I can’t finish the month without just another peak or two at the psalms. One thing I noticed about the psalmists is their frequent mention of God as a shield. I was reading the opening verses of Psalm 91. Two phrases grabbed my attention. Verse 3 says the Most High, the Almighty, the LORD (YHWH) will “Himself deliver you from the hunter’s net,” or “fowlers snare.” The second phrase is in verse 4, “His faithfulness will be a protective shield.”
Two things to notice. Sometimes God delivers us out of … and sometimes God protects us from.
God’s faithfulness protects us from the evil that abounds in this life. If we but take refuge in Him, He will keep us from trouble. He is faithful to us. That faithfulness is like a shield of protection all around us. But, there are times when in our rebellion, or something as simple as our curiosity, we find ourselves in trouble. Perhaps we are already snared by the enemy of our soul who prowls around looking for people to catch in his net. When that happens, God “Himself” will deliver us out of that snare.
Of course, it is far better to stay behind that shield of God’s faithful protection. But when we do fail, when we succumb to the enticement and temptation of sin, it is an abundant blessing to know that God will send His Spirit to bring us to repentance, and in our repentance will come deliverance out of sin’s snare.
