Making 'Psense' of Psalms--Psalm 91: Protector

Part of a continuing series on selected psalms.
“There’s been a shooting at SPU,” my husband said, standing in front of the television the afternoon of June 5. A camera in a news helicopter kept panning the campus where he, his sisters, and our daughter-in-law had graduated.  It seemed unthinkable that a random crime had shattered a quiet Thursday at Seattle Pacific University, a college founded by devout Free Methodists over a hundred years ago. Finally news came of one death, another severely wounded, others less so. It would have been worse—far worse—if one student hadn’t risked his life to tackle the shooter, who had chosen to follow a bizarre notion to kill.

A few days earlier, I had finished writing a draft of this blog post on Psalm 91, which speaks so clearly as God our protector. When violence like this strikes, people ask, “Where was God?” I remember that question being debated over and over when thousands died as a result of the 9-11 terrorist strikes. And the answer was this: He was there, in ways we do not yet know or understand. And while evil took a terrible toll, the end of the story has not yet been told. The same can be said of this recent  shooting, and other acts of violence that will inevitably come.

My awareness of the message and ministry of Psalm 91 started deepening about 35 years ago when, fresh out of Bible school, I was asked to teach a senior ladies Bible studies. That stretched me, for sure! One of its members, Alice, had gone through a harrowing experience in Rhodesia, where she was visiting relatives who were missionaries.  They’d gone to a nice resort restaurant as a special treat, and just as she walked into the dining hall, the woman ahead of her was gunned down as a terrorist attack began. As Alice huddled under a table, bullets spewing overhead, she realized she, too, might be killed. Alice began praying, affirming the Lord's love even in this. Soon, phrases from Psalm 91 became her prayer: "He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty."  She rebuked the enemy in the name of Jesus.  She later learned a window frame deflected a grenade that might have harmed her.  Finally, the attackers retreated.

 

I will never forget Alice's real-life connection with Psalm 91. I’d already done some thinking about Psalm 91, especially after reading Shadow of the Almighty, the biography of missionary Jim Elliot. He and four others were killed by isolated Ecuadorian tribes people in 1956. I wondered: if Alice was spared, why weren’t Elliot and the others, who had given everything to reach the lost for Chirst?

Psalm 91 remains one of those “deeper than deep” psalms for me, but I have come to this conclusion of its message: Psalm 91 reminds us that God, our Protector, will carry us in times of danger and fear.

THREE KEY PRONOUNS

If you color-code the pronouns in Psalm 91, you’ll see a pattern that helps outline the psalm.
I/my/He (verses 1-2): A testimony of who God is to me.
You/your/his (verses 3-13): A picture of God’s protection.
He-him/I-me-God (verses 14-16): God’s promises to the believer.

A TESTIMONY (verses 1-2)

The psalm’s author is unnamed, but the writer apparently had some experience with threats and hardship, perhaps even warfare. Like the book of Job, Psalm 91 wrestles with the problem of why bad things to happen to good people. Yet God is able to save His followers from the full blast of evil. A key word in verse 1 is “dwells”:
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
It’s repeated in verse 9: “If you make the Most High your dwelling.” The Hebrew word for “dwell,” yashab, is found some 1,088 times in the Old Testament. It is rendered into English by more than a dozen different words, suggesting that the original word does not translate well across cultures and languages. The word’s primitive root means to sit down, such as in judgment, ambush, or in quiet. More recent versions suggest “live in.” Understanding “dwell” (or “live in”) requires living out verse 2:
I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”
The “I-my” pronouns indicate that “dwelling” requires a personal faith in God. A lot of people are like Jesus’ disciple Thomas, who had the dubious nickname of “Doubting Thomas” because he couldn’t quite come to the point of saying Jesus was the Son of God. When he saw the risen Christ, who invited Thomas to inspect the wounds from crucifixion that had killed Him, Thomas finally and truly acknowledged Him as the Son of God. Falling to his feet, Thomas declared, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28). Psalm 91 is for those who can declare wholeheartedly, “You are my Lord and my God!”



These "pocket caves" dot a cliff about a half-hour drove from
 my home. They remind me of God' s protective power when
troubles attack from life's flatlands of unbelief.

GOD’S NAME

“The name of the Lord is a strong tower,” says Proverbs 18:10, “the righteous run to it and are safe” (Proverbs 18:10). Psalm 91 includes many “strong names” of God:
“The most High” (‘elyôn)—the absolute highest, even higher than any threat.
“The Almighty” (El Shaddai)—the God of greatest power.
“The LORD”—the holiest One, from the Hebrew “abbreviation” for God’s holiest, unspeakable name.
“My refuge” (maḥseh) and “my fortress” (m^eṣûdâ—notice the similarity to the “Masada,” the Holy Land hilltop fortress)—both strong words of protective places, enhanced by the personal pronoun “my.”
God is not a fickle deity who says He will advocate for us when He feels like it. He is high and lifted up, a strong refuge for those who trust in Him in the midst of trouble.

FEAR

By using metaphors for problems (vv. 2-6), the author helped Psalm 91 speak to all times and situations:
“Fowler’s snare”—Like a trap grabbing the feet of birds, Satan is subtle. He knows one misstep can bring physical, emotional or spiritual harm. His traps can include abuse, gambling, alcoholism, pornography, or infidelity as well as more subtle sins of discontentment, gossip, complaint, and apathy. But as we stay in God’s presence through scripture, prayer, and fellowship with other believers, He will help us from being ensnared.
“Deadly pestilence” and “destruction”—We’re also vulnerable to things beyond our control, like disease, crime, unemployment, or a natural disaster. When these come, God says He will be our protector, like a hen who gathers her chicks beneath her warm, sheltering body. Jesus likened Himself to that hen when He lamented Jerusalem’s state of unbelief (Matt. 23:37). But under His shelter, we’ll be secure within, as God sends strengthening Scriptures, affirming friends, or timely help to remind us of His power.
Fear—It stalks us, night and day. In Bible times, the pilgrimage to Jerusalem by foot or animal meant trekking through hot scrublands and hills on a route infested with bandits. Today, we have terrorism, snipers, reckless drivers, and “pestilence” beyond the healing of modern medicine. Yet God still tells us to trust, not fear: “You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you” (Isaiah 26:3).

POWER

“His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart,” the psalmist declared (v. 4). The first was a large, body-covering piece of equipment. As for “rampart” (“buckler” in KJV), this is the word’s only use in the Bible, but it’s believed to be a smaller, more mobile protection, perhaps even armor. The New Testament, describing a Christian's spiritual protection, says the shield is faith, with which we can “extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one” (Ephesians 6:16). God’s faithfulness is related to our faith in Him.

Verses 7-8 sadden me, as they describe “ten thousand” who perish as the wicked are punished. I believe this pictures the end-times judgment of all those who rejected Christ. That includes friends and people in my family trees. Could I really just “observe” or will I ache for their eternal destiny? What could I do, now, before it’s too late?

 PROTECTION

As the psalm winds to a close, it revisits the word “dwell” (v. 9). These promises are for those who “dwell” in the Lord, not for those who casually “check in” with God when things get rough.  God wants whole hearts, not half-hearted spirituality.

Then the psalmist reminds us that angels protect us, probably more than we realize. In 1997, my family was involved in a wreck caused by a drinking driver. Law enforcement personnel who examined the accident scene and our totaled car said it was a miracle that we survived. I’ve often thought how that “miracle” was angels who intervened such that we were spared a fatal, head-on collision.

The other thing to note is how Satan used this section in tempting Christ in the wilderness.  Satan misquoted or “underquoted” the passages to make it seem Christ should acquiesce to him. But Jesus, despite being weak from His fast, countered the falsehoods of Satan, who is elsewhere called the “lion” and “cobra” (1 Peter 5:8, Rev. 12:9, 20:2).

 PROMISES

The final section overflows with hope, as we’re told that God will rescue us, protect us, answer us, be with us in trouble, deliver us, and honor us. As for verse 16, “long life” is literally “length of days.” God doesn’t necessarily promise we will live to old age, but that in the portion of our days on earth, if lived fully to Him, He will satisfy us. He is enough for those who dwell in Him!  Finally, the closing phrase: “I will…show him my salvation.” And what is the end result of salvation, but Heaven and seeing the Lord Jesus, who purchased that salvation?  That will be truly where we “dwell” in the shelter of the Most High, which will be glorious beyond words.  It’s where we’ll rest in His shadow, and worship and enjoy Him forever!

Next: Psalm 95.

Making 'Psense' of Psalms--Psalm 56: Fears and Tears

A "tear bottle" gift, symbolizing God's
watch-care and profound love

Part of a continuing series on selected psalms.
If you’re at a point where you wonder if life can get any worse, or if you can even hang in there now, this is your psalm. It bleeds with David’s despair over his circumstances and mistreatment by enemies. They’d like him dead. Emotionally wrung out from so many negatives, David lets the tears flow. But he also clings to his last shred of hope: God’s faithfulness.

Like several other psalms (including #34, March 28 blog), Psalm 56 records David’s life-threatening predicament in seeking refuge among tribal enemies, the Philistines (1 Samuel 21:10-15). David had gone alone to Gath, thinking mad King Saul wouldn’t pursue him there. But David was recognized as the one who slayed their native son, the giant Goliath. The introduction to this psalm says the enemy seized him, and the first few verses list hot day-long pursuit, attacks, twisted words, conspiracy, lurking, and eagerness to take his life.

You can almost hear his sighs of hopelessness—indeed, the prelude hints at a melody of sadness when it directs musicians to sing it to the tune of “A Dove on Distant Oaks.” The original tune is unknown, but in Psalm 55 David had prayed, “Oh, that I had the wings of a dove! I would fly away and be at rest—I would flee far away and stay in the desert!” He may have identified with the mournful coos of doves, and wished he could fly like them at will to another place. But he couldn’t. Yet out of this place of deep frustration and fear, David finds hope in God. The legacy of Psalm 56 is several verse-gems that, by themselves, have comforted and held steady millions through the ages who also needed to affirm God’s faithfulness.

FEARS AND TRUST

“When I am afraid,” David wrote (v. 3-4), “I will trust in you.  In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid.  What can mortal man do to me?”  In Psalm 55, he had also expressed this idea of trust: “Cast your cares on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall” (55:22). I wonder if these were verses the prophet Isaiah also memorized, as he wrote many years later: “You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you” (Isaiah 26:3). And certainly, these verses were part of the spiritual fiber of the early church leaders. Peter wrote, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7). The author of Hebrews quoted, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?” (Hebrews 13:6).

In a quick reading of this psalm, it’s easy to miss another message in verses 10-11, which seem to repeat verses 3-4.  In both, David counsels trusting in God and His Word. In David’s time, that was the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible) and maybe Joshua and Judges.  How blessed we are to have not only those, but Psalms and 58 other books of scripture! There’s one tiny word change in verse 10, but it means a lot.  Instead of “in God, whose word I praise” (v. 4), David wrote, “In the LORD, whose word I praise.”  “God” was from a word referring in general to the great God of the universe. “The LORD” was the covenant name of God, which reflected His promises to watch-care His own. In that tiny word, change, David was reminding us of God’s personal and trustworthy care.  How much we need such reminders when the odds seem stacked against us!

Note, too, that David trusts in God and His Word.  I cannot begin to tell you how many times a previously-memorized scripture has come to mind just as the time I needed its reminder of God’s watch-care and direction. David praised God’s Word. He proclaimed its beauty and holy purpose. Should we not do the same?

TEARS AND TRUST

The other memorable portion is verse 8, rendered by King James translators as “Thou tellest my wanderings, put thou my tears in thy bottle; are they not in thy book?” The original Hebrew is a bit sketchy here (original manuscripts had no vowels or pronunciation guides), causing other translators to offer, “Record my lament; list my tears on thy scroll—are they not in thy record?”  Those leaning toward the "tear bottles" translation should know that they were common about a thousand years after David wrote this psalm.  Mourners filled small glass bottles or cups with their tears, placing them in tombs as symbols of respect. Sometimes hired “criers” filled the bottles!  The custom reappeared during the American civil war and in Victorian times.
 

However you translate that portion, these truths emerge.  God does keep track of our circumstances. God does see our every sorrow.  If God had a “tear bottle” (and it would be huge), we’d know how much He loves us and how diligently He takes note of our difficulties.  When He permits hardship and trials, it’s because He knows we will grow in faith through them. It’s a beautiful symbol that we can still use today in comforting those going through unspeakable pain. One of my friends beautifully packages little glass bottles as a comfort gift to those experiencing profound loss.  Her note to them references Psalm 56:8. Several years ago she gave a “tear bottle” with a note about Psalm 56:8 to a young woman who had lost her mother in a car wreck. The young woman still has the bottle, and recently mentioned to my friend how meaningful that gift was.

THANKS AND HOPE

Psalm 56 ends with the plea, “Be merciful to me,” and a huge list of terrorizing circumstances.  Then it concludes with thanksgiving and hope. David acknowledges God’s hand in sparing him from death.  He knows God has a purpose for his life: “that I may walk before God in the light of life” (v. 13). This was a prophetic statement, looking forward to the Messiah, Jesus Christ, who would call Himself the light of the world: “Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life” (John 8:12). As customary for profound thanks, David wanted to offer up a “thank offering.”  This was a special sacrifice in which part was reserved to share in a meal with family and friends. 

We don’t need to wait until “Thanksgiving” in November to express our thanks to God. It should be a part of every meal (many of us do, anyway, by preceding a meal with a prayer of thanks).  As we look at a lovingly-prepared meal and inhale its fragrance, may we be reminded that every good gift is from above. That includes God’s presence and hope in our most desperate times.

 

Next: Psalm 63.