Psalms 68 - ESV - Bible Reading / Study Notes

Psalm 68

God Shall Scatter His Enemies

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. A Song.

68:1   God shall arise, his enemies shall be scattered;
    and those who hate him shall flee before him!
2   As smoke is driven away, so you shall drive them away;
    as wax melts before fire,
    so the wicked shall perish before God!
3   But the righteous shall be glad;
    they shall exult before God;
    they shall be jubilant with joy!
4   Sing to God, sing praises to his name;
    lift up a song to him who rides through the deserts;
  his name is the LORD;
    exult before him!
5   Father of the fatherless and protector of widows
    is God in his holy habitation.
6   God settles the solitary in a home;
    he leads out the prisoners to prosperity,
    but the rebellious dwell in a parched land.
7   O God, when you went out before your people,
    when you marched through the wilderness, Selah
8   the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain,
    before God, the One of Sinai,
    before God,¹ the God of Israel.
9   Rain in abundance, O God, you shed abroad;
    you restored your inheritance as it languished;
10   your flock² found a dwelling in it;
    in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy.
11   The Lord gives the word;
    the women who announce the news are a great host:
12     “The kings of the armies—they flee, they flee!”
  The women at home divide the spoil—
13     though you men lie among the sheepfolds—
  the wings of a dove covered with silver,
    its pinions with shimmering gold.
14   When the Almighty scatters kings there,
    let snow fall on Zalmon.
15   O mountain of God, mountain of Bashan;
    O many-peaked³ mountain, mountain of Bashan!
16   Why do you look with hatred, O many-peaked mountain,
    at the mount that God desired for his abode,
    yes, where the LORD will dwell forever?
17   The chariots of God are twice ten thousand,
    thousands upon thousands;
    the Lord is among them; Sinai is now in the sanctuary.
18   You ascended on high,
    leading a host of captives in your train
    and receiving gifts among men,
  even among the rebellious, that the LORD God may dwell there.
19   Blessed be the Lord,
    who daily bears us up;
    God is our salvation. Selah
20   Our God is a God of salvation,
    and to GOD, the Lord, belong deliverances from death.
21   But God will strike the heads of his enemies,
    the hairy crown of him who walks in his guilty ways.
22   The Lord said,
    “I will bring them back from Bashan,
  I will bring them back from the depths of the sea,
23   that you may strike your feet in their blood,
    that the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from the foe.”
24   Your procession is⁴ seen, O God,
    the procession of my God, my King, into the sanctuary—
25   the singers in front, the musicians last,
    between them virgins playing tambourines:
26   “Bless God in the great congregation,
    the LORD, O you⁵ who are of Israel’s fountain!”
27   There is Benjamin, the least of them, in the lead,
    the princes of Judah in their throng,
    the princes of Zebulun, the princes of Naphtali.
28   Summon your power, O God,⁶
    the power, O God, by which you have worked for us.
29   Because of your temple at Jerusalem
    kings shall bear gifts to you.
30   Rebuke the beasts that dwell among the reeds,
    the herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples.
  Trample underfoot those who lust after tribute;
    scatter the peoples who delight in war.⁷
31   Nobles shall come from Egypt;
    Cush shall hasten to stretch out her hands to God.
32   O kingdoms of the earth, sing to God;
    sing praises to the Lord, Selah
33   to him who rides in the heavens, the ancient heavens;
    behold, he sends out his voice, his mighty voice.
34   Ascribe power to God,
    whose majesty is over Israel,
    and whose power is in the skies.
35   Awesome is God from his⁸ sanctuary;
    the God of Israel—he is the one who gives power and strength to his people.
  Blessed be God!

Footnotes

[1] 68:8 Or before God, even Sinai before God
[2] 68:10 Or your congregation
[3] 68:15 Or hunch-backed; also verse 16
[4] 68:24 Or has been
[5] 68:26 The Hebrew for you is plural here
[6] 68:28 By revocalization (compare Septuagint); Hebrew Your God has summoned your power
[7] 68:30 The meaning of the Hebrew verse is uncertain
[8] 68:35 Septuagint; Hebrew your

Commentary

A Psalm to accompany the carrying of the ark into Jerusalem (2 Sam 6); praising God, esp. for His goodness to Israel. There is some material here which is prophetic.

v1-3: Let God arise; looking to God to act, to vindicate His people, and to glorify His name, Num 10.35.

His enemies are those who reject the Lord and despise His people. The righteous are those who love God, rejoicing before God; just as David rejoiced as the ark was brought into the city.

v4-6: As the ark is being carried, the people rejoice in God's goodness. He is the God of compassion and mercy, see Ps 62.12.

v7-10: The people then recall past blessings from the hand of God; speaking of the greatness and power of God, Ps 62.11.

This is the Israel of God praising the God of Israel. In Gen 33.18-20, Jacob bought a piece of land, as a foretaste of the then future occupation of Canaan. Centuries later, the people looked backed, and saw that God had fulfilled His promises to them. The land was already fruitful, and God increased that fruitfulness.

v11-14: God gave military victories, as Israel marched towards Canaan. Kings and armies were scattered, camps were plundered, as God set His people apart from all the peoples.

God gave the word (v11), and the people proclaimed it. It is the word of victory; and that word scattered the kings (v12, 14). As a result of His victory, there is great spoil for the people.

v15-18: The greatness of God's Holy Place, where He dwells; how much greater is God Himself (v35). Zion was not the highest mountain (which was why jealousy is attributed to Mount Bashan), and Israel was not the greatest nation.

v18: is quoted in Eph 4, but also fulfilled in 1 Cor; God gives gifts to His church, even among the rebellious; in the N.T., the church is His dwelling place.

v19-20: The arrival in Jerusalem. Salvation is escape from death - no wonder God's people praise Him.

v21-23: The ungodly suffer from their wrong doing.

v24-27: The great procession of praise; the people unite in praising God, as the ark is brought to rest in the sanctuary. Notice the different character from the tribes of Israel; these words seem to fit with v18, as the tribes brought their gifts for God.

v29-31: The testimony to the world, as in Ps 67. The prayer is that God will show His power and strength from His dwelling place. Men will either submit and bring their gifts, or feel the rebuke of God. The reference to wild animals is to those who will not submit, and are rebuked.

v32-35: For the nations, there is no choice; God is the God of all the world, as well as the God of Israel. He has chosen to make His dwelling place amongst the people of Israel.