A crowd of people (called the "chorus") in the usual letters: verses 1, 3 - 8, 9b - 13. 1. Read them in the archive below. Here are more promises to the same purport with those in the foregoing verses, and they are exceedingly great and precious, and sure to all the seed. The word For connects this verse with verse 2. - Oscar Cullmann, Immortality of the Soul - by Kaufmann Kohler, Technical Terms and Usages Preclude Innate Immortality - Froom, The Development of the Doctrine of Immortality from the Apostolic Fathers to Augustine, The Doctrine of Immortality in the Early Church. But he that has his treasure and heart in another world has soon enough of this; he would not live always. Christianity: The Best Thing That Ever Happened to Women, The Pursuit of God - A W Tozer - Complete Book. No locks nor bars can shut out diseases, while we carry about with us in our bodies the seeds of them. (4.) There are some who come to God's house; but the man mentioned here dwells with the God of the house. 11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. nor of the arrow that flies by day; Please respond to confirm your registration. In singing this we must shelter ourselves under, and then solace ourselves in, the divine protection. Observe, I. In Vietnam, our soldiers had to watch for punji sticks and trip wires. Neither night nor daydarkness nor the bright light of noondayshall give the faithful cause for fear. The verb yada (has known) means to knowbut more. Psalm 91 God's Protection 911: Christians are under attack! Psalm 91 Inductive Bible Study Guide and Questions for Small Group Children and the Rod of Correction - Dave Miller, Ph.D. Christian Practice - Evidence of Grace - Edwards, Meditating On The Future Life - John Calvin w/ audio, Others May, You Cannot - by G. D. Watson w/audio, The Bible Doctrine of the Separated Life - by Johannes G. Vos, The Christian and Entertainment - Rev. This article is also available and sold as a booklet. 6 nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, Such evil will never befall you. Many people have told me that only the supernatural intervention by angels commanded by God could explain certain miraculous situations that they were involved with, some having their lives being spared. However, now we begin to hear from Yahweh directly. We owe it, more than we are sensible, to the care of the divine Providence that we have been kept from infectious diseases and out of the hands of the wicked and unreasonable. The buckler is also part of the protection and this device is a defensive piece of armor used in ancient times when close range attacks occurred. In that culture, as today, a persons name referred to the essential character of the personin this case, Yahweh. The Hebrew Word Nephesh (Soul) - E. W. Bullinger. Those that preserve their purity in times of general corruption may trust God with their safety in times of general desolation. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2014), Gower, Ralph, The New Manners and Customs of Bible Times (Chicago: Moody Press, 1987), Kidner, Derek, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries: Psalms 73-150, Vol. He that has given grace to be the glory of the soul will create a defence upon all that glory. This book of praise manifests a very practical theology. Others make idols their refuge, but I will say of Jehovah, the true and living God, He is my refuge: any other is a refuge of lies. The Septuagint (the Greek version of the Old Testament) translates the Hebrew word sadday as the Greek word protokrator, which literally means all power or all dominion, and is usually translated Almighty One. Guest. O death! Neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. You will only look with your eyesand see the recompense of the wicked. 11-12). Please contact the publisher to obtain copies of this resource. He will live as long as he wants to live. God puts honour upon us, poor dishonourable worms that we are. The Christian & Politics: Has the Contemporary Church Become Obsessed With Political Solutions? Please see our Privacy Policy for cookie usage details. 2. The other is that God often wills for his children to suffer, but forbids that the suffering hurts them in the end. A. The end of this psalm recaps any calamity that can happen and when His children are placed in harms way He promises to deliver them, to protect them, to rescue them, and to answer them in their time of trouble. Viewing things from God's vantage point--that is true comfort. It is the character of a true believer that he dwells in the secret place of the Most High; he is at home in God, returns to God, and reposes in him as his rest; he acquaints himself with inward religion, and makes heart-work of the service of God, worships within the veil, and loves to be alone with God, to converse with him in solitude. 3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler, 11 For he will put his angels in charge of you, To worship angels is to run afoul of the First Commandment, You shall have no other gods before me (Exodus 2:3; see also Matthew 4:10). The sprinkling of blood secured the first-born of Israel when thousands fell. It is our duty to be at home in God, to make our choice of him, and then to live our life in him as our habitation, to converse with him, and delight in him, and depend upon him; and then it shall be our privilege to be at home in God; we shall be welcome to him as a man to his own habitation, without any let, hindrance, or molestation, from the arrests of the law or the clamours of conscience; then too we shall be safe in him, shall be kept in perfect peace, Isa 26 3. Life is filled with problems both small and big. 2. Hardcover. It is the character of a true believer that he dwells in the secret place of the Most High; he is at home in God, returns to God, and reposes in him as his rest; he acquaints himself with inward religion, and makes heart-work of the service of God, worships within the veil, and loves to be alone with God, to converse with him in solitude. I am one of those. Truth doesnt shift with every passing folly. Psalms 91:10-11. Psalm 99 - The Holy God, Present and Revealed. (2.) The imagery here is that of God being a protective parent bird like the eagle which covers His young under their wings and shades them from the elements and any prey that might attack them. The natural life, and is often fulfilled in our preservation from those dangers which are very threatening and very near, while yet we ourselves are not apprehensive of them, any more than the bird is of the snare of the fowler. To know Yahwehs semhis name or reputationis to know Yahweh. GOD IS MY REFUGE AND MY FORTRESS. This is the name that God revealed to Moses, saying, You shall tell the children of Israel this, Yahweh (YHWH), the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is my name forever, and this is my memorial to all generations (Exodus 3:15). Chicks taking refuge under their mothers wings serve as a metaphor for people finding refuge in Gods presence. Those of us who live in first world countries have almost forgotten the dangers of deadly diseases that spread rapidly and kill large numbers of people. He is my refuge and my fortress: The one who lives intimately with God knows the greatness of His protection. We havent had to watch carefully for fowlers traps as we walk along sidewalks or drive along roadsor even when we hike through woods. . The Nature of Man - Dualistic or Holistic? It denotes the great care God takes of the saints, in that the angels themselves shall be charged with them, and employed for them. The word deber means plague or pestilence. The angels keep the charge of the Lord their God; and this is the charge they receive from him. The seashore or forest where nature calms our souls and draws us to God. A commonly misunderstood phenomenon in Psalms is the association that often develops between the "one" (the psalmist) and the "many" (the theocratic people). I will set him on high (Hebrew: sagab), because he has known (Hebrew: yada) my name (Hebrew: sem) (v. 14b). ", Counterfeit Cross - Bear or Burn: The Fruit of Obedience in the Parables of Christ - updated, Counterfeit Cross - What is a "Carnal Christian"? There is need to fear the night filled with terror or the arrows that are visibly seen flying during the day. Psalm 91:1. On their hands they will bear you up,lest you strike your foot against a stone. John F. MacArthur, Jr. is a United States Calvinistic evangelical writer and minister, noted for his radio program entitled Grace to You and as the editor of the Gold Medallion Book Award winning MacArthur Study Bible. Click to enable/disable Google reCaptcha. Yahweh is an accessible God, who answers when called and walks with people in the midst of their troubles. and ten thousand at your right hand; He was quite right in the application; but he was quite wrong in the. 9 Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; 10 There shall no evil befal thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. PSALM 91:1-2. Thy God will not leave thee in the glare of the sun, nor will he forsake thee when the damps of night-dews would put thee in peril. The important thing is not the place but that we meet the Most High there. John MacArthur is the pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, as well as an author, conference speaker, president of The Master's University and Seminary, and featured teacher with the Grace to You media ministry. Psalm 91 Bible Commentary - Charles H. Spurgeon's Treasury of David The secret place of the Most High could be: The temple. Nay, not thy person only, but thy dwelling, shall be taken under the divine protection: There shall no plague come nigh that, nothing to do thee or thine any damage." lin) in the shadow (Hebrew: sel) of the Almighty (v. 1b). You who know the Lord, pray that you may attain to this high condition of dwelling in the inner shrine, always near to God, always overshadowed by those cherubic wings which indicate the presence of God. Is Sovereign the Best Descriptor for God? Psalms 91:15. The Lord's Supper - A Historical Overview, Ten Indictments Against the Modern Church - Paul Washer - Video, The Bible Without Comment - William E. Cox, Amusing Ourselves to Death - Neil Postman, Everybody Loves Jesus: The Culture Cherishes a Counterfeit Christ, Historian David Barton on Jon Stewart Show, Hollywood's War on Traditional Values - Video, Homosexuals Brainwashing Our Children in Elementary Schools, The Homosexual Propaganda Campaign in America, The Motion Picture Production Code of 1930 (Hays Code), The New England Primer - First Elementary School Textbook - 1777, What same-sex "marriage" has done to Massachusetts, Why Does Socialism Always Fail? - F. F. Bruce. It is possible to misuse passages such as this that are intended to reassure us of Gods help in dangerbut are not intended to encourage us to test God (Matthew 4:7; Luke 4:12). He will cover you with his He will cover you with his pinions,and under his wings you will find refuge;his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. Angels are not appropriate objects of our worship. 4. Commentaries for Psalm Chapter 91 The safety of those who have God for their refuge. Psalms 91:6-7. Jesus ChristUnique Savior or Average Fraud? and from the deadly pestilence (Hebrew: deber) (v. 3b). To this the great God is pleased to compare his care of his people, who are helpless as the chickens, and easily made a prey of, but are invited to trust under the shadow of the wings of the divine promise and providence, which is the periphrasis of a proselyte to the true religion, that he has come to trust under the wings of the God of Israel, Ruth 2 12. 45MBC. We read of fear in the night, Cant 3 8. It might be chinks in my faith that leave me vulnerable to fearbut I dont know anyone who has no chinks in their faith. . 2. You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness,nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.. Why is the church losing its young people? 14b (Downers Grove, Illinois: Inter-Varsity Press, 1973), Limburg, James, Westminster Bible Companion: Psalms (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2000, Mays, James Luther, Interpretation: Psalms (Louisville: John Knox, 1994), McCann, J. Clinton, Jr., The New Interpreters Bible: The Book of Psalms, Vol. At the time that the psalmist wrote this psalm, the Israelite people had not yet developed a strong belief in eternal life, as we know it in the New Testamentso the salvation mentioned here probably meant to the psalmist only deliverance from trouble. 3. [2.] Psalm 119:90 Psalm 119:91 Psalm 119:92 Psalm 119:93 Psalm 119:94 Psalm 119:95 Psalm 119:96 Psalm 119:97 . He will call on me, and I will answer him. Purgatory: Purifying Fire or Fatal Fable? Wherever the saints go the angels are charged with them, as the servants are with the children. But surely in the day-time, when we can look about us, we are not so much in danger; yes, there is an arrow that flieth by day too, and yet flies unseen; there is a destruction that wasteth at high-noon, when we are awake and have all our friends about us; even then we cannot secure ourselves, nor can they secure us. When I lived in New York City years ago, I learned not to walk close to buildings when I was walking at night. But, there is hope! Under his wings you will take refuge (v. 4ab). Now here it is promised. It is also nimble enough to deflect blows from unexpected directions. Enduring Word Bible Commentary Psalm 1 of the Traditional "Sermon" Concept, A Biblical Defense of Conditional Immortality, Biblically Dispelling the Myth of Eternal Torture. However, as noted in these verses, daylight often ushers in daily battles, whether with spear and sword or pen and PowerPointso we feel vulnerable by night or by day. There are some who worship in the outer court of the temple; but he that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High lives in the Holy of Holies; he draws near to the mercy-seat, and keeps there; he walks in the light, as God is in the light; he is not one who is sometimes on and sometimes off, a stranger or a guest, but like a child at home, he dwells in the secret place of the most High. I will say of the Lord, He is my then come three mys, as if the psalmist could grasp the Triune Jehovah, my refuge, my fortress, my God; in him will I trust. What a grand word that is, My God! Register. The psalmist can feel secure, because he is confident that Yahweh will deliver him from the snare (pah) of the fowler (a person who sets traps to catch birds, usually for eating). 4. ): Surely he shall deliver thee. (2.) I will say to the Lord, My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust. Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him;I will protect him, because he knows my name. Chapter 91 - Matthew Henry's Commentary - Bible Gateway A believer needs not fear, and therefore should not fear, any arrow, because the point is off, the poison is out. Yahweh (Hebrew: YHWH or yahweh). Psalms 91:5. Be worshipful : glorifying God for who he is : OT commentary, Psalms 1 - 89 by Warren Wiersbe. MacArthur is a fifth-generation pastor, a popular author and conference speaker and has served as pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California since 1969 . You remember how the devil misapplied this text to Christ. PDF SERMON NOTESApril 10, 2016 Psalm 91 God's Protection That he will exalt and dignify them: I will set him on high, out of the reach of trouble, above the stormy region, on a rock above the waves, Isa 33 16. Some of the most powerful evidence that proves Jesus to be Whom he claimed to be is found in the historical fulfillment of the prophsies He foretold in the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 a.d. In this study, Dr. MacArthur examines the book of Psalms and reveals how the hymns it contains points to an all-powerful God who is to be respected, worshiped, and praised for his loving care of his peopleand to whom we can turn to help in times of need. Find out how you can be at peace with God for eternity as John MacArthur shows you fifteen words that sum up the most powerful truth in all of Scripture. 7 A thousand may fall at your side, He who dwells in the secret place (Hebrew: seter) of the Most High (v. 1a). 1. There may be unseen influences that would ruin us, or cause us dishonour, or distress; but when we dwell with God, we shall not be afraid of them. (2.) What royal protection we have, a guard of angels, who count it their delight and their honour to wait upon the seed-royal of the universe, for such are all the saints of God! Psalm 91 | Bible Teaching Notes The Immortality of the Soul: Jesus countered, Again, it is written, You shall not test the Lord, your God.'. HELL: Psalms 91:3. Verses 1-16. Can any language be loftier? Yahweh is like that. (2.) And the great majority of evangelicals accept that without question. He assures us that we can enjoy the same confidence if we dwell in he secret place of the Most High (v. 1). All Sermons | Grace to You - SermonAudio (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2007), Freedman, David Noel (Ed. While no one died, it was a terrible illness that required weeks for recovery. Globally, we are faced with wars and rumors of warplagues and pestilenceenemies equipped with the Bombtyrants and corrupt politiciansa world changing so rapidly that it makes our heads spinand a host of other problems. but it will not come near you. b. - Richard A. Wiedenheft, Immortality - The Gift Of God Through Faith In Jesus The Christ, Immortality or Resurrection of the Dead? This psalm is a powerful chapter when a believer is in a time of crisis. Bible commentary, "He, his shadowy plumes outspread. It is also under divine direction, and will hit where God appoints and not otherwise. Thou shalt not be afraid of the arrow, as knowing that though it may hit thee it cannot hurt thee; if it take away the natural life, yet it shall be so far from doing any prejudice to the spiritual life that it shall be its perfection." The psalmist wrote it to assure Israel that Yahweh would keep them safe through all trials IF they put their trust in him and tried to live faithfully in accord with Yahwehs will. and Kahane, Ahuvia, The Oxford English-Hebrew Dictionary (Oxford University Press, 1998), Fohrer, Georg, Hebrew & Aramaic Dictionary of the Old Testament (SCM Press, 2012), Freedman, David Noel (ed. Proud member They are such as call upon him, as by prayer keep up a constant correspondence with him, and in every difficult case refer themselves to him. When we talk about trusting God to deliver us, thats the bottom lineconfidence that God is with us both in life and in death. I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. I will deliver (Hebrew: halas) him, and honor (Hebrew: kabed) him (v. 15c). Because you have made Yahweh your refuge, and the Most High your dwelling place, no evil shall happen to you, neither shall any plague come near your dwelling (vv. II. Whatever the case, these verses assure us that God will deliver us. You have probably been the victim of some sort of trap, possibly in quite recent memory. An integrated digital Bible study library - including complete notes from the NIV Study Bible and the NKJV MacArthur Study Bible - is just a step away! They shall be the charge of the holy angels, ver 10-12. Yet the condescension of God is such that he allows us to speak of him thus: He shall cover thee with his feathers.. This verse repeats the idea of verse 1b, but with different imagery. They shall be delivered from the malice of the powers of darkness (ver 3, 5, 6), and that by a distinguishing preservation, ver 7, 8. There being no reason to question his sufficiency, fitly does it follow, In him will I trust. Oh, labour to get to that blessed position! Our website uses cookies to store user preferences. These cookies are strictly necessary to provide you with services available through our website and to use some of its features. That they shall have a sufficiency of life in this world (v. 16): With length of days will I satisfy him; that is, [1.] When multitudes die round about us, though thereby we must be awakened to prepare for our own death, yet we must not be afraid with any amazement, nor make ourselves subject to bondage, as many do all their life-time, through fear of death, Heb 2 15. Surely, oh, blessed word! You must, like the bee, go down into the bell of the flower yourself, and fetch out its nectar. I will deliver him, and honour him. And those who have found the comfort of making the Lord their refuge, cannot but desire that others may do so. The ending of all of this is the most powerful of all as God says He will show him [or her], His salvation. If you have salvation, all of these other serious circumstances of plagues, night terrors, thousands dropping at your sides or any other threat are only temporary because ultimately, God is our refuge, our fortress, our shield, our buckler, and His love overshadows us and will bring us safely into the kingdom someday. 5-6). Psalm 91: Commentary, Bible Study and Summary - What Christians Want To We ought to think more of the saint and the dragon. Pastor John MacArthur writes, Contemporary evangelicalism has been beguiled and sabotaged by a ruinous lack of confidence in God's Word. Oh, yes, he values the love of his people, for he knows where it came from; it is a part of his own love; the creation of his grace! 14 Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. 5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; 6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.