Go to Related Reading
About this book

Psalms

About this book
Psalm 148

1 Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord from the sky. Praise him in the heavens.⁠ 2 Praise him, all his angels. Praise him, all his heavenly assembly. 3 Praise him, O sun and moon. Praise him, all you shiny stars.⁠ 4 Praise him, O highest heaven and you waters above the sky.⁠ 5 Let them praise the name of the Lord, for he gave the command and they came into existence. 6 He established them so they would endure; he issued a decree that will not be revoked.⁠ 7 Praise the Lord from the earth, you sea creatures and all you ocean depths, 8 O fire and hail, snow and clouds, O stormy wind that carries out his orders,⁠ 9 you mountains and all you hills, you fruit trees and all you cedars, 10 you animals and all you cattle, you creeping things and birds, 11 you kings of the earth and all you nations, you princes and all you leaders on the earth, 12 you young men and young women, you elderly, along with you children. 13 Let them praise the name of the Lord, for his name alone is exalted; his majesty extends over the earth and sky. 14 He has made his people victorious and given all his loyal followers reason to praise—the Israelites, the people who are close to him. Praise the Lord!

Texts in conversation

Compare Genesis 1:7 and Psalm 148:4

Hebrew Bible

Share:

Summary

Genesis describes a solid dome that holds back the upper waters and shapes the world below, and Psalm 148 echoes this by similarly describing waters above the sky. Both follow ancient Near Eastern traditions about a firm barrier that encloses creation.

Passages

Genesis 1:7

Hebrew Bible
5 God called the light “day” and the darkness “night.” There was evening, and there was morning, marking the first day. 6 God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters and let it separate water from water.” 7 So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. It was so. 8 God called the expanse “sky.” There was evening, and there was morning, a second day. 9 God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place and let dry ground appear.” It was so.
750–400 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Genesis

Psalm 148:4

Hebrew Bible
2 Praise him, all his angels. Praise him, all his heavenly assembly. 3 Praise him, O sun and moon. Praise him, all you shiny stars. 4 Praise him, O highest heaven and you waters above the sky. 5 Let them praise the name of the Lord, for he gave the command and they came into existence. 6 He established them so they would endure; he issued a decree that will not be revoked.
600–201 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Psalms

References

"... The world in which the ancient Egyptian lived and moved came into being by the separation of the two (compare with Genesis 1:7: "God ... separated the waters" ... The fixity of the heavens creates a considerable impression. The stars contribute further to its impressive aspect (Psalm 8:1-3) ... the body of Nut is studded with stars; and Nut appears to have been drawn twice so that special heavens can be reserved, one for the sun and one for the moon. The psalms are also aware of a plural number of heavens (e.g., Psalm 148:4). The lower of the two ladies of heaven represents the heaven of the moon; the upper, as indicated by the two winged suns on her body, is the heaven of the sun ..."
Othmar Keel, The Symbolism of the Biblical World: Ancient Near Eastern Iconography and the Book of Psalms (Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 1997), 31–34.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

Tags

Your feedback

Genesis 1:7 and Psalm 148:4

Leave a comment

Your questions and comments are welcome!

Comments

Glossary

Search the Library