God is to be praised for his mighty works, and wonderful providence.

¹ To David himself. Bless the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God, you are exceedingly great. You have clothed yourself with confession and beauty;

² you are dressed with light like a garment, while you stretch out heaven like a tent.

³ You cover its heights with water. You set the clouds as your stairs. You walk upon the wings of the winds.

⁴ You make your Angels a breath of life, and your ministers a burning fire.

⁵ You founded the earth upon its stable base. It will not be bent from age to age.

⁶ The abyss, like a garment, is its clothing. The waters will remain standing above the mountains.

⁷ At your rebuke, they will flee. At the voice of your thunder, they will dread.

⁸ The mountains ascend, and the plains descend, to the place which you have founded for them.

⁹ You have set a limit that they will not cross. And they will not return to cover the earth.

¹⁰ You spring forth fountains in steep valleys. The waters will cross through the midst of the mountains.

¹¹ All the wild beasts of the field will drink. The wild donkeys will anticipate in their thirst.

¹² Above them, the flying things of the air will dwell. From the midst of the rocks, they will utter voices.

¹³ You irrigate the mountains from your heights. The earth will be satiated from the fruit of your works,

¹⁴ producing grass for cattle and herbs for the service of men. So may you draw bread from the earth,

¹⁵ and wine, in order to cheer the heart of man. Then he may gladden his face with oil, and bread will confirm the heart of man.

¹⁶ The trees of the field will be saturated, along with the cedars of Lebanon, which he planted.

¹⁷ There, the sparrows will make their nests. The leader of them is the house of the heron.¹

1. 103:17Notice that in Latin, ‘heron’ is ‘Herod,’ making this verse a spiritual reference to Herod the great, and to other evil leaders who follow in his footsteps.(Conte)

¹⁸ The heights of the hills are for the deer; the rock is a refuge for the hedgehog.

¹⁹ He has made the moon for seasons; the sun knows its setting.

²⁰ You appointed darkness, and it has become night; all the beasts of the forest will cross through it.

²¹ The young lions will roar, while searching for and seizing their meal from God.

²² The sun arose, and they were gathered together; and in their dens, they will lie down together.

²³ Man will go forth to his work and to his activities, until the evening.

²⁴ How great are your works, O Lord! You have made all things in wisdom. The earth has been filled with your possessions.

²⁵ This sea is great and its hands are spacious. There are creeping things without number: the small animals with the great.¹

1. 103:25Or, ‘animals great and small.’(Conte)

²⁶ There, the ships will pass by this sea-serpent that you have formed to mock them.

²⁷ All these expect you to give them food in due time.

²⁸ What you give to them, they will gather. When you open your hand, they will all be filled with goodness.

²⁹ But if you turn your face away, they will be disturbed. You will take away their breath, and they will fail, and they will return to their dust.

³⁰ You will send forth your Spirit, and they will be created. And you will renew the face of the earth.

³¹ May the glory of the Lord be for all ages. The Lord will rejoice in his works.

³² He considers the earth, and he makes it tremble. He touches the mountains, and they smoke.

³³ I will sing to the Lord with my life. I will sing psalms to my God, as long as I am.¹

1. 103:33A holy life is a pure and pleasing song to the Lord. I will sing to the Lord with my life.(Conte)

³⁴ May my speech be pleasing to him. Truly, I will take delight in the Lord.

³⁵ Let sinners fade away from the earth, along with the unjust, so that they may not be. Bless the Lord, O my soul.