The collection of Psalms contains a number of special songs of praise, called “songs of triumph.” These include Psalm 8. Often believers cry out to God with repentance and a request for help. But you also need to turn to Him with speeches of gratitude, expressing gratitude for every gift from above. The praise text of Psalm 8 does just that.
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Text of Psalm 8
During services in the church, prayers are said in Church Slavonic. This text is also used for personal appeal to the Lord, but for some it is difficult to understand. An alternative is Psalm 8 in Russian.
In Church Slavonic
In Russian
History of writing
The author of the prayer appeal is King David. His work is solemn and is the embodiment of admiration for divine powers. According to interpreters, the song was traditionally performed to the accompaniment of a Gathian musical instrument.
Psalm 8 was written after David's victory over Goliath; the king became a triumphant while still a boy. The fact that he managed to overcome a strong enemy, according to the author, is proof that he was under the protection of God.
In this work, David emphasized that everything created by the Almighty on earth was created for His glory. Children can also serve the Lord.
Brief interpretation
Briefly, the eighth Psalm of the Old Testament can be interpreted as follows:
- “How great you are, God! Your glory is both on earth and above heaven.”
- “Thou hast given thy praise from the mouths of sucklings and babes; even the smallest glorify Thee.”
- “When I look at You and Your glory, I cannot understand what a person means to You, that You come to him and remember him?”
- “Thou hast made man a little lesser than the angels, but thou hast given him honor and glory.”
- “He made him ruler over all the animals that walk on the earth, soar in the sky and swim in the waters.”
- “Glory to you, God!”
The Eighth Psalm of the Old Testament consists of 10 verses. Found on page 571 of the Bible. For a better understanding of the verses, it has parallel locations.
The meaning of Psalm 8
Verses 1 and 2: At the beginning of the song, David expresses his admiration for the Lord, emphasizing that nothing will be hidden from his eyes. It gives a person strength and vitality. His glory rises above the seas and mountain peaks.
Verses 3-4: God's glory comes to everyone who trusts in the One Creator, not just rulers, historians, scientists. His protection makes even a baby strong. The greatest and brightest mind is not capable of understanding the secret of God’s miraculous power, his greatness. David praises the Creator, thanks for his protection and good deeds.
Verses 5-9: The King draws a parallel between man and their Creator, talking about the grace that comes to people through humility. The prayer ends with the author expressing gratitude to the Lord and exalting Him.
Detailed interpretation
The Eighth Psalm of the Old Testament can be divided into 4 parts:
- Glorifying God through the mouth of David, King of Israel (verses 1-3)
- The celebrant is surprised that the great God remembers and knows man and visits him (verses 4 and 5)
- David says that God has made man ruler over all that he has created (verses 6-9)
- The king ends the Psalm by glorifying the Lord.
The division of the Psalm is done in order to break it into semantic parts and better understand what is stated.
Part 1 – “Your Glory Extends Above the Heavens”
Verse 1
David sings a Psalm to God on the instrument of Gath in the presence of the leader of his choir. The musical instrument of Geth was then used on the festival of harvesting and squeezing grapes. The word "gef" means "press" or "press". Many instruments of that time were used only for certain celebrations. But what David especially loved was the harp, on which he often sang to the Lord in his youth. In addition to the fact that the king had an excellent ear for music, he also knew how to play any musical instrument.
There are no parallel Bible verses.
Verse 2
David glorifies God by saying that His name has greatness. And the glory of God spreads throughout the whole earth. There is no people or tribe that has not heard about God. The glory of God is not only on earth, but also above the heavens. The Lord is immeasurable; He cannot be placed in any framework. Such is His glory, which cannot be placed in any specific place, because it has no physical outline at all, just like God himself. At the end of time everyone will see the glory of God, it will shine from all the ends of the earth. There will be no one left who will not see her.
There are no parallel verses from God's Word.
Verse 3
God himself arranged the praise from “the mouths of babes and sucklings.” This expression can be understood in different ways. First, even small children give glory to God. Secondly, babies in Christianity are often called people who have recently “known” God - reconciled with him through repentance, turned away from the sins they repented of, and live according to God’s commandments. When both praise God, the enemies and avengers fall silent - David sings.
And not surprisingly, what the devil hates most is glorifying God. As soon as someone begins to praise the Lord, he becomes silent and loses his power and influence on the person. Therefore, even if adults do not glorify God, he will arrange for himself to be praised through the lips of the little ones, those whose hearts are still pure and for whom it is easy and simple to sincerely give glory to God.
Parallel verse:
- Matthew 21:16 – The children cried out in the temple: “Hosanna to the son of David,” that is, Jesus, which confirms the words of the Psalm that babies and nursing children will glorify God. And now there are many children’s choirs and ensembles in the world praising God. They are formed under many Churches.
Part 2 – “What is man, that You remember him?”
Verse 4
David says that when he lifts his eyes to the sky, where there is the moon, the stars and everything that God has created, he is amazed at how strong and majestic He is. Sometimes, to realize that the Lord is omnipotent, it is enough to look around at what He has created. Many phenomena are still not studied and not understood by people, because they were created by One whose mind and imagination cannot accommodate even the greatest “minds” of our time. It is impossible to say with one hundred percent certainty what is in the universe and what its limits are. God is so incomprehensible and immeasurable. This is what David marvels at in his glorification.
People also sometimes need to raise their eyes to heaven and look at what they cannot fully comprehend, because the Creator of this is God. It is worth looking at everything that the Lord has created - this is how you come to the realization that people are not the rulers and masters of the earth, but only God.
There are no parallel verses of Scripture.
Verse 5
The psalmist, realizing all the greatness of the Lord, is also surprised that God remembers man and visits Him. Visits - comes when he calls on Him, answers prayers, supports, helps and guides, interacts with a person. How great is God and how small is his creation - humanity. However, each of the many people is important to the Lord.
He sees a person's thoughts and knows his feelings and experiences. Both sad and joyful events in life cannot be hidden from him. God is near, despite His greatness and glory, which, as David sang, is above heaven. It seems strange to the king that the great and omnipotent God descends to a simple and weak person, listens to his prayers and helps him go through life. But that's exactly what happens. God cares what happens in the life of each of his children.
Parallel verses:
- Job 7:17-18 – Job asks God what man means to Him. After all, the Lord values people, pays His attention to them, visits them every morning and tests them every moment. Testing in this case means that God watches every day what decisions a person makes and what guides him in making them - evil or good intentions.
- Psalm 143:3 – The words of this verse are almost identical to the main one – David again asks the Creator what man means to him, since God pays attention to him every moment.
- Hebrews 2:6 – In the book of Hebrews, God is again asked what is so special about a person that the Master himself visits him and turns His attention to him.
The answer to these questions, of course, is God's love. He loves those he created, so he is always there to forgive, help and support.
Part 3 – “I put everything under his feet”
Verse 6
David says that God did not make man much less than the angels. “Belittled” - understated. But how is man inferior to the angels? By your mortality. Angels are God's countless creatures, but man is not eternal. Only in this respect are people inferior to these unusual creatures. But David goes on to say that God crowned people with honor and glory. What angels don't have. Man is a child of God, and an angel is only His creation. Everyone is valuable to the Creator. But man occupies a more honorable place in his heart than angels.
Therefore, the consciousness of every believer should come to the understanding that he is in some way higher than even the angels, more valuable to God, more important. But this should not become a reason for pride - angels live next to God, and every day a person has to fight temptations and trials that cannot be overcome without God's help and support. But the fact that a person is more important than an angel is obvious.
There are no parallel Bible verses.
Verse 7
David goes on to say what God has done for man: He has given him dominion over all that He has made, and has put it all under his feet. That is, man is endowed with the power to manage everything that is created by God.
Parallel verses:
- 1 Corinthians 15:27 – The book of Corinthians says that God put everything under the feet of his son Jesus Christ, except himself, because he is his Father.
- Eph 1:22 – In the Epistle to the Ephesians, the Holy Apostle Paul says that God has made Jesus the head of the Church and above everything that is on earth.
- Hebrews 2:8 – The book of Hebrews makes it clear that nothing was left unsubdued by Jesus. But it is not yet clear that everything is truly subject to Him. This will happen at the second coming of Jesus Christ. Then the devil will be completely defeated.
Verse 8
There is a description of the fact that God subjugated sheep, oxen, and wild animals to man. It is implied that people have power over animals, they raise them, eat them, sell them, and do with them as they wish. Because God gave them such power. However, these powers are not always used by people for the benefit of animals. This happens to everyone who is seduced by power and new opportunities. Therefore, the legislation has an article punishing people for cruelty to animals.
When God gave man such power, He certainly did not give it to men so that they would use the power to do evil. To rule means not to exterminate or conduct experiments without scientific need. To rule is to rule with wisdom and awareness of one's responsibility. This is exactly what the Lord predetermined for man when he endowed him with power over all earthly creatures. Not to use it thoughtlessly, but to lead wisely and keep everything under control.
There are no parallel verses from God's Word.
Verse 9
What else has God subjugated to man and what else has he allowed him to rule over: over the birds of the air, the fish of the sea, over everyone who lives in the seas, rivers, lakes and oceans. All animals on the planet are subject to control. Using this power, people often rescue animals during forest fires, take them away from dry areas, and protect those whose individuals are listed in the Red Book, because there are very few of them left. This attitude towards animals is undoubtedly in accordance with the will of God. Exactly. This is the attitude He expected from humanity in relation to the animal world.
But this does not mean that humanity should not eat them. Jesus himself ate fish more than once with his disciples and all those who came to listen to him. However, in this matter, a person must be guided by the law of his country - do not fish when it is prohibited, do not hunt where it is prohibited.
There are no parallel Bible verses.
Part 4 – “How majestic is your name”
Verse 10
David ends the Psalm by praising the Lord. He concludes with the words that the name of God is majestic, and He is known throughout the entire earth. The king never spared words for God that glorified Him. It was a joy for the man to sing of God's works, His mercy, generosity and kindness. This is how he felt and lived this way.
There are no parallel verses from the Word of God.
