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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadInternational Standard Bible Encyclopedia: Tempest
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tem´pest (סערה, sÌ£e‛aÌ„raÌ„h, or שׂערה, se‛aÌ„raÌ„h, “a whirlwind,†זר×, zerem, “overflowing rainâ€; χειμωÌν, cheimoÌ„Ìn, θυÌελλα, thuÌella): Heavy storms of wind and rain are common in Palestine and the Mediterranean. The storms particularly mentioned in the Bible are: (1) the 40 days' rain of the great flood of Noah (); (2) hail and rain as a plague in Egypt (); (3) the great rain after the drought and the contest of Elijah on Carmel (); (4) the tempest on the sea in the story of Jonah (); (5) the storm on the Lake of Galilee when Jesus was awakened to calm the waves (; ; ); (6) the storm causing the shipwreck of Paul at Melita (). Frequent references are found to God's power over storm and use of the tempest in His anger: “He maketh the storm a calm†(); He sends the “tempest of hail, a destroying storm†(). See also ; ; . Yahweh overwhelms His enemies as with a storm: “She shall be visited of Yahweh of hosts with thunder, and with earthquake, and great noise, with whirlwind and tempest†(). Yahweh is a “refuge from the storm†(; ).