Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Psalms 18:7
Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations also of the hills moved and were shaken, because he was wroth.
7. The paronomasia of the original in the first line might be preserved by rendering, Then the earth did shake and quake.
the foundations &c.] Render: And the foundations of the mountains trembled. The strong mountains were shaken to their very bases. Cp. Isa 24:18; Hab 3:6. The text in 2 Sam. has “the foundations of heaven;” heaven as well as earth trembled. Its ‘foundations’ may be the mountains on which the vault of heaven seems to rest: cp. “the pillars of heaven” (Job 26:11): or more probably the universe is spoken of as a vast building, without any idea of applying the details of the metaphor precisely.
because he was wroth ] The coming of Jehovah for the deliverance of His servant is necessarily a coming for the judgment of His enemies; and ‘wrath’ is that attribute of God’s character which moves Him to judgment. Cp. Rev 6:16-17.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
7 15. Forthwith David’s prayer is answered by the Advent of Jehovah for the discomfiture of his enemies. He manifests Himself in earthquake and storm. The majestic though terrible phenomena of nature are the expression of His presence. Nature in its stern and awful aspect is a revelation of His judicial wrath. We may call this an ‘ideal’ description of a Theophany; for though it is possible that David refers to some occasion when his enemies were scattered by the breaking of a terrible storm (cp. Jos 10:11; Jdg 5:20 f.; 1Sa 7:10), we have no record of such an event having actually happened in his life; and in any case the picture is intended to serve as a description of God’s providential interposition for his deliverance in general, and not upon any single occasion. His power was exerted as really and truly as if all these extraordinary natural phenomena had visibly attested His Advent. Compare the accounts of the Exodus and the Giving of the Law. See Exo 19:16-18; Jdg 5:4-5; Psa 68:7-8; Psa 77:16-18: and cp. Psa 50:2 ff., Psa 97:2 ff., Psalms 114; Isa 29:6; Isa 30:27 ff; Isa 64:1 ff; Hab 3:3 ff.
Psalms 29 should be compared as illustrating David’s sense of the grandeur and significance of natural phenomena.
The earthquake ( Psa 18:7); the distant lightnings ( Psa 18:8); the gathering darkness of the storm ( Psa 18:9-11); the final outburst of its full fury ( Psa 18:12-15); are pictured in regular succession.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Then the earth shook and trembled – The description which follows here is one of the most sublime that is to be found in any language. It is taken from the fury of the storm and tempest, when all the elements are in commotion; when God seems to go forth in the greatness of his majesty and the terror of his power, to prostrate everything before him. We are not to regard this as descriptive of anything which literally occurred, but rather as expressive of the fact of the divine interposition, as if he thus came forth in the greatness of his power. There is no improbability indeed in supposing that in some of the dangerous periods of Davids life, when surrounded by enemies, or even when in the midst of a battle, a furious tempest may have occurred that seemed to be a special divine interposition in his behalf, but we have no distinct record of such an event, and it is not necessary to suppose that such an event occurred in order to a correct understanding of the passage. All that is needful is to regard this as a representation of the mighty interposition of God; to suppose that his intervention was as direct, as manifest, and as sublime, as if he had thus interposed. There are frequent references in the Scriptures to such storms and tempests as illustrative of the majesty, the power, and the glory of God, and of the manner in which he interposes on behalf of his people. See Psa 144:5-7; Psa 46:6-8; Psa 29:1-11; Job 37:21-24; Job 38:1; Nah 1:3; and particularly Hab 3:3-16. The description in Habakkuk strongly resembles the passage before us, and both were drawn doubtless from an actual observation of the fury of a tempest.
The foundations also of the hills moved – The mountains seemed to rock on their foundations. In the corresponding place in 2Sa 22:8 the expression is, The foundations of heaven moved and shook; that is, that on which the heavens seem to rest was agitated. Many suppose that the expression refers to the mountains as if they bore up the heavens; but DeWette more properly supposes that the reference is to the heavens as a building or an edifice resting on foundations. Why the change was made in revising the psalm from the foundations of the heavens to the foundations of the hills, it is impossible now to determine.
Because he was wroth – literally, Because it was inflamed (or enkindled) to him; that is, because he was angry. Anger is often compared to a raging flame, because it seems to consume everything before it. Hence, we speak of it as heated, as burning. So we say of one that he is inflamed by passion. The expression here is sublime in the highest degree. God seemed to be angry, and hence, he came forth in this awful manner, and the very earth trembled before him.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Psa 18:7
Then the earth shook and trembled.
Earthquakes, their moral suggestions
It is not for us to speculate concerning the physical causes of earthquakes. With the Bible in our hands we are privileged to regard the mightiest and the most destructive forces of nature as the ministers of His will who is wise in counsel, benevolent in purpose, and almighty in power.
I. The perilous condition of our earthly existence. Deep is the sense of insecurity which the earthquake strikes to our inward souls. But this is only one out of many perils that every moment threaten our destruction. This insecurity shows–
1. The absurdity of setting our affections on material good. Set your affection on things above.
2. The folly of postponing the preparation for eternity. How absurd to presume one minute upon the future, when every minute is uncertain.
II. The probability of a coming crisis in the history of our planet. Geology teaches that the subterraneous forces of the earth have effected wonderful crises in its history. It is only natural to suppose that the forces which swept away races that preceded them will one day sweep man from its sphere, and make the earth the habitation of other races of existences yet to be created. Science gives a testimony concerning a coming crisis that is positive and satisfactory. The Bible assures us that a crisis awaits the world (2Pe 3:1-18).
III. The element of severity in the Divine government. Storms, pestilences, famines, and earthquakes attest severity in the government of God.
1. The sinner deserves the severity.
2. The sinner requires the severity.
IV. The wisdom of seeking the Divine protection.
1. That protection can be obtained through a practical reliance on the mediation of Christ for acceptance.
2. The protection has been obtained. The ancient believers enjoyed it.
3. The protection secures from all danger. Then is God your protector? (Homilist.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 7. Then the earth shook and trembled] “In this and the following verses David describes, by the sublimest expressions and grandest terms, the majesty of God, and the awful manner in which he came to his assistance. The representation of the storm in these verses must be allowed by all skilful and impartial judges to be truly sublime and noble, and in the genuine spirit of poetry. The majesty of God, and the manner in which he is represented as coming to the aid of his favourite king, surrounded with all the powers of nature as his attendants and ministers, and arming (as it were) heaven and earth to fight his battles, and execute his vengeance, is described in the loftiest and most striking terms. The shaking of the earth; the trembling of the mountains and pillars of heaven; the smoke that drove out of his nostrils; the flames of devouring fire that flashed from his mouth; the heavens bending down to convey him to the battle; his riding upon a cherub, and rapidly flying on the wings of a whirlwind; his concealing his majesty in the thick clouds of heaven; the bursting of the lightnings from the horrid darkness; the uttering of his voice in peals of thunder; the storm of fiery hail; the melting of the heavens, and their dissolving into floods of tempestuous rain; the cleaving of the earth, and disclosing of the bottom of the hills, and the subterraneous channels or torrents of water, by the very breath of the nostrils of the Almighty; are all of them circumstances which create admiration, excite a kind of horror, and exceed every thing of this nature that is to be found in any of the remains of heathen antiquity. See Longinus on the Sublime, sec. 9, and Hesiod’s description of Jupiter fighting against the Titans, which is one of the grandest things in all pagan antiquity; though upon comparison it will be found infinitely short of this description of the psalmist’s; throughout the whole of which God is represented as a mighty warrior going forth to fight the battles of David, and highly incensed at the opposition his enemies made to his power and authority.
“When he descended to the engagement the very heavens bowed down to render his descent more awful, his military tent was substantial darkness; the voice of his thunder was the warlike alarm which sounded to the battle; the chariot in which he rode was the thick clouds of heaven, conducted by cherubs, and carried on by the irresistible force and rapid wings of an impetuous tempest; and the darts and weapons he employed were thunderbolts, lightnings, fiery hail, deluging rains, and stormy winds!
“No wonder that when God thus arose, all his enemies should be scattered, and those who hated him should flee before him.
“It does not appear from any part of David’s history that there was any such storm as is here described, which proved destructive to his enemies, and salutary to himself. There might, indeed, have been such a one, though there is no particular mention of it: unless it may be thought that something of this nature is intimated in the account given of David’s second battle with the Philistines, 2Sa 5:23-24. It is undoubted, however, that the storm is represented as real; though David, in describing it, has heightened and embellished it with all the ornaments of poetry. See Chandler, Delaney, and Lowth’s ninth Prelection.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Then God appeared on my behalf in a miraculous and glorious manner, and with the great terror and confusion of all mine enemies, which is here compared to an earthquake. The earthquake was so deep and violent, that it overthrew whole mountains by the roots; whereby he designs his lofty and potent enemies; such being oft compared to mountains, as Psa 46:2,3; 144:5; Isa 41:15, &c.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
7, 8. God’s coming described infigures drawn from His appearance on Sinai (compare De32:22).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Then the earth shook and trembled,…. As it did quickly after Christ called upon the Lord, and cried to his God upon the cross,
Mt 27:50; and so some time after, when his people were praying together, the place where they were assembled was shaken, Ac 4:31; as a token of God’s presence being with them: and the shaking and trembling of the earth is often used as a symbol of the presence of God, and of the greatness of his majesty; as when he brought the children of Israel through the Red sea, went before them in the wilderness, and descended on Mount Sinai, which mountain then moved and quaked exceedingly; see Ps 104:32; and it is easy to observe, that in this, and other parts of this majestic account of the appearance of God on the behalf of the person the subject of this psalm, and against his enemies, there are manifest allusions to the giving of the law on Mount Sinai; though it may be this shaking of the earth, and what follows, are to be understood in a figurative sense;
the foundations also of the hills moved and were shaken; and design the shaking of the earth and heavens, prophesied of in Hag 2:6; and which is explained in Heb 12:26; of the removing the ordinances of the ceremonial law, that Gospel ordinances might remain unshaken; for in 2Sa 22:8; the words are, “the foundations of heaven moved and shook”; and the shaking and moving of the earth and mountains may denote the abolition and destruction of kingdoms and nations; and first of the civil polity of the Jews, and of their ecclesiastical state, which quickly ensued upon the death of Christ; and next of the ruin of Rome Pagan, and then of Rome Papal; which are both signified by an earthquake, and by the removal of mountains, Re 6:12;
because he was wroth; with the people of the Jews, for disbelieving and rejecting the Messiah; for setting themselves, and taking counsel together against him, and putting him to death; for these things God was angry with them, and wrath came upon them to the uttermost, and their nation, city, and temple were destroyed, Ps 2:1; and with the Pagan empire and antichristian powers, Re 6:16.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(Heb.: 18:8-10) As these verses go on to describe, the being heard became manifest in the form of deliverance. All nature stands to man in a sympathetic relationship, sharing his curse and blessing, his destruction and glory, and to God is a (so to speak) synergetic relationship, furnishing the harbingers and instruments of His mighty deeds. Accordingly in this instance Jahve’s interposition on behalf of David is accompanied by terrible manifestations in nature. Like the deliverance of Israel out of Egypt, Ps 68; Ps 77, and the giving of the Law on Sinai, Ex 19, and like the final appearing of Jahve and of Jesus Christ according to the words of prophet and apostle (Hab 3; 2Th 1:7.), the appearing of Jahve for the help of David has also extraordinary natural phenomena in its train. It is true we find no express record of any incident in David’s life of the kind recorded in 1Sa 7:10, but it must be come real experience which David here idealises (i.e., seizes at its very roots, and generalises and works up into a grand majestic picture of his miraculous deliverance). Amidst earthquake, a black thunderstorm gathers, the charging of which is heralded by the lightning’s flash, and its thick clouds descend nearer and nearer to the earth. The aorists in Psa 18:8 introduce the event, for the introduction of which, from Psa 18:4 onwards, the way has been prepared and towards which all is directed. The inward excitement of the Judge, who appears to His servant for his deliverance, sets the earth in violent oscillation. The foundations of the mountains (Isa 24:18) are that upon which they are supported beneath and within, as it were, the pillars which support the vast mass. (rhyming with ) is followed by the Hithpa. of the same verb: the first impulse having been given they, viz., the earth and the pillars of the mountains, continue to shake of themselves. These convulsions occur, because “it is kindled with respect to God;” it is unnecessary to supply , is a synonym of . When God is wrath, according to Old Testament conception, the power of wrath which is present in Him is kindled and blazes up and breaks forth. The panting of rage may accordingly also be called the smoke of the fire of wrath (Psa 74:1; Psa 80:5). The smoking is as the breathing out of the fire, and the vehement hot breath which is inhaled and exhaled through the nose of one who is angry (cf. Job 41:12), is like smoke rising from the internal fire of anger. The fire of anger itself “devours out of the mouth,” i.e., flames forth out of the mouth, consuming whatever it lays hold of-in men in the form of angry words, with God in the fiery forces of nature, which are of a like kind with, and subservient to, His anger, and more especially in the lightning’s flash. It is the lightning chiefly, that is compared here to the blazing up of burning coals. The power of wrath in God, becoming manifest in action, breaks forth into a glow, and before it entirely discharges its fire, it gives warning of action like the lightning’s flash heralding the outburst of the storm. Thus enraged and breathing forth His wrath, Jahve bowed the heavens, i.e., caused them to bend towards the earth, and came down, and darkness of clouds ( similar in meaning to , cf. ) was under His feet: black, low-hanging clouds announced the coming of Him who in His wrath was already on His way downwards towards the earth.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
7. Then the earth shook. David, convinced that the aid of God, which he had experienced, was of such a character, that it was impossible for him to extol it sufficiently and as it deserved, sets forth an image of it in the sky and the earth, as if he had said, It has been as visible as the changes which give different appearances to the sky and the earth. If natural things always flowed in an even and uniform course, the power of God would not be so perceptible. But when he changes the face of the sky by sudden rain, or by loud thunder, or by dreadful tempests, those who before were, as it were, asleep and insensible, must necessarily be awakened, and be tremblingly conscious of the existence of a presiding God. (400) Such sudden and unforeseen changes manifest more clearly the presence of the great Author of nature. No doubt, when the sky is unclouded and tranquil, we see in it sufficient evidences of the majesty of God, but as men will not stir up their minds to reflect upon that majesty, until it come nearer to them, David, the more powerfully to affect us, recounts the sudden changes by which we are usually moved and dismayed, and introduces God at one time clothed with a dark cloud, — at another, throwing the air into confusion by tempests, — now rending it by the boisterous violence of winds, — now launching the lightnings, — and anon darting down hailstones and thunderbolts. In short, the object of the Psalmist is to show that the God who, as often as he pleases, causes all parts of the world to tremble by his power, when he intended to manifest himself as the deliverer of David, was known as openly and by signs as evident as if he had displayed his power in all the creatures both above and beneath.
In the first place, he says, The earth shook, and nothing is more dreadful than an earthquake. Instead of the words, the foundations of the mountains, it is in the song, as recorded in 2 Samuel, the foundations of the heavens; but the meaning is the same, namely, that there was nothing in the world so settled and steadfast which did not tremble, and which was not removed out of its place. David, however, as I have already observed in the beginning, does not relate this as a piece of history, or as what had actually taken place, but he employs these similitudes for the purpose of removing all doubt, and for the greater confirmation of faith as to the power and providence of God; because men, from their slowness of understanding, cannot apprehend God except by means of external signs. Some think that these miracles were actually wrought, and performed exactly as they are here related; but it is not easy to believe this, since the Holy Spirit, in the narrative given of David’s life, makes no mention whatever of such wonderful displays of divine power in his behalf. We cannot, however, justly censure or find fault with this hyperbolic manner of speaking, when we consider our slowness of apprehension, and also our depravity, to which I have just now called your attention. David, who was much more penetrating and quick of understanding than ordinary men, finding he could not sufficiently succeed in impressing and profiting people of sluggish and weak understandings by a simple manner of speaking, describes under outward figures the power of God, which he had discovered by means of faith, and the revelation of the Holy Spirit. He doubtless hereby apprehended and knew more distinctly the omnipresent majesty of God, than the dull sort of common people perceive the hand of God in earthquakes, tempests, thunders, the gloomy lowerings of the heavens, and the boisterous winds. At the same time, it is proper to consider, that although God had, in a wonderful manner, displayed his grace in defending and maintaining David, many, nevertheless, thought that it was by his own skill, or by chance, or by other natural means, that all his affairs had come to a prosperous issue; and it was such stupidity or depravity as this which he saw in the men of his own time, that constrained him to mention and to summon together all parts of creation as witnesses for God. Some also justly and judiciously consider that, in the whole of this description, David has an allusion to the common deliverance of God’s chosen people from Egypt. As God then designed and established that event to be a perpetual memorial, from which the faithful might learn that he was the guardian and protector of their welfare, so all the benefits which, from that period, he bestowed upon his people, either as a public body or as private individuals, were, so to speak, appendages of that first deliverance. Accordingly David, in other places as well as here, with the view of exalting the succor which God had granted to his people, sets forth that most memorable instance of the goodness of God towards the children of Israel, as if it were the archtype or original copy of the grace of God. And surely, while many, seeing him an exile from his country, held him in derision as a man expelled from the family of God, and many murmured that he had violently and unrighteously usurped the kingdom, he had good ground to include, under the deliverance which had been common to all the people, the protection and safety which God had afforded to himself; as if he had said, I have been wrongfully cast off as an alien or stranger, seeing God has sufficiently shown, in the deliverance which he has wrought for me, that by him I am owned and acknowledged to be a distinguished and valuable member of the Church. We see how the prophets, whenever they would inspire the people with the hope of salvation, call their thoughts back to the contemplation of that first covenant which had been confirmed by those miracles which were wrought in Egypt, in the passage through the Red Sea and in Mount Sinai. When he says, The earth trembled, because he was wroth, it is to be understood as referring to the ungodly. It is a form of speech which God often employs, to say, that, being inflamed with indignation, he arms himself to maintain the safety of his people against their persecutors.
(400) “ Il faut necessa ement que les gens qui auparavant estoyent comme endormis et stupides se resueillent et apprehendent qu’il y a un Dieu.” — Fr.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(7) The earth shook.The sudden burst of the storm is the Divine answer to the sufferers prayer. For similar manifestations comp. Psa. 68:7-8; Psa. 77:14-20; Amo. 9:5; Mic. 1:3; Hab. 3:4; but here the colours are more vivid, and the language more intense. In fact, the whole realm of poetry cannot show a finer feeling for nature in her wrath. We first hear the rumbling of the earth, probably earthquake preceding the storm (for volcanic phenomena of Palestine see Stanleys Sinai and Palestine, 124), or possibly only its distant threatening. Comp.
Earth groans as if beneath a heavy load.
BYRON.
Foundations also of the hills.In Sam., of the heavensi.e., the hills, called also the pillars of heaven (Job. 26:11).
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
7. Here begins the lofty description of David’s deliverances, continuing to Psa 18:20. The sublimity of his strain cannot be exceeded. The long years of his sufferings, his war’s, and his triumphs, come under one comprehensive glance. A traceable line of personal history is seen throughout, but the fulness of his descriptions are realized only by the Church in her struggles and victories. In this view, the psalm allies itself to the symbolism of the apocalypse.
Then When God answered his prayer and arose to judgment.
The earth shook and trembled The allusion here seems to be to Gen 19:25: “And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain:” an earthquake attended by an eruption, as modern geological observation attests.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
God Had Intervened On His Behalf ( Psa 18:7-19 ).
David’s description of God’s intervention portrays the situation from Heaven’s point of view. Little was necessarily seen on earth, but David was aware of the mightiness of God active on his behalf in powerful ways. He looked back to the experiences of his forebears, and remembered how God had revealed Himself then, and is confident that He will do so again (Exo 19:16-18; Jdg 5:4-5. Compare also Psa 68:7-8; Psa 77:16-18; Isa 29:6; Isa 30:27-30; Isa 64:1-3; Hab 3:3-6). He thinks of it in terms of a great and vivid storm and possibly a thundering earthquake, as YHWH’s power unfolds, but YHWH Himself is also seen as essentially there and active. He was thinking of the most powerful forces he knew with which to depict the powerful activity of God.
And through his times of tribulation he was confident that God was acting, and that unseen heavenly forces were intervening in his behalf. That was why he knew he could not fail. In the quietness of our lives we too can be sure that God is active in the same way. Thus we must trust Him and not be afraid.
Psa 18:7-8
‘Then the earth shook and trembled,
The foundations also of the mountains quaked,
And were shaken, because he was angry.
There went up a smoke from his nostrils,
And fire from his mouth devoured,
Coals were kindled by it.’
The fierceness of God’s anger over the treatment of His anointed is expressed in terms of the quaking earth and the mountains shaking to their very bases, in the thick, swirling clouds that sometimes come down to cover the earth and the fire and smoke resulting from bolts of lightning which start fierce fires on it, and the lightning that strikes the very ground. It is intended to be an awe-inspiring scene. As Saul sought to track down David and kill him he was oblivious to this. He was unaware of the vengeance he was bringing down on himself. To him the heavens seemed silent. God was pushed from his mind. What he overlooked was that the mills of God were grinding, and that though they ground slowly, they ground exceeding small, and with great power.
And the people of God knew that when they went through deep trials they too could know that, that while often nothing may seem to be happening, God had not forgotten them. Around them, though they cannot see it, are His thunders and His lightning as He reveals His anger against sin in the world. And God is ever building up to the final showdown when His people will finally triumph.
For the smoke compare Psa 18:15; Psa 74:1; Psa 80:4. The smoke from the nostrils may be intended to indicate the smoking breath of a wild animal, angry, steaming and intent on its adversary. Fire regularly indicates God’s anger (Psa 97:3; Exo 15:7; Deu 32:22; Heb 12:29).
Psa 18:9-10
‘He bowed the heavens also, and came down,
And thick darkness was under his feet,
And he rode on a cherub, and flew (‘swooped’),
Yes, he soared on the wings of the wind.’
God was in the midst of the invisible storm. The heavens bowed under His presence, as He descended to earth. Thick darkness was under His feet (Exo 19:16; Exo 20:21; 1Ki 8:12; Psa 97:2). All was power and awe and mystery, for the world was not to be allowed to see Him. God works in His own mysterious ways. He is not to be fathomed by man. When God ‘comes down’ that is the indication that He is about to act (Gen 11:7; Gen 18:21; Exo 3:8; Isa 64:1).
‘And he rode on a cherub, and flew. Yes, he soared on the wings of the wind.’ When God came it was on His transportable throne, borne by ‘a cherub’, probably a composite singular indicating all the heavenly escorts, the guardian cherubim that bear His throne (see Ezekiel 10 and compare Ezekiel 1). These heavenly beings were symbolised by a powerful wind, bearing YHWH along in majesty.
‘And flew.’ The word suggests the swooping of a bird of prey (Deu 28:49; Jer 48:40; Jer 49:22). The picture is vivid. It is as though God swooped down like the great eagle and then soared up again on the wings of the wind (Psa 104:3-4) having taken the prey. Victory was certain and would be His.
Psa 18:11-12
‘He made darkness his hiding-place, his pavilion round about him,
Darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies.
At the brightness before him his thick clouds produced,
Hailstones and coals of fire.’
Again the emphasis is on darkness, the darkness of hiddenness, of mysterious working. Darkness and thick clouds were His hiding place and His enveloping tent, His protection and His cover. Man cannot see God and live. But before Him within the cloud and darkness was the brightness of His majesty, which pierced the cloud cover and produced hailstones and thunderbolts, the missiles of God. God’s glory could not be fully hidden. His glory shone through and He smote as He would.
Psa 18:13-14
‘YHWH also thundered in the heavens,
And the Most High uttered his voice,
Hailstones and coals of fire.
And he sent out his arrows, and scattered them,
Yes, manifold lightnings, and discomfited them.
But having completed His first sally His activity went on. He thundered in the heavens, and ‘spoke’ as the Most High, accompanied again by hailstones and thunderbolts. And He sent out His lightnings like arrows, scattering His enemies, indeed so many were His lightnings that they were discomfited. For it was the time for deliverance.
Psa 18:15
‘Then the channels of waters appeared,
And the foundations of the world were laid bare,
At your rebuke, O YHWH,
At the blast of the breath of your nostrils.’
The scene is now pictured as like a great all prevailing flood of adversaries in which David is almost overwhelmed, a flood portraying the men of Saul, the armies of the Philistines, the other enemies round about, but when YHWH rebuked them and blew on them in His anger, channels appeared in the waters, and dry land appeared to ensure David’s safety. No flood could stand before the Almighty.
Here David had perhaps in memory the deliverance of Israel at the Sea of Reeds, in poetic form, when the mighty flood had swept back and made a way through for God’s people, only for it then to swamp the enemy (Psa 78:13-14; Psa 106:9; Exo 15:8; Nah 1:4, compare Psa 104:5-7).
Psa 18:16-19
‘He sent from on high, he took me,
He drew me out of many waters.
He delivered me from my strong enemy,
And from those who hated me,
For they were too mighty for me.
They came upon me in the day of my calamity,
But YHWH was my stay.
He brought me forth also into a large place,
He delivered me, because he delighted in me.’
He may well have had in mind here some particular incident when the rains had come suddenly, turning a quiet valley into a raging torrent before his eyes, catching men up in its irresistible stream and from which they had struggled to escape (compare Jdg 5:5; Jdg 5:20-21). He may himself have had an amazing escape from such. And he sees it as having been repeated in his deliverance from his foes.
So David had been delivered from enemies who at the time had seemed all-powerful. God had sent from on high and had drawn him from the midst of the many waters that would have overwhelmed him, delivering him from his strong enemy, and from all who hated him. All his foes had in the end been swept aside by YHWH.
He admits that at the time they had appeared too mighty for him, for they had come on him when he was weak and ill-prepared as a result of his flight. But he had found that YHWH was there. He had been his stay. And He brought him out into a large place, and delivered him, because He delighted in him. Things always look worse at the time than when we look back on them, having been delivered.
He was brought into ‘a large place’. No longer hemmed in and crowded, caught within narrow bounds, but free and triumphant, with the world at his feet, and space to move. So through YHWH’s power victory would eventually come out of seeming defeat, and triumph out of seeming disaster. Leaving those craggy mountains that had been his home for so long, and the dry dustbowl of the wildernesses where he had taken refuge, he would ascend the throne in glory and expand his kingdom from the River Euphrates in the north down to the Wadi of Egypt in the south. Everything would be transformed.
So all who sang the psalm were declaring that for all who trust in God there is a large place waiting for them if only they will persevere, as it had waited for David. Darkness may come first, they were declaring, but the morning will always follow.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Psa 18:7-15. Then the earth shook, &c. In this, and the eight following verses, David describes, by the sublimest expressions and grandest terms, the majesty of God, and the awful manner in which he came to his assistance. The representation of the storm, in these verses, must be allowed by all skilful and impartial judges to be truly sublime and noble, and in the genuine spirit of poetry. The majesty of God, and the manner in which he is represented as coming to the aid of his favourite king, surrounded with all the powers of nature as his attendants and ministers, and arming, as it were, heaven and earth to fight his battles, and execute his vengeance, are described in the loftiest and most striking terms. The shaking of the earth, the trembling of the mountains and pillars of heaven; the smoke which drove out of his nostrils; the flames of devouring fire which flashed from his mouth; the heavens bending down to convey him to the battle; his riding upon a cherub, and rapidly flying on the wings of a whirlwind; his concealing his majesty in the thick clouds of heaven; the bursting of the lightnings from the horrid darkness; the uttering his voice in peals of thunder; the storm of fiery hail; the melting of the heavens, and their dissolving into floods of tempestuous rains; the cleaving of the earth, and disclosing the bottom of the hills, and the subterraneous channels or torrents of water, by the very breath of the nostrils of the Almighty;are all of them circumstances which create admiration, excite a kind of horror, and exceed every thing of this nature that is to be found in any of the remains of heathen antiquity. See Longinus on the Sublime, sect. 9., and Hesiod’s description of Jupiter fighting against the Titans, which is one of the grandest things in all pagan antiquity, though, upon comparison, it will be found infinitely short of this description of the Psalmist; throughout the whole of which God is represented as a mighty warrior, going forth to fight the battles of David, and highly incensed at the opposition which his enemies made to his power and authority. When he descended to the engagement, the very heavens bowed down to render his descent more awful; his military tent was substantial darkness; the voice of his thunder was the warlike alarm which sounded to the battle; the chariot in which he rode were the thick clouds of heaven, conducted by cherubs, and carried on by the irresistible force and rapid wings of an impetuous tempest; and the darts and weapons that he employed were thunder-bolts, lightnings, fiery hail, deluging rains, and stormy winds! No wonder that, when God thus arose, all his enemies should be scattered, and those who hated him should flee before him! It does not appear, from any part of David’s history, that there was any such storm as is here described, which proved destructive to his enemies, and salutary to himself. There might indeed have been such a one, though there is no particular mention of it; unless it may be thought that something of this nature is intimated in the account given of David’s second battle with the Philistines, 2Sa 5:23-24. It is undoubted, however, that the storm is represented as real, though David, in describing it, has heightened and embellished it with all the ornaments of poetry: see Chandler, Delaney, and Lowth’s 9th Prelection.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
The sacred writer seems to have had in view the Lord’s descent on Mount Sinai, at the giving of the law. But surely we can discover that what he here delivered was under the spirit of prophecy, in reference to the triumphs of Jesus at his resurrection. Then the earthquake, and the other prodigies of that hour, testified the Lord’s displeasure at sin, and his perfect approbation of the redemption by Jesus, in raising him from the dead. Mat 28:2 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Psa 18:7 Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations also of the hills moved and were shaken, because he was wroth.
Ver. 7. Then the earth shook and trembled, &c. ] Upon David’s prayer all this befell; like as, Act 4:31 , the house shook wherein they were praying; and the thundering legion procured thunder and rain; and so did Samuel by his prayers, 1Sa 12:17-18 . But this terrible tempest here described is to be taken rather allegorically than historically. The prophet, in most lofty and lively terms and expressions (far above the strain of the most sublime either poets or orators), describeth God’s powerful presence and concurrence in David’s conquests.
The foundations also of the hills
Because he was wroth
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Psa 18:7-15
7Then the earth shook and quaked;
And the foundations of the mountains were trembling
And were shaken, because He was angry.
8Smoke went up out of His nostrils,
And fire from His mouth devoured;
Coals were kindled by it.
9He bowed the heavens also, and came down
With thick darkness under His feet.
10He rode upon a cherub and flew;
And He sped upon the wings of the wind.
11He made darkness His hiding place, His canopy around Him,
Darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies.
12From the brightness before Him passed His thick clouds,
Hailstones and coals of fire.
13The Lord also thundered in the heavens,
And the Most High uttered His voice,
Hailstones and coals of fire.
14He sent out His arrows, and scattered them,
And lightning flashes in abundance, and routed them.
15Then the channels of water appeared,
And the foundations of the world were laid bare
At Your rebuke, O Lord,
At the blast of the breath of Your nostrils.
Psa 18:7-15 This strophe describes God’s response to the psalmist’s prayer. God arouses Himself for action (i.e., [1] holy war imagery or [2] rises from His throne)!
1. in Psa 18:7 the distress of the faithful follower causes Divine anger (BDB 354, KB 351, Qal perfect, see Special Topic: GOD DESCRIBED AS HUMAN ). This burning anger (earthquake imagery, cf. Isa 29:6) is characterized in Psa 18:8 (i.e., thunderstorm imagery, cf. Deu 33:26; Isa 29:6). It is possible this imagery reflects Exo 19:18-19 (i.e., giving of the Mosaic covenant at Mt. Sinai).
2. YHWH’s response is characterized in the imagery of a thunderstorm in Psa 18:9-15.
a. bowed the heavens (cf. Isa 64:1). The REB revocalizes the phrase and has, He parted the heavens. This same imagery is reflected in Isa 34:4; Rev 6:12-14.
b. came down with thick darkness
c. darkness of waters
d. thick clouds of the skies
e. brightness before Him
f. hailstones and coals of fire
g. thundered in the heavens
h. lightning flashes
i. channels of water
In many ways this description alludes to the Shekinah cloud of glory during the wilderness wandering period, both hiding and revealing YHWH (cf. Exo 13:21-22; Exo 19:19-20; Exo 19:24; Exo 16:10; Exo 19:9; Exo 19:16; Exo 24:15-18; Exo 40:34-38).
Psa 18:7 the earth shook and quaked The interpretive question is, Is this literal or figurative?
1. literal their imagery of an earthquake as a sign of God’s coming presence, Exo 19:18; Psa 68:7-8
2. figurative a personification of the earth
a. the earth brought forth Gen 1:12; Gen 1:24
b. the earth swallowed them Exo 15:12; Num 16:34
c. the earth spewed out Lev 18:25; Lev 18:28; Lev 20:22
d. the earth opened its mouth Num 16:32; Num 26:10; Deu 11:6; Psa 106:17
e. the earth as a witness Deu 4:26; Deu 30:19; Deu 31:28; Deu 32:1
f. speak to the earth Job 12:8; Job 16:18; Psa 50:4
g. the earth will rise up against him Job 20:27
h. the earth cries out Job 31:38
i. the earth praises YHWH Psa 69:34
j. the earth rejoices Psa 96:11; Psa 97:1
k. the earth trembled Jdg 5:4; 1Sa 14:15; Isa 13:13
l. the earth mourns Isa 24:4; Isa 33:9; Hos 4:3
Psa 18:8 fire See Special Topic: Fire .
Psa 18:9 He. . .came down YHWH lives in heaven. His presence dwells between the cherubim on the ark of the covenant, but from time to time the Bible speaks of His coming to humans in special ways (i.e., theophanies, cf. Exodus 3). Exo 3:7-8 is a specific example of YHWH responding to His people’s need and acting on their behalf. In this context the imagery is described as a violent thunderstorm.
Psa 18:10-11 This describes YHWH in imagery of a thunderstorm. Rain was important for semi-desert dwellers but storms were frightening. In Israel’s history after they entered Canaan the Israelites became influenced by the fertility gods, especially Ba’al, the storm god, the giver of rain and fertility. However, the true storm god was YHWH (note the imagery of Exodus 19).
Psa 18:10 cherub Note parallel imagery in Psa 104:3. See Special Topic: Fertility Worship in the ANE.
SPECIAL TOPIC: CHERUBIM
Psa 18:11 He made darkness His hiding place In the OT to see YHWH meant death (cf. Gen 16:13; Gen 32:30; Exo 3:6; Exo 33:20; Jdg 6:22-23; Jdg 13:22; 1Ki 19:13; Isa 6:5; Act 7:32). The thick dark cloud was a way of protecting the Israelites (cf. Exo 19:9; Exo 20:21; Deu 4:11; Deu 5:23).
Psa 18:15 the foundations of the world This imagery is expressed as
1. the pillars of the earth 1Sa 2:8; Job 9:6; Job 38:4-6; Psa 75:3; Psa 104:5
2. the roots of the mountains Deu 32:22; Job 28:9; Jon 2:6
It is possible that Psa 18:15 is alluding to YHWH’s great act of deliverance in
a. prose Exo 14:21-22; Exo 14:29
b. poetry Exo 15:8; Psa 106:9
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
shook . . . trembled . . . shaken. Figure of speech Paronomasia. Hebrew vattig’ash, vattir’ash. Eng. = “shaked . . . quaked and shaked”, or “rocked and reeled”.
hills = mountains.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Psa 18:7-14
Psa 18:7-14
“Then the earth shook and trembled;
The foundations also of the mountains quaked
And were shaken because he was wroth.
There went up a smoke out of his nostrils,
And fire out of his mouth devoured:
Coals were kindled by it.
He bowed the heavens also, and came down;
And thick darkness was under his feet.
And he rode upon a cherub and did fly;
Yea, he soared upon the wings of the wind.
He made darkness his hiding place, his pavilion round about him,
Darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies.
At the brightness before him his thick clouds passed,
Hailstones and coals of fire.
Jehovah also thundered in the heavens,
And the Most High uttered his voice,
Hailstones and coals of fire.
And he sent out his arrows, and scattered them;
Yea, lightnings manifold, and discomfited them.”
This highly imaginative section suggests to this writer nothing quite so vividly as it does the final judgment of mankind. The Theophany, the coming of God Himself, the mighty earthquake, the mountains being moved (Rev 6:12-15), the great hail (Rev 16:21), the darkness (Rev 6:12), the death of the wicked (as indicated by God’s arrows), the salvation of the righteous (mentioned a little later) … all of these things are undoubtedly characteristic of the Final Judgment on the Great Day of God’s wrath; and they could not possibly refer to God’s judgment of David’s enemies except as tokens of the final judgment of Adam’s race. This interpretation of the section here also fits the drift of the psalm into Messianic significance a bit later.
E.M. Zerr:
Psa 18:1-50. I have made one paragraph of this whole chapter because it is practically identical with 2 Samuel 22. Detailed comments are made on the chapter which is at the regular place in this commentary and will not be repeated here. The reason for giving the comments at the other place is the fact that it came in more direct connection with the history belonging to it. I will call attention to one special circumstance in the differences between the two chapters. The statements that are placed as a heading here are included in the text in 2 Samuel 22. When the collection of the Psalms of David was made into one book, the one he wrote at the time of his conflicts with Saul and other enemies was brought and included in the document. Since the two occurrences of the psalm are alike, the reader of the commentary would have no advantage offered him were I to repeat the comments in this place. I therefore urge him to see my remarks in the other place.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
earth: Psa 114:4-7, Mat 28:2, Act 4:31, Act 16:25, Act 16:26
foundations: Psa 46:2, Deu 32:22, Jer 4:24, Eze 38:19, Eze 38:20, Hab 3:6, Hab 3:10, Zec 14:4, 1Co 13:2
Reciprocal: Jdg 5:4 – the earth 2Sa 22:8 – the earth Job 26:11 – pillars Psa 29:8 – shaketh Psa 50:3 – it shall Isa 5:25 – the hills Isa 24:18 – the foundations Isa 30:27 – burning Isa 42:15 – General Isa 64:1 – Oh that Jer 10:10 – at Eze 38:18 – that Joe 2:10 – earth Amo 8:8 – the land Nah 1:3 – his way Hab 3:5 – and Mat 27:51 – the earth
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
18:7 {d} Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations also of the hills moved and were shaken, because he was wroth.
(d) A description of the wrath of God against his enemies, after he had heard his prayer.