The 46th Psalm is one of our favourites because it confronts the very thorny and earthy problems that we are confronted with in life. We live in a world of problems, which we can neither deny nor flee from. This Psalm, however, brings us to a place of assurance as we trust the God who never will leave us alone.

This Psalm divides into three sections all of which end with the selah of pause and reflection. All three sections are dominated by pertinent phrases, which when placed together tell the story of the Psalm.

Don’t be afraid (v2) Because God is with us (v7), therefore be still (v10).

DON’T BE AFRAID; Psalm 46:1-3

A study of the times when God commands his people not to be afraid is instructive and encouraging; most beneficial for the soul. It is safe to claim that it is God’s will that we should never be afraid. He has designed the born again soul for the enjoyment of constant peace in a fearful world.

Fear is the natural reaction of the old nature to the difficulties and trials of this life. As such there is a cold logic to fear. The Psalmist writes about earthquakes and landslides which topple the mountains into the oceans. He depicts a situation when old certainties disappeared into a sea of strife and bloodshed. Fear, therefore, is an understandable response.

The same is true of individual lives, as it is of the course of nations. When bereavement, sickness and financial pressures erupt we may feel that the world is coming down around us. We feel afraid and uncertain – pondering an unknown and even terrifying future.

There is a logic to fear but there is also a logic to peace in the midst of fear. It is the logic of faith which the Psalmist presents, therefore he says “Therefore will not we fear”.

God is our strength

God is our refuge and strength

v1

This Psalm was a favourite of Martin Luther’s. The loneliness and intensity of his battle, living under a death threat for the last 25 years of his life, cannot be underestimated. When he felt down and despondent, perhaps suffering from his frequent depressions, he was known to ask his colleague Philip Melancthon to sing with him the 46th Psalm. He loved the Psalm so much that he even penned a hymn based on its words:

A mighty fortress is our God,
A bulwark never failing,
Our helper he amid the flood,
Of mortal ills prevailing

God is our constant strength

a very present help in trouble.

v1

God, however, is more than a fortress and a stronghold – He is a very present help. He is sufficient for our present emergency, whatever that may be. Lt. General Sir William Dobbie, who served during World War 1 before being called out of retirement to be Governor of Malta amid the Nazi onslaught, related the story of God’s grace in hard and fearful times, using the Psalm 46 as the title of his testimony, “ A Very Present Help”. The foreword to his book is especially inspiring.

God is stronger than our troubles

Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.

v2-3

The illustration employed to illustrate the cause of fear in the Psalm is an earthquake. There is no natural phenomenon, which equates to the horror of experiencing the ground giving way, rippling and heaving like the waves tearing down buildings and moving mountains. The Christian, however, has no need to fear, even in such an extremity because God is bigger than the earthquake. He is stronger than our deepest fears and more powerful than all our problems combined. With such a God the logic of faith cries out and reasons “Therefore will not we fear.”

BECAUSE GOD IS WITH US; Psalm 46:4-7

The climax to this section is as reassuring as it is triumphant:

The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.

Psa 46:7

Luther understood the impact of these words as he authored his most famous composition:

Did we in our own strength confide,
our striving would be losing,
were not the right Man on our side,
the Man of God’s own choosing.
You ask who that may be?
Christ Jesus, it is he;
Lord Sabaoth his name,
from age to age the same;
and he must win the battle.

Luther employed the Hebrew transliteration “Sabaoth” instead of the translation – “ the Lord of Hosts”. This is the one who commands legions of angels to fight His battles and overcome His enemies. Luther also saw the Lord of hosts as being Christ Jesus, the man at God’s right hand who has promised never ever to forsake His people.

Providing

There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High.

v4

It is evident as we read this Psalm that the writer describes conflict in Jerusalem, referring as he does to the city of God. War is raging without the city, while within the inhabitants are made glad because they had a river. A fresh water source was an invaluable asset to any city because it provided the inhabitants with the stuff of life, which the enemy could not deprive them of.

This important detail also gives us a clue as to when the Psalm may have been written because Hezekiah is credited with the engineering necessary in bringing fresh water into Jerusalem:

And the rest of the acts of Hezekiah, and all his might, and how he made a pool, and a conduit, and brought water into the city, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?

This same Hezekiah also stopped the upper watercourse of Gihon, and brought it straight down to the west side of the city of David. And Hezekiah prospered in all his works.

2 Kings 20:20, 2Ch 32:30

Hezekiah erected a tunnel carrying water to the Pool of Siloam. This would have proved to be critical during Sennacherib’s siege of the holy city. Therefore, for days of extremity God made a provision for his people.

Hezekiah was confronted with the challenge of the Assyrian siege. Their armies had swept away every nation in the region and Judah appeared to be incapable of resisting. It was a time of international earthquakes as the world order was turned upside down. As the powerful armies of Sennacherib surrounded Jerusalem, Hezekiah prayed, God provided, and victory was miraculously won, because God was a refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

In like manner God with us means that He provides whatever we require for the emergencies of life. He will not fail.

Maintaining

she shall not be moved

v5

While we live in a world of flux and change, God with us means that His cause will never fail. Even though our lives will eventually be taken, the Church and truth will remain. The city of God, the Church of Christ, this new Jerusalem will remain and will not be moved. This is the happy of story of Church history and is the note with which Luther climaxed his famous hymn :

Let goods and kindred go,
this mortal life also;
the body they may kill:
God’s truth abideth still;
his kingdom is forever!

Helping

God shall help her, and that right early.

v5

God with us, is a helper; not only does He help but He does so early. He steps in according his timetable bringing us the assistance as and when required. Employing the feminine pro-noun reminds me of the New Testament Church, radiant as a bride adorned for her husband. Christ will defend his people as those who are His bride, He does with integrity and honour, indeed His honour is at stake, we having nothing to fear.

Conquering

The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: he uttered his voice, the earth melted.

v6

By the sovereignty of God, every upheaval is according to his will and He likewise will bring it to a conclusion by the sound of his voice. The only plan that is relevant is His plan, His scheme.

THEREFORE BE STILL; Psalm 46:8-11

The command to be still is the most useful aspect of the Psalm. There is nothing to do but to trust and to wait. Rather than being frustrated, we rely upon God – He is not frustrated.

Viewing

Come, behold the works of the LORD

v8

In being still we watch and we view the progress that God is making. This is the value of observations from Church History as we see “His Story” unfold. We meditate upon and we observe the truth in His Book. We saturate our minds and hearts with him.

Knowing

know that I am God

v10

Being still leads to knowing. We need to know God, more intimately, more personally – herein lies our strength and our power.

Believing

I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.

v10

The Psalm concludes with a promise and affirmation. God will be exalted, his enemies will be vanquished, His people will be delivered. All we must do is to be still and believe.

What a great God we have!

Bigger than all my problems
Bigger than all my fears
God is bigger than any mountain
That I can or cannot see
Bigger than all my questions
Bigger than anything
God is bigger than any mountain
That I can or cannot see

… Bigger than all the shadows
That fall across my path
God is bigger than any mountain
That I can or cannot see
Bigger than all the confusion
Bigger than anything
God is bigger than any mountain
That I can or cannot see

Bigger than all the giants
Of fear and unbelief
God is bigger than any mountain
That I can or cannot see
Bigger than all my hangups
Bigger than anything
God is bigger than any mountain
That I can or cannot see

Gordon Jenson