Psalm 104

¹My soul, praise the Lord! Lord my God, you are very great! You are clothed with glory and honor. ²You wear light like a person wears a robe. You spread the skies like a curtain. ³God, you built your home above them.* You use the thick clouds like a chariot, and ride across the sky on the wings of the wind. ⁴God, you made your angels like the wind,* and your servants* like fire. ⁵God, you built the earth on its foundations, so it will never be destroyed. ⁶You covered it with water like a blanket. The water covered the mountains. ⁷But you gave the command, and the water rushed away. God, you shouted at the water, and the water rushed away. ⁸The water flowed down from the mountains, into the valleys, and then to the places you made for it. ⁹You set the limits for the seas. And the water will never again rise to cover the earth. ¹⁰God, you cause water to flow from the springs into the streams. It flows down through the mountain streams. ¹¹The streams water all the wild animals. Even the wild donkeys come there to drink. ¹²Wild birds come to live by the pools. They sing in the branches of nearby trees. ¹³God sends rain down onto the mountains. The things God made give the earth everything it needs. ¹⁴God makes the grass grow to feed the animals. He gives us the plants that we work to grow. Those plants give us food from the earth. ¹⁵God gives us the wine that makes us happy, the oil that makes our skin soft,* and the food that makes us strong. ¹⁶The great cedar trees of Lebanon belong to the Lord. The Lord planted those trees, and he gives them the water they need. ¹⁷Birds make their nests in those trees. Large storks live in the fir trees. ¹⁸The high mountains are a home for wild goats. The large rocks are hiding places for rock-badgers. ¹⁹God, you gave us the moon to show us when the holidays begin. And the sun always knows when to set. ²⁰You made darkness to be the night—the time when wild animals come out and roam around. ²¹Lions roar as they attack, as if they are asking God for the food he gives them. ²²Then the sun rises, and the animals go back to their homes and rest. ²³Then people go out to do their work. And they work until evening. ²⁴Lord, you have done many wonderful things. The earth is full of the things you made. {We see} your wisdom in everything you do. ²⁵Look at the ocean. It is so big! And so many things live there! There are creatures large and small—too many to count! ²⁶Ships travel over the ocean while Leviathan,* the sea creature you made, plays there in the sea. ²⁷God, all of these things depend on you. You give them food at the right time. ²⁸God, you give all the living things the food they eat. You open your hands, filled with good food, and they eat until they are full. ²⁹And when you turn away from them, they become frightened. Their spirits leave them; they grow weak and die; and their bodies become dust again. ³⁰But when you send out your Spirit, Lord, they become healthy! And you make the land like new again! ³¹May the Lord’s glory continue forever! May the Lord enjoy the things he made. ³²The Lord can just look at the earth, and it will shake. He can touch the mountains and smoke will begin to rise from them. ³³All my life I will sing to the Lord. I will sing praises to the Lord as long as I live. ³⁴I hope these words I said will make him happy. I am happy with the Lord. ³⁵May sin disappear from the earth. May wicked people be gone forever. My soul, praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!

above them Literally, “on the water above.” This is like the picture of the world in Genesis 1. There, the sky was like a bowl turned upside down on the earth. There was water below the bowl and water above it. God, you made your angels like the wind Or “You made your messengers spirits.” angels … servants This probably is talking about the two kinds of angels, the Cherub angels and the Seraph angels. The name Seraph is like a Hebrew word meaning, “fire.” makes our skin soft Literally, “makes our face shine.” This can also mean, “make us happy.” Leviathan This might mean any large sea animal, like a whale. But it probably means “the sea monster,” the “dragon,” “Rahab.” This creature represents the great power of the ocean, the power that God controls.

Psalm 105

¹Thank the Lord. Worship his name. Tell the nations about the wonderful things he does. ²Sing to the Lord. Sing praises to him. Tell about all the amazing things he does. ³Be proud of the Lord’s holy name. You people came looking for the Lord. Be happy! ⁴Go to the Lord for strength. Always go to him for help. ⁵Remember the amazing things he does. Remember his miracles and wise decisions. ⁶You are descendants* of his servant Abraham. You are descendants of Jacob, the man God chose. ⁷The Lord is our God. The Lord rules the whole world.* ⁸Remember God’s Agreement* forever. Remember his commands for 1,000 generations! ⁹God made an Agreement with Abraham. God made a promise to Isaac. ¹⁰Then he made it a law for Jacob. God made his Agreement with Israel. It will continue forever! ¹¹God said, “I will give you the land of Canaan. That land will belong to you.” ¹²God made that promise when Abraham’s family was small. They were only strangers spending time there. ¹³They traveled from nation to nation, from one kingdom to another. ¹⁴But God did not let people mistreat them. God warned kings not to hurt them. ¹⁵God said, “Don’t hurt my chosen people. Don’t do anything bad to my prophets.*” ¹⁶God caused a famine* in that country. People did not have enough food to eat. ¹⁷But God sent a man named Joseph to go ahead of them. Joseph was sold like a slave. ¹⁸They tied a rope around Joseph’s feet. They put an iron ring around his neck. ¹⁹Joseph was a slave until the things he said really happened. The Lord’s message proved that Joseph was right. ²⁰So the king of Egypt set him free. That nation’s leader let him out of jail. ²¹He put Joseph in charge of his house. Joseph took care of everything he owned. ²²Joseph gave instructions to the other leaders. Joseph taught the older men. ²³Then Israel came to Egypt. Jacob lived in Ham’s country.* ²⁴Jacob’s family became very large. They became more powerful than their enemies. ²⁵So the Egyptians began to hate Jacob’s family. They made plans against their slaves. ²⁶So God sent his servant, Moses, and Aaron, God’s chosen priest. ²⁷God used Moses and Aaron to do many miracles in Ham’s country. ²⁸God sent the very dark darkness, but the Egyptians did not listen to him. ²⁹So God changed the water into blood, and all their fish died. ³⁰Their country was filled with frogs. Frogs were even in the king’s bedroom. ³¹God gave the command, and the flies and gnats came. They were everywhere! ³²God made the rain become hail. Lightning struck throughout their country. ³³God destroyed their vines and fig trees. God destroyed every tree in their country. ³⁴God gave the command, and the locusts and grasshoppers came. There were too many to count! ³⁵The locusts and grasshoppers ate all the plants in the country. They ate all the crops in the fields. ³⁶And then God killed every firstborn* in their country. God killed their oldest sons. ³⁷Then God took his people out of Egypt. They brought gold and silver with them. None of God’s people stumbled and fell. ³⁸Egypt was happy to see God’s people go, because they were afraid of God’s people. ³⁹God spread out his cloud like a blanket. God used his column of fire to give his people light at night. ⁴⁰The people asked for food, and God brought them quail. God gave them plenty of bread from heaven. ⁴¹God split the rock, and water came bubbling out. A river began flowing in the desert! ⁴²God remembered his holy promise. God remembered the promise he had made to his servant Abraham. ⁴³God brought his people out from Egypt. The people came out rejoicing and singing their happy songs! ⁴⁴Then God gave his people the country where other people were living. God’s people got the things other people had worked for. ⁴⁵Why did God do this? So his people could obey his laws. So they could carefully obey his teachings. Praise the Lord!

descendants A person’s children and their future families. The Lord rules the whole world Literally, “His commands are in the whole earth.” Agreement Literally, “Proof.” The flat stones with the Ten Commandments written on them were proof of the Agreement between God and Israel. prophets A person called by God to be a special servant. God used dreams and visions to show them things to teach the people. famine A time when there is not enough rain for crops to grow. People and animals die without enough food or water. Ham’s country Or, “Egypt.” The Bible teaches that the Egyptians were descendants of Ham. See Gen. 10:6–20. firstborn The first child born into a family. The firstborn son was very important in ancient times.