He sends forth His word and melts them; He unleashes His winds, and the waters flow.
Parallel translations
- WEB He sends out his word, and melts them. He causes his wind to blow, and the waters flow.
- KJV He sendeth out his word, and melteth them: he causeth his wind to blow, and the waters flow.
- NKJV He sends out His word and melts them; He causes His wind to blow, and the waters flow.
- NASB He sends His word and makes them melt; He makes His wind blow, and the waters flow.
- NLT Then, at his command, it all melts. He sends his winds, and the ice thaws.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God sends His word, melts the ice, and makes the waters flow. The same word that freezes also thaws and renews.
Overview
By His word God reverses winter, melting the frost and releasing the waters with a warm wind. His command governs every season's change. This sovereign, life-giving word reflects the One whose word brings spiritual thaw and renewal to frozen hearts.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Ps 147:15He sends forth His command to the earth; His word runs swiftly.
- Ps 33:9For He spoke, and it came to be; He commanded, and it stood firm.
- Job 37:10By the breath of God the ice is formed and the watery expanses are frozen.
- Job 6:16–17darkened because of the ice and the inflow of melting snow,
- Job 37:17You whose clothes get hot when the land lies hushed under the south wind,
- Ps 107:20He sent forth His word and healed them; He rescued them from the Pit.
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.
How Psalms 147:18 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.