Psalms 82:15
As fire which burneth the wood: and as a flame burning mountains:
Open Psalms 82:15 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Sicut ignis qui comburit silvam, et sicut flamma comburens montes,
- Septuagint (Swete)
- ὡσεὶ πῦρ ὃ διαφλέξει δρυμόν, ὡς εἰ φλὸξ κατακαύσαι ὄρη,
- Hebrew (WLC) shown from Psalms 83:15
- כְּאֵ֥שׁ תִּבְעַר יָ֑עַר וּ֝כְלֶהָבָ֗ה תְּלַהֵ֥ט הָרִֽים
Haydock's commentary
Mountains. The prayer or prediction was not in vain. The enemies of Josaphat, (2 Paralipomenon xx. 11, 24.; Calmet) and of David, &c., were destroyed. (Haydock)
The trees on the mountains, (Menochius) or the mountain itself, might burn like Etna and Vesuvius. (Genebrard)
The destruction of the wicked is thus described. (Worthington)
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 LXXXIII
“Like as the fire that burneth up the wood, and as the flame that consumeth the mountains” ( ver. 14 ): “so shalt Thou persecute them with Thy tempest, and in Thy anger shalt disturb them” ( ver. 15 ). Wood, he saith, for its barrenness, mountains for their loftiness; for such are the enemies of God’s people, barren of righteousness, full of pride. When he says, “fire” and “flame,” he means to repeat under another term, the idea of God judging and punishing. But in saying, “with Thy tempest,” he means, as he goes on to explain, “Thy anger:” and the former expression, “Thou shalt persecute,” answers to, “Thou shalt disturb.” We must take care, however, to understand, that the anger of God is free from any turbulent emotion; for His anger is an expression for His just method of taking vengeance: as the law might be said to be angry when its ministers are moved to punish by its sanction.