August 24 – Psalms 104 and 105 from the New Testament

Psalms 104 and 105 – Psalm 104

104:1 Praise the Lord, O my soul!

O Lord my God, you are magnificent.

You are robed in splendor and majesty.

104:2 He covers himself with light as if it were a garment.

He stretches out the skies like a tent curtain,

104:3 and lays the beams of the upper rooms of his palace on the rain clouds.

He makes the clouds his chariot,

and travels along on the wings of the wind.

104:4 He makes the winds his messengers,

and the flaming fire his attendant.

104:5 He established the earth on its foundations;

it will never be upended.

104:6 The watery deep covered it like a garment;

the waters reached above the mountains.

104:7 Your shout made the waters retreat;

at the sound of your thunderous voice they hurried off –

104:8 as the mountains rose up,

and the valleys went down –

to the place you appointed for them.

104:9 You set up a boundary for them that they could not cross,

so that they would not cover the earth again.

104:10 He turns springs into streams;

they flow between the mountains.

104:11 They provide water for all the animals in the field;

the wild donkeys quench their thirst.

104:12 The birds of the sky live beside them;

they chirp among the bushes.

104:13 He waters the mountains from the upper rooms of his palace;

the earth is full of the fruit you cause to grow.

104:14 He provides grass for the cattle,

and crops for people to cultivate,

so they can produce food from the ground,

104:15 as well as wine that makes people feel so good,

and so they can have oil to make their faces shine,

as well as food that sustains people’s lives.

104:16 The trees of the Lord receive all the rain they need,

the cedars of Lebanon which he planted,

104:17 where the birds make nests,

near the evergreens in which the herons live.

104:18 The wild goats live in the high mountains;

the rock badgers find safety in the cliffs.

104:19 He made the moon to mark the months,

and the sun sets according to a regular schedule.

104:20 You make it dark and night comes,

during which all the beasts of the forest prowl around.

104:21 The lions roar for prey,

seeking their food from God.

104:22 When the sun rises, they withdraw

and sleep in their dens.

104:23 Men then go out to do their work,

and labor away until evening.

104:24 How many living things you have made, O Lord!

You have exhibited great skill in making all of them;

the earth is full of the living things you have made.

104:25 Over here is the deep, wide sea,

which teems with innumerable swimming creatures,

living things both small and large.

104:26 The ships travel there,

and over here swims the whale you made to play in it.

104:27 All of your creatures wait for you

to provide them with food on a regular basis.

104:28 You give food to them and they receive it;

you open your hand and they are filled with food.

104:29 When you ignore them, they panic.

When you take away their life’s breath, they die

and return to dust.

104:30 When you send your life-giving breath, they are created,

and you replenish the surface of the ground.

104:31 May the splendor of the Lord endure!

May the Lord find pleasure in the living things he has made!

104:32 He looks down on the earth and it shakes;

he touches the mountains and they start to smolder.

104:33 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;

I will sing praise to my God as long as I exist!

104:34 May my thoughts be pleasing to him!

I will rejoice in the Lord.

104:35 May sinners disappear from the earth,

and the wicked vanish!

Praise the Lord, O my soul!

Praise the Lord!

Psalm 105

105:1 Give thanks to the Lord!

Call on his name!

Make known his accomplishments among the nations!

105:2 Sing to him!

Make music to him!

Tell about all his miraculous deeds!

105:3 Boast about his holy name!

Let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!

105:4 Seek the Lord and the strength he gives!

Seek his presence continually!

105:5 Recall the miraculous deeds he performed,

his mighty acts and the judgments he decreed,

105:6 O children of Abraham, God’s servant,

you descendants of Jacob, God’s chosen ones!

105:7 He is the Lord our God;

he carries out judgment throughout the earth.

105:8 He always remembers his covenantal decree,

the promise he made to a thousand generations –

105:9 the promise he made to Abraham,

the promise he made by oath to Isaac!

105:10 He gave it to Jacob as a decree,

to Israel as a lasting promise,

105:11 saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan

as the portion of your inheritance.”

105:12 When they were few in number,

just a very few, and resident aliens within it,

105:13 they wandered from nation to nation,

and from one kingdom to another.

105:14 He let no one oppress them;

he disciplined kings for their sake,

105:15 saying,“Don’t touch my chosen ones!

Don’t harm my prophets!”

105:16 He called down a famine upon the earth;

he cut off all the food supply.

105:17 He sent a man ahead of them –

Joseph was sold as a servant.

105:18 The shackles hurt his feet;

his neck was placed in an iron collar,

105:19 until the time when his prediction came true.

The Lord’s word proved him right.

105:20 The king authorized his release;

the ruler of nations set him free.

105:21 He put him in charge of his palace,

and made him manager of all his property,

105:22 giving him authority to imprison his officials

and to teach his advisers.

105:23Israel moved to Egypt;

Jacob lived for a time in the land of Ham.

105:24 The Lord made his people very fruitful,

and made them more numerous than their enemies.

105:25 He caused them to hate his people,

and to mistreat his servants.

105:26 He sent his servant Moses,

 and Aaron, whom he had chosen.

105:27 They executed his miraculous signs among them,

and his amazing deeds in the land of Ham.

105:28 He made it dark;

they did not disobey his orders.

105:29 He turned their water into blood,

and killed their fish.

105:30 Their land was overrun by frogs,

which even got into the rooms of their kings.

105:31 He ordered flies to come;

gnats invaded their whole territory.

105:32 He sent hail along with the rain;

there was lightning in their land.

105:33 He destroyed their vines and fig trees,

and broke the trees throughout their territory.

105:34 He ordered locusts to come,

innumerable grasshoppers.

105:35 They ate all the vegetation in their land,

and devoured the crops of their fields.

105:36 He struck down all the firstborn in their land,

the firstfruits of their reproductive power.

105:37 He brought his people out enriched with silver and gold;

none of his tribes stumbled.

105:38Egypt was happy when they left,

for they were afraid of them.

105:39 He spread out a cloud for a cover,

and provided a fire to light up the night.

105:40 They asked for food, and he sent quails;

he satisfied them with food from the sky.

105:41 He opened up a rock and water flowed out;

a river ran through dry regions.

105:42 Yes, he remembered the sacred promise

he made to Abraham his servant.

105:43 When he led his people out, they rejoiced;

his chosen ones shouted with joy.

105:44 He handed the territory of nations over to them,

and they took possession of what other peoples had produced,

105:45 so that they might keep his commands

and obey his laws.

Praise the Lord!