Psalm 46 - A Mighty Fortress Is Our God Series

A MIGHTY FORTRESS IS OUR GOD

TEXT: Psalm 46:1-11

Psalms 46:1-11 KJV To the chief Musician for the sons of Korah, A Song upon Alamoth. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. [2] Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; [3] Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah. [4] There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High. [5] God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early. [6] The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: he uttered his voice, the earth melted. [7] The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah. [8] Come, behold the works of the LORD, what desolations he hath made in the earth. [9] He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; he burneth the chariot in the fire. [10] Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. [11] The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.

I. INTRODUCTION—PSALM 46 AND ITS GROUPING AMONG THE OTHER PSALMS

-The 150 psalms that we have in the Bible are divided up into five “books.” Psalm 1-41, 42-72, 73-89, 90-106, and 107-150. But there are other different “collections” of different psalms that can be found as well.

• Prayers of an individual (Ps. 3-7)

• Praise offered to God for His saving help (Ps. 30; 34)

• Confessions of confidence in the Lord (Ps. 11; 16; 52)

• Hymns of praise of God’s majesty and virtue (Ps. 8; 19; 29; 65)

• The songs of Asaph (Ps. 50; 73-83)

• The songs of Ascent (Ps. 120-134)

-What really should come to our minds when we are spending time with the psalms would be that by taking them to heart we can learn how to pray and praise by allowing Scripture to set the course for our walk with God. The psalms literally are conducive to us being with God!

-Psalm 46 is a response to the lamentations (the sorrow, the heaviness, the despair) that we see in Psalms 42-44. These laments are a picture of a very dejected man until we come to Psalm 46—A Mighty Fortress Is Our God!

-Psalm 46 has a further uniqueness about it as well. It falls into a couple of different groups:

• The songs of Zion, for the City of God (Ps. 46; 48; 76; 84; 122; 126; 129; 137)

• The songs of the sons of Korah (Ps. 42-49; 84-85; 87-88). There are twelve in total.

-That single superscription that names the sons of Korah is remarkable in itself. These men would have been the priestly descendants of Korah who had rebelled against Moses and Aaron which was ultimately a rebellion against God. The story of their ungodliness is told in Numbers 16. It is a horrifying story to say the least.

-Korah was of the tribe of Levi, he was one of the descendants of Kohath. Kohath and his kin were the ones who were responsible for carrying the most holy of all the but their devotion to duty was erased when they overstepped their bounds.

-God swallowed Korah along with Dathan, Abiram, On and some of the Reubenites. They died but the sons of Korah refused to go along with the plans of their father. On a whole different sermon thought would be the implication that Korah’s sons saw through the blighted hypocrisy that their father upheld. They saw him doing one thing in the Tabernacle among the holy articles but when he came home it was a completely different story. Every person among us must pay close attention to our lives so that we do not send mixed signals to our families. This is a day when we need to be holy among the sacred and the secular.

II. PSALM 46—A MIGHTY FORTRESS IS OUR GOD

-As we come to this sacred text, it is important for us to see that Psalms 42-44 are prayers that pour from the mouth of the sons of Korah. There are phrases all through these psalms that key us into the fact that they are prayers:

• So panteth my soul after thee, O God—42:1

• My soul thirsteth for God. . . when shall I come and appear before God—42:2

• I pour out my soul in me—42:4

• I will say unto God my rock—42:9