God Thinks of Even Us | Psalm 8:3–4
3 When I look at your heavens, the work
of your fingers,
the moon
and the stars, which you have set in place,
4 what is man that you are mindful of
him,
and the son
of man that you care for him?
The psalmist lived without light pollution from modern
cities obscuring the majestic view of the heavens. Even with telescopes floating in space, we’ve
gained but a modicum of understanding as to its enormity. All we can say is Psalm 19:1, “The heavens
declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” The stars above prod praise, fear, and awe
within our hearts (33:6–9).
Other descriptions of creation include God speaking the
universe into existence with the breath of His mouth (Gn 1; Ps 33:6) and
calling it the work of His hands (cf. Ps 102:25). David emphasizes the power of God by stating
the universe was created with the same ease as one who draws in the sand. These are all anthropomorphisms, a poetic
device not saying that God has a literal
mouth or hands or fingers that performed His wonders, but are a means for us to
understand His work.
Considering His wonders and breadth of His creation, what’s incredible
is that God considers man. The earth is
hardly a grain of sand in the ocean of space, and human beings hardly microbes
clinging to that grain. Yet, God saved man
for the final day of creation in Genesis 1, and then gave him dominion over the
earth in v. 28—even though He knew man would fall in Genesis 3 and that you’d
commit all that sins that you have. The
first term for “man” in v. 4 enosh, which
denotes weakness (cf. Pss 90:3a; 103:15); we’re but specks, far below God’s
ways (Is 55:9), and yet, God is mindful
of us.
So much so does God think about us that God the Son came
down and became incarnate or “in-fleshed.”
Consider what we could translate
here “a son of Adam.” David refers to
all human beings, but it also looks forward to Jesus Christ (cf. Dn 7:13). He humiliated Himself (Phil 2:5–8), literally
gaining hands and feet to be nailed to a cross for the sins for you who places faith
in Him—truly a staggering thought!
