Our Great and Glorious God

Note: I am using The Message Bible [MSG] for this study of Psalm 68

     This Psalm took me back to several choruses we sang when I was a new believer in Jesus. “Let God arise and his enemies be scattered.”  is how the New King James version begins this psalm.

Psalm 68:1 – 4: Up with God!
Down with his enemies!
Adversaries, run for the hills!
Gone like a puff of smoke,
like a blob of wax in the fire—
one look at God and the wicked vanish.

Our Enemies

     Those who stand against us shall scatter, the hills melt like wax at His presence. They shall disappear from our sight, so do not be aggravated by them.

Psalm 68:1-4 continued: When the righteous see God in action they’ll laugh, they’ll sing, they’ll laugh and sing for joy.

Sing for Joy

     If you’ve given your life to Jesus Christ,  you are one of the righteous ones. When is the last time you were laughing and singing for joy, lost in the mighty, glorious LORD we serve?

Psalm 68:1-4 continued:  Sing hymns to God; all heaven, sing out;
clear the way for the coming of Cloud-Rider. Enjoy GOD, cheer when you see him!

Awesome Praise

     The one who rides on the heavens… by His Name-Yah! Our Lord is awesome,  Jesus Messiah is His Name. We prepare the way for Him when we sing hymns of praise  and cheer for our mighty God!

Psalm 68:5-6: Father of orphans,
champion of widows,
is God in his holy house.
God makes homes for the homeless,
leads prisoners to freedom,
but leaves rebels to rot in hell.

Father

     He is the Father to those without a father. I haven’t had an earthly dad since I was eleven.  My nephew doesn’t even know who fathered him. He and my siblings, as well as my husband, have been well- cared for by our heavenly Father.

Widows/Single Women

     My mother was a widow for 40 years. He carried her through to old age. I have friends with no husband; some realize that their husband, protector, and provision is The LORD God Almighty. The ones who don’t realize are always anxious, afraid, and wondering all the time how they’re going to make it.

Homes, Release

     Yes, God provides homes for the homeless.  He puts the lonely in families. How has He made a place for you? What prison has He led you out of? He’s taken me out of a prison of fear, addictions…

   – Woe to the rebellious! There is hope for them; I am no better than them withoutJesus. Let’s keep praying and believing for them!

Psalm 68:7 -10: God, when you took the lead with your people, when you marched out into the wild,
Earth shook, sky broke out in a sweat;
God was on the march.

God Marching

     Think of this:  God led his people out of captivity, marching them into the wilderness. I believe the earth literally shook and the sky broke into a sweat- whatever that looked like. When our LORD  is marching through the land, few will be able to ignore it!

Psalm 68:7-10 continued:- Even Sinai trembled at the sight of God on the move, at the sight of Israel’s God

Holy Fear?

     Not only will mountains tremble, but I think those who don’t know Him may tremble at the sight of what is happening before the people of God do.

Psalm 68:7-10 continued: Pour out rain in buckets, O God; thorn and cactus become an oasis for your people to camp in and enjoy. You set them up in business; they went from rags to riches.

Buckets of Blessing

     Can you imagine it? God pored out buckets full of rain, something you may have experienced, but the desert became an oasis.

     This is what has happened in Israel not only when God’s people first entered the “Land flowing with milk and honey”, but also since they became a nation in 1947.

Prosperity

     How many people has He set up in business? How many have prospered and enjoyed Father God’s favor? From where my husband began, he’s basically gone from poverty to a very comfortable living. So have many others in our country. How do we thank the One who provides it all for us?

Psalm 68:11-14: The Lord gave the word;
thousands called out the good news:
“Kings of the armies are on the run, on the run!” While housewives, safe and sound back home, divide up the plunder,
the plunder of Canaanite silver and gold.

Defender and Plunder

     Kings are on the run… rejoice, the Lord is our defender! See how He honors the wives at home? He keeps them safe from the battle. Can you imagine dividing up the silver and gold from the great Canaanite army?

Psalm 68:11-14 continued: On that day that Shaddai scattered the kings,
snow fell on Black Mountain.

Snow & War?

     Snow on Black Mountain? El Shaddai sends snow to purify the earth. In the book of  Job:

Job 38:22-23 NKJV – Have you entered the treasury of snow,
Or have you seen the treasury of hail,
23 Which I have reserved for the time of trouble, for the day of battle and war?

     Snow, trouble, and war. Did you know that it snowed in every state of the USA…I think it may have been in 2025? The LORD is revealing that he’s cleansing things in this land.

Mountains

Psalm 68:15-16: You huge mountains, Bashan mountains, mighty mountains, dragon mountains.
All you mountains not chosen, sulk now, and feel sorry for yourselves, for this is the mountain God has chosen to live on;
he’ll rule from this mountain forever.

     There are many mountains: literal, spiritual, heavenly ones. Some are for protection, some are hard to climb. Some come from Father God, some from our enemy, and some we build ourselves.

     Think about humans as mountains. How do we handle it when God puts favor on others and we’re left out… or think we are?

The Holy Place

Psalm 68:17-18: The chariots of God, twice ten thousand, and thousands more besides, The Lord in the lead, riding down Sinai—straight to the Holy Place!

     The chariots of God… Elijah’s servants eyes were open to see the army of God, “Those who are with us are more than those who are against us”. Can you imagine twice ten thousand and then thousands more!

     God’s chosen Holy mountain has always been Mount Sinai. The people in the wilderness were afraid of the thundering and lightning on the mountain.  They begged Moses not to make them go up the mountain, but to be their go-between.

Plunder

Psalm 68:17-18 continued: You climbed to the High Place, captives in tow,
your arms full of plunder from rebels,
And now you sit there in state,
GOD, sovereign GOD!

     Jesus Christ, Son of God, son of man. He plundered the enemy’s camp. He released us from the curse of death, hell, and a sub-standard life. He’s given us life in abundance, if only we will take it and walk in the gifts he gave us

Bless Emmanuel

Psalm 68:19-23 Blessed be the Lord—
day after day he carries us along.
He’s our Savior, our God, oh yes!
He’s God-for-us, he’s God-who-saves-us.
Lord GOD knows all death’s ins and outs.

     Emmanuel, the God who carries us, our Savior. God-for-us, God-with-us. The One who understands death and has given us a way out.

The Enemy’s Toast!

Psalm 68:19-23 continued: What’s more, he made heads roll, split the skulls of the enemy as he marched out of heaven,
saying, “I tied up the Dragon in knots,
put a muzzle on the Deep Blue Sea.”
You can wade through your enemies’ blood, and your dogs taste of your enemies from your boots.

     Utter destruction of the enemy. our Messiah! He is for us, not against us! Meditate on all that He’s freed us from, all that He’s given us.

God On Parade

Psalm 68:24 -31:  See God on parade
to the sanctuary, my God,
my King on the march!
Singers out front, the band behind,
maidens in the middle with castanets.
The whole choir blesses God.
Like a fountain of praise, Israel blesses GOD.

     The whole choir blesses God. How can we help but bless Him when we recount all that He’s done?  Rejoice always, you are free!

God’s Power Made Us

Psalm 68:24-31 continued: Look—little Benjamin’s out front and leading
Princes of Judah in their royal robes,
princes of Zebulun, princes of Naphtali.
Parade your power, O God, the power, O God, that made us what we are.

     Your power, oh God! You made us, and not we ourselves. Forgive us when we do not walk in what You’ve prepared us for, Father.

Jerusalem/Egypt

Psalm 68:24-31 continued: Your temple, High God, is Jerusalem; kings bring gifts to you. Rebuke that old crocodile, Egypt,
with her herd of wild bulls and calves,
Rapacious in her lust for silver,
crushing peoples, spoiling for a fight.

Egypt:  crocodile, wild bulls and calves, rapacious lust for siver… all leading to crushing people. Always spoiling for a fight. Yes, rebuke Egypt!

     Must be the way Father God led his people out with a mighty hand was not enough to turn Egyptian rulers to the True God

Sing, Kings!

Psalm 68:32: Let Egyptian traders bring blue cloth and Cush come running to God, her hands outstretched. Sing, O kings of the earth! Sing praises to the Lord!

     This is the truly awesome God. He’s shown Himself greater, stronger, and mightier than any of their false gods.

      Kings of the earth [including you!], come forth with the finest of your wares. Run to the One who has shown His majesty. Sing praises to the only One who is worthy!

Rolling Thunder

Psalm 68:32 continued: There he is: Sky-Rider, striding the ancient skies.
Listen—he’s calling in thunder,
rumbling, rolling thunder.
Call out “Bravo!” to God, the High God of Israel. His splendor and strength
rise huge as thunderheads

     The High God of Israel! Do we truly understand the true awesomeness of our God? Do we render to Him what is due?

Psalm 68:35: A terrible beauty, O God,
streams from your sanctuary.
It’s Israel’s strong God! He gives
power and might to his people!

Ark of the Covenant

Think about this:  when you have Jesus inside you, you are the sanctuary; the temple. Your body contains The Holy of Holies, the Ark of the Covenant.

1 Chronicles 15:11 MSG – You are responsible for the Levitical families; now consecrate yourselves, both you and your relatives, and bring up the Chest [Ark] of the GOD of Israel to the place I have set aside for it. The first time we did this, you Levites did not carry it properly, and GOD exploded in anger at us because we didn’t make proper preparation and follow instructions.”

    The first time, they carried the Ark on a new cart instead of using the prescribed poles.  Levites who had properly purified themselves were appointed to carry the Ark, but this was not done that first time.

     Not following God’s rules, the one who reached his hand out to steady the cart actually died from the lightning strike of God!

Unholy meets Holy

     Terrible things still happen when evil, unholy people touch the Ark; those sanctified by Chrst Jesus. Why should I be afraid when this strong and mighty Presence is within? 

   Conclusion

  As long as I look to Jesus and am covered by His blood; sanctified, there is boldness, and fear has to flee! The final verse in Psalm 68:

O you, his people—bless God!

Shalom, dear readers.