The Meaning of Psalms 68:18 Explained

Psalms 68:18

KJV: Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou hast received gifts for men; yea, for the rebellious also, that the LORD God might dwell among them.

YLT: Thou hast ascended on high, Thou hast taken captive captivity, Thou hast taken gifts for men, That even the refractory may rest, O Jah God.

Darby: Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou hast received gifts in Man, and even for the rebellious, for the dwelling there of Jah Elohim.

ASV: Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led away captives; Thou hast received gifts among men, Yea, among the rebellious also, that Jehovah God might dwell with them .

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Thou hast ascended  on high,  thou hast led captivity  captive:  thou hast received  gifts  for men;  yea, [for] the rebellious  also, that the LORD  God  might dwell  [among them]. 

What does Psalms 68:18 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalm 68:12-25 - Their Mighty Deliverer
The processional march still continues. Presently Mount Zion comes in sight, and the neighboring hills are depicted as eying it enviously for its selection in preference to themselves. In Psalms 68:17-18 the glad throng begins to climb the sacred slopes of Zion, amid still more triumphant strains; and in Psalms 68:19, etc., the gates of the sanctuary stand wide open to welcome the festal crowds.
How great the contrast between the blackened appearance of a smoky caldron, and the lustrous sheen of a bird's pinions as they flash in the sunlight! Psalms 68:13. Yet that is the contrast between what we were, and what we now are. Zalmon, Psalms 68:14 -perhaps a reference to the wooded hill near Shechem, mentioned in Judges 9:48. The hostile kings were scattered as snowflakes are driven before the wind and melt in the sun. The hill Bashan, Psalms 68:15, is a snow-clad summit, but Zion is greater, since God is there. In the triumphant words of Psalms 68:18, the singer quotes Judges 5:12, and they are applied in Ephesians 4:8 to our Lord's ascension. Note the r.v. rendering of Psalms 68:19 -that the Lord daily beareth our burdens. Singers, minstrels, and girls with timbrels, Psalms 68:25 -all have a share in the Church's joy. [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalm 68

1  A prayer at the removing of the ark
4  An exhortation to praise God for his mercies
7  for his care of the church
19  for his great works

What do the individual words in Psalms 68:18 mean?

You have ascended on high You have led captive captivity You have received gifts among men and Even [from] the rebellious that might dwell [there] YAH God
עָ֘לִ֤יתָ לַמָּר֨וֹם ׀ שָׁ֘בִ֤יתָ שֶּׁ֗בִי לָקַ֣חְתָּ מַ֭תָּנוֹת בָּאָדָ֑ם וְאַ֥ף ס֝וֹרְרִ֗ים לִשְׁכֹּ֤ן ׀ יָ֬הּ אֱלֹהִֽים

עָ֘לִ֤יתָ  You  have  ascended 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, second person masculine singular
Root: סָלַק 
Sense: to go up, ascend, climb.
לַמָּר֨וֹם ׀  on  high 
Parse: Preposition-l, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: מָרֹום  
Sense: height.
שָׁ֘בִ֤יתָ  You  have  led  captive 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, second person masculine singular
Root: שָׁבָה  
Sense: to take captive.
שֶּׁ֗בִי  captivity 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: שְׁבִי 
Sense: captivity, captives.
לָקַ֣חְתָּ  You  have  received 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, second person masculine singular
Root: יָקַח 
Sense: to take, get, fetch, lay hold of, seize, receive, acquire, buy, bring, marry, take a wife, snatch, take away.
מַ֭תָּנוֹת  gifts 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural
Root: מַתָּנָה  
Sense: gift.
בָּאָדָ֑ם  among  men 
Parse: Preposition-b, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: אָדָם 
Sense: man, mankind.
וְאַ֥ף  and  Even  [from] 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Conjunction
Root: אַף  
Sense: also, yea, though, so much the more adv.
ס֝וֹרְרִ֗ים  the  rebellious 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine plural
Root: סָרַר  
Sense: to rebel, be stubborn, be rebellious, be refractory.
לִשְׁכֹּ֤ן ׀  that  might  dwell  [there] 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: שָׁכַן  
Sense: to settle down, abide, dwell, tabernacle, reside.
יָ֬הּ  YAH 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יָהּ  
Sense: Jah (Jehovah in the shortened form).
אֱלֹהִֽים  God 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).