What Does Psalm 29:3 Mean in the King James?
The voice of the LORD is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth: the LORD is upon many waters.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The thunder is the voice of divine weight moving over the waters.
THE MEANING
The verse places the LORD’s voice over the waters and makes that presence audible as thunder. The God of weight is present above the many waters, and the sound carries across the scene.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It undoes the belief that the overwhelming force around you is the highest power in the scene.
THE ROOT
כָּבוֹד
kavod
GROWS FROM
כבד
k-b-d
To be heavy or weighty.
The word translated “glory” grows from the root for weight. The verse gives that weight an audible force: the God of weight thunders over the waters.
ALSO GROWS
kaved: Heavy, weighty.
כָּבֵד
This branch makes the physical sense of kavod visible: glory carries weight.
kavod: Weight, honor, glory.
כָּבוֹד
These meanings stay together in the verse: divine glory is a presence with weight.
הִרְעִים
hir'im
GROWS FROM
רעם
r-'-m
To thunder or roar.
“thundereth” in this verse is hir'im. This root makes the sound a thunderous action, not merely a display in the sky. Set beside “voice,” it lets the thunder be heard as the force of the LORD’s sound.
ALSO GROWS
ra'am: Thunder.
רַעַם
The noun names the sound that the verb in this verse makes.
ra'am: To thunder or roar.
רָעַם
This verbal branch shows thunder as an active sound moving through the scene.
קוֹל
qol
GROWS FROM
קול
q-w-l
Voice or sound.
Qol can mean a voice, a sound, or a noise; English “voice” narrows what the Hebrew lets you hear. Here that sound stands beside thunder and over many waters.
ALSO GROWS
qol: Voice.
קוֹל
This is the word in the verse, presenting the LORD’s sound as a voice.
qolot: Voices or sounds.
קוֹלוֹת
The plural form keeps the broader range of sound in view, beyond spoken words alone.
THE PATTERN
The divine voice carries the force of thunder and the breadth of many waters.
The voice of thy thunder was in the heaven: the lightnings lightened the world: the earth trembled and shook.And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east: and his voice was like a noise of many waters: and the earth shined with his glory.And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters.THE THREAD
The LORD also thundered in the heavens, and the Highest gave his voice; hail stones and coals of fire.Psalm 18 uses the same רעם (ra’am) root for “thundered,” then says the Highest gives his voice. That pairing lets Psalm 29’s thunder be heard as the force of the voice over the waters.
Read the SDV Bible.
Every verse has a Deep Dive in the app.
The iPhone Bible app with the Selah Decoded Version.
Does something in this reading look wrong? Tell us