Reference: Earthquake
American
A convulsion of the earth common in volcanic regions, and well known in all parts of the world; probably occasioned by the action of internal heat or fire. Scripture speaks of several earthquakes, Nu 16; 1Ki 19:11-12. One occurred in the twenty-seventh year of Uzziah king of Judah, and is mentioned in Am 1:1; Zec 14:5. A very memorable earthquake was that at our Savior's death, Mt 27:51, which some suppose extended throughout the world. Palestine has been often visited by earthquakes. So late as 1837 one occurred in the vicinity of the Sea of Galilee, by which about a third part of Tiberias was destroyed, and thousands of people perished there and in the towns near by. Earthquakes were among the calamities foretold as connected with the destruction of Jerusalem, Mt 24:7; and history proves the truth of the prediction.
The word earthquake is also used figuratively to denote God's power and wrath, as in Ps 18:7; 46:2; 104:32, etc.; and as an emblem of a great civil or national catastrophe, Mt 24:7,29; Re 16:18-19.
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And He saith, 'Go out, and thou hast stood in the mount before Jehovah.' And lo, Jehovah is passing by, and a wind -- great and strong -- is rending mountains, and shivering rocks before Jehovah: -- not in the wind is Jehovah; and after the wind a shaking: -- not in the shaking is Jehovah; and after the shaking a fire: -- not in the fire is Jehovah; and after the fire a voice still small;
And shake and tremble doth the earth, And foundations of hills are troubled, And they shake -- because He hath wrath.
Therefore we fear not in the changing of earth, And in the slipping of mountains Into the heart of the seas.
Who is looking to earth, and it trembleth, He cometh against hills, and they smoke.
Words of Amos -- who hath been among herdsmen of Tekoa -- that he hath seen concerning Israel, in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam son of Joash king of Israel, two years before the shaking;
And ye have fled to the valley of My mountains, For join doth the valley of the mountains to Azal, And ye have fled as ye fled before the shaking, In the days of Uzziah king of Judah, And come in hath Jehovah my God, All holy ones are with Thee.
'For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places;
'For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places;
'And immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from the heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken;
and lo, the vail of the sanctuary was rent in two from top unto bottom, and the earth did quake, and the rocks were rent,
and there came voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and a great earthquake came, such as came not since men came upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake -- so great! And it came -- the great city -- into three parts, and the cities of the nations did fall, and Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give to her the cup of the wine of the wrath of His anger,
Easton
mentioned among the extraordinary phenomena of Palestine (Ps 18:7; comp. Hab 3:6; Na 1:5; Isa 5:25).
The first earthquake in Palestine of which we have any record happened in the reign of Ahab (1Ki 19:11-12). Another took place in the days of Uzziah, King of Judah (Zec 14:5). The most memorable earthquake taking place in New Testament times happened at the crucifixion of our Lord (Mt 27:54). An earthquake at Philippi shook the prison in which Paul and Silas were imprisoned (Ac 16:26).
It is used figuratively as a token of the presence of the Lord (Jg 5:4; 2Sa 22:8; Ps 77:18; 97:4; 104:32).
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Jehovah, in Thy going forth out of Seir, In Thy stepping out of the field of Edom, Earth trembled, also the heavens dropped, Also thick clouds dropped water.
And He saith, 'Go out, and thou hast stood in the mount before Jehovah.' And lo, Jehovah is passing by, and a wind -- great and strong -- is rending mountains, and shivering rocks before Jehovah: -- not in the wind is Jehovah; and after the wind a shaking: -- not in the shaking is Jehovah; and after the shaking a fire: -- not in the fire is Jehovah; and after the fire a voice still small;
And shake and tremble doth the earth, And foundations of hills are troubled, And they shake -- because He hath wrath.
The voice of Thy thunder is in the spheres, Lightnings have lightened the world, The earth hath trembled, yea, it shaketh.
Lightened have His lightnings the world, The earth hath seen, and is pained.
Who is looking to earth, and it trembleth, He cometh against hills, and they smoke.
Therefore hath the anger of Jehovah burned among His people, And He stretcheth out His hand against it, And smiteth it, and the mountains tremble, And their carcase is as filth in the midst of the out-places. With all this His anger did not turn back, And still His hand is stretched out!
Mountains have shaken because of Him, And the hills have been melted; And lifted up is the earth at His presence, And the world and all dwelling in it.
He hath stood, and He measureth earth, He hath seen, and He shaketh off nations, And scatter themselves do mountains of antiquity, Bowed have the hills of old, The ways of old are His.
And ye have fled to the valley of My mountains, For join doth the valley of the mountains to Azal, And ye have fled as ye fled before the shaking, In the days of Uzziah king of Judah, And come in hath Jehovah my God, All holy ones are with Thee.
And the centurion, and those with him watching Jesus, having seen the earthquake, and the things that were done, were exceedingly afraid, saying, 'Truly this was God's Son.'
and suddenly a great earthquake came, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken, opened also presently were all the doors, and of all -- the bands were loosed;
Fausets
Traces of volcanic agency abound in Palestine. Yet the only recorded earthquake is that in Uzziah's reign (Am 1:1). It must have been a terrible one, since two and a half centuries later it was still being made an epoch in Zec 14:5; his sin in the spiritual world was connected with the convulsion in the natural world. Such physical signs and premonitory upheavals shall accompany the closing conflict between the powers of light and darkness (Isa 24:20; Zec 14:4; Mt 24:7). Also that in 1Ki 19:11. The awe it inspires made it an accompaniment attributed to Jehovah's presence (Jg 5:4; 2Sa 22:8; Ps 77:18; 104:32; Am 8:8; Hab 3:10). The valley of Siddim, S. of the Dead Sea, probably subsided owing to an earthquake. Bela is so-called ("swallowed up") from having been engulfed by an earthquake, as Dathan and Abiram were (Nu 16:30-32; Ge 14:2).
The miraculous darkness and earthquake at our Lord's death (Mt 27:51-54) agree with the natural fact of darkness often accompanying earthquakes. The Jordan Valley, with a lower and a lower valley, the sulphurous and bituminous neighborhood of the Dead Sea, the lava, pumice stones, and hot springs, the crater like depression of the Dead Sea, 1,300 ft. below the Mediterranean level, and 3,500 ft. below Jerusalem, only 20 miles away (the deepest depression on the earth), its basaltic columns, disturbed strata, and numerous crevices, all betoken action of volcanoes and earthquakes. The line of earthquakes extends from Hebron and Jerusalem to Baalbek and Aleppo, from S.W. to N.E., following the central chain of Syria, parallel to the Jordan Valley, and terminating in the volcanic slope of Taurus on the N. and in the mountains of Arabia Petrea on the S.
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they have made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, and Shemeber king of Zeboim, and the king of Bela, which is Zoar.
and if a strange thing Jehovah do, and the ground hath opened her mouth and swallowed them, and all that they have, and they have gone down alive to Sheol -- then ye have known that these men have despised Jehovah.' And it cometh to pass at his finishing speaking all these words, that the ground which is under them cleaveth, read more. and the earth openeth her mouth, and swalloweth them, and their houses, and all the men who are for Korah, and all the goods,
Jehovah, in Thy going forth out of Seir, In Thy stepping out of the field of Edom, Earth trembled, also the heavens dropped, Also thick clouds dropped water.
And He saith, 'Go out, and thou hast stood in the mount before Jehovah.' And lo, Jehovah is passing by, and a wind -- great and strong -- is rending mountains, and shivering rocks before Jehovah: -- not in the wind is Jehovah; and after the wind a shaking: -- not in the shaking is Jehovah;
The voice of Thy thunder is in the spheres, Lightnings have lightened the world, The earth hath trembled, yea, it shaketh.
Who is looking to earth, and it trembleth, He cometh against hills, and they smoke.
Stagger greatly doth the land as a drunkard, And it hath been moved as a lodge, And heavy on it hath been its transgression, And it hath fallen, and addeth not to rise.
Words of Amos -- who hath been among herdsmen of Tekoa -- that he hath seen concerning Israel, in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam son of Joash king of Israel, two years before the shaking;
For this doth not the land tremble, And mourned hath every dweller in it? And come up as a flood hath all of it. And it hath been cast out, and hath sunk, Like the flood of Egypt.
Seen thee -- pained are mountains, An inundation of waters hath passed over, Given forth hath the deep its voice, High its hands it hath lifted up.
And stood have His feet, in that day, On the mount of Olives, That is before Jerusalem eastward, And cleft hath been the mount of Olives at its midst, To the east, and to the west, a very great valley, And removed hath the half of the mount towards the north. And its half towards the south. And ye have fled to the valley of My mountains, For join doth the valley of the mountains to Azal, And ye have fled as ye fled before the shaking, In the days of Uzziah king of Judah, And come in hath Jehovah my God, All holy ones are with Thee.
'For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places;
and lo, the vail of the sanctuary was rent in two from top unto bottom, and the earth did quake, and the rocks were rent, and the tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who have fallen asleep, arose, read more. and having come forth out of the tombs after his rising, they went into the holy city, and appeared to many. And the centurion, and those with him watching Jesus, having seen the earthquake, and the things that were done, were exceedingly afraid, saying, 'Truly this was God's Son.'
Hastings
The whole formation of the country running in a straight line from the Taurus range to the gulf of Akabah, which therefore includes Central Jud
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and mount Sinai is wholly a smoke from the presence of Jehovah, who hath come down on it in fire, and its smoke goeth up as smoke of the furnace, and the whole mount trembleth exceedingly;
And it cometh to pass at his finishing speaking all these words, that the ground which is under them cleaveth,
And shake and tremble doth the earth, And foundations of hills are troubled, And they shake -- because He hath wrath.
The earth hath shaken, Yea, the heavens have dropped before God, This Sinai -- before God, the God of Israel.
The voice of Thy thunder is in the spheres, Lightnings have lightened the world, The earth hath trembled, yea, it shaketh.
Making His messengers -- the winds, His ministers -- the flaming fire.
By Jehovah of Hosts thou art inspected, With thunder, and with an earthquake, And great noise, hurricane, and whirlwind, And flame of devouring fire.
Words of Amos -- who hath been among herdsmen of Tekoa -- that he hath seen concerning Israel, in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam son of Joash king of Israel, two years before the shaking;
And ye have fled to the valley of My mountains, For join doth the valley of the mountains to Azal, And ye have fled as ye fled before the shaking, In the days of Uzziah king of Judah, And come in hath Jehovah my God, All holy ones are with Thee.
'For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places;
and lo, the vail of the sanctuary was rent in two from top unto bottom, and the earth did quake, and the rocks were rent,
And the centurion, and those with him watching Jesus, having seen the earthquake, and the things that were done, were exceedingly afraid, saying, 'Truly this was God's Son.'
and lo, there came a great earthquake, for a messenger of the Lord, having come down out of heaven, having come, did roll away the stone from the door, and was sitting upon it,
for nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles; beginnings of sorrows are these.
great shakings also in every place, and famines, and pestilences, there shall be; fearful things also, and great signs from heaven there shall be;
and suddenly a great earthquake came, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken, opened also presently were all the doors, and of all -- the bands were loosed;
Morish
The first earthquake mentioned is when Elijah was told to stand before the Lord. There passed by a strong wind that rent the rocks, then an earthquake, and fire; but the Lord was not in the earthquake, nor in the fire; but in a still small voice: a lesson for Elijah when he was thinking much of himself. 1Ki 19:11-12. In the days of Uzziah there was a great earthquake, from which the people fled. Am 1:1; Zec 14:5. Josephus (Ant. ix. 10, 4) states that this happened when the king went into the temple and was struck with leprosy. 2Ch 26:16-21.
There was an earthquake at the death of the Lord, and the rocks were rent, which drew from the centurion the saying, "Truly this was the Son of God." Mt 27:51,54. There was also a great earthquake at the resurrection of the Lord. Mt 28:2. When Paul and Barnabas were in the prison at Philippi there was a great earthquake that shook the prison, which led to the conversion of the jailer. Ac 16:26. Josephus (Ant. xv. 5, 2) relates the particulars of a dreadful earthquake in Palestine about B.C. 31, when as many as 10,000 of the inhabitants lost their lives.
In the future judgements on the earth, earthquakes are often mentioned. Isa 29:6; Mt 24:7; Mr 13:8; Lu 21:11; Re 6:12; 8:5; 11:13,19; 16:18. Symbolically they point to the upheaval of the lower masses of society, overthrowing the social system either partially or entirely.
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And He saith, 'Go out, and thou hast stood in the mount before Jehovah.' And lo, Jehovah is passing by, and a wind -- great and strong -- is rending mountains, and shivering rocks before Jehovah: -- not in the wind is Jehovah; and after the wind a shaking: -- not in the shaking is Jehovah; and after the shaking a fire: -- not in the fire is Jehovah; and after the fire a voice still small;
And at his being strong his heart hath been high unto destruction, and he trespasseth against Jehovah his God, and goeth in unto the temple of Jehovah to make perfume upon the altar of perfume. And Azariah the priest goeth in after him, and with him priests of Jehovah eighty, sons of valour, read more. and they stand up against Uzziah the king, and say to him, 'Not for thee, O Uzziah, to make perfume to Jehovah, but for priests, sons of Aaron, who are sanctified to make perfume; go forth from the sanctuary, for thou hast trespassed, and it is not to thee for honour from Jehovah God.' And Uzziah is wroth, and in his hand is a censer to make perfume, and in his being wroth with the priests -- the leprosy hath risen in his forehead, before the priests, in the house of Jehovah, from beside the altar of perfume. And Azariah the head priest looketh unto him, and all the priests, and lo, he is leprous in his forehead, and they hasten him thence, and also he himself hath hastened to go out, for Jehovah hath plagued him. And Uzziah the king is a leper unto the day of his death, and inhabiteth a separate house -- a leper, for he hath been cut off from the house of Jehovah, and Jotham his son is over the house of the king, judging the people of the land.
By Jehovah of Hosts thou art inspected, With thunder, and with an earthquake, And great noise, hurricane, and whirlwind, And flame of devouring fire.
Words of Amos -- who hath been among herdsmen of Tekoa -- that he hath seen concerning Israel, in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam son of Joash king of Israel, two years before the shaking;
And ye have fled to the valley of My mountains, For join doth the valley of the mountains to Azal, And ye have fled as ye fled before the shaking, In the days of Uzziah king of Judah, And come in hath Jehovah my God, All holy ones are with Thee.
'For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places;
and lo, the vail of the sanctuary was rent in two from top unto bottom, and the earth did quake, and the rocks were rent,
And the centurion, and those with him watching Jesus, having seen the earthquake, and the things that were done, were exceedingly afraid, saying, 'Truly this was God's Son.'
and lo, there came a great earthquake, for a messenger of the Lord, having come down out of heaven, having come, did roll away the stone from the door, and was sitting upon it,
for nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles; beginnings of sorrows are these.
great shakings also in every place, and famines, and pestilences, there shall be; fearful things also, and great signs from heaven there shall be;
and suddenly a great earthquake came, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken, opened also presently were all the doors, and of all -- the bands were loosed;
And I saw when he opened the sixth seal, and lo, a great earthquake came, and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood,
and the messenger took the censer, and did fill it out of the fire of the altar, and did cast it to the earth, and there came voices, and thunders, and lightnings, and an earthquake.
and in that hour came a great earthquake, and the tenth of the city did fall, and killed in the earthquake were names of men -- seven thousands, and the rest became affrighted, and they gave glory to the God of the heaven.
And opened was the sanctuary of God in the heaven, and there was seen the ark of His covenant in His sanctuary, and there did come lightnings, and voices, and thunders, and an earthquake, and great hail.
and there came voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and a great earthquake came, such as came not since men came upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake -- so great!
Smith
Earthquake.
Earthquakes, more or less violent, are of frequent occurrence in Palestine. The most remarkable occurred in the reign of Uzziah.
From
we are led to infer that a great convulsion took place at this time in the Mount of Olives, the mountain being split so as to leave a valley between its summit. An earthquake occurred at the time of our Saviour's crucifixion.
Earthquakes are not unfrequently accompanied by fissures of the earth's surface; instances of this are recorded in connection with the destruction of Korah and his company,
and at the time of our Lord's death,
the former may be paralleled by a similar occurrence at Oppido in Calabria A.D. 1783, where the earth opened to the extent of five hundred and a depth of more than two hundred feet.
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and the earth openeth her mouth, and swalloweth them, and their houses, and all the men who are for Korah, and all the goods,
And stood have His feet, in that day, On the mount of Olives, That is before Jerusalem eastward, And cleft hath been the mount of Olives at its midst, To the east, and to the west, a very great valley, And removed hath the half of the mount towards the north. And its half towards the south. And ye have fled to the valley of My mountains, For join doth the valley of the mountains to Azal, And ye have fled as ye fled before the shaking, In the days of Uzziah king of Judah, And come in hath Jehovah my God, All holy ones are with Thee.
and lo, the vail of the sanctuary was rent in two from top unto bottom, and the earth did quake, and the rocks were rent,
and lo, the vail of the sanctuary was rent in two from top unto bottom, and the earth did quake, and the rocks were rent, and the tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who have fallen asleep, arose, read more. and having come forth out of the tombs after his rising, they went into the holy city, and appeared to many. And the centurion, and those with him watching Jesus, having seen the earthquake, and the things that were done, were exceedingly afraid, saying, 'Truly this was God's Son.'
Watsons
EARTHQUAKE. The Scripture speaks of several earthquakes. One happened in the twenty-seventh year of Uzziah, king of Judah, in the year of the world 3221. This is mentioned in Am 1:1, and in Zec 14:5. Josephus says that its violence divided a mountain, which lay west of Jerusalem, and drove one part of it four furlongs. A very memorable earthquake is that which happened at our Saviour's death, Mt 27:51. Many have thought that this was perceived throughout the world. Others are of opinion that it was felt only in Judea, or even in the temple at Jerusalem. St. Cyril of Jerusalem says, that the rocks upon mount Calvary were shown in his time, which had been rent asunder by this earthquake. Maundrell and Sandys testify the same, and say that they examined the breaches in the rock, and were convinced that they were the effects of an earthquake. It must have been terrible, since the centurion and those with him were so affected by it, as to acknowledge the innocence of our Saviour, Lu 23:47. Phlegon, Adrian's freedman, relates that, together with the eclipse, which happened at noon day, in the fourth year of the two hundred and second Olympiad, or A.D. 33, a very great earthquake was also felt, principally in Bithynia. The effects of God's power, wrath, and vengeance are compared to earthquakes, Ps 18:7; 46:2; 114:4. An earthquake signifies also, in prophetic language, the dissolution of governments and the overthrow of states.
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And shake and tremble doth the earth, And foundations of hills are troubled, And they shake -- because He hath wrath.
Therefore we fear not in the changing of earth, And in the slipping of mountains Into the heart of the seas.
The mountains have skipped as rams, Heights as sons of a flock.
Words of Amos -- who hath been among herdsmen of Tekoa -- that he hath seen concerning Israel, in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam son of Joash king of Israel, two years before the shaking;
And ye have fled to the valley of My mountains, For join doth the valley of the mountains to Azal, And ye have fled as ye fled before the shaking, In the days of Uzziah king of Judah, And come in hath Jehovah my God, All holy ones are with Thee.
and lo, the vail of the sanctuary was rent in two from top unto bottom, and the earth did quake, and the rocks were rent,
And the centurion having seen what was done, did glorify God, saying, 'Really this man was righteous;'