2 Samuel 22:9 (WEB)

Passage

Smoke went up out of his nostrils. Consuming fire came out of his mouth. Coals were kindled by it.

Nearby Context

2 Samuel 22:7 In my distress, I called on Yahweh. Yes, I called to my God. He heard my voice out of his temple. My cry came into his ears.

2 Samuel 22:8 Then the earth shook and trembled. The foundations of heaven quaked and were shaken, because he was angry.

2 Samuel 22:9 Smoke went up out of his nostrils. Consuming fire came out of his mouth. Coals were kindled by it.

2 Samuel 22:10 He bowed the heavens also, and came down. Thick darkness was under his feet.

2 Samuel 22:11 He rode on a cherub, and flew. Yes, he was seen on the wings of the wind.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "smoke", "went", "nostrils", "consuming", "fire", "came", "mouth", and "coals". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "smoke" and "went", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 8's "Then the earth shook and trembled The..." into verse 10's "He bowed the heavens also and came...", so "smoke" and "went" belong inside that flow. In 2 Samuel context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "smoke" and "went" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.