Psalm 91

Safety of Abiding in the Presence of God

¹ He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
         Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
² I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
         My God, in Him I will trust.”
³ Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler
And from the perilous pestilence.
⁴ He shall cover you with His feathers,
         And under His wings you shall take refuge;
         His truth shall be your shield and buckler.
⁵ You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,
Nor of the arrow that flies by day,
⁶ Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,
Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.
⁷ A thousand may fall at your side,
         And ten thousand at your right hand;
But it shall not come near you.
⁸ Only with your eyes shall you look,
         And see the reward of the wicked.
⁹ Because you have made the LORD, who is my refuge,
Even the Most High, your dwelling place,
¹⁰ No evil shall befall you,
         Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling;
¹¹ For He shall give His angels charge over you,
         To keep you in all your ways.
¹² In their hands they shall bear you up,
         Lest you dash your foot against a stone.
¹³ You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra,
         The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot.
¹⁴ “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him;
         I will set him on high, because he has known My name.
¹⁵ He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him;
         I will be with him in trouble;
         I will deliver him and honor him.
¹⁶ With long life I will satisfy him,
         And show him My salvation.”

This is one of those Psalms that people keep quoting to me when

troubles appear.  It is a psalm of comfort and promise- and makes for

good reading.  But I don’t read it the same way people quote it to me.

I don’t  see the promise made to believers.

My husband and I discuss Scripture, and this is one that we are in agreement

upon.  This psalm is speaking more of Jesus Christ and His position and

placement in God’s care during His earthly ministry.

Because – although I do trust in God’s providence and protection-

although I bow to His authority and throw myself upon His grace and

mercy- although I have been grafted into His family through the agency

of Christ’s substitutionary sacrifice- I have to seriously consider the

question- “Where do I dwell?”.

This is the verse I am looking at today.  Verse one sets up the premise for the

rest of the psalm.  “ He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High”…

WHO is that?  It is Jesus Christ – and He alone who dwells there.

This is not about me.  It is not about us.

We dwell here on Earth.  We can keep our mind set on Jesus.  We can pray

unceasingly- rejoice in His presence in our lives and seek to do His will.

But- we dwell here. 

We can’t move into the Father’s house and expect Him to provide for our needs

and protect us from the consequences of our decisions.

He does protect believers who are fulfilling His will- sometimes.

And sometimes, believers who are in dangerous places- following

God’s plans- spreading the Gospel- sometimes they are killed.

Or imprisoned- or tortured for the sake of their belief in God.

We dwell here.  And God loves us. 

And sometimes, we are attacked by disease, and terror, and evil.

And sometimes, we die.

This psalm is not filled with promises of protection for believers.

It is about the relationship between God and His Son.

And it is beautiful and real and comforting.

Because we are part of that relationship-

and we are not alone.