The Meaning of Psalms 68:15 Explained

Psalms 68:15

KJV: The hill of God is as the hill of Bashan; an high hill as the hill of Bashan.

YLT: A hill of God is the hill of Bashan, A hill of heights is the hill of Bashan.

Darby: As mount Bashan is the mount of God, a many-peaked mountain, as mount Bashan.

ASV: A mountain of God is the mountain of Bashan; A high mountain is the mountain of Bashan.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

The hill  of God  [is as] the hill  of Bashan;  an high  hill  [as] the hill  of Bashan. 

What does Psalms 68:15 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalms 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: Psalms 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 68:15 mean?

A mountain of God [is] the mountain of Bashan a mountain [of] [many] peaks of Bashan
הַר־ אֱ֭לֹהִים הַר־ בָּשָׁ֑ן הַ֥ר גַּ֝בְנֻנִּ֗ים בָּשָֽׁן

הַר־  A  mountain 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: הַר  
Sense: hill, mountain, hill country, mount.
אֱ֭לֹהִים  of  God 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
הַר־  [is]  the  mountain 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: הַר  
Sense: hill, mountain, hill country, mount.
בָּשָׁ֑ן  of  Bashan 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: בָּשָׁן 
Sense: a district east of the Jordan known for its fertility which was given to the half-tribe of Manasseh.
הַ֥ר  a  mountain  [of] 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: הַר  
Sense: hill, mountain, hill country, mount.
גַּ֝בְנֻנִּ֗ים  [many]  peaks 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: גַּבְנׄון  
Sense: peak, rounded summit, a mountain peak.
בָּשָֽׁן  of  Bashan 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: בָּשָׁן 
Sense: a district east of the Jordan known for its fertility which was given to the half-tribe of Manasseh.