Psalm chapter 29
English Standard Version
1Ascribe to the Lord, O heavenly beings, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. 2Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness. 3The voice of the Lord is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the Lord, over many waters. 4The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty. 5The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; the Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon. 6He makes Lebanon to skip like a calf, and Sirion like a young wild ox. 7The voice of the Lord flashes forth flames of fire. 8The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness; the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. 9The voice of the Lord makes the deer give birth and strips the forests bare, and in his temple all cry, "Glory!" 10The Lord sits enthroned over the flood; the Lord sits enthroned as king forever. 11May the Lord give strength to his people! May the Lord bless his people with peace!
New International Version
1A psalm of David. Ascribe to the Lord, you heavenly beings, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
2Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness. 3The voice of the Lord is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the Lord thunders over the mighty waters. 4The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is majestic. 5The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; the Lord breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon. 6He makes Lebanon leap like a calf, Sirion like a young wild ox. 7The voice of the Lord strikes with flashes of lightning. 8The voice of the Lord shakes the desert; the Lord shakes the Desert of Kadesh.
New American Standard Bible
1Ascribe to the Lord, sons of the mighty, Ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. 2Ascribe to the Lord the glory due His name; Worship the Lord in holy attire. 3The voice of the Lord is on the waters; The God of glory thunders, The Lord is over many waters. 4The voice of the Lord is powerful, The voice of the Lord is majestic. 5The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; Yes, the Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon in pieces. 6He makes Lebanon skip like a calf, And Sirion like a young wild ox. 7The voice of the Lord divides flames of fire. 8The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness; The Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. 9The voice of the Lord makes the deer give birth And strips the forests bare; And in His temple everything says, 'Glory!' 10The Lord sat as King at the flood; Yes, the Lord sits as King forever. 11 The Lord will give strength to His people; The Lord will bless His people with peace.
Christian Standard Bible
1A psalm of David. Ascribe to the Lord, you heavenly beings, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
2Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness. 3The voice of the Lord is above the waters. The God of glory thunders— the Lord, above the vast water, 4the voice of the Lord in power, the voice of the Lord in splendor. 5The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; the Lord shatters the cedars of Lebanon. 6He makes Lebanon skip like a calf, and Sirion, like a young wild ox. 7The voice of the Lord flashes flames of fire. 8The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness; the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.
New Living Translation
1Honor the Lord, you heavenly beings ; honor the Lord for his glory and strength. 2Honor the Lord for the glory of his name. Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness.
3The voice of the Lord echoes above the sea. The God of glory thunders. The Lord thunders over the mighty sea. 4The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is majestic. 5The voice of the Lord splits the mighty cedars; the Lord shatters the cedars of Lebanon. 6He makes Lebanon’s mountains skip like a calf; he makes Mount Hermon leap like a young wild ox. 7The voice of the Lord strikes with bolts of lightning. 8The voice of the Lord makes the barren wilderness quake; the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. 9The voice of the Lord twists mighty oaks and strips the forests bare. In his Temple everyone shouts, 'Glory!'
King James Version
New King James Version
1{A Psalm of David.} Give unto the Lord, O you mighty ones, Give unto the Lord glory and strength. 2Give unto the Lord the glory due to His name; Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness. 3The voice of the Lord is over the waters; The God of glory thunders; The Lord is over many waters. 4The voice of the Lord is powerful; The voice of the Lord is full of majesty. 5The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars, Yes, the Lord splinters the cedars of Lebanon. 6 He makes them also skip like a calf, Lebanon and Sirion like a young wild ox. 7The voice of the Lord divides the flames of fire. 8The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness; The Lord shakes the Wilderness of Kadesh. 9The voice of the Lord makes the deer give birth, And strips the forests bare; And in His temple everyone says, “Glory!” 10The Lord sat enthroned at the Flood, And the Lord sits as King forever. 11 The Lord will give strength to His people; The Lord will bless His people with peace.
What does Psalm chapter 29 mean?
This psalm begins with an appeal from David: for the angels to speak of the Lord's glory and strength. He tells these spiritual beings to give God the glory He deserves and to worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness (Psalm 29:1–2).David then draws attention to the Lord's power, speaking often of "the voice of the LORD." God's voice is not simply His speech or how He communicates. When God speaks, He wills something to be (Genesis 1:1–3; Psalm 33:6). When David speaks of the power of God's voice, he refers to the omnipotent power held by the Creator. This passage may have been inspired by powerful storms coming into Israel from the Mediterranean Sea. In that sense, God's voice shatters trees, moves mountains, shakes deserts, and strips forests bare (Psalm 29:3–9). Those in the temple—possibly meaning the angels in heaven (Psalm 11:4)—shout out God's glory.
In all these things, God is sovereign. Even over the greatest of all natural disasters—the flood of Noah (Genesis 7:4)—God was seated on His throne. The psalm closes as David asks for strength. In this context, that likely means courage and conviction (Hebrews 10:23), maintaining faith by relying on God's power instead of our own (Psalm 29:10–11).
