Storm

When God speaks to His people from out of the storm, it is to reveal wonders too grand to have known, to pose questions that result in wonder.[1] Job experienced this when “from out of the storm” the Lord spoke to him about the stars being called by name, the ocean boundaries being set, the time for a mountain bear to give birth, the doe bearing her fawn, and the dawn being shown its place so it can shake the wickedness of night from the earth’s edges each day.[2] These are not the words of an angry God, but One whose goodness exposes lies with a wisdom that is, literally, over our heads.

Thunder is actually caused by light expanding into the air and causing the air pressure drop; as pressure changes, we hear the sound of thunder. So the noise of thunder that we fear is not caused by something awful, but by Light expanding the atmosphere. It makes sense then that God’s voice would sometimes sound like thunder. This description of the Lord coming in a storm to deliver His people is written exactly the same way twice in the Bible (2 Sam 22:13-14 and Psalm 18:12-13):

“Out of the brightness of His presence clouds advanced,
with hailstones and bolts of lightning.

The Lord thundered from heaven;
the voice of the Most High resounded…”

It is not brooding stormy anger toward man but the radiance of His Light that causes the atmosphere to crack and shift at His coming, with dark clouds, all darkness, under His feet. (2 Sam 22:10 and Psalm 18:9) Just look at this image of a storm and see how it is piercing through darkness, changing the atmosphere with the warmth of His Light!

Job’s response to the speaking of the Lord in the storm was not to die in fear, but to bow down and worship! Job’s entire life was restored after the breakthrough of God’s speaking.

Just as God’s voice from out of the storm caused Job to bow down, God spoke to Israel from within a dense cloud so the people would know Moses was truly hearing from God. (Exodus 19:9) His lightning did not strike the people, but sounded forth to establish Moses’ authority with the people by creating an atmosphere of worship.

[1] “Surely I [Job] spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know.” (Job 42:3)

[2] The Lord speaks to Job out of the storm for four chapters (Job 38-41) and it is pure poetry! Beautiful to read and disarming how the Lord poses questions for Job to consider rather than striking Him with lightning or thundering overhead.

[3] “The Lord said to Moses, “I am going to come to you in a dense cloud, so that the people will hear Me speaking with you and will always put their trust in you.”(Exodus 19:9)