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!
I give praise to Yahweh with all my life, Yahweh my God, you are very magnificent; you are clothed with splendor and majesty.
2 You [created/caused] light to be like your robe [MET]. You spread out the sky like [a man sets up] a tent.
You cover yourself with light as with a garment; you spread out the heavens like a tent 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].
You lay the beams of your chambers on the clouds; you make the clouds your chariot; you walk 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.
He makes the winds his messengers, flames of fire his servants.
5 You placed the world firmly on its foundation so that it can never be moved/shaken.
He laid the foundations of the earth, and it will never be moved.
6 [Later], you covered the earth with a flood, like a blanket, with the water that covered the mountains.
You covered the earth with water like a garment; the water covered the mountains.
7 [But] when you rebuked the water, the oceans receded; your voice spoke like thunder, and then the waters rushed away.
Your rebuke made the waters recede; at the sound of your thunderous voice they fled.
8 Mountains rose up [from the water], and the valleys sank down to the levels that you had determined for them.
The mountains rose, and the valleys spread out into the places that you had appointed 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.
You have set a boundary for them that they will not cross; they will not cover the earth again.
10 You make/cause springs to pour [water] into ravines; their [water] flows down between the mountains.
He made springs flow into the valleys; the streams flow between the mountains.
11 Those [streams] provide water for all the animals [to drink]; the wild donkeys [drink the water and] are no longer thirsty.
They supply water for all the animals of the field; the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 Birds make their nests alongside [the streams], and they sing among the branches [of the trees].
By the riverbanks the birds build their nests; they sing among the branches.
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.
He waters the mountains from his water chambers in the sky. The earth is filled with the fruit of his labor.
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.
He makes the grass grow for the cattle and plants for man to cultivate so that man may produce food from 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.
He makes wine to make man happy, oil to make his face shine, and food to sustain his life.
16 Yahweh, you [send plenty of rain to] water your trees, the cedar [trees] that you planted in Lebanon.
The trees of Yahweh get plenty of rain; the cedars of Lebanon which he planted.
17 Birds make their nests in those [trees]; even storks make their nests in pine/fir trees.
There the birds make their nests. The stork makes the cypress tree her home.
18 High up in the mountains the wild goats live, and hyraxes/badgers live in the crags/crevices in the rocks.
The wild goats live on the high mountains; the mountain heights are a refuge for the hyraxes.
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 appointed the moon to mark the seasons; the sun knows its time for setting.
20 You bring darkness, and it becomes night, when all the animals in the forest prowl around, [looking for food].
You make the darkness of the night when all the beasts of the forest come out.
21 At night the young lions roar as they seek their prey, [but] they depend on you to give them food.
The young lions roar for their prey and seek their food from God.
22 At dawn, they go back to their dens and lie down.
When the sun rises, they retreat and sleep in their dens.
23 And during the daytime, people go to their work; they work until it is evening.
Meanwhile, people go out to their work and labor away until the 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].
Yahweh, how many and varied are your works! With wisdom you made them all; the earth overflows with your works.
25 [We see] the ocean which is very large [DOU]! It is full of many kinds of living creatures, big ones and little ones.
Over there is the sea, deep and wide, teeming with innumerable creatures, both small and 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.
The ships travel there, and Leviathan is also there, which you formed to play in the sea.
27 All of those creatures depend on you to give them the food that they need.
All these look to you to give them their food on time.
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.
When you give to them, they gather; when you open your hand, they are satisfied.
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.
When you hide your face, they are troubled; if you take away their breath, they die and return to dust.
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.
When you send out your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the countryside.
31 I want the glory of Yahweh to last forever. I want him to rejoice about [all] the things that he has created.
May the glory of Yahweh last forever; may Yahweh enjoy his creation.
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!
He looks down on the earth, and it shakes; he touches 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 all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.
34 I want Yahweh to be pleased by all those things that I have thought [about him], because I rejoice about [knowing] him.
May my thoughts be sweet to him; 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)!
May sinners vanish from the earth, and let the wicked be no more. I give praise to Yahweh with all my life. Praise Yahweh.
