Psalm 68

¹ May God arise, may his enemies be scattered; may his foes flee before him.
² As smoke is blown away by the wind, may you blow them away; as wax melts before the fire, may the wicked perish before God.
³ But may the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and joyful.
⁴ Sing to God, sing praise to his name, extol him who rides on the clouds his name is the LORD and rejoice before him.
⁵ A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.
⁶ God sets the lonely in families, he leads forth the prisoners with singing; but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.
⁷ When you went out before your people, O God, when you marched through the wasteland, Selah
⁸ the earth shook, the heavens poured down rain, before God, the One of Sinai, before God, the God of Israel.
⁹ You gave abundant showers, O God; you refreshed your weary inheritance.
¹⁰ Your people settled in it, and from your bounty, O God, you provided for the poor.
¹¹ The Lord announced the word, and great was the company of those who proclaimed it:
¹² “Kings and armies flee in haste; in the camps men divide the plunder.
¹³ Even while you sleep among the campfires, the wings of my dove are sheathed with silver, its feathers with shining gold.”
¹⁴ When the Almighty scattered the kings in the land, it was like snow fallen on Zalmon.
¹⁵ The mountains of Bashan are majestic mountains; rugged are the mountains of Bashan.
¹⁶ Why gaze in envy, O rugged mountains, at the mountain where God chooses to reign, where the LORD himself will dwell forever?

¹⁷ The chariots of God are tens of thousands and thousands of thousands; the Lord has come from Sinai into his sanctuary.
¹⁸ When you ascended on high, you led captives in your train; you received gifts from men, even from the rebellious that you, O LORD God, might dwell there.
¹⁹ Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens. Selah
²⁰ Our God is a God who saves; from the Sovereign LORD comes escape from death.
²¹ Surely God will crush the heads of his enemies, the hairy crowns of those who go on in their sins.
²² The Lord says, “I will bring them from Bashan; I will bring them from the depths of the sea,
²³ that you may plunge your feet in the blood of your foes, while the tongues of your dogs have their share.”
²⁴ Your procession has come into view, O God, the procession of my God and King into the sanctuary.
²⁵ In front are the singers, after themthe musicians; with them are the maidens playing tambourines.

²⁶ Praise God in the great congregation; praise the LORD in the assembly of Israel.
²⁷ There is the little tribe of Benjamin, leading them, there the great throng of Judah’s princes, and there the princes of Zebulun and of Naphtali.
²⁸ Summon your power, O God; show us your strength, O God, as you have done before.
²⁹ Because of your temple at Jerusalem kings will bring you gifts.
³⁰ Rebuke the beast among the reeds, the herd of bulls among the calves of the nations. Humbled, may it bring bars of silver. Scatter the nations who delight in war.
³¹ Envoys will come from Egypt; Cush will submit herself to God.
³² Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth, sing praise to the Lord, Selah
³³ to him who rides the ancient skies above, who thunders with mighty voice.
³⁴ Proclaim the power of God, whose majesty is over Israel, whose power is in the skies.
³⁵ You are awesome, O God, in your sanctuary; the God of Israel gives power and strength to his people. Praise be to God!

Introduction of Psalm 68 verse 1-3.
May God arise

May his enemies be scattered

May his foes flee before him
May you blow them away as smoke is blown away by the wind

May the wicked perish before God as wax melts before the fire
May the righteous be glad and rejoice before God

May they be happy and joyful

Praises to God 4-6
Sing to God, sing praise to his name, extol him who rides on the clouds his name is the LORD and rejoice before him. A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families, he leads forth the prisoners with singing; but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.

History of God with his people verses 7-15.

When you went out before your people, O God, when you marched through the wasteland, Selah the earth shook, the heavens poured down rain, before God, the One of Sinai, before God, the God of Israel. You gave abundant showers, O God; you refreshed your weary inheritance. Your people settled in it, and from your bounty, O God, you provided for the poor. The Lord announced the word, and great was the company of those who proclaimed it: “Kings and armies flee in haste; in the camps men divide the plunder. Even while you sleep among the campfires, the wings of my dove are sheathed with silver, its feathers with shining gold.”
When the Almighty scattered the kings in the land, it was like snow fallen on Zalmon. The mountains of Bashan are majestic mountains; rugged are the mountains of Bashan.

Future battle of the Lord. 16-33

Why gaze in envy, O rugged mountains, at the mountain where God chooses to reign, where the LORD himself will dwell forever? The chariots of God are tens of thousands and thousands of thousands; the Lord has come from Sinai into his sanctuary. When you ascended on high, you led captives in your train; you received gifts from men, even from the rebellious that you, O LORD God, might dwell there. Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens. Selah Our God is a God who saves; from the Sovereign LORD comes escape from death. Surely God will crush the heads of his enemies, the hairy crowns of those who go on in their sins. The Lord says, “I will bring them from Bashan; I will bring them from the depths of the sea, that you may plunge your feet in the blood of your foes, while the tongues of your dogs have their share.” Your procession has come into view, O God, the procession of my God and King into the sanctuary. In front are the singers, after themthe musicians; with them are the maidens playing tambourines. Praise God in the great congregation; praise the LORD in the assembly of Israel. There is the little tribe of Benjamin, leading them, there the great throng of Judah’s princes, and there the princes of Zebulun and of Naphtali. Summon your power, O God; show us your strength, O God, as you have done before. Because of your temple at Jerusalem kings will bring you gifts. Rebuke the beast among the reeds, the herd of bulls among the calves of the nations. Humbled, may it bring bars of silver. Scatter the nations who delight in war. Envoys will come from Egypt; Cush will submit herself to God. Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth, sing praise to the Lord, Selah to him who rides the ancient skies above, who thunders with mighty voice.

Our message to the world verses 34,35.

Proclaim the power of God, whose majesty is over Israel, whose power is in the skies. You are awesome, O God, in your sanctuary; the God of Israel gives power and strength to his people. Praise be to God!

As you can see, I paraphrased this Psalm to help me get a better grasp of it meaning.

Introduction of Psalm 68 verse 1-3

Praises to God 4-6

History of God with his people verses 7-15

Future battle of the Lord. 16-33

Our message to the world verses 34,35

This psalm reminds me of Paul’s ending message to the Ephesians. In Ephesians 6:10-12 Paul writes “Finally my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” The battle began for mankind in the garden of Eden and is still going on to this day. Yes, Christ has paid the price for our redemption with His death and resurrection; however, we are still on the battlefield until the day of the great white throne judgment. The battle will end when we are within in our new sanctuary the new heaven and the new earth. Just remember that God is always present in the believer’s life even when we can’t feel his present.