Psalm 68
Psalm 68 or Psalm 67 in Septuagint and Vulgate numbering is "the most difficult and obscure of all the psalms." In the English of the King James Version it begins "Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered". In the Latin Vulgate version it begins "Exsurgat Deus et dissipentur inimici eius". It has 35 verses (36 according to Hebrew numbering). Methodist writer Arno C. Gaebelein calls it "The Great Redemption Accomplished" and describes it as "one of the greatest Psalms".
Psalm 68 | |
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"Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered" | |
The Triple Unite coin of Charles I (1644) bears the psalm's incipit EXURGAT DEUS DISSIPENTUR INIMICI | |
Other name |
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Language | Hebrew (original) |
Psalm 68 | |
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← Psalm 67 Psalm 69 → | |
Book | Book of Psalms |
Hebrew Bible part | Ketuvim |
Order in the Hebrew part | 1 |
Category | Sifrei Emet |
Christian Bible part | Old Testament |
Order in the Christian part | 19 |
Psalm 68 is used in both Jewish and Christian liturgies, and also in that of Ethiopianist new religious movements such as Rastafari. It has often been set to music, such as Marc-Antoine Charpentier's Exurgat Deus (H.215) in Latin around 1690, for soloists, chorus, two treble instruments and continuo. Handel used verses 11 and 18 in his 1742 oratorio Messiah (HWV 56).