In terms of the dynamics of the poem, it is best to consider verse 9 as consisting of three lines, like verse 8: He bowed down the heavens/came down/thick darkness was under his feet. Here the second parallel line is used to carry the action forward. In some cases it may be necessary to make the sequence of events more explicit by saying, for example, “Then he came down toward earth,” or “After that he came down,” or “Having bent the heavens like a hunter bends a bow, he came down.”

The picture in verses 9-12 is that of a thunderstorm. The verb of the action exerted on the heavens may mean “to stretch” (see 104.2 “stretched out the heavens like a tent”); here the idea is that of bending down, or else “spread apart” (like curtains; so Cross and Freedman). New Jerusalem Bible has “parted”; New Jerusalem Bible “bent.” Bowed the heavens is a figure which may require some adjustment in the direction of a simile; for example, “he opened the sky like a person opens a curtain” or “he tore the sky apart like a person tears a cloth.”

Came down: God is portrayed as making an opening in the firmament and descending to earth in order to save the psalmist.

The thick darkness … under his feet refers to dark clouds (see Nah 1.3, where the clouds are the carpet on which God rests his feet). The darkness associated with it is to hide him from sight (see 97.2; 1 Kgs 8.12; Exo 19.16; 20.21).

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Reyburn, William D. A Handbook on the Book of Psalms. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1991. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .