Psalms 103:8
The mountains ascend, and the plains descend into the place which thou hast founded for them.
Open Psalms 103:8 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Ascendunt montes, et descendunt campi, in locum quem fundasti eis.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- ἀναβαίνουσιν ὄρη, καὶ καταβαίνουσιν πεδία εἰς τόπον ὃν ἐθεμελίωσας αὐτοῖς·
- Hebrew (WLC) shown from Psalms 104:8
- יַעֲל֣וּ הָ֭רִים יֵרְד֣וּ בְקָע֑וֹת אֶל מְ֝ק֗וֹם זֶ֤ה יָסַ֬דְתָּ לָהֶֽם
Haydock's commentary
On verses 8 to 9
The....descend. This should be within a parenthesis, (Berthier) as the sequel speaks of the waters. (Haydock)
Earth. This seemed miraculous to those who supposed that the earth was flat. (St. Ambrose; Hex. iii. 22.) (Job vii. 12., and Amos v. 8.) (Calmet)
Providence points out the place for every thing. (Haydock)
Jussit et extendi campos, &c. (Ovid, Met. i.)
God derogated from this law, which he had appointed for the waters, when he brought them again to overwhelm the guilty earth. (Haydock)
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Augustine Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Psalm CIV
8. “The mountains ascend, and the plains go down, into the place which Thou hast founded for them” ( ver. 8 ). He is still speaking of waters. Let us not here understand mountains as of earth; nor plains, as of earth: but waves so great that they may be compared to mountains. The sea did sometime toss, and its waves were as mountains, which could cover those mountains the Apostles. But how long do the mountains ascend and the plains go down? They raged, and they are appeased. When they raged they were mountains: now they are appeased they are become plains: for He hath founded a place for them. There is a certain channel, as it were a deep place, into which all those lately raging hearts of mortals have retired.…They were mountains formerly, now they are plains: yet, my brethren, even a dead calm is sea. …