Psalms 104:10-14

104:10 He turns springs into streams; ¹ 

they flow between the mountains.

104:11 They provide water for all the animals in the field;

the wild donkeys quench their thirst.

104:12 The birds of the sky live beside them;

they chirp among the bushes. ² 

104:13 He waters the mountains from the upper rooms of his palace; ³ 

the earth is full of the fruit you cause to grow. ⁴ 

104:14 He provides grass ⁵  for the cattle,

and crops for people to cultivate, ⁶ 

so they can produce food from the ground, ⁷ 

Psalms 107:35

107:35 As for his people, ⁸  he turned ⁹  a desert into a pool of water,

and a dry land into springs of water.

Psalms 147:8-9

147:8 He covers ¹⁰  the sky with clouds,

provides the earth with rain,

and causes grass to grow on the hillsides. ¹¹ 

147:9 He gives food to the animals,

and to the young ravens when they chirp. ¹² 

Isaiah 35:1-2

The Land and Its People Are Transformed

35:1 Let the desert and dry region be happy; ¹³ 

let the wilderness ¹⁴  rejoice and bloom like a lily!

35:2 Let it richly bloom; ¹⁵ 

let it rejoice and shout with delight! ¹⁶ 

It is given the grandeur ¹⁷  of Lebanon,

the splendor of Carmel and Sharon.

They will see the grandeur of the Lord,

the splendor of our God.

Isaiah 41:18-19

41:18 I will make streams flow down the slopes

and produce springs in the middle of the valleys.

I will turn the desert into a pool of water

and the arid land into springs.

41:19 I will make cedars, acacias, myrtles, and olive trees grow in the wilderness;

I will make evergreens, firs, and cypresses grow together in the desert.

Isaiah 43:19-20

43:19 “Look, I am about to do something new.

Now it begins to happen! ¹⁸  Do you not recognize ¹⁹  it?

Yes, I will make a road in the desert

and paths ²⁰  in the wilderness.

43:20 The wild animals of the desert honor me,

the jackals and ostriches,

because I put water in the desert

and streams in the wilderness,

to quench the thirst of my chosen people,

Jeremiah 14:22

14:22 Do any of the worthless idols ²¹  of the nations cause rain to fall?

Do the skies themselves send showers?

Is it not you, O Lord our God, who does this? ²² 

So we put our hopes in you ²³ 

because you alone do all this.”

Hebrews 6:7-8

6:7 For the ground that has soaked up the rain that frequently falls on ²⁴  it and yields useful vegetation for those who tend it receives a blessing from God. 6:8 But if it produces thorns and thistles, it is useless and about to be cursed; ²⁵  its fate is to be burned.

[104:10]  ¹ tn Heb “[the] one who sends springs into streams.” Another option is to translate, “he sends streams [i.e., streams that originate from springs] into the valleys” (cf. NIV).

[104:12]  ² tn Heb “among the thick foliage they give a sound.”

[104:13]  ³ tn Heb “from his upper rooms.”

[104:13]  ⁴ tn Heb “from the fruit of your works the earth is full.” The translation assumes that “fruit” is literal here. If “fruit” is understood more abstractly as “product; result,” then one could translate, “the earth flourishes as a result of your deeds” (cf. NIV, NRSV, REB).

[104:14]  ⁵ tn Heb “causes the grass to sprout up.”

[104:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “for the service of man” (see Gen 2:5).

[104:14]  ⁷ tn Heb “to cause food to come out from the earth.”

[107:35]  ⁸ tn The words “As for his people” are not included in the Hebrew text, but have been supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity. The psalmist contrasts God’s judgment on his enemies with his blessing of his people. See the note on the word “enemies” in v. 39 for further discussion.

[107:35]  ⁹ tn The verbal form appears to be a preterite, which is most naturally taken as narrational. See the note on the word “turned” in v. 33.

[147:8]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the one who covers.”

[147:8]  ¹¹ tn Heb “hills.”

[147:9]  ¹² tn Heb “which cry out.”

[35:1]  ¹³ tn The final mem (ם) on the verb יְשֻׂשׂוּם (yÿsusum) is dittographic (note the initial mem on the following noun מִדְבָּר [midbar]). The ambiguous verbal form is translated as a jussive because it is parallel to the jussive form תָגֵל (tagel). The jussive is used rhetorically here, not as a literal command or prayer.

[35:1]  ¹⁴ tn Or “Arabah” (NASB); NAB, NIV, TEV “desert.”

[35:2]  ¹⁵ tn The ambiguous verb form תִּפְרַח (tifrakh) is translated as a jussive because it is parallel to the jussive form תָגֵל (tagel).

[35:2]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “and let it rejoice, yes [with] rejoicing and shouting.” גִּילַת (gilat) may be an archaic feminine nominal form (see GKC 421 §130.b).

[35:2]  ¹⁷ tn Or “glory” (KJV, NIV, NRSV); also a second time later in this verse.

[43:19]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “sprouts up”; NASB “will spring forth.”

[43:19]  ¹⁹ tn Or “know” (KJV, ASV); NASB “be aware of”; NAB, NIV, NRSV “perceive.”

[43:19]  ²⁰ tn The Hebrew texts has “streams,” probably under the influence of v. 20. The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a has נתיבות (“paths”).

[14:22]  ²¹ tn The word הֶבֶל (hevel), often translated “vanities”, is a common pejorative epithet for idols or false gods. See already in 8:19 and 10:8.

[14:22]  ²² tn Heb “Is it not you, O Lord our God?” The words “who does” are supplied in the translation for English style.

[14:22]  ²³ tn The rhetorical negatives are balanced by a rhetorical positive.

[6:7]  ²⁴ tn Grk “comes upon.”

[6:8]  ²⁵ tn Grk “near to a curse.”