WHAT IS MAN?

Psalm 8
Praising someone or something involves reciting their attributes and characteristics. This psalm
of praise talks about God. It doesn’t tell us to do anything. It doesn’t even really have a
concluding thought. It simply rehearses God’s greatness.
As it talks about God, it first brings up what we all know: God is awesome and immense. His
power makes ours insignificant. The following point colors that greatness: God is also intimately
connected to us and he is always good.
THE TRANSCENDENCE OF G OD (VV . 1–2).
The idea of transcendence is similar to God’s holiness: he is completely different than us. But
not only is he different, he is far above us. The picture David paints is camping under a perfectly
clear night sky. You can see from horizon to horizon. Some stars are brilliant in their sharp
points of light, while others give off a pool of light from their collected brightness. You can’t
help but feel very, very small. You are just a speck in an enormous universe.
Yet over all that grandeur sits the almighty God. How majestic is his name in all the earth!
Nothing on earth can describe it. Nothing in the universe can top it. God’s glory—his name—is
above and beyond the entire universe (v. 1).
God’s enemies can’t stop him or thwart his plans (v. 2). He uses even “babies and infants” to
show his greatness. God has a long and storied history of using weak and insignificant people
and nations to accomplish his sovereign will.
THE IMMANENCE AND G OODNESS OF G OD ( VV. 3–9).
A transcendent, all-powerful deity is something to be feared. If that sovereign is capricious, if he
is vindictive, or even if he is careless, we insignificant humans are doomed. David points out
however, that not only is God great, he is also good.
As we look at the expanse of the night sky, we feel a sense of our smallness and God’s
greatness (v. 3). We inevitably begin to wonder, “Why does God care for me when I have
nothing to offer him?” (v. 4). As we begin to catalog God’s gracious gifts to mankind, we realize
that this almighty God is not only all-powerful and immense, he is also personal and kind.
God has set humankind in a privileged place in his creation: the pinnacle and crown jewel of his
universe (v. 5). Man is not an advanced animal; he is a special creation made in God’s own
image. As such, he has dominion over the rest of God’s creation—it was made for his use and
enjoyment. The animals belong to man, to aid him in his work, to feed him as his food, and to
demonstrate the glory of the Creator. God has placed the entire created order “under man’s
feet” (vv. 6–8).
What a great God! What a powerful God! What a gracious God! What a thoughtful God! “How
majestic is your name in all the earth!”