When you make your weekly trip to the grocery store, are you conscious of where the food you buy comes from? I’m not specifically referring to the farms, though we should be grateful to all the farmers, fishermen, and ranchers for the work they do. I am referring ultimately to Who provides for all of the food we eat. Naturally those who have no faith in God do not give any thought or consideration as to Who ultimately provides the food they eat each day. Sadly, even some Christians sit down at the table day after day, and forget to thank the Lord for His provisions. In our psalm for today, the psalmist does not forget that it is the Lord God who ultimately provides the food and drink for all creatures on earth. Let’s take a quick look at this psalm.
Psalm 104 goes through the different parts of God’s creation. The first several verses speak of God laying the foundation of the earth, His creating the atmosphere, and all the angelic beings (vs. 1-5). The psalmist uses very descriptive words. The light covers God like a cloak, and the heavens, what we look at through telescopes, are His curtains. The Lord God rides the clouds as His chariot, and soars through the air on the wind. Some people revere angels so much they almost worship them, however God created them and they are His servants.
Water is very important for life. We can only last about three days without having any water. God created water, it didn’t just happen (vs. 6-13). Our psalmist describes places of water throughout the earth. He particularly describes the streams of water that come down from the mountain peaks, bringing liquid nourishment to those who live in the valleys, both man and animals. When we stand on a beach, we might wonder why the ocean stops where it does. Why doesn’t it stop several hundred yards further inland? God is the One who has set the limits of the waters in the ocean. He directs where the rivers go. The Lord is the One who has provided water to quench the thirst of all beings. Without water we would not have any other types of beverages, nor any food, and it is the Lord who has provided it for us.
The Lord God not only provides us with water, He also is the One who provides all living beings with the food they eat. Without any food, a person can last maybe a week or so, depending on whether they are drinking any water, and what their general health is overall. God provides grass for the cattle to eat, which in turn provides the meat that we consume. He also provides all of the vegetables that we eat, and grain for our bread (vs. 14-15). God not only provides water and food for all creatures, He has also provided each animal with a place to live, such as trees for the birds, the hills and mountains for the goats, and burrows for the badgers (vs. 17-18).
As our psalm continues, the writer describes the cycle of day and night, and how this, too, is a creation of God, and has a purpose which He designed for both man and animal (vs. 19-23). As the earth rotates, we see the sun rising and setting each day, as God ordained it should. At night the moon and the stars are visible, and we see the cycle of the moon throughout the month. God created certain animals that are nocturnal, and are active at night seeking their food which He provides for them. When daylight comes they return to their dens, and man and other animals then rise and go about their day. All of this is determined by God. The psalmist particularly highlights the fish and creatures of the oceans (vs. 25-26), noting that there is such a wide variety of sea life, man hasn’t even counted them all.
The psalmist proclaims that it is the Lord God that provides us with all that we need for life (vs. 27-30). He is the One who gives us our food and our water, and everything that is good. He has created even the air which we breathe, and without it we would die and return to dust. It is by His Spirit that we have life.
He concludes the psalm with a chorus of praise for all that God has created (vs. 24, 31-35). His creation is vast, and was created in wisdom. As we look around the world at all of creation, as we eat and drink each day, we need to remember to meditate on the wonders of the Lord, and sing His praise.
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