It’s all relative

What are human beings, that you think of them; mere mortals, that you care for them? Yet you made them inferior only to yourself; you crowned them with glory and honour.  You appointed them rulers over everything you made; you placed them over all creation.  (verses 4-6)

Read Psalm 8

The most inhuman torture device ever developed is found in Douglas Adams’s series of books entitled The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Here we are introduced to the Relativity Chamber. The concept is simple. A person is placed in the chamber, and then the whole of the universe is laid out before them and they are made aware of just how insignificant they are in the vastness of space. The end result of this is a total mental collapse.

The psalm writer, when confronted with a similar situation, had a different response. He thought about the awesomeness of God and the inferiority of human beings. But he also saw how God gives them glory, honour and authority anyway. This was more than he could understand, and so he simply praised God.

So don’t worry about whether you understand it or not. The truth is that God gives you glory, honour and authority in his creation. You are capable and responsible. You are made in the image of God.

Thank you for making me your special creation and for caring for me, Lord. Amen.

by Tom Peitsch, in ‘Living Water for each Day’ (LCA, Openbook, 2001)

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