Psalm 78:15
New International Version
He split the rocks in the wilderness and gave them water as abundant as the seas;

New Living Translation
He split open the rocks in the wilderness to give them water, as from a gushing spring.

English Standard Version
He split rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink abundantly as from the deep.

Berean Standard Bible
He split the rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink as abundant as the seas.

King James Bible
He clave the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink as out of the great depths.

New King James Version
He split the rocks in the wilderness, And gave them drink in abundance like the depths.

New American Standard Bible
He split the rocks in the wilderness And gave them plenty to drink like the ocean depths.

NASB 1995
He split the rocks in the wilderness And gave them abundant drink like the ocean depths.

NASB 1977
He split the rocks in the wilderness, And gave them abundant drink like the ocean depths.

Legacy Standard Bible
He was splitting the rocks in the wilderness And so gave them abundant drink like the ocean depths.

Amplified Bible
He split rocks in the wilderness And gave them abundant [water to] drink like the ocean depths.

Christian Standard Bible
He split rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink as abundant as the depths.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
He split rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink as abundant as the depths.

American Standard Version
He clave rocks in the wilderness, And gave them drink abundantly as out of the depths.

Contemporary English Version
God made water flow from rocks he split open in the desert, and his people drank freely, as though from a lake.

English Revised Version
He clave rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink abundantly as out of the depths.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
He split rocks in the desert. He gave them plenty to drink, an ocean of water.

Good News Translation
He split rocks open in the desert and gave them water from the depths.

International Standard Version
He caused the rocks to split in the wilderness, and gave them water as from an abundant sea.

Majority Standard Bible
He split the rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink as abundant as the seas.

NET Bible
He broke open rocks in the wilderness, and gave them enough water to fill the depths of the sea.

New Heart English Bible
He split rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink abundantly as out of the depths.

Webster's Bible Translation
He cleaved the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink as out of the great depths.

World English Bible
He split rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink abundantly as out of the depths.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
He cleaves rocks in a wilderness, "" And gives drink—as the great deep.

Young's Literal Translation
He cleaveth rocks in a wilderness, And giveth drink -- as the great deep.

Smith's Literal Translation
He will rend the rocks in the desert, and give drink as the great abyss.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
He struck the rock in the wilderness: and gave them to drink, as out of the great deep.

Catholic Public Domain Version
He broke through the rock in the wasteland, and he gave them to drink, as if from the great abyss.

New American Bible
He split rocks in the desert, gave water to drink, abundant as the deeps of the sea.

New Revised Standard Version
He split rocks open in the wilderness, and gave them drink abundantly as from the deep.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
He cleaved the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink as out of great depths.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
He breached the flint in the wilderness and gave them drink as from the great depths.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
He cleaved rocks in the wilderness, And gave them drink abundantly as out of the great deep.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
he clave a rock in the wilderness, and made them drink as in a great deep.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
I Will Open My Mouth in Parables
14He led them with a cloud by day and with a light of fire all night. 15He split the rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink as abundant as the seas. 16He brought streams from the stone and made water flow down like rivers.…

Cross References
Exodus 17:6
Behold, I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. And when you strike the rock, water will come out of it for the people to drink.” So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel.

Numbers 20:8-11
“Take the staff and assemble the congregation. You and your brother Aaron are to speak to the rock while they watch, and it will pour out its water. You will bring out water from the rock and provide drink for the congregation and their livestock.” / So Moses took the staff from the LORD’s presence, just as he had been commanded. / Then Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly in front of the rock, and Moses said to them, “Listen now, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” ...

Deuteronomy 8:15
He led you through the vast and terrifying wilderness with its venomous snakes and scorpions, a thirsty and waterless land. He brought you water from the rock of flint.

Isaiah 48:21
They did not thirst when He led them through the deserts; He made water flow for them from the rock; He split the rock, and water gushed out.

Nehemiah 9:15
In their hunger You gave them bread from heaven; in their thirst You brought them water from the rock. You told them to go in and possess the land that You had sworn to give them.

1 Corinthians 10:4
and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.

Psalm 105:41
He opened a rock, and water gushed out; it flowed like a river in the desert.

Isaiah 43:19-20
Behold, I am about to do something new; even now it is coming. Do you not see it? Indeed, I will make a way in the wilderness and streams in the desert. / The beasts of the field will honor Me, the jackals and the ostriches, because I provide water in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, to give drink to My chosen people.

John 4:10-14
Jesus answered, “If you knew the gift of God and who is asking you for a drink, you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” / “Sir,” the woman replied, “You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where then will You get this living water? / Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us this well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and his livestock?” ...

John 7:37-38
On the last and greatest day of the feast, Jesus stood up and called out in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. / Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said: ‘Streams of living water will flow from within him.’”

Revelation 22:1
Then the angel showed me a river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb

Revelation 7:17
For the Lamb in the center of the throne will be their shepherd. ‘He will lead them to springs of living water,’ and ‘God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’”

Psalm 114:8
who turned the rock into a pool, the flint into a fountain of water!

Deuteronomy 32:13
He made him ride on the heights of the land and fed him the produce of the field. He nourished him with honey from the rock and oil from the flinty crag,

Job 29:6
when my steps were bathed in cream and the rock poured out for me streams of oil!


Treasury of Scripture

He split the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink as out of the great depths.

Psalm 105:41
He opened the rock, and the waters gushed out; they ran in the dry places like a river.

Psalm 114:8
Which turned the rock into a standing water, the flint into a fountain of waters.

Exodus 17:6
Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.

Jump to Previous
Abundant Abundantly Broken Clave Cleaved Cleaveth Cleft Deep Depths Desert Drink Great Ocean Power Rocks Seas Split Waste Water Waters Wilderness
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Abundant Abundantly Broken Clave Cleaved Cleaveth Cleft Deep Depths Desert Drink Great Ocean Power Rocks Seas Split Waste Water Waters Wilderness
Psalm 78
1. An exhortation both to learn and to preach, the law of God
9. The story of God's wrath against the incredulous and disobedient
67. The Israelites being rejected, God chose Judah, Zion, and David.














He split the rocks in the wilderness
This phrase begins with a powerful image of divine intervention. The Hebrew word for "split" is "בָּקַע" (baqa), which conveys the idea of cleaving or breaking open. This action signifies God's ability to overcome natural barriers and provide for His people in miraculous ways. The "rocks" symbolize the seemingly insurmountable challenges faced by the Israelites during their wilderness journey. Historically, the wilderness refers to the Sinai Desert, a harsh and arid region where survival without divine intervention would have been impossible. This act of splitting the rocks is a testament to God's sovereignty and His willingness to provide for His people against all odds.

and gave them water as abundant as the seas
The phrase "gave them water" highlights God's provision. The Hebrew word "נָתַן" (natan) means to give or bestow, emphasizing the generosity and grace of God. Water, in the arid wilderness, is a symbol of life and sustenance. The comparison "as abundant as the seas" uses hyperbolic language to stress the abundance and sufficiency of God's provision. The seas, vast and seemingly endless, represent the limitless resources of God. This imagery reassures believers of God's ability to meet their needs abundantly, even when circumstances seem dire. It serves as a reminder of God's faithfulness and the overflowing nature of His blessings, encouraging trust and reliance on Him in times of need.

(15) And gave . . .--Literally, and gave them to drink as it were a great deep, or as we might say, "oceans of drink"--a poetical exaggeration; or are we rather to think of the gift of water as produced by striking or boring through the rock to the great ocean on which the earth was supposed to rest?

Verses 15, 16. - He clave the rocks in the wilderness; rather, he clave rocks. The word has no article. The reference is probably to both Exodus 17:6 and Numbers 20:8-11. And gave them drink as out of the great depths; rather, "and gave them drink abundantly, as out of the depths" (so Cheyne and the Revised Version). On the abundance of the water, see Numbers 20:11, and compare the next verse: He brought streams also out of the rock, and caused waters to run down like rivers.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
He split
יְבַקַּ֣ע (yə·ḇaq·qa‘)
Verb - Piel - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1234: To cleave, to rend, break, rip, open

the rocks
צֻ֭רִים (ṣu·rîm)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 6697: A cliff, a rock, boulder, a refuge, an edge

in the wilderness
בַּמִּדְבָּ֑ר (bam·miḏ·bār)
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 4057: A pasture, a desert, speech

and gave [them] drink
וַ֝יַּ֗שְׁקְ (way·yašq)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hifil - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 8248: To quaff, to irrigate, furnish a, potion to

as abundant
רַבָּֽה׃ (rab·bāh)
Adjective - feminine singular
Strong's 7227: Much, many, great

as the seas.
כִּתְהֹמ֥וֹת (kiṯ·hō·mō·wṯ)
Preposition-k | Noun - common plural construct
Strong's 8415: An abyss, the deep


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OT Poetry: Psalm 78:15 He split rocks in the wilderness (Psalm Ps Psa.)
Psalm 78:14
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