For the music director; by David, a psalm, a song.
68:1 God springs into action! 2
His enemies scatter;
his adversaries 3 run from him. 4
140:11 A slanderer 5 will not endure on 6 the earth;
calamity will hunt down a violent man and strike him down. 7
1 sn Psalm 68. The psalmist depicts God as a mighty warrior and celebrates the fact that God exerts his power on behalf of his people.
2 tn 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.
3 tn Heb “those who hate him.”
4 sn The wording of v. 1 echoes the prayer in Num 10:35: “Spring into action,
5 tn Heb “a man of a tongue.”
6 tn Heb “be established in.”
7 tn Heb “for blows.” The Hebrew noun מַדְחֵפֹה (madkhefoh, “blow”) occurs only here in the OT.