His lightning illuminates the world; the earth sees and trembles.
Parallel translations
- WEB His lightning lights up the world. The earth sees, and trembles.
- KJV His lightnings enlightened the world: the earth saw, and trembled.
- NKJV His lightnings light the world; The earth sees and trembles.
- NASB His lightning lit up the world; The earth saw it and trembled.
- NLT His lightning flashes out across the world. The earth sees and trembles.
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's lightning illumines the world, and the earth trembles at the sight. Creation itself responds in awe to its King.
Overview
The psalmist uses the storm imagery common in descriptions of God's majestic appearing, where lightning displays His power and the earth shakes in fear. Such language echoes Sinai and other theophanies, conveying that no part of creation is unmoved by God's presence. It calls readers to reverent fear before the One who governs the heavens and the earth.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Ps 77:18Your thunder resounded in the whirlwind; the lightning lit up the world; the earth trembled and quaked.
- Rev 11:19Then the temple of God in heaven was opened, and the ark of His covenant appeared in His temple. And there were flashes of lightning, and rumblings, and peals of thunder, and an earthquake, and a great hailstorm.
- Exod 19:16–18On the third day, when morning came, there was thunder and lightning. A thick cloud was upon the mountain, and a very loud blast of the ram’s horn went out, so that all the people in the camp trembled.
- Job 9:6He shakes the earth from its place, so that its foundations tremble.
- Ps 104:32He looks on the earth, and it trembles; He touches the mountains, and they smolder.
- Jer 10:10But the LORD is the true God; He is the living God and eternal King. The earth quakes at His wrath, and the nations cannot endure His indignation.
- Ps 144:5–6Part Your heavens, O LORD, and come down; touch the mountains, that they may smoke.
- Matt 27:50–51When Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, He yielded up His spirit.
- Rev 19:11Then I saw heaven standing open, and there before me was a white horse. And its rider is called Faithful and True. With righteousness He judges and wages war.
- Ps 96:9Worship the LORD in the splendor of His holiness; tremble before Him, all the earth.
- Ps 114:7Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob,
- Matt 28:2–3Suddenly there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, rolled away the stone, and sat on it.
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 97:4 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.