The Splendor of Jehovah’s Creation

“How Many Your Works Are, O Jehovah!”

WHETHER we live in the country or in a city, high up in the mountains or way down by the sea, we are surrounded by the awe-inspiring splendor of creation. Fittingly, the 2004 Calendar of Jehovah’s Witnesses features a panorama of Jehovah God’s astounding handiwork.

Appreciative humans have always concerned themselves with God’s works. For example, consider Solomon, whose wisdom “was vaster than the wisdom of all the Orientals.” The Bible says: “He would speak about the trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon to the hyssop that is coming forth on the wall; and he would speak about the beasts and about the flying creatures and about the moving things and about the fishes.” (1 Kings 4:30, 33) Solomon’s father, King David, often meditated on God’s masterpieces. He was moved to exclaim to his Maker: “How many your works are, O Jehovah! All of them in wisdom you have made. The earth is full of your productions.”​—Psalm 104:24. *

We too do well to observe and study creation. For instance, we might well “raise [our] eyes high up” and ask: “Who has created these things?” Why, it is Jehovah God, who has an “abundance of dynamic energy” and who truly is “vigorous in power”!​—Isaiah 40:26.

How should meditation on Jehovah’s creative works affect us? In at least three ways. It can (1) remind us to cherish our life, (2) move us to help others to learn from creation, and (3) impel us to get to know and appreciate our Creator more fully.

Our life as humans, far superior to that of “unreasoning animals,” enables us to observe and value the wonders of creation. (2 Peter 2:12) Our eyes can see the graceful landscape. Our ears can hear the melodious songs of birds. And our sense of time and place gives us reference points that become fond memories. Even though our present life is not perfect, it is definitely worth living!

Parents can enjoy their children’s natural fascination with creation. How children love to find shells on the seashore, to pet an animal, to climb a tree! Parents will want to help their young ones to see the connection between creation and the Creator. The awe and respect that children develop for Jehovah’s creation can stay with them throughout life.​—Psalm 111:2, 10.

We would be extremely shortsighted were we to admire the creation but fail to appreciate the Creator. Isaiah’s prophecy helps us to reflect on this very point when it says: “Have  you not come to know or have you not heard? Jehovah, the Creator of the extremities of the earth, is a God to time indefinite. He does not tire out or grow weary. There is no searching out of his understanding.”​—Isaiah 40:28.

Yes, Jehovah’s works give evidence of his peerless wisdom, his unrivaled power, and his deep love for us. When we see the beauty around us and discern the qualities of the One who made it all, may we be moved to echo David’s words: “There is none like you . . . , O Jehovah, neither are there any works like yours.”​—Psalm 86:8.

We can be assured that obedient humans will continue to be fascinated by Jehovah’s creative works. Throughout eternity, we will have endless opportunities to learn more about Jehovah. (Ecclesiastes 3:11) And the more we learn about him, the more we will come to love our Creator.

[Footnote]

[Box on page 9]

Praise for the Creator

Many appreciative scientists see the hand of God in creation. Following are a few examples:

“The significance and joy in my science comes in those occasional moments of discovering something new and saying to myself, ‘So that’s how God did it.’ My goal is to understand a little corner of God’s plan.”​—Henry Schaefer, professor of chemistry.

“As to the cause of the Universe, in context of expansion, that is left for the reader to insert, but our picture is incomplete without Him [God].”​—Edward Milne, British cosmologist.

“We know that nature is described by the best of all possible mathematics because God created it.”​—Alexander Polyakov, Russian mathematician.

“In our study of natural objects we are approaching the thoughts of the Creator, reading his conceptions, interpreting a system that is His and not ours.”​—Louis Agassiz, American biologist.

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Gentoo penguins, Antarctic Peninsula

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Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, U.S.A.

[Credit Line]

Jack Hoehn/Index Stock Photography