The Meaning of Psalms 50:3 Explained

Psalms 50:3

KJV: Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him.

YLT: Our God cometh, and is not silent, Fire before Him doth devour, And round about him it hath been very tempestuous.

Darby: Our God will come, and will not keep silence: fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him.

ASV: Our God cometh, and doth not keep silence: A fire devoureth before him, And it is very tempestuous round about him.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Our God  shall come,  and shall not keep silence:  a fire  shall devour  before  him, and it shall be very  tempestuous  round about  him. 

What does Psalms 50:3 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalm 50:1-15 - Sacrifices Which God Desires
This is one of the most majestic compositions of this book. For literary power it cannot be excelled. The psalmist hears God calling the whole world from east to west. His presence is compared to the dawn and to a tropical storm. When He is seated on His throne, the heavens and the earth bear witness while He judges His people. Then up the crowded aisles His saints advance and stand before Him.
There is no need to enlarge upon the spiritual insight of the psalmist, who realizes that God cannot be enriched by anything that we can bring; but insists on the sacrifice of thanksgiving, vows of consecration, and the loud call for help in the day of trouble. These are characteristic of those whose God is the Lord, and of the people whom He has taken for His own inheritance. Let us specially ponder these three conditions of the happy life, Psalms 50:14-15. What comfort is contained in the blessed promise of Psalms 50:15! It is so absolute in its certainty and assurance. God has here bound Himself to deliver the soul that calls on Him in its trouble and give it reason to glorify Him. [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalm 50

1  The majesty of God in the church
5  His order to gather his saints
7  The pleasure of God is not in ceremonies
14  but in sincerity of obedience

What do the individual words in Psalms 50:3 mean?

Shall come Our God and not shall keep silent a fire before Him shall devour and all around Him it shall be tempestuous very
יָ֤בֹ֥א אֱלֹהֵ֗ינוּ וְֽאַל־ יֶ֫חֱרַ֥שׁ אֵשׁ־ לְפָנָ֥יו תֹּאכֵ֑ל וּ֝סְבִיבָ֗יו נִשְׂעֲרָ֥ה מְאֹֽד

יָ֤בֹ֥א  Shall  come 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
אֱלֹהֵ֗ינוּ  Our  God 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, first person common plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
וְֽאַל־  and  not 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb
Root: אַל  
Sense: not, no, nor, neither, nothing (as wish or preference).
יֶ֫חֱרַ֥שׁ  shall  keep  silent 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: חָרַשׁ 
Sense: to cut in, plough, engrave, devise.
אֵשׁ־  a  fire 
Parse: Noun, common singular
Root: אֵשׁ  
Sense: fire.
לְפָנָ֥יו  before  Him 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, common plural construct, third person masculine singular
Root: לִפְנֵי 
Sense: face.
תֹּאכֵ֑ל  shall  devour 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: אָכַל  
Sense: to eat, devour, burn up, feed.
וּ֝סְבִיבָ֗יו  and  all  around  Him 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb, third person masculine singular
Root: מוּסָב 
Sense: places round about, circuit, round about adv.
נִשְׂעֲרָ֥ה  it  shall  be  tempestuous 
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Perfect, third person feminine singular
Root: שָׂעַר 
Sense: to storm, shiver, dread, bristle (with horror), be very afraid.
מְאֹֽד  very 
Parse: Adverb
Root: מְאֹד  
Sense: exceedingly, much subst.