My wife and I are reading through the Psalms in our evening reading and occasionally a nugget of the Psalms jumps out of the page. Don’t you love it when, after years of reading the “Old Book” passages become alive, reinforcing old teachings or simply warming your heart.
This is the book of Psalms, and it is rich.
I pray I can communicate a portion of the blessing we receive from this wonderful book.
Psa. 48:4 ¶ For behold, the kings assembled;
they came on together.
Psa. 48:5 As soon as they saw it, they were astounded;
they were in panic; they took to flight.
Psa. 48:6 Trembling took hold of them there,
anguish as of a woman in labor.
Psa. 48:7 By the east wind you shattered
the ships of Tarshish.
Psa. 48:8 As we have heard, so have we seen
in the city of the LORD of hosts,
in the city of our God,
which God will establish forever. Selah
In our last post on Psalm 48, we were reminded of the Lord’s presence as a fortress, a refuge for the saint to abide in, to enter into as the saint wants. In the midst of a difficult time, in a time of heavy work or leisurely relaxation, the fortress of our God is an eternal blessing that the saint may find solace in.
Not so for those outside of the Body. For those outside of the Body of Christ who oppose Him and those in His presence, the psalmist has a few words to say.
The psalmist speaks of the kings advancing on the city of Jerusalem, having a unified front, a show of force and intimidation. Yet as the enemies approached the city, they were astounded, stunned, and amazed. The reaction of the enemies speaks of the Lord’s revealing, for though the City had impressive physical defenses, they were not impenetrable. Consider the Babylonian and Roman victories. There was much more going on than simply a physical fortress that was presented to the enemies as they approached.
The psalmist speaks of the enemies actively running away, of not merely standing before the city in wonder, though that may have been an initial experience, but that the enemy actively reacted to the City, to the fortress they encountered.
The Psalm speaks of the enemy experiencing terror or panic. Seasoned soldiers are trained to not succumb to emotional tirades such as panic, and not to flee in terror. Yet this is what the kings of the surrounding nations experienced when they sought to attack the City.
The psalmist continues with describing the enemy as experiencing a trembling, as an anguish of a woman in labor. As many may know, I have five beautiful children and many more grandchildren and the experience of my wife and daughters in childbirth is all consuming. (At no time during childbirth did my favorite even suggest making me a tea!) This fear, this trembling the enemies experienced was all consuming, it latched onto the enemies hearts and minds, in unison amongst them all, and they as armies reacted accordingly by entering into full blown panic mode.
He has made Himself known to the saints in verse 3. Blessing
Psalm 48:3 Within her citadels God has made himself known as a fortress.
He has also made Himself known to those who would attack the city of Jerusalem. Two completely different results.
Take wisdom from this contrast my friend, and flee to the fortress God has provided, for He has provided a refuge in His Son in order that we may be encouraged and not stricken by fear, panic and trembling.
Hebrews 6:18 …we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us.
You see, He really is good, all the time. Jesus is our refuge, our very present help in time of need.
Psa. 48:8 As we have heard, so have we seen…
As the passage ends for today, the psalmist speaks of experiencing the fortress of God, and not merely hearing of a past deliverance. Can you speak of experiencing His deliverance today? Not of your parents deliverance, or of your friends deliverance, or of your spouses deliverance. Your deliverance from the enemy. Whether it be the enemy of sin and death through your initial trust in His death and resurrection, or a daily experience of His care in your life.
He is One to be seen in delivering your life!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion.
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