John Calvin Commentary Psalms 104

Bless Jehovah, O my soul! After exhorting himself to praise God, the Psalmist adds that there is abundant matter for such an exercise, thus indirectly condemning himself and others for ingratitude if the praises of God—which ought to be better known and more celebrated than anything else—are buried in silence.

In comparing the light with which he represents God as arrayed to a garment, he implies that although God is invisible, His glory is still sufficiently conspicuous. Regarding His essence, God undoubtedly dwells in light that is inaccessible; but as He irradiates the whole world with His splendor, this is the garment in which He, who is hidden in Himself, appears in a way visible to us.

The knowledge of this truth is of the greatest importance. If people attempt to reach the infinite height to which God is exalted, even if they could fly above the clouds, they would inevitably fail midway. Those who seek to see Him in His naked majesty are certainly very foolish.

For us to enjoy His light, He must come into view with His clothing; that is, we must turn our eyes to the very beautiful fabric of the world in which He wishes to be seen by us, and not be too curious or rash in searching into His secret essence.

Now, since God presents Himself to us clothed with light, those who are seeking pretexts for living without the knowledge of Him cannot claim that He is hidden in profound darkness as an excuse for their laziness. When it is said that the heavens are a curtain, it is not meant that God hides Himself under them, but that His majesty and glory are displayed by them, as they are, so to speak, His royal pavilion.

Laying the beams of his chambers in the waters—David now proceeds to explain at greater length what he had briefly stated under the figure of God’s garment. In short, the scope of the passage is this: we do not need to pierce our way above the clouds to find God, since He meets us in the fabric of the world and is everywhere displaying to us scenes of the most vivid description.

Lest we imagine that there is anything derived in Him, as if, by the creation of the world, He received any addition to His essential perfection and glory, we must remember that He clothes Himself with this robe for our sake. The metaphorical representation of God as laying the beams of his chambers in the waters seems somewhat difficult to understand; but it was the prophet's design, from something incomprehensible to us, to inspire in us greater admiration.

Unless beams are substantial and strong, they will not be able to sustain even the weight of an ordinary house. Therefore, when God makes the waters the foundation of His heavenly palace, who can fail to be astonished at such a wonderful miracle? When we take into account our slowness of apprehension, such hyperbolical expressions are by no means superfluous, for it is with difficulty that they awaken and enable us to attain even a slight knowledge of God.

What is meant by His walking upon the wings of the wind is made more obvious by the following verse, where it is said that the winds are his messengers. God rides on the clouds and is carried upon the wings of the wind, since He drives the winds and clouds about at His pleasure, and by sending them here and there as swiftly as He pleases, thereby shows the signs of His presence.

By these words we are taught that the winds do not blow by chance, nor do lightnings flash by a random impulse, but that God, in the exercise of His sovereign power, rules and controls all the agitations and disturbances of the atmosphere. From this doctrine, a twofold advantage may be reaped:

1. If at any time noxious winds arise, if the south wind corrupts the air, or if the north wind scorches the grain, and not only tears up trees by the root but also overthrows houses, and if other winds destroy the fruits of the earth, we should tremble under these scourges of Providence.
2. If, on the other hand, God moderates the excessive heat with a gentle cooling breeze, if He purifies the polluted atmosphere with the north wind, or if He moistens the parched ground with south winds, in this we should contemplate His goodness.

Since the apostle who writes to the Hebrews (Hebrews 1:7) quotes this passage and applies it to the angels, both the Greek and Latin expositors have almost unanimously considered David as speaking allegorically here. Likewise, because Paul, in quoting Psalm 19:4 in his Epistle to the Romans (Romans 10:18), seems to apply to the apostles what is stated there concerning the heavens, the whole psalm has been injudiciously expounded as if it were an allegory.

The apostle's design in that part of the Epistle to the Hebrews referred to was not simply to explain the prophet's meaning in this passage. Instead, since God is shown to us, as it were, visibly in a mirror, the apostle very properly draws an analogy between the obedience that the winds manifestly and perceptibly yield to God and the obedience that He receives from the angels.

In short, the meaning is that just as God uses the winds as His messengers—turning them here and there, calming and raising them whenever He pleases, so that by their ministry He may declare His power—so too, the angels were created to execute His commands. And certainly, we profit little from contemplating universal nature if we do not behold with the eyes of faith that spiritual glory of which an image is presented to us in the world.

He hath founded the earth upon its foundations. Here the prophet celebrates God's glory, as it is manifested in the stability of the earth. Since it is suspended in the middle of the air and supported only by pillars of water, how does it keep its place so firmly that it cannot be moved?

I indeed grant that this may be explained by natural principles, for the earth, occupying the lowest place as the center of the world, naturally settles there. But even in this design, God's wonderful power is clearly displayed. Again, if the waters are higher than the earth because they are lighter, why do they not cover the entire earth?

Certainly, the only answer philosophers can give to this is that God's providence counteracts the waters' tendency to do so, in order that a dwelling place might be provided for humankind. If they do not admit that the waters are restrained by God's specific decree, they betray not only their depravity and ingratitude but also their ignorance, and are utterly unenlightened.

The prophet, therefore, with good reason, recounts among God's miracles something that would be completely unbelievable to us, if experience itself did not show its truth. We are very contemptible indeed if, taught by such an undeniable proof, we do not learn that nothing in the world is stable except insofar as it is sustained by God's hand.

The world did not originate on its own; consequently, the entire order of nature depends on nothing other than His decree, by which each element has its own unique characteristic. Furthermore, the prophet's language should not be seen merely as an encouragement to give thanks to God; it is also intended to strengthen our confidence regarding the future, so that we may not live in the world in a state of constant fear and anxiety—as we would have, if God had not testified that He has given the earth as a dwelling place for humans.

It is a unique blessing that He gives us, by causing us to live on the earth with undisturbed minds, giving us the assurance that He has established it on everlasting pillars. Although cities often perish by earthquakes, yet the body of the earth itself remains. Indeed, all the disturbances that happen to it more fully confirm to us the truth that the earth would be swallowed up at any moment if it were not preserved by God's secret power.

He has covered it with the deep as with a garment. This may be understood in two ways: either as implying that now the sea covers the earth as a garment, or that at the beginning, before God by His omnipotent word had gathered the waters together into one place, the earth was covered with the deep.

But the more suitable sense appears to be that the sea is now the covering of the earth. At the first creation, the deep was not so much a garment as a grave, since nothing bears less resemblance to the adorning of apparel than the state of confused desolation and shapeless chaos in which the earth then was.

Accordingly, in my judgment, what is celebrated here is that wonderful arrangement by which the deep, although without form, is yet the garment of the earth. But as the context seems to lead to a different view, interpreters are rather inclined to explain the language as denoting that the earth was covered with the deep before the waters had been collected into a separate place.

This difficulty, however, is easily solved if the words of the prophet, The waters shall stand above the mountains, are resolved into the potential mood thus: The waters would stand above the mountains; which is sufficiently vindicated from the usage of the Hebrew language. Indeed, I have no doubt that the prophet, after having said that God had clothed the earth with waters, adds, by way of exposition, that the waters would stand above the mountains, if they did not flee away at God’s rebuke.

Why are the mountains elevated and the valleys sunk down, if not because bounds are set to the waters, so that they do not return to overwhelm the earth? The passage then, it is obvious, may very properly be understood thus: that the sea, although a mighty deep, which strikes terror by its vastness, is yet like a beautiful garment to the earth.

The reason for the metaphor is that the surface of the earth stands uncovered. The prophet affirms that this does not happen by chance; for, if the providence of God did not restrain the waters, would they not immediately rush forth to overwhelm the whole earth? He, therefore, speaks deliberately when he maintains that the appearance of any part of the earth’s surface is not the effect of nature, but is an evident miracle.

Were God to give free rein to the sea, the waters would suddenly cover the mountains. But now, fleeing at God’s rebuke, they retreat elsewhere. By the rebuke of God, and the voice of His thunder, is meant the awe-inspiring command of God, by which He restrains the violent raging of the sea.

Although at the beginning, by His word alone, He confined the sea within defined bounds and continues to keep it within them to this day, yet if we consider how tumultuously its billows cast up their foam when it is agitated, it is not without reason that the prophet speaks of it as kept in check by the powerful command of God.

This is just as, both in Jeremiah (Jeremiah 5:22) and in Job (Job 28:25), God, with much sublimity, extols His power as displayed in the ocean.

The ascending of the mountains and the descending of the valleys are poetical figures. These figures imply that unless God confined the deep within bounds, the distinction between mountains and valleys, which contributes to the beauty of the earth, would cease to exist, as the deep would engulf the whole earth.

It is said that God has founded a place for the valleys. This is because there would be no dry land at the foot of the mountains; instead, the deep would hold sway if God did not command the space there to be unoccupied by the sea, as if contrary to nature.

You have set a bound which they shall not pass. The miracle spoken of is amplified in this verse by its perpetuity. Natural philosophers are compelled to admit—and it is even one of their first principles—that water is circular and occupies the region intermediate between the earth and the air.

It is entirely due to the providence of God that part of the earth remains dry and fit for human habitation. This is a fact for which sailors have the most satisfactory evidence. Indeed, if even the most uncultured and dull-witted among us were only to open their eyes, they would see in the sea mountains of water elevated far above the level of the land.

Certainly, no banks, and not even iron gates, could make the waters—which by their very nature are fluid and unstable—stay together in one place, as we see them do.

I have just said that earthquakes, which bring destruction to some places, leave the globe, on the whole, as it was before. Likewise, although the sea in some parts of the world overflows its boundaries, the law that confines it within certain limits stands firm, so that the earth may be a fit habitation for humans.

The Baltic Sea, in our time, inundated large tracts of land and inflicted great damage on the Flemish people and other neighboring nations. Such an instance warns us what the consequence would be if the restraint imposed on the sea by God's hand were removed.

Why, then, have we not been swallowed up by it, if not because God has restrained that raging element by His word? In short, although the natural tendency of the waters is to cover the earth, this does not happen, because God has established by His word a counteracting law; and since His truth is eternal, this law must remain steadfast.