The Meaning of Psalms 68:16 Explained

Psalms 68:16

KJV: Why leap ye, ye high hills? this is the hill which God desireth to dwell in; yea, the LORD will dwell in it for ever.

YLT: Why do ye envy, O high hills, The hill God hath desired for His seat? Jehovah also doth tabernacle for ever.

Darby: Why do ye look with envy, ye many-peaked mountains, upon the mount that God hath desired for his abode? yea, Jehovah will dwell there for ever.

ASV: Why look ye askance, ye high mountains, At the mountain which God hath desired for his abode? Yea, Jehovah will dwell in it for ever.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Why leap  ye, ye high  hills?  [this is] the hill  [which] God  desireth  to dwell in;  yea, the LORD  will dwell  [in it] for ever. 

What does Psalms 68:16 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 68:16 mean?

Why do you fume with envy you mountains of [many] peaks [This is] the mountain [which] desires God to dwell in Yes Yahweh will dwell [in it] forever
לָ֤מָּה ׀ תְּֽרַצְּדוּן֮ ؟ הָרִ֪ים גַּבְנֻ֫נִּ֥ים הָהָ֗ר חָמַ֣ד אֱלֹהִ֣ים לְשִׁבְתּ֑וֹ אַף־ יְ֝הוָ֗ה יִשְׁכֹּ֥ן לָנֶֽצַח

לָ֤מָּה ׀  Why 
Parse: Interrogative
Root: לָמָּה 
Sense: what, how, of what kind.
תְּֽרַצְּדוּן֮  do  you  fume  with  envy 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperfect, second person masculine plural, Paragogic nun
Root: רָצַד  
Sense: (Piel) to watch stealthily or with envious hostility, watch with enmity, watch with envy.
؟ הָרִ֪ים  you  mountains 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: הַר  
Sense: hill, mountain, hill country, mount.
גַּבְנֻ֫נִּ֥ים  of  [many]  peaks 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: גַּבְנׄון  
Sense: peak, rounded summit, a mountain peak.
הָהָ֗ר  [This  is]  the  mountain 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: הַר  
Sense: hill, mountain, hill country, mount.
חָמַ֣ד  [which]  desires 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: חָמַד 
Sense: to desire, covet, take pleasure in, delight in.
אֱלֹהִ֣ים  God 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
לְשִׁבְתּ֑וֹ  to  dwell  in 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct, third person masculine singular
Root: יָשַׁב 
Sense: to dwell, remain, sit, abide.
אַף־  Yes 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: אַף  
Sense: also, yea, though, so much the more adv.
יְ֝הוָ֗ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
יִשְׁכֹּ֥ן  will  dwell  [in  it] 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: שָׁכַן  
Sense: to settle down, abide, dwell, tabernacle, reside.
לָנֶֽצַח  forever 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine singular
Root: נֵצַח  
Sense: eminence, perpetuity, strength, victory, enduring, everlastingness.