Psalm 18:12
New International Version
Out of the brightness of his presence clouds advanced, with hailstones and bolts of lightning.

New Living Translation
Thick clouds shielded the brightness around him and rained down hail and burning coals.

English Standard Version
Out of the brightness before him hailstones and coals of fire broke through his clouds.

Berean Standard Bible
From the brightness of His presence His clouds advanced—hailstones and coals of fire.

King James Bible
At the brightness that was before him his thick clouds passed, hail stones and coals of fire.

New King James Version
From the brightness before Him, His thick clouds passed with hailstones and coals of fire.

New American Standard Bible
From the brightness before Him passed His thick clouds, Hailstones and coals of fire.

NASB 1995
From the brightness before Him passed His thick clouds, Hailstones and coals of fire.

NASB 1977
From the brightness before Him passed His thick clouds, Hailstones and coals of fire.

Legacy Standard Bible
From the brightness before Him passed His thick clouds, Hailstones and coals of fire.

Amplified Bible
Out of the brightness before Him passed His thick clouds, Hailstones and coals of fire.

Christian Standard Bible
From the radiance of his presence, his clouds swept onward with hail and blazing coals.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
From the radiance of His presence, His clouds swept onward with hail and blazing coals.

American Standard Version
At the brightness before him his thick clouds passed, Hailstones and coals of fire.

Contemporary English Version
Hailstones and fiery coals lit up the sky in front of you.

English Revised Version
At the brightness before him his thick clouds passed, hailstones and coals of fire.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Out of the brightness in front of him, those rain clouds passed by with hailstones and lightning.

Good News Translation
Hailstones and flashes of fire came from the lightning before him and broke through the dark clouds.

International Standard Version
The brightness before him scattered the thick clouds, with hail stones and flashes of fire.

Majority Standard Bible
From the brightness of His presence His clouds advanced—hailstones and coals of fire.

NET Bible
From the brightness in front of him came hail and fiery coals.

New Heart English Bible
From the brightness before him his thick clouds passed on, with hailstones and coals of fire.

Webster's Bible Translation
At the brightness that was before him his thick clouds passed, hail stones and coals of fire.

World English Bible
At the brightness before him his thick clouds passed, hailstones and coals of fire.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
From the brightness before Him His thick clouds have passed on, "" Hail and coals of fire.

Young's Literal Translation
From the brightness over-against Him His thick clouds have passed on, Hail and coals of fire.

Smith's Literal Translation
From the brightness before him the clouds passed over, hail and coals of fire.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
At the brightness that was before him the clouds passed, hail and coals of fire.

Catholic Public Domain Version
At the brightness that was before his sight, the clouds crossed by, with hail and coals of fire.

New American Bible
From the gleam before him, his clouds passed, hail and coals of fire.

New Revised Standard Version
Out of the brightness before him there broke through his clouds hailstones and coals of fire.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Out of the brightness of his shadow his clouds rained hailstones and coals of fire.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
From the brightness of the tabernacle of his clouds he made hailstones and coals of fire.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
At the brightness before Him, there passed through His thick clouds Hailstones and coals of fire.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
At the brightness before him the clouds passed, hail and coals of fire.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The LORD is My Rock
11He made darkness His hiding place, and storm clouds a canopy around Him. 12From the brightness of His presence His clouds advanced— hailstones and coals of fire. 13The LORD thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High resounded—hailstones and coals of fire.…

Cross References
Exodus 19:16
On the third day, when morning came, there was thunder and lightning. A thick cloud was upon the mountain, and a very loud blast of the ram’s horn went out, so that all the people in the camp trembled.

2 Samuel 22:13
From the brightness of His presence coals of fire blazed forth.

Job 38:25-27
Who cuts a channel for the flood or clears a path for the thunderbolt, / to bring rain on a barren land, on a desert where no man lives, / to satisfy the parched wasteland and make it sprout with tender grass?

Isaiah 30:30
And the LORD will cause His majestic voice to be heard and His mighty arm to be revealed, striking in angry wrath with a flame of consuming fire, and with cloudburst, storm, and hailstones.

Ezekiel 1:4
I looked and saw a whirlwind coming from the north, a great cloud with fire flashing back and forth and brilliant light all around it. In the center of the fire was a gleam like amber,

Revelation 4:5
From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings, and peals of thunder. Before the throne burned seven torches of fire. These are the seven spirits of God.

Revelation 8:5
Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it to the earth; and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.

Revelation 11:19
Then the temple of God in heaven was opened, and the ark of His covenant appeared in His temple. And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and a great hailstorm.

Revelation 16:18
And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake the likes of which had not occurred since men were upon the earth—so mighty was the great quake.

Matthew 24:27
For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.

Luke 17:24
For just as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other, so will be the Son of Man in His day.

Job 36:29-33
Furthermore, who can understand how the clouds spread out, how the thunder roars from His pavilion? / See how He scatters His lightning around Him and covers the depths of the sea. / For by these He judges the nations and provides food in abundance. ...

Psalm 77:17-18
The clouds poured down water; the skies resounded with thunder; Your arrows flashed back and forth. / Your thunder resounded in the whirlwind; the lightning lit up the world; the earth trembled and quaked.

Psalm 97:4
His lightning illuminates the world; the earth sees and trembles.

Psalm 104:7
At Your rebuke the waters fled; at the sound of Your thunder they hurried away—


Treasury of Scripture

At the brightness that was before him his thick clouds passed, hail stones and coals of fire.

At the

Psalm 97:3,4
A fire goeth before him, and burneth up his enemies round about…

Habakkuk 3:4,5
And his brightness was as the light; he had horns coming out of his hand: and there was the hiding of his power…

Matthew 17:2,5
And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light…

hail

Exodus 9:23,24
And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt…

Joshua 10:11
And it came to pass, as they fled from before Israel, and were in the going down to Bethhoron, that the LORD cast down great stones from heaven upon them unto Azekah, and they died: they were more which died with hailstones than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword.

2 Samuel 22:13-15
Through the brightness before him were coals of fire kindled…

Jump to Previous
Advanced Bolts Brightness Broke Clouds Coals Dark Fire Forth Hail Hailstones Ice Lightning Over-Against Passed Past Presence Raining Shining Stones Thick
Jump to Next
Advanced Bolts Brightness Broke Clouds Coals Dark Fire Forth Hail Hailstones Ice Lightning Over-Against Passed Past Presence Raining Shining Stones Thick
Psalm 18
1. David praises God for his manifold and marvelous blessings














From the brightness of His presence
This phrase highlights the divine radiance and glory that emanates from God. The Hebrew word for "brightness" is "nogah," which conveys a sense of dazzling light or splendor. In the biblical context, light often symbolizes purity, holiness, and the unapproachable majesty of God. The "presence" of God, or "panim" in Hebrew, refers to His face or countenance, indicating a personal and intimate aspect of His divine nature. Historically, God's presence was associated with the Shekinah glory, a visible manifestation of God dwelling among His people, as seen in the tabernacle and the temple. This imagery reminds believers of the awe-inspiring and overwhelming nature of encountering God, who is both transcendent and immanent.

His clouds advanced
The imagery of clouds is frequently used in Scripture to signify God's majesty and mystery. The Hebrew word "anan" for "clouds" can denote a covering or a veil, suggesting the hiddenness and incomprehensibility of God. Clouds are often associated with divine appearances, such as at Mount Sinai when God gave the Law to Moses (Exodus 19:9). The advancing clouds symbolize God's active movement and intervention in the world. They serve as a reminder of His sovereignty and the unfolding of His divine will. In a spiritual sense, clouds can also represent the trials and challenges that God uses to shape and guide His people, always moving according to His perfect plan.

hailstones and coals of fire
This phrase evokes the imagery of divine judgment and power. "Hailstones" and "coals of fire" are elements often associated with God's wrath and the execution of His justice. In the Hebrew context, "barad" (hailstones) and "pecham" (coals) are natural phenomena that God uses as instruments of His judgment, as seen in the plagues of Egypt (Exodus 9:23-24) and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:24). These elements underscore the seriousness of God's holiness and the consequences of sin. For believers, this serves as a sobering reminder of the need for repentance and the assurance that God will ultimately vindicate His righteousness. It also points to the purifying aspect of God's judgment, refining and cleansing His people to reflect His glory.

(12) At the brightness.--This is obscure. Literally, From the brightness before him his clouds passed through (Heb., avar--LXX., ???????; Vulg., transierunt) hail and fiery coals. In Samuel it is "From the brightness before him flamed fiery coals," which is the description we should expect, and, doubtless, gives the sense we are to attach to our text. Through the dark curtain of clouds the lightnings dart like emanations from the Divine brightness which they hide. The difficulty arises from the position of avaiv, "his clouds," which looks like a subject rather than an object to avr-. It has been conjectured, from comparison with Samuel, that the word has been inserted through error, from its likeness to the verb. If retained it must be rendered as object, "Out of the brightness of his presence there passed through his clouds hail and fiery coals." And some obscurity of language is pardonable in a description of phenomena so overpowering and bewildering as "a tempest dropping fire." A modern poet touches this feeling:--

"Then fire was sky, and sky fire,

And both one brief ecstasy,

Then ashes."--R. BROWNING, Easter Day.

In the Authorised Version the thought is of a sudden clearing of the heavens, which is not true to nature, and the clause "hailstones and coals of fire" comes in as an exclamation, as in the next verse. But there it is probably an erroneous repetition, being wanting in Sam. and in the LXX. version of the psalm. Notice how the feeling of the terrible fury of the storm is heightened by the mention of "hail," so rare in Palestine.

Verse 12. - At the brightness that was before him his thick clouds passed. The "brightness" intended is probably that of lightning. The "thick clouds" are riven and parted asunder for the lightning to burst forth. Then come, almost simultaneously, hail stones and coals of fire; i.e., hail like that which fell in Egypt before the Exodus (Exodus 9:22-34), when "there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail" (ver. 24) - a fire which "ran along upon the ground," or some very unusual electrical phenomenon (see the comment on Exodus in the ' Homiletic Commentary,' p. 208).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
From the brightness
מִנֹּ֗גַהּ (min·nō·ḡah)
Preposition-m | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 5051: Brilliancy

of His presence,
נֶ֫גְדּ֥וֹ (neḡ·dōw)
Preposition | third person masculine singular
Strong's 5048: A front, part opposite, a counterpart, mate, over against, before

His clouds
עָבָ֥יו (‘ā·ḇāw)
Noun - common plural construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 5645: An envelope, darkness, a, cloud, a copse

advanced—
עָבְר֑וּ (‘ā·ḇə·rū)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 5674: To pass over, through, or by, pass on

hailstones
בָּ֝רָ֗ד (bā·rāḏ)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 1259: Hail

and coals
וְגַֽחֲלֵי־ (wə·ḡa·ḥă·lê-)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 1513: An ember

of fire.
אֵֽשׁ׃ (’êš)
Noun - common singular
Strong's 784: A fire


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OT Poetry: Psalm 18:12 At the brightness before him his thick (Psalm Ps Psa.)
Psalm 18:11
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