There is wide recognition among old testament scholars that psalm 104 not only interprets the genesis creation accounts but also follows the same basic order as the days of creation in genesis 1. In wine we see the love of god in the sacrifice of jesus christ which removes our guilt, satisfies gods wrath, and saves all who believe. Examining the biblical order of gods creation of and interactions with the world and israel, he tells the story of israels gospel as a series of divine acts. Pdf old testament theology download read online free. While the entire bible is replete with references to creation, three sources are especially noteworthy for their more detailed description. Dec 08, 2011 derek kidner, psalms 73150, tyndale old testament commentary downers grove, il. Psalm 104, a hymn of descriptive praise miller 2000. The creation theme in psalm 104 geoscience research institute. Of course, the relationship is not hard and fast, many aspects of the psalm bleed into other sections, but like creation itself there is order and overlap. In the greek septuagint version of the bible, and in its latin translation in the vulgate, this psalm is psalm 103 in a slightly different numbering system.
Psalm 104 is associated with biblical creation theology, but it seldom. Parallelism between the hymn to aten and psalm 104. Waltke the preceding article in this series discussed some of the activities of god revealed in the creation account in genesis 1. May 27, 2012 psalm 104, a hymn of praise to god as creator, is remarkably comprehensive in its survey of earth and space, flora and fauna, topography and geology. Old earth creation science articles to learn more about old earth creationism, see old earth belief, or check out the article can you be a christian and believe in an old earth. Harrisons an introduction to the old testament, pp. Psalms 104 commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole.
Psalter, ps 104 managed to maintain a distinct theme and theological voice. Old testament theology volume one israel s gospel book summary. Biblical commentary bible study psalm 104 exegesis. The structure of the psalm is modelled sic fairly closely on that of genesis 1, taking the stages of. Baker book house, a 1987 reprint of the 1878 edition, op.
This is a long psalm, so it is easier to study it in parts. In this essay i will focus on the messianic interpretation of psalm 40, specifically as it is used in hebrews 10 in reference to the bodily sacrifice of jesus christ. Previously he taught at trinity episcopal school for ministry, the southern baptist theological seminary, and taylor university. Who maketh his angels spirits the angels are spirits, or spiritual substances, yet created ones. The waters, as stated before, run in the valleys, in the natural channels made for them among the hills psalm 104. University of groningen the theological dialectic of creation. In order to exegete the biblical text of psalm 104, one must work with the original. A truly joyful hymn of praise to the creator, this hymn along with job chapter 38 and 39. However, psalm 103 praises yahweh for his redemptive work, and psalm 104 praises him for his creative work.
Psalm 51 follows directly on the heels of psalm 50, and probably psalm 50 was put there out of order with the other asaph psalms because it is a good precursor to psalm 51. Psalms 104 commentary matthew henry commentary on the. Weekly comments on the revised common lectionary, theological hall of the uniting church, melbourne, australia. So, for example, walter zorn writes, a summary of the creation account is contained in the psalm, similar to the record in genesis chapter one. Goldingays old testament theology is not only a scholarly contribution to the ongoing quest of understanding the theological dimensions of the first testament. Although thousands of years old, virtually all the psalms, in one way or another, mirror our own struggles and our joys today.
Light being one of the names of the messiah in the old testament, psalm 43. Jeehoon kimyhwh as gardener in the ot with special reference. Psalms 104, new international version niv the bible app. The lord jesus, the son of his love, is the light of the world. Preachers and teachers will prize it as a smart, informed and engaging companion as they read and represent the first testament story to postmodern pilgrims on the way.
This is surprising because so many of the psalms are laments or complaints. Ancient egypt practiced what is known as henotheism, which is the belief of a single god while acknowledging. It is important in other psalms, for example psalm 2, to know that the psalm comes from a particular cultural and historical context in the life of israel, in this case the crowning of a new king. In the old testament, the hebrew word for god, elohim, is a. Verses 19 are about god creating making the earth and the sky.
Psalm 104 is the 104th psalm of the book of psalms of the hebrew bible. The old and new testaments both tell the story of jesus. The old testament prepares us for his coming and the new testament tells how it happened. Psalms 104 commentary john gills exposition on the whole bible. Then the psalmist the person that wrote the psalm says three things about god. It is very probable that this psalm was penned by the same hand, and at the same time, as the former. Second, the general use of garden imagery in the old testament is established, by means of a study of the semantic field of the hebrew term. This is part 1 of jesus and your job, a video series on how christians in different industries view their work. Biblical interpretation and theology psalm 104, the creation psalm.
Psalm 104 is one of the finest pieces of lyric poetry in the old testament, expressing the poets emotions regarding yahwehs. Old testament canon had been divided up into two lists of 22 or 24 books, respectively. Latter prohpets and writings now what i would like to do is move on with you to particular psalm subjects, psalms that have particular subjects, and the. But this skepticism is unworthy of a book that bears the earmarks of an author in whom there is no confusion. However, gods dealing with people is the subject of praise in psalm 103, whereas his creation and sustenance of the world are the theme of psalm 104.
We should have a passionate love for truth, for scripture psalm 119. Psalm 104 and genesis 1 in graphic display via emmaus. To find out more about this series and how you can use it as a small group study, go to the jesus and your job homepage. This is the question we have been tasked to answer.
Goldingay the history of old testament theology as a discipline has been well chronicled, for instance from varying perspectives by n. Both begin and end with similar calls to bless god. Psalms 104 commentary john gills exposition on the. Jul 31, 2014 psalm 104 is almost a duplicate of the egyptian hymn to aten on the wall of a 14th century bce tomb in egypt archaeologists found a beautiful hymn to the god aten. Bartsch, 3 a2 gods sovereignty over the earth in the flood 104. In the old testament, the hebrew word for god, elohim, is a plural word. Psalm 104 is one of the finest pieces of lyric poetry in the old tes tament. Psalms is distinctive in the old testament in that most of it consists of people talking to god. Biblical theology have i not written to you excellent things of counsels and knowledge. Psalms 8 and 29, forms a divine poetic commentary on the creation. The hymn to the aten, supposedly composed by the king, akhenaten, shows undoubted similarities to psalm 104 both the hymn and akhenatens repeated statements to the effect that aten was the one true god have been used by many scholars including freud to argue that the religion of the amarna period was a precursor to the judaeochristianislamic monotheism.
Psalm 103 is about redemption and psalm 104 is about creation and theyre bound together by bless the lord. In hebrew the title is songs of praise or praises tehillim, cf. In it we see the love of god in providing life and joy for all people. The new international commentary on the old testament. In addition to various books and scholarly articles, he. Ancient egypt practiced what is known as henotheism, which is the belief of a single god while acknowledging the existence of other gods muller 56. Foundational theology, part 1 the 5 solas, sola scriptura.
Gillingham, the poems and psalms of the hebrew bible obs. Creation theology in psalm 9 ote 233 2010, 693707 693. Allen, psalms 101150, in word biblical commentary, ed. In this first volume of a proposed threevolume old testament theology, john goldingay focuses on narrative. Zondervan, 1995, 12730, who argue that psalm 45 can only be read as a messianic psalm, that is, as a prediction of the coming messiah.
I contend that in the context of israelite royal ideology the language of metaphorical divinity was appropriately. The messiah in the old testament studies in old testament biblical theology. In this video, new testament scholar sean mcdonough gives an introduction to the theology of work, starting with the good news in psalm 104. This psalm of descriptive praise is quite similar to psalm 103. Jeehoon kimyhwh as gardener in the ot with special. House is professor of old testament and chair of the dept. He makes winds his messengers, flames of fire his servants. He makes the clouds his chariot and rides on the wings of the wind. The liberty bible commentary, produced by jerry falwell, states that the theme of this psalm is a poets version of the creation chapters of. Latter prohpets and writings now what i would like to do is move on with you to particular psalm subjects, psalms that have particular subjects, and the importance of these particular subjects in the psalms as theyre reflected in the psalter itself. Although psalm 104 carries no inscription after its title in the hebrew bible, both the. Psalm 104 in praise of yahwehs sovereignty over his.
It is a praise to yhwh from the totality of his highest creation humans, cf. Joe is the lead pastor of redeemer fellowship in st. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. The introduction to the psalm is a brief call to praise verse 1a. Baker book house, a 1987 reprint of the 1878 edition, vol. The creation theme in genesis 1, psalm 104 and job 3842. However, it is an invalid argument when considering that psalm 104 refers to the creation. The center for excellence in preaching, resources from calvin theological seminary. Because god did this, the psalm starts, praise the lord. Psalm 104 in praise of yahwehs sovereignty over his created. Click download or read online button to get old testament theology book now. For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. At the end of psalm 51 we read things like verses 1617, for you do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise i would give it.
Today the new international commentary on the old testament en joys a wide readership of scholars, priests, pastors, rabbis, and other serious bible students. Psalm 104 despite it having so many similarities with the hymn to the aten, is a jewish poem written in the bible in the old testament by king david alexander 44. For example, it is important for understanding the perspective and theology of psalm 7 to know that it comes from the period of the babylonian exile. Psalm 104 is almost a duplicate of the egyptian hymn to. But still, it was a fact that the hills themselves were watered. Weve talked about who god is in psalm 50, what hes done to redeem us and the fact that hes the creator in psalm 103 and 104. Old testament theology download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl, mobi. Biblical interpretation and theology, psalm 104 old earth ministries.
What is really strange is that the pharaoh akhenaten 5236 who lived in an era when everyone believed in many gods, chose to believe in only one, aten. Psalm 104 an analysis of psalm 104 reveals that the author celebrates the. The strongest old testament verse for the doctrine of the trinity is. This unites the entire bible and the study of biblical theology in one major theme.
Elsewhere, the old testament is mostly god talking to people as in the law and the prophets, or it is narrative. A concise hebrew and aramaic lexicon of the old testament by william l. A new five volume theological word study entitled the new international dictionary of old testament theology and exegesis, edited by willem a. Verses 1018 having given glory to god as the powerful protector of this earth, in saving it from being deluged, here he comes to acknowledge him as its bountiful benefactor, who provides conveniences for all the creatures. The first line of the two psalms is exactly the same in hebrew. His eternal power and godhead are clearly shown by the things which he hath made. The psalm s list of these diverse aspects of creation extols gods greatness, with particular attention to gods control of and power over that creation. Given the explicit use of psalm 40 in hebrews 10, i will not need to argue that psalm 40 is used messianically in hebrews, but. Introduction to psalms bible commentary theology of work. Old testament king james version of the bible, the psalms. Psalm 104 is almost a duplicate of the egyptian hymn to aten.
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