Seventh-day Adventist Bible CommentaryPsalms 104

Bless. Like its companion, Ps. 103, this psalm begins with praise (see on Ps. 103:1). Clothed. See Ps. 93:1; 8:5.

Coverest thyself. God is represented as wrapping Himself in a robe of light. Robert Grant’s hymn “O Worship the King” has in its second stanza the phrase, “whose robe is the light, whose canopy space.” Light both conceals and reveals (see John 1:4–9; 1 John 1:5).

Verses 2–4 may be compared with the work of the first two days of creation, when light and the firmament were created to replace darkness and chaos (see Gen. 1:3–8). Like a curtain. See Isa. 40:22.

Layeth the beams. A poetic representation (see Ps. 18:11; Amos 9:6). Chambers. Literally, “upper chambers.” Clouds. See Isa. 19:1. “His chariots of wrath the deep thunderclouds form” (see hymn cited in v. 2). Wings of the wind. See Ps. 18:10.

His angels spirits. See Heb. 1:7. The translation of some of the later versions, “who maketh winds his messengers,” is grammatically and lexically possible.

Foundations. The psalmist poetically pictures the earth as resting on a firm foundation (see Job 38:4–6; cf. Job 26:7), probably to emphasize the stability of God’s creation. With vs. 5–9 compare the work of the first part of the third day of creation (see Gen. 1:9, 10).

Coveredst it. With the poetic account of vs. 6–8, compare the simple prose statement of Gen. 1:9, 10.

They go up. The passage is better rendered “mountains rise, valleys sink,” a forceful picture of the work of God in separating the waters from the dry land and determining the contours of the earth.

Set a bound. See Job 26:8–10; Job 38:8–11.

Sendeth the springs. The subject is treated with exquisite poetic detail, with emphasis on the loving care of the Creator.

From his chambers. See v. 3; Ps. 147:8. God waters the earth by means of rain, as well as by the watercourses.

Herb. Heb. ‘eśeb. The word appears in Gen. 1:11, 12, 29, 30. For the service of man. Or, “herbs for man’s tillage” (see 1 Chron. 27:26; Neh. 10:37).

Ellen G. White

Wine. See on Deut. 14:26.

Are full of sap. Literally, “are sated,” or, “are satisfied,” here possibly with water.

Conies. Heb. shephannim, probably rock badgers (see on Prov. 30:26).

Moon. The picture of the night precedes that of the day. With vs. 19–23 compare the Creation record concerning the heavenly bodies (Gen. 1:14–19). Seasons. See Gen. 1:14. On the Hebrew lunar calendar see Vol. II, pp. 112–117.

Makest darkness. A vivid picture of night in the forest, the wild creatures stealthily creeping forth to find their prey, with the lion, king of beasts, as the climax (see Ps. 17:12; 58:6).

Lay them down. At sunrise the wild creatures seek cover from detection.

Until the evening. The day is appointed for man’s labor.

How manifold. As if no longer able to restrain his praise in the contemplation of God’s creation, the psalmist pauses to utter a cry of wonder at the wisdom of the Creator.

Sea. The poet resumes the story of the creation, mentioning the creatures of the sea (see Gen. 1:20–22). Innumerable. From the tiniest denizen of the depths to the leviathan of v. 26.

Ships. A quaintly human touch. The psalmist brings into the picture a single instance of the “creation” of man’s skill.

Leviathan. See on Job 41:1.

These wait. See Ps. 145:15.

Their breath. Compare Ps. 146:4. To their dust. See Gen. 3:19.

Spirit. Heb. ruach (see on Ps. 31:5).

I will sing. As the psalmist wishes God to rejoice in His creation, he too will sing his Creator’s praise as long as he lives. Here is a cycle of universal joy (see DA 21).

My meditation. See Ps. 19:14.

Ellen G. White

Praise ye the Lord. Heb. halelu–Yah. This is the first appearance of the expression in the psalms. The term has become a part of the language of prayer and praise (see Ps. 105:45; Ps. 106:1, 48; etc.). ADDITIONAL NOTE ON PSALM 104 A 14th-century Pharaoh, Ikhnaton, was known as the heretic king because he renounced Egypt’s many gods and introduced a short-lived form of monotheism by proclaiming Aten the only god of the land (see Vol. II, pp. 19, 20). At this time a hymn honoring the sun disk Aten as the supreme and only god of creation was composed, perhaps by the king himself. Since this hymn contains certain thoughts and expressions that are also found in Ps. 104, many Biblical scholars have claimed that the author of Ps. 104 borrowed his material from the Egyptian Aten hymn, and applied it in a modified form to his God. It is admitted that some parallels in thought and expression exist between the Aten hymn and Ps. 104, and that the Aten hymn, or parts of it, may have been known beyond Egypt’s borders during the time of Ikhnaton. However, there is no reason for any student of the Bible to surrender his conviction that Ps. 104 is an original production, and for the following reasons: (1) The parallels are not numerous. Of the 149 lines of the Hymn to Aten in J. H. Breasted’s translation (Dawn of Conscience [1933], pp. 281–286), only 17 show some parallels to the 104th psalm, leaving 132 lines without parallels. (2) The parallels are not so striking as the advocates of the dependency of Ps. 104 on the Aten hymn claim. (3) The Aten religion was considered a heresy in Egypt after the collapse of Ikhnaton’s movement about 1350 B.C., and the Aten hymn, which was not used after that time, must in all probability soon have been completely forgotten. This fact makes it very unlikely that a Hebrew author would have known it in Palestine many centuries later. (4) Every poet who praises his god as the creator is almost certain to employ illustrations, expressions, imagery, and language similar to those used in Ps. 104 or the Aten hymn. Hence, Ps. 104 and the Aten hymn are both probably original.