A Commentary on the Book of Psalms: Psalm 103 — God Is to Be Praised for His Mighty Works; and Wonderful Providence
They did come back, to be sure, at the time of the deluge, but that was by God’s orders and permission. The bounds that God put to the waters was the sand, as we read in Job 39 and Jer. 5, “The sands of the shore,” which he did when he created the elements, for the water being heavier than the air, always descends to the lower parts, leaving the higher to the air.
10–12 In the third place, the prophet now comes to consider God’s wonderful wisdom in the formation of fountains and rivers. If the waters, when they receded from the earth, had left it dry entirely, the animals thereon could have died of thirst; and, therefore, God, in his wisdom, formed fountains of sweet water, from which the rivers flow in all directions, to supply all animals with drink. These fountains generally have their source in the mountains, and the streams from them run down to the valleys; and thus, the meaning of the words, “Thou sendest forth springs in the vales,” seems to be, you who made the streams from the springs in the mountains to run down into the valleys, and the rivulets to pass between the mountains. “All the beasts of the field shall drink,” especially “the wild asses,” who inhabit the mountains, and, being naturally thirsty, long very much for water. And these fountains will be available not only to the four footed animals, but even the birds of the air will build their nests near them, so as to be able to have recourse to them, and, from the midst of the rocks in which they have their nests, “shall give forth their voices,” chanting, in their own way, the praises of the Lord.
13–15 In the fourth place, the prophet proposes for consideration, and sings of another admirable gift of God’s providence. When he saw that many elevated places in the hills and mountains could not be reached by the fountains and the rivers, and that they would be even unavailable to many of the fields, he thought of rain, which, coming from the clouds, as if from so many fountains, might irrigate any land, however elevated; and that the land so enriched may produce grass and grain to support all those living on it. “Thou waterest the hills from thy upper rooms;” that is to say, God it is who waters or irrigates the hills, that cannot be reached by the rivers; “from his upper rooms;” from the clouds. “The earth shall be filled with the fruits of thy works.” The dry and thirsty earth shall be satiated with the water you express from the clouds. “Bringing forth grass for cattle, and herb for the service of men.” By that providence of God, you bring forth food for man and beast. “That thou mayest bring bread out of the earth;” bread being taken for the food of man in general; “and that wine may cheer the heart of man,” intelligible enough. “That he may make the face cheerful with oil;” for the Jews were much pleased with oil at their repasts; “and that bread may strengthen man’s heart;” may support and keep up nature. We have a few remarks to make here. First, that God is the source of all good things that appertain to the support and the enjoyment of corporal life; for, however man may labor in digging up the ground, putting the seed into it, planting trees, and fixing and pruning vines, if God will not make his sun shine on them, and his rain fall on them, cause them to fructify, and give man strength to labor on them, all will be of no avail. And, as God can do everything of himself, without the intervention of secondary causes, as he did in the beginning of the world; while the secondary causes, without God, can do nothing; with the greatest truth does the Apostle say, “Neither he that planteth is anything, nor he that watereth; but God who giveth the increase;” and in Acts 14, “Nevertheless, he left not himself without testimony, doing good from heaven, giving rains, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness;” and again, Acts 17, “Seeing it is he who giveth to all life and breath, and all things; for in him we live, and we move, and we are.”
Most truly also does the Psalmist sing in this passage, that it is God who brings forth grass for the cattle; bread, wine, and oil for mankind. Hence appears the incredible ingratitude of many, who, while they are in the receipt of so many favors from God, never raise their thoughts to heaven to thank their most loving Father, by whom they are so paternally and fondly supported. Secondly, it is to be remarked, that, in the spirit of a truly fond and loving Father, he has given us, not only the necessaries of life, represented by bread and water, but even the luxuries of life, in order to savor the necessaries, and make them more agreeable to us; for he gave us wine to gladden our hearts, according to Proverbs 31, “Give wine to them that are grieved in mind,” and oils which serves to beautify the face, and also to season our food, for when mixed with herbs or vegetables, it makes them much more palatable, and thus tends to make the face cheerful. Hence the monks of old, when they would be hospitable to a stranger, always served up the herbs or vegetables with oil. Thirdly, we should remark that man ought to be content with frugal meals, and moderate drink, such moderation is a gift from God, while expensive delicacies and the various condiments of luxury, and, of course, much more so excess and drunkenness, are from the devil.
16–18 In the fifth place, the prophet turns to the consideration of the divine providence, in his producing and nourishing, without any human aid, trees of enormous size, such as the cedars of Lebanon, that serve as a dwelling and a refuge for certain birds, as the mountains do for the stags, and the rocks for the irchins. “The trees of the fields shall be filled.” The rain that falls will supply sufficient moisture to nourish those great cedar trees, which God “himself hath planted,” because the seed of them was not set by man, for they grew spontaneously. “There the sparrows shall make their nests;” the sparrow is a term for all small birds that nestle there. “The highest of them is the house of the heron.” The heron, being the largest of the birds that nestle therein, inhabits the highest branches. “The high hills are a refuge for the harts;” as these tall trees protect the heron and the sparrow, so the high hills shelter the deer, and the rocks protect the irchins (a species of hedge hog), into whose crevices they run for shelter.
19–23 In the sixth place, the prophet praises and reviews God’s providence, in his division of time for labor, both of man and beast; for he gave the night to the beasts to go in quest of their prey, and the day to man to labor for his food. “He made the moon for seasons; the sun knoweth his going down.” The Lord God made the moon for the use of man and beasts to give them light at certain seasons in the night. “The sun knoweth his going down;” when he ought to set and give way to the night. “Thou hast appointed darkness and it is night; in it shall the beasts of the wood go about;” from such alternation of moon and sunshine you have caused darkness to ensue on the setting of the sun, to enable the wild beasts to emerge from their hiding places, and go abroad in quest of food and especially “the young lions roaring after their prey,” through hunger, and thus “seeking their meat from God,” seeking it in the way ordained by divine providence. “The sun ariseth, and they have gathered together, and they shall lie down in their dens.” The same divine providence causes those wild beasts who roamed about so ferociously during the nights to return to their dens towards morning, and lie down in quiet there. “Man shall go forth to his work and to his labor till the evening.” The wild beasts having retired to their lairs, man arises and goes out in safety to his labor. Here we are reminded that the beasts who have got no hand, and are not endowed with reason, are prompted by nature to live on the plunder acquired in the night; but that such plunder is positively prohibited to mankind, that has got hands wherewith to labor, and reason to guide and direct that labor; and, therefore, that all thieves, robbers, or those who are engaged in deception, lying, fraud, or other such sinful practices, disturb, as far as in them lies, the order of divine providence; and to them may properly be applied that verse of the Psalm, “Man when he was in honor did not understand: he hath been compared to senseless beasts, and made like to them.”