You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, Nor of the
arrow that flies by day, Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.
Psalm 91 is about the “secret place” of fellowship, worship
and communion with the LORD. When we by faith take the time to shut the door to
the distractions of the world around us and enter into the hidden life of
prayer, devotion and quiet time with the LORD, we will enjoy the assurance and
peace that God is with us. Brother
Lawrence in his book called it, “The Practice of the Presence of God”. Before
he became known as Brother Lawrence his name was Nicholas Herman. He was born around 1610 in Herimenil,
Lorraine, a Duchy of France.
In this small book, through letters and conversations,
Brother Lawrence simply and beautifully explains how to continually walk with
God, not from the head but from the heart.
Brother Lawrence also left the gift of a direct approach to living in
God’s presence that is as practical today as it was four hundred years ago. I
highly recommend this book to help you in your daily walk with God in a world
filled with so many distractions.
When we practice "the hidden life," we are not
alone for God is with us and compensates for our inadequacies. We can enjoy the
“peace of God” and experience the “Protected Life”. Psalm 91:5-13 emphasizes that we need not be
afraid because the Lord and His angels watch over us. In the ancient Near East,
travel was dangerous, unless you were protected by armed guards. My friend, it
is not much different in most anywhere in America today.
"Terror by night"
could mean simply "the fear of the dark" and of what can happen in
the darkness. That is where we experience the fear of the “unknown”. Contaminated
water and food, plus an absence of sound health measures, made it easy to
contract diseases by day or by night, although "the destruction that lays
waste at noon" (v. 6,) could refer to the effects of the burning rays of
the sun. Honestly, it is no different today with diseases like covid and new
variants that seem to appear out of nowhere.
Verses 7 and 8 read like the description of a battle and
may have a direct relationship to the covenant promises God made with Israel
(Lev. 26:8; Deut. 32:30). With their own eyes, Israel saw the grief of the
Egyptians over their firstborn who died on Passover night (Ex. 12:29-30), and
they also saw the Egyptian army dead on the shore of the Red Sea (Ex.
14:26-31), yet no harm came to the people of Israel. God's angel went before
them to prepare the way and to lead the way (Ex. 23:20).
Satan quoted part of verses 11-12 when he tempted Jesus in
the wilderness (Matt. 4:6), and the Lord responded with Deuteronomy 6:16. If
the Father had commanded Jesus to jump from the temple pinnacle, then the
angels would have cared for Jesus, but to jump without the Father's command
would have been presumption, not faith, and that would be tempting the Father.
In Scripture, the lion and serpent (cobra) are images of Satan (1 Peter 5:8;
Gen. 3; 2 Cor. 11:3; Rev. 12:9; 20:2; and see Luke 10:19 and Rom. 16:20). In
the ancient Near East, both were dangerous enemies, especially for travelers
walking along the narrow paths.
Today, we also have these promises: “For God has not
given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2
Timothy 1:7). “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and
supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and
the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and
minds through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7). “And the God of peace
will crush Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be
with you. Amen.” (Romans 16:20).
God bless!
