John Calvin Commentary Psalms 68:28

"Thy God hath commanded thy strength: Strengthen, O God, that which thou hast wrought for us." — Psalms 68:28 (ASV)

Thy God hath commanded thy strength. People are always inclined to arrogate to themselves the glory of what they may have done instead of tracing their success to God, and David reminds the people once more that they had not triumphed by their own strength, but by power bestowed from above.

If they had fought energetically on the field, he would have them consider that it was God who inspired them with this valor and who would guard them against the pride that overlooks and disparages God's goodness.

To further promote humility in their minds, he refers to their dependence on the future continuation of the same favor and protection. He does this because the primary cause of presumptuous confidence is that we do not feel our own helplessness and, consequently, are not led by an awareness of it to humbly resort to God for the supply of our needs.

Another lesson the passage teaches us is that more is required than God visiting us at first with His preventing grace; we constantly need His assistance throughout our entire lives.

If this is true in physical warfare, where our conflict is with flesh and blood, it must be even more so in matters of the soul.

We could not stand for one moment in the contest with such enemies as Satan, sin, and the world, if we did not receive from God the grace that secures our perseverance.

What is said about the temple in the following verse is intended to continue the same line of thought already expressed. It gives the reason why God had exerted His power on behalf of the Israelites rather than others: namely, that it might be displayed as coming forth from the sanctuary and the ark of the covenant.

Hence the emphasis with which David calls Him—in a previous part of the psalm—the God of Israel. It was not in vain that God had erected His sanctuary or promised His presence in connection with it. His power is here represented as issuing from the temple to denote that the only security for His favor was to be found in His gracious covenant and promises.

Some read, From thy temple in Jerusalem — a frigid interpretation, and one that does not express the Psalmist's meaning. His prayer is that God's power might be commanded from the sanctuary upon His chosen people, who are here denoted by Jerusalem (a common figure of speech).

It may be asked how he speaks of the temple when it had not yet been built. The word temple, or palace, may have been used to express the tabernacle. At least, I think this is more probable than that he spoke of the temple in anticipation, as some suppose; and there is no doubt that the ark had already been placed in Zion.

Having already traced all the honor of the recent victories to God, David next proceeds to vindicate God's claim to reap the fruits of them. He does this by asserting that the kings who had been subdued would acknowledge God to have been their conqueror, as well as yield tribute to David and his successors. This circumstance should place God's people under an additional obligation to present Him with their freewill offerings of praise.