Psalm 104:24-30 O LORD, how manifold are your works! in wisdom have you made them all: the earth is full of your riches.… I. THE DIVINE EXISTENCE SHOULD CONSTITUTE THE CENTRAL FACT IN ALL CONTEMPLATIONS OF THE UNIVERSE. This reflection serves — 1. To disprove the speculations of Pantheism. 2. To annihilate the materialistic theory. Materialism recognizes no mind in the universe. 3. To invest the universe with a mystic sanctity. It is His handiwork. The grand and the simple, the sublime and the beautiful, will awaken corresponding emotions in the heart of the true worshipper. II. THE PRINCIPLE OF DEPENDENCE IS EVERYWHERE DEVELOPED IN THE UNIVERSE. "These wait all upon Thee." From this we infer — 1. That there exists an absolutely self-existent Power. We cannot comprehend the modus existendi, but there is the fact. 2. That each part of the universe has its own mission. God made nothing in vain. 3. That profound humility becomes every intelligent agent. "What hast thou that thou hast not received?" III. AN INTELLIGENT CONTEMPLATION OF THE UNIVERSE IS CALCULATED TO INCREASE MAN'S HATRED OF SIN. "Let the sinners be consumed," etc. 1. Because sin mars the harmony of law. Unity is broken. 2. Because God, in having made so wondrous a universe, has proved Himself too good a Being to be disobeyed. Sin is not only a violation of law, but an insult to Goodness. What is the voice of this psalm to my heart? (1) God must occupy the supreme place in thought. (2) That I sustain intimate relationships to God. There is one relationship I must sustain; that of a dependant. But mere animals do so. The worm beneath my foot is a dependant. Am I not a son? (3) This beneficent Creator has also revealed Himself as man's Saviour. Do I love the Saviour? (4) The extinction of sin should form a prominent object in the life of the good. The greatest benefactor is he who does most to purify spiritual life, by the means which the Lord Jesus has appointed. (J. Parker, D.D.) Parallel Verses KJV: O LORD, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches.WEB: Yahweh, how many are your works! In wisdom have you made them all. The earth is full of your riches. |
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