Psalms 90
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Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.
2 Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.
3 Thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest, Return, ye children of men.
4 For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night.
5 Thou carriest them away as with a flood; they are as a sleep: in the morning they are like grass which groweth up.
6 In the morning it flourisheth, and groweth up; in the evening it is cut down, and withereth.
7 For we are consumed by thine anger, and by thy wrath are we troubled.
8 Thou hast set our iniquities before thee, our secret sins in the light of thy countenance.
9 For all our days are passed away in thy wrath: we spend our years as a tale that is told.
10 The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.
11 Who knoweth the power of thine anger? even according to thy fear, so is thy wrath.
12 So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.
13 Return, O Lord, how long? and let it repent thee concerning thy servants.
14 O satisfy us early with thy mercy; that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
15 Make us glad according to the days wherein thou hast afflicted us, and the years wherein we have seen evil.
16 Let thy work appear unto thy servants, and thy glory unto their children.
17 And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us: and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.
Public Domain KJV text from Wordproject.org
Psalm 90:1-17
Book Four
From Everlasting to Everlasting
A Prayer of Moses, the man of God.
1Lord, you have been our dwelling place
in all generations.
2Before the mountains were brought forth,
or ever you had formed the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
3You return man to dust
and say, “Return, O children of man!”
4For a thousand years in your sight
are but as yesterday when it is past,
or as a watch in the night.
5You sweep them away as with a flood; they are like a dream,
like grass that is renewed in the morning:
6in the morning it flourishes and is renewed;
in the evening it fades and withers.
7For we are brought to an end by your anger;
by your wrath we are dismayed.
8You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your presence.
9For all our days pass away under your wrath;
we bring our years to an end like a sigh.
10The years of our life are seventy,
or even by reason of strength eighty;
yet their span is but toil and trouble;
they are soon gone, and we fly away.
11Who considers the power of your anger,
and your wrath according to the fear of you?
12So teach us to number our days
that we may get a heart of wisdom.
13Return, O Lord! How long?
Have pity on your servants!
14Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love,
that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
15Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,
and for as many years as we have seen evil.
16Let your work be shown to your servants,
and your glorious power to their children.
17Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,
and establish the work of our hands upon us;
yes, establish the work of our hands!
ESV Bible text displayed through the American Bible Society's Global Bible Widget
Psalm 90:1-17
Book IV
Psalms 90–106
Psalm 90
A prayer of Moses the man of God.
1Lord, you have been our dwelling place
throughout all generations.
2Before the mountains were born
or you brought forth the whole world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
3You turn people back to dust,
saying, “Return to dust, you mortals.”
4A thousand years in your sight
are like a day that has just gone by,
or like a watch in the night.
5Yet you sweep people away in the sleep of death—
they are like the new grass of the morning:
6In the morning it springs up new,
but by evening it is dry and withered.
7We are consumed by your anger
and terrified by your indignation.
8You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your presence.
9All our days pass away under your wrath;
we finish our years with a moan.
10Our days may come to seventy years,
or eighty, if our strength endures;
yet the best of them are but trouble and sorrow,
for they quickly pass, and we fly away.
11If only we knew the power of your anger!
Your wrath is as great as the fear that is your due.
12Teach us to number our days,
that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
13Relent, Lord! How long will it be?
Have compassion on your servants.
14Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love,
that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.
15Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,
for as many years as we have seen trouble.
16May your deeds be shown to your servants,
your splendor to their children.
17May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us;
establish the work of our hands for us—
yes, establish the work of our hands.
NIV Bible text displayed through the American Bible Society's Global Bible Widget
Commentary
This prayer of Moses begins by acknowledging that God Himself, through all human time, has been “our dwelling place.” “For in Him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). “From everlasting (without beginning) to everlasting (without ending), Thou art God.”
Moses speaks of God’s work in creating our world—turning in the final lines to our work and our hands, praying that God will “establish” it, or “direct” or “prosper” it or “give us success” or “make the work of our hands stand strong” (various versions).
But what stirs me most deeply, working as I do in art, is the prayer: “Let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us”!
Scripture speaks of “the beauty of holiness” (I Chronicles 20:21), of David’s longing “to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord” (Psalm 27:4). That beauty is not only the light of His glory, but is seen in His character—why He does what He does and how He goes about doing it.
We can be part of His story! His beauty can be not only on us, but in our hearts and characters! Then the work of our hands will reflect His glory!
"The atonement of Christ is not a mere skillful way to have our sins pardoned; it is a divine remedy for the cure of transgression and the restoration of spiritual health. It is the Heaven-ordained means by which the righteousness of Christ may be not only upon us, but in our hearts and characters." --Ellen White, 6BC1074.
Virginia Davidson
Artist—designing and building stained glass windows
Spokane Valley Seventh-day Adventist Church, Washington, USA. (as of this writing)
