Psalms 68
1 God, arise and scatter your enemies, and cause those who hate you to run away from you.
To the chief music-maker. Of David. A Psalm. A Song. Let God be seen, and let his haters be put to flight; let those who are against him be turned back before him.
2 Like [wind] blows smoke away, chase your enemies away. Like wax melts when it is near a fire, cause wicked people to (disappear/be destroyed).
Let them be like smoke before the driving wind; as wax turning soft before the fire, so let them come to an end before the power of God.
3 But righteous people should be joyful; they should rejoice when they are in God’s presence; they should be happy, and be very joyful.
But let the upright be glad; let them have delight before God; let them be full of joy.
4 Sing to God; sing to praise him; sing a song (OR, make a road) for him who rides on the clouds; his name is Yahweh; be glad when you are in his presence.
Make songs to God, make songs of praise to his name; make a way for him who comes through the waste lands; his name is Jah; be glad before him.
5 God, who lives in his sacred temple, is [like] [MET] a father to [those who are] orphans, and he is the one who protects widows.
A father to those who have no father, a judge of the widows, is God in his holy place.
6 For those who have no one to live with, he provides families [to live with]. He frees prisoners and enables them to be successful, but those who rebel [against him] will be forced to live in a very hot and dry land.
Those who are without friends, God puts in families; he makes free those who are in chains; but those who are turned away from him are given a dry land.
7 God, you led your people out [of Egypt], and then you marched with them through the desert.
O God, when you went out before your people, wandering through the waste land; (Selah)
8 After you did that, because when you, the God [worshiped by us] Israeli people, appeared to us at Sinai [Mountain], the earth shook, and rain poured down from the sky.
The earth was shaking and the heavens were streaming, because God was present; even Sinai itself was moved before God, the God of Israel.
9 You caused plenty of rain to fall [on your land], [and so] you enabled good crops to grow again on the land that you gave [to us Israelis].
You, O God, did freely send the rain, giving strength to the weariness of your heritage.
10 Your people built homes there; and because you were good to them, you provided [food] for those who were poor.
Those whose resting-place was there, even the poor, were comforted by your good things, O God.
11 The Lord gave a message, and many women took that message to other places.
The Lord gives the word; great is the number of the women who make it public.
12 [They proclaimed], “Many kings and their armies are running away [from our army]!” [When our army brought back to their homes] the things that they captured, the women who were at home divided up those things [among themselves and among their families].
Kings of armies quickly go in flight: and the women in the houses make a division of their goods.
13 Even those women who were in the pens [taking care of] the sheep [received some of those things]; they got statues of doves whose wings were covered with silver and whose feathers were covered with pure yellow gold.
Will you take your rest among the flocks? like the wings of a dove covered with silver, and its feathers with yellow gold.
14 When Almighty [God] scattered the [enemy] kings [and their armies], [the number of weapons that they abandoned there] seemed like there had been a snowstorm on Zalmon (OR, a black) [Mountain].
When the Most High put the kings to flight, it was as white as snow in Salmon.
15 There is a very high mountain in the Bashan [region], a mountain which has many peaks.
A hill of God is the hill of Bashan; a hill with high tops is the hill of Bashan.
16 But the [people who live near] that mountain should not [RHQ] envy those who live near [Zion], the mountain on which God chose to live! Yahweh will live there forever!
Why are you looking with envy, you high hills, on the hill desired by God as his resting-place? truly, God will make it his house for ever.
17 [After we defeated all our enemies], [it was as though] the Lord, surrounded by many thousands of strong chariots, descended from Sinai [Mountain] and came into the sacred temple [in Jerusalem].
The war-carriage of God is among Israel's thousands; the Lord has come from Sinai to the holy place.
18 He ascended the sacred mountain [where his temple is], and took with him many people who had been captured [in battles]; and received gifts from the enemies [whom he had defeated]. He received gifts even from those who had rebelled against him, and Yahweh our God will live there [in his sacred temple] forever.
You have gone up on high, taking your prisoners with you; you have taken offerings from men; the Lord God has taken his place on the seat of his power.
19 Praise the Lord, who [helps us] carry our heavy loads every day; he is the one who saves/rescues us.
Praise be to the Lord, who is our support day by day, even the God of our salvation. (Selah)
20 Our God is the God who saves us; He is Yahweh, our Lord, the one who (allows us to escape/prevents us) from being killed [in battles].
Our God is for us a God of salvation; his are the ways out of death.
21 But God will smash the heads of his enemies, the skulls of those who continue to behave sinfully.
The heads of the haters of God will be crushed; even the head of him who still goes on in his evil ways.
22 The Lord said, “I will bring back the [corpses of those who were killed in] Bashan, and I will bring back those who sank deep in the ocean [and drowned].
The Lord said, I will make them come back from Bashan, and from the deep parts of the sea;
23 I will do that in order that you may wash your feet in their blood, and your dogs can [also] lap up some of your enemies’ blood.”
So that your foot may be red with blood, and the tongues of your dogs with the same.
24 God, many people see you march triumphantly into your sacred temple, [celebrating that you have defeated your enemies]. You [march like] a king does, and a large crowd walks with you.
We see your going, O God: even the going of my God, my King, into the holy place.
25 The singers are in front, and the people who play stringed instruments are at the rear, and young women who are beating their tambourines are between them.
The makers of songs go before, the players of music come after, among the young girls playing on brass instruments.
26 [They are all singing], “You Israeli people, praise God when you gather together; praise Yahweh, all you who are descendants of Jacob!”
Give praise to God in the great meeting; even the Lord, you who come from the fountain of Israel.
27 First come [the people of the tribe of] Benjamin, the smallest [tribe], and following them come the leaders of [the tribe of] Judah and their group, and following them come the leaders of [the tribes of] Zebulun and Naphtali.
There is little Benjamin ruling them, the chiefs of Judah and their army, the rulers of Zebulun and the rulers of Naphtali.
28 God, show people that you are very powerful; show people the power with which you have helped us previously.
O God, send out your strength; the strength, O God, with which you have done great things for us,
29 Show that power from your temple in Jerusalem, where kings bring gifts to you.
Out of your Temple in Jerusalem.
30 Rebuke [your enemies, such as those in Egypt who are like] wild hippopotamuses/animals that live in the reeds; and [powerful nations that are like] bulls that are among their calves [MET]; rebuke/trample them until they bow down and give you gifts of silver. Scatter the people who enjoy making wars.
Say sharp words to the beast among the water-plants, the band of strong ones, with the lords of the peoples, put an end to the people whose delight is in war.
31 Then people will bring gifts of bronze (OR, of cloth) to you from Egypt; the people in Ethiopia will lift up their hands [to praise you].
Kings will give you offerings, they will come out of Egypt; from Pathros will come offerings of silver; Ethiopia will be stretching out her hands to God.
32 [You people who are citizens of] kingdoms/countries all over the world, sing to God! Sing praises to the Lord!
Make songs to God, you kingdoms of the earth; O make songs of praise to the Lord; (Selah)
33 Sing to the God, the one who rides across the sky, the sky that [he created] long ago. Listen as he shouts with a very powerful voice.
To him who goes or the clouds of heaven, the heaven which was from earliest times; he sends out his voice of power.
34 Proclaim that God is very powerful; he is the king that rules over Israel, and in the skies [he also shows that] he is powerful.
Make clear that strength is God's: he is lifted up over Israel, and his power is in the clouds.
35 God is awesome as he comes out of his sacred temple; he is the God whom [we] Israeli people [worship]. He makes [DOU] his people very powerful. Praise God!
O God, you are to be feared in your holy place: the God of Israel gives strength and power to his people. Praise be to God.
