Ps. 68.21-22 (the graphic nature of deliverance)

He is indeed / the God / who breaks the heads / of enemies
the hairy skulls / of those who walk / in their guilt.
He is the Lord / who says 
“I will / bring back / from Bashan,
I will / bring back / from the depths of the sea
so that / you may shake / the blood / off your feet
and the tongues / of your dogs / may have a portion
from the enemy.” 

In a particularly gruesome and violent set of images, the military authority of God over his enemies is fully displayed in these verses. It is begun by the breaking of ‘hairy-skull’ (perhaps warriors with long hair like Samson). We might say these are the agents of Death that was defeated in the previous verse. In other words, this is the historical dramatic retelling of the liturgical praise of verse 19-20. No longer are these enemies merely scattered like smoke (vs. 1-3) or melted like wax—their heads are cleaved and the blood spilt; it may be that they even become food for dogs. The point to all of this is not in the literal description so much as in the clear finality to what God accomplishes. This can be seen by the contrast of the ‘mountains of Bashan’ and the ‘depths of the sea’. From the highest to the lowest, God’s delivering (and, crushing) hand will draw forth his people. This ‘bringing-back’ of his people is accomplished, as we always see, through the destruction of their (and, here, God’s) enemies. And this is not only totalizing language. Bashan and the ‘depths of the sea’ are forces of extreme power and threat. Indeed, Death is often portrayed as the Sea (a type of Leviathan). From this places of threat, his people will experience a new exodus; they will be ‘drawn forth’. God will reach into the belly of Leviathan and withdraw his people. In fact, it may be that he slays Leviathan and he becomes the food for the dogs.  What is on display here is a full, public and shameful act of conquering by God of those forces that have sought to withdraw his people from him. He will counter them, rob them of their glory, and ‘draw-forth’ his family. The graphic nature of these verses is important in this way—it shows that deliverance is one of public, open display; it is not private, hidden or concealed. When the unity of God’s power is effected, the world will attain its visibility, much as, when God took Zion, everyone streamed in gift-giving to him, even the rebellious (and, part of that visibility, is the public shaming of those in rebellion to it). Lastly, these enemies is previous verse gave gifts to God; here, they are humiliated by needing to provide ‘portions to dogs’.