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
1:4 Not so with the wicked!
Instead 5 they are like wind-driven chaff. 6
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 Here the Hebrew expression כִּי־אִם (ki-’im, “instead,” cf. v. 2) introduces a contrast between the prosperity of the godly depicted in v. 3 and the destiny of the wicked described in v. 4.
6 tn Heb “[they are] like the chaff which [the] wind blows about.” The Hebrew imperfect verbal form draws attention to the typical nature of the action described.