“That thou givest them they gather: thou openest thine hand, they are filled with good.”
The statement 'When you give to them, they gather it; when you open your hand, they are filled with good things' emphasizes God's active provision and the creature's grateful reception. The verb 'give' (titen) presents God as the active agent of provision. The verb 'gather' (yilkotun) suggests creatures' participation in receiving provision, collecting what God provides. The phrase 'when you open your hand' (pit'ah et-yodcha) employs anthropomorphic language to suggest generosity and abundance; an open hand is full and abundant. The phrase 'they are filled with good things' (yisbe'u-tuv) emphasizes satiation and blessing. The verse articulates a relationship of grace: God's giving precedes and enables creatures' receiving. The opening of God's hand is the occasion for the creatures' gathering and satiation. This verse suggests that creation is fundamentally characterized by divine generosity and creature receptiveness; the world flows from an abundance of divine giving that overflows to all creatures.
Church Fathers on Psalms 104:28
1. ...“Bless the Lord, O my soul.” Let the soul of us all, made one in Christ, say this. “O Lord my God, You are magnified exceedingly!” Psalm 103:1. Where are You magnified? “Confession and beauty You have put on.” Confess ye, that you may be beautified, that He may put you on. “Clothed with light as a garment” Psalm 103:2. Clothed with His Church, because she is made “light” in Him, who before was darkness in herself, as the apostle says: “You were sometime darkness, but…
Nicene & Post-Nicene / Ante-Nicene Fathers translations · public domain
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