Psalm 104

God the Creator

<1>My soul, bless the Lord!

Lord my God, you are very great;

you are clothed with majesty and splendor.a

2He wraps himself in light as if it were a robe,

spreading out the sky like a canopy,a

3laying the beams of his palace

on the waters above,a

making the clouds his chariot,b

walking on the wings of the wind,c

4and making the winds his messengers,A

flames of fire his servants.a

5He established the earth on its foundations;

it will never be shaken.a

6You covered it with the deep

as if it were a garment;

the water stood above the mountains.a

7At your rebuke the water fled;

at the sound of your thunder they hurried awaya —

8mountains rose and valleys sankA —

to the place you established for them.a

9You set a boundary they cannot cross;

they will never cover the earth again.a

10He causes the springs to gush into the valleys;

they flow between the mountains.a

11They supply water for every wild beast;

the wild donkeys quench their thirst.a

12The birds of the sky live beside the springs;

they make their voices heard among the foliage.a

13He waters the mountains from his palace;

the earth is satisfied by the fruit of your labor.a

14He causes grass to grow for the livestock

and provides crops for man to cultivate,

producing food from the earth,a

15wine that makes human hearts glad —

making his face shine with oil —

and bread that sustains human hearts.a

16The trees of the Lord flourish,A

the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.a

17There the birds make their nests;

storks make their homes in the pine trees.a

18The high mountains are for the wild goats;

the cliffs are a refuge for hyraxes.a

19He made the moon to mark theA festivals;B

the sun knows when to set.a

20You bring darkness, and it becomes night,

when all the forest animals stir.a

21The young lions roar for their prey

and seek their food from God.a

22The sun rises; they go back

and lie down in their dens.a

23Man goes out to his work

and to his labor until evening.a

24How countless are your works, Lord!

In wisdom you have made them all;

the earth is full of your creatures.a a

25Here is the sea, vast and wide,

teeming with creatures beyond number —

living things both large and small.a

26There the ships move about,

and Leviathan, which you formed to play there.a

27All of them wait for you

to give them their food at the right time.a

28When you give it to them,

they gather it;

when you open your hand,

they are satisfied with good things.a

29When you hide your face,

they are terrified;

when you take away their breath,

they die and return to the dust.a

30When you send your breath,A

they are created,a

and you renew the surface of the ground.b

31May the glory of the Lord endure forever;

may the Lord rejoice in his works.a

32He looks at the earth, and it trembles;

he touches the mountains,

and they pour out smoke.a

33I will sing to the Lord all my life;

I will sing praise to my God while I live.a

34May my meditation be pleasing to him;

I will rejoice in the Lord.a

35May sinners vanish from the earth

and wicked people be no more.a

My soul, bless the Lord!

Hallelujah!