#686 What is Man

O Lord, our Lord,

how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory above the heavens.

2 Out of the mouth of babies and infants,

you have established strength because of your foes,

to still the enemy and the avenger.

3 When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,

the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,

4 what is man that you are mindful of him,

and the son of man that you care for him?

5 Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings

and crowned him with glory and honor.

6 You have given him dominion over the works of your hands;

you have put all things under his feet,

7 all sheep and oxen,

and also the beasts of the field,

8 the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea,

whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

9 O Lord, our Lord,

how majestic is your name in all the earth! Psalm 8 ESV

How majestic - I remember parts of this Psalm as it was sung in my childhood, and I try to think of this as a king here writing about something much grander than any position upon this earth. You are not just God of those who believe in You, not just the God of Israel, but even of all who do not acknowledge You. This is a king writing in submissive manner praise to the One Who is not only above the earth, but also the heavens, no creature, no matter, nothing comes into being without Him. He was before all things and through His Son all things were made. God's glory cannot be exhausted, words will not suffice.

Out of the mouth of babies and infants - God does often use the weak things to confound the wise. David's own life as a young man was a rebuke to two armies, those that said they were of the Lord, and those that mocked the God of Israel, Who is the God of all. David killed Goliath, making the Philistines tremble and many in Israel jealous. He was a whelp with a sling and some stones, not a trained warrior, but he desired the honor of God. 

The blind and the lame came to Him at the temple, and He healed them. 15 But the chief priests and scribes were indignant when they saw the wonders He did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” 16“Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked. “Yes,” Jesus answered, “have you never read: ‘From the mouths of children and infants You have ordained praise’?”…Matthew 21: 14-16

The lame have often silenced my whining, for how can I be so cross when the cripple is smiling at me? Suffer the little children to come unto me and forbid them not, for such is the kingdom of heaven. David is becoming that child here, recognizing the greater in God, and also seeing that strength which comes from the strangest of places, our weakness. 

Your heavens - The universe itself is unfathomable, and we may assign more numbers, attest to greater distances, in every age discover more, but we cannot be in all those places, nor make them. I shall never know all the intricate details of my own body, much less the billions of stars in the universe. Stop and consider the creation, pull your eyes away from your smart phone and turn over some rocks. How majestic, how marvelous is the Creator of all these things. 

Mindful of him - You, Who by Your word has made the universe and man, who is such a small thing in it, what is this speck to You? I know that You see me, but why do You care to? My very nature is fallen and unholy, so why do You persist to know me, to save me, when surely You could simply erase the memory of me? Does anyone notice the grain of sand that is missing from the beach they walk upon?   

Lower than the angels - Angels are more magnificent in power than humans, and they have greater access now than humans. 

For it was not to angels that God subjected the world to come, of which we are speaking. 6 It has been testified somewhere,

“What is man, that you are mindful of him,

or the son of man, that you care for him?

7 You made him for a little while lower than the angels;

you have crowned him with glory and honor,

8 putting everything in subjection under his feet.”

Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. 9 But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone. Hebrews 2: 5-9

Under his feet - Man has been given dominion over the earth and it's resources. We should manage these things to God's honor and glory, respecting first those made in His image and also the animals, plants, and other materials that He has placed under our care and usage. We should rule with neither greed nor laziness, but as stewards entrusted with this planet. Remember the Sabbath, that the earth belongs to the Creator, let the land and the people rest. Do not terrorize the animals, do not poison your water or the place where others drink. It is easy to destroy, but it takes a long time to rebuild, so use in sustainable fashion. There is much here that gives credit to the majesty of God.