Down to Earth But Heavenly Minded

What does Psalms Chapter 8 mean?

Psalm 8 is cited early in Hebrews (Hebrews 2:5–9) to defend the idea that God would send a human Savior. This passage praises God for His amazing power and creation, while marveling at the idea that such a being would give any further thought to something as frail and limited as man.

The Psalmist, David, notes the incredible power God displays in nature. This echoes comments from Psalm 19:1 and even Romans 1:18–20. God’s influence on the natural world is obvious, and it should lead people to recognize Him. Here in Psalm 8, a comparison is made between the scope of God’s vast creation and the nature of humanity. The same God who made massive stars, an immense cosmos, and innumerable planets also made us. It’s this contrast which amazes David, who is awed to think that God would care about insignificant people when He has also made such mighty things.

David is also amazed at the fact that God would grant such limited beings such an important role. These frail, limited beings are the ones God has chosen to superintend His creations (Genesis 1:28). Paul echoes a similar thought when explaining how God chose fragile human beings to carry the immense power of His gospel (2 Corinthians 4:7).

The awe this contrast inspires leads David to proclaim that God’s name is truly “majestic,” using a Hebrew term that means “excellent, exalted, or great.”

Chapter Context
This psalm is closely related to Genesis 1, which relates the account of God’s creation of the heavens and the earth as well as every living thing. God’s final creation, according to Genesis 1, was Adam and Eve, the first human beings, whom He created in His own image and placed in authority ”over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth” (Genesis 1:28). Psalm 144:3 repeats Psalm 8:4, and Hebrews 2:5–9 applies Psalm 8:4–6 to Jesus. First Corinthians 15:45–47 names Adam as the first man, a man of dust, and refers to Jesus as the last Adam, a man from heaven.

Verse by Verse

Verse 1. O Lord, our Lord,how majestic is your name in all the earth!You have set your glory above the heavens.

As David looks on nature, he exclaims that the Lord’s name is majestic in all the earth. David addresses God using the Hebrew term YHWH, also known as the tetragrammaton. This is the biblical name of the One True God, the God of Israel. Here, David indicates God is the God of all mankind by virtue of creation. Because this psalm is a hymn addressed to the choirmaster, the ascription, “our Lord,” is appropriate for the entire congregation.

The word, “majestic” is from the Hebrew ad’dir, which may be translated. “wonderful,” “great,” or “exalted.” As David viewed God’s creation, he was impressed with how wonderful or great or exalted God is. Nature worshipers are wrong to exalt the creation instead of the Creator (Romans 1:22–23).

The beauty, orderliness, and infinite variety we find in nature should lead us to bow low before our God and ascribe praise to Him. The apostle Paul indicates in Romans 1:19–20 that the creation offers a revelation of God so that those who fail to believe in God are without excuse. Psalm 19:1–6 also credits the creation with a similar revelation of God. When we observe the stars and planets, we gain a deeper appreciation of God’s glory.

Context Summary
Psalm 8:1–2 points the readers to Genesis 1, which reports God’s creative work. He created everything and saw that it was good. Related Scriptures include Psalm 19:1–6, Psalm 139, Matthew 21:14–16, John 1:1–5, and Romans 1:18–20. Psalm 7 includes the ascription, ”O LORD my God” (Psalm 7:1, 3), whereas Psalm 8:1 and 9 uses the ascription, ”O LORD our Lord.” Psalm 8 addresses God as the God of all creation, whereas Psalm 7 addresses Him as David’s personal God.

Verse 2. Out of the mouth of babies and infants,you have established strength because of your foes,to still the enemy and the avenger.

God is so strong and great that He can derive praise even from infants and children. Jesus referred to this verse after He cleansed the temple (Matthew 21:16). The cries of babies—here more generally meaning children—and those still being weaned can bring down the enemy. Perhaps David had in mind the cry of baby Moses, when Pharaoh’s daughter retrieved him from the reeds of the Nile. Exodus 2:6 tells us that when she opened the basket, “she saw the child, and behold, the baby was crying.” It was this same child who grew to manhood and was used of God to stand before Pharaoh, the Hebrew’s enemy, and command him to let the Hebrews go from Egypt and their slavery there.

God often chooses “what is weak in the world to shame the strong” (1 Corinthians 1:27). Paul echoes some of the same themes in his second letter to the Corinthians. There, he explains how God places His powerful gospel in fragile, limited vessels, for His own glory (2 Corinthians 4:7).

Verse 3. When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,

It takes many millions of dollars to send astronauts into space and to place satellites into orbit around planets to photograph those distant marvels. However, scientists have only scratched the surface of outer space. Millions of stars, planets, and galaxies lie beyond man’s present reach. However, as David noted in this verse, God created all the heavens as the work of His fingers, and He has put into orbit the moon and the stars.

When Abraham was alive, the Lord instructed Abraham to look at the heavens and number the stars, “if you are able to number them” (Genesis 15:5). He promised to give Abraham descendants as numerous as the stars. Our appreciation of God’s majesty, wisdom, and power grows deeper if we take time during a clear, starry night to look up and scan the heavens. Pagans may worship the sun, moon, and stars, but their focus is poorly placed. It should be on the One who created all these heavenly bodies to give us further evidence that we ought to worship Him.

Context Summary
Psalm 8:3–9 parallels Genesis 2:8–15 in which God had provided abundantly for mankind and had given them dominion over all living creatures on the earth. Hebrews 2:5–9 applies this part of Psalm 8 to Jesus. He became a real human being on our behalf, and after His death for our sins, He arose from the dead and ascended to the right hand of God. Someday, He will sit upon the throne of David and hold dominion over the whole earth. What Adam lost by sinning, Jesus has restored by suffering (1 Corinthians 15:20–28).

Verse 4. what is man that you are mindful of him,and the son of man that you care for him?

When David scanned the night sky, he felt insignificant and wondered why such a magnificent Creator would care about man. The Hebrew for “man” in this verse is actually the term enos, subtly different from the term ā’dām typically used to refer to mankind. Enos signifies the individual person, while “the son of man” refers to people in general. The emphasis here is on the individual human as a “weak, mortal man.”

God has shown His care of humans in several ways. He created our first parents only after He had created a world that was ready for them. The sun, moon, and stars provided light for them, the plants were a food source, the climate was ideal for sustaining life, and Adam and Eve enjoyed their life together on a paradise. In addition to providing a suitable environment for humans, God showed His love and care by giving His Son as our Redeemer. John 3:16 emphasizes the extent of God’s love for us by giving His only begotten Son so we would receive everlasting life by believing on Him.

Also, God shows His care of us by providing our daily needs and by inviting us to talk to Him about all our concerns (Matthew 6:33; Hebrews 4:14–16).

Verse 5. Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beingsand crowned him with glory and honor.

In this verse David reflects on God’s creation of man. He views man as having been created a little lower than the heavenly beings, the angels. Hebrews 2:9 applies Psalm 8:5 to Jesus. Although He created the heavenly beings, Jesus chose to become a man in order to die in the place of sinful man. None of the angels could serve as our substitute and die in our place. Angels do not experience humanity, but Jesus did. Angels are not human, but Jesus lived as a man. Only by becoming human could He serve as a sacrifice for humanity (Hebrews 2:11).

By willingly terminating His life on the cross Jesus paid the penalty for the sins of all who put their faith in Him, past, present, and future. On the cross, Jesus cried out, “It is finished” (John 19:30). The Greek for this expression is tetelestai, meaning, “it stands finished,” or “it is paid.” Jesus’ substitutionary death was sufficient payment for all time for the sins of humanity. Our salvation could not be purchased for anything less than Jesus’ blood, and nothing more than His blood is required (1 Peter 1:18–19).

Verse 6. You have given him dominion over the works of your hands;you have put all things under his feet,

When God created Adam and Eve, He crowned them to be co–regents with him over creation (Genesis 1:26–27). He told them to “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth” (Genesis 1:28). However, Adam and Eve failed to carry out this assignment. They yielded to temptation and sinned against the Creator (Genesis 3:6–7).

It remains for the last Adam, the Lord Jesus Christ, to bring the earth under His control (1 Corinthians 15:45–47). He will do this upon His return to earth. Isaiah 9:6–7 prophesies about Jesus’ reign on earth by stating: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder…Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and to uphold it.” First Corinthians 15:27 states, “For ‘God has put all things in subjection under his [Jesus’] feet.’”

Verse 7. all sheep and oxen,and also the beasts of the field,

David mentions animals over which mankind has received dominion. First, he mentions two kinds of farm animals that were common in Israel’s agricultural economy: sheep and oxen.

As a shepherd, David was familiar with sheep. He exercised dominion over them by leading them. Shepherds did not drive their sheep from behind, they led them. Jesus, the Good Shepherd (John 10:11), declared that His sheep—believers—hear His voice and follow him (John 10:27). In Bible times, oxen were used for two purposes: service and sacrifice. Whether yoked for plowing or offered as sacrifices, man had dominion over them.

David also mentions “the beasts of the field” in Psalm 8:7. Generally, undomesticated animals fear human beings (Genesis 9:2). They run from us when we approach them; but they still maintain a wildness. When Jesus rules the planet, He will remove this wildness so that the beasts of the field will be tame. Isaiah 11:6–7 predicts: “The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together…The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.”

Verse 8. the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea,whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

God also placed Adam and Eve in authority over the birds and fish (Genesis 1:28). Of course, human beings still exercise limited control over the birds and fish. We catch fish, and we house birds as pets or train them to perform feats, but sharks and stingrays have been known to maim and kill human beings, and millions of birds fly freely in the sky.

However, during His earthly ministry, Jesus offered a preview of the dominion He will someday exercise over the birds and fish. He told Peter, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day, until you deny three times that you know me” (Luke 22:34). Luke 5:1–7 relates how Jesus encountered fishermen cleaning their nets after trying all night to catch fish. After borrowing Peter’s boat to teach the crowd from, Jesus directed Peter to drop his nets once again for a catch. Peter told Jesus they had worked all night and caught nothing, but that he would do as Jesus asked. When Peter obeyed, so many fish swam into the nets that the nets were breaking. Following His resurrection, Jesus repeated this miracle (John 21:4–6).

Animals respond to the will of their Creator. It seems only sinful man is inclined to disobey Jesus, but that situation, too, will be changed when every knee shall bow and “every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10–11).

Verse 9. O Lord, our Lord,how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Psalm 8 ends as it begins. David addresses the LORD, our Lord, and exclaims, “How majestic is your name in all the earth!” Like us, David’s view was that of nature under a curse imposed on it because sin had entered the world. God told Adam: “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you” (Genesis 3:17).

We can only wonder how beautiful nature was before the curse. Someday, when Jesus returns to rule the earth, He will roll back the curse, and once again it will resemble God’s creation before sin entered the world. Romans 8:19–21 says, “For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.” Isaiah describes the earth under Jesus’ kingdom rule as so stunning that the desert will blossom abundantly (Isaiah 35:1–2).

End of Psalm 8.

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