God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we won’t be afraid, though the earth changes, though the mountains are shaken into the heart of the seas;
though its waters roar and are troubled, though the mountains tremble with their swelling.
There is a river, the streams of which make the city of God glad, the holy place of the tents of the Most High.
God is within her. She shall not be moved. God will help her at dawn.
The nations raged. The kingdoms were moved. He lifted his voice and the earth melted.
Yahweh of Armies is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge.
Come, see Yahweh’s works, what desolations he has made in the earth.
He makes wars cease to the end of the earth. He breaks the bow, and shatters the spear. He burns the chariots in the fire.
“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth.”
Yahweh of Armies is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge.
John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10 1. God is our refuge and strength Here the…
1. God is our refuge and strength Here the Psalmist begins with a general expression or sentiment, before he comes to speak of the more particular deliverance. He begins by premising that God is sufficiently able to protect his own people, and that he gives them sufficient ground to expect it; for this the word מחסה, machaseh, properly signifies. In the second clause of the verse the verb he is found, which we translate in the present, is in the past tense, he has been found; and, indeed, there would be no impropriety in limiting the language to some particular deliverance which had already been experienced, just as others also have rendered it in the past tense. But as the prophet adds the term tribulations in the plural number, I prefer explaining it of a continued act, That God comes seasonably to our aid, and is never wanting in the time of need, as often as any afflictions press upon his people. If the prophet were speaking of the experience of God’s favor, it would answer much better to render the verb in the past tense. It is, however, obvious that his design is to extol the power of God and his goodness towards his people, and to show how ready God is to afford them assistance, that they may not in the time of their adversities gaze around them on every side, but rest satisfied with his protection alone. He therefore says expressly that God acts in such a manner towards them, to let the Church know that he exercises a special care in preserving and defending her. There can be no doubt that by this expression he means to draw a distinction between the chosen people of God and other heathen nations, and in this way to commend the privilege of adoption which God of his goodness had vouchsafed to the posterity of Abraham. Accordingly, when I said before that it was a general expression, my intention was not to extend it to all manner of persons, but only to all times; for the object of the prophet is to teach us after what manner God is wont to act towards those who are his people. He next concludes, by way of inference, that the faithful nave no reason to be afraid, since God is always ready to deliver them, nay, is also armed with invincible power. He shows in this that the true and proper proof of our hope consists in this, that, when things are so confused, that the heavens seem as it were to fall with great violence, the earth to remove out of its place, and the mountains to be torn up from their very foundations, we nevertheless continue to preserve and maintain calmness and tranquillity of heart. It is an easy matter to manifest the appearance of great confidence, so long as we are not placed in imminent danger: but if, in the midst of a general crash of the whole world, our minds continue undisturbed and free of trouble, this is an evident proof that we attribute to the power of God the honor which belongs to him. When, however, the sacred poet says, We will not fear, he is not to be understood as meaning that the minds of the godly are exempt from all solicitude or fear, as if they were destitute of feeling, for there is a great difference between insensibility and the confidence of faith. He only shows that whatever may happen they are never overwhelmed with terror, but rather gather strength and courage sufficient to allay all fear. Though the earth be moved, and the mountains fall into the midst of the sea, are hyperbolical modes of expression, but they nevertheless denote a revolution, and turning upside down of the whole world. Some have explained the expression, the midst of the sea, as referring to the earth. I do not, however, approve of it. But in order more fully to understand the doctrine of the psalm, let us proceed to consider what follows.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10 Which was either a musical instrument or a solemn…
Which was either a musical instrument or a solemn tune, unto the which this Psalm was sung.
Or, protection.
Read full note →
In all manner of troubles God showeth his speedy mercy and power in defending his.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv1–11 Psa 46:1 « To the chief Musician for the…
Psa 46:1 « 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.
Upon Alamoth] i.e. Upon the Virginals. Virgins with their shrill treble tune, 1Ch 15:20, used (belike) to sing this triumphant psalm, and to play it on the instrument; and their hearts were somewhat suitable to it. The penman some think to have been David, upon occasion of those notable victories, 2Sa 8:1-14; others, Solomon, for the virgins to sing and play at his wedding, Psa 45:8-9 Son 1:2; others, Isaiah, either upon the overthrow of those two kings, Rezin and Pekah, 2Ki 16:5 Isa 7:8, confer Jdg 5:11, or else after the slaughter of Sennacherib’s army by an angel; then the virgin daughter of Zion (much more than before) despised him, and laughed him to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem shook her head at him, Isa 37:22, and sang as followeth:
Read full note →
Ver. 1. God is our refuge and strength] Deus nobis est receptus, et robur (Tremel.). All creatures, when in distress, run to their refuges, Pro 30:26 Psa 104:18 Pro 18:11 Dan 4:10-11 Jdg 9:50-51. So do the saints to God Almighty, for the safe-guarding of their persons, as here, and Isa 25:4. Luther, when in greatest distress, was wont to call for this psalm, saying, Let us sing the forty-sixth psalm in concert; and then let the devil do his worst.
A very present help in trouble] Or, we have abundantly found him a help in tribulation (Joh. Manlii loc. com.). God, as he is not far off his people at such a time, so he needeth not much entreaty; but when we are nearest danger he is nearest to deliver, as in the gunpowder plot prevented eight or nine hours before it should have been acted; masses were sung in Rome for the prospering of it; but no prayers particularly made in England for the preventing, nor could be. Here God was, if ever, auxilium praesentissimum.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10 God is our refuge, i.e. he hath now manifested…
God is our refuge, i.e. he hath now manifested himself to be so by the course of his providence.
A very present; or, a sufficient, as this word is sometimes used, as Jos 17:16; Zec 10:10.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On vv1, 6 The psalmist here teaches us by his own example.
The psalmist here teaches us by his own example.
I. To triumph in God, and his relation to us and presence with us, especially when we have had some fresh experiences of his appearing in our behalf (Psa 46:1): God is our refuge and strength; we have found him so, he has engaged to be so, and he ever will be so. Are we pursued? God is our refuge to whom we may flee, and in whom we may be safe and think ourselves so; secure upon good grounds, Pro 18:10. Are we oppressed by troubles? Have we work to do and enemies to grapple with? God is our strength, to bear us up under our burdens, to fit us for all our services and sufferings; he will by his grace put strength into us, and on him we may stay ourselves. Are we in distress? He is a help, to do all that for us which we need, a present help, a help found (so the word is), one whom we have found to be so, a help on which we may write Probatum est - It is tried, as Christ is called a tried stone, Isa 28:16. Or, a help at hand, one that never is to seek for, but that is always near. Or, a help sufficient, a help accommodated to every case and exigence; whatever it is, he is a very present help; we cannot desire a better help, nor shall ever find the like in any creature.
Read full note →
II. To triumph over the greatest dangers: God is our strength and our help, a God all-sufficient to us; therefore will not we fear. Those that with a holy reverence fear God need not with any amazement to be afraid of the power of hell or earth. If God be for us, who can be against us; to do us any harm? It is our duty, it is our privilege, to be thus fearless; it is an evidence of a clear conscience, of an honest heart, and of a lively faith in God and his providence and promise: "We will not fear, though the earth be removed, though all our creature-confidences fail us and sink us; nay, though that which should support us threaten to swallow us up, as the earth did Korah," for whose sons this psalm was penned, and, some think, by them; yet while we keep close to God, and have him for us, we will not fear, for we have no cause to fear;
- Si fractus illabatur orbis,
Impavidum ferient ruinae
- Hor.
- Let Jove's dread arm
With thunder rend the spheres,
Beneath the crush of worlds undaunted he appears.
Observe here, 1. How threatening the danger is. We will suppose the earth to be removed, and thrown into the sea, even the mountains, the strongest and firmest parts of the earth, to lie buried in the unfathomed ocean; we will suppose the sea to roar and rage, and make a dreadful noise, and its foaming billows to insult the shore with so much violence as even to shake the mountains, Psa 46:3. Though kingdoms and states be in confusion, embroiled in wars, tossed with tumults, and their governments in continual revolution - though their powers combine against the church and people of God, aim at no less than their ruin, and go very near to gain their point - yet will not we fear, knowing that all these troubles will end well for the church. See Psa 93:4. If the earth be removed, those have reason to fear who have laid up their treasures on earth, and set their hearts upon it; but not those who have laid up for themselves treasures in heaven, and who expect to be most happy when the earth and all the works that are therein shall be burnt up. Let those be troubled at the troubling of the waters who build their confidence on such a floating foundation, but not those who are led to the rock that is higher than they, and find firm footing upon that rock. 2. How well-grounded the defiance of this danger is, considering how well guarded the church is, and that interest which we are concerned for. It is not any private particular concern of our own that we are in pain about; no, it is the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the Most High; it is the ark of God for which our hearts tremble. But, when we consider what God has provided for the comfort and safety of his church, we shall see reason to have our hearts fixed, and set above the fear of evil tidings. Here is, (1.) Joy to the church, even in the most melancholy and sorrowful times (Psa 46:4): There is a river the streams whereof shall make it glad, even then when the waters of the sea roar and threaten it. It alludes to the waters of Siloam, which went softly by Jerusalem (Isa 8:6, Isa 8:7): though of no great depth or breadth, yet the waters of it were made serviceable to the defence of Jerusalem in Hezekiah's time, Isa 22:10, Isa 22:11. But this must be understood spiritually; the covenant of grace is the river, the promises of which are the streams; or the Spirit of grace is the river (Joh 7:38, Joh 7:39), the comforts of which are the streams, that make glad the city of our God. God's word and ordinances are rivers and streams with which God makes his saints glad in cloudy and dark days. God himself is to his church a place of broad rivers and streams, Isa 33:21. The streams that make glad the city of God are not rapid, but gentle, like those of Siloam. Note, The spiritual comforts which are conveyed to the saints by soft and silent whispers, and which come not with observation, are sufficient to counterbalance the most loud and noisy threatenings of an angry and malicious world. (2.) Establishment to the church. Though heaven and earth are shaken, yet God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved, Psa 46:5. God has assured his church of his special presence with her and concern for her; his honour is embarked in her, he has set up his tabernacle in her and has undertaken the protection of it, and therefore she shall not be moved, that is, [1.] Not destroyed, not removed, as the earth may be Psa 46:2. The church shall survive the world, and be in bliss when that is in ruins. It is built upon a rock, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. [2.] Not disturbed, not much moved, with fears of the issue. If God be for us, if God be with us, we need not be moved at the most violent attempts made against us. (3.) Deliverance to the church, though her dangers be very great: God shall help her; and who then can hurt her? He shall help her under her troubles, that she shall not sink; nay, that the more she is afflicted the more she shall multiply. God shall help her out of her troubles, and that right early - when the morning appears; that is, very speedily, for he is a present help (Psa 46:1), and very seasonably, when things are brought to the last extremity and when the relief will be most welcome. This may be applied by particular believers to themselves; if God be in our hearts, in the midst of us, by his word dwelling richly in us, we shall be established, we shall be helped; let us therefore trust and not be afraid; all is well, and will end well.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv1–11 God is our refuge and strength,.... That is, Christ,…
God is our refuge and strength,.... That is, Christ, who is God as well as man, is the "refuge" for souls to fly unto for safety; as for sensible sinners, in a view of danger, wrath, and misery, so for saints, in every time of distress; typified by the cities of refuge, under the legal dispensation; See Gill on Psa 9:9; and he it is from whom they have all their spiritual strength, and every renewal and supply of it, to exercise grace, perform duties, withstand enemies, bear the cross patiently, show a fortitude of mind under the sorest distresses, and hold on and out unto the end: in short, he is the strength of their hearts, under the greatest trials, of their lives, amidst the greatest dangers; and of their salvation, notwithstanding all their enemies;
a very present help in trouble; whether inward or outward, of soul or body; the Lord helps his people under it to bear it, and he helps them out of it in the most proper and seasonable time: they are poor helpless creatures in themselves; nor can any other help them but the Lord, who made heaven and earth; and he helps presently, speedily, and effectually: in the Hebrew text it is, "he is found an exceeding help in trouble" (t); in all kind of trouble that the saints come into, the Lord has been found, by experience, to be an exceeding great helper of them; moreover, he is easily and always to be come at, and found by them for their help.
Read full note →
(t) "inventum valde", Michaelis.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 4, 7, 8, 9, 11 The safety of the church under God's care, ver.…
The safety of the church under God's care, ver. 1-7. An exhortation to behold his works, and to trust in him, ver. 8-11. To the chief musician for the sons of Korah, A song upon Alamoth.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv1–11 The confidence of believers in God, 1-3.
PSALM XLVI
The confidence of believers in God, 1-3.
Read full note →
The privileges of the Church, 4, 5;
her enemies, and her helper, 6, 7.
God's judgments in the earth, 8, 9.
He will be exalted among the heathen, and throughout the earth,
10, 11.
NOTES ON PSALM XLVI
The title in the Hebrew is, "To the chief musician for the sons of Korah; an ode upon Alamoth, or concerning the virgins:" possibly meaning a choir of singing girls. Some translate the word secrets or mysteries; and explain it accordingly. Calmet thinks it was composed by the descendants of Korah, on their return from the Babylonian captivity, when they had once more got peaceably settled in Jerusalem; and that the disturbances to which it refers were those which took place in the Persian empire after the death of Cambyses, when the Magi usurped the government. Many other interpretations and conjectures are given of the occasion of this fine ode. Houbigant thinks it was made on occasion of an earthquake, which he supposes took place on the night that all Sennacherib's army was destroyed, Dr. Kennicott thinks that alamoth means a musical instrument. All I can pretend to say about it is, that it is a very sublime ode; contains much consolation for the Church of God; and was given by the inspiration of his Holy Spirit.
Verse 1. God is our refuge] It begins abruptly, but nobly; ye may trust in whom and in what ye please: but GOD (ELOHIM) is our refuge and strength.
A very present help] A help found to be very powerful and effectual in straits and difficulties. The words are very emphatic: עזרה בצרות נמצא מאד ezerah betsaroth nimtsa meod, "He is found an exceeding, or superlative help in difficulties." Such we have found him, and therefore celebrate his praise.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 Psa 46:1. God is our refuge and strength —…
Psa 46:1. God is our refuge and strength — He hath manifested himself to be so in the course of his providence in time past, and he has engaged to be so in time to come, and will not fail to fulfil his engagement. Are we in danger from visible or invisible enemies? God is our refuge, to whom we may flee, and in whom we may be safe. Have we work to do, a warfare to accomplish, and sufferings to endure? God is our strength to bear us up under our burdens, and to fit us for all our services and sufferings. Are we oppressed with troubles and distresses? He is a help in trouble: yea, a present help — Hebrew, עזרה נמצא מאד, gnezra nimtza meod, a help found exceedingly, or, tried very much; one whom we have found by experience to be such; a help on which we may write, probatum est; or, a help at hand, that is, never far to seek, but always ready to be found of us. Or, a help sufficient, accommodated to every case and exigence whatever.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv1–11 God is our refuge and strength - God is…
God is our refuge and strength - God is for us as a place to which we may flee for safety; a source of strength to us in danger. The first word, “refuge,” from a verb meaning to “flee,” and then “to flee to” - הסה châsâh - or to take shelter in - denotes a place to which one would flee in time of danger - as a lofty wall; a high tower; a fort; a fortress. See the notes at Psa 18:2. The idea here is, that the people of God, in time of danger, may find him to be what such a place of refuge would be. Compare Pro 18:10. The word “strength” implies that God is the source of strength to those who are weak and defenseless; or that we may rely on his strength “as if” it were our own; or that we may feel as safe in his strength as though we had that strength ourselves. We may make it the basis of our confidence as really as though the strength resided in our own arm. See the notes at Psa 18:2.
A very present help - The word “help” here means aid, assistance. The word “trouble” would cover all that can come upon us which would give us anxiety or sorrow. The word rendered “present” - נמצא nimetsâ' - means rather, “is found,” or “has been found;” that is, he has “proved” himself to be a help in trouble. The word “present,” as if he were near to us, or close by us, does not accurately express the idea, which is rather, that “he has been found” to be such, or that he has always “proved” himself to be such a help, and that, therefore, we may now confide in him. The word “very,” or “exceedingly,” is added to qualify the whole proposition, as if this were “emphatically true.” It was true in the most eminent sense that God had always been found to be such a helper, and, “therefore,” there was nothing to fear in the present distress. Psa 46:2.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures 1864 · Public Domain On v1 Psalms 46
Psalms 46
To the chief Musician,for the sons of Korah,A song upon Alamoth
Read full note →
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.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
Contents and Composition. In regard to the Title, see Introd. § 12, 9. This Psalm, reechoed in Luther’s choral (Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott.—A stronghold is our God), is not simply a general expression of trust in Jehovah, under all possible dangers. (Rosen.). The perfect tenses (Psa_5:7) following the many imperfects and the references (Psa_5:9), to a particular deed of Jehovah point to a special motive for this heroic song, which is so full of gratitude and victorious confidence, of joyful faith and hope of peace. But this conviction of permanent protection founded on the experience of Divine aid to God’s people, manifests itself in expressions of a feeling of security in general, based on the strength of this relation to God. Not only does the song begin with such expressions, but they are repeated in the refrain with which each strophe ends. Only the first strophe, in our present text (perhaps by mistake simply) has no such ending. (Ols., Ewald, Hup., Del.). For with the change of the infinitives into imperfects, verse 4 is neither in apposition to “remove” and “carried into,” (J. H. Michaelis, Heng.), nor is it to be taken in a concessive sense (Rosen. and others), but is a proposition, the concluding sentence of which must be supplied not by disturbing the strophical structure in Psa_46:5, (Calvin) but must be completed in the way indicated above. The occasion of this Psalm, however was not the desolation produced by war among other nations, while Israel enjoyed peace (De Wette), but a mighty deed of Jehovah, by which Jerusalem beleaguered by enemies was delivered from them without a battle. It may refer to the sudden disappearance of the Syrians allied with Israel, on their approach to Jerusalem in the time of Ahaz, see Isaiah 7 (Hitzig); or better still to the defeat of the Assyrians under Sennacherib, Is. 36:29, (Heng., Ewald, Hup.); or to events under Jehoshaphat, recorded in 2 Chronicles 20 (Del.). There are in this Psalm, (and in the two which follow and are closely related to it) many points of resemblance to Isaiah, particularly the term Immanu, but this will not warrant our ascribing its composition to this prophet (Ven., Hitz.). It is worthy of remark that in this Elohim Psalm, God is called Jehovah in respect to His influence in the history of the world, Psa_5:9, and in the jubilant refrain He bears the name of Jehovah of Hosts, a title characteristic of the period of the kings, and which was first pronounced by the mouth of Hannah, 1Sa_1:11.
Psa_46:1-2. A very present help, a help often found, i. e. frequently tried and proved. God is ever present in tribulations. He is ever found ofthose who are in trouble (2 Psa_15:4). Luther’s translation (from Sept. and Vulg.): “in the great troubles which have befallen us,” is grammatically untenable. The “midst” or “heart” of the sea signifies the innermost part. It is used also with reference to the oak (2 Sam. 17:34), and Heaven (Deu_4:11). The allusion is to the destruction of the world as now organized (Del.). The mountains being removed from their places, fall back into the waters, out of which they were raised on the third day of creation, (Sept., Vulg., Calvin, Geier, Hupf.). Others (De Wette, Hitzig) understand by the words: the tottering of the foundations of the mountains which are beneath the waters, and propose the rendering: “in the heart” (the dative). Grammatically it is admissible. But the allegorical interpretation (Hengst.) which regards the “sea” as the symbol of the world, and the “mountains in its heart” as its mightiest empires, is not warranted by any thing in the text. For if the rising of the sea is here expressed by a word sometimes applied to human pride, this is neither its only nor its original meaning. In the last sense the word occurs in Job_41:7, and refers to the “being lifted up by the shield of Leviathan;” while in Deu_33:26; Psa_68:35 it is applied to the sovereignty of God. But it does not follow that in this place, on account of the singular suffix, the reference is to that sovereign power of God by which the mountains are made to quake, (Chald., Sept., Ols., Ewald). The singular suffix can be made here easily to refer to יַמִּים, (as it necessarily does in the preceding line), because “his waters” in this connection designate not those “of God,” but those “of the sea,” like the “his heavens” in Psa_8:4. For it is not God Himself, but His “grace” symbolized by a “stream,” which is opposed to this “sea” (Psa_46:4.). The idea of the sea is, however, expressed by a plural but not in a numerical sense, as in Psa_107:25.
[Perowne:Though the mountains, etc., the strongest figure that could be used, the mountains being regarded as the great pillars of the earth, Psa_18:7; Psa_75:3; Psa_72:5; Job_9:6. Alexander:Let its waters roar, etc., Psa_46:4. The singular pronoun refers to the sea, which is only poetically plural in the preceding verse. The verbs in this verse may also be explained as proper futures. Its waters shall roar, etc., but the people of God shall still be safe, as promised in the next verse. Barnes: The word rendered present (a very present help), נִמְצָא nimtza, means rather is found or has been found, i. e., he has proved himself to be a help in trouble. The word present, as if he were near to us, or close by us, does not accurately express the idea.—J. F.]
Psa_46:4-11. There is a stream, etc.—The expression is in contrast with that describing the stormy and destructive sea, and hence the use of the nominative absolute. There is no reference to the softly flowing waters of Siloah, as in Isa_7:6 (Aben Ezra, Ewald), but it is simply an image drawn from this brook as described in Isaiah, with a possible allusion to the river of Paradise, Psa_36:9 (Del.). It is not, however, an image of peace (De Wette), but of the blessings and gracious manifestations of God (Jonah 4:18; Ezekiel 47; Zec_14:8; Rev_14:1); for His “streams” i. e. arms, make glad the city of God, fructifying and refreshing it, as they flow around and through it. In Isa_48:18; Isa_66:12, the point of comparison is quite different, viz.: its fulness and wide extension. There is no need of supplementing the text by a word = “his grace,” (Ols.). Nor is the combination of the two lines of the verse into one—“a river, the stream of which—is the holy one of the dwellings of the Most High,” (Hitzig), and the reference to verse 5 as the closing sentence, warranted by Isa_33:21. For here God is compared to a river which surrounds and defends the city. This figure, so simple and plain as used by the prophet, would here render the sense unclear and confused, especially in the following verse, where God is said to “dwell in the midst” of the city, not only being its security, but producing that security. Both the “blessing” mentioned in verse 4 and the “deliverances” in verse 5, proceed from Him, not morning by morning (Hitz. De Wette), but as the day breaks after an anxious night, (Hengst. Del.). The expression is: of course, figurative, but we must not reduce its meaning to a simple “soon,” (Rosen. Gesen.) nor to the morning of deliverance in contrast with the night of misery, but rather suppose an allusion to a definite historical fact, as Exo_14:27; Isa_17:14; Isa_37:36.—The “melting of the earth” verse 6, not “trembling” (De Wette, Hupf.), nor “growing dumb” (Tholuck) denotes the dissolving effect of divine judgments, Psa_75:5; Amo_9:5, (Heng.), which are elsewhere said to produce terror and consternation, Psa_76:9; Exo_15:14.—In 2Sa_2:10; 2Sa_7:10; 2Sa_12:16; Psa_68:34; Jer_12:8, thunder is used as a symbol of Divine judgment. There is no need of understanding verse 10 as an authoritative command given in a voice of thunder (Hitzig). In verse 7 many codices (32 Kenn. 46 De Ross.) have Elohim instead of Jehovah, a reading followed by the Syriac and Chaldean version, and many Rabbinical expositors. But it is possible that this various reading may have come from Psa_66:5. Instead of “devastations” or “desolations” in verse 9 (Chald. Jerome, Rab. Calvin, Geier, etc.), the Sept. Syr. J. H. Mich., Ewald, and Hitz., render the word “astonishing and terrific things,” a sense which its etymology allows.
[Perowne: Psa_46:6. The absence of any copula in the verse adds much to the force of the description. The preterites are not hypothetical as Delitzsch explains. Each act of the drama is, so to speak, before the eyes of the Poet.—Alexander:He has uttered His voice, the earth will melt. As in many other instances, the Psalmist takes his stand between the inception and the consummation of the event which he describes. Hence the transition from the past tense to the future.
Verse 8. Come see, etc. The first word properly means go, but it is constantly used in summoning and inviting others. Psa_46:9. Silencing wars, etc.—The participle followed by the future, shows that the process is not finished, but is still going on.—J. F.]
DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL
1. The Church of God can confidently appeal to Him for help, and rest assured that He who is supreme over all things, has not only promised, but will also grant her, His protection. She will enjoy peace in the midst of the storms of war, and the tumults of the world, as she also will when the world itself shall come to ruin. For the world is in a constant state of unrest and excitement, and will be until its final change. This is owing partly to its natural qualities and its external form, and partly to the historic life of its nations. But the Church is God’s habitation in this world. Not only is the sanctuary of God in the midst of her, but the living, almighty, gracious God Himself. Hence her feeling of perfect rest and blessed contentment.
If Christ protects His Church,
Then hell itself may rage.
2. So long as the Church is in the world, it must be, in its temporal aspect and earthly form, always in contact with the world’s movements. There is for it no external rest and security, but it is in constant danger of attacks and tribulations. But so long as its watchword is Immanuel, i. e., God with us, it will have internal peace, for God is within it, and external invincibility, for God is its defence. Even here, God gives, from time to time, seasons of rest and refreshment, for He breaks the weapons of the enemies, and sends desolation among them.
3. As God quickens the Church in which He dwells, by the outpouring of His gracious and manifold gifts, and as this stream from the sanctuary cannot be cut off, because of the relation already mentioned, it is the special duty and care of the Church to draw from this stream fresh courage and vigor, so that with perpetual joy, she may confess by word and deed, what God has revealed to her in His word, and how He has manifested Himself to her by His works in the present day, as well as in ages past. “That our faith may rest firmly in God, we must consider these two things jointly, viz.: the infinite power by which He prepared to subjugate the whole world, and His paternal love revealed in His word.” (Calvin).
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL
God with us! the watchword of the pious. 1. Who has given it? 2. What is meant by it? 3. Who may use it?—Among all thrones, there is only one that is firm; among all kingdoms, only one is changeless; among all nations, only one has a King without an equal.—Is the Lord of Hosts your friend? then are you sure of victory over all your foes.—We need fear no struggle, when God is our refuge and strength.—Dwelling in the city of God implies going to the house of God, hearing His word, and observing His works.—He who would not fall when the foundations of the earth are shaken, must cling firmly to God. Thus will he be saved and enabled to praise the Most High.—God shows here on earth that He is above all things; and He also testifies that He dwells not only in heaven, but also in the midst of His people.—While God dwells among us, we can want nothing.—The proper flight is to the divine refuge.—The security of God’s kingdom, surrounded by streams that disturb the world.
Starke: As we seek God, so shall we also find Him.—If we steadily trust in Him as our Strength, we shall certainly find in our experience that He is so in fact.—God does not protect His Church by keeping danger at a distance from her, but by averting its destructive results.—Faith becomes especially victorious, when, according to all human appearance, there is no room for hope.—If God is your friend, you can stand firm in every trouble.—Faith apprehends God, both as the Lord of Hosts, and as a gracious Helper, abundant in mercy.—It is just as easy for God to destroy a mighty army, as to defend a little company of believers.—Oh! how blessed the time when God shall make wars to cease to the ends of the earth.—Osiander: The city of God shall never perish, even though all creatures should make war against it.—Arndt: Kingdoms are overturned on account of the sins of their people, but Christ has maintained His word and kingdom.—If God is our protector, what can man, with all his power, do against us?—Tholuck: Let the people rage as fiercely as they please, when the voice of Jacob’s God is heard, they must grow dumb.—Richter Family Bible: The kingdom of darkness has no power of its own over nature. It could not even drown swine without Christ’s permission.—Vaihinger: He who has the God who protected Israel as his shield, need not be afraid of greater dangers even than those which Israel experienced.—Diedrich: God’s kingdom remains, because He is true to His word of promise, and defends those who believe it against all their enemies.—God is our eternal refuge.—Taube: The perfect repose and holy security of the Church of God. 1. Her faith’s comfort. 2. Her faith’s foundation. 3. Her faith’s victory.—Each fresh perception of God, derived from the experience of His ways, imparts new blessings, and establishes the heart more firmly in the faith.—Schaubach: (10th Sunday after Trinity). The Christian Church as typified by the city of God on earth.—Rose: Come and see the mighty works of the Lord, His wonderful counsels, and the unchangeable faithfulness of His covenant.
Henry: God is our refuge and strength; we have found Him so, He has engaged to be so, and He ever will be so. Are we pursued? God is our refuge to whom we may flee, and in whom we may be safe, and think ourselves so; secure upon good ground, Pro_17:10. Are we oppressed by troubles? Have we work to do, and enemies to grapple with? God is our Strength, to bear us up under our burdens, to fit us for all our services and sufferings; who will by His grace put strength into us, and on whom we may stay ourselves. Are we in distress? He is a Help, to do all that for us which we need; a present Help, a Help found, so the word is, one whom we have found to be so; a Help on which we may write Probatum est, or, a Help at hand, one that we shall never have to seek for, but that is always near. Or, a Help sufficient; a Help accommodated to every case and exigence; whatever it is, He is a very present Help; we cannot desire a better Help, nor shall ever find the like in any creature.—Here is (1) Joy to the Church, even in the most melancholy and sorrowful times. Psa_46:4. There is a river, the streams whereof shall make it glad, even then when the waters of the sea roar and threaten it. Note.—The spiritual comforts which are conveyed to the saints by soft and silent whispers, and which come not with observation, are sufficient to balance the most loud and noisy threatenings of an angry and malicious world. (2) Establishment to the Church; though heaven and earth are shaken, yet God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved, Psa_46:5. (1) Not destroyed; nor removed as the earth may be. (2) Not disturbed, not much moved with fears of the issue. (3) Deliverance to the Church, though her dangers be great; God shall help her, and who then can hurt her? He shall help her under her troubles, that she shall not sink; nay, that the more she is afflicted, the more she shall multiply. God shall help her out of her troubles, and that right early
Very speedily, and very seasonably.—Scott: If our faith were as strong as our security is good, we need fear no combination of enemies, no revolutions in kingdoms, and no convulsions in nature, but in the most tremendous dangers might triumph in the fullest assurance of security and victory—Happy they who are enrolled citizens of the holy city of our God, in which He dwells as a Father, Defender, and Comforter of His people.—J. F.]
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv2–10 The most violent civil commotions are illustrated by the…
The most violent civil commotions are illustrated by the greatest physical commotions.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 1. Refuge and strength—Two strong words to express complete…
1. Refuge and strength—Two strong words to express complete safety.
Very present help—Literally, God has been found a help in distress exceedingly. The idea is of greatness and sufficiency of help.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv1–11 1. The prayer of Isa_33:2, “Be thou their arm…
1. The prayer of Isa_33:2, “Be thou their arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble,” has been answered. In the extremity of their distress, God has proved Himself the refuge and strength of His people. He has verified the prophecies of Isaiah, who bade them trust in Him alone, and denounced the popular policy of an alliance with Egypt as “a refuge of lies.” Cp. Isa_28:15; Isa_28:17; Isa_30:2.
a very present help in trouble] Lit., a help in distresses hath he let himself be found exceedingly. The words are not merely a general statement, but an appeal to recent experience. For ‘let himself be found’ cp. 2Ch_15:2; 2Ch_15:4; 2Ch_15:15; Jer_29:14.
Read full note →
1–3. Secure under His protection God’s people have nothing to fear, even though the solid earth were convulsed, and rent asunder.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv1–10 (1) Refuge and strength.—Better, a refuge and stronghold, or…
(1) Refuge and strength.—Better, a refuge and stronghold, or a sure stronghold, as in Luther’s hymn,
Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott.
Read full note →
A very present help.—Better, often found a help.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv1–11 THIS is a psalm of consolation. Israel, in great…
THIS is a psalm of consolation. Israel, in great peril (vers. 1-3, 6, 8, 9), consoles herself with the thought of God"s might, his protecting care, and his ability to shatter all the combinations that her enemies may form against her. There is nothing to determine absolutely what particular peril is spoken of; but, on the whole, the allusions seem to point to the invasion by Sennacherib, rather than to any other event in Hebrew history. Critics of such diverse schools as Hengstenberg and Professor Cheyne unite in this conclusion.
The metrical construction is very simple and regular, if, with several eminent critics, we restore, after ver. 3, the refrain of vers. 7 and 11, which seems to have accidentally fallen out. We then have three stanzas of four verses each, each stanza terminating with the same refrain.
Read full note →
"Upon Alamoth" in the title is best explained as a musical direction to be sung upon high notes, with voices shrill and clear, like those of "virgins.
God is our Refuge and Strength. (comp. Psa_18:2 Psa_94:22, etc.) A very present Help in trouble; literally, a very accessible Help one easy to be found. (comp. 2Ch_15:4)
Vers. 1, 2. The unchangeableness of God.
"God as our Refuge," etc. Mountains are the grandest of God"s earthly works; natural images of majesty, strength, durableness. Rearing their peaks above the clouds, they gather the airy treasures of snow and rain; and pour from never-failing fountains the streams that water the valleys and feed the plains. Natural fortresses, where liberty has often found an impregnable asylum. Yet they are perishable. Waters wear their rocky sides. Earthquakes and landslips topple their crags into the valleys. Volcanic fires sometimes, as in our own day, tear them from their ancient foundations, and hurl their ruins into the sea (Krakatoa, 1883). Such an overthrow of what seems strongest and most stable in outward nature, is in the text the image of the possible failure of all earthly support, defence, comfort, hope. But he who built the mountains and gave ocean its bounds, fails not, changes not. "God is our Refuge and Strength: therefore will we not fear." These are the two contrasted thoughts of our text.
I THE INSECURITY OF EVERY EARTHLY REFUGE; the instability of all human strength. This may be realized:
1. In public calamity; national disasters. Depression of trade may carry discomfort, even ruin, into hundreds of thousands of homes. Our commercial system is so complicated and nicely balanced that one gigantic failure may give a shock to the whole fabric. The tremendous possibilities of war have to be reckoned; clear though the sky may be, the war-clouds may at any time gather and burst; perhaps with destructive fury surpassing all example. Even if our own shores still escape, war expenditure may drain our resources, and the destruction of our commerce entail scarcity even famine. Some new form of pestilence may defy healing skill. The pride of the nations may be broken, their wealth wasted, their science proved unavailing.
2. In personal and family trouble. It has happened sometimes travellers well know the spots that when sky and sea were calm, and no earthquake shook the land, a whole hillside has slid down without warning, carrying down and wrecking peaceful homesteads, even overwhelming whole villages. Even so, when public prosperity is untroubled; the private foundations of your health, fortune, happiness, hope, may fail, and with brief or no warning, and all your earthly welfare be laid in ruins. (Psa_30:6, Psa_30:7)
3. In prevailing unsettlement of thought and belief. When old forms go out of fashion; traditional beliefs are discredited; trusted leaders fail; men seem to hold nothing firm or settled. Worst of all, when this agitated atmosphere infects our inward life; doubt surges in, and threatens to overwhelm faith and conviction; the ground seems to quake under our feet, and darkness to beset and bewilder our soul.
II THE NEVER-FAILING REFUGE. God"s children, in these and all other calamities, find a very present Help" in him.
1. His power to save is all-sufficient. All hearts and events are in his hand. (2Ch_14:11 2Ch_16:9)
2. His wisdom is infinite. All that can happen is known has always been known to him. He can never be at a loss to answer prayer.
3. His promises meet every emergency. (Heb_13:5, Heb_13:6)
4. His faithfulness is the immovable foundation on which we may build absolute trust. (Heb_6:18, Heb_6:19) All the experience of the past, all the hope of the future, sheds its light on the dark present, because he changes not. If there be any truth, God must be true. And if anything be certain, it is that Jesus Christ, "the true and faithful" Witness, speaks God"s truth to us. (Joh_14:6, Joh_14:10, 27 19:37 Heb_13:8)
Vers. 1, 7, 11. "Our Refuge.
The whole spirit of this noble psalm is condensed in this one phrase is our Refuge." The Hebrew, as the margin of our Bibles shows, has a different word in vers. 7, 11 from ver. 1, signifying "a high place" (Revised Version, "or a high tower") a retreat beyond reach of foes. The word in ver. 1 means "somewhere or, "some one to trust in. " These two thoughts trust and safety are well expressed in our word Refuge. " Take the whole psalm as embodying and enforcing this sentiment.
I IN TROUBLE WE NEED A REFUGE. In bodily sickness and weakness, healing ministry, careful watching, an arm to lean on. In perplexity, a wise counsellor. In want, danger, or misfortune, timely succour. In sorrow, sympathy and comfort. Under sense of sin, a voice of forgiveness. To lean helplessly on others when we ought to put our own shoulder to the wheel, is unmanly and shameful. But the pride of independence is an illusion when it makes us forget how constantly and how much we depend on one another. None is self-sufficient.
II GOD IS THE ALL-SUFFICIENT, NEVER-FAILING REFUGE OF HIS CHILDREN. The Hebrew for "very present" means literally greatly found;" not far to seek, but nigh at hand; not difficult to find, but offering himself; found by experience to be all that he promises, all that we need. Human ministry can do much in the lesser troubles of life; it is God"s appointed way of help. But when "the mountains" are removed in the great crises and overwhelming sorrows, dangers, burdens of life, nothing will serve short of this are the everlasting arms." Above all, in spiritual troubles. "Who can forgive sin but God alone?" Who but Jesus can shepherd us through the dark valley?
III WHEN TROUBLE DRIVES US TO OUR REFUGE, IT FULFILS ITS MISSION. The curse becomes a blessing, and sorrow bears fruit in joy. In fair weather the ships pass gaily by the harbour of refuge; in the storm they make for it. It is easy to stand at the helm with a fair breeze and smooth sea. Easy to stand sentry in time of peace. Easy to trust God with a well-spread table and home bright with blooming faces. In the tempest; in war, when the bullet sings through the dark night, and the blast is freezing to the bone; or by the bed of sick, perhaps dying child, not so easy! But then it is that God"s help is "found" by those who trust him. (Gen_22:14 Joh_6:18-20)
REMARK:
1. This is the testimony of experience. God is found to be such a Help and Refuge. All the conclusions of science do not rest on a broader basis of induction, a surer witness of experience, than the faith of God"s Church.
2. Trouble is not necessarily a means of grace or blessing; has no natural power to drive or lead men to God. We must hear God"s voice in it; feel his hand; be led by his Spirit. (2Co_12:8-10) Sad, indeed, if our troubles be wasted, all misery and no blessing!
HOMILIES BY C. CLEMANCE Vers. 1-11. The saint"s stronghold.
This psalm is one of those "for the sons of Korah," on which see our remarks on Ps 42. It is "a song upon Alamoth," which, according to Furst, is the proper name of a musical choir. As the word "Alamoth" means "virgins," it is supposed that the song was for soprano voices. We have, however, to deal with the contents of the song itself. It has long been a favourite with the people of God. "This is my psalm," said Luther. To this we owe his "Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott," and many other songs of the sanctuary. It would seem to have been suggested by some one of the many deliverances which the Hebrews had from the onsets of their foes; but to which of those it specially refers, is and must be left an open question. There are phrases in it which remind us of the redemption from Egypt. (cf. ver. 5 with Exo_14:27, Hebrew) There are others which recall the deliverance for which Jehoshaphat prayed. (cf. vers. 10, 11 with 2Ch_20:17, 2Ch_20:22, 2Ch_20:23) Other words vividly set forth the boasting of Sennacherib and the destruction of his army. (cf. vers. 3, 6 with 2Ki_18:29-35 2Ki_19:6, 2Ki_19:7, 2Ki_19:15-19, 2Ki_19:28, 2Ki_19:35) At each of these crises the four points of this psalm would be
(1) a raging storm;
(2) a commanding voice;
(3) a humbled foe;
(4) a jubilant song.
And how many times this song has been sung by individuals, by families, by Churches, by nations, the closest students of history best can tell. And in setting forth this song for homiletic use, we might show that it records the repeated experience of the Church; that it becomes the grateful song of the family; that it fits the lips of the believer in recounting providential mercy; that it is the constant song of the saints in rehearsing redemption"s story. To deal with all these lines of thought would far exceed our space. We will confine ourselves to the last-named use of the words before us, showing that this forty-sixth psalm means far more on the lips of the Christian than it did on the lips of Old Testament believers. It is not the song itself that is our chief joy, but that revelation of God which has made such a song possible for believers first under the Old Testament, and specially, in Christ, under the New Testament.
I THE SAINTS NOW HAVE A CLEARER VIEW OF GOD. (Heb_1:1, Heb_1:2) Of old, God spake through prophets; now he speaks in his Son. And when we hear our Lord say, "He that hath seen me, hath seen the Father," we know at once to whom to turn for the interpretation of that greatest of all words, "God." To the Hebrews, their covenant God was revealed in words; (Exo_34:6, Exo_34:7) but to us he is revealed in the living Word, in the Person of the incarnate Son of God. "In him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.
II THE SAINTS NOW CAN RECORD A GREATER DELIVERANCE than Israel of old could boast an infinitely greater one. Not only was there all the difference between rescues that were local, temporary, national, and one that is for the race for all time, but also the difference between a deliverance from Egypt, Ammon, Moab, and Assyria, and one that is from Satan and from sin; from the curse of a broken Law, and from the wrath to come. The song of Miriam is infinitely outdone by the new song, even the song of Moses and the Lamb.
III THE SAINTS CAN NOW REJOICE IN A BETTER COVENANT. At the back, so to speak, of the psalm before us there was a recognized covenant between God and the people. (Exo_19:5, 6 Psa_46:7, Psa_46:11) In the later days of David "the everlasting covenant" was the aged monarch"s hope and rest. But now, in Christ, we have the "better covenant," "the everlasting covenant," sealed and ratified with blood. (Heb_8:6 Heb_13:20 Mat_26:28) This covenant assures to the penitent, forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among them that are sanctified. It includes all that Christ is and has, as made over to those who rely on him, for ever and for ever. It is not dependent on the accidents of time or sense. No duration can weaken it; no ill designs can mar it; not all the force of earth or hell can touch these who look to "the sure mercies of David.
IV THE SAINTS NOW MAKE UP A MORE PRIVILEGED CITY. (Ver. 4) While nations were proudly and angrily raging like the wild waves of the tossing sea, there was a calm, peaceful river, whose branches peacefully flowed through the city of God. Thus beautifully does the psalmist indicate the calm which took possession of believers then, while the nations roared around them. And in "the new Jerusalem," the present "city of God," which Divine love founded, and which Divine power is building up, there still flows the deep, still, calm river of Divine peace and joy and love. Or, if it be preferred, let Dr. Watts tell " That sacred stream, thine Holy Word, That all our raging fear controls; Sweet peace thy promises afford, And give new strength to fainting souls.
Through the new city of God, the Holy Catholic Church, made up of all believers, this peaceful stream ever runs, refreshing and fertilizing wherever it flows. No frost congeals it; no heat can dry it up; it will eternally make glad the city of God. Hence
V THE SAINTS NOW PEAL FORTH A MORE JUBILANT SONG, We can sing this psalm, especially its first verse, with wider intelligence, larger meaning, deeper peace, and more expansive joy, than were possible to the Hebrews of old. As revelation has advanced, the believer"s joy in God has grown likewise. Faith becomes larger as faith"s Object becomes clearer. And no Hebrew could sing of the deliverance of his fathers so joyously as we can sing of the redemption of a world a redemption in which we can rejoice, not only in our days of sadness, but in our days of gladness too. And as the psalmist could think of God as the Lord of hosts, and yet the God of Jacob; as the Leader of the armies of heaven, and yet the Helper of the lonely, wayworn traveller; so the believer, in thinking of the redemption which is in Christ Jesus, can say, "He died for all," and also, "He loved me, and gave himself for me.
VI THE SONG IS GRANDEST WHERE TROUBLE HAS BEEN THE GREATEST. "He has been found a Help in trouble exceedingly the adverb expressive of intensity may refer to the greatness of the trouble. But however this may be, certain it is that it is in the troubles of life that the believer finds out all that God is to him. And the man who can sing this psalm most jubilantly is the one who has been weighted with care most heavily. This is the glory of our great redeeming God. He is a Friend for life"s dark days, as well as for the bright ones. Note:
1. The troubles of life often bring out to us our need of God. It is easy to be serene when trouble is far from us, and to spin fine philosophic webs; but let trouble come upon us, that will make all the difference. The late beloved Princess Alice was almost led to the dark negations of Straussianism; but when she lost her child, her trouble led her to feel her need of a Refuge, and then she sought and found the Lord. Ellen Watson, the accomplished mathematician, revelled in exact science, and "wanted nothing more," till the death of a friend broke in on her exact science, rent her heart, opened her eyes, and was the means of leading her to Jesus. The experience of a young civil engineer, whom the writer visited in his last illness, was precisely the same.
2. Those who can give us no comfort or rest in the troubles of life are of little use in such a world as this. In a letter of an aged Unitarian minister to a friend of the writer, the expression is used, "I am just battling with the inevitable." "Battling with the inevitable!" So it must be, if men turn away from our God as the Redeemer from sin, the Saviour of the lost.
3. It is the glory of Christ as our Refuge that he can hide us securely in the fiercest troubles of life. "Should storms of sevenfold thunder roll, And shake the globe from pole to pole No flaming bolt shall daunt my face For Jesus is my Hiding-place. C.
HOMILIES BY W. FORSYTH Vers. 1-11. Hope for the troubled.
Faith in God assures
I HELP IN TROUBLE. It may be some storm of outward or of inward trial comes, or both may be combined. Enemies may rage without, and sin may rouse tumults and fears within. But "God is our Refuge;" he is always near, always sufficient. The manslayer might fail to reach the place of safety; but God is at our right hand, and it needs but a cry from our hearts to secure his help. The Israelite might perish, though he had his hand on the horn of the altar; (1Ki_2:25) but if we "flee for refuge to lay held upon the hope set before us," we are safe. (Heb_6:18) It is this faith in God that gives true fearlessness. Trusting in God and doing good, who can harm us? (1Pe_3:13)
II COMFORT IN TROUBLE. (Vers. 4, 5) There is an advance here to what is more inward and spiritual to the Divine consolations of the good. The "river," with its several "streams," typifies those consolations as they are to be found in the Word and ordinances of the gospel and the love of God in Christ Jesus. They are free, affluent, abiding. Other waters may fail, (Isa_19:5) but they "go on for ever." Like the waters from the rock that followed Israel through all their wanderings, so they are ever beside us and open to us, so that whosoever will may drink and be refreshed. "God is in the midst of her." This is the secret of the whole.
III DELIVERANCE FROM TROUBLE. Trials are needful; they have their purpose, and when it is accomplished they cease. As with the wars that desolate the earth, they arc under the control of God. It is for us to be patient and trust. God"s time is the best time. It may be dark now, but the dawn of a brighter day is near (ver. 5). There may be conflict and strife now, and as good soldiers of Jesus Christ we must endure hardness; but victory is sure. We are not only to learn patience from what we 6, behold" of the works of the Lord, but from what we "know" in the secrets of our own experience (vers. 8-10); besides, we have the sure word of prophecy and of promise. "The Lord of hosts is with us;" and if so, greater is he that is for us than all they that can be against us. "The God of Jacob is our Refuge; "and if so, we may be confident that God will keep us in all places whither we go, and will not only sanctify unto us all our trials, but bring us in the end into the land of everlasting peace. W.F.
HOMILIES BY C. SHORT Vers. 1-11. A Divine Refuge and Strength.
The ground-thought is, "God is our Refuge and Strength," and it returns with only a slight change of form at the end of the second and third strophes. The strophes are: vers. 1-3; vers. 4-7; vers. 8-11.
I GOD"S RELATION TO US.
1. A relation of strength. (Vers. 6, 7, 9)
2. Of intimate nearness. (Vers. 5, 7) "In the midst of her." "With us." Immanuel. How near God is to us in Christ!
3. Of parental tenderness. "The God of Jacob is our Refuge." Christ calls us "little children," denoting how God feels toward us.
II WHAT WE SHOULD BE IN CONSEQUENCE OF SUCH A RELATION.
1. Fearless amid the greatest changes. (Vers. 2, 3) But evil men have much to fear from God.
2. Glad or joyful. (Ver. 4) God will help "right early," or "in the morning.
3. Obedient to the omnipotent God. "Be still" is equivalent to "know what I am, and cease from wars against my people." "He breaketh the bow of the strongest, and cutteth the spear in sunder; be burneth the chariot in the fire. S.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Charles H. Spurgeon 1885 · Public Domain On vv1–11 Title. To the Chief Musician. He who could sing…
Title. To the Chief Musician. He who could sing other Psalms so well was fitly entrusted with this noble ode. Trifles may be left to commoner songsters, but the most skilful musician in Israel must be charged with the due performance of this song, with the most harmonious voices and choicest music. For the Sons of Korah. One alone cannot fulfil the praise, there must be picked choristers under him, whose joyful privilege it shall be to celebrate the service of song in the house of the Lord. As to why the sons of Korah were selected, see our remarks at the head of Psalm 42. It may be well to add that they were a division of the Levites who took their turn in serving at the temple. All the works of holy service ought not to be monopolised by one order of talent, each company of believers should in due course enjoy the privilege. None ought to be without a share in the service of God.
A Song upon Alamoth. Which may denote that the music was to be pitched high for the treble or soprano voices of the Hebrew virgins. They went forth in their dances to sing the praises of David when he smote the Philistine, it was meet that they should make merry and be glad when the victories of Jehovah became their theme. We need to praise God upon virgin hearts, with souls chaste towards his fear, with lively and exalted expressions, and happy strains. Or the word Alamoth may refer to shrill sounding instruments, as in 1Ch 15:20, where we read that Zechariah, and Eliab, and Benaiah were to praise the Lord "with psalteries on Alamoth." We are not always, in a slovenly manner, to fall into one key, but with intelligence are to modulate our praises and make them fittingly expressive of the occasion and the joy it creates in our souls. These old musical terms cannot be interpreted with certainty, but they are still useful because they show that care and skill should be used in our sacred music.
Read full note →
Subject. Happen what may, the Lord's people are happy and secure, this is the doctrine of the Psalm, and it might, to help our memories, be called THE SONG OF HOLY CONFIDENCE, were it not that from the great reformer's love to this soul-stirring hymn it will probably be best remembered as LUTHER'S PSALM.
Division. It is divided by inspired authority into three parts, each of which ends with Selah.
Ver. 1. God is our refuge and strength. Not our armies, or our fortresses. Israel's boast is in Jehovah, the only living and true God. Others vaunt their impregnable castles, placed on inaccessible rocks, and secured with gates of iron, but God is a far better refuge from distress than all these: and when the time comes to carry the war into the enemy's territories, the Lord stands his people in better stead than all the valour of legions or the boasted strength of chariot and horse. Soldiers of the cross, remember this, and count yourselves safe, and make yourselves strong in God. Forget not the personal possessive word our; make sure each one of your portion in God, that you may say, "He is my refuge and strength." Neither forget the fact that God is our refuge just now, in the immediate present, as truly as when David penned the word. God alone is our all in all. All other refuges are refuges of lies, all other strength is weakness, for power belongeth unto God: but as God is all sufficient, our defence and might are equal to all emergencies. A very present help in trouble, or in distress he has so been found, he has been tried and proved by his people. He never withdraws himself from his afflicted. He is their help, truly, effectually, constantly; he is present or near them, close at their side and ready for their succour, and this is emphasized by the word very in our version, he is more present than friend or relative can be, yea, more nearly present than even the trouble itself. To all this comfortable truth is added the consideration that his assistance comes at the needed time. He is not as the swallows that leave us in the winter; he is a friend in need and a friend indeed. When it is very dark with us, let brave spirits say, "Come, let us sing the forty-sixth Psalm."
"A fortress firm, and steadfast rock,
Is God in time of danger;
A shield and sword in every shock,
From foe well known or stranger."
Title. The LXX referring to the notion of the theme (Mlu), occultavit, render it uper twn krufiwn, for the hidden; and the Latin, pro arcanis; and the rest of the ancient interpreters take the same course; the Chaldee referring it to Coreh, and those that were hidden, i.e., swallowed up, by the earth with him, whilst these sons of Coreh escaped; as if the mention of the sons of Coreh in the title, by whom this song was to be sung, referred the whole Psalm to that story. Accordingly, verse 2, when the Hebrew reads, "Though the earth be removed, "the paraphrase is, "When our fathers were changed from the earth." Henry Hammond.
Title. The title is peculiar, "Upon Alamoth, "suggesting "a choir of virgins, "as if this virgin choir were selected to sing a Psalm that tells of perils and fears and alarms abounding, in order to show that even the feeble virgins may in that day sing without dread, because of "The Mighty One" on their side. Andrew A. Bonar.
Title. "Upon Alamoth." (To be sung) en soprano. Armand de Mestral, quoted by Perowne.
Whole Psalm. We sing this Psalm to the praise of God, because God is with us, and powerfully and miraculously preserves and defends his church and his word, against all fanatical spirits, against the gates of hell, against the implacable hatred of the devil, and against all the assaults of the world, the flesh and sin. Martin Luther.
Whole Psalm. Luther and his companions, with all their bold readiness for danger and death in the cause of truth, had times when their feelings were akin to those of a divine singer, who said, "Why art thou cast down, O my soul?" But in such hours the unflinching Reformer would cheerily say to his friend Melancthon, "Come, Philip, let us sing the forty-sixth Psalm; and they could sing it in Luther's own characteristic version":
A sure stronghold our God is He,
A timely shield and weapon;
Our help he will be, and set us free
From every ill can happen.
And were the world with devils filled,
All eager to devour us,
Our souls to fear shall little yield,
They cannot overpower us.
S. W. Christophers, in "Hymn Writers and their Hymns, "1866
Ver. 1. God is our refuge and strength, etc. It begins abruptly, but nobly; ye may trust in whom and in what ye please; but GOD (ELOHIM) is our refuge and strength. A very present help. A help found to be very powerful and effectual in straits and difficulties. The words are very emphatic: (dam aumn twrub hrze), ezrah betsaroth nimtsa meod, "He is found an exceeding, or superlative, help in difficulties." Such we have found him, and therefore celebrate his praise. Adam Clarke.
Ver. 1. The song of faith in troublous times.
1. Our refuge. Our only, impregnable, accessible, delightful place of retreat is our God.
2. Our strength. Our all sufficient, unconquerable, honourable, and emboldening strength is our God.
3. Our help. Ever near, sympathising, faithful, real, and potent is our God.
Ver. 1. A very present help in trouble. Religion never so valuable as in seasons of trouble, sickness, and death. God is present helping us to bear trouble, to improve it, and to survive it. Present by gracious communications and sweet manifestations; present most when he seems absent, restraining, overruling, and sanctifying trouble. Trust and wait. James Smith.
Psalms 46:2*
Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 4, 8, 9, 10, 11 God is our refuge and strength.
Psa_46:1-11
God is our refuge and strength.
Read full note →
A psalm of war and peace
The psalm is divided into three parts, as the Selahs at the end of the third and seventh verses indicate. The first is shorter by one verse, but, were the refrain added to it--it has been said that it was once there--then the psalm stands with a symmetry almost unique. As it is, it has not many rivals. This treasure-house of sacred emotions is built of polished stones, and they are fitly set.
1. The first part teaches us to test and try our faith. The singer anticipates a wider storm, and in imagination launches forth in troubled seas. He imagines a break-up, the sea prevailing on the shore, mountains shaken with the swelling thereof; yet through all his faith remains, and he calmly trusts in God. By anticipation he makes preparation for such a crisis, and disciplines his soul to face such an emergency. Our faith is not for an hour or a day: it is to be our mainstay through life and in the hour of death: it is meant to steady and strengthen us in every calamity, however sad, and in every crisis, however sudden. Let us do with it as men do with the anchor chain--try it in fair weather, subject it to a strain greater even than it will likely be called on to bear. Many a faith, once strong, is allowed to rust into weakness, just through sheer neglect.
2. The second part teaches us wisely to remember and profit by the past. Jerusalem had been besieged by the mighty Sennacherib, and delivered miraculously; and the remembrance of the experience strengthened their faith. That night, when the foe surged around her and beleaguered her gates, was a night of omen and portent; but the watchers, in the stillness of the night, still heard the sound of Siloas brook as it rippled and tinkled through the silence; and they knew that God was with them. We, whose national life is seldom perilled either when the heathen rage or kingdoms are moved, must never forget that there are mercies as great surrounding us as if our path was more troubled. When the summer sun shines and the moon walks forth, we have in them as great tokens of His goodness as was displayed in the deliverance of Jerusalem. Pity the man whose life has gone well with him and who cannot say, The Lord is good: He has been with me.
3. We learn from the third part rightly to act with regard to the present. The time of war is over, its fierce flame has spent itself in desolation. We walk over the battlefield, and feel the silence which has fallen. Then the Divine command comes: Be still, and know that I am God. All the peace there is on earth has risen out of the storm of war. Its hills were shaped into beauty amid the storms of nature: the grass grows from the detritus and wreck of storms: our liberties have all been purchased in war: Jesus Christ Himself comes from Bozra with dyed garments.
4. Such was the song of war the Hebrew singer sang; now it is the song of the gospel of peace and of victory; for peace hath her victories no less renowned than war. By the heading, A Song upon Alamoth, you will see this was a song for the dance, a song for the women to sing. It could be given to those with the gentlest hearts and silentest lives, as well as to those who had brave deeds to do. It was eminently Luthers psalm, on which he founded his own hymn, and is plainly fitted to be a song of the Church. (J. A. Black, M. A.)
The moral mirror of the good
I. The earthly scene of the good is that of tumult and opposition.
1. To remind us of the constant presence of moral evil.
2. To heighten our aspirations for a peaceful future.
II. The present resources of the good are adequate to every emergency.
1. Their resources are in God.
2. Their resources, being in God, are ample.
(1) They are ever present, lie is ever present: God is in the midst of her; we have no distance to go.
(2) They are ever certain. God shall help her, and that right early, or at the breaking of the morning. Deliverance is often delayed till the last moment, but it will come. Abraham in offering Isaac; Israel at the Red Sea, etc.
III. The spirit of the good may, even now, be calm and triumphant. We will not fear. We will be still, and know that He is God; and more, we will sing in the fiercest tumult, The Lord of Hosts is with us, etc. (Homilist.)
God our refuge
There is an allusion to the cities of refuge.
I. What God is to the Christian.
1. A refuge, which greatly excels those cities of Israel which were appointed for refuge to the man-slayer. It is in Jesus: is very near to the guilty; believing brings him into it at once: it is not temporary, but eternal: those refuges were only for the innocent, but this for the sinful: those were only for protection, not for liberty; only the death of the high priest made the refugees free, but this, how different: those were of no avail to the feeble and weak, they were not helped in any way to escape.
2. Strength: through His Spirit promises means of grace.
3. A very present help in trouble: such as the day of contrition, of temptation, of trial, of death.
II. The confidence the believer has in God.
1. He says he will not fear. Inside the city of refuge the refugee was safe: so the soul in Christ (Rom_8:1).
2. God, being his help and strength, the want and loss of everything is supplied.
3. This absence of fear is not temerity. They have abundant reason for saying, Therefore will not we fear. (Pulpit Analyst.)
Mans refuge, strength and help
The author of this psalm is unknown, but the occasion, it is almost unanimously agreed, was the deliverance of Jerusalem from the army of Sennacherib. Christians in all ages have drawn encouragement and strength from its promises and triumphant declarations. Luther, in trouble, was accustomed to say to his friend Melanchthon, Come, Philip,. let us sing the forty-sixth psalm: when his face would brighten like the sky after a summer shower. Even the profligate Byron, infidel, yet true poet, breaks forth in lofty strains as he tells us how The Assyrian came down like a wolf on the fold.
I. God as a refuge. Gods children often need such refuge. A bird pursued by a hawk took shelter in the bosom of a man, who said to it, I will not kill thee nor betray thee to thine enemy, seeing thou hast fled to me for sanctuary. Christ came into this world that the soul hunted by the fierce hawks of temptation and sin might have a safe refuge.
II. God as the strength of the believer. Many would be Christians if they could only be assured that they would be eminent Christians. God never promises that, but only strength and grace. We are entirely dependent on Him for this. It has enabled men to--
1. Endure great trials.
2. To conquer. As the old crusaders put upon their bannered cross, In hoc signo vinces, so many a believer to-day faces and conquers his enemies in the strength that God gives.
III. God is also a very present help in trouble. This world, beautiful as it is, has its dark and gloomy side. No one is exempt from trial. A motherless little girl was asked, What do you do without a mother to whom to tell your troubles? She replied, My mother told me before she died to go to the Lord Jesus. She said that He had always been her friend, and that if I would go to Him He Would always be my friend. But, said the questioner, He is a great way off, and has so much to do; He cannot attend to you. I dont know how much He has to do, said the child, but He has said He would take care of me, and I believe He will. Would that we all had the faith of this orphan child. (Robert Bruce Hull.)
The safe shelter
There are many who make their wealth their refuge. Others trust in their health and strength. They say, Look at this strong arm, this robust chest, and this firm body! Talk of death: ah! ah! see my strength!
I. The character of our God offers to us a sure refuge, for there is no deception in Him. You have had fathers and mothers whose noble testimony to the character of God has been before you. They trusted in Him; and were their lives a failure?
II. Our father God is a refuge from all the attacks of satan. Our Father will not allow the devil to battle with His children above their tiny strength.
III. Our Father is a refuge from the wicked desires of our hearts.
IV. Our heavenly Father is our refuge from the allurements of the sinful world. Keep as far as ever you can from the paths that lead so many to a ruined life and an agonized death.
V. In Jesus we see that god is our shelter from the smitings of a convicted conscience.
(W. Birch.)
A very present help in trouble.--
Sure help
Since the days of King David the forty-sixth psalm has been a song of comfort for Gods people. It was the song of the Christian martyrs of Europe, and of the persecuted Quakers of this country; and when our English dragoons pursued Gods people in Scotland as if they were wild beasts. We cannot all bear trouble alike. Some men pass through deep waters without apparently feeling it very much, while others appear old almost before they are young men in years. Trouble comes in different ways. Sometimes through trade or business. When you lose your money, why should you also lose your peace? If your joy rests on your money, I would not give twopence for it. God is never so near as when we are in trouble. If this be so, let us march bravely under our burden, like Christian soldiers. Others may have trouble because they are vexed by a few enemies. If you are successful in any great and good work, men of feeble and envious mind will seek opportunities of showing their spite; but it ought not to vex and annoy you. And others may be in some trouble because of bereavement. (W. Birch.)
Our present help
Some years ago on fine Saturday afternoons it was my custom to scamper in the fields with some of our fatherless children. Once we went round by Salford to Weaste Lane, returning by the river bank and the adjoining fields. We were very weary and hungry when we reached Throstle Nest, and much disappointed to see no ferry-boat there to carry us across the river. After shouting to the opposite side until we were hoarse, we gave it up in despair, and I said to the children, What shall we do? Little Annie, a tiny girl with golden hair, replied, I dont care, while you are here! Does our God ever forget to attend to the requests of His people? When He has been very busy with revivals in ten thousand worlds, does He say to His angels, Ah, angels, I am sorry I forgot to attend to that poor man in his trouble? No, no! Our God never forgets. He is always a present help in time of trouble.
I. The Lord is our present help when we are tried by temptation. When Joseph was being tempted every day, the wife of his master may have said, Nobody shall know; but God was Josephs present help in that continual temptation. How can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God? The fact of Gods presence is the most powerful remedy against every temptation.
II. The Lord is a present help when we are enduring trouble. All Gods people are tried. If we were not tried we should not be worth much in the battlefield of faith. Only tried veterans can be relied on in a difficult enterprise. These are they who came out of great tribulation. If you are tried, be not disheartened; remember that God will be a present help to enable you to bear up in every trouble. It is Gods will to try us, because it is the only way to make us meet for the grandeur of heaven.
III. Our God is a present help when we are striving to attain a noble life. Notice the student working hard, long after the midnight hour has struck. See, be binds a wet cloth round his head to calm the fever of his brain; and the world says it is all right; yet when they see a man struggling to overcome bad passions and acquire virtue, they have but little sympathy; but God beholds all your weary battles, and encourages you with His presence.
IV. Our God is our present help when he assures us of salvation. You may have heard of a ship which sailed off from a sinking vessel and left the crew and passengers to perish; but our God, in Christ, shall leave no sinner to perish in the ocean of iniquity, without making an effort to rescue him. Whosoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. You may reply, Ah, but, sir, Christ would refuse me, because my soul is diseased. Some insurance societies might refuse your body, but Christ will never refuse any mans soul. A man who is in very bad health, and in despair about his life, goes to a physician and tells him all about his case. Having listened to all lie has to say, the doctor comes up to him with a cheerful face, saying, Well, I can guarantee to cure you. Why, the man goes away almost better! Now, Christ says to every soul that is diseased with sin, I can cure you. And He has cured myriads of such souls. (W. Birch.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Expositor's Bible 1887 · Public Domain On v1 Psalms 46
Psalms 46
THERE are two events, one or other of which probably supplies the historical basis of this and the two following psalms. One is Jehoshaphats deliverance from the combined forces of the bordering nations. {2 Chronicles 20} Delitzsch adopts this as the occasion of the psalm. But the other more usually accepted reference to the destruction of Sennacheribs army is more probable. Psalms 46 and 48 have remarkable parallelisms with Isaiah. The noble contrast of the quiet river which makes glad the city of God with a tossing, earth-shaking sea resembles the prophets threatening that the effect of refusing the "waters of Shiloah which go softly" would be inundation by the strong and mighty river, the Assyrian power. And the emblem is expanded in the striking language of Isa_33:21 : "The glorious Lord will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams; wherein shall go no galley with oars." Encircled by the flashing links of that broad moat, Jerusalem sits secure. Again, the central thought of the refrain in the psalm, "The Lord of hosts is with us," is closely allied to the symbolic name which Isaiah gave as a pledge of deliverance, "Immanuel, God with us."
Read full note →
The structure is simple. The three strophes into which the psalm falls set forth substantially the same thought, that Gods presence is safety and peace, whatever storms may roar. This general theme is exhibited in the first strophe (Psa_46:1-3) in reference to natural convulsions; in the second (Psa_46:4-7) in reference to the rage of hostile kingdoms; and in the third (Psa_46:8-11) men are summoned to behold a recent example of Gods delivering might, which establishes the truth of the preceding utterances and has occasioned the psalm. The grand refrain which closes the second and third strophes should probably be restored at the end of Psa_46:3.
In the first strophe the psalmist paints chaos come again, by the familiar figures of a changed earth, tottering mountains sinking in the raging sea from which they rose at creation, and a wild ocean with thunderous dash appalling the ear and yeasty foam terrifying the eye, sweeping in triumphant insolence over all the fair earth. It is prosaic to insist on an allegorical meaning for the picture. It is rather a vivid sketch of utter confusion, dashed in with three or four bold strokes, an impossible case supposed in order to bring out the unshaken calm of those who have God for ark in such a deluge. He is not only a sure refuge and stronghold, but one easy of access when troubles come. There is little good in a fortress, however impregnable, if it is so difficult to reach that a fugitive might be slain a hundred times before he was safe in it. But this high tower, which no foe can scale, can be climbed at a thought, and a wish lifts us within its mighty walls. The psalmist speaks a deep truth, verified in the spiritual life of all ages, when he celebrates the refuge of the devout soul as "most readily to be found."
As the text stands, this strophe is a verse too short, and Psa_46:3 drags if connected with "will not we fear." The restoration of the refrain removes the anomaly in the length of the strophe, and enables us to detach Psa_46:3 from the preceding. Its sense is then completed, if we regard it as the protasis of a sentence of which the refrain is the apodosis, or if, with Cheyne and others, we take Psa_46:3, "Let its waters roar," etc.-what of that? "Jehovah of hosts is with us." If the strophe is thus completed, it conforms to file other two, in each of which may be traced a division into two pairs of verses. These two verse pairs of the first strophe would then be inverted parallelism, -the former putting security in God first, and surrounding trouble second; the latter dealing with the same two subjects, but in reversed sequence.
The second strophe brings a new picture to view with impressive suddenness, which is even more vividly dramatic if the refrain is not supplied. Right against the vision of confusion comes one of peace. The abrupt introduction of "a river" as an isolated noun, which dislocates grammatical structure, is almost an exclamation. "There is a river" enfeebles the swing of the original. We might almost translate, "Lo! a river!" Jerusalem was unique among historical cities in that it had no great river. It had one tiny thread of water, of which perhaps the psalmist is thinking. But whether there is here the same contrast between Siloams gentle flow and the surging waters of hostile powers as Isaiah sets forth in the passage already referred to, {Isa_8:6} the meaning of this gladdening stream is the ever-flowing communication of God Himself in His grace. The stream is the fountain in flow. In the former strophe we hear the roar of the troubled waters, and see the firm hills toppling into their depths. Now we behold the gentle flow of the river, gliding through the city, with music in its ripples and sunshine in its flash and refreshment in its waters, parting into many arms and yet one in diversity, and bringing life and gladness wherever it comes. Not with noise nor tumult, but in silent communication, Gods grace and peace refresh the soul. Power is loud, but omnipotence is silent. The roar of all the billows is weak when compared with the quiet sliding onwards of that still stream. It has its divisions. As in old days each mans bit of garden was irrigated by a branch led from the stream, so in endless diversity, corresponding to the infinite greatness of the source and the innumerable variety of mens needs, Gods grace comes. "All these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally." The streams gladden the city of God with the gladness of satisfied thirsts, with the gladness which comes from the contact of the human spirit with Divine completeness. So supplied, the city may laugh at besiegers. It has unfailing supplies within itself, and the enemy may cut off all surface streams, but its "water shall be sure."
Substantially the same thought is next stated in plain words: "God is in the midst of her." And therefore two things follow. One is unshaken stability, and another is help at the right time-"at the turn of the morning." "The Lord is in the midst of her"-that is a perennial fact. "The Lord shall help her"-that is the "grace for seasonable help." He, not we, determines when the night shall thin away its blackness into morning twilight. But we may be sure that the presence which is the pledge of stability and calm even in storm and darkness will flash into energy of help at the moment when He wills. The same expression is used to mark the time of His looking from the pillar of cloud and troubling the Egyptians, and there may be an allusion to that standing instance of His help here. "It is not for you to know the times and the seasons"; but this we may know-that the Lord of all times will always help at the right time; He will not come so quickly as to anticipate our consciousness of need, nor delay so long as to let us be irrevocably engulfed in the bog. "Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. When He heard therefore that he was sick, He abode two days still in the same place where He was." Yet He came in time.
With what vigour the short, crashing clauses of Psa_46:6 describe the wrath and turbulence of the nations, and the instantaneous dissolving of their strength into weakness at a word from those awful lips! The verse may be taken as hypothetical or as historical. In either case we see the sequence of events as by a succession of lightning flashes. The hurry of the style, marked by the omission of connecting particles, reflects the swiftness of incident, like Veni, vidi, vici. The utterance of Gods will conquers all. At the sound of that voice stillness and a pause of dread fall on the "roar" (same word as in Psa_46:3) of the nations, like the hush in the woods when thunder rolls. He speaks, and all meaner sounds cease. "The lion hath roared, who shall not fear?" No material vehicle is needed. To every believer in God there is an incomprehensible action of the Divine Will on material things; and no explanations bridge the gulf recognised in the psalmists broken utterances, which declare sequence and not mode of operation: "He uttered His voice, the earth melted."
Again the triumph of the refrain peals forth, with its musical accompaniment prolonging the impression. In it the psalmist gives voice, for himself and his fellows, to their making their own of the general truths which the psalm has been declaring. The two names of God set forth a twofold ground for confidence. "Jehovah of hosts" is all the more emphatic here since the Second Book of the Psalter is usually Elohistic. It proclaims Gods eternal, self-existent Being, and His covenant relation as well as His absolute authority over the ranked forces of the universe, personal or impersonal, spiritual or material. The Lord of all these legions is with us. When we say "The God of Jacob," we reach back into the past and lay hold of the Helper of the men of old as ours. What He has been, He is: what He did, He is doing still. The river is full today, though the van of the army did long ago drink and were satisfied. The bright waters are still as pellucid and abundant as then, and the last of the rearguard will find them the same.
The third strophe summons to contemplate with fixed attention the "desolations" made by some great manifestation of Gods delivering power. It is presupposed that these are still visible. Broken bows, splintered spears, half-charred chariots, strew the ground, and Israel can go forth without fear and feast their eyes on these tokens of what God has done for them. The language is naturally applied to the relics of Sennacheribs annihilated force. In any case it points to a recent act of Gods, the glad surprise of which palpitates all through the psalm. The field of history is littered with broken, abandoned weapons, once flourished in hands long since turned to dust; and the city and throne of God against which they were lifted remain unharmed. The voice which melted the earth speaks at the close of the psalm; not now with destructive energy, but in warning, through which tones of tenderness can be caught. God desires that foes would cease their vain strife before it proves fatal. "Desist" is here an elliptical expression, of which the full form is "Let your hands drop"; or, as we say, "Ground your weapons," and learn how vain is a contest with Him who is God, and whose fixed purpose is that all nations shall know and exalt Him. The prospect hinted at in the last words, of a world submissive to its King. softens the terrors of His destructive manifestations, reveals their inmost purpose, and opens to foes the possibility of passing, not as conquerors, but as subjects, and therefore fellow citizens, through the gate into the city.
William Robertson Nicoll, ed., The Expositor's Bible (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1887–1910) — public domain. 65 of 66 books (1 Corinthians is not separately keyed, as that volume carries no machine-parseable verse references); section-level commentary keyed to the opening verse. Introductory and overview sections not keyed to a specific passage are excluded.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v1 Superscription.—“To the Chief Musician for the sons of Korah.”…
INTRODUCTION
Superscription.—“To the Chief Musician for the sons of Korah.” See Introduction to Psalms 42. “A song upon Alamoth.” Great uncertainty attaches to the meaning of “Alamoth.” Some are of opinion that it is the name of a musical instrument. Others that it is the name of a melody. While Fuerst says it is the “proper name of a musical choir, dwelling perhaps in עַלֶּמֶת, over whom was placed a מְנצֵּחַ (director) Psalms 46.” The word occurs in 1Ch_15:20, last clause, which, says Fuerst, “is to be understood with harps over the corps Alamoth (to direct it); לְנַצֵּחַ be applied as it stands in 1Ch_15:21.”
Read full note →
It is impossible to determine who the author of the psalm is. Nor are we able to say with certainty upon what occasion it was composed. We think it very probable that it refers to the threatened invasion of Jerusalem by Sennacherib, and the destruction of his army in the night by the angel of the Lord. See 2 Kings 19 and Isaiah 36, 37. Barnes points out that “all the circumstances in that invasion—the tumultuous hosts summoned for the war (Isa_36:2); the overthrow of numerous nations by their armies (Isa_36:18-21); the siege of Jerusalem itself (Isa_36:2); the confidence of Hezekiah and his people in God when the city was besieged (Isa_37:14-20); and the final overthrow of the Assyrian host by the angel of the Lord (Isa_37:36) agree well with all the statements in the psalm.”
A TUMULTUOUS WORLD AND A TRANQUIL CHURCH
(Psa_46:1-7.)
We have here—
I. A tumultuous World. The poet sets before us a scene of wild commotion. Kingdoms were shaking; peoples were roaring, the earth itself seemed unstable, the sea was rolling in trouble and breaking in thunder, and the firm and lofty mountains seemed to tremble with breaking of the billows upon their base. This would very fitly describe the state of affairs at the time of the invasions of Sennacherib. That monarch has already taken “all the cities of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin by force.” Hezekiah has made considerable preparations for the defence of Jerusalem. He has “strengthened the walls, added to the fortifications, laid in great store of arrows and other ammunition, deepened the trenches, and cut off all the waters which might have supplied the besieging army.” In order to avert the storm, Hezekiah submitted to Sennacherib, and paid to him an enormous tribute, for which he was obliged to strip the gold from the walls and pillars of the Temple, Sennacherib having promised that, if this tribute were paid, he would depart in a friendly manner. And then, although he departed to the conquest of Egypt, he perfidiously left behind him a large force which marched upon Jerusalem and demanded its unconditional surrender. Thus Sennacherib, with his immense and apparently irresistible army, was spreading commotion and terror among the nations. The tumult described by the Psalmist is a picture of the commotions of the world to-day. At this moment in Europe we have the tumult of war, and the unrest and anxiety of statesmen and nations as to “the balance of power.” In politics at home there are the strife and contention of parties. In the commercial world there are countless anxieties and fierce competitions. Even the religious world is not free from the noise of controversy and the din of party strife. In every realm of life there are unrest and tumult to a greater or less extent. All things here are in commotion. “What nations have passed away, like tracts of earth carried into the midst of the sea! What mighty empires, like mountains, have sunk into the abyss! What an emblem of earthly change and disquiet is the ocean! restless when most at rest; and affording no security, under its most placid aspects, against the rushing storm and the heaving surge. How much is swept away already! and there are still mountains of worldly pomp and power which at this moment ‘shake with the swelling thereof.’ ”
1. The tumult of the world is an evidence of the sin of the world. In some instances it is a direct expression of sin. In all cases it is a sign of sin. The world is tumultuous because of the guilt, the selfish ambitions, the evil passions, &c., of men.
2.The tumult of the world will one day be removed. The great mission of Christ is to put away sin. In that mission He will certainly succeed. When sin is put away all strife and tumult will cease. There is a calm and peaceful realm where strife and commotion are unknown, because sin is unknown there.
II. A tranquil Church. The poet sketches a scene of most delightful quiet. He shows us “a valley over which the winds sweep, and are not felt; along which the river flows and is not troubled, in which stands the city of God.” We have here—
1. An assurance of security. “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear,” &c. “God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved.”
(1) The ground of this assurance. (a) The presence of God. “God is in the midst of her.” “The Lord of hosts is with us.” God in the visible symbol of His presence dwelt between the cherubim in the holy of holies. The holy city was His chosen abode, and He would defend it. The Jews under Hezekiah were His people, and He would protect them. The city or people which is kept by God is inviolably secure. The Church can never suffer real loss or harm while she is able truthfully to say, “The Lord of hosts is with us. God is in the midst of us.” (b) The seasonable help of God. “God shall help her, and that right early.” Margin: “When the morning appeareth.” Hengstenberg: “God helps her at the break of morning.” “Distress with the Lord’s people can have only, as it were, a night’s quarters. Whenever the morning breaks, the Lord drives it from its resting-place, and sends another, an abiding guest, salvation. There is probably an allusion to the overthrow of the Assyrians. Then, in reality, did there stand but one night between the highest pitch of distress and the most complete deliverance, comp. Isa_17:14 : ‘And behold at evening-tide trouble, before the morning comes, it is no more’ (Psa_37:36); ‘And they arose in the morning, and lo! they were all dead corpses.’ ”
(2) The vindication of this assurance. (a) In the character and resources of God. Character. He is “the God of Jacob,”—a God in covenant with His people, a faithful God; therefore it is wise to trust Him. Resources. He is “the Lord of hosts.” He rules the hosts of the stars. The armies of heaven—the angels—loyally follow His command. And He has sovereign right and power over all the hosts of men. “Hosts may be against us, but we need not fear them if the Lord of hosts be with us.” “Fear not; for they that be with us are more than they that be with them.” (b) In the mighty doings of God. “He uttered His voice, the earth melted.” Barnes says: “The very earth seemed to melt or dissolve before Him. Everything became still. The danger passed away at His command, and the raging world became calm.” Mark the ease with which it is done. “It shall not cost the Lord any business to despatch the enemies of His people; let Him show Himself a little, let Him but say the word, and they are gone; as snow before the sun, or fat cast into the fire, so are they consumed; He uttered His voice, the earth melted.”—Dickson. Remarkably this is illustrated in the destruction of the Assyrians.
“For the angel of death spread his wings on the blast,
And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed!
And the eyes of the sleepers wax’d deadly and chill,
And their hearts but once heaved, and for ever grew still.”
In the morning one hundred and eighty-five thousand warriors lay dead upon the plain. God had spoken; and Assyria was utterly crushed, and Jerusalem was delivered. So will it be with all the enemies of the Church when God ariseth.
2. An assurance of Refreshment. “There is a river the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God.” This figure was probably suggested by the arrangements made by Hezekiah for cutting off the water-supply from the invading army and securing the same to Jerusalem. The refreshment and gladness afforded by the Divine provisions are set forth under the image of this river. “How fit an emblem is this of the supplies with which God blesses His Church! See it in the rich supply of truth and grace. Here flows the stream of heavenly truth, bright and pure. It has widened as it has flowed; and it now sweeps with all the fulness of the last and perfect revelation from God. Grace to apply that revelation to practical purposes is equally free. ‘If any man lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not.’ See here the rich supply of grace and blessing. Here the penitent guilty are freely forgiven; here the corrupt and degenerate heart is made new, &c. Life, love, and holiness, all are given. Life, supernatural vigour, love, which connects our affections with God and heaven; and holiness, leading to present fellowship with God, and fitting us for a blissful immortality.”—Watson. Here in the Church the “river” of Divine grace flows deep and full, and from it “streams” of blessing go forth diffusing life and joy.
CONCLUSION.—Let us seek this trustful and conquering spirit, which, in the midst of dangers and when confronted by powerful foes, confidently sings,—“God is our refuge and strength,” &c. Now, in the midst of the strife and storm, let us be glad and rejoice in the Lord. In due season victory and calm rest shall be ours.
CONTEMPLATION OF THE DOINGS OF GOD
(Psa_46:8-11.)
The Psalmist here calls upon the people to behold the marvellous doings of God, which laid so firm a foundation for confidence in His protection and help.
I. The object contemplated. The Poet calls to the contemplation of “the works of the Lord,” and indicates what works he particularly refers to. He speaks of the “desolations He hath made in the earth.” Hengstenberg says: “The desolation must have for its object those who had raised themselves against the people of God, and threatened to swallow them up.” And Matthew Henry: “The destruction they designed to bring upon the Church has been turned upon themselves. War is a tragedy which commonly destroys the stage it is acted on.” What desolations were brought upon the Assyrians when the angel of the Lord smote in their camp one hundred and eighty-five thousand men! “He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth.” “The means by which God silences war to the end of the earth,” says Hengstenberg, “is the overthrow of the wild conquerors and tyrranical lords.” Barnes points out that “the overthrow of the Assyrian army would probably put an end to all the wars then raging in the world. The Assyrian empire was then the most mighty on the globe; it was engaged in wide schemes of conquest; it had already overrun many of the smaller kingdoms of the world (Isa_37:18-20); and it hoped to complete its conquests, and to secure the ascendancy over the entire earth, by the subjugation of India and Egypt. When the vast army of that empire, engaged in such a purpose, was overthrown, the consequence would be, that the nations would be at rest, or that there would be universal peace.” “He breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder.” The enemies of the Church were “rendered as incapable of prosecuting their devastations, or even of preserving what they had won, as if their implements of war were destroyed.” “He burneth the chariot in the fire.” There may be a reference here “to a custom of collecting the spoils of war into a heap and setting them on fire. This was particularly done when the victors were unable to remove them, or so to secure them as to preclude all danger of their being taken again and used against themselves. This custom is alluded to by Virgil, Æn. viii. 561, 562.
‘Qualis eram, cum primam aciem Præneste sub ipsa,
Stravi, scutorumque incendi victor acervos.’
The idea here is, that God had wholly overthrown the foe, and had prevented all danger of his returning again for purposes of conquest.”—Barnes.
This termination of war and inauguration of universal peace is an earnest of what He will one day do finally and for ever. “They shall beat their swords into plough-shares,” &c. (Isa_2:4, and Mic_4:3). The Lord speed the day when the war drum shall throb no longer, and the battle flags be for ever furled.
II. The design of the contemplation. There is some wise and worthy end aimed at in thus calling upon men to contemplate the doings of the Lord. What is that end?
1. The warning of the enemies of the Church. Let them behold these desolations, and learn that if they oppose God and His cause, however mighty they may be, they will be broken “in pieces like a potter’s vessel”.
2. The encouragement of the Church. Let the people of God look on His doings on their behalf and sing with increased force and fervour,—“The Lord of hosts is with us, the God of Jacob is our refuge.” (See remarks on Psa_46:7.) Let them not fear the wrath and power of any enemy; for the Lord hath said, “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper.” In this way history is an ever-growing aid to faith.
3. The instruction of all. The Lord speaks: “Be still, and know that I am God, I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.” Let the world listen and cease from war against the people of God, “which, as the foregoing fact shows, is a contest of feebleness against omnipotence, ruinous to those who undertake it.” Tumultuous world, “be still, and know that,” &c. Let the Church listen and cease to fear, for God will assuredly maintain His own cause and honour. “Be still, anxiety and fear! ‘I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.’ Be still, apprehension! The whole world around may be disquieted; but I am God, and I rule the whole. Be still, impatience! I am God; and the times and seasons are in my power.” With such an assurance as this from God Himself, we may well unite in chanting, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble: therefore, will not we fear,” &c.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Sermon Bible 1900 · Public Domain On v1 I. This Psalm is a hymn concerning the kingdom…
Psa 46:1
I. This Psalm is a hymn concerning the kingdom of Christ and of God. It tells us something of the government which Christ has been exercising over the world ever since the beginning of it, and which He is exercising over this world now. "Be still, and know that I am God"—that I, not you, will be exalted among the nations; that I, not you, will be exalted in the earth.
Read full note →
II. Those who forget that they are in Christ’s kingdom Christ does not go out of His way to punish. They simply punish themselves. They earn their own ruin by the very laws of nature.
III. If you wish to prosper on the earth, let God be in all your thoughts. Remember that the Lord is on your right hand; and then, and then alone, will you not be moved, either to terror or to sin, by any of the chances and changes of this mortal life. "He that believeth," saith the prophet, "shall not make haste"—shall not hurry himself into folly, and disappointment, and shame.
C. Kingsley, All Saints’ Day, and Other Sermons, p. 200.
References: Psa 46:1.—Spurgeon, Evening by Evening, p. 124. Psa 46:1, Psa 46:2.—C. Kingsley, The Water of Life, p. 228; H. Jones, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxv., p. 314. Psa 46:4.—D. Jones, Ibid., vol. xviii., p. 276.
Psa 46:4-7
It is probable that we have in this Psalm the devotional echo of the great deliverance of Israel from Assyria in the time of Hezekiah. We may call these verses the hymn of the defence and deliverance of the city of God.
I. First, we have the gladdening river—an emblem of many great and joyous truths. The river is God Himself in the outflow and self-communication of His own grace to the soul. We may see here a very beautiful suggestion of the manner, and then of the variety, and then of the effects of that communication of the Divine love and grace. (1) The manner. Not with noise, not with tumult, not with conspicuous and destructive energy, but in silent, secret, underground communications, God’s grace, God’s love, His peace, His power, His almighty and gentle self, flow into men’s souls. (2) The variety. "The streams whereof"—literally the divisions thereof. As you can take and divide the water all but infinitely, and it will take the shape of every containing vessel, so into every soul according to its capacities, according to its shape, according to its needs, this great gift, this blessed presence, of the God of our strength shall come. (3) The effects. The streams make glad. That all-sufficient spirit not only becomes to its possessor the source of individual refreshment and slakes his own thirst, but flows out from him for the gladdening of others.
II. Notice, secondly, the indwelling Helper. "God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early" (at the appearance of the morning). There are two things, then: first of all, the constant presence; and second, help at the right time.
III. The conquering voice. "The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: He uttered His voice, the earth melted." With what vigour these hurried sentences describe (1) the wild wrath and formidable movements of the foe, and (2) the one sovereign word which quells them all, as well as the instantaneous weakness that dissolves the seeming solid substance when the breath of His lips smites it!
IV. Note, finally, how the Psalm shows us the act by which we enter the city of God. "The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge." These truths are nothing to us unless, like the psalmist here, we make them our own, and losing the burden of self in the very act of grasping them by faith, unite ourselves with the great multitude who are joined together in Him, and say, "He is my God; He is our refuge."
A. Maclaren, Sermons Preached at Manchester, 3rd series, p. 45.
References: Psa 46:6.—F. W. Farrar, Silence and the Voices of God, p. 51. Psa 46:8, Psa 46:9.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. iv., No. 190.
Psa 46:10
The true quietism of the book of Psalms is quietism in the midst of action, quietism which only one who hears the call to act and obeys it can understand or prize.
I. "The Lord of hosts is with us." This is the pervading idea of the Psalm. He is not coming down among us, like some heathen god, to help us in an emergency; He is with us, not visible to our eyes, but really present, the strength and refuge of our hearts.
II. "Be still, and know." We cannot know this deep and eternal truth unless we are still. But, on the other hand, this knowledge will make us still. If we have it not, or are not seeking to have it, we must be restless and impatient; just so far as it is granted to us, it must bring tranquillity.
III. For "be still, and know that I am God." So we are instructed that it is God who reveals Himself to us. He says, "I am God," not a conception of your minds, not one whom you make what he is by your mode of thinking of him, but a living Person, who is saying to you what He said to Moses in the bush: "I am;" who is teaching you that you could not be if He were not, that all the thoughts, apprehensions, intimations, of your spirits were given you by Him, and are meant to lead you to Him.
IV. The lesson would have been imperfect without the words that follow: "I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth." The Lord whom the Jews worshipped was the Ruler of all the nations, had created the earth and all its treasures "for His service. To despise the heathen or to despise the earth was to despise Him; the Jew existed to assert the sacredness of both by claiming both as parts of His dominion.
F. D. Maurice, Sermons, vol. iii., p. 239.
Psa 46:10
The two clauses which compose this sentence are so interwoven that each may be the cause and each may be the effect of the other. The way to know God is to be still, and the way to be still is to know God. It is one of these beautiful reciprocities which we often find between a duty and a privilege. The way to do the duty is to accept the privilege, and the way to enjoy the privilege is to do the duty.
I. Stillness is the condition of our knowing God. It does not say, "Be still, and know God." The very opposite is implied; for to know that He is God is almost in itself a confession that God is not to be known. "Be still, and know that I am," not a man, not to be estimated by human calculation, not to be measured by material movement, but the eternal, the infinite, the incomprehensible "God." (1) In order to know God there must be a silent power of reception. There is a great tendency to think that the benefit of our communion with God depends upon the energy of the thought or the strength of the affection which we put in it. It is far more important quietly to take in. God is sure to speak if the hush of your soul be deep enough. Heaven and earth are sure to reflect themselves if the mirror of your mind be calm enough. (2) Another element of stillness is veneration. We are greatly at fault in this matter. We walk rough-shod, and we intrude rashly, and we think superficially in the holiest things. God will not show Himself till the shoes are off the feet, till the thoughts are lowered, and the spirit subdued. (3) It is essential that any one who wishes to know and feel the being, and the presence, and the care, and the sufficiency of God should be much in secret with Him. The time you spend alone with God will always be the measure of your knowledge of God.
II. In the stillness you will learn (1) that God is from all eternity the same; (2) that God elects His own; (3) that the whole scheme of man’s salvation revolves within himself; (4) that all God’s attributes harmonise in Christ. This is stillness: The Lord is; the Lord liveth; the Lord reigneth.
J. Vaughan, Fifty Sermons, 7th series, p. 46.
References: Psa 46:10.—J. H. Newman, Parochial and Plain Sermons, vol. iii., p. 16; J. Keble, Sermons on Various Occasions, p. 363.
Psa 46:11
"The Lord of hosts." The name speaks of camps and armies. "The God of Jacob." Jacob was a plain man, living in tents; the type speaks of home and quiet pursuits. Put the two together, and we have war and peace. Or side by side we have in perfect unity assembled multitudes and a single individual. He is the God alike of the many and the one.
I. There is always a feeling of solemnity in the sight of the unity and the order of great multitudes. It is part of the pleasure which we have in looking up to the stars—vast systems of worlds, each one circling in a fixed orbit. It is the awe of the spectacle of the march of a great army. Still more, we have it in the angels, who, though not to the exclusion of the disciplined throngs of nature, are specially the hosts of God’s world. And to the full as much we have it in the congregation of saints before the throne. All these are "the hosts of the Lord."
II. The Lord is Jesus. Is He not the Captain of Israel, the Head of the Church, the King of saints? He is the God of Sabaoth. He is our Emmanuel. "The Lord of hosts is with us." His presence is no solitary thing. All that is pure and holy in all worlds follows Him; all that is worth the loving and all that is worth the having is there.
III. Who is "the God of Jacob"? Let Jacob himself tell: "The God who fed me all my life long unto this day; the Angel which redeemed me from all evil." The God of Jacob is (1) the God of election; (2) the God of birthright and blessing; (3) the God of presence and promise; (4) the God of faithfulness.
IV. "Refuge"—it is what we all want, and may soon want sorely. The refuge is God Himself. He is the strong tower into which we run and are safe.
J. Vaughan, Fifty Sermons, 7th series, p. 129.
The Sermon Bible, ed. William Robertson Nicoll (1888–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
F. W. Grant 1903 · Public Domain On v1 The test of experience; -the God of Jacob.
The test of experience; -the God of Jacob.
To the chief musician: [a psalm] of the sons of Korah. A song upon Alamoth.
Read full note →
The forty-sixth psalm is a psalm of experience; -a joyful utterance of heart in view of conflict ended and the earth at rest; and in the clear apprehension of the grace that is in the God of Jacob -a God who can take up and glorify Himself in the poverty and weakness and failure of the creature. It is perfectly simple in its meaning; as it is joyous and bright in expression; the repetition of the seventh verse as the conclusion of the whole matter showing where the emphasis is to be laid.
There are three points: the first; the strong expression of the divine sufficiency and of confidence in it: the second; the testimony of the deliverance which shows the safety at all times of the city of God; the third sees God’s glory accomplished in it, all that exalts itself against Him being swept away; ending with this refrain that Jehovah of hosts is Jacob’s God; He is with us: the entrance into an unspeakable joy.
The psalm is a "song upon Alamoth;" which means, no doubt, "with maidens’ [voices];" and may well remind us of Miriam and the women of Israel in their accompaniment of Moses’ song of triumph at the Red Sea (Exo 15:1-27). Or as the sixty-eighth psalm: "the Lord gave the word; great was the company of the [women] that published it. Kings’ armies did flee apace; and she that tarried at home divided the spoil." Good cause is there for such praise as this from delivered Israel; and the particular word here used; which is in its primitive sense the "hidden ones;" and refers to those hidden as yet in the seclusion of their father’s house; may well be applied to the remnant of godly ones who become at last the nation; brought out of their obscurity and owned by their King as His.
1. The first section then here expresses their entire confidence in the divine sufficiency. This has been tested by experience and amply proved. "God is our refuge and strength," is the happy cry; "a very present help in straits." They are bold in utterance of this: "therefore will we not fear though the earth be removed, and the mountains be carried into the heart of the seas." And the actual state of things which they look back upon might have seemed (morally at least) to indicate such engulfing of another deluge: the waters roar and foam; and the mountains shake with the swelling thereof."
2. But this is past, and only revived in memory, to contrast with it the present condition of things. The threatening floods are gone: in their stead is a glorious river, whose divided streams in many channels make glad the city of God. Jerusalem, blessed with the abiding presence of the Supreme, cannot lack the nurture of grace, the vivifying streams of His blessed Spirit. God in the midst of her is abundant security; she shall not be moved: God shall help her at early morn. And so we know the day cannot come for the earth; but to usher it in Israel must get their blessing. And this is what has actually taken place: "The nations raged; the kingdoms were moved; He uttered His voice, -the earth melted." Yes, "Jehovah of hosts is with us": all things then, moving at His bidding, are for us also. Spite of folly and frailty, such is His grace: He is the God of grace, -"the God of Jacob is our refuge."
3. And He has glorified Himself; and will. The desolations of the earth are witness of His right hand of power. Edom (Isa 34:1-17) and Babylon (Isa 13:20), as lands that have nurtured His enemies, will be thus condemned to desolation. He will make war against war, and the very implements of it shall exist no more. Blessed display of power, which shall everywhere make Him known as God; -make the nations at last perforce to realize this, and exalt Him over the whole earth! For the God of hosts; the Unchangeable, who has shown Himself thus for Israel, is after all the God of grace, -the God of Jacob.
F. W. Grant, The Numerical Bible (4th ed., 1903) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Alexander MacLaren 1905 · Public Domain On vv4, 11 Psa 46:4 - Psa 46:7.
Psalms
THE CITY AND RIVER OF GOD
Read full note →
Psa 46:4 - Psa 46:7.
There are two remarkable events in the history of Israel, one or other of which most probably supplied the historical basis upon which this psalm rests. One is that wonderful deliverance of the armies of Jehoshaphat from the attacking forces of the bordering nations, which is recorded in the twentieth chapter of the Book of Chronicles. There you will find that, by a singular arrangement, the sons of Korah, members of the priestly order, were not only in the van of the battle, but celebrated the victory by hymns of gladness. It is possible that this may be one of those hymns; but I think rather that the more ordinary reference is the correct one, which sees in this psalm and in the two succeeding ones, echoes of that supernatural deliverance of Israel in the time of Hezekiah, when
‘The Assyrian came down like a wolf on the fold,’
and Sennacherib and all his army were, by the blast of the breath of His nostrils, swept into swift destruction.
The reasons for that historical reference may be briefly stated. We find, for instance, a number of remarkable correspondences between these three psalms and portions of the Book of the prophet Isaiah, who, as we know, lived in the period of that deliverance. The comparison, for example, which is here drawn with such lofty, poetic force between the quiet river which ‘makes glad the city of God,’ and the tumultuous billows of the troubled sea, which shakes the mountain and moves the earth, is drawn by Isaiah in regard to the Assyrian invasion, when he speaks of Israel refusing ‘the waters of Shiloah, which go softly,’ and, therefore, having brought upon them the waters of the river-the power of Assyria-’which shall fill the breadth of Thy land, O Immanuel!’ Notice, too, that the very same consolation which was given to Isaiah, by the revelation of that significant appellation, ‘Immanuel, God with us,’ appears in this psalm as a kind of refrain, and is the foundation of all its confident gladness, ‘The Lord of Hosts is with us.’ Besides these obvious parallelisms, there are others to which I need not refer, which, taken together, seem to render it at least probable that we have in this psalm the devotional echo of the great deliverance of Israel from Assyria in the time of Hezekiah.
Now, these verses are the cardinal central portion of the song. We may call them The Hymn of the Defence and Deliverance of the City of God. We cannot expect to find in poetry the same kind of logical accuracy in the process of thought which we require in treatises; but the lofty emotion of devout song obeys laws of its own: and it is well to surrender ourselves to the flow, and to try to see with the Psalmist’s eyes for a moment his sources of consolation and strength.
I take the four points which seem to be the main turning-points of these verses-first, the gladdening river; second, the indwelling Helper; third, the conquering voice; and fourth, the alliance of ourselves by faith with the safe dwellers in the city of God.
I. First, we have the gladdening river-an emblem of many great and joyous truths.
The figure is occasioned by, or at all events derives much of its significance from, a geographical peculiarity of Jerusalem. Alone among the great cities and historical centres of the world, it stood upon no broad river. One little perennial stream, or rather rill of living water, was all which it had; but Siloam was mightier and more blessed for the dwellers in the rocky fortress of the Jebusites than the Euphrates, Nile, or Tiber for the historical cities which stood upon their banks. One can see the Psalmist looking over the plain eastward, and beholding in vision the mighty forces which came against them, symbolised and expressed by the breadth and depth and swiftness of the great river upon which Nineveh sat as a queen, and then thinking upon the little tiny thread of living water that flowed past the base of the rock upon which the temple was perched. It seems small and unconspicuous-nothing compared to the dash of the waves and the rise of the floods of those mighty secular empires, still, ‘There is a river the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God.’ Its waters shall never fail, and thirst shall flee whithersoever this river comes.
It is also to be remembered that the psalm is running in the track of a certain constant symbolism that pervades all Scripture. From the first book of Genesis down to the last chapter of Revelation, you can hear the dashing of the waters of the river. ‘It went out from the garden and parted into four heads.’ ‘Thou makest them drink of the river of Thy pleasures.’ ‘Behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward,’ and ‘everything shall live whithersoever the river cometh.’ ‘He that believeth on me, out of His belly shall flow rivers of living water.’ ‘And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.’ Isaiah, who has already afforded some remarkable parallels to the words of our psalm, gives another very striking one to the image now under consideration, when he says, ‘The glorious Lord will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams, wherein shall go no galley with oars.’ The picture in that metaphor is of a stream lying round Jerusalem, like the moated rivers which girdle some of the cities in the plains of Italy, and are the defence of those who dwell enclosed in their flashing links.
Guided, then, by the physical peculiarity of situation which I have referred to, and by the constant meaning of Scriptural symbolism, I think we must conclude that this river, ‘the streams whereof make glad the city of God,’ is God Himself in the outflow and self-communication of His own grace to the soul. The stream is the fountain in flow. The gift of God, which is living water, is God Himself, considered as the ever-imparting Source of all refreshment, of all strength, of all blessedness. ‘This spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe should receive.’
We must dwell for a moment or two still further upon these words, and mark how this metaphor, in a most simple and natural way, sets forth very grand and blessed spiritual truths with regard to this communication of God’s grace to them that love Him and trust Him. First, I think we may see here a very beautiful suggestion of the manner, and then of the variety, and then of the effects of that communication of the divine love and grace.
We have only to read the previous verses to see what I mean. ‘God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof.’ There you can hear the wild waves dashing round the base of the firm hills, sapping their strength, and toppling their crests down in the bubbling, yeasty foam. Remember how, not only in Scripture but in all poetry, the sea has been the emblem of endless unrest. Its waters, those barren, wandering fields of foam, going moaning round the world with unprofitable labour, how they have been the emblem of unbridled power, of tumult and strife, and anarchy and rebellion! Then mark how our text brings into sharpest contrast with all that hurly-burly of the tempest, and the dash and roar of the troubled waters, the gentle, quiet flow of the river, ‘the streams whereof make glad the city of God’; the translucent little ripples purling along beds of golden pebbles, and the enamelled meadows drinking the pure stream as it steals by them. Thus, says our psalm, not with noise, not with tumult, not with conspicuous and destructive energy, but in silent, secret underground communication, God’s grace, God’s love, His peace, His power, His almighty and gentle Self flow into men’s souls. Quietness and confidence on our sides correspond to the quietness and serenity with which He glides into the heart. Instead of all the noise of the sea you have within the quiet impartations of the voice that is still and small, wherein God dwells. The extremest power is silent. The mightiest force in all the universe is the force which has neither speech nor language. The parent of all physical force, as astronomers seem to be more and more teaching us, is the great central sun which moveth all things, which operates all physical changes, whose beams are all but omnipotent, and yet fall so quietly that they do not disturb the motes that dance in their path. Thunder and lightning are child’s play compared with the energy that goes to make the falling dews and quiet rains. The power of the sunshine is the root power of all force which works in material things. And so we turn, with the symbol in our hands, to the throne of God, and when He says, ‘Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ we are aware of an energy, the signature of whose might is its quietness, which is omnipotent because it is gentle and silent. The seas may roar and be troubled, the tiny thread of the river is mightier than them all.
And then, still further, in this first part of our text there is also set forth very distinctly the number and the variety of the gifts of God. ‘The streams whereof,’ literally, ‘the divisions whereof,’-that is to say, going back to Eastern ideas, the broad river is broken up into canals that are led off into every man’s little bit of garden ground; coming down to modern ideas, the water is carried by pipes into every man’s household and chamber. The stream has its divisions; listen to words that are a commentary upon the meaning of this verse, ‘All these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing unto every man severally as He will’-an infinite variety, an endless diversity, according to all the petty wants of each that is supplied thereby. As you can divide water all but infinitely, and it will take the shape of every containing vessel, so into every soul according to its capacities, according to its shape, according to its needs, this great gift, this blessed presence of the God of our strength, will come. The varieties of His gifts are as much the mark of His omnipotence as the gentleness and stillness of them.
And then I need only touch upon the last thought, the effects of this communicated God. ‘The streams make glad’-with the gladness which comes from refreshment, with the gladness which comes from the satisfying of all thirsty desires, with the gladness which comes from the contact of the spirit with absolute completeness; of the will, with perfect authority; of the heart, with changeless love; of the understanding, with pure incarnate truth; of the conscience, with infinite peace; of the child, with the Father; of my emptiness, with His fulness; of my changeableness, with His immutability; of my incompleteness, with His perfectness. They to whom this stream passes shall know no thirst; they who possess it from them it shall come. Out of him ‘shall flow rivers of living water.’ That all-sufficient Spirit not only becomes to its possessor the source of individual refreshment, and slakes his own thirst, but flows out from him for the gladdening of others.
‘The least flower with a brimming cup may stand,
And share its dew-drop with another near.’
The city thus supplied may laugh at besieging hosts. With the deep reservoir in its central fortress, the foe may do as they list to all surface streams, its water shall be sure, and no raging thirst shall ever drive it to surrender. The river breaks from the threshold of the Temple, within its walls, and when all beyond that safe enclosure is cracked and parched in the fierce heat, and no green thing can be seen in the dry and thirsty land, that stream shall ‘make glad the city of our God,’ and ‘everything shall live whithersoever the river cometh.’ ‘Thou shalt be as a well-watered garden, and as a river whose streams fail not.’
II. Then notice, secondly, substantially the same general thought, but modified and put in plain words-the indwelling Helper.
‘God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early,’ or, as the latter clause had better be translated, as it is given in the margin of some of our Bibles, ‘God shall help her at the appearance of the morning.’ There are two promises here: first of all, the constant presence; and second, help at the right time. Whether there be actual help or no, there is always with us the potential help of God, and it flashes into energy at the moment that He knows to be the right one. The ‘appearing of the morning’ He determines; not you or I. Therefore, we may be confident that we have God ever by our sides. Not that that Presence is meant to avert outward or inward trouble and trial, and painfulness and weariness; but in the midst of these, and while they last, here is the assurance, ‘She shall not be moved’; and that it will not always last, here is the ground of the confidence, ‘God shall help her when the morning dawns.’
I need not point out to you the contrast here between the tranquillity of the city which has for its central Inhabitant and Governor the omnipotent God, and the tumult of all that turbulent earth. The waves of the troubled waters break everywhere,-they run over the flat plains and sweep over the mountains of secular strength and outward might, and worldly kingdoms, and human polities and earthly institutions, acting on them all either by slow corrosive action at the base, or by the tossing floods swirling against them, until they shall be lost in the ocean of time. For ‘the history of the world is the judgment of the world.’ When He wills the plains are covered and mountains disappear, but one rock stands fast-’The mountain of the Lord’s house is exalted above the top of the mountains’; and when everything is rocking and swaying in the tempests, here is fixity and tranquillity. ‘She shall not be moved.’ Why? Because of her citizens? No. Because of her guards and gates? No! Because of her polity? No! Because of her orthodoxy? No! But because God is in her, and she is safe, and where He dwells no evil can come. ‘Thou carriest Caesar and his fortunes.’ The ship of Christ carries the Lord and His fortunes; and, therefore, whatsoever becomes of the other little ships in the wild dash of the tempest, this with the Lord on board arrives at its desired haven-’God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved.’
Then, still further, that Presence which is always the pledge of stability, and unmoved calm, even while causes of agitation are storming around, will, as I said, flash into energy, and be a Helper and a Deliverer at the right moment. And when will that right moment be? At the appearing of the morning. ‘And when they arose early in the morning, they were all dead corpses’; in the hour of greatest extremity, but ere the foe has executed his purposes; not too soon for fear and faith, not too late for hope and help; when the morning dawns, when the appointed hour of deliverance, which He alone determines, has struck. ‘It is not for you to know the times and seasons’; but this we may know, that He who is the Lord of time will ever save at the best possible moment. He will not come so quickly as to prevent us from feeling our need; He will not tarry so long as to make us sick with hope deferred, or so long as to let the enemy fulfil his purposes of destruction. ‘Lord, behold! he whom Thou lovest is sick. Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. When He had heard therefore that he was sick, He abode two days still in the same place where He was. . . . Lord, if Thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again. . . . And he that was dead came forth.’
The Lord may seem to sleep on His hard wooden pillow in the stern of the little fishing boat, and even while the frail craft begins to fill may show no sign of help. But ere the waves have rolled over her, the cry of fear that yet trusts, and of trust that yet fears, wakes Him who knew the need, even while He seemed to slumber, and one mighty word, as of a master to some petulant slave, ‘Peace! be still,’ hushes the confusion, and rebukes the fear, and rewards the faith.
‘The Lord is in the midst of her’-that is the perennial fact. ‘The Lord shall help her, and that right early’-that is the ‘grace for seasonable help.’
III. The psalm having set forth these broad grounds of confidence, goes on to tell the story of actual deliverance which confirms them, and of which they are indeed but the generalised expression.
The condensed narrative moves to its end by a series of short crashing sentences like the ring of the destructive axe at the roots of trees. We see the whole sequence of events as by lightning flashes, which give brief glimpses and are quenched. The grand graphic words seem to pant with haste, as they record Israel’s deliverance. That deliverance comes from the Conquering Voice. ‘The heathen raged’ {the same word, we may note, as is found a verse or two back, ‘Though the waters thereof roar’}, ‘the kingdoms were moved; He uttered His voice, the earth melted.’ With what vigour these hurried sentences describe, first, the wild wrath and formidable movements of the foe, and then the One Sovereign Word which quells them all, as well as the instantaneous weakness that dissolves the seeming solid substance when the breath of His lips smites it!
And where will you find a grander or loftier thought than this, that the simple word-the utterance of the pure will of God conquers all opposition, and tells at once in the sphere of material things? He speaks, and it is done. At the sound of that thunder-voice, hushed stillness and a pause of dread fall upon all the wide earth, deeper and more awe-struck than the silence of the woods with their huddling leaves, when the feebler peals roll through the sky. ‘The depths are congealed in the heart of the sea’-as if you were to lay hold of Niagara in its wildest plunge, and were with a word to freeze all its descending waters and stiffen them into immovableness in fetters of eternal ice. So He utters His voice, and all meaner noises are hushed. ‘The lion hath roared, who shall not fear?’ He speaks-no weapon, no material vehicle is needed. The point of contact between the pure divine will and the material creatures which obey its behests is ever wrapped in darkness, whether these be the settled ordinances which men call nature, or the less common which the Bible calls miracle. In all alike there is, to every believer in a God at all, an incomprehensible action of the spiritual upon the material, which allows of no explanations to bridge over the gulf recognised in the broken utterances of our psalm, ‘He uttered His voice: the earth melted.’
How grandly, too, these last words give the impression of immediate and utter dissolution of all opposition! All the Titanic brute forces are, at His voice, disintegrated, and lose their organisation and solidity. ‘The hills melted like wax’; ‘The mountains flowed down at Thy presence.’ The hardness and obstinacy is all liquefied and enfeebled, and parts with its consistency and is lost in a fluid mass. As two carbon points when the electric stream is poured upon them are gnawed to nothingness by the fierce heat, and you can see them wasting before your eyes, so the concentrated ardour of His breath falls upon the hostile evil, and lo! it is not.
The Psalmist is generalising the historical fact of the sudden and utter destruction of Sennacherib’s host into a universal law. And it is a universal law-true for us as for Hezekiah and the sons of Korah, true for all generations. Martin Luther might well make this psalm the battle cry of the Reformation, and we may well make our own the rugged music and dauntless hope of his rendering of these words:-
‘And let the Prince of Ill
Look grim as e’er he will,
He harms us not a whit.
For why? His doom is writ.
A word shall quickly slay him.’
IV. Then note, finally, how the psalm shows us the act by which we enter the City of God.
‘The Lord of Hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.’ It is not enough to lay down general truths, however true and however blessed, about the safe and sacred city of God-not enough to be theoretically convinced of the truth of the supreme governance and ever-present aid of God. We must take a further step that will lead us far beyond the regions of barren intellectual apprehension of the great truths of God’s love and care. These truths are nothing to us, brethren! unless, like the Psalmist here, we make them our own, and losing the burden of self in the very act of grasping them by faith, unite ourselves with the great multitude who are joined together in Him, and say, ‘He is my God: He is our refuge.’ That living act of ‘appropriating faith’ presupposes, indeed, the presence of these truths in our understandings, but in the very act they are changed into powers in our lives. They pass into the affections and the will. They are no more empty generalities. Bread nourishes, not when it is looked at, but when it is eaten. ‘He that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me.’ We feed on Christ when we make Him ours by faith, and each of us is sustained and blessed by Him when we can say, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Mark, too, how there is here set forth the twofold ground for our calmest confidence in these two mighty names of God.
‘The Lord of Hosts is with us.’ That majestic name includes all the deepest and most blessed thoughts of God which the earlier revelation imparted. That name of ‘Jehovah’ proclaims at once His Eternal Being and His covenant relation-manifesting Him by its mysterious meaning as He who dwells above time, the tideless sea of absolute unchanging existence, from whom all the stream of creatural life flows forth many-coloured and transient, to whom it all returns, who, Himself unchanging, changeth all things, and declaring Him, by the historical associations connected with it, as having unveiled His purposes in firm words, to which men may trust, and as having entered into that solemn league with Israel which underlay their whole national life. He is the Lord the Eternal,-the covenant name.
He is the Lord of Hosts, the ‘Imperator,’ absolute Master and Commander, Captain and King of all the combined forces of the universe, whether they be personal or impersonal, spiritual or material, who, in serried ranks, wait on Him, and move harmonious, obedient to His will. And this Eternal Master of the legions of the universe is with us, weak and poor, and troubled and sinful as we are. Therefore, we will not fear: what can man do unto us?
Again, when we say, ‘The God of Jacob is our refuge,’ we reach back into the past, and lay hold of the mercies promised to, and received by, the long vanished generations who trusted in Him and were lightened. As, by the one name, we appeal to His own Being and uttered pledge, so, by the other, we appeal to His ancient deeds-past as we call them, but present with Him, who lives and loves in the undivided eternity above the low fences of time. All that He has been, He is; all that He has done, He is doing. We on whom the ends of the earth are come have the same Helper, the same Friend that ‘the world’s grey fathers’ had. They that go before do not prevent them that come after. The river is full still. The van of the pilgrim host did, indeed, long, long ago drink and were satisfied, but the bright waters are still as pellucid, still as near, still as refreshing, still as abundant as they ever were. Nay, rather, they are fuller and more accessible to us than to patriarch and Psalmist, ‘God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.’
For we, brethren! have a fuller revelation of that mighty name, and a more wondrous and closer divine presence by our sides. The psalm rejoices in that ‘The Lord of Hosts is with us’; and the choral answer of the Gospel swells into loftier music, as it tells of the fulfilment of psalmists’ hopes and prophets’ visions in Him who is called ‘Immanuel,’ which is, being interpreted, ‘God with us.’ The psalm is confident in that God dwelt in Zion, and our confidence has the more wondrous fact to lay hold of, that even now the Word who dwelt among us makes His abode in every believing heart, and gathers them all together at last in that great city, round whose flashing foundations no tumult of ocean beats, whose gates of pearl need not be closed against any foes, with whose happy citizens ‘God will dwell, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God.’
Alexander MacLaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture (1904–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. R. Dummelow 1909 · Public Domain On v1 Psalms 46-48 form a group which we may assign…
Psalms 46-48 form a group which we may assign with little doubt to the reign of Hezekiah, when Sennacherib's army was suddenly destroyed (2Ki_19:35). They all strike the same note of gratitude, confidence, and praise, which is found in Isaiah's references to the same event (Isaiah 29-31, 33, 37). Psalms 46 is divided into three strophes, and the refrain of Psa_46:7, Psa_46:11 probably stood also between Psa_46:3 and Psa_46:4.
Title.—EV 'Set to Alamoth.' Alamoth is generally understood to mean 'soprano' (see 1Ch_15:20).
Read full note →
1. Our refuge and strength] the original of Luther's famous Ein' feste Burg.
2, 3. The language is figurative of stress and trouble.
4. A river] the river of God's presence and favour: see Psa_46:5, Isa_33:21 cp. Isa_8:6. Shall make glad] RV 'make glad.'
5. Right early] RM 'when the morning appeareth.'
6. Heathen] RV 'nations.' So in Psa_46:10.
7. Lord of hosts] see on Psa_24:10.
8. Desolations] rather, 'astonishments' or 'wonders.'
10. Be still] Desist from your vain efforts: cp. Psa_4:4.
J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On v1 Alamoth, "soprano," from almah, a virgin. Some have thought…
Alamoth
Alamoth, "soprano," from almah, a virgin. Some have thought the alamoth, "virgins," were a temple choir, singing antiphonally to the sheminith, or male choir. (See Scofield "Psa 6:1"). But contr, see 1Ch 15:20.
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Arno C. Gaebelein 1922 · Public Domain On v1 Psalm 46
Psalm 46
The Deliverance and What Follows
Read full note →
1. God is our Refuge and Strength (Psa 46:1-3)
2. His coming in power and glory (Psa 46:4-7)
3. What follows His manifestation (Psa 46:8-11).
This is “a song upon Alamoth,” which means “maidens’ voices” and calls to remembrance the song which Miriam and the women sang when the Lord redeemed His people by power at the Red Sea. The remnant delivered relates prophetically the experience of deliverance. They trusted in God as their refuge and strength, though the earth was moved and the mountains carried into the sea. Then He appeared and helped His people “at the dawn of the morning.” The nations raged, the kingdoms were moved--then His voice was heard, while His people shouted “Jehovah of hosts is with us.” They call next to behold the desolations which judgment has wrought. Then, and only then follows peace and all wars are ended. “He maketh wars to cease unto the ends of the earth, He breaketh the bow and cutteth the spear asunder.”
Arno C. Gaebelein, The Annotated Bible (1913–1922) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v1 The Church’s Comfort and Security.
The Church’s Comfort and Security.
To the chief musician, for use in the Temple-services, for the sons of Korah, composed by a member of this talented family, a song upon Alamoth, for soprano voices, either for a chorus of virgins or for instruments in the treble clef, with a high pitch. It is a song of faith and trust, by which the Church of God is enabled to stand firm and secure in the midst of all enmity, in spite of the attacks of the armies of Satan.
Read full note →
v. 1. God is our Refuge, under whose protection the Church and every individual believer is safe, and Strength, the Source and Fountain of all true strength, whose almighty power can overthrow all enemies, a very present Help in trouble, a Helper in the oppressions and anxieties, in the fightings and fears, with which the children of God must ever contend.
v. 2. Therefore, because God is our great and invincible Champion, will not we fear, though ever inclined to do so on account of the smallness of our faith, though the earth be removed, be changed entirely, receive an entirely different form, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea, sinking down into the depths from which they rose at the almighty power of God’s word, Gen 1:9-10;
v. 3. though the waters thereof roar, as in fierce anger, and be troubled, rushing, foaming, and frothing like fermenting wine, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof, as from the impact of a mighty tidal wave which threatens to undermine them. Selah. Such is the picture of the catastrophes which threaten the existence of the Church, but in whose midst the believers wait quietly for the Lord, knowing that the gates of hell shall not prevail against His Church. The reason for this simple trust is now given.
v. 4. There is a river, a mighty stream, rich in water for purposes both of drinking and irrigating, the streams whereof, the various channels of which, shall make glad the city of God, the Holy Place of the Tabernacles of the Most High, where the great Ruler of the universe, the King of His Church, resides, that is, His strong city, with the walls and bulwarks of His salvation, Isa 26:1-2. It is the stream of the fullness of God’s mercy, dividing into so many channels, in order to gladden the many congregations of the Church, wherever they may be found, including the fellowship with the Triune God in the beauty of His revelation.
v. 5. God is in the midst of her, as her Protector and Savior; she shall not be moved, not be made to totter and fall; God shall help her, and that right early, literally, "before the face of morning," before break of day, no matter how dark the night of tribulation may have seemed. The help of Jehovah is sure in spite of all enemies.
v. 6. The heathen raged, now foaming in terror over the deliverance which the Lord sends to His people, the kingdoms were moved, all their bulwarks tottering and falling with a mighty, booming noise; He uttered His voice, shouting in anger, the earth melted, dissolving before the devouring heat of His wrath, Amo 9:5; Nah 1:5.
v. 7. The Lord of hosts, the supreme Commander of all the heavenly armies, is with us; the God of Jacob is our Refuge, a high and safe Stronghold, which no enemies can storm and capture. Selah. Jehovah is with His Church, He is Immanuel, God-with-us, not only as trusted Ally, but as our Leader and Hero, before whose almighty power all enemies are as chaff before the wind. Therefore the challenging cry of the believers rings out:
v. 8. Come, behold the works of the Lord, what desolations He hath made in the earth, in overthrowing the buildings and the enterprises of puny men, in punishing the world by bloody and destructive wars.
v. 9. He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth, in the interest of His Holy City, in carrying out His plans for the deliverance of His saints; He breaketh the bow and cutteth the spear in sunder; He burneth the chariot in the fire, all instruments of the enemies employed in attacking the work of the Church, all the weapons of Satan intended for the overthrow of God’s Zion. The kingdom of the Prince of Peace is established in the midst of all adversaries, and the Church Militant will become the Church Triumphant. The Church, therefore, issues a final solemn proclamation.
v. 10. Be still, desist from making war upon Jehovah’s Zion, and know that I am God, the God of the Church, the only true God; I will be exalted among the heathen, the great Victor on the field of encounter, I will be exalted in the earth, even the enemies being obliged to acknowledge His glory and majesty, forced to give Him the honor due Him as the Ruler of the universe.
v. 11. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our Refuge. Selah. That is the confident Amen of the Christian Church and of every believer, in the trust of a world-conquering faith; for "the kingdom ours remaineth. " With Christ on our side, we remain victors.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv1, 4, 6, 8, 10 General Information:
General Information:
Parallelism is common in Hebrew poetry. (See: Poetry and Parallelism)
Read full note →
For the chief musician
"This is for the director of music to use in worship."
A psalm of the sons of Korah
"This is a psalm that the sons of Korah wrote"
set to Alamoth
This may refer to a style of music. (See: Translate Unknowns)
God is our refuge and strength
The writer speaks of God as if he were a place where people can go for safety. AT: "God gives us safety and strength" (See: Metaphor)
the mountains should be shaken into the heart of the seas
The writer speaks of the deepest part of the sea as if it were the sea's heart. Here he describes an earthquake that causes the mountains to crumble and fall into the sea. This can be stated in active form. AT: "the mountains should shake so violently that they fall into the depths of the sea" (See: Metaphor and Active or Passive)
though its waters roar and rage
"though the waters of the sea roar and rage." The words "roar" and "rage" describe the violent movements of the sea during a strong storm.
mountains tremble with their swelling
The phrase "their swelling" refers to the waters of the sea as they rise and crash against the mountains. AT: "the swelling waters cause the mountains to tremble" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
translationWords
chief
psalm
Korah
God
refuge
strength
trouble
fear
earth
water
rage
selah
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10 Ps 46 This psalm of Zion celebrates God’s special…
Ps 46 This psalm of Zion celebrates God’s special presence in Jerusalem (see also Pss 48, 76, 87, 122), inviting confidence in the Lord because the citizens of Zion enjoy his protection.
46:title sung by soprano voices: Hebrew according to alamoth (“maidens”; see also study note on 1 Chr 15:20). In worship, a choir or a group of instrumentalists performed this hymn.
Read full note →
46:1-3 Even when faced with natural disasters, the citizens of Zion express no fear.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.