Psalms 97:4

His lightnings enlightened the world,.... Either the doctrines of the Gospel, compared thereunto, because of the swift progress they made, and the large extent of them in the world, in a very little time; by the apostles they were published in all nations, and were the means of enlightening them in the true knowledge of themselves, and of the way of salvation by Christ: hence they are called the "lights of the world", Matthew 5:14, as the coming of Christ, in his kingdom and power, by them, is compared to lightning, and so are the arrows of his word,

Matthew 24:27, or else his judgments on the Jewish nation are meant, which were manifest and clear, and obvious to all the world; see

Psalms 18:14,

the earth saw, and trembled; the inhabitants of the earth, of the Gentile world, saw the judgments of God upon the Jews, and were astonished at them; see Deuteronomy 29:24, it is usual for lightnings and earthquakes to go together; see Revelation 11:19.