The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their roaring.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This passage isn't just describing a storm; it's showing how powerful, chaotic forces are personified. The "floods" aren't just water; they are given a "voice" and "roaring," acting like opposing nations or world powers raging against God's authority, which the psalmist acknowledges even as he asserts God's ultimate control.
The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their roaring.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This psalm opens with a powerful declaration of God's eternal reign, emphasizing His strength and the stability of His creation against any threat. The verses then pivot to describe immense, roaring waters, which represent not just natural forces but also the chaotic, rebellious world powers that rage against God's dominion. This vivid imagery sets the stage for the psalm's ultimate message: that despite the clamor and violence of earthly opposition, God's sovereignty is unshakeable.
Have you ever felt overwhelmed by forces beyond your control? This psalm uses powerful imagery to describe those moments.
The psalmist pictures 'floods' – a word that can refer to raging rivers or the mighty sea – lifting up their 'voice' and 'roaring.' This isn't just a description of bad weather.
Ancient World, Modern Fears
In the ancient Near East, uncontrolled waters were a potent symbol of chaos and destructive forces that threatened order and life itself. Think of massive floods or tsunamis that could wipe out entire villages. They represented the untamed, terrifying aspects of the world.
World Powers and Tumult
Commentators often see these 'floods' as representing powerful, hostile nations or empires that threatened God's people. Like raging rivers overflowing their banks or the sea crashing against the shore, these worldly powers seemed unstoppable, loud, and intent on destruction. They 'lifted up their voice' in defiance and 'their roaring' was a sound of impending doom.
Amidst the roaring chaos, where do we find solid ground? This psalm offers a profound answer.
While the 'floods' are loud and violent, the psalm immediately places them in the context of God's sovereignty. The roaring waters are not the ultimate power.
Above the Storm
Ask a follow-up
Think of it like this: The psalmist is saying that even though these forces of chaos are raging, God is still on His throne. His reign is ancient ('from of old,' 'from eternity') and unshakeable. The 'floods' might be powerful, but God's power is absolute. He is the one who establishes order.
The King Who Commands
God's rule is not a suggestion; it's a reality that tames the wildest forces. He is depicted as 'clothed with majesty' and 'girded with strength.' This isn't just describing his appearance; it's showing that his very being is characterized by royal power and divine might. He is the King who is in control, even when everything else seems to be out of control.
Understand the original words
nahar · Hebrew Noun
In biblical poetry, these often symbolize the forces of chaos, rebellion, or destructive powers that threaten to overwhelm humanity, which God ultimately restrains and subdues.
This psalm likely arose during or after the Babylonian exile, a period when the overwhelming power of empires like Assyria and Babylon felt like destructive floods threatening to engulf God's people and His promises.
c. 8th century BC
Assyrian Empire's Expansion
The powerful Assyrian Empire, often described as a devastating flood, expanded aggressively, threatening and conquering many nations in the ancient Near East.
c. 7th century BC
Babylonian Empire's Rise
Following Assyria's decline, the Neo-Babylonian Empire rose to prominence, becoming a major world power that would eventually conquer Jerusalem.
605 BC
First Deportation to Babylon
King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon initiated the first major deportation of Judean captives, including members of the royal family and intellectual elite, to Babylon.
587/586 BC— this verse
Fall of Jerusalem and Temple Destruction
The Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and its sacred Temple, a catastrophic event that plunged the Judean people into exile and profound crisis.
c. 539 BC
Persian Conquest of Babylon
Cyrus the Great of Persia conquered Babylon, ushering in a new era and eventually allowing the Jewish exiles to return to their homeland.
This passage uses similar imagery of the 'sea' or 'floods' rising up to symbolize overwhelming and destructive forces, echoing the turbulent imagery in Psalms 93:3.
Isaiah 8:7-8Here, the 'river' (the Euphrates) is used as a powerful metaphor for invading armies that threaten to flood and overwhelm the land, similar to how the 'floods' are depicted in the psalm.
Revelation 17:15This New Testament passage also uses the imagery of 'waters' to represent peoples, multitudes, nations, and languages, suggesting that the 'floods' in the psalm can represent tumultuous human opposition to God's rule.
Psalm 46:3This psalm speaks of waters roaring, raging, and the mountains shaking, providing a parallel to the violent, noisy imagery of the floods lifting up their voice and roaring in Psalms 93:3.
clarkePsalms 93:3: "The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their waves."
The floods have lifted up - Multitudes of people have confederated against thy people; and troop succeeds troop as the waves of the sea succeed each other.
ellicottPsalms 93:3: "The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their waves."
(3) Waves. —Better, for the parallelism, roaring: but literally, breaking of the waves on the shore. Floods, here poetically for the sea, as in Psalm 24:2. Lift up.—The repetition of the verb the third time in a different tense adds to the force. In LXX. and Vulgate this clause is “from the voices of many waters.”
This passage isn't just describing a storm; it's showing how powerful, chaotic forces are personified. The "floods" aren't just water; they are given a "voice" and "roaring," acting like opposing nations or world powers raging against God's authority, which the psalmist acknowledges even as he asserts God's ultimate control.
This psalm opens with a powerful declaration of God's eternal reign, emphasizing His strength and the stability of His creation against any threat. The verses then pivot to describe immense, roaring waters, which represent not just natural forces but also the chaotic, rebellious world powers that rage against God's dominion. This vivid imagery sets the stage for the psalm's ultimate message: that despite the clamor and violence of earthly opposition, God's sovereignty is unshakeable.
This psalm opens with a powerful declaration of God's eternal reign, emphasizing His strength and the stability of His creation against any threat. The verses then pivot to describe immense, roaring waters, which represent not just natural forces but also the chaotic, rebellious world powers that rage against God's dominion. This vivid imagery sets the stage for the psalm's ultimate message: that despite the clamor and violence of earthly opposition, God's sovereignty is unshakeable.
"The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their roaring." — This passage isn't just describing a storm; it's showing how powerful, chaotic forces are personified. The "floods" aren't just water; they are given a "voice" and "roaring," acting like opposing nat…
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Last reviewed October 2026