Psalms 104:3

104:3 and lays the beams of the upper rooms of his palace on the rain clouds. ¹ 

He makes the clouds his chariot,

and travels along on the wings of the wind. ² 

Psalms 104:13

104:13 He waters the mountains from the upper rooms of his palace; ³ 

the earth is full of the fruit you cause to grow. ⁴ 

[104:3]  ¹ tn Heb “one who lays the beams on water [in] his upper rooms.” The “water” mentioned here corresponds to the “waters above” mentioned in Gen 1:7. For a discussion of the picture envisioned by the psalmist, see L. I. J. Stadelmann, The Hebrew Conception of the World, 44-45.

[104:3]  ² sn Verse 3 may depict the Lord riding a cherub, which is in turn propelled by the wind current. Another option is that the wind is personified as a cherub. See Ps 18:10 and the discussion of ancient Near Eastern parallels to the imagery in M. Weinfeld, “‘Rider of the Clouds’ and ‘Gatherer of the Clouds’,” JANESCU 5 (1973): 422-24.

[104:13]  ³ tn Heb “from his upper rooms.”

[104:13]  ⁴ tn Heb “from the fruit of your works the earth is full.” The translation assumes that “fruit” is literal here. If “fruit” is understood more abstractly as “product; result,” then one could translate, “the earth flourishes as a result of your deeds” (cf. NIV, NRSV, REB).