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"God is our hope and strength: a very present help
in trouble." Psalm 46:1
The Psalms add to their value when they inspire hymnists,
song writers and singers, to emphasise the worth and wisdom
of what they say about God, and the benefits to people from
their faith and trust in Him.
The 46th Psalm became the song of the Reformation to put
words to the Protestant Faith. Martin Luther admitted his
indebtedness to it, for he claimed that it strengthened him
to take his stand against Roman Catholic Church teaching and
tyranny. The strength of his strength was from God in whom
he had utter dependence. He echoed the Psalmist, "The
Lord of hosts is with me the God of Jacob is my refuge."
"God is our hope and strength, a very present help in
trouble."
Those who believe in God are comforted in the knowledge that
He is with them; and with Him they can face up to any eventuality
in their lives.
The Psalm was written in a time of danger, despair and doubt,
for the prospects of the people were not good. It contemplated
the siege of Jerusalem in 701 BC by the Assyrian conqueror,
Sennacherib, with the horrors that his victory would bring
in deaths, injuries and destruction of homes and livelihoods.
It needed little imagination to envisage what life would be
like under appalling siege circumstances.
The siting of Jerusalem made the siege the more frightening,
for unlike many other cities it was not on a great river or
by the sea. It had only the brook of Siloam to provide water
for the thirsty. Siloam in mind the Psalmist sings:
"There is a river, the streams whereof make glad
the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacle of the
Most High," and there was the promise, "God
is - in the midst of her and she shall not he moved".
What was threatened never happened, for by what was seen
as an act of God, Sennacherib was defeated and fled back to
Assyria with a huge loss of his men. This happened in the
reign of King Hexekiah, 1 Kings 18:13 to 19:36.
Psalm 46 became a recounting of how God dispelled the doubt
and despair of the people. In it is the determination that
faith in God brings to people hope in spite of whatever difficulties
and dangers beset them. There is the confidence of the Psalmist,
"God is our hope and strength, a very present help in
trouble."
There was always the recognition, though, that God does not
promise to save us from pain, sorrow, bereavement and death,
His promise is that He will never leave us or forsake us as
we live through our experiences in life. We are never alone.
Martin Luther, with his confidence in God, experiences of
the church, with its heresies and injustices, found in Psalm
46 an expression of sentiments and judgements he could readily
apply to his own situation.
From this decision came his great hymn with these opening
words:
"A safe stronghold our God is still, a trusty
shield and weapon. He'll help us clear from all the ill,
that hath us now o'ertaken."
It is a rousing hymn of praise and thanksgiving. Its sentiments
are those of Christians whose dependence on God is illustrated
in their good character and conduct; their kindly treatment
of others and their attitudes in what matters in society.
The quality of their commitment to Christ is to be seen in
how they witness to their faith in Him by what they say and
do as they represent Him in their lives. Their thinking, speaking
and living.
The faithful speak in the language of Psalm 56:3 and Luther,
"In God we trust, of whom then can we be afraid."
Canon Dr. S.E. Long
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