Psalm 68

God’s Majestic Power

For the choir director. A Davidic psalm. A song.

God arises. His enemies scatter,
and those who hate Him flee from His presence.(A)
As smoke is blown away,
so You blow them away.
As wax melts before the fire,
so the wicked are destroyed before God.(B)
But the righteous are glad;
they rejoice before God and celebrate with joy.(C)

Sing to God! Sing praises to His name.
Exalt Him who rides on the clouds[a]
His name is Yahweh[b]—and rejoice before Him.(D)
God in His holy dwelling is
a father of the fatherless
and a champion of widows.(E)
God provides homes for those who are deserted.
He leads out the prisoners to prosperity,[c]
but the rebellious live in a scorched land.(F)

God, when You went out before Your people,
when You marched through the desert,Selah
the earth trembled and the skies poured down rain
before God, the God of Sinai,[d]
before God, the God of Israel.(G)
You, God, showered abundant rain;
You revived Your inheritance when it languished.(H)
10 Your people settled in it;
God, You provided for the poor by Your goodness.(I)

11 The Lord gave the command;
a great company of women brought the good news:(J)
12 “The kings of the armies flee—they flee!”
She who stays at home divides the spoil.(K)
13 While[e] you lie among the sheepfolds,[f]
the wings of a dove are covered with silver,
and its feathers with glistening gold.(L)
14 When the Almighty scattered kings in the land,
it snowed on Zalmon.[g](M)

15 Mount Bashan is God’s towering mountain;
Mount Bashan is a mountain of many peaks.(N)
16 Why gaze with envy, you mountain peaks,
at the mountain[h] God desired for His dwelling?
The Lord will live there forever!(O)
17 God’s chariots are tens of thousands,
thousands and thousands;(P)
the Lord is among them in the sanctuary[i]
as He was at Sinai.(Q)
18 You ascended to the heights, taking away captives;
You received gifts from[j] people,
even from the rebellious,
so that the Lord God might live there.[k](R)

19 May the Lord be praised!
Day after day He bears our burdens;
God is our salvation.(S)Selah
20 Our God is a God of salvation,
and escape from death belongs to the Lord God.(T)
21 Surely God crushes the heads of His enemies,
the hairy head of one who goes on in his guilty acts.(U)
22 The Lord said, “I will bring them back from Bashan;
I will bring them back from the depths of the sea(V)
23 so that your foot may wade[l] in blood
and your dogs’ tongues may have their share
from the enemies.”(W)
24 People have seen Your procession, God,
the procession of my God,
my King, in the sanctuary.[m](X)
25 Singers[n] lead the way,
with musicians following;
among them are young women
playing tambourines.(Y)
26 Praise God in the assemblies;
praise the Lord from the fountain of Israel.(Z)
27 There is Benjamin, the youngest, leading them,
the rulers of Judah in their assembly,[o]
the rulers of Zebulun, the rulers of Naphtali.(AA)

28 Your God has decreed your strength.
Show Your strength, God,
You who have acted on our behalf.(AB)
29 Because of Your temple at Jerusalem,
kings will bring tribute to You.(AC)
30 Rebuke the beast[p] in the reeds,
the herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples.(AD)
Trample underfoot those with bars of silver.[q]
Scatter the peoples who take pleasure in war.(AE)
31 Ambassadors will come[r] from Egypt;
Cush will stretch out its hands[s] to God.(AF)

32 Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth;
sing praise to the Lord,(AG)Selah
33 to Him who rides in the ancient, highest heavens.(AH)
Look, He thunders with His powerful voice!(AI)
34 Ascribe power to God.
His majesty is over Israel,
His power among the clouds.(AJ)
35 God, You are awe-inspiring in Your sanctuaries.
The God of Israel gives power and strength to His people.
May God be praised!(AK)

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 68:4 Or rides through the desert
  2. Psalm 68:4 Lit Yah
  3. Psalm 68:6 Or prisoners with joyous music; Hb uncertain
  4. Psalm 68:8 Lit God, this Sinai
  5. Psalm 68:13 Or If
  6. Psalm 68:13 Or campfires, or saddlebags; Hb obscure
  7. Psalm 68:14 Or Black Mountain
  8. Psalm 68:16 = Mount Zion
  9. Psalm 68:17 Or in holiness
  10. Psalm 68:18 Lit among
  11. Psalm 68:18 Or even those rebelling against the Lord God’s living there, or even rebels are living with the Lord God; Hb obscure
  12. Psalm 68:23 LXX, Syr read dip
  13. Psalm 68:24 Or in holiness
  14. Psalm 68:25 Some Hb mss, LXX, Syr read Officials
  15. Psalm 68:27 Hb obscure
  16. Psalm 68:30 Probably Egypt
  17. Psalm 68:30 Or peoples, trampling on those who take pleasure in silver, or peoples, trampling on the bars of silver, or peoples, who trample each other for bars of silver
  18. Psalm 68:31 Or They bring red cloth, or They bring bronze
  19. Psalm 68:31 Probably with tribute or in submission

Praise to God for Providing Victory

For the music director. Of David. A psalm. A song.[a]

68 God will arise; his enemies will be scattered,
and those who hate him will flee from before him.
As smoke is driven off, you will drive them off.
As wax melts before fire,
the wicked will perish before God.
But the righteous will be glad; they will exalt before God,
and will rejoice with joy.
Sing to God, sing praises to his name.
Lift up a song to the rider on the clouds—his name is Yah—[b]
and rejoice before him.
A father to orphans and a judge for widows
is God in his holy habitation.
God settles the lonely in a home;
he brings prisoners out into prosperity.
But the rebellious abide in a barren land.
O God, when you went out before your people,
when you marched through the desert, Selah
the earth shook; the heavens also dripped rain
at the presence of God who was at Sinai,
at the presence of God, the God of Israel.
You caused abundant rain to fall, O God.
When your inheritance was weary you revived it.
10 Your community dwelled in it.
You provided in your goodness for the poor, O God.
11 The Lord gives the word.
Great is the company of women who announce:
12 The kings of armies flee, they flee,
and she who remains at home divides the spoil.
13 Though you men lie down between the sheepfolds,
you will be like the wings of a dove covered in silver
and its pinions in yellow gold.”
14 When Shaddai scattered kings on it,
on Zalmon it snowed.[c]
15 A mountain of God[d] is the mountain of Bashan;
a mountain of many peaks is the mountain of Bashan.
16 Why do you look with hostility, O many-peaked mountains?
This[e] mountain God desires for his dwelling.
Yes, Yahweh will abide in it forever.
17 The chariots of God
are twice ten thousand, with thousands doubled.
The Lord is among them at Sinai, distinctive in victory.[f]
18 You have ascended on high; you have led away captives.
You have received gifts from among humankind,
and even from the rebellious, so that Yah[g] God may dwell there.
19 Blessed be the Lord. Daily he loads us with benefits,[h]
the God of our salvation.[i] Selah
20 Our God is a God of deliverances,
and to the Yahweh the Lord belong escapes from death.
21 But God will shatter the head of his enemies,
the hairy scalp of the one who continues on[j] in his guilt.
22 The Lord said, “I will bring them back from Bashan;
I will bring them back from the depths of the sea,
23 so that your foot may shatter them bloody
for the tongues of your dogs to have their share from the enemies.”
24 They have seen your processions, O God,
the processions of my God, my king, distinctive in victory.[k]
25 Singers went up front, those playing stringed instruments last,
between them young women playing tambourines.
26 Bless God in the assemblies,
Yahweh from the fountain of Israel.
27 There is little Benjamin ruling them,
with the princes of Judah in their throng,
the princes of Zebulun and the princes of Naphtali.
28 Your God has commanded your strength.
Show yourself strong, O God, by what you perform[l] for us.
29 Because your temple is above Jerusalem,
kings will bring tribute to you.
30 Rebuke the beasts in[m] the reeds,
the herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples,
trampling the pieces of silver.[n]
Scatter the nations who delight in battles.
31 Ambassadors[o] will come from Egypt;
Cush will quickly stretch out her hands to God.
32 O kingdoms of the earth, sing to God;
sing praise to the Lord, Selah
33 to the one who rides in the highest heavens of old.
See, he gives forth his voice, a mighty voice.
34 Ascribe strength to God.
His majesty is over Israel,
and his strength is in the clouds.
35 Awesome are you, O God, from your sanctuary.[p]
The God of Israel, it is he who gives strength and might to the people.
Blessed be God.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 68:1 The Hebrew Bible counts the superscription as the first verse of the psalm; the English verse number is reduced by one
  2. Psalm 68:4 A shortened form of “Yahweh”
  3. Psalm 68:14 Or “you caused it to snow on”
  4. Psalm 68:15 Or “A mighty mountain”
  5. Psalm 68:16 Hebrew “The”
  6. Psalm 68:17 Or “as at Sinai, in the sanctuary”
  7. Psalm 68:18 A shortened form of “Yahweh”
  8. Psalm 68:19 Or “daily carries our burden”
  9. Psalm 68:19 Or “victory”
  10. Psalm 68:21 Literally “is walking about”
  11. Psalm 68:24 Or “into the sanctuary”
  12. Psalm 68:28 Or “you who have worked”
  13. Psalm 68:30 Hebrew “of”
  14. Psalm 68:30 Or “until each humbles himself by offering pieces of silver”
  15. Psalm 68:31 Reading with the LXX; meaning uncertain
  16. Psalm 68:35 Hebrew “sanctuaries”