Providence, Protection, and Preservation

Peterson: Providence “God Guards You From Every Evil”

Ross: Protection on the Pilgrim Way

“It will always be true that the wisest course for the disciple is always to abide solely by the Word of God in all simplicity.” — Dietrich Bonhoeffer

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Psalm 121 ESV

A Song of Ascents. 1 I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? 2 My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. 3 He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. 4 Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. 5 The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand. 6 The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. 7 The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. 8 The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.

Why is this psalm in the Ascents hymnbook? How does this prepare the hearts of the Hebrew people to worship God?

A Commentary on the Psalms, Volume 3 (90–150): Commentary Summary

Summary

Faithful pilgrims who journey to Jerusalem to worship the LORD take comfort in the fact that the LORD, the creator of heaven and earth and the protector of Israel, will protect them on their journey and at all times.

The main idea for us as NT believers is that we may confidently trust in the Lord to protect us as we are traveling on our pilgrim journey.

How does this Psalm encourage us or give us confidence along our pilgrim journey?

Let’s look at two primary truths from this psalm about our pilgrim journey.

I. Faithful worshipers of the Lord have no need to be anxious (1-2)

A. There are dangers and concerns in life (1)

Psalm 121:1 ESV

1 I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come?

What is the danger in this verse? I lift up my eyes to the hills.

Meaning?

Peterson:

“During the time this psalm was written and sung, Palestine was overrun with popular pagan worship. Much of this religion was practiced on hilltops. Shrines were set up, groves of trees were planted, sacred prostitutes both male and female were provided; persons were lured to the shrines to engage in acts of worship that would enhance the fertility of the land, would make you feel good, would protect you from evil. There were nostrums, protections, spells and enchantments against all the perils of the road. Do you fear the sun’s heat? Go to the sun priest and pay for protection against the sun god. Are you fearful of the malign influence of moonlight? Go to the moon priestess and buy an amulet. Are you haunted by the demons that can use any pebble under your foot to trip you? Go to the shrine and learn the magic formula to ward off the mischief. Whence shall my help come? from Baal? from Asherah? from the sun priest? from the moon priestess?” (35)

Ross:

A Commentary on the Psalms, Volume 3 (90–150): Commentary A. Dangers in Life Raise Concerns for God’s People (1)

the way to the holy city would be through hills fraught with danger—slippery paths and loose rocks and deep valleys, as well as robbers and wild animals. This would have been a concern for anyone who had to travel, but certainly for the pilgrims who were required to go to the festivals (which, no doubt, led to their traveling in caravans).

Seems like Ross is closer to the meaning of v. 1. Nothing in the rest of the psalm that indicates the hills as connected to the false religious practices of Israel’s day. It does make sense for pilgrims at the beginning of a long journey to cast their eyes upon the dangerous road ahead and be tempted to fear.

What is the concern? From where does my help come?

A Commentary on the Psalms, Volume 3 (90–150): Commentary A. Dangers in Life Raise Concerns for God’s People (1)

this word “help” is a term that is used frequently for divine intervention in which the LORD provides what the people were lacking, or does for them what they cannot do for themselves. So it is more than simple assistance that is meant—without this help the psalmist would not be safe at all.

B. The believer’s protection comes from the Lord, the Creator (2)

Psalm 121:2 ESV

2 My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

So the pilgrim in v. 1 acknowledges the danger and their concern, but they already know the answer. Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord.

V. 1 ends with the word “help” and v. 2 begins with the exact same word.

From where comes help? Help from Yahweh.

Why do you think the author emphasized the world help in this first section? Where is his confidence? The needed confidence required to attempt the pilgrim journey to Jerusalem through the dangerous hills comes only from the LORD.

What does the psalmist stress about the Lord? He is maker of heaven and earth.

Why stress the Lord’s title of creator here? How does that connect with the idea of being our help?

Ross:

“The point is that if the LORD created everything, then he created the hills through which the pilgrim must walk; and whatever the LORD has created he can control. The doctrine of creation, therefore, is relevant for the life of faith in every detail. If pilgrims were faithfully obeying the sovereign LORD of creation by going up to Jerusalem to worship him, then they could be confident that he was able to overcome any difficulty on the way.” (615)

Peterson: “Help comes from the Creator, not from the creation.”

Faithful worshipers of the Lord have no need to fear because as they travel on their path the creator of the universe is there to help and protect them.

How else does this Psalm encourage us or give us confidence along our pilgrim journey?

II. Faithful worshipers of the Lord can trust in His sovereign protection for all areas of life (3-8)

A. We can be assured that God is never indifferent or unavailable (3-4)

Psalm 121:3–4 ESV

3 He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. 4 Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

There is a major change here in v. 3. Can anyone spot the change between vv. 1-2 and vv. 3-8? Look at the grammar. Look at the pronouns.

A Commentary on the Psalms, Volume 3 (90–150): Commentary A. They Are Assured that the Lord Is Never Indifferent or Unavailable (3–4)

And because the pronouns now change, it is likely that these words were spoken to the pilgrim either by an accompanying priest or another pilgrim who was strong in the faith (especially if verse 3 is a prayer). At least in the arrangement of the psalm the lines lend themselves to antiphonal singing. Even today words of assurance from spiritually mature leaders are comforting, even if those words are written for all to read in the Scriptures.

Grammatically, it is possible to translate the verbs in v. 3 as a prayer instead of as future tense.

Psalm 121:3 NET

3 May he not allow your foot to slip! May your protector not sleep!

A Commentary on the Psalms, Volume 3 (90–150): Commentary A. They Are Assured that the Lord Is Never Indifferent or Unavailable (3–4)

The prayer is that the LORD would not permit the pilgrim’s foot to slip, i.e., that he not fall or be harmed in any way (foot being a synecdoche for the whole person). The noun “slipping” (מוֹט, s.v. Ps. 62:2) would represent any accident along the journey. This concern is easy to understand given the treacherous walking in those hills and valleys even today. It is a prayer that any pilgrim would appreciate.

For God to answer this prayer for the pilgrim people, what would be required of God? What kind of a God would he have to be?

God may you not allow even one of these precious pilgrim’s feet to slip as the travel to Jerusalem. If God were to protect someone from slipping that would require attention given to what? Every step of the way. So if God is to prevent slipping he must be attentive!

That is the parallel statement! The one who is attentive to every step, may your protector not sleep. This is less of a prayer that a statement of confidence in God.

Psalm 121:4 ESV

4 Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

What is the idea of slumbering? It is a figure for lack of attention or indifference.

God does not suffer from a short attention span or a lack of indifference and He certain has no need of sleep! What does a sleeping god remind you of? Elijah and the prophets of Baal.

Because God does neither of these things He is the one who KEEPS Israel. This is the idea of a protector. God keeps or protects His people.

How many times does the Psalmist use this word “Keep” in this Psalm? six times in eight verses. This is clearly the focus of the psalm.

It calls to mind part of the priestly blessing given in the sanctuary.

Numbers 6:24–26 ESV

24 The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.

A Commentary on the Psalms, Volume 3 (90–150): Commentary A. They Are Assured that the Lord Is Never Indifferent or Unavailable (3–4)

This psalm about protection for the pilgrimages to the sanctuary may have been a meditation on that oracle; and if the psalm was also used at the dismissal for the journey home, the words of the blessing would be fresh in their minds.

A Commentary on the Psalms, Volume 3 (90–150): Commentary A. They Are Assured that the Lord Is Never Indifferent or Unavailable (3–4)

God is not like the pagan gods—he does not need to rest, eat, or sleep; he is always there and always protecting.

Peterson: “The only serious mistake we can make when illness comes, when anxiety threatens, when conflict disturbs our relationships with others is to conclude that God has gotten bored looking after us and has shifted his attention to a more exciting Christian.”

B. We can be confident in God’s vigilance at all times (5-6)

Psalm 121:5–6 ESV

5 The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand. 6 The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.

Here the Psalmist elaborates on the consistency and the extent of God’s protection or keeping.

What is repeated in v. 5? God’s name! Yahweh! What does this name of God mean? He is the covenant keeping God of Israel. So the maker of the universe and the covenant God of Israel is now emphatically identified as the protector of His people!

The Lord is your shade on your right hand?

A Commentary on the Psalms, Volume 3 (90–150): Commentary B. The Lord Is Vigilant at All Times (5–6)

The figure “shade” (a metaphor) compares divine protection to shade to signify constant and complete coverage. Shade for the pilgrim would be a real and delightful image. By stating that the shade is “over your right hand,” the speaker means that the protection would be on all the pilgrim does—whatever he puts his hand to (a metonymy of cause).

What about v. 6? Sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night? Whatever goes on during the daylight hours and whatever goes on during the night is all covered by God’s protection.

C. We can trust in God’s ability to protect us from all harm (7-8)

Psalm 121:7–8 ESV

7 The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. 8 The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.

Powerful conclusion: What is the repeated word? KEEP/PROTECT! twice in v. 7 and once in v. 8.

V. 7 may be translated as jussives: “May the Lord keep you from evil; may he keep your life.” This would be the prayer. And v. 8 would be the response: “The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.”

How do we harmonize this thought with the rest of Scripture? Does God protect all believers fro all evil?

Romans 8:28 ESV

28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Matthew 28:20 ESV

20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Romans 8:37–39 ESV

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

So how does this psalm prepare our hearts for worship? The theme is divine protection. The message is that the pilgrim, the one who truly loves the Lord and longs to worship Him, may have confidence that God will be His protector there and back again. And not just in the journey to and from the place of worship, but in all areas of life.

We can confidently trust in the Lord to protect us on our pilgrim journey.

This psalm helps us build confidence in the Lord through prayer over our concerns. It helps our hearts with words of assurance from the Lord, both in written form and through the words and prayers of other believers.

Maybe sometime to an dual reading of this psalm with your family?

The Lord is our protector, even when he allows danger and difficulty, He will protect us through the struggles of life.

Peterson: “The difference is that each step we walk, each breath we breathe, we know we are preserved by God, we know we are accompanied by God, we know we are ruled by God; and therefore no matter what doubts we endure or what accidents we experience, the Lord will guard us from every evil, he guards our very life.”

1 Peter 3:13–14 ESV

13 Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? 14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled,

And though this world, with devils filled, should threaten to undo us, we will not fear, for God has willed his truth to triumph through us. The prince of darkness grim, we tremble not for him; his rage we can endure, for lo! his doom is sure; one little word shall fell him.