Psalms 80:10
in Psalms 80The mountains were covered by its shade, and the mighty cedars with its branches.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
The mountains were covered with the shadow of it, And the boughs thereof were like cedars of God.
KJV
The hills were covered with the shadow of it, and the boughs thereof were like the goodly cedars.
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This verse in Psalms 80
Commentary
11 notes on this verse"The hills were covered with the shadow of it." Israel dwelt up the mountains' summits, cultivating every foot of soil. The nation multiplied and became so great that other lands felt its influence, or were shadowed by it. "And the boughs thereof were like the goodly cedars." The nation itself was so great that even its tribes were powerful and worthy to take rank among the mighty. A more correct rendering describes the cedars as covered with the vine, and we know that in many lands vines climb the trees, and cover them.
This site's exposition
You uprooted a vine from Egypt
on Psalms 80:8-11
The history becomes one figure, a vine uprooted from Egypt and transplanted where the nations had been driven out. Isaiah 5:1 to 7 works the same figure and names the vineyard as the house of Israel. Its branches run from the Sea to the River.
This site's exposition
the mighty cedars with its branches
Charles Spurgeon pictured Israel farming the hills to their summits, its influence falling like shade on other lands. The branches rival the cedars, and he took that to mean even single tribes ranked among the mighty. The vine outgrows the forest.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
"A way You have made in the sight of her, and hast planted the roots of her, and she has filled the land" [Psalm 80:9]. Would she have filled the land, unless a way had been made in the sight of her? What was the way which was made in the sight of her? "I am," He says, "the Way, the Truth, and the Life." [John 14:6] With reason she has filled the land. That has now been said of this vineyard, which has been accomplished at the last. But in the mean time what? "She has covered the mountains with her shadow, and with her branch the cedars of God" [Psalm 80:10]. "You have stretched out her boughs even unto the sea, and even unto the river her shoots" [Psalm 80:11]. This requires the office of an expositor, that of a reader and praiser does not suffice: aid me with attention; for the mention of this vineyard in this Psalm is wont to overcloud with darkness the inattentive....But nevertheless the first Jewish nation was this vine. But the Jewish nation reigned as far as the sea and as far as the river. As far as the sea; it appears in Scripture [Numbers 34:5] that the sea was in the vicinity thereof. And as far as the river Jordan. For on the other side of Jordan some part of the Jews was established, but within Jordan was the whole nation. Therefore, "even unto the sea and even unto the river," is the kingdom of the Jews, the kingdom of Israel: but not "from sea even unto sea, and from the river even unto the ends of the round world;" this is the future perfection of the vineyard, concerning which in this place he has foretold. When, I say, he had foretold to you the perfection, he returns to the beginning, out of which the perfection was made. Of the beginning will you hear? "Even unto the river." Of the end will you hear? […]
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
The hills were covered with the shadow of it,....
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
brought--or, "plucked up," as by roots, to be replanted. a vine-- (Ps 78:47). The figure (Isa 16:8) represents the flourishing state of Israel, as predicted (Ge 28:14), and verified (1Ki 4:20-25).
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
"The hills were covered with the shadow of it." Israel dwelt up the mountains' summits, cultivating every foot of soil. The nation multiplied and became so great that other lands felt its influence, or were shadowed by it. "And the boughs thereof were like the goodly cedars." The nation itself was so great that even its tribes were powerful and worthy to take rank among the mighty. A more correct rendering describes the cedars as covered with the vine, and we know that in many lands vines climb the trees, and cover them. What a vine must that be which ascends the cedars of God, and even overtops them! It is a noble picture of the prosperity of the Israelitish people in their best days. In Solomon's time the little land of Israel occupied a high place among the nations. There have been times when the church of God also has been eminently conspicuous, and her power has been felt far and near.
THIS SEEMS TO BE the only prayer the Psalmist puts up in this Psalm, as being of itself sufficient for the removal of all the ills over which he mourned.
3 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
THIS SEEMS TO BE the only prayer the Psalmist puts up in this Psalm, as being of itself sufficient for the removal of all the ills over which he mourned. Though he sighs over the strife of neighbors and the ridicule of foes; and lamenting the ill condition of the goodly vine, he deplores its broken hedges, and complains of the wild beasts that waste and devour it, yet he does not petition the Most High against these evils in detail; but gathering up all his wishes into this one prayer, he reiterates it o’er and o’er—“Turn us again, O Lord God of hosts, cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.” The reason is obvious. He had traced all the calamities to one source, “O Lord God, how long wilt thou be angry—?” And now he seeks refreshing from one fountain. Let thy face no longer frown, but let it beam upon us with a smile and all shall then be well. This is a select lesson for the church of Christ. “In your troubles, trials and adversities, seek first, chiefly, and above everything else, to have a revival of religion in your own breast, the presence of God in your own heart; having that, you have scarcely anything beside to pray for; whatever else may befal you shall work for your good, and all that seems to impede your course, shall really prove to be a prosperous gale, to waft you to your desired haven: only, take care that you seek of God that you yourselves are turned again unto him, and that he would give you the light of his countenance; so shall you be saved.” This morning’s sermon, then will be especially addressed to my own church, on the absolute necessity of true religion in our midst, and of revival from all apathy and indifference.
The hills were covered - 6. The vine, carefully cultivated in a suitable soil, may be spread to any extent. In the land of Judea it formed shades under which the people not only sheltered and refreshed themselves in times of sultry heats; but it is said they even ate, drank, and dwelt under the shelter of their vines. See 1Ki 4:25; Mic 4:4; 1 Maccabees 14:12. God so blessed the Jews, particularly in the days of David and Solomon, that all the neighboring nations were subdued - the Syrians, Idumeans, Philistines, Moabites, and Ammonites.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
The hills were covered with the shadow of it - That is, It made a shade, by its luxuriant foliage, on the hills in every part of the land; it seemed to cover all the hills. And the boughs thereof were like the goodly cedars - Margin, as in Hebrew, cedars of God; that is, lofty, majestic cedars. See the notes at Psa 65:9. The reference here is to the cedars of Lebanon, among the most majestic objects known to the Hebrews.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
and its branches were great cedars Heb. ארזי אל, like strong cedars, i.e., mighty kings.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 7 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
6 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| כָּסּ֣וּ | kasu | they were covered | H3680 → | 152 times |
| הָרִ֣ים | harim | mountains | H2022 → | 546 times |
| צִלָּ֑הּ | tzilah | shade its | H6738 → | 49 times |
| וַ֝עֲנָפֶ֗יהָ | vaanafeiha | and branches its | H6057 → | |
| אַֽרְזֵי־ | ʾarzei- | [the] cedars of | H730 → | 73 times |
| אֵֽל׃ | ʾel | God | H410 → | 241 times |
כָּסּ֣וּthey were covered
kasuH3680 →152 times
הָרִ֣יםmountains
harimH2022 →546 times
צִלָּ֑הּshade its
tzilahH6738 →49 times
וַ֝עֲנָפֶ֗יהָand branches its
vaanafeihaH6057 →
אַֽרְזֵי־[the] cedars of
ʾarzei-H730 →73 times
אֵֽל׃God
ʾelH410 →241 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
4 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Psalms 104:16The trees of the LORD have their fill, the cedars of Lebanon that He planted,
it leads to
- Numbers 24:6
They spread out like palm groves, like gardens beside a stream, like aloes the LORD has planted, like cedars beside the waters.
- Psalms 92:2
to proclaim Your loving devotion in the morning and Your faithfulness at night
- Psalms 29:5
The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars; the LORD shatters the cedars of Lebanon.
- Ezekiel 17:23
I will plant it on the mountain heights of Israel so that it will bear branches; it will yield fruit and become a majestic cedar. Birds of every kind will nest under it, taking…
- Numbers 24:6
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies3
On this verse
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About Psalms
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Augustine of Hippo, Exposition on Psalm 80; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 4; Charles Spurgeon, The New Park Street Pulpit, Sermon No. 284: “One Antidote for Many Ills” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition); Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Psalms; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763).