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Psalms 104:11-21

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11 they 1give drink to every beast of the field; the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 Beside them the birds of the heavens dwell; they sing among the branches.
13 2From your lofty abode you 3water the mountains; the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work.
14 You cause 4the grass to grow for the livestock and 5plants for man to cultivate, that he may bring forth 6food from the earth
15 and 7wine to gladden the heart of man, 8oil to make his face shine and bread to 9strengthen man's heart.
16 The trees of the LORD are watered abundantly, 10the cedars of Lebanon 11that he planted.
17 In them the birds build their nests; the stork has her home in the fir trees.
18 The high mountains are for 12the wild goats; the rocks are a refuge for 13the rock badgers.
19 He made the moon to mark the 14seasons;[a] the sun knows its time for setting.
20 15You make darkness, and it is night, when all the beasts of the forest creep about.
21 16The young lions roar for their prey, seeking their food from God.
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Psalms 104:11-21 Meaning and Commentary

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

Cross References 16

  • 1. [ver. 13]
  • 2. ver. 3
  • 3. [Psalms 65:9; Psalms 147:8; Deuteronomy 11:11; Job 5:10; Jeremiah 10:13; Jeremiah 14:22]
  • 4. Psalms 147:8, 9
  • 5. Gen. 1:11, 29, 30; Genesis 3:18; Genesis 9:3
  • 6. Job 28:5; [Psalms 136:25; Psalms 147:9]
  • 7. Judges 9:13; Ecclesiastes 10:19; [Proverbs 31:6, 7]
  • 8. [Psalms 23:5; Judges 9:9]
  • 9. [Genesis 18:5]
  • 10. See Judges 9:15
  • 11. [Numbers 24:6]
  • 12. See Job 39:1
  • 13. Leviticus 11:5; Proverbs 30:26
  • 14. Genesis 1:14; Leviticus 23:4
  • 15. Isaiah 45:7
  • 16. Job 38:39

Footnotes 1

  • [a]. Or the appointed times (compare Genesis 1:14)
The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.