Psalm 46 — Present and Helpful — Reading the Psalms

For the Chief Musician: a Psalm of the sons of Korah; set to Alamoth. A Song.

1 God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
2 Therefore will we not fear, though the earth do change,
And though the mountains be moved in the heart of the seas;
3 Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled,
Though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof.   Selah
4 There is a river, the streams whereof make glad the city of God,
The holy place of the tabernacles of the Most High.
5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved:
God shall help her, and that right early.
6 The nations raged, the kingdoms were moved:
He uttered his voice, the earth melted.
7 The LORD of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our refuge.   Selah
8 Come, behold the works of the LORD,
What desolations he hath made in the earth.
9 He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth;
He breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder;
He burneth the chariots in the fire.
10 Be still, and know that I am God:
I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.
11 The LORD of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our refuge.   Selah

“A very present help in trouble” is a beautiful phrase and idea. God shares himself with us and is present with us in our distresses. Jesus himself says that where two of us are gathered in his name, there he is among us. It is in this community and communion with God by which we gain security and safety.

The waters of the Red Sea were vast and the armies of the Pharaoh impenetrable, but the Lord led Israel through to safety. The people were thirsty and hungry i the wilderness, but the Lord gave them drink and meat. We abide on a cursed globe, living lives that inevitably lead to sickness and death, but the Lord gives life from the fountain of life. God will help us, and that right early, too.

Let us come together to read and see the work of the Lord. Let us come together to stir up one another to love and good works. Let us read and recite these psalms to speak truth in love. Come, let us praise the Lord.