In the world today there is a prevailing atmosphere of fear. In Psalm 46 in the Bible God declares that He is our refuge and strength in trouble. Throughout history God Himself was the strength for His people, being strong for them and in them. His strengthening presence is a refuge among His people. The secret of our confidence is the consciousness of the nearness of God as our refuge and strength.
“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.
(Psalm 46:1-3)
The earth be removed…the mountains carried…the waters roar…the mountains shake: the psalmist considers the most frightening, humbling natural phenomenon imaginable. He then makes the reasoned estimation that God was and is greater than them all.
“There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day. Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; he lifts his voice, the earth melts. The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.”
(Psalm 46:4-7)
God is on His throne in heaven. His Holy Presence in His people is the Holy Spirit who is likened to a Holy River flowing from the throne of God. The Holy Spirit gives us eternal peace in a world that is in conflict with people and God. God’s powerful Word that created the world sustains and transforms.
“Come and see what the Lord has done, the desolations he has brought on the earth. He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire. He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.”
(Psalm 46:8-11)
This world is unstable, but “the city of God”—His habitation—is established and secure. God Himself is a place of refuge, as the cities of refuge protected the fugitive in Israel. No matter what happens in this world, God will be exalted, and those who are in His will are protected. We can “be still and know” that He is God.
God’s power and safety is with us in life’s difficulties. Our troubles are surrounded by the power and safety of the Lord. This is an amazing picture. Like a mother or father who hugs and comforts a fearful and upset child, God surrounds us and protects us in our difficulties. Note that the psalmist doesn’t state that God will remove us from the difficulty; rather, God will protect us and strengthen us and glorify Himself in the midst and through life’s temporary difficulties.
He is our refuge. God provides safety. We take shelter in our relationship with Him. He is our strength. God gives us the power we need to endure hardship as we serve Him, fight spiritual battles, resist temptation, and bear up under persecution. We are weak, but He is strong.
He is an ever-present help in trouble. God is at hand. He is not far away from us but nearby to assist us in the tasks He has assigned.
The LORD of hosts is with us: The idea behind the title Yahweh Saboath is that He is the commander of armies, both the army of His people and the armies of heaven. The title emphasizes His glory and might, connecting it with the idea that He our glorious God is with His people.
He is the Lord of Hosts. Under whose command are all the hosts of heaven and earth, angels and men, and all other creatures. The conception underlying His Name is that of the universe as an ordered whole, a disciplined army, a cosmos obedient to His voice.
Come, behold the works of the LORD. Not only is God our refuge and ever present help He is the eternal glorious God who cares, protects and rules providentially.
Be still and know that I am God. Let all anxieties and fears be released as we ponder the greatness of our God. Let all argument and opposition stop and be still.
Jehovah Himself is introduced, as commanding the world to cease its opposition, to own His power, and to acknowledge His sovereignty over all the kingdoms of the nations.
The LORD of hosts is with us. He strengthens and upholds us who call upon His Name with His victorious Right Hand. We will fear no more. We will not be dismayed.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus”
(Philippians 4:6,7).
Jonathan Cortes