¹tn Or “rises up.” The verb form is an imperfect, not a jussive. The psalmist is describing God’s appearance in battle in a dramatic fashion.
²tn Heb “those who hate him.”
³sn The wording of v. 1 echoes the prayer in Num 10:35: “Spring into action, Lord! Then your enemies will be scattered and your adversaries will run from you.”
⁴tn Heb “as smoke is scattered, you scatter [them].”
⁵tn By placing the subject first the psalmist highlights the contrast between God’s ecstatic people and his defeated enemies (vv. 1-2).
⁶tn Heb “and they are happy with joy” (cf. NEB). Some translate the prefixed verbal forms of v. 3 as jussives, “Let the godly be happy, let them rejoice before God, and let them be happy with joy!” (Cf. NASB, NIV, NRSV; note the call to praise in v. 4.)
⁷tn Traditionally the Hebrew term twbru is taken as “steppe-lands” (often rendered “deserts”), but here the form is probably a homonym meaning “clouds” (see HALOT 879). Verse 33, which depicts God as the one who “rides on the sky” strongly favors this (see as well Deut 33:26), as does the reference in v. 9 to God as the source of rain. The term hbru (“cloud”) is cognate with Akkadian urpatu/erpetu and with Ugaritic `rpt. The phrase rkb `rpt, “one who rides on the clouds,” appears in Ugaritic mythological texts as an epithet of the storm god Baal. The nonphonemic interchange of the bilabial consonants b and p is attested elsewhere in roots common to Hebrew and Ugaritic, though the phenomenon is relatively rare.
⁸tc Heb “in the Lord his name.” If the MT is retained, the preposition -b is introducing the predicate (the so-called bet of identity), “the Lord is his name” (see BDB 88). However, some prefer to emend the text to wmv hy yk (“for Yah is his name”). This emendation, reflected in the present translation, assumes a confusion of bet and kaf and haplography of yod.
⁹sn God is depicted here as a just ruler. In the ancient Near Eastern world a king was responsible for promoting justice, including caring for the weak and vulnerable, epitomized by the fatherless and widows.
¹⁰tn Heb “God [is] in his holy dwelling place.” He occupies his throne and carries out his royal responsibilities.
¹¹tn Heb “God causes the solitary ones to dwell in a house.” The participle suggests this is what God typically does.
¹²tn Heb “he brings out prisoners into prosperity.” Another option is to translate, “he brings out prisoners with singing” (cf. NIV). The participle suggests this is what God typically does.
¹³tn Or “in a parched [land].”
sn God delivers the downtrodden and oppressed, but sinful rebels who oppose his reign are treated appropriately.
¹⁴tn Heb “when you go out before your people.” The Hebrew idiom “go out before” is used here in a militaristic sense of leading troops into battle (see Judg 4:14; 9:39; 2 Sam 5:24).
¹⁵sn When you march through the desert. Some interpreters think that v. 7 alludes to Israel’s exodus from Egypt and its subsequent travels in the desert. Another option is that v. 7, like v. 8, echoes Judg 5:4, which describes how the God of Sinai marched across the desert regions to do battle with Sisera and his Canaanite army.
¹⁶tn Heb “this one of Sinai.” The phrase is a divine title, perhaps indicating that the Lord rules from Sinai.
¹⁷sn The language of vv. 7-8 is reminiscent of Judg 5:4-5, which tells how the God of Sinai came in the storm and annihilated the Canaanite forces led by Sisera. The presence of allusion does not mean, however, that this is a purely historical reference. The psalmist is describing God’s typical appearance as a warrior in terms of his prior self-revelation as ancient events are reactualized in the psalmist’s experience. (For a similar literary technique, see Hab 3.)
¹⁸tn The verb [wn (“cause rain to fall”) is a homonym of the more common [wn (“brandish”; see HALOT 682).
¹⁹tn Heb “[on] your inheritance.” This refers to Israel as God’s specially chosen people (see Pss 28:9; 33:12; 74:2; 78:62, 71; 79:1; 94:5, 14; 106:40). Some take “your inheritance” with what follows, but the vav prefixed to the following word (note halnw) makes this syntactically unlikely.
²⁰tn Heb “it [is],” referring to God’s “inheritance.”
²¹tn Heb “it,” referring to God’s “inheritance.”
²²tn The meaning of the Hebrew text is unclear; it appears to read, “your animals, they live in it,” but this makes little, if any, sense in this context. Some suggest that hyj is a rare homonym here, meaning “community” (BDB 312) or “dwelling place” (HALOT 310). In this case one may take “your community/dwelling place” as appositional to the third feminine singular pronominal suffix at the end of v. 9, the antecedent of which is “your inheritance.” The phrase Hb-wbvy (“they live in it”) may then be understood as an asyndetic relative clause modifying “your community/dwelling place.” A literal translation of vv. 9b-10a would be, “when it [your inheritance] is tired, you sustain it, your community/dwelling place in [which] they live.”
²³tn Heb “gives a word.” Perhaps this refers to a divine royal decree or battle cry.
²⁴tn Heb “the ones spreading the good news [are] a large army.” The participle translated “the ones spreading the good news” is a feminine plural form. Apparently the good news here is the announcement that enemy kings have been defeated (see v. 12).
²⁵tn The verbal repetition draws attention to the statement.
²⁶tn The Hebrew form appears to be the construct of hwn (“pasture”) but the phrase “pasture of the house” makes no sense here. The translation assumes that the form is an alternative or corruption of hwxn (“beautiful woman”; see HALOT 679). A reference to a woman would be appropriate in light of v. 11b.
²⁷tn Or “if.”
²⁸tn The meaning of the Hebrew word translated “sheepfolds” is uncertain. There may be an echo of Judg 5:16 here.
²⁹tn Heb “and her pinions with the yellow of gold.”
sn The point of the imagery of v. 13 is not certain, though the reference to silver and gold appears to be positive. Both would be part of the loot carried away from battle (see v. 12b).
³⁰tn The divine name used here is yD~v^ (“Shaddai”). Shaddai/El Shaddai is the sovereign king/judge of the world who grants life, blesses and kills, and judges. In Genesis he blesses the patriarchs with fertility and promises numerous descendants. Outside Genesis he both blesses (protects) and takes away life and/or happiness.
³¹tn The Hebrew text adds “in it.” The third feminine singular pronominal suffix may refer back to God’s community/dwelling place (v. 10).
³²tn The verb form appears to be a Hiphil jussive from glv, which is usually understood as a denominative verb from gl#v# (“snow”) with an indefinite subject (see BDB 1017). The form could be taken as a preterite, in which case one might translate, “when the sovereign judge scattered kings, it snowed on Zalmon” (cf. NIV, NRSV). The point of the image is unclear. Perhaps “snow” suggests fertility and blessing (see v. 9 and Isa 55:10), or the image of a snow-capped mountain suggests grandeur.
sn Zalmon was apparently a mountain in the region, perhaps the one mentioned in Judg 9:46 as being in the vicinity of Shechem.
³³sn The mountain of Bashan probably refers to Mount Hermon.
³⁴tn Heb “a mountain of God.” The divine name is probably used here in a superlative sense to depict a very high mountain (“a mountain fit for God,” as it were). Cf. NIV “are majestic mountains”; NRSV “O mighty mountain.”
³⁵tn The meaning of the Hebrew term, which appears only here in the OT, is uncertain. HALOT 174 suggests “many-peaked,” while BDB 148 suggests “rounded summit.”
³⁶tn The meaning of the Hebrew verb dxr, translated here “look with envy,” is uncertain; it occurs only here in the OT. See BDB 952-53. A cognate verb occurs in later Aramaic with the meaning “to lie in wait; to watch” (Jastrow 1492).
³⁷tn Perhaps the apparent plural form should be read as a singular with enclitic mem (later misinterpreted as a plural ending). The preceding verse has the singular form.
³⁸tn Heb “[at] the mountain God desires for his dwelling place.” The reference is to Mount Zion/Jerusalem.
³⁹tn The Hebrew particle [a has an emphasizing function here (see BDB 64).
⁴⁰tn The word “there” is supplied in the translation for clarification.
⁴¹tn Heb “thousands of [?].” The meaning of the word /anv, which occurs only here in the OT, is uncertain. Perhaps the form should be emended to /nav (“at ease”) and be translated here, “held in reserve.”
⁴²tc The MT reads, “the sovereign Master [is] among them, Sinai, in holiness,” which is syntactically difficult. The present translation assumes an emendation to ynysm ab ydna (see BHS n. b-b and Deut 33:2).
⁴³tn Heb “to the elevated place”; or “on high.” This probably refers to the Lord’s throne on Mount Zion.
⁴⁴tn Heb “you have taken captives captive.”
⁴⁵tn Or “gifts.”
⁴⁶tn Or “among.”
⁴⁷tn Heb “so that the Lord God might live [there].” Many take the infinitive construct with -l as indicating purpose here, but it is unclear how the offering of tribute enables the Lord to live in Zion. This may be an occurrence of the relatively rare emphatic lamed (see HALOT 510-11, though this text is not listed as an example there). If so, the statement corresponds nicely to the final line of v. 16, which also affirms emphatically that the Lord lives in Zion.
⁴⁸tn Heb “blessed [be] the sovereign Master.”
⁴⁹tn It is possible to take this phrase with what precedes (“The sovereign Master deserves praise day after day”) rather than with what follows.
⁵⁰tn Heb “and to the Lord, the sovereign Master, to death, goings out.”
⁵¹tn Heb “the hairy forehead of the one who walks about in his guilt.” The singular is representative.
⁵²tn That is, the enemies mentioned in v. 21. Even if they retreat to distant regions, God will retrieve them and make them taste his judgment.
⁵³tc Some (e.g. NRSV) prefer to emend Jjm (“smash; stomp”; see v. 21) to Jjr (“bathe”; see Ps 58:10).
⁵⁴tn Heb “[and] the tongue of your dogs from [the] enemies [may eat] its portion.”
⁵⁵tn The subject is probably indefinite, referring to bystanders in general who witness the procession.
⁵⁶tn The Hebrew text has simply “in holiness.” The words “who marches along” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
⁵⁷tn Heb “after [are] the stringed instrument players.”
⁵⁸sn To celebrate a military victory, women would play tambourines (see Exod 15:20; Judg 11:34; 1 Sam 18:6).
⁵⁹tn Heb “from the fountain of Israel,” which makes little, if any, sense here. The translation assumes an emendation to yarqmb (“in the assembles of [Israel]”).
⁶⁰sn Little Benjamin, their ruler. This may allude to the fact that Israel’s first king, Saul, was from the tribe of Benjamin.
⁶¹tc The MT reads <tmgr, which many derive from <gr (“to kill by stoning”) and translates, “[in] their heaps,” that is, in large numbers. Some emend the text to <tvgr (“[in] their throngs,” cf. NASB, NIV) or to <tmqr (“[in] their garments”). The latter is assumed in the present translation.
⁶²tn Heb “God has commanded your strength.” The statement is apparently addressed to Israel (see v. 26).
⁶³tn Heb “Be strong, O God, [you] who have acted for us, from your temple in Jerusalem.”
map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
⁶⁴tn The Hebrew verb rug is often understood to mean “rebuke.” In some cases it is apparent that scolding or threatening is in view (see Gen 37:10; Ruth 2:16; Zech 3:2). However, in militaristic contexts such as Ps 68 this translation is inadequate, for the verb refers in this setting to the warrior’s battle cry, which terrifies and paralyzes the enemy. See TDOT 3:53, and note the use of the verb in Ps 106:9 and Nah 1:4, as well as the related noun in Job 26:11; Pss 18:15; 76:6; 104:7; Isa 50:2; 51:20; 66:15.
⁶⁵sn The wild beast of the reeds probably refers to a hippopotamus, which in turn symbolizes the nation of Egypt.
⁶⁶tn Heb “an assembly of bulls, with calves of the nations.”
⁶⁷tn Heb “humbling himself.” The verb form is a Hitpael participle from the root spr (“to trample”). The Hitpael of this verb appears only here and in Prov 6:3, where it seems to mean, “humble oneself,” a nuance that fits nicely in this context. The apparent subject is “wild beast” or “assembly,” though both of these nouns are grammatically feminine, while the participle is a masculine form. Perhaps one should emend the participial form to a masculine plural (<sprtm) and understand “bulls” or “calves” as the subject.
⁶⁸tc Heb “with pieces [?] of silver.” The meaning of the Hebrew term yXr is unclear. It is probably best to emend the text to [skw rxb (“[with] gold and silver”). On the rare term rx#B# (“gold”) see BDB 131 and HALOT 149.
⁶⁹tn Heb “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
⁷⁰tn The verb rzb is an alternative form of rzp (“scatter”; see HALOT 118).
⁷¹tn This noun, which occurs only here in the OT, apparently means “red cloth” or “bronze articles” (see HALOT 362; cf. NEB “tribute”). Traditionally the word has been taken to refer to “nobles” (see BDB 365; cf. NIV “envoys”). Another option would be to emend the text to <ynmvh, “the robust ones,” i.e., leaders.
⁷²tn Heb “Cush.”
⁷³tn Heb “causes its hands to run,” which must mean “quickly stretches out its hands” (to present tribute). See BDB 930.
⁷⁴tc Heb “to the one who rides through the skies of skies of ancient times.” If the MT is retained, one might translate, “to the one who rides through the ancient skies.” (ymv [“skies of”] may be accidentally repeated.) The present translation assumes an emendation to <dqm <ymvb (“[to the one who rides] through the sky from ancient times”), that is, God has been revealing his power through the storm since ancient times.
⁷⁵tn Heb “he gives his voice a strong voice.” In this context God’s “voice” is the thunder that accompanies the rain (see vv. 8-9, as well as Deut 33:26).
⁷⁶tn Heb “give strength to God.”
⁷⁷sn The language of v. 34 echoes that of Deut 33:26.
⁷⁸tn Heb “awesome [is] God from his holy places.” The plural of vdqm (“holy places”) perhaps refers to the temple precincts (see Ps 73:17; Jer 51:51).
⁷⁹tn Heb “the God of Israel, he.”
⁸⁰tn Heb “blessed [be] God.”
⁸¹sn Psalm 69. The psalmist laments his oppressed condition and asks the Lord to deliver him by severely judging his enemies.
⁸²tn Heb “according to lilies.” See the superscription to Ps 45.