Psalm 68

God Shall Scatter His Enemies

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. A Song.

God shall arise, his enemies shall be scattered;
and those who hate him shall flee before him!
2
As smoke is driven away, so you shall drive them away;
as wax melts before fire,
so the wicked shall perish before God!
3
But the righteous shall be glad;
they shall exult before God;
they shall be jubilant with joy!

4
Sing to God, sing praises to his name;
lift up a song to him who rides through the deserts;
his name is the Lord;
exult before him!
5
Father of the fatherless and protector of widows
is God in his holy habitation.
6
God settles the solitary in a home;
he leads out the prisoners to prosperity,
but the rebellious dwell in a parched land.

7
O God, when you went out before your people,
when you marched through the wilderness, Selah
8
the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain,
before God, the One of Sinai,
before God, the God of Israel.
9
Rain in abundance, O God, you shed abroad;
you restored your inheritance as it languished;
10
your flock found a dwelling in it;
in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy.

11
The Lord gives the word;
the women who announce the news are a great host:
12
“The kings of the armies⁠—they flee, they flee!”
The women at home divide the spoil⁠—
13
though you men lie among the sheepfolds⁠—
the wings of a dove covered with silver,
its pinions with shimmering gold.
14
When the Almighty scatters kings there,
let snow fall on Zalmon.

15
O mountain of God, mountain of Bashan;
O many‑peaked mountain, mountain of Bashan!
16
Why do you look with hatred, O many‑peaked mountain,
at the mount that God desired for his abode,
yes, where the Lord will dwell forever?
17
The chariots of God are twice ten thousand,
thousands upon thousands;
the Lord is among them; Sinai is now in the sanctuary.
18
You ascended on high,
leading a host of captives in your train
and receiving gifts among men,
even among the rebellious, that the Lord God may dwell there.

19
Blessed be the Lord,
who daily bears us up;
God is our salvation. Selah
20
Our God is a God of salvation,
and to God, the Lord, belong deliverances from death.
21
But God will strike the heads of his enemies,
the hairy crown of him who walks in his guilty ways.
22
The Lord said,
“I will bring them back from Bashan,
I will bring them back from the depths of the sea,
23
that you may strike your feet in their blood,
that the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from the foe.”

24
Your procession is seen, O God,
the procession of my God, my King, into the sanctuary⁠—
25
the singers in front, the musicians last,
between them virgins playing tambourines:
26
“Bless God in the great congregation,
the Lord, O you who are of Israel’s fountain!”
27
There is Benjamin, the least of them, in the lead,
the princes of Judah in their throng,
the princes of Zebulun, the princes of Naphtali.

28
Summon your power, O God,
the power, O God, by which you have worked for us.
29
Because of your temple at Jerusalem
kings shall bear gifts to you.
30
Rebuke the beasts that dwell among the reeds,
the herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples.
Trample underfoot those who lust after tribute;
scatter the peoples who delight in war.
31
Nobles shall come from Egypt;
Cush shall hasten to stretch out her hands to God.

32
O kingdoms of the earth, sing to God;
sing praises to the Lord, Selah
33
to him who rides in the heavens, the ancient heavens;
behold, he sends out his voice, his mighty voice.
34
Ascribe power to God,
whose majesty is over Israel,
and whose power is in the skies.
35
Awesome is God from his sanctuary;
the God of Israel⁠—he is the one who gives power and strength to his people.
Blessed be God!

Numbers 34

Boundaries of the Land

The Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
2 “Command the people of Israel, and say to them, When you enter the land of Canaan (this is the land that shall fall to you for an inheritance, the land of Canaan as defined by its borders), 3 your south side shall be from the wilderness of Zin alongside Edom, and your southern border shall run from the end of the Salt Sea on the east. 4 And your border shall turn south of the ascent of Akrabbim, and cross to Zin, and its limit shall be south of Kadesh-barnea. Then it shall go on to Hazar-addar, and pass along to Azmon. 5 And the border shall turn from Azmon to the Brook of Egypt, and its limit shall be at the sea. 6 “For the western border, you shall have the Great Sea and its coast. This shall be your western border. 7 “This shall be your northern border: from the Great Sea you shall draw a line to Mount Hor. 8 From Mount Hor you shall draw a line to Lebo-hamath, and the limit of the border shall be at Zedad. 9 Then the border shall extend to Ziphron, and its limit shall be at Hazar-enan. This shall be your northern border. 10 “You shall draw a line for your eastern border from Hazar-enan to Shepham. 11 And the border shall go down from Shepham to Riblah on the east side of Ain. And the border shall go down and reach to the shoulder of the Sea of Chinnereth on the east. 12 And the border shall go down to the Jordan, and its limit shall be at the Salt Sea. This shall be your land as defined by its borders all around.” 13 Moses commanded the people of Israel, saying, “This is the land that you shall inherit by lot, which the Lord has commanded to give to the nine tribes and to the half-tribe. 14 For the tribe of the people of Reuben by fathers’ houses and the tribe of the people of Gad by their fathers’ houses have received their inheritance, and also the half-tribe of Manasseh. 15 The two tribes and the half-tribe have received their inheritance beyond the Jordan east of Jericho, toward the sunrise.”

List of Tribal Chiefs

16 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
17 “These are the names of the men who shall divide the land to you for inheritance: Eleazar the priest and Joshua the son of Nun. 18 You shall take one chief from every tribe to divide the land for inheritance. 19 These are the names of the men: Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh. 20 Of the tribe of the people of Simeon, Shemuel the son of Ammihud. 21 Of the tribe of Benjamin, Elidad the son of Chislon. 22 Of the tribe of the people of Dan a chief, Bukki the son of Jogli. 23 Of the people of Joseph: of the tribe of the people of Manasseh a chief, Hanniel the son of Ephod. 24 And of the tribe of the people of Ephraim a chief, Kemuel the son of Shiphtan. 25 Of the tribe of the people of Zebulun a chief, Elizaphan the son of Parnach. 26 Of the tribe of the people of Issachar a chief, Paltiel the son of Azzan. 27 And of the tribe of the people of Asher a chief, Ahihud the son of Shelomi. 28 Of the tribe of the people of Naphtali a chief, Pedahel the son of Ammihud.” 29 These are the men whom the Lord commanded to divide the inheritance for the people of Israel in the land of Canaan.