Psalms 68

1 For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. A song. God arises. His enemies are scattered, and those who hate Him flee His presence.

Unto the end. A Canticle Psalm of David himself. May God rise up, and may his enemies be scattered, and may those who hate him flee from before his face.

2 As smoke is blown away, You will drive them out; as wax melts before the fire, the wicked will perish in the presence of God.

Just as smoke vanishes, so may they vanish. Just as wax flows away before the face of fire, so may sinners pass away before the face of God.

3 But the righteous will be glad and rejoice before God; they will celebrate with joy.

And so, let the just feast, and let them exult in the sight of God and be delighted in gladness.

4 Sing to God! Sing praises to His name. Exalt Him who rides on the clouds — His name is the LORD— and rejoice before Him.

Sing to God, sing a psalm to his name. Make a path for him, who ascends over the west. The Lord is his name. Exult in his sight; they will be stirred up before his face,

5 A father of the fatherless, and a defender of the widows, is God in His holy habitation.

the father of orphans and the judge of widows. God is in his holy place.

6 God settles the lonely in families; He leads the prisoners out to prosperity, but the rebellious dwell in a sun-scorched land.

It is God who makes men dwell in a house under one custom. He leads out those who are strongly bound, and similarly, those who exasperate, who dwell in sepulchers.

7 O God, when You went out before Your people, when You marched through the wasteland,

O God, when you departed in the sight of your people, when you passed through the desert,

8 the earth shook and the heavens poured down rain before God, the One on Sinai, before God, the God of Israel.

the earth was moved, for the heavens rained down before the face of the God of Sinai, before the face of the God of Israel.

9 You sent abundant rain, O God; You refreshed Your weary inheritance.

You will set aside for your inheritance, O God, a willing rain. And though it was weak, truly, you have made it perfect.

10 Your flock settled therein; O God, from Your bounty You provided for the poor.

Your animals will dwell in it. O God, in your sweetness, you have provided for the poor.

11 The Lord gives the command; a great company of women proclaim it:

The Lord will give the word to evangelizers, along with great virtue.

12 “Kings and their armies flee in haste; she who waits at home divides the plunder.

The King of virtue is beloved among the beloved. And the beauty of the house will divide spoils.

13 Though you lie down among the sheepfolds, the wings of the dove are covered with silver, and her feathers with shimmering gold.”

If you take your rest in the midst of the clergy, you will be like a dove whose wings are covered with fine silver and edged with pale gold.

14 When the Almighty scattered the kings in the land, it was like the snow falling on Zalmon.

When heaven discerns kings to be over her, they will be whitened with the snows of Zalmon.

15 A mountain of God is Mount Bashan; a mountain of many peaks is Mount Bashan.

The mountain of God is a fat mountain, a dense mountain, a thick mountain.

16 Why do you gaze in envy, O mountains of many peaks? This is the mountain God chose for His dwelling, where the LORD will surely dwell forever.

So then, why are you distrustful of dense mountains? The mountain on which God is well pleased to dwell, even there, the Lord will dwell until the end.

17 The chariots of God are tens of thousands— thousands of thousands are they; the Lord is in His sanctuary as He was at Sinai.

The chariot of God is ten thousand fold: thousands rejoice. The Lord is with them in Sinai, in the holy place.

18 You have ascended on high; You have led captives away. You have received gifts from men, even from the rebellious, that the LORD God may dwell there.

You have ascended on high; you have taken captivity captive. You have accepted gifts among men. For even those who do not believe dwell with the Lord God.

19 Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burden, the God of our salvation.

Blessed is the Lord, day after day. The God of our salvation will make our journey prosper for us.

20 Our God is a God of deliverance; the Lord GOD is our rescuer from death.

Our God is the God who will bring about our salvation, and our Lord is the Lord who has brought an end to death.

21 Surely God will crush the heads of His enemies, the hairy crowns of those who persist in guilty ways.

So then, truly, God will break the heads of his enemies, the hairy skull of those who wander around in their offenses.

22 The Lord said, “I will retrieve them from Bashan, I will bring them up from the depths of the sea,

The Lord said: I will turn them away from Bashan, I will turn them into the depths of the sea,

23 that your foot may be dipped in the blood of your foes— the tongues of your dogs in the same.”

so that your feet may be soaked in the blood of your enemies, so that the tongue of your dogs may be soaked with the same.

24 They have seen Your procession, O God— the march of my God and King into the sanctuary.

O God, they have seen your arrival, the arrival of my God, of my king who is in a holy place.

25 The singers lead the way, the musicians follow after, among the maidens playing tambourines.

The leaders went ahead, united with the singers of psalms, in the midst of girls playing on timbrels.

26 Bless God in the great congregation; bless the LORD from the fountain of Israel.

In the churches, bless the Lord God from the fountains of Israel.

27 There is Benjamin, the youngest, ruling them, the princes of Judah in their company, the princes of Zebulun and of Naphtali.

In that place, Benjamin is a youth in ecstasy of mind. The leaders of Judah are their governors: the leaders of Zebulun, the leaders of Naphtali.

28 Summon Your power, O God; show Your strength, O God, which You have exerted on our behalf.

Command by your virtue, O God. Confirm in this place, O God, what you have wrought in us.

29 Because of Your temple at Jerusalem kings will bring You gifts.

Before your temple in Jerusalem, kings will offer gifts to you.

30 Rebuke the beast in the reeds, the herd of bulls among the calves of the nations, until it submits, bringing bars of silver. Scatter the nations who delight in war.

Rebuke the wild beasts of the reeds, a congregation of bulls with the cows of the people, for they seek to exclude those who have been tested like silver. Scatter the nations that are pleased by wars.

31 Envoys will arrive from Egypt; Cush will stretch out her hands to God.

Ambassadors will come out of Egypt. Ethiopia will offer in advance her hands to God.

32 Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth; sing praises to the Lord—

Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth. Sing psalms to the Lord. Sing psalms to God.

33 to Him who rides upon the highest heavens of old; behold, His mighty voice resounds.

He ascends, up to the heaven of the heavens, toward the east. Behold, he will utter his voice, the voice of virtue.

34 Ascribe the power to God, whose majesty is over Israel, whose strength is in the skies.

Give glory to God beyond Israel. His magnificence and his virtue is in the clouds.

35 O God, You are awesome in Your sanctuary; the God of Israel Himself gives strength and power to His people. Blessed be God!

God is wonderful in his saints. The God of Israel himself will give virtue and strength to his people. Blessed is God.