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The Last Word on the Miracles in NatuRev. 1. At this, namely, the powerful exhibition of God's majesty, as just described, also my heart trembleth and is moved out of his place, springing up, giving a bound, as the awe of the spectacle took hold upon it. It seems also that the storm of which the next chapter speaks had gathered and was about to break at this point.
v. 2. Hear attentively the noise of His voice, the roar of the Lord's voice in the thunder which was now to be heard plainly, and the sound that goeth out of His mouth, the great rumbling as the distant storm rolled forward.
v. 3. He directeth it under the whole heaven, sending forth the roaring and rumbling, and His lightning unto the ends of the earth, for the entire earth is lit up by each flash.
v. 4. After it a voice roareth, the thunder-clap following after the flash; He thundereth with the voice of His excellency, in token of His great majesty; and He will not stay them, not restrain the lightnings, when His voice is heard, for as the storm approaches, the flash of the lightning and the roar of thunder follow in quick succession, there being an almost uninterrupted crashing.
v. 5. God thundereth marvelously with His voice, this remark closing the description of the coming storm; great things doeth He, which we cannot comprehend, this statement leading the way to a description of other wonderful phenomena in nature.
v. 6. For He saith to the snow, Be thou on the earth, His command being, Fall to the earth, and the snow doing His behest; likewise to the small rain, the showers of rain, and to the great rain of His strength, torrents,. which fall at His command.
v. 7. He sealeth up the hand of every man, keeping him from doing his ordinary work at the time of such rains, that all men may know His work, come to the knowledge of His almighty power and realize their absolute dependence upon Him.
v. 8. Then the beasts go into dens, creeping into their coverts at the approach of winter or of the rainy season, and remain in their places, hibernating in their lairs while the fields are desolate.
v. 9. Out of the south cometh the whirlwind, rushing forth as from an enclosure in which it had been confined, and cold out of the north, literally, "from the cloud-scatterers," for frost usually follows clearing skies.
v. 10. By the breath of God frost is given, the cold blast, sent from God, sweeps over the face of the water and forms ice; and the breadth of the waters is straitened, arrested, bound in the icy fetters of winter.
v. 11. Also by watering He wearieth the thick cloud, loading it, weighting it down with a burden of moisture; He scattereth His bright cloud, spreading out far and wide the clouds of His light, those which contain His lightning;
v. 12. and it is turned round about by His counsels, that is, the cloud twists and turns and revolves as the storm approaches, piloted by the will of God, that they may do whatever He commandeth them upon the face of the world in the earth, that is, over the wide expanse, the habitable land of the earth. Cf Psa_148:7-8.
v. 13. He causeth it to come, steering the storm, causing the clouds to unload their burdens, whether for correction, namely, when a devastating storm proves a scourge, or for His land, or for mercy, when He knows it to be necessary for the earth, when He wants to dispense His blessings in a gentle rain. Thus the majesty of God, as apparent in nature, vindicates all His actions, showing that it is His privilege, His right, to deal with men as He sees fit.