Psalms 104
1 [I tell] myself that I should praise Yahweh. Yahweh, my God, you are very great! Like a king has on his royal robes [MET], you have honor and majesty/greatness all around you!
Bless, O my soul, Yahweh, —Yahweh, my God, thou art exceedingly great, With honour and majesty, hast thou clothed thyself,
2 You [created/caused] light to be like your robe [MET]. You spread out the sky like [a man sets up] a tent.
Putting on light, as a robe, Stretching out the heavens, as a curtain;
3 You made/put your home [in heaven], above the rain clouds in the sky, [like a man puts the] rafters of his house in place [MET]. You made/caused the clouds to be like chariots [to carry you].
Building, in the waters, his upper chambers, —Who maketh clouds his chariot, Who passeth along on the wings of the wind;
4 You caused the winds to be [like] your messengers [MET], and flames of fire to be [like] your servants.
Making His messengers, winds, His attendants, a flaming fire;
5 You placed the world firmly on its foundation so that it can never be moved/shaken.
He hath fixed the earth on its foundations, It is not to be shaken, to times age-abiding and beyond.
6 [Later], you covered the earth with a flood, like a blanket, with the water that covered the mountains.
With the resounding deep—as a garment, hast thou covered it, Above the mountains, stand the waters;
7 [But] when you rebuked the water, the oceans receded; your voice spoke like thunder, and then the waters rushed away.
At thy rebuke, they flee, At the voice of thy thunder, they hurry away;
8 Mountains rose up [from the water], and the valleys sank down to the levels that you had determined for them.
Mountains rise, Valleys sink, Unto the place which thou hast fixed for them;
9 [Then] you set a boundary for the oceans, a boundary that they cannot cross; their water will never again cover the [whole] earth.
Bounds, hast thou set, which they are not to pass over, They are not to return to cover the earth.
10 You make/cause springs to pour [water] into ravines; their [water] flows down between the mountains.
Who hast sent forth springs, through the torrent-beds, Between the mountains, they flow along;
11 Those [streams] provide water for all the animals [to drink]; the wild donkeys [drink the water and] are no longer thirsty.
They give drink, to every wild beast of the field, The wild asses do break their thirst.
12 Birds make their nests alongside [the streams], and they sing among the branches [of the trees].
Over them, the bird of the heavens settleth down, From amidst the foliage, they utter a voice.
13 From (your home in heaven/the sky) you send rain down on the mountains, and you fill the earth with many good things that you create.
Who watereth the mountains out of his upper chambers, Out of the fruit of thy works, thou satisfiest the earth.
14 You make/cause grass to grow for the cattle [to eat], and you make/cause plants to grow for people. In that way [animals and people] get their food from [what grows in] the soil.
Who causeth the grass to shoot forth for the cattle, And the herb, for the service of man, That he may bring forth food out of the earth;
15 We get [grapes to make] [MTY] wine to [drink and] make us cheerful, and we get [olives to make] [MTY] olive oil to [put on our] skin and cause it to shine, and we get [grain to make] [MTY] bread to give us strength.
And, wine, may rejoice the heart of man, Making radiant his well-nourished face, —And, food, may, the heart of man, sustain.
16 Yahweh, you [send plenty of rain to] water your trees, the cedar [trees] that you planted in Lebanon.
Satisfied are, The trees of Yahweh, The cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted;
17 Birds make their nests in those [trees]; even storks make their nests in pine/fir trees.
Where the birds build their nests, The stork, in the fir-trees, hath her house;
18 High up in the mountains the wild goats live, and hyraxes/badgers live in the crags/crevices in the rocks.
The high mountains, are for the chamois, The crags, are a refuge for the conies.
19 [Yahweh], you made the moon to indicate the times for our festivals, and you made the sun that knows when to go down.
He hath made the moon for seasons, And, the sun, knoweth his place for entering in.
20 You bring darkness, and it becomes night, when all the animals in the forest prowl around, [looking for food].
Thou causest darkness, and it becometh night, Therein, creepeth forth, Every wild beast of the forest;
21 At night the young lions roar as they seek their prey, [but] they depend on you to give them food.
The young lions, roaring for prey, And seeking, from GOD, their food.
22 At dawn, they go back to their dens and lie down.
The sun ariseth, they withdraw themselves, And, in their lairs, lay them down.
23 And during the daytime, people go to their work; they work until it is evening.
Man goeth forth to his work, And to his labour, until evening.
24 Yahweh, you have made so many different kinds of things! You were [very] wise as you made them all. The earth is full of the creatures that you [made].
How thy works abound, O Yahweh! All of them—in wisdom, hast thou made, The earth is full of thy possession: —
25 [We see] the ocean which is very large [DOU]! It is full of many kinds of living creatures, big ones and little ones.
This sea here, is great and broad on both hands, —Wherein are creeping things, even without number, Living things, small with great;
26 We see the ships which sail along! We see the huge sea monster, which you made to (splash around/play) in the sea.
There, ships, sail along, This sea-monster, thou hast formed to sport therein;
27 All of those creatures depend on you to give them the food that they need.
All of them, for thee, do wait, That thou mayest give them their food in its season;
28 When you give them the food that they need, they gather it. You give them what you have in your hand, and they [eat it and] are satisfied.
Thou givest unto them, they gather, Thou openest thy hand, they are satisfied with good.
29 [But] if you refuse to give food to them, they become terrified. And when you cause them to stop breathing, they die; their bodies [decay and] become soil again.
Thou hidest thy face, they are dismayed, Thou withdrawest their spirit, They cease to breathe, And, unto their own dust, do they return:
30 When you cause newborn creatures to begin to breathe, they start to live; you give new life to all the living creatures on the earth.
Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created, And thou renewest the face of the ground.
31 I want the glory of Yahweh to last forever. I want him to rejoice about [all] the things that he has created.
Be thy glory, O Yahweh, to times age-abiding, Let Yahweh rejoice in his own works:
32 He causes the earth to shake [just] by looking at it! By [merely] touching the mountains he makes/causes them to pour out fire and smoke!
Who looketh at the earth, and it trembleth, He toucheth the mountains, and they smoke.
33 I will sing to Yahweh (as long as I live/throughout my entire life). I will praise my God until the day that I die.
I will sing to Yahweh, as long as I live! Yea I will touch the strings to my God, while I continue;
34 I want Yahweh to be pleased by all those things that I have thought [about him], because I rejoice about [knowing] him.
Pleasing unto him, be my (meditation) I, will rejoice in Yahweh.
35 [But] I desire that sinners will disappear from the earth, so that there will be no more wicked [people]! [But as for] me, I will praise Yahweh! (Praise him/Hallelujah)!
Sinners shall be consumed out of the earth And, the lawless, no more, shall exist, —Bless, O my soul, Yahweh, Praise ye Yah!
