Psalms 18:9

9 So he bowed [the] heavens and came down with a thick cloud under his feet.

Psalms 18:9 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 18:9

He bowed the heavens also, and came down
To execute wrath and vengeance on wicked men; which is always the sense of these phrases when they go together; see ( Psalms 144:6-8 ) ( Isaiah 64:1 Isaiah 64:2 ) ; The Targum is, "he bowed the heavens, and his glory appeared"; that is, the glory of his power, and of his mighty hand of vengeance; for not his grace and mercy, but his indignation and wrath, showed themselves; for it follows,

and darkness [was] under his feet;
the Targum is, "a dark cloud", expressive of the awfulness of the dispensation to wicked men; who are not allowed to see the face of God, are debarred his presence, and denied, communion with him, and to whom everything appears awful and terrible, ( Psalms 97:2-5 ) .

Psalms 18:9 In-Context

7 Then the earth shook and quaked, and [the] foundations of [the] mountains trembled, and they staggered because he was angry.
8 Smoke went forth from his nose, and fire from his mouth consumed. Burning coals blazed from him.
9 So he bowed [the] heavens and came down with a thick cloud under his feet.
10 And he mounted a cherub and flew, and he swooped down on wings of wind.
11 He made darkness his hiding place; all about him his covering [was] a darkness of waters, {thick clouds}.
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