Psalms 67:13
The king of powers is of the beloved, of the beloved; and the beauty of the house shall divide spoils.
The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Rex virtutum dilecti, dilecti ; et speciei domus dividere spolia.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- ὁ βασιλεὺς τῶν δυνάμεων τοῦ ἀγαπητοῦ, τοῦ ἀγαπητοῦ, καὶ ὡραιότητι τοῦ οἴκου διελέσθαι σκῦλα.
- Hebrew (WLC) shown from Psalms 68:13
- מַלְכֵ֣י צְ֭בָאוֹת יִדֹּד֣וּן יִדֹּד֑וּן וּנְוַת בַּ֝֗יִת תְּחַלֵּ֥ק שָׁלָֽל
Haydock's commentary
The king of powers. That is, the mighty King, the Lord of Hosts, is of the beloved, of the beloved; that is, is on the side of Christ, his most beloved Son; and his beautiful house, viz., the Church, in which God dwells for ever, shall by her spiritual conquests, divide the spoils of many nations. The Hebrew (as it now stands pointed) is thus rendered: The kings of armies have fled, they had fled, and she that dwells at home (or, the beauty of the house) shall divide the spoils. (Challoner)
Yet Symmachus comes nearer the Septuagint and St. Jerome has in the same sense, (Berthier) "the kings of armies shall form leagues," &c. The great King, is the Lord (ver. 12.) of hosts, who shall enable many to publish his wonders. They are represented as women, to denote the particular Churches of Christ, which have risen on the ruins of idolatry, though they may also refer to the victories of the Israelites, under Debora, when mighty kings came to invade the country, Judges iv., and v. 19, 24. (Haydock)
The glory of that victory was given to her, and to Jahel, who slew Sisara. (Calmet)
Soon after the preaching of the gospel, the most potent monarchs (Calmet) submitted to its authority, and thus a glorious prey was rescued from the power of the devil. (Worthington)
Women sometimes promoted this great work. (Menochius)
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Augustine Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Psalm LXVIII
12. “The Lord shall give the Word” ( ver. 11 ): to wit, food for His animals which shall dwell therein. But what shall these animals work to whom He shall give the word? What but that which followeth? “To them preaching the Gospel in much virtue.” With what virtue, but with that strength wherein He leadeth forth men fettered? Perchance also here he speaketh of that virtue, wherewith in preaching the Gospel they wrought wondrous signs. Who then “shall give the Word to men preaching the Gospel with much virtue”? “The King,” he saith, “of the virtues of the Beloved” ( ver. 12 ). The Father therefore is King of the virtues of the Son. For the Beloved, when there is not specified any person that is beloved, by a substitution of name, of the Only Son is understood. …
St John Chrysostom The Homilies of St. John Chrysostom on Paul's Epistle to the Romans, Homily I on Rom. i. 1, 2
For the Lord, saith he, “shall give the word to them that proclaim glad tidings with great power” ( Ps. lxviii. 12 , Sept.); and again, “How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the Gospel of peace.” ( Is. lii. 7 ; Rom. x. 15 .) See here both the name of the Gospel expressly and the temper of it, laid down in the Old Testament. For, we do not proclaim it by words only, he means, but also by acts done; since neither was it human, but both divine and unspeakable, and transcending all nature. Now since they have laid against it the charge of novelty also, He shows it to be older than the Greeks, and described aforetime in the Prophets. And if He gave it not from the beginning because of those that were unwilling to receive it, still, they that were willing did hear it. “Your father Abraham,” He says, “rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it, and was glad.” ( John viii. …