 |  |
"The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. And
they that know Thy Name will put their trust in Thee: For Thou, Lord, hast not forsaken
them that seek Thee" (Psa. 9: 9, 10).
Again, at the close of the Psalm that opens with the words: "If it had not been the
Lord Who was on our side . . . . ." David says: "Our help is in the Name of the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth" (Psa. 124:).
Let us then remember that "Name which is above every name", and rejoice to know
that
The Eternal God is thy Refuge.
#11.
"Fear not.
I am thy Shield" (Gen. 15: 1).
pp. 63, 64
We have considered the several references in the Scriptures to God being a Refuge
and a Defence, and we have learned that there is a secret place of the Most High in which
we dwell, and a shadow under which we may "tarry for a night". Associated with this
"secret place" is also a Shield, as for example:
"Thou art My hiding place (sether, `secret place') and my shield: I hope in Thy
Word" (Psa. 119: 114).
To Abram, after the battle with the kings was over, God said: "Fear not Abraham; I
am thy shield" (Gen. 15: 1). To Israel, the prophet Moses said, in his last blessing:
"Happy art thou O Israel; who is like unto thee, O people saved by the Lord, the shield
of thy help" (Deut. 33: 29). David confessed:
"He is my shield" (II Sam. 22: 8).
"As for God, His way is perfect: the word of the Lord is tried: He is a buckler
(shield) to all them that trust in Him" (II Sam. 22: 31).
"Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation and thy gentleness hath made me
great" (II Sam. 22: 36).
In days when trouble increased, when many rose up against David, when many said
that there was no help for him in God, when he was suffering the agony of Absalom's
treachery, he could still say: "But Thou, O Lord, art a shield for me: my glory, and the
lifter up of mine head" (Psa. 3: 3). Again, on another occasion, when David felt that if
the Lord should be silent to him he would "become like them that go down into the pit",
he said: "Blessed be the Lord, because He hath heard the voice of my supplications.
The Lord is my strength and my shield: my heart trusteth in Him, and I am helped"
(Psa. 28: 6, 7). The longing soul, separated from the fellowship and worship of God's
people and God's house, cried: "Behold, O God our shield . . . . . the Lord God is a sun
and shield: the Lord will give grace and glory" (Psa. 84: 9, 11).