The voice of the Lord breaketh the cedars. At length down swoops the hurricane—wind and rain and forked flashes of lightning all blended together, and violently tearing through the forest. The tall cedars—the pride and glory of Syria and Palestine—are snapped like reeds, and fall in a tangled mass.
The Lord, who erstwhile "planted them" (Psalm cir. 16), now breaketh the cedars of Lebanon—breaketh and destroyeth them in his fury. Such storms, though rare in Palestine and Syria, are sometimes witnessed; and descriptions have been given by travellers which bear out this one of David.