PSALMS LESSON 67

     We will continue the verse by verse study of the 68th chapter of
Psalms. Psalms 68:16 "Why leap ye, ye high hills? [this is] the hill
[which] God desireth to dwell in; yea, the LORD will dwell [in it] for
ever."

     This will be called the holy mountain of God. This mountain is
Zion. God has chosen this mountain to dwell in. Moriah and Zion are
the same mountain. Zion symbolizes the church. Zion is sometimes
speaking of Jerusalem. No one knows for sure why God chose this
mountain for His dwelling place. We do know that God has chosen to
dwell in spiritual Zion {the Christians}. Let's look at an Old
Testament Scripture and a New Testament Scripture that tells us just
that. Ezekiel 37:27 "My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I
will be their God, and they shall be my people." Revelation 21:3 "And
I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of
God [is] with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his
people, and God himself shall be with them, [and be] their God."

     Psalms 68:17 "The chariots of God [are] twenty thousand, [even]
thousands of angels: the Lord [is] among them, [as in] Sinai, in the
holy [place]."

     Tens of thousands of angels and chariots of fire are available to
God to use, at any time He wishes. Even Pharaoh had sent 500 chariots
out to battle, and that was thought to be a large army with chariots.
The difference is not just in the number, either. Earthly chariots are
no comparison to the chariots of fire that belong to God. We know that
God's chariots are of fire, because one of them came to escort Elijah
to heaven. II Kings 2:11 "And it came to pass, as they still went on,
and talked, that, behold, [there appeared] a chariot of fire, and
horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a
whirlwind into heaven."   The Lord is among them, could be speaking of
Jesus, when He comes back to the earth with His mighty hosts.

     Psalms 68:18 "Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity
captive: thou hast received gifts for men; yea, [for] the rebellious
also, that the LORD God might dwell [among them]."

     This is not only speaking of the ark of the covenant being
carried to the holy mountain, but this is speaking of the Lord Jesus
rising into heaven itself. He had been into hell, and preached, and
brought captivity captive out with Him. I Peter 3:18 "For Christ also
hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might
bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the
Spirit:" I Peter 3:19 "By which also he went and preached unto the
spirits in prison;" Ephesians 4:8 "Wherefore he saith, When he
ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto
men." Ephesians 4:9 "(Now that he ascended, what is it but that he
also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?"  Ephesians
4:10 "He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above
all heavens, that he might fill all things.)" Ephesians 4:11 "And he
gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and
some, pastors and teachers;"  Ephesians 4:12 "For the perfecting of
the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body
of Christ:"

     Psalms 68:19 "Blessed [be] the Lord, [who] daily loadeth us [with
benefits, even] the God of our salvation. Selah."

     Not only were David and the people shouting, Blessed be the Lord,
as they took the ark up to the mountain, but this is the cry of all
who truly love God. Just as the manna fell everyday [except sabbath}
in the journey to the promise land, God takes care of the needs of His
people now. I think one of the most beautiful things in the Bible, is
how God sent the raven twice a day to feed Elijah. I Kings 17:4 "And
it shall be, [that] thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have
commanded the ravens to feed thee there."  I Kings 17:6 "And the
ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh
in the evening; and he drank of the brook."  The God of our salvation
is Jesus Christ.

     Psalms 68:20 "[He that is] our God [is] the God of salvation; and
unto GOD the Lord [belong] the issues from death."

     This, of course, is speaking of Jesus. Notice in the two
following Scriptures, that Jesus has defeated death for himself and
us. Romans 8:11 "But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from
the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall
also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you."
Colossians 2:12 "Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen
with [him] through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised
him from the dead."  God the Lord controls death and life.

     Psalms 68:21 "But God shall wound the head of his enemies, [and]
the hairy scalp of such an one as goeth on still in his trespasses."

     This is a very hard saying. Notice, the difference in God's
enemies and those who continue in their trespasses. We know that
those, who are God's enemies, are friends of Satan. We, also, know of
the promise in Genesis made to Eve about what God would do to those
who reject Jesus. Genesis 3:15 "And I will put enmity between thee and
the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy
head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."  Notice, the wound is on the
enemy's head.  The last half of verse 21 above indicates, to me, that
these are potentially God's people. It seems, to me, that they may
profess Christianity, but not live it. They are still caught up in bad
habits that they have not given up. The call of the world is too
great, and they will go the way of the serpents seed.

     Psalms 68:22 "The Lord said, I will bring again from Bashan, I
will bring [my people] again from the depths of the sea:"

     Whether it be the tallest mountain, or the depths of the sea, God
is there and knows all that is going on. This could, also, be a
prophetic Scripture about the Jews coming back into Jerusalem. The
sea, many times, is speaking of large groups of people. The Jews were
scattered all over the world, but God will bring them back to
Jerusalem.

     Psalms 68:23 "That thy foot may be dipped in the blood of [thine]
enemies, [and] the tongue of thy dogs in the same."

     The enemy is defeated, if their blood is under foot. The dog's
tongue being in the blood, just shows that much blood was shed in the
battle.

     Psalms 68:24 "They have seen thy goings, O God; [even] the goings
of my God, my King, in the sanctuary."

     It was no secret when God was in the sanctuary. Either the fire
was there, or the smoke from the fire was visible. When God was ready
for them to move, the smoke and fire moved first. Notice, here, the
personal relation David has with God. He calls Him, my God.

     Psalms 68:25 "The singers went before, the players on instruments
[followed] after; among [them were] the damsels playing with
timbrels."

     This is speaking of the triumphant entry of the ark. David danced
before the ark at this time, as well as the music  and the timbrels
being played. This was a joyous time. The presence of their God had
dwelt over the ark.

     Psalms 68:26 "Bless ye God in the congregations, [even] the Lord,
from the fountain of Israel."

     The water in heaven flows from the throne of God. Revelation 22:1
"And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal,
proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb."  The law of God
came from the fountain of Israel. Jesus came through this race, as
well. Jesus was the Son of God, but His mother was an Israelite. We
should never stop praising God.

     Psalms 68:27 "There [is] little Benjamin [with] their ruler, the
princes of Judah [and] their council, the princes of Zebulun, [and]
the princes of Naphtali."

     Joseph and Benjamin were the favorite sons of Israel. Benjamin
was allotted Zion as his portion. Jesus is the Lion of the tribe of
Judah.

     Psalms 68:28 "Thy God hath commanded thy strength: strengthen, O
God, that which thou hast wrought for us."

     In our weakness, He is strong. I Corinthians 1:25 "Because the
foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is
stronger than men." II Corinthians 12:9 "And he said unto me, My grace
is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.
Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the
power of Christ may rest upon me."
     Psalms 68:29 "Because of thy temple at Jerusalem shall kings
bring presents unto thee."

     The temple at Jerusalem, that Solomon built for God, was truly
the most magnificent building anywhere. The queen of Sheba heard of it
and brought gifts to Solomon. I Kings 10:1 "And when the queen of
Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD,
she came to prove him with hard questions." I Kings 10:10 "And she
gave the king an hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices
very great store, and precious stones: there came no more such
abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to king
Solomon."

     Psalms 68:30 "Rebuke the company of spearmen, the multitude of
the bulls, with the calves of the people, [till every one] submit
himself with pieces of silver: scatter thou the people [that] delight
in war."

     Looking at this from the spiritual point of view, we would see
that regardless of how powerful they were, or how many offerings of
bulls or calves they made, it was not enough. Silver means redemption.
Notice the words, {submit himself}. A man must repent and be redeemed.
Looking at this with the physical eye, we see that they are powerful
and are trying to win by force. Solomon was a man of peace, and that
is why God allowed him to build the temple.

     Psalms 68:31 "Princes shall come out of Egypt; Ethiopia shall
soon stretch out her hands unto God."

     People did come from far and wide and brought gifts, such as we
mentioned about the queen of Sheba. Egypt has always symbolized the
world. Looking at this spiritually, we see heathen people from all
over the world coming to the Lord.

     Psalms 68:32 "Sing unto God, ye kingdoms of the earth; O sing
praises unto the Lord; Selah:"

     This just shows how salvation is offered to all peoples of the
world. We have much to sing about. Let the redeemed of the Lord say
so. Think on these things.

     Psalms 68:33 "To him that rideth upon the heavens of heavens,
[which were] of old; lo, he doth send out his voice, [and that] a
mighty voice."

     We know that the mighty voice that the children of Israel heard
was so frightening, that they asked Moses to talk to God for them.
Jesus rode a cloud into heaven, when He left the earth. Read about it
in Acts chapter 1. The heavens were created by Him, so He could ride
one of the clouds, if He wanted to. II Chronicles 6:18 "But will God
in very deed dwell with men on the earth? behold, heaven and the
heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house which
I have built!"  This Scripture is just showing the magnitude of God's
reign.

     Psalms 68:34 "Ascribe ye strength unto God: his excellency [is]
over Israel, and his strength [is] in the clouds."

     Ascribe means to give. God's power is everywhere. He is ruler
over everything in heaven, as well as everything in the earth. In the
sense ascribe is used above, it would mean recognize the strength of
God.

     Psalms 68:35 "O God, [thou art] terrible out of thy holy places:
the God of Israel [is] he that giveth strength and power unto [his]
people. Blessed [be] God."

     All strength and power belong to God. The wonderful thing is,
that all believers in Christ have been given permission to use the
name of Jesus. The 14th chapter of John, beginning with the 12th verse
tells us just how much authority there is in the name of Jesus. The
one thing that we must keep in mind is, that this is Jesus' power, not
ours. The power is in the name of Jesus. Let me share just two verses
with you here. John 14:12 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that
believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater
[works] than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father."  John
14:13 "And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that
the Father may be glorified in the Son."  When you look these
Scriptures up, notice the Words were spoken by Jesus. BLESSED BE GOD.





























                             Questions 67

1.  What mountain is verse 16 speaking of?
2.  What is another name for this mountain?
3.  What does Zion symbolize?
4.  What does Ezekiel chapter 37 verse 27 and Revelation chapter 21
    verse 3 have in common?
5.  Verse 17 says the chariots of God are how many?
6.  How many chariots did Pharaoh send after the Israelites?
7.  What are God's chariots made of?
8.  Where do we find the Scripture that tells us that?
9.  What does [the Lord is among them] possibly mean?
10. Besides the ark being carried into Jerusalem, what does verse 18
    mean?
11. Jesus was put to death in the ______, but quickened by the
    _______.
12. When He ascended upon high, He led _______ _______.
13. Who did He give for the perfecting of the saints?
14. What does the author believe to be one of the most beautiful
    examples in the Bible of God providing for His own?
15. In the last half of verse 21, who are these people?
16. What are the 2 meanings of verse 22?
17. The enemy is _______, if their blood is under foot.
18. What does the dog's tongue being in the blood show?
19. How did the people know when God was in the sanctuary?
20. Where does the water in heaven flow from?
21. Where did the law of God come from?
22. Who were the favorite sons of Israel?
23. Quote 1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 25.
24. What queen heard of the magnificence of the temple Solomon built
    and came and brought gifts to him?
25. What does ascribe mean?
26. What wonderful provision has been given to the believers in
    Christ?
27. Blessed be ___.