Psalms 105:33 · Bible study
Psalms 105:33 Commentary: Judgment on Egypt's Vine and Fig Trees
Hebrew · 9 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Why the psalmist highlights the destruction of vines and fig trees as a specific act of judgment against Egypt, rooted in the Exodus plagues.
Research Summary
- Meaning: God’s judgment on Egypt’s essential crops during the Exodus plagues, highlighting His sovereignty and covenant faithfulness.
- Key words: “struck” (H5221, nakha, to smite), “shattered” (H7665, shavar, to break), “vines” (H1612, gefen), “fig trees” (H8384, te'enah), “territory” (H1366, gevul).
- Main debate: Whether the verse refers specifically to the plague of hail (Exodus 9) or is a poetic synthesis of multiple plagues (Lange). Most commentators tie it to hail.
- Theological theme: Divine sovereignty over creation and the destruction of human pride as part of redemptive history.
- Best use: Teaching on God’s power in the Exodus narrative and the certainty of His covenant promises.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
He struck their vines and fig trees and shattered the trees of their country.
WEB World English Bible 2000
He struck their vines and also their fig trees, and shattered the trees of their country.
KJV King James Version 1769
He smote their vines also and their fig trees; and brake the trees of their coasts.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
He smote their vines also and their fig-trees, And brake the trees of their borders.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
And He smiteth their vine and their fig, And shivereth the trees of their border.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
And he smote their vines and their fig-trees, and broke the trees of their borders.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
Because they exasperated his spirit. And he distinguished with his lips.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
E hirió sus viñas y sus higueras, y quebró los árboles de su término.
E feriu suas vinhas e seus figueirais; e quebrou as árvores de seus territórios.
Il frappa leurs vignes et leurs figuiers,
und schlug ihre Weinstöcke und Feigenbäume und zerbrach die Bäume in ihrem Gebiet.
En Hij sloeg hun wijnstok en hun vijgeboom, en Hij brak het geboomte hunner landpalen.
Percosse le loro vigne e i loro fichi e fracassò gli alberi del loro territorio.
Także potłukł winnice ich, i figi ich, a pokruszył drzewa w granicach ich.
ибо они огорчили дух его, и он погрешил устами своими.
他也擊打 他們的葡萄樹 和無花果樹，毀壞 他們境內 的樹木。
He gave their vines and their fig-trees to destruction, and the trees of their land were broken down.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Psalms 105:33
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree this verse poetically condenses the seventh plague (Exodus 9:25), where hail destroyed the crops of Egypt. Gill notes the verbs “smote” and “brake” indicate total destruction, comparable to “killed” in Psalm 78:47. Barnes observes the psalm follows the plague sequence without adding new details. Matthew Henry places it within God’s deliverance narrative, showing His sovereignty over creation. The specific mention of vines and fig trees, symbols of prosperity and daily life, highlights that no source of Egypt’s pride could withstand God’s hand.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Low
What is clear: The verse unquestionably refers to the destruction of Egyptian crops during the Exodus plagues, as part of God’s judgment leading to Israel’s deliverance.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Historical referent | Commentators tie this verse to the seventh plague of hail (Exodus 9:25). Gill and Cambridge cite the parallel in Psalm 78:47. | Lange views the psalm as a poetic synthesis of multiple plagues rather than a single event, making the specific referent less certain for some readers. |
| Date of composition of Psalm 105 | The psalm recounts God’s faithfulness from Abraham to the Exodus. The first 15 verses appear in 1 Chronicles 16 (ark brought to Jerusalem). | Calvin suggests David wrote it; others argue for a post-exilic compilation. The debate affects liturgical setting but not the meaning of this verse. |
| Symbolic meaning of vines and fig trees | They represent essential crops and economic stability. | Some see a deeper symbolism: vines often represent Israel (Psalm 80:8-16), but here they are Egypt’s. Others read them strictly literally. |
| Theological emphasis | The destruction highlights God’s judgment on Egypt’s resources. | Calvin and Matthew Henry emphasize God’s covenant love for Israel as the backdrop; others stress the justice of God against oppression. |
Historical & Cultural Context
The seventh plague of hail (Exodus 9:13-35) struck with unprecedented violence: fire mingled with hail, flattening everything in the fields, people, animals, and plants. Psalm 105:33 captures the economic and symbolic devastation. In ancient Egypt, vines and fig trees were not just food sources; they were essential to the economy and often tied to deities of fertility and harvest. To destroy them was to expose the impotence of Egypt’s gods. The psalmist’s phrase “trees of their territory” (Heb. etz gevulam) emphasizes the totality of judgment across the land.
Psalm 105 is a liturgical recitation of salvation history. Its purpose, as Calvin notes, is to magnify God’s grace in choosing Israel and to call the congregation to respond with covenant faithfulness. The verse stands within a series of plague references (vv. 28-36), each introduced by “He struck” or “He spoke,” underlining God’s direct agency. Unlike the prose account in Exodus, the psalm compresses the narrative into poetic snapshots, making it suitable for public worship and memory.
The immediate context (vv. 34-36) moves from hail to locusts and then to the death of the firstborn, moving from economic collapse to human tragedy. Each plague dismantles a different layer of Egyptian security. Vines and fig trees, slow to mature and dear to every household, represent the fragility of what the world counts on. By highlighting them, the psalmist shows that God’s judgment reaches exactly where human pride is anchored.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note no significant textual variants for this verse. The Hebrew text of Psalm 105:33 is consistent across the Masoretic tradition and ancient versions.
Reception History
Early Christian interpreters, such as the church fathers, read the plagues typologically: Egypt represented the world enslaved to sin, and the destruction of vines and fig trees symbolized God’s judgment on worldly security. Medieval exegetes moralized the verse, warning against placing trust in temporal goods. During the Reformation, Calvin used it to underscore God’s covenant faithfulness to His people. Modern scholarship focuses on the historical accuracy of the plague sequence and the psalm’s place in Israel’s liturgical life. Across traditions, the verse has been sung in hymns of deliverance and read during Easter vigils that recount the Exodus.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- God’s judgment is thorough. He struck not only the crops but the “trees of their territory”, everything within Egypt’s borders. No corner of human security is out of reach.
- God’s power over creation. The same hail that destroyed Egypt’s vines was directed by God’s word. He commands fire and ice to serve His purposes (Psalm 148:8).
- God remembers His covenant. The plagues were not random acts of anger. They served the deliverance of Israel (Exodus 9:16). God’s judgment on Egypt becomes the foundation of His people’s freedom.
Five-point outline
- Context: The psalm recalls all the plagues in sequence, with this verse focusing on the hail plague.
- Specificity: Vines and fig trees are named because they were particularly valuable, representing economic and domestic stability.
- Extent: “Shattered the trees of their territory” leaves no ambiguity: all trees within the borders were broken.
- Contrast: Israel’s later inheritance of a land “flowing with milk and honey” (Exodus 3:8) stands opposite Egypt’s ruined orchards.
- Response: The psalm calls readers to praise God who brought His people out with silver and gold (v. 37), not one feeble.
Illustration hooks
- A farmer losing an entire orchard to a sudden hailstorm, months of labor gone in minutes. That visceral loss mirrors what Egypt felt.
- A community’s primary industry (a factory, a fishery, a vineyard) collapses overnight. Everything people counted on vanishes.
- The modern equivalent of “vines and fig trees” might be retirement savings, health, or a stable job. This verse asks what we trust more than God.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Why does a good God destroy crops and livelihoods? (Answer in the context of the Exodus: judgment leads to deliverance, and God provides for Israel.)
- Do the plagues mean God is angry all the time? (No, they are a specific historical act of rescue, not a template for every disaster.)
- How can I trust God when my own “vines” are struck by hardship? (The same God who judged Egypt also fed Israel in the wilderness; He is both just and faithful.)
Leading a Discussion
This verse shows God acting in history to humble a proud nation and liberate His people. As you read it, notice how the psalmist selects vivid images of ruin to make God’s power unforgettable.
Discussion questions
- Read the surrounding verses (vv. 28-36). What pattern do you see in how each plague is described?
- Why do you think the psalmist mentions vines and fig trees specifically? What made those crops important in ancient Egypt?
- What does the phrase “trees of their territory” (found in all translations) tell us about the scope of the judgment?
- How does this verse connect to the larger story of the Exodus, what purpose did the plagues serve?
- In what ways do people today treat their “vines and fig trees” as sources of ultimate security? What should our response be?
- How does remembering God’s judgment on Egypt encourage us to trust Him in our own difficult circumstances?
- The psalm ends by calling readers to “praise the Lord” (v. 45). How does this verse contribute to that call to worship?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Psalms 78:47 | He destroyed their vines with hail, their sycamore fig trees with frost. |
| Revelation of John 9:4 | They were told that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree, but only those people who don’t have God’s seal on their foreheads. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
8 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke notes that the destruction of vines and fig trees is not recorded in the Exodus account of the plagues. He points out that this specific detail does appear earlier, in Psalm 78:47, making it a repeated motif within the Psalms themselves.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes notes that this passage simply lists the plagues in the order they happened, without adding any new details or explanations. He finds no special circumstances here that call for further comment.
Calvin's Commentaries Reformed 1564
Calvin emphasizes that God's countless benefits after delivering Israel from Egypt were not random favors; they were designed to draw faithful covenant keeping and wholehearted service from the chosen people. The psalm celebrates this deliberate purpose, showing the covenant was more than mere words.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The Cambridge Bible Schools commentary connects the Egyptians' hostility toward Israel with the display of God's power in the plagues. The seventh plague of hail, accompanied by thunder and lightning, is highlighted as the decisive demonstration that cleared the path for the Exodus, echoing the same pattern in Psalm 78.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
He smote their vines also and their figge trees, and brake downe the trees in their coastes.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill highlights that the Bible's language of "killing" trees, though it may sound odd, was a common classical expression. He explains that vines and fig trees are singled out because they were the most useful for fruit, and that the hail destroyed all trees throughout the land.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
their coasts —all their land ( Ps 78:54 ).
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry focuses on God's direct sovereignty over every detail of Israel's suffering and rescue. He notes that God himself turned the Egyptians' hearts to hate his people, then sent each plague by his own word, and finally brought Israel out with joy so they would keep his laws.