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Psalm 68

Psalm 68 celebrates God’s victorious rule, joining his defeat of hostile powers with his care for the vulnerable.

A worshiping assembly celebrates God’s victory over his enemies and his care for people without protection. The heading attributes this song to David, though its precise occasion is uncertain. The poem recalls God leading Israel through the wilderness, then depicts his ascent and a procession into the sanctuary. Singers, musicians, and tribal leaders join the praise. Fierce images of defeated enemies stand alongside God’s care for the lonely, and the closing summons reaches the kingdoms of the earth.

praise and worshipinjustice and angerloneliness
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1For the Chief Musician. A Psalm by David. A song. Let God arise! Let his enemies be scattered! Let them who hate him also flee before him.
2As smoke is driven away, so drive them away. As wax melts before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God.
3But let the righteous be glad. Let them rejoice before God. Yes, let them rejoice with gladness.
4Sing to God! Sing praises to his name! Extol him who rides on the clouds: to the LORD, his name! Rejoice before him!
5A father of the fatherless, and a defender of the widows, is God in his holy habitation.
6God sets the lonely in families. He brings out the prisoners with singing, but the rebellious dwell in a sun-scorched land.
7God, when you went out before your people, when you marched through the wilderness... Selah.
8The earth trembled. The sky also poured down rain at the presence of the God of Sinai— at the presence of God, the God of Israel.
9You, God, sent a plentiful rain. You confirmed your inheritance when it was weary.
10Your congregation lived therein. You, God, prepared your goodness for the poor.
11The Lord announced the word. The ones who proclaim it are a great company.
12“Kings of armies flee! They flee!” She who waits at home divides the plunder,
13while you sleep among the camp fires, the wings of a dove sheathed with silver, her feathers with shining gold.
14When the Almighty scattered kings in her, it snowed on Zalmon.
15The mountains of Bashan are majestic mountains. The mountains of Bashan are rugged.
16Why do you look in envy, you rugged mountains, at the mountain where God chooses to reign? Yes, the LORD will dwell there forever.
17The chariots of God are tens of thousands and thousands of thousands. The Lord is among them, from Sinai, into the sanctuary.
18You have ascended on high. You have led away captives. You have received gifts among people, yes, among the rebellious also, that the LORD God might dwell there.
19Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burdens, even the God who is our salvation. Selah.
20God is to us a God of deliverance. To GOD, the Lord, belongs escape from death.
21But God will strike through the head of his enemies, the hairy scalp of such a one as still continues in his guiltiness.
22The Lord said, “I will bring you again from Bashan, I will bring you again from the depths of the sea,
23that you may crush them, dipping your foot in blood, that the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from your enemies.”
24They have seen your processions, God, even the processions of my God, my King, into the sanctuary.
25The singers went before, the minstrels followed after, among the ladies playing with tambourines,
26“Bless God in the congregations, even the Lord in the assembly of Israel!”
27There is little Benjamin, their ruler, the princes of Judah, their council, the princes of Zebulun, and the princes of Naphtali.
28Your God has commanded your strength. Strengthen, God, that which you have done for us.
29Because of your temple at Jerusalem, kings will bring presents to you.
30Rebuke the wild animal of the reeds, the multitude of the bulls with the calves of the peoples. Trample under foot the bars of silver. Scatter the nations who delight in war.
31Princes shall come out of Egypt. Ethiopia shall hurry to stretch out her hands to God.
32Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth! Sing praises to the Lord— Selah—
33to him who rides on the heaven of heavens, which are of old; behold, he utters his voice, a mighty voice.
34Ascribe strength to God! His excellency is over Israel, his strength is in the skies.
35You are awesome, God, in your sanctuaries. The God of Israel gives strength and power to his people. Praise be to God!
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Key verses
Psalm 68:18God’s ascent, captives, and received gifts portray a victorious ruler establishing his dwelling even among rebellious people.
Psalm 68:17The countless chariots connect God’s presence at Sinai with his sanctuary, displaying the overwhelming strength surrounding Israel’s Lord.
Psalm 68:35The closing praise declares that Israel’s awesome God shares strength with his people, bringing the song to its conclusion.
Where this chapter reaches

Ephesians quotes verse 18 in connection with Christ’s ascent and his giving of gifts, while Exodus and Deuteronomy share the setting of God’s presence at Sinai. Isaiah shares the vision of nations bringing tribute and coming to honor Israel’s God.

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Notice

After reading the whole chapter

How does God’s care for the fatherless and widows shape your reading of his victory?

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Which image in this psalm most shapes your praise, and which is hardest to understand?

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Questions people ask about Psalm 68

Who wrote Psalm 68, and what occasion was it written for?

The heading identifies Psalm 68 as a song by David for the Chief Musician. Its procession into the sanctuary has led readers to connect it with a public worship celebration. The text does not name a specific occasion, so identifying one event behind the whole poem remains uncertain.

What does Psalm 68:18 mean?

Verse 18 pictures God ascending as a victorious king, leading captives and receiving gifts. Within the psalm, this belongs to the movement toward God’s dwelling and sanctuary. Ephesians applies the verse to Christ’s ascent and his giving of gifts, connecting the victory imagery with the risen Christ.

Why is Psalm 68 so violent?

Psalm 68 celebrates God’s defeat of enemies who oppose his rule and threaten his people. Its blood and battlefield imagery depicts decisive judgment in the language of ancient warfare. The same song portrays God defending widows and the fatherless, and asks him to scatter nations that delight in war.

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What the Bible says about worship →What the Bible says about anger →What the Bible says about loneliness →

Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).