Wind, fire, and the golden dove

Wind, fire, and the golden dove

Meditations from Psalm 68

Psalm 68

 ¹ May God arise, may his enemies be scattered;
       may his foes flee before him.

 ² As smoke is blown away by the wind,
       may you blow them away;
       as wax melts before the fire,
       may the wicked perish before God.
 ³ But may the righteous be glad
       and rejoice before God;
       may they be happy and joyful.
 ⁴ Sing to God, sing praise to his name,
       extol him who rides on the clouds—
       his name is the LORD—
       and rejoice before him.
These 4 verses give us the picture of God rising up before the enemies of Israel. The Psalmist first describes the presence of God as a wind that blows the enemy away. The wind is symbolic of the power and presence of the Holy Spirit. Jesus likened being born of the Holy Spirit to the wind, coming and going wherever it pleases, and no one knows where it is going or where it is coming from. The fire also is symbolized by the Holy Spirit, who showed Himself in tongues of fire residing on the heads of Jesus’ disciples during Pentecost.
The righteous are destined to be happy and joyful before God, praising Him, singing to Him. Elsewhere it is written that the righteous shall live by faith. We have a righteousness in Jesus Christ that comes through faith in Him and not by works. How easily we worship and praise God is often indicative of our righteousness before Him in the Lord.
 ⁵ A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows,
       is God in his holy dwelling.
 ⁶ God sets the lonely in families,
       he leads forth the prisoners with singing;
       but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.
These two verses speak of the heart of God for the helpless. He is always concerned about the orphans and the widows, those that are weak and need help. We who follow God must have His heart and care for the weak as well!
 ⁷ When you went out before your people, O God,
       when you marched through the wasteland,
       Selah
 ⁸ the earth shook,
       the heavens poured down rain,
       before God, the One of Sinai,
       before God, the God of Israel.
 ⁹ You gave abundant showers, O God;
       you refreshed your weary inheritance.
 ¹⁰ Your people settled in it,
       and from your bounty, O God, you provided for the poor.
In these verses, we get the picture of God sending and earthquake and heavy rain, making fruitful a wasteland and letting His people settle in it. No matter how dire our circumstances or bleak they may seem, God is able to brings showers of blessings and make even a wasteland fruitful.
 ¹¹ The Lord announced the word,
       and great was the company of those who proclaimed it:
 ¹² "Kings and armies flee in haste;
       in the camps men divide the plunder.
 ¹³ Even while you sleep among the campfires,
       the wings of my dove are sheathed with silver,
       its feathers with shining gold."
Here the Psalmist speaks of the Word of the Lord, and a great company proclaiming the word of the Lord. And again, the dove reminds of the Holy Spirit, with wings sheathed with silver and with feathers of shining gold. God calls many to proclaim His Word, and always it is His royal Holy Spirit that goes with His people and enables them to speak His Words.
May the Lord enable us to:-

(i)                  Be happy and joyful before Him in faith

(ii)                Be concerned for the poor, widows, and orphans

(iii)               Trust in Him even if we are in a wasteland

(iv)              Depend on His Holy Spirit to speak His words in season

God bless, Jason