Why read Psalm 104?
Psalm 104 strengthens faith through remembrance of God's help. Its account of the covenant and the exodus from Egypt invites believers not to forget His works.
You can read this psalm when its themes speak to your circumstances, or as part of your regular reading of the Psalter. This explanation draws on the text itself; the psalm is not reserved for one particular need.
In Kathisma 14 of the Psalter, Psalm 104 awaits its reader with 44 verses of prayer arising from a real experience. It begins with “Praise the Lord and call upon His name...” — and from there onward, everything is a dialogue between the person and God.
Text of Psalm 104
1. Praise the Lord and call upon His name; proclaim His works among the nations.
2. Sing to Him and praise Him; tell of all His wonders.
3. Boast in His holy name; let the heart of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
4. Seek the Lord and be strengthened; seek His face always.
5. Remember His wonders that He has done, His wonders and the judgments of His mouth.
6. The offspring of Abraham, His servants, the sons of Jacob, His chosen ones.
7. He is the Lord our God; His judgments are throughout the earth.
8. He remembered His covenant forever, the word He commanded for a thousand generations,
9. Which He made with Abraham, and His oath to Isaac.
10. And He established it for Jacob as a commandment, and for Israel as an everlasting bond,
11. Saying: “To you I will give the land of Canaan, the portion of your inheritance.”
12. When they were few in number and strangers in their land
13. And passed from one nation to another, from one kingdom to another people,
14. He allowed no one to do them injustice, and rebuked kings for their sake, saying to them:
15. “Do not touch My anointed ones, and do not act deceitfully against My prophets.”
16. And He called a famine upon the earth and broke the stalk of wheat.
17. He sent a man before them; Joseph was appointed a slave.
18. They humbled him, putting his feet in shackles; his soul passed through iron until His word came.
19. The word of the Lord kindled him; the king sent and released him, the ruler of the people freed him.
20. He made him lord of his house and ruler over all his wealth,
21. To teach his rulers as himself and to make his elders wise.
22. And Israel entered Egypt, and Jacob dwelt as a stranger in the land of Ham.
23. And He greatly multiplied His people and made them stronger than their enemies.
24. He turned their hearts to hate His people, to act deceitfully against His servants.
25. He sent Moses His servant, Aaron whom He chose.
26. He placed in them the words of His signs and wonders in the land of Ham.
27. He sent darkness and darkened them, for they had embittered His words;
28. He turned their waters into blood and killed their fish;
29. Their land brought forth frogs in the chambers of their kings.
30. He spoke, and the dog-fly came, and a multitude of flies throughout all their borders.
31. He put hail in their rains, burning fire in their land;
32. And He struck their vineyards and their fig trees, and broke the trees within their borders.
33. He spoke, and locusts came, and caterpillars without number.
34. And they ate all the grass in their land and ate the produce of their land,
35. And He struck all the firstborn in their land, the firstfruits of all their labor.
36. And He brought them out with silver and gold, and there was no sick person among their tribes.
37. Egypt rejoiced at their departure, for fear of them had seized them.
38. He spread a cloud to cover them, and fire to give them light at night.
39. They asked, and quails came, and He satisfied them with heavenly bread.
40. He split a rock, and waters flowed, and rivers flowed in a land without water.
41. For He remembered His holy word spoken to Abraham His servant.
42. And He brought His people out in joy, and His chosen ones in gladness.
43. And He gave them the lands of the nations, and they inherited the labors of the peoples,
44. That they might keep His righteous decrees and observe His law.
When Psalm 104 is read
- It belongs to Kathisma 14 and is read in the Psalter’s sequence during services; the faithful read it during fasting periods and in times of need.
- At the end of each psalm, the tradition adds: "Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen."
Neighboring psalms
The numbering follows the Orthodox Psalter (Septuagint). The same psalm may have a different number in other Bible editions.
