Psalm 29 is a psalm of praise in which the majesty of the Lord is described as it is portrayed in a thunderstorm. The psalm is characterized by the repetition of words that give the effect of repeated peals of thunder. Because the words of Psalm 29, except for the word Yahweh, can also be found in other ancient Canaanite texts, it has been thought by some that this psalm originated as a song of praise for Baal, the god of thunder, which was later adapted and included in the Psalter. But it is of course also possible that Psalm 29 is of Hebrew origin and was written to show how much greater God is than Baal, by making use of words normally associated with Baal to describe the majesty of God. Regardless of its origin, Psalm 29 is a confession of faith, bravely proclaimed in contrast to the dominant religion of the time.

A thunderstorm is a natural occurrence that can be explained scientifically, yet it is also in the impressiveness of a thunderstorm that God speaks to us, displaying his glory. These two ways of interpreting the phenomena are not mutually exclusive or contradictory.

The name Jahweh (Lord) is found eighteen times in this relatively short psalm!