1 O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth!
Your glory is higher than the heavens.
2 You have taught children and infants
to tell of your strength,
silencing your enemies
and all who oppose you.
3 When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers—
the moon and the stars you set in place—
4 what are mere mortals that you should think about them,
human beings that you should care for them?
5 Yet you made them only a little lower than God
and crowned them with glory and honor.
6 You gave them charge of everything you made,
putting all things under their authority—
7 the flocks and the herds
and all the wild animals,
8 the birds in the sky, the fish in the sea,
and everything that swims the ocean currents.
9 O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth!
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This is a pillar of celebration in the Psalms of orientation. I love the middle part (verses 3 and 4), where David first talks about the insignificance of mankind when compared to all of creation. Then he ways that we are just a little bit lower on the list than God himself! In the Greek version of this Psalm, we are just a bit lower than the angels.
This could be called the Psalm of a healthy self-esteem, but it is more than that. It is really about God, not us! In the beginning and at the end, the focus is on the majesty of God.
I think this Psalm teaches me about worship. To properly worship, I must see myself as a special part of creation, but always in the context of God’s great majesty,