Psalm 8

God’s Glory, Man’s Dignity

For the choir director: on the Gittith.(A) A Davidic psalm.

Yahweh, our Lord,
how magnificent is Your name throughout the earth!(B)

You have covered the heavens with Your majesty.[a](C)
Because of Your adversaries,
You have established a stronghold[b]
from the mouths of children and nursing infants(D)
to silence the enemy and the avenger.

When I observe Your heavens,
the work of Your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which You set in place,(E)
what is man that You remember him,
the son of man that You look after him?(F)
You made him little less than God[c][d]
and crowned him with glory and honor.
You made him lord over the works of Your hands;
You put everything under his feet:[e](G)
all the sheep and oxen,
as well as the animals in the wild,
the birds of the sky,
and the fish of the sea
that pass through the currents of the seas.(H)

Yahweh, our Lord,
how magnificent is Your name throughout the earth!

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 8:1 Lit earth, which has set Your splendor upon the heavens
  2. Psalm 8:2 LXX reads established praise
  3. Psalm 8:5 LXX reads angels
  4. Psalm 8:5 Or gods, or a god, or heavenly beings; lit Elohim
  5. Psalm 8:6 Or authority

Yahweh’s Glory in Creation

For the music director, on the Gittith.[a] A psalm of David.[b]

Yahweh, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth,
who put your splendor above the heavens.
From the mouth of children and infants you have founded[c] strength
on account of your enemies,
to silence the enemy and the avenger.
When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars which you set in place—
what is a human being that you think of him?
and a child of humankind that you care for him?
And you made him a little lower than heavenly beings,[d]
and with glory and with majesty you crowned him.
You make him over the works of your hands;
all things you have placed under his feet:
sheep and cattle, all of them,
and also the wild animals of the field,
the birds of the sky and the fish of the sea,
everything that passes along the paths of seas.
Yahweh, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all of the earth!

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 8:1 Meaning uncertain
  2. Psalm 8:1 The Hebrew Bible counts the superscription as the first verse of the psalm; the English verse number is reduced by one
  3. Psalm 8:2 Or “ordained”
  4. Psalm 8:5 Or “than God”