By Jeremy Bell
I am going to share my personal study on Psalm 68 using groupings from my motif analysis, further highlighted in my book, Psalms in Motif Visualization. I have taken these groupings of the Psalm and put them together. So, the entirety of the Psalm will be posted, but these groupings will present the text in a different order.
The Frame Drum
The tambourine, a type of frame drum, is one of the older instruments we still use. It’s dated as far back as 2,000 B.C., coming from the middle east region. Most of us recognize the tambourine as a jingly bell sound with loud volume, primarily used in the percussion section. Mozart has used it, rock and pop music have it, and it has been a part of military music for thousands of years to celebrate won battles and victories.
While most of us recognize the clattering tiny cymbals of the tambourine, this frame drum is covered to be used as a drumhead as well. Ancient Egyptians and Assyrians played the tambourine in religious ceremonies and Miriam, the sister of Moses played the tambourine to celebrate the Israelites’ escape from Egypt.
Ancient Traveling
You can imagine how easy it would be to travel with this instrument. This frame drum not only provides a rhythm for music, but a rhythm to march to. The cymbals, expertly played, help a storyteller or singer tell their tale. More abrasive than a stringed instrument, the sound could be heard more clearly farther away for a larger group of people. Slow pounding of the tambourine could be a death march, a funeral procession for mourners or a warning for enemies. Faster beats would assist dancing and celebrations and bring joy to great bands of people. Certainly, Psalm 68 is one of joy, one of rejoicing and one of victory.
I have identified 4 distinct sections, or elements, to this Psalm. These sections are much like the sections of a piece of music, each related, but distributed in a pattern throughout the Psalm. When I arrange for Audio Visualization, my goal is to highlight the patterns and intent over strict translation. I hope it gives fresh encouragement, but I strongly recommend the Psalm to be read as is for proper understanding.
[ Psalm 68 ]
Let God arise!
But let the righteous be glad.
Let them rejoice before God.
Yes, let them rejoice with gladness.
Sing to God! Sing praises to his name!
Extol him who rides on the clouds:
to Yah, his name!
Rejoice before him!
He brings out the prisoners with singing,
The singers went before, the minstrels followed after,
among the ladies playing with tambourines,
Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth!
Sing praises to the Lord— Selah—
Praise be to God!
Let his enemies be scattered!
Let them who hate him also flee before him.
As smoke is driven away,
so drive them away.
As wax melts before the fire,
so let the wicked perish at the presence of God.
A father of the fatherless, and a defender of the widows,
is God in his holy habitation.
God sets the lonely in families.
You confirmed your inheritance when it was weary.
Your congregation lived therein.
You, God, prepared your goodness for the poor.
The Lord announced the word.
The ones who proclaim it are a great company.
“Kings of armies flee! They flee!”
She who waits at home divides the plunder,
while you sleep among the camp fires,
the wings of a dove sheathed with silver,
her feathers with shining gold.
When the Almighty scattered kings in her,
it snowed on Zalmon.
The mountains of Bashan are majestic mountains.
The mountains of Bashan are rugged.
Why do you look in envy, you rugged mountains,
at the mountain where God chooses to reign?
Yes, Yahweh will dwell there forever.
You have led away captives.
You have received gifts among people,
yes, among the rebellious also, that Yah God might dwell there.
Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burdens,
even the God who is our salvation. Selah.
God is to us a God of deliverance.
To Yahweh, the Lord, belongs escape from death.
But God will strike through the head of his enemies,
the hairy scalp of such a one as still continues in his guiltiness.
The Lord said, “I will bring you again from Bashan,
I will bring you again from the depths of the sea,
that you may crush them, dipping your foot in blood,
that the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from your enemies.”
“Bless God in the congregations,
even the Lord in the assembly of Israel!”
There is little Benjamin, their ruler,
the princes of Judah, their council,
the princes of Zebulun, and the princes of Naphtali.
Your God has commanded your strength.
Strengthen, God, that which you have done for us.
Because of your temple at Jerusalem,
kings shall bring presents to you.
Rebuke the wild animal of the reeds,
the multitude of the bulls, with the calves of the peoples.
Being humbled, may it bring bars of silver.
Scatter the nations that delight in war.
Princes shall come out of Egypt.
Ethiopia shall hurry to stretch out her hands to God.
to him who rides on the heaven of heavens, which are of old;
behold, he utters his voice, a mighty voice.
Ascribe strength to God!
His excellency is over Israel,
his strength is in the skies.
You are awesome, God, in your sanctuaries.
The God of Israel gives strength and power to his people.
The sky also poured down rain at the presence of the God of Sinai—
at the presence of God, the God of Israel.
You, God, sent a plentiful rain.
The chariots of God are tens of thousands and thousands of thousands.
The Lord is among them, from Sinai, into the sanctuary.
You have ascended on high.
They have seen your processions, God,
The rebellious dwell in a sun-scorched land.
God, when you went out before your people,
when you marched through the wilderness… Selah.
The earth trembled.
even the processions of my God, my King, into the sanctuary.
Background Music to Your Prayer Life
Think of your favorite celebration hymn and play it in your mind now. Add to it the sound of the tambourine and unite with Moses, Miriam, David, and countless others who remembered what God had done for them with singing and playing. Take some time to remember what God has done for you, what God is doing for you, and what you are sure to expect He will do for you in the future. If you have trouble, find some more time, find some quiet space to reflect. It is often that we forget what God has done as the cares of this world choke out our memories of it. But they will come back if you take some time with Him.
Consider how this frame drum sounds in the background of you approaching Him. Is it foreboding or welcoming? I assure you it’s welcoming, it’s who God is. Any accusation or deception that would keep you from going to God is of the devil. Resist this nature of condemnation. Instead, be transformed in the celebration of God’s love that is the Nature of Joy.
Resources and Notes
All scripture in this article is from the WORLD ENGLISH BIBLE (WEB). The World English Bible (WEB) is a Public Domain (no copyright) Modern English translation of the Holy Bible. The World English Bible is based on the American Standard Version of the Holy Bible first published in 1901, the Biblia Hebraica Stutgartensa Old Testament, and the Greek Majority Text New Testament.
For more related to this blog, check out my post on Equipping the Saints for Local Missions Truths.
This is a reliable translation, but it is always good to read other translations as well. Biblegateway.com has a multitude of translations to read from. It is a great resource.
Another great resource is Biblehub.com. There are multiple translations, commentaries, and so much more. Great research can be done on this platform.
One more I use regularly is Gotquestions.org. This is a great site to answer questions and find threads of related questions.
There are many resources. The key is that God wants relationship directly with you, the individual. His primary source for revealing who He is and growing in intimacy is His word, the scriptures. Don’t just read for instruction. Analyze and read for understanding. Explore, ask questions, and be transformed in Jesus every moment you possibly can. There is no dispute this is a key desire of God. People are brough to the Father, in the Son, by the power of the Holy Spirit. This… This is the Nature of Joy.
Jeremy is an author, musician, and business intelligence manager. His mission is to equip and encourage those in Christ, to equip and encourage others in Christ. Jesus, Christ, is the Nature of Joy and melody of the heart. Jeremy unites business analytics (business intelligence), songs, and Scripture for Christian living in the power of the Holy Spirit.