English Standard Version
Psalms 18:11
11He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him, thick clouds dark with water.
Psalms 18:11 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)He made darkness his secret place; his pavilion round about him were dark waters and thick clouds of the skies.
- New International Version (NIV)He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him— the dark rain clouds of the sky.
- New King James Version (NKJV)He made darkness His secret place; His canopy around Him was dark waters And thick clouds of the skies.
- New Living Translation (NLT)He shrouded himself in darkness, veiling his approach with dark rain clouds.
Context of Psalms 18:11
9He bowed the heavens and came down; thick darkness was under his feet. 10He rode on a cherub and flew; he came swiftly on the wings of the wind. He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him, thick clouds dark with water. 12Out of the brightness before him hailstones and coals of fire broke through his clouds. 13The Lord also thundered in the heavens, and the Most High uttered his voice, hailstones and coals of fire.
Read all of Psalms 18Psalms 18:11 word by word
יָ֤שֶׁת חֹ֨שֶׁךְ׀ סִתְר֗וֹ סְבִֽיבוֹתָ֥יו סֻכָּת֑וֹ חֶשְׁכַת־מַ֝֗יִם עָבֵ֥י שְׁחָקִֽים׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- He madeשִׁיתshîyth · to set: makeH7896
- darknessחֹ֫שֶׁךְchôshek · darknessH2822
- his secret placeסֵ֫תֶרsêther sithrâh · secrecyH5643
- his pavilionסֻכָּהsûkkâh · boothH5521
- round aboutסָבִיבsâbîyb sebîybâh · aroundH5439
- darkחֶשְׁכָהcheshkâh · darkH2824
- watersמַיmayim · waterH4325
- thick cloudsעָב‛âb · cloudH5645
- of the skiesשַׁ֫חַקshachaq · cloudH7834
Cross-references for Psalms 18:11
- Psalms 27:5For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble; he will conceal me under the cover of his tent; he will lift me high upon a rock.
- Psalms 81:7In distress you called, and I delivered you; I answered you in the secret place of thunder; I tested you at the waters of Meribah. Selah
- Psalms 91:1He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
- Psalms 97:2Clouds and thick darkness are all around him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.
- Deuteronomy 4:11And you came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, while the mountain burned with fire to the heart of heaven, wrapped in darkness, cloud, and gloom.
- Joel 2:2a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness! Like blackness there is spread upon the mountains a great and powerful people; their like has never been before, nor will be again after them through the years of all generations.
Commentaries on Psalms 18:11
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 11He made darkness his secret place - God is represented as dwelling in the thick darkness, Deuteronomy 4:11; Psalm 97:2. This representation in the place before us is peculiarly proper; as thick heavy clouds deeply charged, and with lowering aspects, are always the forerunners and attendants of a tempest, and greatly heighten the horrors of the appearance: and the representation of them, spread about the Almighty as a tent, is truly grand and poetic. Dark…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 11He made darkness his secret place - Herder has beautifully rendered this verse, “Now he wrapped himself in darkness; Clouds on clouds enclosed him round.” The word rendered “secret place” - סתר sêther - means properly a hiding; then something hidden, private, secret. Hence, it means a covering, a veil. Compare Job 22:14; Job 24:15. In Psalm 81:7 it is applied to thunder: “I answered thee in the secret place of thunder;” that is, in the secret place or…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 9-11The Lord rules over all of nature (see Psalm 104:2–4; 148:5–6).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1111. dark waters--or, clouds heavy with vapor.Read the comment
Topics related to Psalms 18:11
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Psalms 18
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- The Treasury of David
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
English Standard Version — © 2001 Crossway Bibles
Commentaries