Devotional Portion: Psalms 8:6-9
You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet, All sheep and oxen— Even the beasts of the field, The birds of the air, And the fish of the sea That pass through the paths of the seas. O Lord, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth!
You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands;
David is explaining the authority of mankind over the created things on the earth. When God created human beings, He blessed them, (Genesis 1:26-28), have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” Also, God commanded a fear of men over the other created things too. Genesis 2:9, “And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be on every beast of the earth, on every bird of the air, on all that move [on] the earth, and on all the fish of the sea. They are given into your hand”
The authority of mankind has a responsibility too- to use the resources wisely and to glorify God for the same. The expanse of the dominion of mankind is quoted in the next fragment of the verse,
“You have put all things under his feet, All sheep and oxen— Even the beasts of the field, The birds of the air, And the fish of the sea That pass through the paths of the seas.” Apostle Paul adds another dimension to this dominion in 1 Corinthians 15:27, “For “He has put all things under His feet.”* But when He says “all things are put under [Him],” [it is] evident that He who put all things under Him is excepted.
God created us to rule over the things of this world, but it is a great tragedy to see that people are enslaved/lured down to the passing fancies of this world and living a life neglecting the real call for us. We need to awake and discern the strategies of the devil and have to repent and return to the duty of fear of God and dominion over the world.
“O Lord, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth!”
As David concludes this psalm, he is glorifying the name of the LORD and the wisdom by which God has set the harmony among the things of the world. The more we gaze upon the excellence and wisdom of God, the more humble we must be.
Psalm 8 explains about three things:
- The creation of mankind,
- The glory by which God created mankind,
- The glorious destiny of mankind.
God created us for His glory, we are entitled to keep our dignity and honour as He created us in His image and likeness. Do not get enslaved to the things of this world and let’s always long for the things that are eternal and are from above.
Reflection: We are unique and have a purpose in this world! Seek His guidance and live according to His will.
