Today we are going to look at a few verses from Psalm 91, and we are going to go through it a bit at a time so that we can see a reason to trust in God, and we are going to use one person’s point of view of why he sees the security of trusting God.
Many have noted the wonderful character of this psalm, as noted by someone who had great troubles in life and found solace in its verses: This psalm is one of the greatest possessions of saints. Another person noted that “In the whole collection there is not a more cheering Psalm, its tone is elevated and sustained throughout, faith is at its best, and speaks nobly.”
This psalm has no title, and therefore the author remains unknown. Because it shares some of the themes of Psalm 90, some think Moses was the author. Because it shares some of the themes and phrases of Psalm 27 and Psalm 31, some think the author was David. Some of its language, of strongholds and shields, reminds us of David, to whom another translation ascribes it; other phrases echo the Song of Moses in Deuteronomy 32, as did Psalm 90; but it is in fact anonymous, and we can look at this anonymity as another reason to trust in the security of God, because the author did not deem it necessary to put their name behind it when it speaks for itself.
Typically, when trying to present a case for something you want to have two or three witnesses or cases in point. But what if you pick one person, who for most of his life has gone through some stuff, major stuff, and then at the end came out sitting pretty. I would see that they were witness enough. Well, that person is King David.
David was the youngest of eight sons, and as the Bible first takes notice of him, we find that the current king of Israel, Saul, was doing battle with the Philistines. David’s three eldest brothers were taking part in the war, and so David’s father asked him to take some food to them. When he arrived at the battlefield he saw one large Philistine soldier, named Goliath, in the middle of the field yelling obscenities at the Israel army, and David saw that Israel was afraid of this one man. David, a child among men asked this bold question, “What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” King Saul heard of this boldness of David and requested to see him. At this point David requests to join the army, but Saul says he is too young, but David told him of his experience in killing lions, bears, and other wild animals; and to top it off, he said that Goliath would be no different. With total faith in God to deliver the nation he gathers a few rocks and with one blow from his slingshot killed Goliath. This is what David said to Goliath before he killed him.
Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you.
And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. Then all this assembly shall know that the Lord does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord’s, and He will give you into our hands.”
1 Samuel 17:45-47
You can say some bold things when you have the security of trust in God. Now that was one of the great experiences, because from then on things got tough for David.
• David was anointed king, at God’s request by the Samuel, this while Saul was still seated on the throne.
• He had to flee from Saul's persecution and lived as an outlaw for several years, because Saul did not want to hand over the kingdom.
• He moved his capital to Jerusalem and brought the Ark of the Covenant there, and in so doing caused a man to die when he touched the Ark, and when he arrived his wife was ashamed of him because he danced and sang while bringing the Ark into the city.
• He committed adultery with Bathsheba and arranged the murder of her husband to cover up the fact that she was now pregnant.
• He faced the rebellion of his son Absalom who wanted to take over the kingdom.
• Towards the end of his life, he wanted to build God a temple, but God told him he could not because there was too much blood on his hands, but would allow him to gather the resources so that his son Solomon could build the temple.
He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.”
Psalm 91:1-2
Earlier I stated that this Psalm had an unknown author, but for the sake of our message I am going to lean toward David as the psalmist so that I can tie his life into its verses.
In our world today we need to discover the truth that this Psalm is conveying. There will be pressures in life, but there is help available, and David simply tells us where we can find that help.
Notice that David takes the security in God personally, with the repeated use of the pronoun “I”. He is not using someone else’s witness, because he uses the testimony of his own life to show that even though troubles may come there is safety in God. David says this as a statement of fact, and every other verse that follows is built on this fact.
David mentions a secret place, and yes indeed God has a secret place for His own, and it is a place to live in. Those who dwell there are safe and secure under the shadow of the Almighty, knowing His protection, comfort, and care.
For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.
Psalm 27:5
Now when we look at the phrase “He is my refuge and my fortress,” one would think that being saved in Christ and trusting in God causes you to be untouchable. But this phrase means that God is your refuge and fortress from sin. Even inside a fortress you cannot ignore the events that are occurring exterior to you; this is the same with sin, we cannot just simply ignore it and its related problems, but while under God’s shadow we rise above it. Jesus is the one who came into the world to provide us with a refuge from the penalty of sin. There are many followers of Jesus Christ who seem to know very little of the secret place of the Most High or what it is to abide under His shadow. Many seem to regard this as only a thing for mystics or the super-spiritual. Yet David, if he wrote this, was a warrior and man well acquainted with the realities of life. It is true that the life of the spirit seems to come more easily for some than for others, but there is an aspect of the secret place of the Most High that is for everyone who puts his trust in Him.
A young girl stands in a beautiful meadow. In another part of the field is a gigantic African rhinoceros, which begins charging toward the girl. Her serene and happy face remains unmoved. As the rhinoceros gets closer, the words appear on the screen, “Trust is not being afraid.” A split second before the rhino tramples the helpless child, it stops, and the girl, her smile never wavering, reaches up and pets the animal on its massive horn. The final words then appear, “even when you are vulnerable.”
The commercial was designed to tout the abilities of an insurance company to protect its clients from the uncertainties of life. How much more does it describe the believer, who can say with the psalmist, “I will say of the Lord, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust’”
Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler And from the perilous pestilence. He shall cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler.
Psalm 91:3-4
Following the general statement of the first two verses, now the psalmist describes the specific ways God protects and cares for His people – beginning with rescue from those who would trap God’s people as the fowler snares birds. Let's face it, there are many things in life that lie in wait to trap, deceive, and defeat us. But if we stay close to God and trust in Him nothing can defeat us. Now that does not mean that we will not get bumps and bruises, because even the winner of a prize fight does not come out of it with a knot or two, yet undefeated.
The devil and his agents often work as the fowler works.
• The fowler works in secret.
• The fowler changes his trap and methods.
• The fowler often entices with pleasure or profit.
• The fowler often uses a bad example, a decoy.
God also protects His people in times of plague and disease. The psalmist, inspired by the Holy Spirit, did not intend this as an absolute promise, that every believer would be delivered from every snare or every pestilence. Instead, the idea is that the psalmist could point to many times when God did just that for His trusting people. This does not mean that those who trust God never die from infectious diseases or suffer from an enemy’s plot, of course. It means that those who trust God are habitually delivered from such dangers.
Lord Craven, a Christian, was a nobleman who was living in London when plague ravaged the city in the fifteenth century. In order to escape the spreading pestilence Craven determined to leave the city for his country home, as many of his social standing did. He ordered his coach and baggage made ready. But as he was walking down one of the halls of his home about to enter his carriage, he overheard one of his servants say to another, ‘I suppose by my lord’s quitting London to avoid the plague that his God lives in the country and not in town.’ It was a straightforward and apparently innocent remark. But it struck Lord Craven so deeply that he canceled his journey, saying, ‘My God lives everywhere and can preserve me in town as well as in the country. I will stay where I am.’ So he stayed in London. He helped the plague victims, and he did not catch the disease himself.
In looking at this section we see the use of the singular you throughout, which is a way of saying that these truths are applied for each of us individually. They are for you if you will truly trust or abide in God.
Now the psalmist uses a metaphor, God is represented as a bird, sheltering young chicks under His wings. God protects believers, with the greatest tenderness and affection, which is intimated in that, He shall cover us with his feathers, under His wings, which alludes to the hen gathering her chickens under wings to keep and care for them. By instinct she not only protects them but calls them under that protection when she sees them in danger, not only keeping them safe, but cherishes them and keeps them warm. To this our 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.
Looking at a snippet of King David’s life and reading these first few verses of Psalm 91, we must beg the question: where are you placing your trust? Now answer that question knowing that everyone trusts in something. Some of us trust in our friends and family, money, other material possessions, and our own selves. But really think about it, how trustworthy are those things? Who can really give you a promise that has a track record going back some six thousand years…nobody but God. To that end He promised us a means to be freed from our sins, and that promise was fulfilled in Jesus Christ, who came into this world to die for you and me, providing that refuge from the pains of sin.
Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!
