Praise:

Introduction: A call to praise, sing, and rejoice to Yahweh in some form. Psalm 104:1 “Bless the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God, you are very great.”
Body: The reasons why Yahweh should be praised.
His qualities and attributes. Psalm 104:1-2 “You are clothed with honour and majesty, wrapped in light as with a garment.”
His regular or repeated actions, including his works in creation and conservation of cosmos and his works in history, especially for Israel. Psalm 104: 2-25 “you make...” “you set...” you cover...” “you cause...”
Conclusion: renewed summons to praise. Psalm104:35 “Bless the Lord, O my soul. Praise the Lord!

World in Front of the Text

Psalm 104, focusing on the praise of God’s mighty works, is a reminder of the crucial importance of issues related to the environment and to care for the earth in our own times. Creation theology represents one effort by Christian thinkers to deal with the issues related to care for creation and sustainable living from a Christian point of view drawing upon the wisdom of our biblical Judaeo-Christian tradition.

For further reflection on care for creation go to Reflection of Pope Francis for World Environment Day and the Papal Encyclical, Laudato Si’, On care for our common home