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World English Bible

Psalms 104:4

He makes his messengers winds; His servants flames of fire.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Angel (a Spirit);   Blessing;   Fire;   God;   Quotations and Allusions;   The Topic Concordance - Angels;   Creation;   Earth;   God;   Satisfaction;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Angels;   Birds;   Fire;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Angel;   Providence;   Psalms, the Book of;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Creation;   Inspiration;   Revelation;   Weather;   Worship;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Religion;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Angel;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Angels;   Bethesda;   Minister;   Tongues, Gift of;   Winds;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Mediator;   Wind;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Angel;   Earthquake;   Hallelujah;   Kingdom of God;   Life;   Minister;   Nature;   Praise;   Providence;   Psalms;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Angels;   Colossians, Epistle to the;   Elements ;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Minister;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - Fire;   Gallery;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Psalms the book of;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Minister;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Fire;   Flame;   Inspiration;   Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia - Angels;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Angelology;   Pahlavi Literature, Jews in;   Winds;  

Devotionals:

- Every Day Light - Devotion for March 21;  

Parallel Translations

New Living Translation
The winds are your messengers; flames of fire are your servants.
English Revised Version
Who maketh winds his messengers; his ministers a flaming fire:
Update Bible Version
Who makes winds his messengers; Flames of fire his ministers;
New Century Version
You make the winds your messengers, and flames of fire are your servants.
New English Translation
He makes the winds his messengers, and the flaming fire his attendant.
Webster's Bible Translation
Who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire:
Amplified Bible
Who makes winds His messengers, Flames of fire His ministers.
English Standard Version
he makes his messengers winds, his ministers a flaming fire.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Which makist spiritis thin aungels; and thi mynystris brennynge fier.
Berean Standard Bible
He makes the winds His messengers, flames of fire His servants.
Contemporary English Version
The winds are your messengers, and flames of fire are your servants.
American Standard Version
Who maketh winds his messengers; Flames of fire his ministers;
Bible in Basic English
He makes winds his angels, and flames of fire his servants.
Complete Jewish Bible
You make winds your messengers, fiery flames your servants.
Darby Translation
Who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers a flame of fire.
Easy-to-Read Version
You make the winds your messengers and flames of fire your servants.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Who makest winds Thy messengers, the flaming fire Thy ministers.
King James Version (1611)
Who maketh his Angels spirits: his ministers a flaming fire.
New Life Bible
He makes the winds carry His news. He makes His helpers a burning fire.
New Revised Standard
you make the winds your messengers, fire and flame your ministers.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Which maketh his spirits his messengers, and a flaming fire his ministers.
George Lamsa Translation
Who makest his angels spirits, his ministers a flaming fire,
Good News Translation
You use the winds as your messengers and flashes of lightning as your servants.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Making His messengers, winds, His attendants, a flaming fire;
Douay-Rheims Bible
(103-4) Who makest thy angels spirits: and thy ministers a burning fire.
Revised Standard Version
who makest the winds thy messengers, fire and flame thy ministers.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
He maketh his angels spirites: and his ministers a flaming fire.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Who makes his angels spirits, and his ministers a flaming fire.
Christian Standard Bible®
and making the winds his messengers,flames of fire his servants.
Hebrew Names Version
He makes his messengers winds; His servants flames of fire.
King James Version
Who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire:
Lexham English Bible
who makes his messengers the winds, his attendants a flame of fire.
Literal Translation
He makes His angels spirits, His ministers a flaming fire.
Young's Literal Translation
Making His messengers -- the winds, His ministers -- the flaming fire.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Thou makest thine angels spretes, and thy ministers flammes of fyre.
New American Standard Bible
He makes the winds His messengers, Flaming fire His ministers.
New King James Version
Who makes His angels spirits, His ministers a flame of fire.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
He makes the winds His messengers, Flaming fire His ministers.
Legacy Standard Bible
He makes His angels the winds,His ministers flaming fire.

Contextual Overview

1 Bless Yahweh, my soul. Yahweh, my God, you are very great. You are clothed with honor and majesty. 2 He covers himself with light as with a garment. He stretches out the heavens like a curtain. 3 He lays the beams of his chambers in the waters. He makes the clouds his chariot. He walks on the wings of the wind. 4 He makes his messengers winds; His servants flames of fire. 5 He laid the foundations of the earth, That it should not be moved forever. 6 You covered it with the deep as with a cloak. The waters stood above the mountains. 7 At your rebuke they fled. At the voice of your thunder they hurried away. 8 The mountains rose, The valleys sank down, To the place which you had assigned to them. 9 You have set a boundary that they may not pass over; That they don't turn again to cover the earth.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Who maketh: Acts 23:8, Hebrews 1:7, Hebrews 1:14

ministers: 2 Kings 2:11, 2 Kings 6:17, Ezekiel 1:13

Reciprocal: Genesis 3:24 - Cherubims Exodus 37:7 - General Job 4:15 - a spirit Job 4:18 - he put Job 38:7 - the sons Psalms 103:21 - ministers Isaiah 6:2 - seraphims Ezekiel 1:4 - a great Ezekiel 1:7 - the colour Daniel 7:9 - and his wheels Daniel 9:21 - to fly Zechariah 6:5 - These Matthew 28:3 - countenance 2 Peter 2:11 - angels

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Who maketh his angels spirits,.... The angels are spirits, or spiritual substances, yet created ones; and so differ from God, who is a spirit, and from the Holy Spirit of God, who are Creators and not creatures; angels are spirits without bodies, and so differ from the souls or spirits of men, and are immaterial, and so die not; these are made by Christ, by whom all things are made, Colossians 1:16 and so he must be greater and more excellent than they; for which purpose the passage is quoted in Hebrews 1:7. Some render it, "who maketh his angels as the winds"; to which they may be compared for their invisibility, they being not to be seen, no more than the wind, unless when they assume an external form; and for their penetration through bodies in a very surprising manner; see Acts 12:6, and for their great force and power, being mighty angels, and said to excel in strength, Psalms 103:20, and for their swiftness in obeying the divine commands; so the Targum,

"he maketh his messengers, or angels, swift as the wind.''

His ministers a flaming fire; angels are ministers to God, stand before him, behold his face, wait for and listen to his orders, and execute them; they are ministers to Christ, they were so at his incarnation, in his infancy, when in the wilderness and in the garden, at his resurrection and ascension, and will attend him at his second coming; and these are ministers to his people, take the care of them, encamp about them, do many good offices to them in life, and at death carry their souls to Abraham's bosom: these are made a flaming fire, or "as" flaming fire, for their force and power; so the Targum,

"his ministers strong as flaming fire;''

and for their swiftness as before; and because of their burning love to God, Christ, and his people, and their flaming zeal for his cause and interest; hence thought by some to be called "seraphim": and because they are sometimes the executioners of God's wrath; and have sometimes appeared in fiery forms, as in forms of horses of fire and chariots of fire, and will descend with Christ in flaming fire at the last day; see 2 Kings 2:11. Some invert the words, both reading and sense, thus, "who maketh the winds his angels, or messengers, and flaming fire his ministers"; so Jarchi, Aben Ezra, and Kimchi; we read of stormy wind fulfilling his word, Psalms 148:8, he sends out his winds at his pleasure to do his errands; as to dry up the waters of the flood, to drive back the waters of the Red sea, and make dry land, to bring quails from thence, and scatter them about the camp of Israel, and in many other instances. So flaming fire was used as his ministers in burning Sodom and Gomorrah; and multitudes of the murmuring Israelites, and the captains with their fifties; but this sense is contrary to the order of the words, and the design of them, and to the apostle's sense of them, Hebrews 1:7 which is confirmed by the Targum, Septuagint, and all the Oriental versions.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Who maketh his angels spirits - The meaning here literally would be, “Who makes the winds his messengers,” or “his angels;” that is, who employs them to execute his purpose; who sends them out as messengers or angels to do his will.

His ministers a flaming fire - That is, Fire is employed by him - in lightnings - to accomplish his purpose as his ministers or his servants. They are entirely under his command. They are sent by him to do his will; to carry out his designs. This is intended to describe the majesty and the power of God - that he can employ wind and lightning - tempest and storm - to go on errands such as he commands; to fulfill his plans; to do his bidding. For the application of this to the angels, and as employed by the apostle Paul to prove the inferiority of the angels to the Messiah, see the notes at Hebrews 1:7.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Psalms 104:4. עשה מלאכיו רחות oseh malachaiv ruchoth,

משרתיו אש להט mesharethaiv esh lohet.


The elements are described as prompt and expedite to perform the Divine commands, like angels or ministers serving in the tabernacle; the Hebrew word משרתיו mesharethaiv being a word most common in the sacred ministrations.


 
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