Bible Strands
Psalms 29:9
The voice of the LORD twists the oaks and strips the forests bare. And in His temple all cry, “Glory!”
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The psalmist proclaims Yahweh's sovereign action immediately after describing His voice shaking the Wilderness of Kadesh and immediately before declaring His eternal enthronement over the flood. The address targets the covenant community witnessing the theophanic display.
The words — The Hebrew verb יְחוֹלֵל (yeḥōlēl) literally means "causes labor pains," describing the violent contraction forced upon the oaks. The phrase וַיְּחֱשֹׂף (wayyəḥĕśōp̄) translates to "stripped bare," detailing the complete removal of foliage from the forests.
The thread — This motif of creation's violent upheaval parallels the earth's transformation and toppling mountains in Psalms 46:2. The linguistic link to the doe bearing her fawn in Job 39:1 establishes a broader biblical pattern of nature's painful response to divine intervention.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to acknowledge that Yahweh dismantles natural stability before demanding corporate worship in His temple. It presents divine glory not as a passive attribute but as an active force that compels creation to respond.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
The voice of the Lord maketh the hinds to calve, and discovereth the forests: and in his temple doth every one speak of his glory.
Cross-references
- Psalms 46:2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth is transformed and the mountains are toppled into the depths of the seas,
- Job 39:1 “Do you know when mountain goats give birth? Have you watched the doe bear her fawn?
- Psalms 26:8 O LORD, I love the house where You dwell, the place where Your glory resides.
- Psalms 48:9 Within Your temple, O God, we contemplate Your loving devotion.
- Ezekiel 20:46 “Son of man, set your face toward the south, preach against it, and prophesy against the forest of the Negev.
- Psalms 134:1 A song of ascents. Come, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD who serve by night in the house of the LORD!
- Psalms 135:1 Hallelujah! Praise the name of the LORD. Give praise, O servants of the LORD,
- Isaiah 9:18 For wickedness burns like a fire that consumes the thorns and briers and kindles the forest thickets, which roll upward in billows of smoke.
- Isaiah 10:18 The splendor of its forests and orchards, both soul and body, it will completely destroy, as a sickness consumes a man.
- Psalms 63:2 So I have seen You in the sanctuary and beheld Your power and glory.