Commentaries and Other Bible Study Helps - Prayer Tents - Prayer Tents

Psalm 104. The phrase "Bless the Lord, O my soul," which opens and closes the psalm, shows that the psalm is about reasons for speaking well about God. This hymn of praise celebrates the way the created order reveals God's glory by providing so abundantly for all living things. Although it does not use many specific words from Gen. 1:1-2:3, it is generally agreed that the creation account's ideas lie behind the psalm. Some have even suggested that the psalm is structured around the six workdays of God (see chart). This structure, however, should not be pressed, since the land animals and man (Ps. 104:21-24) here precede the sea creatures (vv. 25-26), while the Genesis account has them in the opposite order. Even more, this is not a straight retelling of the Genesis account as an event: rather, it celebrates the way in which the creation order still continues in human experience. The psalm acknowledges the existence of human sin, but in only one verse (Ps. 104:35, "sinners" and "wicked"). This psalm shapes the worshipers' hearts in two ways. First, it leads them to delight in the world that God made, recognizing it as a gift. Second, it enables them to see that "sinners" and "the wicked" (i.e., those who dwell in their sin and refuse God's grace) defile God's world; the faithful will not want to be identified with such people. Genesis 1:1-2:3 uses the term "God" for the deity, stressing his role as the transcendent Creator. Psalm 104 primarily uses "the Lord," the personal name of the deity, following the biblical claim that the covenant God of Israel is the same being as the majestic Creator (see note on Gen. 2:4). This psalm joins Psalm 8 as a reflection on God's continuing commitment to, and care for, his creation (cf. also 136:5-9). This psalm is often said to be connected to the Great Hymn to Aten, which is generally attributed to the Egyptian Pharaoh Akhenaten, who ruled 1352-1336 b.c. This Pharaoh attempted a drastic revision of Egyptian religion, aiming to focus worship on only one god, Aten, represented by the disk of the sun. Egyptologists continue to debate whether he was a true monotheist (believing that there is only one God) or a henotheist (worshiping one god while allowing for others). The hymn celebrates the works of this deity, including his provision of water and food for man and beast; it distinguishes between creatures active during daylight and those active at night (even mentioning the lions). There are certainly similarities between this Egyptian hymn and Psalm 104, but there is no evidence that the psalm derives from the Egyptian hymn. As the notes will show, the psalm reflects the covenantal and creational perspective of the Pentateuch. If there is any connection to the Egyptian hymn (and it is questionable whether most Israelites would have known of it), it is that this psalm renders the right kind of praise to the universal Creator.

104:1-4 The Lord Is Clothed with Splendor and Majesty. The first section of the psalm sets the tone by expounding the cry, O Lord my God, you are very great! The various images all express the magnificence of the God who made the world and continues to rule it.