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Day 285

Psalm 68:7a "O God, when You went out before Your people..."

Day 285 – Psalm 68

“O God, when You went out before Your people…” Psalm 68:7a

HISTORY DOES NOT NEED TO BE DULL

To some history is dull. To the psalmist David, the history of Israel could not be more exciting. He seemed to revel in the period when Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt.

“O God, when You went out before Your people,
When You marched through the wilderness,
The earth shook;
The heavens also dropped rain at the presence of God;
Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God,
The God of Israel.”
Psalm 68:7-8

1. Significant Clues

Two phrases employed help us to determine the period of history David wrote about.

a) Through the wilderness
This phrase was used by Moses as he recorded it in Exodus (Exodus 16:1-2; 17:1, 19:1 etc).
b) Sinai
It was at Sinai that God spoke to the children of Israel (Exodus 19:11, 18).

2. The presence of God

David interpreted the history of Israel from a theological perspective. The most significant phrase he came up with was “the presence of God”. The following truths stood out to David as he meditated on the phrase “the presence of God”:-

a) “You went out before Your people” (Psalm 68:7a)
God was in the forefront leading His people.
b) “Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God”
i) The earth shook.
ii) The heavens dropped (the word “rain” was added by the translators). Reading the text of Exodus 19, it is not necessary to add the word “rain” to read the meaning of the text. It seems even more effective to just let the phrase end on a poignant note… rather than to add a complementary noun.