"O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens."
Psalm 8:1
Part 1 – verse 1.
Today: The Lord’s Majesty (8:1).
What a glorious Psalm this one is! We do not know for sure when David wrote this song, Psalm 8. Still, it is evident from the magnificent words of these short 9 verses that David had spent many a night under the stars. David took time in God’s beautiful creation and considering his Creator and what He has done. Over the next few days, we will look at this Psalm and try to understand more about the power and majesty of our God.
I appreciate the simplicity of the outline used by the authors of the Bible Knowledge Commentary for this Psalm. I will borrow their words to hang my thoughts on.
A. The Lord’s majesty (8:1).
B. The Lord’s strength (8:2).
C. The Lord’s creation (8:3-8).
D. The Lord’s majesty (8:9).
“O LORD our Lord.”
No, David did not make a mistake when he wrote this. Yes, he did intend to use two names for God. The first name LORD that David wrote is the Hebrew covenant name, Jehovah. The Hebrew words that make up this name mean “to exist, to be.” Jehovah is the name that points to God’s eternal existence. He is self-existent and independent of anyone or anything. He needs nothing from man, and men can neither detract from his glory nor add to it. And Jehovah is the God of revelation, for He discloses to us who He is in His Word. And He is the God of redemption for man. He is the great “I AM” who never changes.
And to Jehovah, David adds the Hebrew name Adonai. In Hebrew, the name means “Master, Owner.” Indeed, He is “the Lord” or “the Master.” This word points to man’s relationship with God as being our Master and Provider. He is our Authority.
David’s words are rich with meaning, “O LORD, our Lord.” “O Jehovah, our Adonai.” “O Eternal Self-Existent One, our Master, Provider, and Authority….”
Jehovah is God’s personal name to His people. And Lord, showing Jehovah’s position to His people, He is the Lord.[1]
“It was a simple, straightforward, and common way to say that ‘Our God is our Master’”[2] (Guzik).
“The dual name suggests that God is both Father and Son, and the occasion for praise is that God has come to earth as Son of Man as well as Son of God”[3] (Morris).
We will see both the Son of Man and the Son of God later in the Psalm as we survey its beauty.
“How excellent is thy name in all the earth!”
What a great thought; Jehovah-Adonai is not just Israel’s personal God alone. He is the God of this entire planet, where His excellent name is known.
“Excellent”
Yes, the Lord’s name is excellent! The ancient word speaks to being “great” and “majestic.” It talks about the “great one, majestic one”[4] (BDB). “O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is thy name in all the earth.”
“Who hast set thy glory above the heavens.”
Jehovah-Adonai is the Creator of the earth and the heavens. But His glory is exalted far above the heavens and the world.
“Blessed be the name of the LORD from this time forth and forevermore. From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the LORD’S name is to be praised. The LORD is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens. Who is like unto the LORD our God, who dwelleth on high” (Psalm 113:2-5)?
“The name, that is, the revealed character of God, is exalted above all Creation. The word majestic suggests splendor and magnificence. It is a fitting note of praise for the Lord of Creation”[5] (BKC).
“The Book of Psalms, as we have noted before, is primarily a book of praise, and these praises often center upon the vast expanses of the heavens and upon the One who could create such an infinite, intricate cosmos. And, of course, no matter how great may be the universe, the glory of God is far above the glory of the heavens. The Cause must be greater than the Effect!”[6] (Morris).
Come back tomorrow as we see how strong our God, the great Creator is.
Quote: “The task of all Christian scholarship—not just biblical studies—is to study reality as a manifestation of God’s glory, to speak and write about it with accuracy, and to savor the beauty of God in it, and to make it serve the good of man. It is an abdication of scholarship when Christians do academic work with little reference to God. If all the universe and everything in it exists by the design of an infinite, personal God, to make his manifold glory known and loved, then to treat any subject without reference to God’s glory is not scholarship but insurrection”[7] (John Piper).
[1] “O Jehovah our Prop, our Stay, or Support. …Adonai is frequently used: sometimes, indeed often, for the word … Yehovah itself. The root …dan signifies to direct, rule, judge, support. So, Adonai is the Director, Ruler, Judge, Supporter of men. It is well joined with Jehovah; this is showing what God is in himself; that, what God is to man; and may here very properly refer to our Lord Jesus” (Clarke). Adam Clarke’s Commentary on the Bible, the electronic version in eSword. Psalm 8:1.
[2] The Enduring Word Commentary, the electronic version in eSword. Psalm 8:1.
[3] This is from Henry Morris’ Sampling the Psalms… Institute for Creation Research. I.C.R., 2716 Madison Avenue, San Diego, California, 92116, p. 25. September 1, 2021.
[4] Brown, Driver, Briggs. Brown-Driver-Briggs’ Hebrew Definitions, the electronic version in eSword.
[5] Ross, A. P. (1985). Psalms. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 797). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[6] Morris, ibid, p. 25.
[7] Piper’s quote Downloaded: September 1, 2021. From: https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/glory-of-god. This quote is from Piper’s book, Think: The Life of the Mind and the Love of God. Crossway.