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Psalm 68 reveals Christ's ascension:
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"You have ascended on high"—this refers to the highest peak in the universe (v. 18; Eph. 4:8a; cf. Isa. 14:13).
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"You have led captive those taken captive" (Psa. 68:18):
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Those taken captive refers to the redeemed saints, who were taken captive by Satan and imprisoned before being saved by Christ's death and resurrection.
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Christ defeated Satan and captured his captives (including us); then like a general leading his captives, Christ in His ascension to the heavens led us to the Father (cf. 2 Cor. 2:12-14).
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The Amplified New Testament renders He led captive those taken captive in Ephesians 4:8 as "He led a train of vanquished foes"; in Christ's ascension there was a procession of these vanquished foes, led as captives from a war, for the celebration of Christ's victory.
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Psalm 68 reveals Christ's receiving the gifts:
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"You have received gifts among men, / Even the rebellious ones also"—we have been captured by Christ, presented by Christ to the Father, and then given to Christ by the Father as gifts (v. 18).
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The gifts received by Christ have become the gifted believers, whom He gave to His Body for its building up (Eph. 4:7-12).
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Psalm 68 reveals the building up of the dwelling place of God:
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"That Jehovah God may dwell among them"—the gifts as the gifted persons, the believers in Christ, are built together to be the dwelling place for God; this dwelling place signifies the church, the Body of Christ (v. 18; Eph. 4:11-12).
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"A Father to the orphans and a Judge for the widows / Is God in His holy habitation. / God causes the solitary to dwell in a household; / He brings the prisoners forth into prosperity"—God's dwelling place is also the habitation of the believers (the needy, the solitary, and the bound ones) (Psa. 68:5-6a; Eph. 2:22).
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The "mountain on which God desires to dwell" (Psa. 68:16) is Mount Zion, the highest peak in the universe (cf. Rev. 14:1).
Morning Nourishment
Psa. 68:18 You have ascended on high; You have led captive those taken captive; You have received gifts among men, even the rebellious ones also...Eph. 4:8 ..."Having ascended to the height, He led captive those taken captive and gave gifts to men."
11-12 And He Himself gave some...for the perfecting of the saints unto the work of the ministry, unto the building up of the Body of Christ.
Psalm 68 speaks concerning Christ's ascension (v. 18a; Eph. 4:8a)....Psalm 68:18a says, "You have ascended on high." This refers to the highest peak in the universe (cf. Isa. 14:13b).
"Those taken captive" [Psa. 68:18b] refers to the believers of Christ. Before we were saved, we were sinners and enemies of God, and we had been taken captive by Satan and imprisoned. We were "those taken captive." But Christ defeated Satan and captured his captives, including us. Then, like a general leading his captives, Christ in His ascension to the heavens led us to the Father.
Now we need to see that these ones, the redeemed of Christ, are included in the train of vanquished foes. The Amplified New Testament renders "He led captive those taken captive" (Eph. 4:8) as "He led a train of vanquished foes." In Christ's ascension there was a procession of these vanquished foes, led as captives from a war, for a celebration of Christ's victory....He did not appear before the Father empty-handed but had a great many vanquished foes following Him. (Life-study of the Psalms, pp. 324, 323-324)
Today's Reading
Psalm 68:18 also reveals the matter of Christ receiving the gifts....When Christ ascended to the Father, He presented to the Father all the ones He had captured and brought with Him. The Father then returned all these captured ones to Christ, making each one of them a gift to Christ.We all were held captive by Satan in his prison, but we have been captured by Christ, presented by Christ to the Father, and then given to Christ by the Father as gifts. Although as gifts we may differ in size and quality, we all are gifts given by the Father to the ascended Christ.
The gifts received by Christ have become the gifted believers, like the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the shepherds and teachers (Eph. 4:11). We should not believe the lie that we are not a gift or that we have not been gifted. Every saved person is a gifted believer.
The last part of Psalm 68:18 says, "That Jehovah God may dwell among them." This indicates that Christ uses all the gifts to build up the dwelling place for God. The dwelling place here signifies the church as God's habitation (Eph. 2:22). As Ephesians 4 reveals, all the gifts do the same work of the ministry to build up the Body of Christ as God's dwelling place on earth today.
The gifts as the gifted persons, the believers in Christ, are builded together to be the dwelling place for God. This dwelling place signifies the church, the Body of Christ (Eph. 4:11-12).
"A Father to the orphans and a Judge for the widows / Is God in His holy habitation. / God causes the solitary to dwell in a household" (Psa. 68:5-6a). Here we see that God's dwelling place is also the habitation of the believers, the needy, the solitary, and the bound ones. Today we all are the needy ones (the orphans and widows), the bound ones (the prisoners), and the solitary ones, and the church is our dwelling place. The church is a building that includes such people.
"O mighty mountain,.../ O many-peaked mountain, O mountain of Bashan: / Why do you look with envy, O many-peaked mountains, / At the mountain on which God desires to dwell? / Indeed Jehovah will dwell there forever" (vv. 15-16). The "mountain on which God desires to dwell" is Mount Zion. The dwelling place of God is built on Mount Zion, signifying the highest peak in the universe, the heavens. The builded church is in the heavens. Whether we are in the heavens or on the earth depends on whether or not we have been built up. (Life-study of the Psalms, pp. 324-326)
Further Reading: Life-study of the Psalms, msg. 27