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by
Doug Ward |
These are exciting times for students of the Bible. Today we have at our
fingertips a large and growing body of knowledge about both ancient Israel and
Second Temple Judaism, and we can draw upon the biblical and theological
insights of our predecessors in the faith. With such riches at our disposal, we
can study the Scriptures profitably from multiple perspectives.
As
an example of what I mean, consider Psalm 29, a song of praise to the God of Israel.
This song calls upon the heavenly host to declare God's glory and strength,
which are displayed through the sights and sounds of a thunderstorm. God's
lordship over the waters demonstrates his rulership of the universe, and as
king he can be counted upon to strengthen and bless his people.
Archaeological
discoveries have enhanced our understanding of the background and setting of
Psalm 29. Beginning in 1928, archaeologists uncovered the remains of the
ancient city of Ugarit on the Mediterranean coast of northern Syria. The finds
there included thousands of clay tablets inscribed in a Semitic language
considered to be a relative of biblical Hebrew.
Among
the tablets were poetic texts celebrating the exploits of the storm god Baal.
They picture Baal as provider of rain, rider of clouds, and wielder of thunder
and lightning. One of these texts says of Baal, "His holy voice causes the
earth to tremble; at the outpouring of his lips, the mountains take fright ...
the high places of the earth totter."1
This passage reminds us of parts of Psalm 29.
Scripture
tells us that the ancient Israelites often succumbed to the temptation to
worship Baal alongside YHWH (e.g., Jdg 2:11-13). The parallels between the poem
about Baal and Psalm 29 suggest that this psalm was written, in part, to
declare that the God of Israel, rather than Baal, is the real bringer of storms
and Lord over all creation.
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God's
Voice in Past, Present, and Future |
A second helpful approach to the study of Psalm 29 considers this psalm in the
overall context of the Bible and its story of salvation. The psalm poetically
alludes to the mighty works of God associated with the voice of God. One
example is in Isaiah 30:31: "The Assyrians will be terror-stricken at the
voice of the Lord, when he strikes with his rod." The Greek Church father
Theodore of Mopsuestia (c 350-428 AD) associated Psalm 29 with the miraculous
rescue of the Kingdom of Judah from the armies of the Assyrians in 701 BC (Isa
36-37). He related the "cedars" in verse 5 to the Assyrian forces
(see Eze 31:3), and the wilderness in verse 8a to the land laid waste by the
Assyrians before God defeated them.2
At
Mount Sinai God spoke in thunder from the midst of fire (Ex 19:18-19; Dt 5:26).
Verses 3 and 7 of Psalm 29) remind us of God's fiery revelation during Israel's
exodus and sojourn in the "wilderness of Kadesh" (29:8b). Because of
this imagery, Psalm 29 is associated with both Pentecost and Sukkot, the Feast
of Tabernacles. The psalm goes well with the prayers for rain that accompanied
the water libation ceremony at Sukkot during the Second Temple Period. In that
ceremony a priestly procession circled the altar seven times, corresponding to
the seven times the voice of God is mentioned in the psalm.
God
creates through his Word, so his voice in Psalm 29 can also be related to
creation. God's voice "over the waters" in Psalm 29:3 reminds us of
the Spirit "hovering over the face of the waters" in Genesis 1:2. The
Jewish commentator Rashbam (1083-1174 AD) connected the imagery of Psalm 29 to
the days of creation. He linked the cedars of verse 5 with Day 3, the flames in
verse 7 with Day 4, and the deer giving birth in verse 9 with Day 6, for
example.
Moreover,
God's future eschatological works may be in view in Psalm 29, as was observed
by another Jewish commentator, David Kimchi (1160-1235 AD). For example,
Ezekiel 38:22 describes God and Magog being punished with "torrential rain
and hailstones, fire and sulfur," imagery like that in Psalm 29.
Christians can point to the "seven thunders" of judgment in
Revelation 10:3-4, which remind us of the sevenfold revelation of God's
thundering voice in the psalm. Both Christians and Jews note that the works of
God in Psalm 29 culminate with a final blessing of peace (Ps 29:11).
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Baptism,
Preaching, and Prayer |
Christian interpreters frequently have associated Psalm 29:3a ("the voice
of God is over the waters") with the heavenly voice that spoke at the
baptism of Jesus. When Jesus' baptism is commemorated during the season of
Epiphany, the liturgy includes Psalm 29. Psalm 29:3 traditionally is also seen
as an affirmation that God consecrates the waters of Christian baptism.
Christian
tradition views the preaching of Christ and the apostles as a further
manifestation of God's voice in the world. That preaching leads people to the
waters of baptism (v 3) and humbles the proud, symbolized by the breaking
cedars in verse 5. Kadesh in verse 8 is the scene of God's provision of water
in Numbers 20, symbolizing the living waters supplied by Jesus the Messiah (1
Co 10:4; Jn 7:37-39).
As
we have seen, Psalm 29 has been linked with a wide range of God's mighty works.
Appropriately, God's name is mentioned eighteen times in the psalm,
corresponding to the traditional eighteen benedictions in Jewish daily prayers.
A midrash on Psalm 29 makes this connection.3
Abundant
resources are available to today's Bible students. The work of historians and
archaeologists gives us valuable background information on the ancient context
of scripture. Commentators, past and present, help us connect passages and see
them in their full biblical context. When we apply these tools to a rich poetic
text like Psalm 29, we can hear God's voice with stereophonic beauty and
clarity.
1See Chapter 10 of Psalm
29 through Time and Tradition, Lowell K. Handy, editor, Pickwick
Publications, 2008.
2Psalm 29 through
Time and Tradition, Chapter 5.
3Psalm
29 through Time and Tradition, Chapter 4.
File
translated from TEX by TTH,
version 3.66.
On 16 Feb 2026, 14:24.
