Lexical Summary
raam: roar, thundered, thunders
Original Word:רָעַם
Part of Speech:Verb
Transliteration:ra`am
Pronunciation:rah-AM
Phonetic Spelling:(raw-am')
KJV: make to fret, roar, thunder, trouble
NASB:roar, thundered, thunders, thunder, irritate, troubled
Word Origin:[a primitive root]
1. to tumble, i.e. be violently agitated
2. specifically, to crash (of thunder)
3. (figuratively) to irritate (with anger)
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
make to fret, roar, thunder, trouble
A primitive root; to tumble, i.e. Be violently agitated; specifically, to crash (of thunder); figuratively, to irritate (with anger) -- make to fret, roar, thunder, trouble.
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origindenominative verb from
raamDefinitionto thunder
NASB Translationirritate (1), roar (3), thunder (2), thundered (3), thunders (3), troubled (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
[] ; —
make the sound of thunder, thunder: Imperfect3masculine singularlet the seathunder (in praise, "" , , , , , )Psalm 96:11 =1 Chronicles 16:32;Psalm 98:7. —Perfect3pluralEzekiel 27:35 is dubious:faces tremble (Toyare convulsed), orthey tremble (compare Hi-Sm Krae; AV RVare troubled)in face, lacks etymological support (otherwise Gerber47, but see √ above); Co .
(Gerbe47)thunder, cause thunder; — Perfect3masculine singularPsalm 29:3;Imperfect3masculine singular (on see Köi. 210)Psalm 18:14 +;1 Samuel 7:10; 2masculine singularJob 40:9;1 Samuel 1:6 see below; —thunder, of (God)1 Samuel 2:10;1 Samuel 7:10 (both with personagainstwhom),Psalm 18:14 =2 Samuel 22:14;Psalm 29:3;Job 37:4,5, compareJob 40:9. —1 Samuel 1:6 is appear.Infinitive construct suffix (Ges§ 20h; 22s), but not understood by and dubious: AV RVto make her fret, compare Aramaicutter (loud)complaints (Weir in DrSm 291); perhaps corrupt HPS.
see II. . below
Topical Lexicon
Overviewרָעַם portrays a powerful, often awe-inspiring “roaring” or “thundering.” Scripturally, the verb and its cognate noun communicate three main ideas: (1) the literal crash of atmospheric thunder, (2) the figurative roar of the sea or of tumultuous crowds, and (3) a metaphor for God’s overwhelming voice or action that unsettles the wicked and vindicates the righteous.
Occurrences in Narrative Contexts
•1 Samuel 1:6 describes Peninnah’s relentless taunting of Hannah: she “would provoke her bitterly to irritate her” (root רעם). The storm-language heightens the emotional violence of the harassment.
•1 Samuel 2:10 encapsulates Hannah’s hymn: “The LORD will thunder from heaven; He will judge the ends of the earth.” The verb associates divine judgment with a cosmic thunderclap.
•1 Samuel 7:10 recounts the miraculous rout of Philistia: “The LORD thundered with a mighty voice against the Philistines that day and threw them into confusion, so they were defeated by Israel.” Here thunder is both auditory and tactical, wielded as a weapon on Israel’s behalf.
•2 Samuel 22:14 (cf.Psalm 18:13) places the same theophanic thunder in David’s victory psalm: “The LORD thundered from heaven; the Most High made His voice resound.” The verb marks the moment God intervenes personally in battle.
Liturgical and Poetic Usage
In the Psalms and Chronicles the root is transferred to creation’s praise.
•Psalm 29:3: “The God of glory thunders; the LORD is heard over many waters.” Worshipers hear the storm as liturgy—a natural doxology that magnifies the “voice of the LORD.”
•Psalm 96:11 andPsalm 98:7 call the seas to “roar” (רעם) in global celebration of God’s kingship. The word that once terrified armies is recast as joyful resonance when God’s rule is welcomed.
•1 Chronicles 16:32 borrows the same line for David’s tabernacle hymn, binding temple worship to cosmic harmony.
Wisdom Literature and the Divine Voice
Job 37:4-5 andJob 40:9 develop thunder as the unmatched voice of God.
“After that a voice roars; He thunders with His majestic voice… God thunders wondrously with His voice” (Job 37:4-5).
“Can you thunder with a voice like His?” (Job 40:9).
Elihu employs the meteorology of a thunderstorm to humble Job beneath the inscrutable greatness of the Creator. The interrogative inJob 40:9 presses every reader to acknowledge creaturely limits.
Prophetic and Eschatological Resonance
Ezekiel 27:35 predicts that foreign kings will be “appalled” (root רעם) at Tyre’s fall. The roaring devastation of commerce serves as a foreshadowing of global upheaval under divine judgment. The same vocabulary later reverberates in Revelation, where peals of thunder accompany heavenly decrees (for exampleRevelation 8:5; 19:6), showing canonical continuity: thunder heralds decisive acts of God toward the nations.
Pastoral and Ministry Implications
1. God’s “thunder” reassures the faithful. Hannah, Samuel, David, and Job all emerge from their encounters with deeper confidence in God’s sovereign care.
2. The motif guards against trivializing worship. If the seas and storms reverberate in praise, liturgical gatherings dare not approach God casually.
3. Thunder warns the unrepentant. Just as the Philistines were routed by an auditory display, so the preaching of judgment today should carry weight, urging hearers to seek refuge in Christ before that final eschatological storm breaks.
4. The verb encourages intercessory boldness. Samuel’s prayer elicited the thunder that saved Israel; ministers may likewise plead for God’s manifest intervention in present crises.
Christological Connections
At the cross and resurrection narratives the Gospels record earthquakes and extraordinary sounds, subtle echoes of Old Testament thunder.John 12:28-29 reports the Father’s voice mistaken for thunder, aligning the Son’s glorification with the familiar rumble of divine speech. Revelation climaxes redemptive history with “voices and thunder” surrounding the Lamb’s throne, confirming that the One who thundered at Sinai and over the waters now speaks through the crucified and risen Christ.
Summary
רָעַם threads through Scripture as an acoustic emblem of God’s power—terrifying to His foes, liberating to His people, and ultimately celebratory in the universal chorus of praise. From Hannah’s private anguish to cosmic worship in Revelation, the roaring voice of the LORD assures believers that every storm, literal or metaphorical, is under His sovereign command.
Forms and Transliterations
הִרְעִ֑ים הַרְּעִמָ֑הּ הרעים הרעמה וַיַּרְעֵ֣ם וַיַּרְעֵ֬ם וירעם יִֽרְעַ֥ם יִרְעַ֣ם יִרְעַ֤ם יַ֭רְעֵם יַרְעֵ֔ם יַרְעֵ֤ם יַרְעֵ֥ם ירעם רָעֲמ֖וּ רעמו תַרְעֵֽם׃ תרעם׃ har·rə·‘i·māh harrə‘imāh harreiMah hir‘îm hir·‘îm hirIm rā‘ămū rā·‘ă·mū raaMu ṯar‘êm ṯar·‘êm tarEm vaiyarEm way·yar·‘êm wayyar‘êm yar‘êm yar·‘êm yarEm yir‘am yir·‘am yirAm
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