Psalms 29:9

The voice of the Lord maketh the hinds to calve,.... Which being timorous creatures, the bringing forth of their young, which is naturally very painful and difficult, is lessened and facilitated by

The voice of the LORD maketh the hinds to calve, and discovereth the forests: and in his temple doth every one speak of his glory. Hinds to calve The thunder strikes such terror into them that they prematurely bring forth.

Maketh the hinds to calve, through the terror which it causeth, which hastens the birth in these and other places: see . He nameth the hinds, because they bring forth their young with difficulty, ,2. Discovereth, Heb. maketh bare; either of its trees, which it either breaks or strips off their leaves; or of the beasts, which it forceth to run into their dens. And in his temple; or, but. Having showed the terrible effects of God’ s power in other places, he now shows the blessed privilege of God’ s people, that are praising and glorifying God, and receiving the comfortable influences of his grace in his temple, when the rest of the world are trembling under the tokens of his displeasure; by which he secretly invites and persuades the Gentiles, for their own safety and comfort, to own the true God and to worship him in his sanctuary, as he did exhort them, . Or, therefore, i.e. because of these and such-like discoveries of God’ s excellent majesty and power, his people fear, and praise, and adore him in his temple.

Psalms 29:9 The voice of the LORD maketh the hinds to calve, and discovereth the forests: and in his temple doth every one speak of [his] glory.Ver. 9. The voice of the Lord maketh the hinds to calve] Which they naturally do not without a great deal of difficulty, Job 39:4-6. And discovereth the forests] By driving the beasts into their dens, baring the forests of their leaves and fruits, turning up trees by the roots, and so making a clear prospect through woods and groves, as one phraseth it. And in his temple doth every one speak of his glory] Heb. every one, or, every whit of it, saith Glory; every godly man observing his dreadful thunder, and other his stupendous works, saith Glory be to God on high. Some conceive this psalm was appointed by David to be sung in the temple in time of thunder; which is not unlikely (Moiler.). There are that make God to be the nominative case to the verb speaketh, and render it thus; and in his temple, or palace, doth he utter all his glory (Tremel.). As if the psalmist should say, Much of his glory God uttereth in his thunder; but all in his temple. For whatsoever there he speaketh with his mouth he fulfilleth it with his hand, Psalms 115:3; Psalms 119:91; Psalms 33:9 Isaiah 44:26. See a like collation of God’ s works and word, with a praelation of this above those, Psalms 19:1-7; Psalms 111:7.

(9) Maketh the hinds to calve.—Literally, maketh the hinds writhe (with pain). (See margin. Comp. Job 39:1, where the hind’s habit of hiding its young for safety is alluded to, a habit which the violence of the storm makes it forget.) Both Plutarch and Pliny notice the custom of shepherds to collect their flocks during a thunderstorm, for such as are left alone and are separated, are apt, through terror, to cast their young. Discovereth the forests.—The word “discovereth” comes from the LXX. and Vulgate. Literally, peels or strips—the effects both of wind and lightning. Passing over the sands of the Arabah, the storm has reached the “acacias and palms and vegetation which clothe the rocks of granite and porphyry in the neighbourhood of Petra.” Forests may seem rather a large word for such vegetation, but Stanley remarks of the Arabah that “the shrubs at times give it almost the appearance of a jungle.” Similar effects of a storm upon a forest are described by Tennyson in Vivien:“Scarce had she ceased when out of heaven a bolt (For now the storm was close above them) struck, Furrowing a giant oak, and javelining With darted spikes and splinters of the wood The dark earth round. He raised his eyes and saw The tree that shone white-listed thro’ the gloom.” In his temple.—Better, in his palace—i.e., the heavenly palace, as in Psalms 11:4; Psalms 18:6. (See Psalms 29:1.) The angelic spectators of the magnificent drama enacted below them cry (not merely speak of, as Authorised Version, but utter the word) each one, “Glory,” obeying the poet’s invocation in the prelude. Notice that the effect of the storm on men is supposed to be all summed up in the poet’s own attitude of listening awe. There is no actual mention of this part of creation; but one feels from the poem that while inanimate nature trembles and suffers, and the godlike intelligences of heaven are engaged in praise, man listens and is mute.

Verse 9. Maketh the hinds to calve] Strikes terror through all the tribes of animals; which sometimes occasions those which are pregnant to cast their young. This, I believe, to be the whole that is meant by the text. I meddle not with the fables which have been published on this subject both by ancients and moderns. Discovereth the forests] Makes them sometimes evident in the darkest night, by the sudden flash; and often by setting them on fire. And in his temple] Does this refer to the effect which a dreadful thunder-storm often produces? Multitudes run to places of worship as asylums in order to find safety, and pray to God. See on Psalms 29:2.

9. maketh the hinds to calve] Prematurely, in fear; an observed fact. There is no need to emend (though the change required would be very slight), shaketh (or, pierceth) the oaks. discovereth] i.e. as R.V., strippeth the forests bare, of branches, leaves, bark. Discover is an archaism for uncover (Psalms 18:15, note). and in his temple &c.] R.V., And in his temple everything saith, Glory. It is tempting to understand his temple of heaven and earth, and to regard the line as a summary of the message of the storm; but temple (or, palace) must mean heaven; and the meaning is better given by rendering While in his temple all are saying, Glory. This is the chant of the angelic worshippers (Psalms 29:1-2) as they watch the manifestation of Jehovah’s majesty.

The voice of the Lord maketh the hinds to calve - The deer. The object of the psalmist here is to show the effects of the storm in producing consternation, especially on the weak and timid animals of the forest.

9. Hinds to calve—That is, prematurely. This effect of heavy thunder was well known. Pliny, (book viii, chap. 47,) affirms the same of sheep when alone from the flock, but being with the flock the evil was obviated.