Psalms 136:9

But what means, "who alone does great wonders"? Is it because many wonderful things He has done by means of angels and men? Some wonderful things there are which God does alone, and these he enumerates, saying, "who by His wisdom made the heavens" [Psalm 136:5], "who stretched out the earth above the waters" [Psalm 136:6], "who alone made great lights" [Psalm 136:7]. For this reason did he add "alone" in this verse also, because the other wonders which he is about to tell of, God did by means of man. For having said, "who alone made great lights," he goes on to explain what these are, "the sun to rule the day" [Psalm 136:8], "the moon and stars to govern the night" [Psalm 136:9]; then he begins to tell the wonders which He did by means of angels and men: "who smote Egypt with their first-born" [Psalm 136:10], and the rest. The whole creation then God manifestly made, not by means of any creature, but "alone;" and of this creation he has mentioned certain more eminent parts, that they might make us think on the whole; the heavens we can understand, and the earth we see. And as there are visible heavens too, by mentioning the lights in them, he has bid us look on the whole body of the heavens as made by Him.

13 To him which divided the Red sea into parts: for his mercy endureth for ever: 14 And made Israel to pass through the midst of it: for his mercy endureth for ever: 15 But overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red sea: for his mercy endureth for ever. 16 To him which led his people through the wilderness: for his mercy endureth for ever.

quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture

The moon and stars to rule by night. No hour is left without rule. Blessed be God, he leaves us never to the doom of anarchy. The rule is one of light and benediction. The moon with her charming changes, and the stars in their fixed spheres gladden the night. When the season would be dark and dreary because of the absence of the sun, forth come the many minor comforters. The sun is enough alone; but when he is gone a numerous band cannot suffice to give more than a humble imitation of his radiance. Jesus, the Sun of Righteousness, alone, can do more for us than all his servants put together. He makes our day. When he is hidden, it is night, and remains night, let our human comforters shine at their full. What mercy is seen in the lamps of heaven gladdening our landscape at night! What equal mercy in all the influences of the moon upon the tides, those life floods of the earth! The Lord is the Maker of every star, be the stars what they may; he calleth them all by their names, and at his bidding each messenger with his torch enlightens our darkness. For his mercy endureth for ever. Let our thanks be as many as the stars, and let our lives reflect the goodness of the Lord, even as the moon reflects the light of the sun. The nightly guides and illuminators of men on land and sea are not for now and then, but for all time. They shone on Adam, and they shine on us. Thus they are tokens and pledges of undying grace to men; and we may sing with our Scotch friends—

The moon and stars to rule by night. No hour is left without rule. Blessed be God, he leaves us never to the doom of anarchy. The rule is one of light and benediction. The moon with her charming changes, and the stars in their fixed spheres gladden the night. When the season would be dark and dreary because of the absence of the sun, forth come the many minor comforters. The sun is enough alone; but when he is gone a numerous band cannot suffice to give more than a humble imitation of his radiance.

The moon and stars to rule by night - Gen 1:16. For his mercy ... - As a proof also of his benignity and mercy. By all the beauty of the moon and stars in their course through the heavens - by all that there is in the harmony and order of their movements - by all that there is to make night less hideous and fearful - by all that there is to reveal a countless number of worlds whose existence could not have been discovered but for the night - by all that there is to guide the mariner on the ocean, enabling him to determine his position and to mark his course when on the deep - and therefore by all the blessings of navigation and commerce, binding the different parts of the world together, by all that there is in the “North-star,” fixed and true in guiding those who flee from bondage - by all these and kindred things without number, do we see the benignity, the goodness, the mercy of God, in forming the moon and stars “to rule by night.”