Psalms 68:23

That thy foot may be dipped in the blood of thine enemies,.... This verse is in connection with Psa 68:21, with Psa 68:23 being to be read in a parenthesis: the sense is, that the Messiah would so wound the head and hairy scalp of his people's enemies, and there should be such a large effusion of blood, that their feet should be dipped therein, Rev 14:20; See Gill on Psa 58:10;

and the tongue of thy dogs in the same; who should lick it up, as the dogs licked the blood of Jezebel, Kg1 21:19; and so such a carnage will be made of antichrist and his followers, that the fowls of the heavens will be called upon to eat the flesh of kings, captains, and mighty ones, Rev 19:17.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Psa 68:23 That thy foot may be dipped in the blood of [thine] enemies, [and] the tongue of thy dogs in the same.

Ver. 23. That thy foot may be dipped] Heb. redded, imbrued, made gore bloody. Hereby is implied a very great slaughter. Confer Rev 19:17-18; Rev 19:21.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

24. (Psa 68:23). In order that thou mayest crush (them)—thy foot in blood—(and) the tongue of thy dogs (in blood) from the enemies (even) from him. The general import of tins verse is clear, but its construction doubtful and obscure. The first verb cannot mean to dip or wash without an arbitrary chancre of text by reading as in Psa 58:10. The original verb must have the same sense as in Psa 68:21, and may have the same object, namely, the enemies of God and of his people. The next words may then be taken as a parenthetical and qualifying clause, like sword in hand, and other such forms in English. Thy foot in blood, i.e. with thy foot in their blood, or so that thy foot shall tread in their blood. The last word in Hebrew is by some understood as a noun with a suffix meaning its portion, i.e. the share of the tongue; but for this there is no, authority in usage. Others translate the phrase, of it, i.e. of the blood, and the whole clause, the tongue of thy dogs (shall receive) of it from the enemies. According to the first version given above, the last phrase is a mere specification of the one before it; from the enemies, (even) from him, referring to some real or ideal representative of the entire class.

Joseph Addison Alexander, The Psalms Translated and Explained (1850) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

That is, in the blood of that great slaughter, where dogs shall lap blood.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Verse 23. That thy foot may be dipped in the blood] God will make such a slaughter among his enemies, the Amorites, that thou shalt walk over their dead bodies; and beasts of prey shall feed upon them.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(23) That thy foot.—This makes an unnecessary transposition of a very involved sentence. The image is perfectly clear, though the syntax, as often happens in all languages, goes tripping itself up. The conqueror, after wading in the blood of his enemies, is met by the dogs, who lick his gory feet. With a change of one letter we may render, “That thou mayest wash thy foot in blood—yea, the tongue of thy dogs in (the blood of) thine enemies.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

23. That thou mayest dip thy foot in blood,

That the tongue of thy dogs may have its portion from (thine) enemies.

This rendering of the R.V. probably gives the right sense, though the Heb. presents some difficulties. For dip should probably be read wash, as in Psa_58:10, which passage (with the notes) should be compared. The thought of the approaching vengeance upon the enemies of Israel is a prominent one in Isaiah 40-66. See e.g. Isa_41:15 f.; Isa_49:26; Isa_63:1 ff. The judgement of the oppressor is in fact the necessary condition of the deliverance of the oppressed, indispensable moreover as the vindication of God’s eternal justice.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

That thy foot may be dipped in the blood of thine enemies ... - Margin, “red.” A more literal rendering would be, “That thou mayest crush - thy foot in blood - the tongue of thy dogs from the enemies, from him.” The idea of “dipping” the foot in blood is not in the passage directly; but the leading thought is that of “crushing” the enemy. It is then “added” that the foot would be in blood. So of the tongue of the dogs. The “meaning” is, that the tongues of dogs would be employed in licking up the blood of the enemies, though that is not “expressed” in so many words. The sense of the whole is, that the foes of the people would be slain.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

And as it was at the Red Sea and at Bashan before, so yet again thine enemies shall be slain in such great numbers, that thou mayst wade in their blood, and thy dogs lick it up in the field.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Ver. 23. That thy foot may be dipped in the blood of thine enemies. Vengeance shall be awarded to the oppressed people, and that most complete and terrible.

And the tongue of thy dogs in the same. So overwhelming should be the defeat of the foe that dogs should lick their blood. Here "the stern joy which warriors feel" expresses itself in language most natural to the oriental ear. To us, except in a spiritual sense, the verse sounds harshly; but read it with an inner sense, and we also desire the utter and crushing defeat of all evil, and that wrong and sin may be the objects of profound contempt. Terrible is the God of Israel when he cometh forth as a man of war, and dreadful is even the Christ of God when he bares his arm to smite his enemies. Contemplate Revelation 19 and note the following: --"And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood; and his name is called The Word of God... And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; that ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit upon them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great. And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh."

Ver. 23. That thy foot may be dipped, etc. The blood of thy enemies, shed in such abundance that thy dogs shall lap and drink it, shall be the sea in which thou shalt pass, and that red without a figure. And, proportionably shall be the destruction on the enemies of Christ and Christians in the age of the Messiah. Henry Hammond.

None.

Psalms 68:24*

Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

23. Thy foot… dipped in… blood—The Hebrew word for “dipped” means to dash, crush, and is translated wound in Psa_68:21. The Septuagint has it, βαπτω, (bapto,) to dip, stain, colour. The metaphor is that of passing over the dead bodies of the slain on the battlefield while pursuing a retreating enemy, when the feet become stained with blood. Same as “treading under foot” an enemy, Psa_44:5; see, also, Isa_63:1. The idea of great slaughter is conveyed. So “dipping the foot in oil” has the idea of copiousness. Deu_33:24; Job_29:6. See, of God’s enemies, Rev_19:17-18; Rev_19:21.

And the tongue of thy dogs—An expression of great contempt and dishonour of the dead. See 1Ki_21:19. Wild dogs and jackals always followed an army. Thus will the enemies of Jehovah perish.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

That thy foot may be dipped in the blood of thine enemies; i.e. "I will bring them back for thee, my people, to dip your feet in their blood." The same metaphor is used in Isa_63:1-3; but it is Godhimself who, in that passage, has his feet reddened in his enemies" blood, And the tongue of thy dogs in the same. The Authorized Version has omitted one word of the original here. Translate, And that the tongue of thy dogs may have its portion from the same. (comp. 2Ki_9:35 Jer_15:3)

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

That, &c. - And as it was at the Red Sea, and at Bashan before, so yet again thine enemies shall be slain in such numbers, that thou mayst wade in their blood, and thy dogs lick it up in the field.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

The Lord said, “I shall restore from Bashan” For so He promised to restore us from the mighty ones of Bashan and from the islands of the sea.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.