You make him ruler over the works of your hands. You have put all things under his feet:
All sheep and cattle, yes, and the animals of the field,
the birds of the sky, the fish of the sea, and whatever passes through the paths of the seas.
Parallel Translations
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You make him ruler over the works of your hands. You have put all things under his feet:
All sheep and cattle, yes, and the animals of the field,
the birds of the sky, the fish of the sea, and whatever passes through the paths of the seas.
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Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:
All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field;
The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.
Show all 3 translations
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(8-7) Thou hast made him to have dominion over the works of Thy hands; Thou hast put all things under His feet:
(8-8) Sheep and oxen, all of them, yea, and the beasts of the field;
(8-9) The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea; whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.
Cross-references (14)
- Genesis 1:28 (v6) God blessed them. God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the…
- Genesis 1:26 (v6) God said, “Let’s make man in our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the sky,…
- Matthew 28:18 (v6) Jesus came to them and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.
- Hebrews 2:8 (v6) You have put all things in subjection under his feet.” For in that he subjected all things to him, he left nothing that is not subject to…
- Ephesians 1:22 (v6) He put all things in subjection under his feet, and gave him to be head over all things for the assembly,
Show all 14 cross-references
- Genesis 9:2 (v6) The fear of you and the dread of you will be on every animal of the earth, and on every bird of the sky. Everything that moves along the…
- Genesis 2:20 (v7) The man gave names to all livestock, and to the birds of the sky, and to every animal of the field; but for man there was not found a…
- Psalms 110:1 (v6) Yahweh says to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool for your feet.”
- 1 Peter 3:22 (v6) who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, angels and authorities and powers being made subject to him.
- 1 Corinthians 15:24-27 (v6) Then the end comes, when he will deliver up the Kingdom to God, even the Father, when he will have abolished all rule and all authority and…
- Genesis 1:20-25 (v8) God said, “Let the waters abound with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the sky.” God created the…
- Psalms 148:10 (v8) wild animals and all livestock; small creatures and flying birds;
- Hebrews 1:2 (v6) has at the end of these days spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the worlds.
- Job 38:39–39:30 (v8) “Can you hunt the prey for the lioness, or satisfy the appetite of the young lions, when they crouch in their dens, and lie in wait in the…
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv6–7 6. Thou hast set him over. David now comes…
6. Thou hast set him over. David now comes to the second point, which I have just now spoken of, namely, that from the dominion over all things which God has conferred upon men, it is evident how great is the love which he has borne towards them, and how much account he has made of them. As he does not stand in need of any thing himself, he has destined all the riches, both of heaven and earth, for their use. It is certainly a singular honor, and one which cannot be sufficiently estimated, that mortal man, as the representative of God, has dominion over the world, as if it pertained to him by right, and that to whatever quarter he turns his eyes, he sees nothing wanting which may contribute to the convenience and happiness of his life. As this passage is quoted by Paul in his First Epistle to the Corinthians, (1 Corinthians 15:27) where he discourses concerning the spiritual kingdom of Christ, some may object and say, that the meaning he puts upon it is very different from the sense which I have given. But it is easy to answer this objection, and the answer which I give to it is this, That generally the whole order of this world is arranged and established for the purpose of conducing to the comfort and happiness of men. In what way the passage may properly apply to Christ alone, I have already declared a little before. The only thing which now remains to be considered is, how far this declaration extends — that all things are subjected to men. Now, there is no doubt, that if there is any thing in heaven or on earth which is opposed to men, the beautiful order which God had established in the world at the beginning is now thrown into confusion. The consequence of this is, that mankind, after they were ruined by the fall of Adam, were not only deprived of so distinguished and honorable an estate, and dispossessed of their former dominion, but are also held captive under a degrading and ignominious bondage. Christ, it is true, is the lawful heir of heaven and earth, by whom the faithful recover what they had lost in Adam; but he has not as yet actually entered upon the full possession of his empire and dominion. Whence the apostle concludes, that what is here said by David “Que ce qui est yci dit par David.” — Fr.
“Car il faut suppleer en ceste argument la proposition que les Dialecticiens appellent.” — Fr.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On v7 By the temporal gifts of man’s creation, he is…
By the temporal gifts of man’s creation, he is led to consider the benefits which he hath by his regeneration through Christ.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Psa 8:6 Thou madest him to have dominion over…
Psa 8:6 Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all [things] under his feet:
Ver. 6. Thou madest him to have dominion, &c.] He had so at first, Gen 1:26, shall have again, Zec 8:12 Rev 21:7; meanwhile (though Rebellis facta est creatura homnini, quia homo numini, the creature rebelleth against man, because man doth against God; yet) we cannot but see some footsteps remaining of that ancient sovereignty, which the very heathens also acknowledged, and therehence fetched excellent arguments for a providence (Cicero, Plutarch, Ennius). Lions hate apes, but tear men; though Simia quam similis, turpissima bestia, nobis. Hereof no probable reason be given but this, that God hath put all things under man’s feet; insomuch as that the most timorous men dare kick and beat the largest elephants. Indeed, by reason of sin, as was said, we see not all things subdued, Heb 12:8. But why hath Nature denied to horses, asses, camels, elephants, deer, &c., a gall, which it hath given to lions, wolves, and other fierce creatures? (Bodin. Theat. Nat. p. 405). Surely herein appeareth the wonderful wisdom and goodness of God, who hath done this, that those so serviceable creatures might be the better tamed and subdued by man. Let man consider (saith one well) what excellency he hath lost through Adam’s fall, and bewail his misery. Let him also, on the other side, well weigh the grace bestowed on him in Christ, and be joyful and thankful for mercy; knowing this, that if the creatures be not now subjected unto us, it is by reason of the body and relics of sin that yet remain in us; and that therefore if we would have a conquest over the creatures, we must begin first to get a victory upon sin, or else we shall never profit that way.
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Thou hast put all things under his feet] The earth hath its name from treading upon it, Terra a terendo, teaching us, 1. To trample upon earthly things, as base and bootless; not to dote upon them without hearts, nor grasp them over greedily with our hands; as that covetous Cardinal Sylberperger, who took so great felicity in money, that when he was grievously tormented with the gout, his only remedy to ease his pain was, to have a bason full of gold set before him, into which he would put his lame hands, turning the gold upside down. But if silver and gold be a man’s happiness, then it is in the earth, and so (which is strange) nearer hell than heaven, and so nearer the devil than God. The ancient Romans had for a difference in their nobility, a little ornament in the form of a moon, to show that all worldly things were mutable; and they wore it upon their shoes, to show that they trod all under their feet. 2. By this posture of all things under man’s feet, God would teach him to use them as a stirrup, for the raising of his heart to those things above. A sanctified fancy can make every creature a ladder to heaven, and say, with that Father, Si tanti vitreum quanti rerum margaritum! If this trash be so highly esteemed, how much more the true treasure!
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv6–7 Thou didst give all power and all things into…
Thou didst give all power and all things into his hands, Mat 28:18; Joh 13:3.
Thou hast put all things, both in heaven, where are the angels mentioned Psa 8:5, and in the earth, air, and sea, as it follows; for nothing is excepted besides God, 1Co 15:25,27; Heb 2:8.
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Under his feet, i.e. made them subject to him, as this phrase oft signifies. See Deu 33:3; Jdg 5:27; Psa 18:38; 110:1.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Thou madest him to have dominion over the works…
Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands,.... All power in heaven and in earth being given to him: when he was raised from the dead, and when he ascended on high, and was set down at the right hand of God, he was made or declared Lord and Christ; Lord of the hosts of heaven, of all the angels there, King of saints, King of kings, and Lord of lords. All things in heaven and earth, which God has made, are put into his hands, to subserve his cause and glory, and for the good of his people; for he is head over all things to the church. The Ethiopic version reads, "all the works of thy hands"; among whom are angels. This is a greater dominion than was given to the first man, Adam, Gen 1:25;
thou hast put all things under his feet; or put them in subjection to him, as the phrase signifies, and as it is interpreted, Heb 2:8. Good angels are subject to him, as appears by their ministration to him, their dependence on him, and adoration of him, Pe1 3:22; devils are subject to him, whether they will or not; and so are wicked men, whose power and wrath he is able to restrain, and does; and the church is subject to Christ, as her head; and so all good men, willingly and heartily, and from a principle of love, obey his commands: yea, all creatures in the earth, air, and sea, are in subjection to him; an enumeration of which is given in the following verses.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Verse 6. Thou madest him to have dominion] Jesus…
Verse 6. Thou madest him to have dominion] Jesus Christ, who, being in the form of God, and equal with God, for a time emptied himself, and made himself of no reputation; was afterwards highly exalted, and had a name above every name. See the notes referred to above, and those on Php 2:6-9.
Thou hast put all things under his feet] Though the whole of the brute creation was made subject to Adam in his state of innocence; yet it could never be literally said of him, that God had put all things under his feet, or that he had dominion over the work of God's hands; but all this is most literally true of our Lord Jesus; and to him the apostle, Heb 2:6, &c., applies all these passages.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On v6 Psa 8:6-8. Thou madest him to have dominion over…
Psa 8:6-8. Thou madest him to have dominion over the work of thy hands — Didst constitute him lord of the inferior creatures, and invest him with a sovereign dominion over them. The charter whereby man was to hold this royalty bore date with his creation, Gen 1:28; and though it was forfeited by his fall, it was, in a great degree, renewed after the flood; since which time man has had all things, in such a sense, under his feet, that he can not only serve himself of the labour, but also of the products and lives of the inferior creatures, which are delivered into his hands for that purpose. All sheep and oxen, &c. — Thus he instances in some of the inferior creatures, and among others, names even the beasts of the field, the fowls of the air, and the fishes of the sea. For, though many of them are much stronger, and many of them much swifter than man; yet, man’s superior knowledge enables him, one way or other, to reduce them under his power, and to exercise dominion over them. It must be carefully observed, however, that this refers, in a special manner, to the Lord Jesus Christ, and has its perfect accomplishment only in him. For, as the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews argues, Heb 2:6-8, “We see not yet all things put under” man in that complete and absolute sense which the psalmist’s words seem to imply; but we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, or was made lower for a little while, as the Hebrew may be rendered, for the suffering of death, that is, that he might be capable of suffering death; we see him crowned with the glory and honour of having all things, yea, and persons, put under him, in the completest and most absolute sense; exalted to the Father’s right hand, far above all principality and power, and every name that is named; invested with all power in heaven and on earth; constituted not only the head of the church but head over all things to the church, and intrusted with the administration of the kingdom of providence, in conjunction with, and subserviency to, the kingdom of grace. Now we must remember that, as it was our common human nature that Christ assumed; so our common human nature is thus exalted in him to that glory and honour, and complete dominion over the creatures, which Adam possessed in paradise, but which he lost for himself, and all his race, by the fall. Nay, in Christ our nature is raised to the possession of dignity and glory, power and dominion, riches and felicity, incomparably greater than was conferred on man at his creation. And through Christ the fallen children of men may rise; and all believers in Christ, and members of his mystical body, shall rise to a participation of this honour and happiness, and not only be made but a little lower than the angels, but as our blessed Lord testifies, ισαγγελοι, equal to the angels, if not even superior to them.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Thou madest him to have dominion - Thou didst…
Thou madest him to have dominion - Thou didst cause him to have, or didst give him this dominion. It does not mean that God made or created him for that end, but that he had conceded to him that dominion, thus conferring on him exalted honor. The allusion is to Gen 1:26, Gen 1:28.
Over the works of thy hands - His works upon the earth, for the dominion extends no further.
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Thou hast put all things under his feet - Hast placed all things in subjection to him. Compare Psa 47:3; Psa 91:13; Lam 3:34; Rom 16:20; 1Co 15:25. The language is taken from the act of treading down enemies in battle; from putting the feet on the necks of captives, etc. The idea is that of complete and entire subjection. This dominion was originally given to man at his creation, and it still remains (though not so absolute and entire as this), for nothing is in itself more remarkable than the dominion which man, by nature so feeble, exercises over the inferior creation. it is impossible to account for this in any other way than as it is accounted for in the Bible, by the supposition that it was originally conceded to man by his Creator. On the question of the applicability of this to Christ, see the notes at Heb 2:6-9.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On v6 6. Dominion—A strictly regal prerogative, belonging not to angels,…
6. Dominion—A strictly regal prerogative, belonging not to angels, but is part of God’s image in man.
Works of thy hands—A Hebraism for thy works.
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All things under his feet—In complete subjection to him. The word is absolute and universal, but the enumeration of Psa_8:7-8, limit it to this earth, as also Gen_1:26. On the restitution of human nature in Christ see on Psa_8:5, and compare Rev_2:26-27; Rev_3:21; 1Co_6:2; Heb_2:7-9; and notes.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv6–7 6. Again a reference to Gen_1:26; Gen_1:28. ‘Thou hast…
6. Again a reference to Gen_1:26; Gen_1:28. ‘Thou hast put all things under his feet’ reads like a paraphrase of the word there rendered ‘let them have dominion,’ which means primarily ‘to tread under foot,’ and thence ‘to rule.’ On St Paul’s application of the words in 1Co_15:27 see above.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv6, 8 (6) The poet continues, in a rapturous strain, to…
(6) The poet continues, in a rapturous strain, to complete the cycle of animated nature, and to describe man’s kingship over all other created beings. For St. Paul’s expansion of the thought, and elevation of it into yet a higher sphere, see 1Co_15:27.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Thou madest him to have dominion over the works…
Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands. An evident reference to Gen_1:28, "Have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth." By these words man"s right of dominion was established. His actual dominion only came, and still comes, by degrees. Thou hast put all things under his feet. (comp. 1Co_15:25-28 Heb_2:8) In their fulness, the words are only true of the God-Man, Jesus Christ. (Mat_28:18)
Man nature God.
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"Thou hast put... feet." This brief but majestic psalm is remarkable for world-wide breadth; it shines with light transcending human genius. The name by which the Almighty Maker is addressed is his covenant name with Israel the name which speaks not of power, but of personal being, "Jehovah." But here is no reference to Israel; nothing national, limited, ceremonial, local, temporary. This psalm is a sufficient refutation of the mean, narrow views of the Old Testament Scriptures, which lower the religion of Israel to the rank of one among the many national religions. Here we are concerned only with these three supreme ideas: man; nature; God. Jehovah is invoked as the Author of nature and God of all mankind. Consider this sublime declaration first, as it stands here in the Old Testament Scriptures; secondly, as interpreted in the New Testament Scriptures.
I Read these words, first, BY THEIR OWN LIGHT, AS THEY STAND PART OF THE OLD TESTAMENT.
1. They are far from describing man"s present actual position on this globe. He does not at present reign over nature, but wrestles with it; slowly grasps its secrets and masters its forces; has to keep watch and ward lest it destroy him. A few tribes of lower animals attach themselves serviceably to him, but most fly from him or defy him. Wolves ravage his flocks; worms corrode his ships. The sight of a locust or a beetle makes him tremble: he can crush it in an instant, but when countless millions of these minute rebels invade his fields and vineyards and orchards, they turn his wealth to poverty. Truly, "we see not yet all things put under him.
2. Yet these words are no poetic exaggeration. The context shows that the psalmist is looking back to the record of man"s original dignity and heirship of the world. (vers. 6-8 compared with Gen_1:27, Gen_1:29) This original grant conveys the idea not of easy, effortless lordship over a passive creation, but of progressive conquest by toil, skill, reason. Such is and has been man"s dominion over the earth. This biblical account of the primitive dignity and moral standing of man is widely rejected in these days, on the assumption that it conflicts with science. Conflict between religious truth and scientific truth is impossible, because all truth is one. All truth is God"s truth. The conflict is between testimony and hypothesis the testimony of the most venerable and ancient of all histories, and the newest hypotheses of scientific men hypotheses very confidently affirmed; but yet only hypotheses. It may turn out that the testimony is more scientific than the hypotheses. At all events, it is no trifle to reject it. Man knows not, apart from the Bible, whence he cometh or whither he goeth. Reject it as a revelation of fact, and the human race is an apparition upon earth a stupendous exception to the laws which govern all other animals of which the wildest conjectures of what passes for science can give no rational account. Reject its revelation of law, and man is seen wandering out of the unknown past towards an unknown future, without guidance or government. Reject its revelation of promise, and that unknown future is without hope or intelligible meaning. Accept the Bible as God"s message, and we know whence we come and whither we go. Human life, sorrowful and confused as it is, shows like a stormy day which had a splendid dawn and shall yet have a serene evening and glorious rising again. We need not, then, be frightened by the most confident assertions, from the glorious belief that man began his history on earth as the child of the Father of spirits; not crawling out of sentient slime through a series of inconceivable transformations, compared with which all the miracles of the Bible are commonplace incidents; but able to converse with God, and to render intelligent, loving obedience to him: "a little lower than God himself;" crowned with glory and honour.
II AS INTERPRETED IS THE NEW TESTAMENT. Faith prizes the past, not for its own sake, but for the sake of the present and the future. When we look at these words in the light of New Testament interpretation, new glory breaks from them. They are not simply history or poetry, but prophecy. (Heb_2:8, Heb_2:9) We need not ask, and cannot say, whether this meaning was known to the psalmist. The prophets uttered more than they knew. God interprets by fulfilling; and the fulfilment far outruns all our expectations.
1. In the Person, life, character, of our Lord Jesus, even "in the days of his flesh," our nature was raised to a pitch of glory and perfectness before inconceivable. God"s image was restored. (Joh_14:9 1Co_15:47)
2. In the exaltation of Jesus, human nature is invested with Divine glory. The "days of his flesh" are past; but he wears our nature still. (1Ti_2:5 Php_2:7-11 Mat_28:18)
3. All who believe in him are already, by faith, partakers in some degree of his glory. (Eph_1:19-23 Eph_2:6) And they shall hereafter, in perfect union with him and likeness to him, partake fully and eternally. (1Jn_3:1-3Jo 1Jo 17:22-24)
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Charles H. Spurgeon 1885 · Public Domain On v6 Ver. 6. Thou madest him to have dominion over…
Ver. 6. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands, etc. For thy help against wandering thoughts in prayer... labour to keep thy distance to the world, and that sovereignty which God hath given thee over it in its profits and pleasures, or whatever else may prove a snare to thee. While the father and master know their place, and keep their distance, so long children and servants will keep theirs by being dutiful and officious; but when they forget this, the father grows fond of the one, and the master too familiar with the other, then they begin to lose their authority and the others to grow saucy and under no command; bid them go, and it may be they will not stir; set them a task, and they will bid you do it yourself. Truly, thus it fares with the Christian; all the creatures are his servants, and so long as he keeps his heart at a holy distance from them, and maintains his lordship over them, not laying them to his bosom, which God hath put under his feet, all is well; he marches to the duties of God's worship in a goodly order. He can be private with God, and these not be bold to crowd in to disturb him. William Gurnall.
Ver. 5-8. The universal providential dominion of our Lord Jesus.
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Ver. 6. Man's rights and responsibilities towards the lower animals.
Ver. 6. Man's dominion over the lower animals, and how he should exercise it.
Ver. 6. (second clause). The proper place for all worldly things, under his feet.
Ver. 5-8. These verses may set forth man's position among the creatures before he fell; but as they are, by the apostle Paul, appropriated to man as represented by the Lord Jesus, it is best to give most weight to that meaning. In order of dignity, man stood next to the angels, and a little lower than they; in the Lord Jesus this was accomplished, for he was made a little lower than the angels by the suffering of death. Man in Eden had the full command of all creatures, and they came before him to receive their names as an act of homage to him as the viceregent of God to them. Jesus in his glory, is now Lord, not only of all living, but of all created things, and, with the exception of him who put all things under him, Jesus is Lord of all, and his elect, in him, are raised to a dominion wider than that of the first Adam, as shall be more clearly seen at his coming. Well might the Psalmist wonder at the singular exaltation of man in the scale of being, when he marked his utter nothingnesss in comparison with the starry universe.
Thou madest him a little lower than the angelsa little lower in nature, since they are immortal, and but a little, because time is short; and when that is over, saints are no longer lower than the angels. The margin reads it, "A little while inferior to." Thou crownest him. The dominion that God has bestowed on man is a great glory and honour to him; for all dominion is honour, and the highest is that which wears the crown. A full list is given of the subjugated creatures, to show that all the dominion lost by sin is restored in Christ Jesus. Let none of us permit the possession of any earthly creature to be a snare to us, but let us remember that we are to reign over them, and not to allow them to reign over us. Under our feet we must keep the world, and we must shun that base spirit which is content to let worldly cares and pleasures sway the empire of the immortal soul.
(Ver. 4-8)What is man, etc.:
-Man is ev'ry thing, And more: he is a tree, yet bears no fruit; A beast, yet is, or should be more: Reason and speech we onely bring. Parrats may thank us, if they are not mute,
They go upon the score.
Man is all symmetrie, Full of proportions, one limbe to another,
And all to all the world besides:
Each part may call the farthest, brother. For head with foot hath private amitie,
And both with moons and tides.
Nothing hath got so farre, But man hath caught and kept it, as his prey. His eyes dismount the highest starre: He is in little all the sphere. Herbs gladly cure our flesh, because that they
Finde their acquaintance there.
For us the windes do blow; The earth doth rest, heav'n move, and fountains flow. Nothing we see, but means our good, As our delight, or as our treasure: The whole is, either our cupboard of food,
Or cabinet of pleasure.
The starres have us to bed: Night draws the curtain, which the sun withdraws:
Musick and light attend our head.
All things unto our flesh are kinde In their descent and being; to our minde In their ascent and cause. Each thing is full of dutie: Waters united are our navigation; Distinguished, our habitation; Below, our drink; above, our meat: Both are our cleanlinesse. Hath one such beautie?
Then how are all things neat!
More servants wait on man, Than he'l take notice of: in ev'ry path
He treads down that which doth befriend him,
When sicknesse makes him pale and wan, Oh, mightie love! Man is one world, and hath
Another to attend him.
George Herbert, 1593.
Ver. 5-8. Augustine having allegorized much about the wine-presses in the title of this Psalm, upon these words, What is man, or the son of man, the one being called (fwna), from misery, the other (~dayzb), the Son of Adam, or man, saith, that by the first is meant man in the state of sin and corruption; by the other, man regenerated by grace, yet called the son of man because made more excellent by the change of his mind and life, from old corruption to newness, and from an old to a new man; whereas he that is still carnal is miserable; and then ascending from the body to the head, Christ, he extols his glory as being set over all things, even the angels, and heavens, and the whole world as is elsewhere showed that he is.
Eph 1:21. And then leaving the highest things he descended to sheep and oxen; whereby we may understand sanctified men and preachers, for to sheep are the faithful often compared, and preachers to oxen. 1Co 9:9. "Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn." The beasts of the field set forth the voluptuous that live at large, going in the broad way: the fowls of the air, the lifted up by pride: the fishes of the sea, such as through a covetous desire of riches pierce into the lower parts of the earth, as the fishes dive to the bottom of the sea. And because men pass the sea again and again for riches, he addeth, that passeth through the way of the sea, and to that of diving to the bottom of the waters may be applied (1Ti 6:9), "They that will be rich, fall into many noisome lusts, that drown the soul in perdition." And hereby seem to be set forth the three things of the world of which it is said, "they that love them, the love of the Father is not in them." "The lust of the heart" being sensuality; "the lust of the eyes," covetousness; to which is added, "the pride of life." Above all these Christ was set, because without all sin; neither could any of the devil's three temptations, which may be referred hereunto, prevail with him. And all these, as well as "sheep and oxen," are in the church, for which it is said, that into the ark came all manner of beasts, both clean and unclean, and fowls; and all manner of fishes, good and bad, came into the net, as it is in the parable. All which I have set down, as of which good use may be made by the discreet reader. John Mayer.
Ver. 7-8. He who rules over the material world, is Lord also of the intellectual or spiritual creation represented thereby. The souls of the faithful, lowly and harmless, are the sheep of his pasture; those who, like oxen, are strong to labour in the church, and who, expounding the Word of Life, tread out the corn for the nourishment of the people, own him for their kind and beneficent Master; nay, tempers fierce and intractable as the beasts of the desert, are yet subject to his will; spirits of the angelic kind, that, like the birds of the air, traverse freely the superior region, move at his command; and those evil ones whose habitation is in the deep abyss, even to the great leviathan himself, all are put under the feet of King Messiah. George Horne, D.D.
Ver. 5-8. The universal providential dominion of our Lord Jesus.
Ver. 5-8. These verses may set forth a man's position among the creatures before he fell; but as they are, by the apostle Paul, appropriated to man as represented by the Lord Jesus, it is best to give most weight to that meaning. In order of dignity, man stood next to the angels, and a little lower than they; in the Lord Jesus this was accomplished, for he was made a little lower than the angels by the suffering of death. Man in Eden had the full command of all creatures, and they came before him to receive their names as an act of homage to him as the viceregent of God to them. Jesus in his glory, is now Lord, not only of all living, but of all created things, and, with the exception of him who put all things under him, Jesus is Lord of all, and his elect, in him, are raised to a dominion wider than that of the first Adam, as shall be more clearly seen at his coming. Well might the Psalmist wonder at the singular exaltation of man in the scale of being, when he marked his utter nothingness in comparison with the starry universe.
Thou madest him a little lower than the angelsa little lower in nature, since they are immortal, and but a little, because time is short; and when that is over, saints are no longer lower than the angels. The margin reads it, "A little while inferior to." Thou crownest him. The dominion that God has bestowed on man is a great glory and honour to him; for all dominion is honour, and the highest is that which wears the crown. A full list is given of the subjugated creatures, to show that all the dominion lost by sin is restored in Christ Jesus. Let none of us permit the possession of any earthly creature to be a snare to us, but let us remember that we are to reign over them, and not to allow them to reign over us. Under our feet we must keep the world, and we must shun that base spirit which is content to let worldly cares and pleasures sway the empire of the immortal soul.
(Ver. 4-8)What is man, etc.:
-Man is ev'ry thing, And more: he is a tree, yet bears no fruit; A beast, yet is, or should be more: Reason and speech we onely bring. Parrats may thank us, if they are not mute,
They go upon the score.
Man is all symmetrie, Full of proportions, one limbe to another,
And all to all the world besides:
Each part may call the farthest, brother. For head with foot hath private amitie,
And both with moons and tides.
Nothing hath got so farre, But man hath caught and kept it, as his prey. His eyes dismount the highest starre: He is in little all the sphere. Herbs gladly cure our flesh, because that they
Finde their acquaintance there.
For us the windes do blow; The earth doth rest, heav'n move, and fountains flow. Nothing we see, but means our good, As our delight, or as our treasure: The whole is, either our cupboard of food,
Or cabinet of pleasure.
The starres have us to bed: Night draws the curtain, which the sun withdraws:
Musick and light attend our head.
All things unto our flesh are kinde In their descent and being; to our minde
In their ascent and cause.
Each thing is full of dutie: Waters united are our navigation; Distinguished, our habitation; Below, our drink; above, our meat: Both are our cleanlinesse. Hath one such beautie?
Then how are all things neat!
More servants wait on man, Than he'l take notice of: in ev'ry path
He treads down that which doth befriend him,
When sicknesse makes him pale and wan, Oh, mightie love! Man is one world, and hath
Another to attend him.
George Herbert, 1593.
Ver. 5-8. Augustine having allegorized much about the wine-presses in the title of this Psalm, upon these words, What is man, or the son of man, the one being called (fwna), from misery, the other (~dayzb), the Son of Adam, or man, saith, that by the first is meant man in the state of sin and corruption; by the other, man regenerated by grace, yet called the son of man because made more excellent by the change of his mind and life, from old corruption to newness, and from an old to a new man; whereas he that is still carnal is miserable; and then ascending from the body to the head, Christ, he extols his glory as being set over all things, even the angels, and heavens, and the whole world as is elsewhere showed that he is.
Eph 1:21. And then leaving the highest things he descended to sheep and oxen; whereby we may understand sanctified men and preachers, for to sheep are the faithful often compared, and preachers to oxen. 1Co 9:9. "Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn." The beasts of the field set forth the voluptuous that live at large, going in the broad way: the fowls of the air, the lifted up by pride: the fishes of the sea, such as through a covetous desire of riches pierce into the lower parts of the earth, as the fishes dive to the bottom of the sea. And because men pass the sea again and again for riches, he addeth, that passeth through the way of the sea, and to that of diving to the bottom of the waters may be applied (1Ti 6:9), "They that will be rich, fall into many noisome lusts, that drown the soul in perdition." And hereby seem to be set forth the three things of the world of which it is said, "they that love them, the love of the Father is not in them." "The lust of the heart" being sensuality; "the lust of the eyes," covetousness; to which is added, "the pride of life." Above all these Christ was set, because without all sin; neither could any of the devil's three temptations, which may be referred hereunto, prevail with him. And all these, as well as "sheep and oxen," are in the church, for which it is said, that into the ark came all manner of beasts, both clean and unclean, and fowls; and all manner of fishes, good and bad, came into the net, as it is in the parable. All which I have set down, as of which good use may be made by the discreet reader. John Mayer.
Ver. 7-8. He who rules over the material world, is Lord also of the intellectual or spiritual creation represented thereby. The souls of the faithful, lowly and harmless, are the sheep of his pasture; those who, like oxen, are strong to labour in the church, and who, expounding the Word of Life, tread out the corn for the nourishment of the people, own him for their kind and beneficent Master; nay, tempers fierce and intractable as the beasts of the desert, are yet subject to his will; spirits of the angelic kind, that, like the birds of the air, traverse freely the superior region, move at his command; and those evil ones whose habitation is in the deep abyss, even to the great leviathan himself, all are put under the feet of King Messiah. George Horne, D.D.
Ver. 5-8. The universal providential dominion of our Lord Jesus.
Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On v6 Thou madest him to have dominion.
Psa_8:6
Thou madest him to have dominion.
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Mans dominion
Dominion is a far-reaching word. We have not yet thrown our measuring line upon it, and realised all its suggestions and inspiration. Is there not a stirring sometimes in the heart, which means: I was meant to be a king; I was meant to be master; I was meant to exercise dominion--dominion over the enticements of matter; it was intended that I should be able to say to the most fascinating spectacles that could appeal to me--Stand back! Man was meant to have dominion over the satisfactions of sense. Is it not quite heroic, in some small way at least, that a man shall be able to say to a habit, I have done with thee; you do not leave this day fortnight--you leave now. That is what God means man to be and to do in regard to everything that is not of the nature of God Himself. It is well to put our very habits through a process of discipline, supposing the habit to be not altogether wicked. Is it worth while that we should be able to hold things in dominion if we cannot hold ourselves in check? The great aim of every life should be self-control, dominion over self. (Joseph Parker, D. D.)
Psa_8:6-8
Thou hast put all things under his feet, etc.
--
Cruelty to animals
If the lower creation were not too insignificant or worthless to contribute to the glory of Jesus, they cannot be deemed too insignificant for Him to care for, and for us to protect and honour. We know it is said of His saints that he that toucheth them, toucheth the apple of His eye. In other words, He feels what is done to His people as sensitively as if it had been done to Himself. And, of course, while there is a sense in which, using human language, He must be jealous of them, as He is in regard to no other (they being emphatically the fruit of the travail of His soul), yet if all creatures have been intrusted to His sovereignty, and are the subjects of His sway, He must regard any wanton injustice or cruelty inflicted on the meanest and the lowliest as an unwarranted aggression on what the old divines call His rectorial rights. It may seem to some an unnecessary straining of the subject: that it would be better to rest and vindicate it on principles of ordinary benevolence. It is well, indeed, that we can take up the lower ground too, and, for those who would scorn the appeal to gospel motive, address ourselves to the claims and sympathies of our common humanity. But I do confess it seems to me that this theme secures a far more commanding demonstration when we see the lower animals, whose oppression we are called to denounce, placed under the especial care and authority of the Redeemer; that as the living creatures were brought one by one to the first Adam to be named and placed under his protection, so the second Adam, the Lord from heaven, who is to restore in every respect what the other forfeited, has had among the all things put under His feet, all sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field, and the fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the sea. Though the members of the lowlier creation are represented in the text as subjected to the rule of Christ, they have been subordinated by Him to the care of man. To man, as high priest of creation, they have been made over at once for his use, and to secure his protection and kindness. In thus consigning them to his custody, this great Lord of nature has given significant intimation of the treatment He Himself designs them to receive at the hands of their deputed governor. He has manifested on every side a desire for the happiness of His creatures. Pain is in no instance the law or condition of their being. The sport of the insect, the carol of the lark, the gambols of the quadruped, the gush of summer song in the groves and woods, all read the design and intention of a bountiful, beneficent, and benevolent Ruler. And if man, therefore, abuse his delegated authority, and instead of the merciful guardian and friend of the helpless, become the rigorous tyrant and torturer, does he not thereby set himself up in guilty defiance of the purposes of the Almighty, and do what he can to abridge the happiness he was commissioned to provide and promote? We shall proceed to enforce, from a few brief considerations, the duty of abstaining from the infliction of pain on the inferior creation, and their paramount claims on mans sympathy, protection, and kindness. Let us advert, at the outset, to a lurking and widely accepted fallacy with regard to the lower animals having a comparative insensibility to pain. That they are capable of a certain amount of suffering none dare dispute, but we question if there be not at the root of much of that reckless torture of which they are the subjects, an impression that their wild and untamed habits of life and their iron frames make them proof against the physical anguish of which the human being is susceptible. I would ask what in anatomy, what in physiology is there to bear out such an hypothesis? How can I more befittingly stun up this subject than by a closing reference and reply? Some have ventured to assert that the lower animals, being infinitely beneath us in the scale of being, are unfit subjects and objects for any such special and exceptional tenderness as that for which we plead. I ask, Where should we have been at this moment if this were a recognised and universally-acted-upon law in the government of God--that a being, because superior in the scale of existence, should refuse to bestow regard or interest on those who are some degrees beneath him? Is not the whole scheme of redemption one marvellous display of the condescension and kindness of one Being to those immeasurably below Him? Mans condescension to the lower animals! What is this in comparison with Gods regardfulness of man? The former is but the attention and kindness of one creature to another, both springing from earth, both hastening to dissolution. But the kindness of God to the human offspring is that of the Infinite to the finite, Almightiness to nothingness, Deity to dust! Oh, if God, the great God Almighty, thus visits the guilty with tenderness, shall we visit the innocent and unoffending with cruelty and oppression? when He has thrown the shield of His merciful, but unmerited, protection over us, shall we thus requite His kindness by acting toward the humbler creatures of His hands with contempt and disdainful neglect? No! as we behold His kingdom stretching downwards from the pinnacles of glory to every living thing in the habitable parts of the earth, where from the beginning His delights have been, let us recognise the beauty and profound meaning of that magnificent vision which burst on the prophet by the river Chebar--significant exposition of the Mediators sovereignty: the four fold resemblances or images of creature forms, of which only one was human, and the other three of the lower animals--the lion, the ox, and the eagle; while over all, in the sapphire firmament, we read, was the likeness as the appearance of a man. It was the very truth and language of our text embodied and symbolised: the all-glorious and glorified Mediator presiding over the Kingdom of Providence, and demonstrating in the most extensive sense His Kingdom ruleth over all! Seeing, then, that all creatures thus wait upon Him, that He gives them their meat in due season, let the topic of our meditation (pleading, and pleading all the more earnestly for those who cannot plead for themselves) receive the loftiest enforcement by joining in with the loyal ascription of the Psalmist--Thou hast put all things under his feet. (J. R. Macduff, D. D.)
The supreme rule of Christ
This Psalm is stamped with a worldwide breadth; it is of no nation, it is of all time; it shines with a light transcending that of mere human genius. We are brought face to face with these three--nature, man, and God. Here is no picture drawn from nature. This description--Thou hast put all things under his feet--does not, as a matter of fact, describe mans present position on the globe. All things are not put under him. He does not reign over nature, he wrestles with nature. The Psalmist is not using here the language of prophetic inspiration. He is looking back to the primitive glory, the primeval character of man as it is written upon the very first page of this book. The Bible grasps so firmly the unseen future, just because it plants its foot so strongly upon the past. Human nature did not crawl up from sentient slime; man was born with the likeness of his Father shining out from his very countenance, able to converse with God, and to render intelligent and loving obedience to God. Turn to the New Testament Scriptures. A new light, a new glory, suddenly breaks forth from them. We see Jesus . . . crowned with glory and honour. In Scripture there is but one Divine right, and that is Gods own right. His Kingdom ruleth over all. This authority is the inherent, eternal right of God in the very nature of things. Is it impossible to transfer it? Is it conceivable that the Almighty God should give His glory to another? Jesus said, All authority is given to Me in heaven and in earth. In the days of His humiliation, our Saviour constantly exercised four kinds of authority--the authority to forgive sin; the authority to declare truth; the authority to rule nature; and the authority, over human hearts and consciences--the claim of universal and absolute obedience and faith. These four are in close and inseparable moral unity. (E. R. Conder, D. D.)
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Psa_9:1-20
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v6 You make him to rule over the works ...…
You make him to rule over the works ... you have put all things under his feet
These two clauses express similar meanings. (See: Parallelism)
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You make him ... under his feet
"you make them ... under their feet." The words "him" and "his" here refer to people.
the works of your hands
The hands represent what God has done. AT: "the things that you made" (See: Metonymy)
you have put all things under his feet
Having authority to rule others or control things is spoken of as having them under one's feet. This means God gave people authority over all that he created. AT: "you have given him authority over all things" (See: Metaphor)
translationWords
works
hand
ewe
cow
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv6–7 8:6 gave them charge of everything: The psalmist is…
8:6 gave them charge of everything: The psalmist is still referring to humans in general. Paul applies these words to Jesus as the perfect man who has made the created order—even death (1 Cor 15:25-27)—subject to God and his glory. The New Testament connects these themes of creation and salvation with Jesus Christ (John 1:1-2, 14; Col 1:16).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.