And He Made the Stars Also
Isaiah 40:9–17
“You who bring good news to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring good news to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with a shout, lift it up, do not be afraid; say to the towns of Judah, “Here is your God!” See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power, and He rules with a mighty arm. See, His reward is with Him, and His recompense accompanies Him. He tends His flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart; He gently leads those that have young. Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand, or with the breadth of His hand marked off the heavens? Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales and the hills in a balance? Who can fathom the Spirit of the LORD, or instruct the LORD as His counselor? Whom did the LORD consult to enlighten Him, and who taught Him the right way? Who was it that taught Him knowledge, or showed Him the path of understanding? Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are regarded as dust on the scales; He weighs the islands as though they were fine dust. Lebanon is not sufficient for altar fires, nor its animals enough for burnt offerings. Before Him all the nations are as nothing; they are regarded by Him as worthless and less than nothing.”
I first got acquainted with the song “Indescribable” by Christian singer/songwriter Chris Tomlin https://youtu.be/sM5YReFSm0I through a talk of the same title by Louie Giglio. Louie talks about the vastness of the known universe and the special features it contains —from galaxies far, far away, to supernovae, black holes, quasars, and pulsars. Louie tells us of how these magnificent structures in the cosmos attest to how huge and unimaginably powerful God, its Creator and Designer is and that this sense of awe and wonder should cause us to praise God. Surely, “the heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day to day pours forth speech, And night to night reveals knowledge (Psa 19:1-2).” The song’s chorus sings, “Indescribable, uncontainable, You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name. You are amazing God.” Isaiah tells us the same here, that God is simply awesome in Himself, His works in History, and just how great He is. 19th Century German philosopher Immanuel Kant confessed, “two things fill the mind with ever new and increasing admiration and awe, the more often and steadily we reflect upon them: the starry heavens above me and the moral law within me. I do not seek or conjecture either of them as if they were veiled obscurities or extravagances beyond the horizon of my vision; I see them before me and connect them immediately with the consciousness of my existence.” The song’s chorus continues, “All powerful, untameable, Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim You are amazing God Indescribable, uncontainable, You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name. You are amazing God!” Which brings me back to Giglio, he said this vast God beyond all measure loves you and me, enough to create, design this marvellous landscape and bring forth sentient life made in His image (Gen 1:26), to build a relationship with us and to have sent His Son to relate to us and die for us when we rebelled and went our own way. He loves us so much, He carries us close to His heart (v. 11). Kant talks about an objective moral law within all of us, which, similar to the majesty of the cosmos, can only be ultimately explained by God, “for since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from His workmanship, so that people are without excuse (Rom 1:20).” No nation is so great, no mountain, no ocean, no feature in this vast expanse of galaxies can contain God, as if in passing, the Bible appears to casually tell us, “and God made the stars also” (Gen 1:16), “to Him these are less than nothing (v. 17). But God loves us, tiniest of creation compared to the entire universe, seemingly insignificant pale blue dot (Sagan), but God is interested in us; I am inclined to believe, with the fine-tuning of the cosmos as God designed it, it takes a universe to produce life, and God has placed in us, a piece of His infinite worth. The song ends with more praise, for His love in spite of ourselves, “Incomparable, unchangeable, You see the depths of my heart and You love me the same You are amazing God!”
http://sci.esa.int/hubble/15345-x-structure-at-core-of-m51/
“You who bring good news to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring good news to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with a shout, lift it up, do not be afraid; say to the towns of Judah, “Here is your God!” See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power, and He rules with a mighty arm. See, His reward is with Him, and His recompense accompanies Him. He tends His flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart; He gently leads those that have young. Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand, or with the breadth of His hand marked off the heavens? Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales and the hills in a balance? Who can fathom the Spirit of the LORD, or instruct the LORD as His counselor? Whom did the LORD consult to enlighten Him, and who taught Him the right way? Who was it that taught Him knowledge, or showed Him the path of understanding? Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are regarded as dust on the scales; He weighs the islands as though they were fine dust. Lebanon is not sufficient for altar fires, nor its animals enough for burnt offerings. Before Him all the nations are as nothing; they are regarded by Him as worthless and less than nothing.”
I first got acquainted with the song “Indescribable” by Christian singer/songwriter Chris Tomlin https://youtu.be/sM5YReFSm0I through a talk of the same title by Louie Giglio. Louie talks about the vastness of the known universe and the special features it contains —from galaxies far, far away, to supernovae, black holes, quasars, and pulsars. Louie tells us of how these magnificent structures in the cosmos attest to how huge and unimaginably powerful God, its Creator and Designer is and that this sense of awe and wonder should cause us to praise God. Surely, “the heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day to day pours forth speech, And night to night reveals knowledge (Psa 19:1-2).” The song’s chorus sings, “Indescribable, uncontainable, You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name. You are amazing God.” Isaiah tells us the same here, that God is simply awesome in Himself, His works in History, and just how great He is. 19th Century German philosopher Immanuel Kant confessed, “two things fill the mind with ever new and increasing admiration and awe, the more often and steadily we reflect upon them: the starry heavens above me and the moral law within me. I do not seek or conjecture either of them as if they were veiled obscurities or extravagances beyond the horizon of my vision; I see them before me and connect them immediately with the consciousness of my existence.” The song’s chorus continues, “All powerful, untameable, Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim You are amazing God Indescribable, uncontainable, You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name. You are amazing God!” Which brings me back to Giglio, he said this vast God beyond all measure loves you and me, enough to create, design this marvellous landscape and bring forth sentient life made in His image (Gen 1:26), to build a relationship with us and to have sent His Son to relate to us and die for us when we rebelled and went our own way. He loves us so much, He carries us close to His heart (v. 11). Kant talks about an objective moral law within all of us, which, similar to the majesty of the cosmos, can only be ultimately explained by God, “for since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from His workmanship, so that people are without excuse (Rom 1:20).” No nation is so great, no mountain, no ocean, no feature in this vast expanse of galaxies can contain God, as if in passing, the Bible appears to casually tell us, “and God made the stars also” (Gen 1:16), “to Him these are less than nothing (v. 17). But God loves us, tiniest of creation compared to the entire universe, seemingly insignificant pale blue dot (Sagan), but God is interested in us; I am inclined to believe, with the fine-tuning of the cosmos as God designed it, it takes a universe to produce life, and God has placed in us, a piece of His infinite worth. The song ends with more praise, for His love in spite of ourselves, “Incomparable, unchangeable, You see the depths of my heart and You love me the same You are amazing God!”
http://sci.esa.int/hubble/15345-x-structure-at-core-of-m51/
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