'Rain' in the Bible

no shrub or plant of the field was yet in the earth, and no herb of the field had yet sprouted, for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground,

For in seven days I am going to cause it to rain on the earth for forty days and forty nights; and I will destroy (blot out, wipe away) every living thing that I have made from the surface of the earth.”

The flood [the great downpour of rain] was forty days and nights on the earth; and the waters increased and lifted up the ark, and it floated [high] above the land.

Also the fountains of the deep [subterranean waters] and the windows of the heavens were closed, the [pouring] rain from the sky was restrained,

hear this: tomorrow about this time I will send a very heavy and dreadful hail, such as has not been seen in Egypt from the day it was founded until now.

So Moses left the city and Pharaoh, and stretched out his hands to the Lord; then the thunder and hail ceased, and rain no longer poured on the earth.

But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he sinned again and hardened his heart, both he and his servants.

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I will cause bread to rain from heaven for you; the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, so that I may test them [to determine] whether or not they will walk [obediently] in My instruction (law).

then I will give you rain in its season, and the land will yield her produce and the trees of the field bear their fruit.

I will break your pride in your power, and I will make your sky like iron [giving no rain and blocking all prayers] and your ground like bronze [hard to plow and yielding no produce].

But the land into which you are about to cross to possess, a land of hills and valleys, drinks water from the rain of heaven,

that He will give the rain for your land in its season, the early [fall] rain and the late [spring] rain, so that you may gather in your grain and your new wine and your [olive] oil.

or [else] the Lord’s anger will be kindled and burn against you, and He will shut up the heavens so that there will be no rain and the land will not yield its fruit; and you will perish quickly from the good land which the Lord is giving you.

The Lord will open for you His good treasure house, the heavens, to give rain to your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hand; and you will lend to many nations, but you will not borrow.

The Lord will make the rain of your land powder and dust; from heaven it will come down on you until you are destroyed.

“Let my teaching drop as the rain,My speech distill as the dew,As the light rain upon the tender grass,And as the spring showers upon the herb.

Is it not [the beginning of the] wheat harvest today? I will call to the Lord and He will send thunder and rain; then you will know [without any doubt], and see that your evil which you have done is great in the sight of the Lord by asking for yourselves a king.”

So Samuel called to the Lord [in prayer], and He sent thunder and rain that day; and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.

“O mountains of Gilboa,Let not dew or rain be upon you, nor fields with offerings;For there the shield of the mighty was defiled,The shield of Saul, [dry, cracked] not anointed with oil.

Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it out for herself on the rock, from the beginning of harvest [in the spring] until [the autumn] rain fell on them; and she allowed neither the birds of the sky to rest on their bodies by day, nor the beasts of the field [to feed on them] by night.

Is like the morning light when the sun rises,A morning without clouds,When the fresh grass springs out of the earthThrough sunshine after rain.’

“When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against You, and they pray toward this place and praise Your name and turn from their sin when You afflict them,

then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of Your servants and of Your people Israel; indeed, teach them the good way in which they should walk (live). And send rain on Your land which You have given to Your people as an inheritance.

Now Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.”

It happened after a while that the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land.

For this is what the Lord God of Israel says: ‘The bowl of flour shall not be exhausted nor shall the jar of oil be empty until the day that the Lord sends rain [again] on the face of the earth.’”

Now it happened after many days that the word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year, saying, “Go, show yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the face of the earth.”

Now Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink, for there is the sound of the roar of an abundance of rain.”

And at the seventh time the servant said, “A cloud as small as a man’s hand is coming up from the sea.” And Elijah said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot and go down, so that the rain shower does not stop you.’”

In a little while the sky grew dark with clouds and wind, and there were heavy showers. And Ahab mounted and rode [his chariot] and went [inland] to Jezreel.

For thus says the Lord, ‘You will not see wind or rain, yet that valley will be filled with water, so you and your cattle and your other animals may drink.

“When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because Your people have sinned against You, and they pray toward this place and confess Your name, and turn from their sin when You afflict and humble them;

then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of Your servants and Your people Israel, indeed, teach them the good way in which they should walk. And send rain on Your land which You have given to Your people as an inheritance.

If I shut up the heavens so that no rain falls, or if I command locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence and plague among My people,

So all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered at Jerusalem within three days. It was the twentieth [day] of the ninth month, and all the people sat in the open square in front of the house of God, trembling because of [the seriousness of] this matter and because of the heavy rain.

But there are many people and it is the season of heavy rain; so we are unable to stand outside. Nor can the task be done in a day or two, for we have transgressed greatly in this matter.

“He gives rain upon the earthAnd sends waters upon the fields,

“When he fills his belly,God will send His fierce anger on himAnd will rain it upon him while he is eating.

When He made a limit for the rainAnd a way for the thunderbolt,

“They waited for me [and for my words] as for the rain,And they opened their mouths as for the spring rain.

“For He draws up the drops of water,They distill rain from the mist,

“Who has prepared a channel for the torrents of rain and for the flood,Or a path for the thunderbolt,

To bring rain on the uninhabited land,And on the desert where no man lives,

“Has the rain a father?Or who has begotten the drops of dew?

Upon the wicked (godless) He will rain coals of fire;Fire and brimstone and a dreadful scorching wind will be the portion of their cup [of doom].

The earth trembled;The heavens also poured down rain at the presence of God;Sinai itself trembled at the presence of God, the God of Israel.

You, O God, sent abroad plentiful rain;You confirmed Your inheritance when it was parched and weary.

May he come down like rain on the mown grass,Like showers that water the earth.

Passing through the Valley of Weeping (Baca), they make it a place of springs;The early rain also covers it with blessings.

He gave them hail for rain,With flaming fire in their land.

Who causes the clouds to rise from the ends of the earth;Who makes lightning for the rain,Who brings the wind from His storehouses;

Who covers the heavens with clouds,Who provides rain for the earth,Who makes grass grow on the mountains.

In the light of the king’s face is life,And his favor is like a cloud bringing the spring rain.

Like clouds and wind without rainIs a man who boasts falsely of gifts [he does not give].

The north wind brings forth rain;And a backbiting tongue, an angry countenance.

Like snow in summer and like rain in harvest,So honor is not fitting for a [shortsighted] fool.

A poor man who oppresses and exploits the lowlyIs like a sweeping rain which leaves no food.

If the clouds are full [of rain], they empty themselves on the earth; and if a tree falls toward the south or toward the north, in the place where the tree falls, there it lies.

before the sun and the light, and the moon and the stars are darkened [by impaired vision], and the clouds [of depression] return after the rain [of tears];

‘For behold, the winter is past,The rain is over and gone.

And there will be a pavilion for shade from the heat by day, and a refuge and a shelter from the storm and the rain.

“I will turn it into a wasteland;It will not be pruned or cultivated,But briars and thorns will come up.I will also command the clouds not to rain on it.”

Then He will give you rain for the seed with which you sow the ground, and bread [grain] from the produce of the ground, and it will be rich and plentiful. In that day your livestock will graze in large and roomy pastures.

He cuts cedars for himself, and takes a cypress or an oak and lets it grow strong for himself among the trees of the forest. He plants a fir, and the rain nourishes it.

“Rain down, O heavens, from above,Let the clouds pour down righteousness [all the blessings of God];Let the earth open up, let salvation bear fruit,And righteousness spring up with it;I, the Lord, have created it.

“For as the rain and snow come down from heaven,And do not return there without watering the earth,Making it bear and sprout,And providing seed to the sower and bread to the eater,

“Therefore the showers have been withheld,And there has been no spring rain.Yet you have the forehead (appearance) of a prostitute;You refuse to be ashamed.

‘They do not say in their heart,“Let us now fear and worship the Lord our God [with profound awe and reverence],Who gives rain in its season,Both the autumn and the spring rain,Who keeps for usThe appointed weeks of the harvest.”

When He utters His voice, there is a tumult of waters in the heavens,And He causes the clouds and the mist to ascend from the end of the earth;He makes lightning for the rain,And brings out the wind from His treasuries and from His storehouses.

“The ground is crackedBecause there has been no rain on the land;The farmers are distressed,And they have covered their heads [in shame].

Are there any among the idols of the nations who can send rain?Or can the heavens [of their own will] give showers?Is it not You, O Lord our God?Therefore we will wait and hope [confidently] in You,For You are the one who has made all these things [the heavens and the rain].

When He utters His voice, there is a tumult of waters in the heavens,And He causes the clouds to ascend from the ends of the earth.He makes lightnings for the rainAnd brings out the wind from His storehouses.

As the appearance of the rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the surrounding radiance. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory and brilliance of the Lord. And when I saw it, I fell face downward and I heard a voice of One speaking.

so tell those who plaster it with whitewash, that it will fall! A flooding rain [of judgment] will come, and you, O [great] hailstones, will fall; and a violent wind will tear the wall apart.

Therefore, thus says the Lord God, “I will make a violent wind break out in My wrath, and there will be in My anger an overwhelming rain and great hailstones to destroy [that wall] in wrath.

With pestilence and with bloodshed I will enter into judgment with Gog; and I will rain on him torrents of rain with [great] hailstones, fire and brimstone on his hordes and on the many nations that are with him.

“It will come about in that day that I will respond,” says the Lord.“I will respond to the heavens [which ask for rain to pour on the earth], and they will respond to the earth [which begs for the rain],

“So let us know and become personally acquainted with Him; let us press on to know and understand fully the [greatness of the] Lord [to honor, heed, and deeply cherish Him].His appearing is prepared and is as certain as the dawn,And He will come to us [in salvation] like the [heavy] rain,Like the spring rain watering the earth.”

So rejoice, O children of Zion,And delight in the Lord, your God;For He has given you the early [autumn] rain in vindicationAnd He has poured down the rain for you,The early [autumn] rain and the late [spring] rain, as before.

“Furthermore, I withheld the rain from youWhen there were still three months until the harvest.Then I would send rain on one city,And on another city I would not send rain;One piece of ground was rained on,While the part not rained on would dry up.

Ask for rain from the Lord at the time of the spring rain.It is the Lord who makes the thunder clouds;And He will give them showers of rain, grass in the field to everyone.

And it will be that whichever of the families of the earth does not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, there will be no rain on them.

If the family of Egypt does not go up [to Jerusalem] and present themselves, then no rain will fall on them. It will be the plague with which the Lord will strike the nations who do not go up to celebrate the Feast of Booths (Tabernacles).