RR Psalm 68:6,7 Part 4

(Early) Shabbat Shalom,

Psalm 68:6 A father of orphans, defender of widows, is God in His holy dwelling. 7 God settles the lonely in a home. He leads prisoners out to prosperity. But the rebellious live in a parched land.

Wow, I could write on these two verses for a week.  Don’t tempt me.  Here is another name for God, “Father.”  God is not just A Father, but THE Father.  He is our heavenly Father.  What’s better?  The life giver, loves orphans, widows, the homeless, and prisoners, each according to his need.  To the fatherless, He becomes their Father.  To the widows, He becomes their protector.

Rabbi Trail:  The Hebrew word translated as “protector” is “Dayyan” (as in Moshe Dayan, the famous Israeli general who unified Jerusalem in the Six Day War).  The word is only used twice in Scripture, the other place being 1Samuel 24:15.  However; it comes from “Din” meaning judgment.  A “Beit Din” is a house of judgment, or courthouse.  Etymologically, it is connected to the tribe of Dan.  

The connection should be obvious… a court (house of judgment) is where those who cannot defend themselves go to seek justice.  God warns us against injustice.  Leviticus 19:15 “You are to do no injustice in judgment. You are not to be partial toward the poor nor show favoritism toward the great, but you are to judge your neighbor with fairness.  And so it should be for widows. End RT.

Also, our subject verse promises a home to the isolated (translated as “lonely” the Hebrew comes from “Yachad” (Echad) meaning sole.  Whenever you’ve got one of something, you want to protect it.  That’s how God is to an only child.  

Notice too that He settles them in a “home” (Bayit) but God, Himself, inhabits a dwelling.  The Hebrew word is “Ma’oun” (not “Bayit”).   The Ma’oun of God connotes a dwelling place, which is a habitation or retreat.  It is a safe place where there is community.  Psalm 26:8 Adonai, I love the (habitation of) Your house, the place where Your glory dwells.

Not so with the rebellious.  They live in a dry and barren place.  Not only that, it is also a dark and lonely place.  God is light, and there is no darkness in Him.  And you know it’s lonely because every rebellious person puts himself first.

Live for God, and He promises to deliver you out of dry places.  Isaiah 41:17 “The poor and needy ask for water, but there is none, Their tongues are parched with thirst. I, Adonai, will answer them, I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. 18 I will open rivers on the bare hills and springs in the midst of the valleys. I will make the wilderness a pool of water and the dry land into fountains of water.”  Shalom shalom.

Daily Bread, reading plan by Lars Enarson (https://www.thewatchman.org/)
Fri       23-Oct-2026              12th of Cheshvan, 5787
Ge 15:7-17:6              Jos 20              Ps 19               Mt 15              (1 Jn 5)