Mazmur 68:5-8

68:5 He is a father to the fatherless

and an advocate for widows. ¹ 

God rules from his holy palace. ² 

68:6 God settles those who have been deserted in their own homes; ³ 

he frees prisoners and grants them prosperity. ⁴ 

But sinful rebels live in the desert. ⁵ 

68:7 O God, when you lead your people into battle, ⁶ 

when you march through the desert, ⁷  (Selah)

68:8 the earth shakes,

yes, the heavens pour down rain

before God, the God of Sinai, ⁸ 

before God, the God of Israel. ⁹ 

[68:5]  ¹ sn 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.

[68:5]  ² tn Heb “God [is] in his holy dwelling place.” He occupies his throne and carries out his royal responsibilities.

[68:6]  ³ tn Heb “God causes the solitary ones to dwell in a house.” The participle suggests this is what God typically does.

[68:6]  ⁴ tn 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.

[68:6]  ⁵ tn Or “in a parched [land].”

[68:6]  sn God delivers the downtrodden and oppressed, but sinful rebels who oppose his reign are treated appropriately.

[68:7]  ⁶ tn 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).

[68:7]  ⁷ sn 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.

[68:8]  ⁸ tn Heb “this one of Sinai.” The phrase is a divine title, perhaps indicating that the Lord rules from Sinai.

[68:8]  ⁹ sn 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 The presence of allusion does not mean, however, that this is a purely historical reference.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.)