God’s Glory in Creation

MEMORY VERSE: “O Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all.” —Psalm 104:24

PSALM 104

PSALM 104 is a stirring hymn of praise to God as the Creator of the world; and in both its opening and closing verses the call is heard, “Bless the Lord, O my soul.”

Within the framework of the first verse the psalmist draws our attention to three of God’s attributes—greatness, honor, and majesty. And are we not lost in wonder, love, and praise as we consider the Creator of the universe whom we are privileged to call our Heavenly Father, and of whom the psalmist states, (vs. 2, Leeser), “[Thou art he] who wrappeth himself in light as a garment,” suggesting a further dimension of the invisible greatness of his Divine Being?

Then we read in picture language of God’s creation of the heavens, “who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain,” and he “layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters; and he “maketh the clouds his chariot,” and “walketh upon the wings of the wind.” Can we not feel God’s greatness, majesty, and power in these expressions?

The creation of the earth is also described in simple terms, and we are told that it will never be destroyed. This thought is further substantiated by King Solomon, as he explains (Eccl. 1:4), “One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth for ever.” Provisions of food and water were made for the beasts of the field, the fowls of heaven, and grass-eating cattle. Later, when man was placed on the earth, his provisions for food and drink were amply supplied from the bounty of God’s hand. Birds are given trees in which to build their nests, and wild goats make their home in the hills The phases of the moon come to mark the seasons, and the sun, the succession of days so that man may order his life; night is provided so that animals can hunt for their food, and daytime is given so that man may labor. Nature becomes a beautiful symphony in which God has matched the needs of the creation with the proper environment.

Next we find God’s creative work expressed in the sea, which teems with a variety of living things “both small and great.” It carries the ships, which the psalmist had seen sailing westward from the Holy Land. In verses 27-30 there is testimony that all living creatures must look to God for the good things which they have. Their food, the many joys of life that they experience—and indeed their very life and breath—depend upon God’s providence and keeping, which he graciously bestows upon them; for (vs. 31), “The glory of the Lord shall endure for ever: the Lord shall rejoice in his works.”

The awesome power of God is reflected in the psalmist’s words in verse 32, “He looketh on the earth, and it trembleth: he toucheth the hills, and they smoke.” We need have no fear, however, that the God we worship, the great God of the universe whose existence is from everlasting even unto everlasting, will use his tremendous and unlimited power to destroy this beautiful earth which he has brought into existence. No, he has created this earth for a purpose, and although some “men make his love too narrow by false limits of their own, and magnify his vengeance with a zeal he will not own,” they will in due time come to realize and appreciate that the almighty God is a loving Creator whom they may worship as their Heavenly Father. In that beautiful world of tomorrow, when the Sun of Righteousness will arise with healing in his beams for the eventual recovery from sin, sickness, and death of the whole human family, then mankind will learn that their loving Heavenly Father is the fountain of all blessing, the source of all that is good and true, and the Giver of every perfect gift. There will be no need to fear him then, for all shall come to know him.

In that day there will be nothing to hurt or destroy, as we read (vs. 35), “Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more.” (See also Isa. 11:9) All who desire to make progress in that kingdom may live and enjoy its blessings; there will be no place for those who do otherwise.—Acts 3:23

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