The LORD also thundered in the heavens, and the Highest gave his voice; hail stones and coals of fire.
Parallel translations
- WEB Yahweh also thundered in the sky. The Most High uttered his voice: hailstones and coals of fire.
- BSB The LORD thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High resounded—hailstones and coals of fire.
- NKJV The Lord thundered from heaven, And the Most High uttered His voice, Hailstones and coals of fire.
- NASB The Lord also thundered in the heavens, And the Most High uttered His voice, Hailstones and coals of fire.
- NLT The Lord thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High resounded amid the hail and burning coals.
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
Yahweh thunders from heaven as the Most High utters his voice. It matters because God's powerful voice in judgment defends his people.
Overview
David hears Yahweh thundering in the sky, the Most High lifting his voice amid hail and coals of fire. Thunder as God's voice signals his sovereign power directed against the wicked. The same God whose voice shakes the heavens speaks words of salvation and judgment that find their center in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Ps 104:7At thy rebuke they fled; at the voice of thy thunder they hasted away.
- 1 Sam 7:10And as Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel: but the LORD thundered with a great thunder on that day upon the Philistines, and discomfited them; and they were smitten before Israel.
- Ps 140:10Let burning coals fall upon them: let them be cast into the fire; into deep pits, that they rise not up again.
- Ps 29:3–4The voice of the LORD is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth: the LORD is upon many waters.
- Deut 32:24They shall be burnt with hunger, and devoured with burning heat, and with bitter destruction: I will also send the teeth of beasts upon them, with the poison of serpents of the dust.
- Hab 3:5Before him went the pestilence, and burning coals went forth at his feet.
- Exod 20:18And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off.
- Rev 19:6And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.
- Rev 4:5And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.
- Job 40:9Hast thou an arm like God? or canst thou thunder with a voice like him?
- Rev 8:5And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake.
- Ps 78:48He gave up their cattle also to the hail, and their flocks to hot thunderbolts.
- Ps 120:3–4What shall be given unto thee? or what shall be done unto thee, thou false tongue?
- John 12:29The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him.
- Ezek 10:5And the sound of the cherubims’ wings was heard even to the outer court, as the voice of the Almighty God when he speaketh.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 18:13 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.