Book of Common Prayer

104 My soul, praise the Lord!
    Lord my God, you are very great!
You are clothed with glory and honor.
²     You wear light like a robe.
You spread out the skies like a curtain.
³     You built your home above them.^[a]
You use the thick clouds like a chariot
    and ride across the sky on the wings of the wind.
⁴ You make the winds your messengers
    and flames of fire your servants.^[b]
5 You built the earth on its foundations,
    so it can never be moved.
⁶ You covered it with water like a blanket.
    The water covered even the mountains.
⁷ But you gave the command, and the water turned back.
    You shouted at the water, and it rushed away.
⁸ The water flowed down from the mountains into the valleys,
    to the places you made for it.
⁹ You set the limits for the seas,
    and the water will never again rise to cover the earth.

¹⁰ Lord, you cause water to flow from springs into the streams
    that flow down between the mountains.
¹¹ The streams provide water for all the wild animals.
    Even the wild donkeys come there to drink.
¹² Wild birds come to live by the pools;
    they sing in the branches of nearby trees.
¹³ You send rain down on the mountains.
    The earth gets everything it needs from what you have made.
¹⁴ You make the grass grow to feed the animals.
    You provide plants for the crops we grow—
    the plants that give us food from the earth.
¹⁵ You give us the wine that makes us happy,
    the oil that makes our skin soft,^[c]
    and the food that makes us strong.

¹⁶ The great cedar trees of Lebanon belong to the Lord.
    He planted them and gives them the water they need.
¹⁷ That’s where the birds make their nests,
    and the storks live in the fir trees.
¹⁸ The high mountains are a home for wild goats.
    The large rocks are hiding places for rock badgers.

¹⁹ Lord, you made the moon to show us when the festivals begin.
    And the sun always knows when to set.
²⁰ You made darkness to be the night—
    the time when wild animals come out and roam around.
²¹ Lions roar as they attack,
    as if they are asking God for the food he gives them.
²² When the sun rises, they leave
    and go back to their dens to rest.
²³ Then people go out to do their work,
    and they work until evening.

²⁴ Lord, you created so many things!
    With your wisdom you made them all.
    The earth is full of the living things you made.
²⁵ Look at the ocean, so big and wide!
    It is filled with all kinds of sea life.
    There are creatures large and small—too many to count!
²⁶ Ships sail over the ocean,
    and playing there is Leviathan,^[d]
    the great sea creature you made.

²⁷ Lord, all living things depend on you.
    You give them food at the right time.
²⁸ You give it, and they eat it.
    They are filled with good food from your open hands.
²⁹ When you turn away from them,
    they become frightened.
When you take away their breath,^[e]
    they die, and their bodies return to the dust.
³⁰ But when you send out your life-giving breath,^[f]
    things come alive, and the world is like new again!

³¹ May the Lord’s glory continue forever!
    May the Lord enjoy what he made.
³² He just looks at the earth, and it trembles.
    He just touches the mountains, and smoke rises from them.

³³ I will sing to the Lord for the rest of my life.
    I will sing praises to my God as long as I live.
³⁴ May my words be pleasing to him.
    The Lord is the one who makes me happy.
³⁵ I wish sinners would disappear from the earth.
    I wish the wicked would be gone forever.

My soul, praise the Lord!
    Praise the Lord!