Tuesday, January 6, 2015
(Feast of the Epiphany)
Psalm
46
Psalm
46 is a hymn celebrating God’s provision and protection for his people, for the
city of God, intended to be sung together by the congregation. The three stanzas are separated by each
ending with the Hebrew word Selah,
which is most likely a musical term, perhaps instructing the accompanists about
what they should play. Each stanza also contains
a brief refrain restating the theme of the whole psalm.
In
Stanza 1 (vv. 1 – 3) the refrain comes right at the beginning and introduces
all that follows:
God
is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
In
both Stanzas 2 (vv.4 – 7) and 3 (vv. 8 – 11), the refrain comes at the end and
is worded slightly differently:
The
Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.
Notice
how carefully the poetry of the refrain is constructed. Poetry in Hebrew often expresses its ideas
twice using slightly different words or shades of meaning. The initial refrain starts with God and the latter ones with the
parallel Lord of hosts. The latter two also place Lord of hosts in parallel with God of Jacob. The initial refrain begins God is our refuge and the latter refrains
end almost the same: God of Jacob is our
refuge. Thus, this phrase brackets
the entire psalm. Just inside these
brackets there is another pair: God is a
very present help in the initial refrain and God is with us in the latter two.
So, like other good poetry, Psalm 46 uses repetition and parallels to reinforce
its message.
The
initial refrain, however, has two words, in
trouble, with no parallel in the latter refrains. These two words set the scene for the psalm
and especially its first stanza. The
psalmist will soon come back to the thought of trouble, but first comes
positive reinforcement:
Therefore
we will not fear ….
Why? Because God is our refuge, our strength, our
very present help, no matter what the trouble may be.
Interpreters
often think the trouble in Stanza 1
is an invading army and the fear of war.
For example, Martin Luther used Psalm 46 as the basis for his famous
hymn A Mighty Fortress is our God,
and that hymn is full of battle imagery throughout. But it’s perhaps more likely that the
psalmist is referring to a great natural disaster:
Though the mountains shake in the
heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam,
though
the mountains tremble with its tumult ….
Isn’t
this perhaps an earthquake causing destruction? Perhaps also a tsunami, or a hurricane? But whether the disaster the psalmist has in
mind is natural or man-made, whether it is past, present, on the way, or only
dreaded isn’t really the point. What’s
important is that the people are in danger of falling into great fear of
trouble, and the psalmist is assuring them that God is in charge, God is their
refuge and their help, and there is therefore no reason for them to be afraid.
Why
not? – Because God provides for them and protects them, and us too. This is the theme of Stanza 2, which begins “There is a river whose streams make glad the
city of God.” As we think about this
promise and the whole psalm, let’s meditate on a wonderful 18th
century hymn (Common Praise, #388) by
John Newton (who also wrote Amazing Grace
and other great hymns):
Glorious things of
thee are spoken, Zion, city of our God;
God, whose word cannot be broken,
formed thee for his own abode.
On the Rock of
Ages founded, what can shake thy sure repose?
With salvation's walls surrounded,
thou mayest smile at all thy foes.
See, the streams
of living waters, springing from eternal love,
well supply thy sons and daughters, and
all fear of want remove.
Who can faint
while such a river ever will their thirst assuage?
Grace which like the Lord, the
giver, never fails from age to age.
Round each
habitation hovering, see the cloud and fire appear
for a glory and a covering – showing that the Lord is near!
Thus they march,
the pillar leading, light by night and shade by day,
Daily on the manna feeding which God
gives them when they pray.
See
how this wonderful hymn both re-emphasizes and expands on the themes of Psalm
46, especially its refrain and its second stanza. What excellent exposition!
For
Stanza 3 we turn to a contemporary hymn for insight. Unlike some psalms where God brings victory
in war, in Psalm 46 God
makes
wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear….
In
Psalm 46, it is no particular nation, but it is war itself that is the enemy,
and God defeats all war. So we come to
experience “Be still and know that I am
God!”
Today,
January 6th, is the Feast of the Epiphany, celebrating the
revelation of Christ to all nations – the revelation of the Prince of
Peace. Epiphany celebrates bringing the
Gospel of Peace (Eph. 6:15) to all the world, just as Psalm 46 prophetically
declares that God will destroy all weapons and bring all war to an end. Let us pray and work for this ourselves, as
we join in praying with the contemporary hymn (Common Praise, #593):
O God of every
nation, of every race and land,
redeem the whole creation with your almighty hand;
Where hate and fear divide us and bitter
threats are hurled,
in love and mercy guide us and heal our strife-torn world.
From search for wealth and power and scorn of
truth and right,
from trust in bombs that shower destruction
through the night,
From pride of race and nation and blindness to
your way,
deliver every nation, eternal God, we pray!
Lord, strengthen all who labor that we may
find release
from fear of rattling saber, from dread of
war's increase;
When hope and courage falter, your still small
voice be heard;
with faith that none can alter, your
servants undergird.
Keep bright in us the vision of days when war
shall cease,
when hatred and division give way to love and
peace,
Till dawns the morning glorious when truth and
justice reign
and Christ shall rule victorious
o'er all the world's domain.
[By William Watkins Read, ©
1958, 1986 The Hymn Society of the United States and Canada]
–
Robert Kruse
