New King James Version
Psalms 97:4
4His lightnings light the world; The earth sees and trembles.
Psalms 97:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)His lightnings enlightened the world: the earth saw, and trembled.
- New International Version (NIV)His lightning lights up the world; the earth sees and trembles.
- English Standard Version (ESV)His lightnings light up the world; the earth sees and trembles.
- New Living Translation (NLT)His lightning flashes out across the world. The earth sees and trembles.
Context of Psalms 97:4
2Clouds and darkness surround Him; Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne. 3A fire goes before Him, And burns up His enemies round about. His lightnings light the world; The earth sees and trembles. 5The mountains melt like wax at the presence of the Lord, At the presence of the Lord of the whole earth. 6The heavens declare His righteousness, And all the peoples see His glory.
Read all of Psalms 97Psalms 97:4 word by word
הֵאִ֣ירוּ בְרָקָ֣יו תֵּבֵ֑ל רָאֲתָ֖ה וַתָּחֵ֣ל הָאָֽרֶץ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Psalms 97:4
- Psalms 77:18The voice of Your thunder was in the whirlwind; The lightnings lit up the world; The earth trembled and shook.
- Psalms 144:5Bow down Your heavens, O Lord, and come down; Touch the mountains, and they shall smoke.
- Exodus 19:16Then it came to pass on the third day, in the morning, that there were thunderings and lightnings, and a thick cloud on the mountain; and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled.
- Psalms 104:32He looks on the earth, and it trembles; He touches the hills, and they smoke.
- Psalms 114:7Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord, At the presence of the God of Jacob,
- Job 9:6He shakes the earth out of its place, And its pillars tremble;
- Jeremiah 10:10But the Lord is the true God; He is the living God and the everlasting King. At His wrath the earth will tremble, And the nations will not be able to endure His indignation.
- Matthew 27:50And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.
- Matthew 28:2And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it.
- Revelation 11:19Then the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple. And there were lightnings, noises, thunderings, an earthquake, and great hail.
- Revelation 19:11Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war.
Commentaries on Psalms 97:4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4His lightnings enlightened the world - Though this be no more than a majestic description of the coming of the Lord, to confound his enemies and succor his followers, yet some spiritualize the passage, and say, the lightnings signify the apostles, who enlightened the world by their heavenly doctrine. The earth saw, and trembled - The earth is represented as a sentient being. It saw the terrible majesty of God; and trembled through terror, fearing it…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4His lightnings enlightened the world - See the notes at Psalm 77:18. Compare Psalm 104:32; Habakkuk 3:6-10.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2-4Clouds … Fire … lightning: This language shows that the Lord is coming to judge.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 3-53-5. The attending illustrations of God's awful justice on enemies (Psa 83:14) are seen in the disclosures of His almighty power on the elements of nature (compare Psa 46:2; 77:17; Ha 3:6, &c.).Read the comment
Topics related to Psalms 97:4
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Psalms 97
- 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
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries