God’s Glory and Man’s Worth

(1) O LORD, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens.
(2) Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger.
(3) When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;
(4) What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?
(5) For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.
(6) Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:
(7) All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field;
(8) The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.
(9) O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!
--Psalm 8 KJV Bible

 

The description of the psalm says that it is "for the Gittith," but it is uncertain just what that is. The Hebrew word is derived from "Gath," which was a common place name in Israel and the surrounding area. Examples include Gath of the Philistines, one of five Philistine city-states established in northwestern Philistia, Gath-Gittaim, Gath Carmel, and others. A person from Gath is called a Gittite, and a Gittith may have been a tune or instrument associated with one of those places.

 

This psalm of David is a hymn of praise. In it, David ponders the thought that God has entrusted His creation to the dominion of man. Over the generations of Christian music, the text of this psalm is among the most referenced in songs of praise to God.

 

In verses 1 and 2 David marvels at the majesty of the Lord. In verse 1 David addresses God using the Hebrew "yeh-ho-vaw"--Jehovah, the Lord. David then uses the Hebrew "aw-done"--our lord, our master, our owner. David then describes the name of the Lord God using the Hebrew "ad-deer," which can be translated as excellent, famous, gallant, glorious, goodly, lordly, mighty, noble, principal, and worthy. Any of these descriptors would seem correct for the name of the Lord. In verse 2 David notes how God uses the weak--infants--to overthrow the mighty.

 

In verse 3 David marvels at the handiwork of God. David describes God's creation of the heavens as the work of a skilled craftsman.

 

In verses 4 and 5 David notes that man seems insignificant when compared to the rest of God's creation, yet God has crowned man to rule over His creation. In verse 5 David uses the Hebrew "Elohim." Sometimes translated as "the angles," this is the Hebrew noun for God. The word is the plural of the Hebrew "Eloah," God in the singular. In Scripture, the singular is normally used with descriptors, such as "El Elyon" (God Most High) or "El Shaddai" (God Almighty).

 

In verses 6 through 8 David expounds on all that God has placed in man's charge. David mentions all the animals that move on the land, all the animals that fly in the air, and all the animals that swim in the seas.

 

In verse 9 David concludes as he began. David proclaims the great name of the Lord God.

 

O Lord God, I am humbled by your creation. I am in awe of both its grandeur and its meticulous detail. I also marvel that with all that You have created, You could still love me and want me to be with You for eternity. I thank You and I praise You.

 

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