Sunday Scripture

 

 We're back to our ongoing series on my simple study of Psalms.  You can see a copy of the journal here: The Book of Psalms 1-50 or you can find all the resources right here on Women Living Well, Psalms 1-50.  I'm attempting to SOAP each Psalm too, though some of them are longer so I will likely only do a selected passage from many of them. [Quick reminder that S stands for Scripture; O stands for for observation; A stands for application, and P stands for prayer.]  Each psalm's study also includes a reflection question, which I will attempt to journal an answer to.  Today's study is from Psalm 8.  Since the psalm is only 9 verses,  I chose to SOAP the entire psalm.

S= "O LORD, our Lord, how excellent is Thy name in all the earth, who hast set Thy glory above the heavens!
"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.
"When I consider Thy heavens, the work of Thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which Thou hast ordained,
"What is man, that Thou art mindful of him?  And the son of man, that Thou visitest him?
"For Thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honor.
"Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of Thy hands; Thou hast put all things under his feet.
"All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field;
"The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea; and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.
"O LORD, our Lord, how excellent is Thy name in all the earth!"  (Psalm 8)

O= The Bible heading for this psalm is "To the chief Musician upon Gittith, A Psalm of David."  The ESV heading reads "To the choirmaster according to the Gittith.  A Psalm of David."  A notation says that "Gittith" is "likely a musical or liturgical term."  NKJV calls it "the instrument of Gath".  Charles Spurgeon offers more thoughts on this word:

"We are not clear on the meaning of the word Gittith.  Some think it refers to Gath, and may refer to a tune commonly sung there, or an instrument of music there invented, or a song of Obed-edom the Gittite, in whose house the ark rested, or, better still, a song sung over Goliath of Gath. 
"Others, tracing the Hebrew to its root, conceive it to mean a song for the winepress, a joyful hymn for the treaders of grapes.  The term Gittith is applied to two other psalms (Psalm 81 and Psalm 84) both of which being of a joyous character, it may be concluded that where we find that word in the title, we may look for a hymn of delight."

C.I. Scofield titles this psalm "God's glory and man's dominion."

David is addressing God throughout this psalm. There is no back and forth addressing God and then man, as we see in some other psalms.

The first verse and the last verse of Psalm 8 contain the same words: "O LORD, our Lord, how excellent is Thy name in all the earth!"  Concerning this, Spurgeon comments, "The first and last verses are a sweet song of admiration, in which the excellence of the name of God is exalted.  The intermediate verses are made up of holy wonder at the LORD's greatness in creation, and at His condescension toward man."

David goes on to say in verses 1b and 2:

* You have set Your glory above the heavens
* Out of the mouths of babies and infants you have established strength because of Your foes.

Why?  So that it will "still the enemies and the avengers."

In verses 3-8 David goes on to reflect on the relationship, and the contrast, between God and man.  He says, 

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place ... What is man, that You are mindful of him, and the son of man, that You care for  him?  You have:

* Made man a little lower than the angels
* Crowned man with glory and honor
* Given man dominion over creation

David then reiterates the majesty and excellence of God's name in all the earth.

Now for some cross-references!

Cross-references for "name" (v.1) -- "Let them praise the name of the LORD; for His name alone is excellent; His glory is above the earth and heaven."  (Psalm 148:13)

"And in that day shall ye say, Praise the LORD, call upon His name, declare His doings among the people, make mention that His name is exalted."  (Isaiah 12:4)

"And the LORD descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD."  (Exodus 34:5)

Cross-references for "glory" (v.1) -- "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth His handiwork."  (Psalm 19:1)

"The LORD is high above all nations, and His glory above the heavens."  (Psalm 113:1)

Cross-references for "out of the mouth of babes and sucklings" (v. 2) -- "And Jesus saith unto them, Yea, have ye not read, out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?" (Matthew 21:16)

"At that time Jesus answered, and said, I thank Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because Thou hast hidden these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes."  (Matthew 11:35)

"But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty."  (1 Corinthians 1:27)

Cross-reference for "strength" (v.2) -- "O LORD, my strength, and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction, the nations shall come unto Thee from the ends of the earth, and shall say, Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things in which there is no profit."  (Jeremiah 16:19)

Cross-reference for "the enemy" (v.2) -- "My confusion is continually before me,  and the shame of my face has covered me, For the voice of him who reproacheth and blasphemeth, by reason of the enemy and avenger."  (Psalm 44:15-16)

Cross-reference for "consider Thy heavens" (v.3) -- "The works of the LORD are great, sought out of all them who have pleasure therein."  (Psalm 111:2)

Cross-references for "fingers" (v.3) -- "Then the magicians said unto Pharaoh, this is the finger of God: and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto them, as the LORD had said."  (Exodus 8:19)

"And He gave unto Moses, when He had ceased speaking with him upon Mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God."  (Exodus 31:18)

Cross-reference for "which Thou hast ordained" (v.3) -- "And God made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night; He made the stars also."  (Genesis 1:16)

Cross-references for "man" (v.4) -- "What is man, that Thou shouldest magnify him, and that Thou shouldest set Thine heart upon him, and that Thou shouldest visit him every morning, and test him every moment?"  (Job 7:17-18)

"But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that Thou art mindful of him?  Or the son of man, that Thou visitest him?  Thou madest him a little lower than the angels, Thou crownest him with glory and honor, and didst set him over the works of Thy hands; Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet."  (Hebrews 2:6-8a)

Cross-reference for "what is man" (v.4) -- "LORD, what is man, that Thou takest knowledge of him?  Or the son of man, that Thou makest account of him?"  (Psalm 144:3)

Cross-reference for "the son of man" (v.4) -- "Let Thy hand be upon the man of Thy right hand, upon the son of man whom Thou madest strong for Thyself."  (Psalm 80:17)

Cross-references for "visitest him" (v.4) -- "Thou visitest the earth, and waterest it; Thou greatly enrichest it with the the river of God, which is full of water; Thou preparest them grain, when Thou hast so provided for it."  (Psalm 65:9)

"Thou hast granted me life and favor; and Thy care hath preserved my spirit."  (Job 10:12)

Cross-reference for "glory and honor" (v.5) -- "The king shall joy in Thy strength, O LORD; and in Thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice!  His glory is great in Thy salvation; honor and majesty hast Thou laid upon him."  (Psalm 21:1, 5)

Cross-reference for "dominion" (v.6) -- "And God said, Let us make man in Our image, after Our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth."  (Genesis 1:26)

Cross-reference for "all things under his feet" (v.6) -- "And Jesus came and spoke unto them, saying, All authority is given to Me in heaven and in earth."  (Matthew 28:18)

A= "Here man is the pinnacle of divine creation, the one made to exhibit great glory and receive great honor ... [Man] was made 'in the image of God', specially equipped in body, soul, and spirit to know and be known of God." -- Stuart Briscoe

"The scope and business of this psalm seems plainly to be this: to display and celebrate the great love and kindness of God to mankind, not only in His creation, but especially in his redemption by Jesus Christ." -- Charles Spurgeon

"The carnal mind sees God in nothing, not even in spiritual things, His Word and ordinances.  The spiritual mind sees Him in everything, even in natural things, in looking on the heavens and the earth and all the creatures."  -- Robert Leighton

"If man has been made supreme in the earthly realm and gifted uniquely for a special relationship with his Creator, it is no surprise to discover that God has given man a superb role in His plan.  It is to have dominion over all the works of God's hands.

"One clear fact is that God made a fantastic world and set man loose in it to develop and explore it.  Man's unbelievable mandate was to use his God-given talent to discover the resources of earth and to adapt all that he found to the development of God's creation in every sphere." -- Stuart Briscoe, What Works When Life Doesn't

As I read what these writers had to say, it occurred to me that I do see God in everything, even natural things, as Robert Leighton says.  I can't look at anything in nature without seeing the Creator behind it, and I love to help others to see this as well.  How I praise God for showing me my need of a Savior, for drawing me to Himself, for helping me to have a spiritual mind.  What love and kindness!  

Realizing that God has given man dominion over His Creation is a sobering reminder to me that we are to be stewards of all that God has given us -- to use it wisely for His purposes and His glory.  Even the way that we care for our own homes and property is important!

P= "Lord, truly Your name is excellent in all the earth!  How I praise You for Your amazing creativity and power in Creation!  It is astounding to observe the night sky and to consider Your heavens, the works of Your hands, the moon and the stars -- and to realize that You, the sovereign Creator, care for me.  You are not only mindful of man; You desire a relationship with us.  You care and want to bring hope and healing to our lives.  

"I pray that You will help me to point others to you and also to be a good and wise steward of all that You have provided.    I praise and thank You for all that You have done and all that You will do, in Jesus' name, Amen."

Reflection question: David beautifully expresses the glory and majesty of God in this psalm of praise.

How do you catch a glimpse of God's love for you through the moon, the stars and all of His creation?

My response: In His provision for sure; in His giving man dominion over His creation.

But the "glimpse of God's love" that means the most to me concerns the stars.  A favorite passage of mine for years has been Psalm 147:4-5: "He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.  He counts the number of the stars; He calls them all by name."

The fact that the all-powerful, almighty, all-wise Creator of the universe --  the One who knows the number of the stars and calls them all by name -- cares about healing my broken heart and binding up my wounds ... well, I find that breathtaking, as well as incredibly comforting and encouraging. 

I recall a time many years ago when we were away from home and I was deeply concerned about something.  A look at the night sky served as a deeply comforting reminder of God's faithfulness and power over any and every situation.

And there is our simple study of Psalm 8.  I hope it was a blessing to someone today!