Psalm 136 on God's creation

Psalm 136:4 to him who alone does great wonders,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
5 to him who by understanding made the heavens,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
6 to him who spread out the earth above the waters,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
7 to him who made the great lights,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
8 the sun to rule over the day,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
9 the moon and stars to rule over the night,
for his steadfast love endures forever; (ESV)

I was struck by this passage during my daily Bible reading recently. There were two ideas, in particular. The first is that verse 6 says that God made the heavens (and presumably everything else -- this is poetry, after all) by understanding.

The second idea is that the Psalmist seems to think that God's love was the motivation for creation. (It was also the motivation for a lot of other things. The Psalm has 26 verses, and they all end with the same phrase, "for his steadfast love endures forever.")

The 26th verse closes in a most fitting manner:
26 Give thanks to the God of heaven,
for his steadfast love endures forever.

Thanks for reading!