What is mankind?

I love the psalms. Anytime I can dip into them for this blog, it’s a treat. They so beautifully reflect all the principles taught in God’s law, including the pro-life ethic.  We began this blog with a post on Psalms 8 and 144 . Psalm 8 is such a high note in the hymnbook, offering an exalted view of man—as being only a little lower than God or angels, as being above all other earthly creatures, as being especially noticed and cared for by God in all the vast universe of His creation—that the next two psalms in the psalter jar our senses with an abruptly negative view of mankind.  The awe-inspired question in Psalm 8, “What is man ?” is followed by Psalm 9’s desperate pleas: “do not let man prevail” and “let the nations know that they are but men .” Then Psalm 10 ends with an expression of longing for a time when “ man who is of the earth will no longer cause terror.” These phrases represent quite a shift in thought. What’s going on? How do 9 and 10 fit with 8? First of a...