They have seen your processions, God, even the processions of my God, my King, into the sanctuary.
Parallel Translations
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They have seen your processions, God, even the processions of my God, my King, into the sanctuary.
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They have seen thy goings, O God; even the goings of my God, my King, in the sanctuary.
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(68-25) They see Thy goings, O God, even the goings of my God, my King, in holiness.
Cross-references (6)
Passages linked to Psalms 68:24 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Psalms 47:5-7 God has gone up with a shout, Yahweh with the sound of a trumpet. Sing praises to God! Sing praises! Sing praises to our King! Sing praises! For God is the King of all the earth. Sing praises with understanding.
- 2 Samuel 6:12-17 King David was told, “Yahweh has blessed the house of Obed-Edom, and all that belongs to him, because of God’s ark.” So David went and brought up God’s ark from the house of Obed-Edom into David’s city with joy. When those who bore Yahweh’s ark had gone six paces, he sacrificed an ox and a fattened calf. David danced before Yahweh with all his might; and David was clothed in a linen ephod. So David and all the house of Israel brought up Yahweh’s ark with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet. As Yahweh’s ark came into David’s city, Michal the daughter of Saul looked out through the window, and saw king David leaping and dancing before Yahweh; and she despised him in her heart. They brought in Yahweh’s ark, and set it in its place, in the middle of the tent that David had pitched for it; and David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before Yahweh.
- 1 Chronicles 13:8 David and all Israel played before God with all their might, even with songs, with harps, with stringed instruments, with tambourines, with cymbals, and with trumpets.
- 1 Chronicles 15:16-24 David spoke to the chief of the Levites to appoint their brothers as singers with instruments of music, stringed instruments, harps, and cymbals, sounding aloud and lifting up their voices with joy. So the Levites appointed Heman the son of Joel; and of his brothers, Asaph the son of Berechiah; and of the sons of Merari their brothers, Ethan the son of Kushaiah; and with them their brothers of the second rank, Zechariah, Ben, Jaaziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-Edom, and Jeiel, the doorkeepers. So the singers, Heman, Asaph, and Ethan, were given cymbals of bronze to sound aloud; and Zechariah, Aziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Maaseiah, and Benaiah, with stringed instruments set to Alamoth; and Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-Edom, Jeiel, and Azaziah, with harps tuned to the eight-stringed lyre, to lead. Chenaniah, chief of the Levites, was over the singing. He taught the singers, because he was skillful. Berechiah and Elkanah were doorkeepers for the ark. Shebaniah, Joshaphat, Nethanel, Amasai, Zechariah, Benaiah, and Eliezer, the priests, blew the trumpets before God’s ark; and Obed-Edom and Jehiah were doorkeepers for the ark.
- Psalms 24:7-10 Lift up your heads, you gates! Be lifted up, you everlasting doors, and the King of glory will come in. Who is the King of glory? Yahweh strong and mighty, Yahweh mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, you gates; yes, lift them up, you everlasting doors, and the King of glory will come in. Who is this King of glory? Yahweh of Armies is the King of glory!
- Psalms 63:2 So I have seen you in the sanctuary, watching your power and your glory.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (18 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 24. They have seen thy goings, O God! This…
24. They have seen thy goings, O God! This verse may refer to processions of a warlike kind, or to such as are made in times of peace by those who give thanks for victory. It is customary for the people of God, on occasions of the latter description, to go forth and present peace-offerings in the temple. This has led some to understand by the goings of God, the crowds of his people when they proceed to the temple. But I am disposed to think that God himself is here represented as a king leading and marshalling forth his armies. Accordingly, it is added, in the sanctuary, under which expression there is an apt allusion to the visible symbol of the Divine presence. The great reason why God undertakes the guardianship of his people, and goes before them to repel the attacks of the enemy, is his having promised that he will hear their prayers in the sanctuary. He is therefore described as if he were seen coming out of his holy habitation, that he might conduct his people to victory. David calls him his King, to divert the attention of the people from himself, and lead them to view a name which belonged to a frail mortal man such as he was, in its higher application to the supreme Head of all. He speaks, it is true, in the name of the people, but not to the exclusion of himself.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain That is, how thou which art chief King goest…
That is, how thou which art chief King goest out with thy people to war, and givest them the victory.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Psa 68:24 They have seen thy goings, O God;…
Psa 68:24 They have seen thy goings, O God; [even] the goings of my God, my King, in the sanctuary.
Ver. 24. They have seen thy goings, O God] Namely, the holy manner of conducting the ark with even and proportionable restings and settings down (Diod.). See 2Sa 6:13. The ark is here and elsewhere called God, because a symbol of his special presence. When we are called to hear God’s word, and pray publicly, though we see not God, yet we may see his goings Deus enim ipse chorum agit, et primas tenet in illo incessu (Vatab.).
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Of my God, my King] David, though he were a king, yet held himself but God’s mandatory, or substitute.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain They have seen: it is an indefinite expression; men…
They have seen: it is an indefinite expression; men saw and observed it, thy people to their comfort, and thine enemies with terror and astonishment.
Thy goings; either,
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1. How thou didst march before them through the Red Sea and the wilderness, even until thou didst bring them into Canaan, and afterward, as occasion was, and how thou didst subdue their enemies before them. Or rather,
2. The procession of the ark to Zion, the solemnity whereof is particularly described in the following verses.
In the sanctuary; or, in holiness; for it was not a light and carnal, but a holy pomp; or, in the holy place; as the ark, in and with which God is supposed to go, might very fitly and truly be called. Or into the sanctuary, or holy tabernacle, prepared for it; whither the ark was now going.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain They have seen thy goings, O God,.... In saving…
They have seen thy goings, O God,.... In saving his people, and destroying his enemies;
even the goings of my God, my King, in the sanctuary; the walk and conversation of Christ, when he was made flesh, and dwelt among men; his manner of life and deportment; his works and miracles, his sufferings, death, and resurrection from the dead; all which his apostles were eyewitnesses of; as also his going up to heaven, which was visible to angels and men; likewise his progress and victorious expeditions in Judea, and in the Gentile world, by the ministry of the word, in which he went forth conquering, and to conquer; which sense is confirmed by the following words: for Christ, who is God over all, the Lord and God of his people, and King of saints, is here, as throughout the psalm, intended. The Targum interprets it of the path or goings of the divine Majesty upon the sea, which the house of Israel saw.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain They - Men saw and observed it. Goings -…
They - Men saw and observed it. Goings - The procession of the ark to Zion, the solemnity whereof is particularly described in the following verses. The sanctuary - The tabernacle prepared for it.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 24. They have seen thy goings] These kings…
Verse 24. They have seen thy goings] These kings of the Amorites have seen thy terrible majesty in their discomfiture, and the slaughter of their subjects.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Psa 68:24. They, &c. — When the ark was…
Psa 68:24. They, &c. — When the ark was safely deposited, the sacrifices offered, the solemnity well nigh concluded, and the whole assembly about to return back, Dr. Chandler supposes the singers struck up and joined in the remaining part of this noble anthem. They have seen — Men saw and observed, thy goings, O God — The procession of the ark to Zion, the solemnity whereof is particularly described in the following verses. The word, goings, הליכותיךְ, halichotheicha, means, thy marches; the procession, it seems, stopping several times, and being performed in several sorts of periods, in proper succession, one after another, for the ease of those who bore the ark, and for performing some sacred rites, which were appointed on this occasion, 2Sa 6:13; 1Ch 15:26. Even the marches of my God, my King — He repeats it, because the words contain a sort of triumph on account of this great work of translating the ark being now happily accomplished, which he seems to have considered as a pledge and earnest of the mighty things God would do for them, having now, by this symbol of his presence, taken possession of the place prepared for him on mount Zion, and therefore of Jerusalem, the capital of the kingdom: in the sanctuary — Or, in holiness, for it was not a light and carnal, but a serious and holy procession: or, into the sanctuary, as the words may be rendered; or, holy tabernacle prepared for it; to which they had now carried the ark.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain They have seen thy goings, O God - That…
They have seen thy goings, O God - That is, the lookers on in the solemn procession referred to in Psa 68:25; or, in other words, Thy goings have been attended by pomp and magnificence, and have been witnessed by multitudes. The word “goings” here refers to the solemn triumphal processions which celebrated the victories achieved by God.
Even the goings of my God, my King - The psalmist here speaks of God as “his” God and “his” King. The idea seems to have suddenly crossed his mind that this great God, so glorious, is “his” God. He exults and rejoices that He whom he adores is such a God; that a God so great and glorious is “his.” So the believer now, when he looks upon the works of God, when he contemplates their vastness, their beauty, and their grandeur, is permitted to feel that the God who made them is “his” God; to find consolation in the thought that his “Father made them all.”
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“He looks abroad into the varied field
Of Nature, and, though poor, perhaps, compared
With those whose mansions glitter in his sight,
Calls the delightful scenery all his own.
His are the mountains, and the valleys his,
And the resplendent rivers; - his to enjoy
With a propriety that none can feel
But who, with filial confidence inspired,
Can lift to heaven an unpresumptuous eye,
And smiling say, ‘My Father made them all!’
Are they not his by a peculiar right,
And by an emphasis of interest his,
Whose eye they fill with tears of holy joy,
Whose heart with praise, and whose exalted mind
With worthy thoughts of that unwearied love
That plann’d, and built, and still upholds a world
So clothed with beauty for rebellious man?”
task, Book v.
In the sanctuary - Or, “to” the sanctuary; in other words, as the ark was borne to the sanctuary, the place appointed for its rest, for, as above remarked, the psalm seems to have been composed on such an occasion.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain The triumphal procession, after the deliverance, is depicted.
The triumphal procession, after the deliverance, is depicted.
They have seen--impersonally, "There have been seen."
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the goings of my God--as leading the procession; the ark, the symbol of His presence, being in front. The various bands of music (Psa 68:25) follow, and all who are--
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 24. They have seen—That is, The people at large,…
24. They have seen—That is, The people at large, the nations. The victories of Moses and Joshua, and the miraculous interferences in behalf of Israel in the times of the Judges, were publicly known to all the neighbouring nations.
In the sanctuary—In the holy place; so translated in Psa_68:17. But here the connexion requires the “ark,” or the “holy of holies,” where the ark rested, to be specially understood, as in Exo_28:43; Exo_29:30. With the ark, the “goings” or marchings of God in the wilderness were regulated. See Num_10:35-36, and note on Psa_61:4. Later, the Philistines had seen God’s “goings” in, or with, his ark. See 2 Samuel 5, 6. Thus the nations, as well as Israel, had seen the jealous care and loving protection which God had of his own abode and worship, and were impressed with his supreme majesty and holiness.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 24. They have seen] The subject is significantly indefinite:…
24. They have seen] The subject is significantly indefinite: it includes all men, who have been the spectators of the conflict between God and His enemies. Cp. Psa_98:1-3; Isa_40:5.
thy goings] The festal procession which celebrates God’s victory on behalf of His people. He comes in triumph once more, as He came of old.
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my King] The title is significant. He has again placed Himself at the head of His people and victoriously manifested His sovereignty. Cp. Psa_44:4; Psa_74:12.
in the sanctuary] R.V. into the sanctuary, retaining A.V. in the marg. The preposition implies His rest there after His entry. It is possible also to render as in Psa_68:17, in holiness (R.V. marg. alt.). His triumph is the vindication of that holiness which is His supreme attribute and distinguishes all His action. Cp. Exo_15:11; Psa_77:13.
24–27. These verses describe a solemn procession of thanksgiving to the Temple. But is it past, present, or future? Delitzsch is right when he says that it is “not the rejoicing over a victory lately won, not the rejoicing over the deliverance at the Red Sea in the days of old, but the rejoicing of Israel when it shall have seen the judicial and redemptive act of its God and King.” It is an ‘ideal’ description. The poet’s imagination springs forward to the great celebration of the victory described in Psa_68:21-23. It rises before his eyes as an actual fact.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (24) Goings.—Better, processions. (Comp. Psa_42:4.)
(24) Goings.—Better, processions. (Comp. Psa_42:4.)
In the sanctuary.—Rather, into the sanctuary.
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(24-27) These hopes of national deliverance are kept alive in the worship of the sanctuary, which the poet now proceeds to describe. A solemn procession advances to the Temple, and we have a description of it by one evidently as interested in this ritual as familiar with it.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Vers. 24-27. Again we find a transition. The conquest…
Vers. 24-27. Again we find a transition. The conquest of Canaan is complete God is gone up into his sanctuary. The nations are led captive or put to tribute Rebels are crushed; the last remnants of them sought out, brought back, and delivered into the hands of Israel. Now we have a description of God"s "goings in the sanctuary" (ver. 24). Some critics suppose a particular occasion to be pointed at; but the expression "goings" rather indicates something habitual, or, at any rate, recurring. God is from time to time glorified in his sanctuary by ceremonies which the poet describes.
They have seen thy goings, O God; i.e. men have seen friends and foes alike even the goings of my God, my King, in the sanctuary. God is at once both Israel"s God and Israel"s King. The monarchy has not wholly destroyed the theocracy.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Charles H. Spurgeon 1885 · Public Domain Ver. 24. They have seen thy goings, O God.…
Ver. 24. They have seen thy goings, O God. In the song the marchings of the Lord had been described; friends and foes had seen his goings forth with the ark and his people. We suppose that the procession was now climbing the hill, and entering the enclosure where the tabernacle of the ark was pitched; it was suitable at this moment to declare with song that the tribes had seen the glorious progress of the Lord as he led forth his people.
Even the goings of my God, my King, in the sanctuary. The splendid procession of the ark, which symbolised the throne of the great King, was before the eyes of men and angels as it ascended to the holy place; and the psalmist points to it with exultation before he proceeds to describe it. All nature and providence are, as it were, a procession attending the great Lord, in his visitations of this lower globe. Winter and summer, sun and moon, storm and calm, and all the varied glories of nature swell the pomp of the King of kings, of whose dominion there is no end.
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None.
Ver. 24. The allowable procession in the sanctuary. The marshalled order of doctrine, the holy walk of believers, the banners of joy, the music of devotions, the shouts to the King.
Psalms 68:25*
Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain They have seen Thy goings, O God; even the…
Psa_68:24-27
They have seen Thy goings, O God; even the goings of my God, my King, in the sanctuary.
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The progress of Divine truth in the world
I. Some men merely witness the progress of Divine truth (Psa_68:24). What a large class of men there is in Christendom who act thus in relation to the progress of Christianity! They see new churches erected and new adherents gained all around them. They read of the multiplication of copies of Holy Scripture, and the increase of the triumphs of missionaries in heathen lands. They see its literature extending. But in all this they feel no vital interest. Whilst many of these care for none of these things, some ridicule and others denounce. They laugh at what they consider fanaticism; they thunder at that which they believe is imposture. They have seen Thy goings, O God, etc. Yes, they have seen, and that is all.
II. Good men are always exultant in the progress of Divine truth (Psa_68:25-26). Why should we rejoice in the progress of Divine truth?
1. Because, as Divine truth advances, all the evils that curse humanity will disappear.
2. Because, as Divine truth advances, all the virtues that bless humanity will multiply and grow. He is no true philanthropist who exults not in the progress of Christianity.
III. All men should be interested in the progress of Divine truth (Psa_68:27). Here are different tribes brought together from opposite parts of the country, thus to express their common interest in the services of the day. All men should be interested in the cause of Divine truth. Why?
1. Because all men have a common relation to its Author. He is the Father of them all.
2. Because all men have a common need of its blessings. It offers liberty to the captive--and all are captives; knowledge to the ignorant--and all are ignorant; pardon to the guilty--and all are guilty; life to the dying--and all are dying; heaven to the lost--and all are lost. (Homilist.)
The royal procession
This verse may be read thus: They have seen thy marches in procession, O God; even the marches of my God, my King, in the sanctuary. We have brought before us the jubilant songs of praise arising from the royal procession of Jehovah before the assembled hosts of Israel. Now, there has been a royal procession in London this week, and it has suggested this subject. For to-day there is an assembled host of people crowding our sanctuaries: their main desire is to see their King.
I. The people viewing the procession. The vast majority came to see our Queen herself. And their motives were various.
1. Many of them had never seen her before. And in our sanctuaries there are many who as yet have never seen their King, and they greatly desire to.
2. Others long ago had seen the Queen, but wanted to see her again: so with us and our King.
3. Others went simply to see the pageant; as much to be seen as to see. And how many come to our sanctuaries out of mere curiosity!
4. And all grades of society were represented there.
5. Some obtained much better views than others. So is it with those in our sanctuaries. Care and distractions of all kinds hinder many souls.
II. The procession itself.
1. It passed along an appointed way. It is all marked out. Through the sanctuary a main part of its route lies. But in the abodes of sickness, sorrow, death, Christ often comes.
III. The purpose of the procession. It was to open a new thoroughfare. And so our King has come to open a new road to heaven. The old road by Innocency has been blocked ever since the fall of Adam. And the road of Jewish ceremonies, and the law, is no longer available. But Christ has opened a new and living way. (A. G. Brown.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 A procession is a group of people walking together…
processions
A procession is a group of people walking together in an orderly manner as part of a ceremony.
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minstrels
people who play musical instruments
translationWords
king
holy place
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 68:24-27 A great company joins together in the pilgrimage…
68:24-27 A great company joins together in the pilgrimage to Zion.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.