What does Psalm 104:8 mean?
What is the meaning of Psalm 104:8?

The mountains rose

“The mountains rose…” (Psalm 104:8a)

• Picture the mighty upheaval when God sculpted the earth—He lifted ranges like Ararat, Sinai, and the Himalayas by His word.

Genesis 8:4-5 shows the mountaintops appearing as the Floodwaters receded, reinforcing that God—not chance—caused high ground to emerge.

Job 9:5 says He “moves mountains without their knowledge and overturns them in His anger”; Psalm 65:6 celebrates Him who “formed the mountains by His power.” All creation testifies that every peak owes its height to the Lord’s intentional craftsmanship.


and the valleys sank

“…and the valleys sank…” (Psalm 104:8b)

• As mountains rose, low places deepened, providing channels for rivers and basins for seas. God’s design includes both grandeur and gentleness.

Job 38:8-11 speaks of God laying “doors” on the sea and setting its limits—valleys are part of that containment system.

Isaiah 40:4 envisions the day when “every valley shall be lifted up and every mountain and hill made low,” confirming that valleys are under God’s ongoing authority. The Creator molds them for life-giving purposes: fertile soil, water flow, and human habitation.


to the place You assigned for them—

“…to the place You assigned for them—” (Psalm 104:8c)

• Landforms stop precisely where He decrees. Genesis 1:9-10 records God gathering the waters so dry land would “appear,” and Proverbs 8:29 notes He “set a boundary for the seas.”

Jeremiah 5:22 reminds us that God fixed the sand as “a perpetual barrier” so the seas cannot cross. Mountains and valleys obey the same boundary-setting word.

Psalm 148:5-6 calls creation to praise the LORD “for He commanded and they were created; He established them forever and ever.” The permanence of earth’s contours is a standing witness to His faithfulness and order.


summary

Psalm 104:8 celebrates God’s sovereign engineering: He lifted mountains, hollowed valleys, and stationed each exactly where He willed. The verse invites us to marvel at landscapes not as random geological accidents but as monuments to the Lord’s deliberate, sustaining power.

Does Psalm 104:7 support a literal or metaphorical interpretation of creation?
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