Though Psalm 104, a meditative hymn of creation, is unattributed in the Hebrew Masoretic Text, the Greek Septuagint translation names David as the author. This may have been reasoned on the basis of the psalm's apparent relationship with the previous psalm (103), the Masoretic superscription of which credits David. Note that David in Psalm 103 opens and closes with the exuberant self-exhortation to "Bless the LORD, O my soul!" (verses 1, 22) and that the same opening and closing is found in Psalm 104 (verses 1, 35), making it seem a continuation. There is a thematic relationship as well. Psalm 103 dwelt on God's benefits (verse 2), while Psalm 104 deals with God's provision through creation. Psalm 103 concluded with a call for praise of God issued to "all His works, in all places of His dominion" (verse 22). Psalm 104 then concerns God's works throughout His dominion in creation and "the fruit of [His] works" (verse 13). However, none of this is clear proof of Davidic authorship. For just as it would seem that later editors placed these psalms next to each other in the Psalter, it could also be that these editors, rather than David, copied the opening and closing of Psalm 103 over to the beginning and end of 104 to emphasize the continuity here.

In this song the psalmist follows to some degree the days of creation of Genesis 1. He starts out by describing the great God as clothed with honor, majesty and light (verses 1-2)—paralleling God's first recorded command in commencing the creation account, "Let there be light" (Genesis 1:3). God elsewhere declares that He is light and completely without darkness (1 John 1:5)—speaking not just of His radiant glory on the physical level but, in spiritual imagery, of His moral perfection.

Corresponding to the second day of Genesis 1, "the second creative act is 'the firmament' or 'the heavens' described here as a [curtain or] 'tent' [NIV] stretched out over the earth (cf. Isaiah 40:22). As a camper readily pitches his tent somewhere, so God without exertion prepared the earth for habitation" (Expositor's Bible Commentary, note on Psalm 104:2). Genesis 1:6-8 says that the firmament of heaven or the sky divided waters under it from waters above it. This division of upper and lower waters appears to distinguish between water vapor in the atmosphere and liquid waters of the seas and other bodies of water on the earth's surface. The imagery of God laying the beams of His "upper chambers" (or upstairs rooms) in the atmospheric waters (Psalm 104:3; compare verse 13) portrays Him as setting the lowest levels of the heavens, where He dwells, in the air above the earth.

Within this expanse God, in the person of Jesus Christ through whom God created all things (see John 1:1-3, John 1:14; Ephesians 3:9), traveled on "clouds" and "wind" (Psalm 104:3b). These words here may connote more than atmospheric conditions, as God later led Israel in the radiant cloud of His glory and the word for "wind" here is ruach,translated "Spirit" in Genesis 1:2: "And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters." Moreover, Psalm 104:4 uses the plural of ruach in describing the angelic hosts—“spirits." God created these spirit beings, brilliant like stars in flaming fire, as His "angels" (meaning messengers) and "ministers" (meaning servants). Note that both these terms were used to address them in the previous psalm (Psalm 103:20-21), showing a further tie between these two songs. Note also that Psalm 104:4 is quoted in Hebrews 1:7 to demonstrate the subordination of angels to Jesus Christ and later glorified members of God's divine family.

Continuing on the second day of Genesis 1, God next focused on the "waters under the heavens" (verse 9), gathering them into one place and uncovering the dry land. This was necessary because the land had earlier been covered by "the face of the deep" (verse 2). The cessation of this flooded condition is described in Psalm 104:5-9. Verse 6 tells us that the earth was "covered...with the deep" and that "the waters stood above the mountains"—though the mountains may have been much lower in elevation at that time, an idea we will consider further in a moment. The flooded condition of the earth was evidently a result of global calamity between the earth's initial creation and the six days of Genesis 1, which represent a renewal or re-creation of the earth and its life (see the Beyond Today Bible Commentary on Genesis 1).

Psalm 104:7 says that an order from God caused the waters to retreat. As translated in the NKJV and many other versions, verse 8 describes the waters going up over the mountains and flowing back down into the valleys. This translation, however, is unclear. The Revised Standard Version renders the verse this way: "The mountains rose, the valleys sank down to the place which thou didst appoint for them." This would imply major topographical changes as part of the reason for shifting waters. Many argue against this as a break in context—especially as the "they" in verse 9 for which God has set a boundary to prevent their returning to cover the earth is clearly the waters. However, it is possible that verse 8 is parenthetical and that the "they" in verse 9 refers back to the waters in verses 6-7.

Some see verse 9's reference to God setting a boundary against global flood (evidently the coastlines of the world) as referring to His covenant after the Flood of Noah's day (compare Genesis 9:11-15). However, it more naturally refers here to God's establishments of the coastlines in Genesis 1. Note that Psalm 104:9 does not say, “…that they may not ever return to cover the earth." Here the idea was probably "...that they could not return to cover the earth [on their own]." Later, in Genesis 9, God did state that the waters would never again destroy the world.

Rather than proceeding immediately to the next day in the Genesis 1 scheme, Psalm 104 next highlights the benefits of the fresh waters of the earth to the various creatures God later formed. Then the psalm moves to the third of the Genesis 1 days (verses 11-13), describing the production of grass and vegetation (Psalm 104:14). And again, before proceeding to the next day, the psalm describes the benefits of these things to later-created man and beast. Likewise, the psalm then moves to the fourth day of Genesis 1:14-19 regarding the appointment of the sun and moon to mark times and seasons—and again explains how these things serve animals and human beings (Psalm 104:19-23). In all this, we observe a connection with Psalm 103 in the recounting of God's benefits.

The psalmist here pauses for summary and praise: "O LORD, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all" (Psalm 104:24). He then resumes his reflection, proceeding to day five of Genesis 1, highlighting the creation of teeming life in the sea. This is a benefit to human beings plying ships in maritime commerce (verse 26). Leviathan (same verse) may be a literal sea monster—some have suggested a giant crocodile—but is apparently figurative in various passages of human empires or the power behind them, Satan the serpent of Genesis 3 (see the Beyond Today Bible Commentary on Job 41). Whichever is intended, all depend on God for existence—and they will play a role in fulfilling God's purposes despite themselves.

Psalm 104:27-28 shows that all the creatures mentioned thus far (some formed as late as the sixth day of creation week) are utterly reliant on God for their existence and sustenance. If God does not provide for them and sustain them, they die (verse 29). And God does allow this to happen—sometimes on a large scale, as the calamities of Genesis 1:2 and the Flood of Noah both attest. Yet even in such circumstances, God's providence continues—for He sends forth His Spirit, creates life once again and renews the face of the earth (Psalm 104:30). This could refer to the general cycle in which, as flora and fauna die, God provides new life to replace what returns to dust. However, in the context of the rest of this psalm, this verse may be directly referring to the six days of Genesis 1 as a period of renewal and re-creation on a global scale.

Considering the summary of the six days of creation through the psalm, it may be that the theme of the song's conclusion concerns the day intended to memorialize creation—the seventh-day Sabbath (Genesis 2:1-3), which also symbolizes the time of God's coming Kingdom (compare Hebrews 3-4). Note in verse 31 the desire for God's glory to endure forever and that God may rejoice in His works (both very much Sabbath themes). The Sabbath teaches us that in observing creation we must view it as subordinate to God Himself. Verse 32 reminds us that God "is so much greater than his creation that with a look or a touch he could undo it" (Zondervan NIV Study Bible, note on verse 32). The Sabbath calls for singing, praises, meditation and glad rejoicing (compare verses 33-34).

The statement "May sinners vanish from the earth and the wicked be no more" (verse 35) seems to be a wish rather than a curse on specific sinners. The psalmist envisions a world without the pollution of sin and wickedness. "The psalmist is not vindictive in his prayer against the wicked but longs for a world fully established and maintained by the Lord, without outside interference" (Expositor's, note on verse 35). This, too, is a powerful Sabbath theme as we look forward to God's Kingdom.

As previously mentioned, Psalm 104 closes just as it opens (and as 103 opens and closes): "Bless the LORD, O my soul!" There is good reason to believe that the next phrase, "Praise the LORD!," originally began the next psalm.