104
Psalm 104 – The Hymn of Creation
1 Bless the Lord, O my soul.
O Lord my God, you are very great,
clad in awful splendour,
2 covered with robe of light.
You stretch out the heavens like the cloth of a tent.
3 He lays the beams of his chambers on water.
He takes dark clouds for his chariot,
and rides on the wings of the wind.
4 He takes the winds for his messengers,
the fire and the flame for his servants.
5 He founded the earth upon pillars,
to sustain it unshaken forever.
6 With the garment of ocean he covered it,
waters towered over the mountains.
7 But at your rebuke they fled,
scared by the roar of your thunder,
8 mountains rose, valleys sank down
to the place appointed for them.
9 They dared not pass the bounds set for them,
or cover the earth any more.
10 He sent brooks into the valleys,
they meander between the mountains.
11 The wild beasts all drink from them,
and the wild asses quench their thirst.
12 The birds have their home by the banks,
and sing in the branches.
13 From his chambers above he gives drink to the mountains,
and satisfies earth with the vials of heaven.
14 He makes grass grow for the cattle,
and herbs for people.
He brings bread out of the earth;
15 wine, to gladden hearts;
oil, to make faces shine;
bread, to strengthen hearts.
16 The trees of the Lord drink their fill
the cedars he planted on Lebanon,
17 where the little birds build their nest,
and the stork whose home is the cypress.
18 The high hills are for the wild goats,
and the rocks are for coneys to hide in.
19 He created the moon to mark seasons,
and told the sun when to set.
20 You make it dark: night comes,
when all the wild beasts creep out.
21 Young lions that roar for their prey,
seeking their meat from God.
22 At sunrise they slink away,
and lie down in their dens.
23 Then people go forth to their work,
and toil till evening.
24 How many, O Lord, are your works,
all of them made in wisdom!
The earth is filled with your creatures.
25 And there is the great broad sea,
where are countless things in motion,
living creatures, both great and small.
26 There go the ships,
and the Leviathan you made to play there.
27 They all look in hope to you,
to give them their food in due season.
28 And you give with open hand;
they gather and eat to their heart’s desire.
29 When you hide your face, they are terrified;
when you take their breath away,
they die and go back to their dust.
30 But a breath from your lips creates them,
and renews the face of the earth.
31 May the glory of the Lord be forever,
may the Lord rejoice in his works.
32 A glance of his makes the earth tremble,
a touch of his makes the hills smoke.
33 I will sing to the Lord while I live,
I will play to my God while I am.
34 May my musing be sweet to him,
for I rejoice in the Lord.
35 But may sinners be swept from the earth,
and the wicked vanish forever.
O my soul, bless the Lord.
Hallelujah.