The Riddle of Psalm 104

Many examples of quote mining have been displayed within Creation Science over the years.  However, it is very surprising to actually see misuse of Biblical texts.

This sorry saga began around the time someone realized that for the entire Earth to be flooded, as in the story of Noah, a huge amount of water would be needed to cover the highest Earth structure (Mt Everest) by 15 cubits (Gen. 7:20).  This also posed a second problem, for unlike normal floods where water eventually flows out to sea, if the entire Earth was covered with water there would be nowhere for flood water to drain to.

The solution proposed by Young Earth Creationists was to move the land rather than the water. The argument is usually phrased as "The Bible says .... that as the flood ended the mountains lifted up and the valleys sank down and the water hasted away" [1]  But is this actually what the Bible says?

Obviously the first place to look would be in the Book of Genesis, but without success.  Genesis only refers to receding waters [e.g. Gen. 8:5  "And the waters decreased continually ...."].  

The search for Biblical support for moving mountains went further, all the way to the Book of Psalms.  The only verse Young Earth Creationists have claimed supports the "moving mountains" argument is Psalm 104:8.

Does Psalm 104 refer to the Flood and does verse 8 refer to "moving mountains"?

Table 1 shows that Psalm 104 is a general praising of God and Creation. Any mention of The Flood would be off topic.  The pertinent verses are in bold

Psalm 104 (NIV) [2]  

Comments

1 Praise the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, you are very great; you are clothed with splendour and majesty.

Opening praise

2 He wraps himself in light as with a garment; he stretches out the heavens like a tent
3 and lays the beams of his upper chambers on their waters. 

Praise of Creation of light and the Universe

3 (cont.) He makes the clouds his chariot and rides on the wings of the wind.
4 He makes winds his messengers, flames of fire his servants. 

Praise of Creation of clouds etc.

5 He set the earth on its foundations; it can never be moved.

Creation of the Earth itself (Geocentrism?)

6 You covered it with the deep as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains.
7 But at your rebuke the waters fled, at the sound of your thunder they took to flight;
8 they flowed over the mountains, they went down into the valleys, to the place you assigned for them.
9 You set a boundary they cannot cross; never again will they cover the earth. 

Creation of the oceans.

10 He makes springs pour water into the ravines; it flows between the mountains.
11 They give water to all the beasts of the field; the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 The birds of the air nest by the waters; they sing among the branches.
13 He waters the mountains from his upper chambers; the earth is satisfied by the fruit of his work

More references to the creation of water bodies.

14 He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate-- bringing forth food from the earth:
15 wine that gladdens the heart of man, oil to make his face shine, and bread that sustains his heart.
16 The trees of the LORD are well watered, the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.

Creation of plants

17 There the birds make their nests; the stork has its home in the pine trees.
18 The high mountains belong to the wild goats; the crags are a refuge for the coneys. 

Creation of animals within the biosphere

19 The moon marks off the seasons, and the sun knows when to go down.
20 You bring darkness, it becomes night, and all the beasts of the forest prowl.
21 The lions roar for their prey and seek their food from God.
22 The sun rises, and they steal away; they return and lie down in their dens.
23 Then man goes out to his work, to his labor until evening.

Creation of sun, moon, day and night

24 How many are your works, O LORD! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.
25 There is the sea, vast and spacious, teeming with creatures beyond number-- living things both large and small.
26 There the ships go to and fro, and the leviathan, which you formed to frolic there

More praise of oceans.

27 These all look to you to give them their food at the proper time.
28 When you give it to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are satisfied with good things.
29 When you hide your face, they are terrified; when you take away their breath, they die and return to the dust.
30 When you send your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the earth.
31 May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the LORD rejoice in his works--
32 he who looks at the earth, and it trembles, who touches the mountains, and they smoke.
33 I will sing to the LORD all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.
34 May my meditation be pleasing to him, as I rejoice in the LORD.
35 But may sinners vanish from the earth and the wicked be no more. Praise the LORD, O my soul. Praise the LORD.

General praises and concluding remarks

 

Table 2 shows the strong correlation of Psalm 104 with the Creation Week. [2]

Psalms 104:6-9 (NIV)

Genesis 1:6-10 (NIV)

You covered it with the deep as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains.

 

But at your rebuke the waters fled, at the sound of your thunder they took to flight; they flowed over the mountains, they went down into the valleys, to the place you assigned for them.

And God said, "Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water."  

 You set a boundary they cannot cross; never again will they cover the earth.

So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so. God called the expanse "sky." And there was evening, and there was morning - the second day. And God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear."  And it was so.  God called the dry ground "land," and the gathered waters he called "seas."   And God saw that it was good.

 

However, there is a strange divergence between versions of the Bible.  For overall research I used the King James Version because this version has been generally agreed by Young Earth Creationists to be accurate.  I have used the New International Version for more lengthy texts because its modern language is easier to read.  Both these popular versions agree the waters were moving and not the mountains.   However, other versions of the Bible have changed Psalm 104:8 to indicate the mountains were moving rather than the "waters". 

Table 3 shows the comparison of the different translations of Psalm 104:8.  Remember "they" refers to the "waters".  You will notice that those translations which suggest mountains moving are compiled using non literal translation methods, usually by Evangelicals from the United States of America (the ideological base of Young Earth Creationism).
 

The waters moved [2]

The mountains and valleys moved [2]

King James Version

They go up by the mountains; they go down by the valleys unto the place which thou hast founded for them.
 

New Living Translation

Mountains rose and valleys sank to the levels you decreed. 
 

New International Version

they flowed over the mountains, they went down into the valleys, to the place you assigned for them.

New American Standard Bible

The mountains rose; the valleys sank down To the place which You established for them.
 

New King James Version

They went up over the mountains; They went down into the valleys, To the place which You founded for them.
 

Revised Standard Version

The mountains rose, the valleys sank down to the place which thou didst appoint for them.
 

21st Century King James Version

They go up by the mountains; they go down by the valleys unto the place which Thou hast founded for them
 

Darby Translation

The mountains rose, the valleys sank, unto the place which thou hadst founded for them
 

Young's Literal Translation

They go up hills -- they go down valleys, Unto a place Thou hast founded for them. 
 

Douay-Rheims [5]

The mountains ascend, and the plains descend into the place which thou hast founded for them. 

New Revised Standard Version  [3]

They rose up to the mountains, ran down to the valleys to the place that you appointed for them.
 

American Standard [5]

(The mountains rose, the valleys sank down) Unto the place which thou hadst founded for them. 

Contemporary English Version [4]

down the mountains and through the valleys to the place you prepared.
 

.

Good News Translation [4]

They flowed over the mountains and into the valleys, to the place you had made for them.
 

.

Webster's Bible [5]

They go up by the mountains; they go down by the valleys to the place which thou hast founded for them. 
 

.

 

In conclusion, we can see that Psalm 104 does not support the Young Earth Creationist claim for the following reasons;

 

[1]  Said by Kent Hovind circa 2001 http://www.drdino.com/cse.asp?pg=faq&specific=22

[2]  Unless indicated otherwise, all Biblical quotes are sourced from http://bible.gospelcom.net/

[3]  Sourced from http://www.devotions.net/bible/00bible.htm

[4]  American Bible Society

[5]  The Unbound Bible