brilliancy (literally or figuratively) · preposition + noun, common feminine singular absolute
clouds
עָבָ֥יו'a.Vav
H5645
properly · noun, common masculine plural construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
passed
עָבְר֑וּ'a.ve.Ru
H5674
to cross over · verb, qal perfect, 3rd person common plural
hail
בָּ֝רָ֗דba.Rad
H1259
hail · noun, common masculine singular absolute
coals
וְגַֽחֲלֵיve.ga.cha.lei-
H1513
an ember · conjunction + noun, common masculine plural construct
fire
אֵֽשׁ'Esh
H784
fire (literally or figuratively) · noun, common both genders singular absolute
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Joshua 10:11 And it came to pass, as they fled from before Israel, and were in the going down to Beth-horon, that the LORD cast down great stones from he…
Revelation 16:21 And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague o…
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 ra…
Matthew 17:2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.
Matthew 17:5 While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in wh…
2 Samuel 22:13-15 Through the brightness before him were coals of fire kindled.
Psalms 97:3-4 A fire goeth before him, and burneth up his enemies round about.
Psalms 104:2 Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain:
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Psalms 18:1-19
The title gives us the occasion of penning this psalm; we had it before (Sa2 22:1), only here we are told that the psalm was delivered to the chief musician, or precentor, in the temple-songs. Note, The private compositions of good men, designed by them for their own use, may be serviceable to the public, that others may not only borrow light from their candle, but heat from their fire. Examples sometimes teach better than rules. And David is here called the servant of the Lord, as Moses was, not only as every good man is God's servant, but because, with his sceptre, with his sword, and with his pen, he greatly promoted the interests of God's kingdom in Israel. It was more his honour that he…
Out of this obscurity, which impresses the beholder with awe and dread, He reveals Himself by sudden light and the means of His terrible wrath (Jos 10:11; Psa 78:47).
John Gill on Psalms 18:12
At the brightness that was before him, The lightning that came out of the thick clouds; which may denote, either the coming of Christ to take vengeance on the Jewish nation, which was swift and sudden, clear and manifest; or the spreading of the Gospel in the Gentile world, in which Christ, the brightness of his Father's glory, appeared to the illumination of many; see Matthew 24:27; and both may be intended, as the effects following show;
his thick clouds passed; that is, passed away; the gross darkness, which had for so many years covered the Gentile world, was removed when God sent forth his light and truth; and multitudes, who were darkness itself, were made light in the Lord;
hail sto…
Psalm 18:12-19
12. At the brightness which was before him, his clouds passed away; there was hail-storm and coals of fire. 13. Jehovah thundered in the heavens, and the Highest sent forth his voice; there was hail-storm and coals of fire. 14. He sent out his arrows, and scattered them, [or put them to flight;] he multiplied lightnings, [403] and put them into confusion. 15. The sources of the waters were seen, and the foundations of the world were disclosed at thy rebuke, O Jehovah! at the blast of the breath of thy nostrils. [404] 16. He sent from on high, he took me, and drew me out of great waters. 17. He delivered me from my strong enemy, and from my adversary; for they were too strong…
The Church Fathers
He came down and then ascended with the cherubim after he thundered in the heaven.… Against the Egyptian sorcerers the Lord who flies on the cherubim sends forth hailstones and coals of fire. I think, also, that those vengeful acts against skillful wicked powers are called hailstones and coals of fire. Those acts, therefore, appointed for punishment and revenge and directed in the secret way of the will of God against the demons who had brought the superstition of multiple gods, were driving away all those demons. Therefore, all their oracles cease, their prophecies are denied, their temples are deserted, their sacred objects are robbed by invisible and hidden forces, as the Lord does all these things after his ascension into the heavens.
"In respect of the brightness in His sight" [Psalm 18:12]: in comparison with the brightness, which is in the sight of His manifestation. "His clouds have passed over." The preachers of His word are not now bounded by the confines of Judæa, but have passed over to the Gentiles. "Hail and coals of fire." Reproofs are figured, whereby, as by hail, the hard hearts are bruised: but if a cultivated and genial soil, that is, a godly mind, receive them, the hail's hardness dissolves into water, that is, the terror of the lightning-charged, and as it were frozen, reproof dissolves into satisfying doctrine; and hearts kindled by the fire of love revive. All these things in His clouds have passed over to the Gentiles.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Beth-horon — House of the hollow, or of the cavern, the name of two towns or villages (2 Chr. 8:5; 1 Chr. 7:24) in the territory of Ephraim, on the way from Jerusalem to Joppa. They are distinguished as…
Coal — It is by no means certain that the Hebrews were acquainted with mineral coal, although it is found in Syria. Their common fuel was dried dung of animals and wood charcoal. Two different words are…
Psalms, Book Of — The present Hebrew name of the book is Tehill’im, “Praises;” but in the actual superscriptions of the psalms the word Tehillah is applied only to one, (Psalms 145:1) ... which is indeed emphatically…
Meteorology And Celestial Phenomena · 9:7;26:7,8,11;27:20,21;28:24-27;29:19;36:27-33;37:6-22;38:8-11,22,24-29,31-35,37; — 9:7;26:7,8,11;27:20,21;28:24-27;29:19;36:27-33;37:6-22;38:8-11,22,24-29,31-35,37;
Readings, Select · MANKIND IN EXTREMITY — MANKIND IN EXTREMITY
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
(Heb.: 18:11-13) The storm, announcing the approaching outburst of the thunderstorm, was also the forerunner of the Avenger and Deliverer. If we compare Psa 18:11 with Psa 104:3, it is natural to regard כּרוּב as a transposition of רכוּב (a chariot, Ew. 153, a). But assuming a relationship between the biblical Cherub and (according to Ctesias) the Indo-Persian griffin, the word (from the Zend grab, garew, garefsh, to seize) signifies a creature seizing and holding irrecoverably fast whatever it seizes upon; perhaps in Semitic language the strong creature, from כּרב = Arab. krb, torquere, constringere, whence mukrab, tight, strong). It is a passive form like גּבוּל, יסד, לבוּשׁ. The cherubim…
a mighty angelic being (Hebrew a cherub): See study notes on 1 Chr 28:18; 2 Chr 3:10-13.
Spurgeon's Treasury of David on Psalms 18:12
At the brightness that was before him his thick clouds passed, hail stones and coals of fire.
Suddenly the terrible artillery of heaven was discharged; the brightness of lightning lit up the clouds as with a glory proceeding from him who was concealed within the cloudy pavilion; and volleys of hailstones and coals of fire were hurled forth upon the enemy. The lightnings seemed to cleave the clouds and kindle them into a blaze, and then hailstones and flakes of fire with flashes of terrific grandeur terrified the sons of men.
