Source: http://hwallace.unitingchurch.org.au/WebOTcomments/EasterA/PentecostPsalm104.html
Timestamp: 2019-04-20 19:08:17+00:00

Document:
Psalm 104 is one of the great psalms of the collection, often called ‘the pearl of the Psalter’. It is a hymn to the Lord as creator and is written in typical hymnic style. It has found wide use in both Jewish liturgy (it is chanted on the morning of Yom Kippur, the ‘Day of Atonement’, and on the evening of the New Moon, and on Sabbaths through winter; all these are occasions celebrating new life) as well as in Christian liturgy. In Greek Orthodox churches Psalm 104 is sung daily in vespers in gratitude for the life of the day. It has also been associated in Christian circles with Pentecost activities, chiefly because of the reference to ‘spirit’ in v. 30. Historically, the psalm bears many similarities to an Egyptian hymn to Aten (the sun god) from the period of so-called Egyptian ‘monotheism’ under Akhenaten (1364-1347 BCE). These similarities are strong enough to suggest that parts of the psalm have been taken from the Egyptian hymn. On the other hand we should also note that Psalm 104 has similarities to Genesis 1.
Verses 24-34, the main part of today’s reading, exclaim the greatness of the Lord’s works. Again the language used has echoes of mythical accounts of creation, speaking especially of the sea as a place of great mystery and danger where great creatures go, including Leviathan. Such creatures are often seen as dangerous monsters that must be defeated (cf. Ps 74:14) but here something different is expressed. Even Leviathan has become a plaything. The emphasis is again on the Lord’s provision of sustenance for all creatures and the preservation of their life (vv. 27-30). The reference to the Lord’s ‘spirit’ (Heb: ruach) has echoes of Gen 2:7 where the word is translated as ‘breath’. We are not speaking directly about the Holy Spirit as we might understand that in Christian terms. On the other hand, God’s act of sustaining life through divine ‘spirit/breath’ is not disassociated from what we see as the work of the Spirit. The point is that all creation and its creatures are totally dependent on God’s presence and ‘breath’.
The psalmist finishes (vv. 31-32) hoping that the Lord’s glory might endure and that they may have joy in God’s works (cf. v. 24). The psalmist finishes by proclaiming their own praise (vv. 31-34). The lectionary omits v. 35a which seeks not only the banishment of sinners but their ‘being consumed’ and ‘being no more’. Presumably the lectionary omission is because of the ethical difficulty of praying for the demise of others. It does not fit Jesus’ call to love others including one’s enemies. This is hardly Christian. Such sensitivity might justifiably raise a question about whether v. 35a of the psalm should be read in the congregation. On the other hand, our proper awkwardness with such sentiments ought not prevent us asking what the psalm is getting at in v. 35a. The language is that of creation. As noted above the concept of creation in ancient Israel and the ancient Near East in general is about the ordering of chaos, i.e. removing what is harmful to life, what is not life-giving, and allowing God’s life-giving ‘spirit’ to fill all creation. There is an ethical dimension to creation. The psalmist’s wish in v. 35a is that in society as much as among all creatures in the cosmos, what opposes God’s life-giving purpose ought to be exposed and removed. So while we might be rightfully cautious about using the words of v. 35a without much thought, we ought not to let the desire for seeing God’s life-giving way established in the world be lost.

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