Discovery BoxPsalms 68:1-3 
ContextFor 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
68:2 As smoke is driven away by the wind, so you drive them away. 5
As wax melts before fire,
so the wicked are destroyed before God.
68:3 But the godly 6 are happy;
they rejoice before God
and are overcome with joy. 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 “as smoke is scattered, you scatter [them].”
6 tn By placing the subject first the psalmist highlights the contrast between God’s ecstatic people and his defeated enemies (vv. 1-2).
7 tn 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.)
