The One Who Lives In The Shelter of The Most High: Psalm 91:1-4

The One Who Lives In The Shelter of The Most High

Psalm 91:1-4 New English Translation

91 As for you, the one who lives in the shelter of the Most High, and resides in the protective shadow of the Sovereign One—2 I say this about the Lord, my shelter and my stronghold,my God in whom I trust—3 he will certainly rescue you from the snare of the hunterand from the destructive plague.4 He will shelter you with his wings; you will find safety under his wings.His faithfulness is like a shield or a protective wall.

The promise of this Psalm is for the one who lives in the shelter of the Most High. What is the shelter of the Most High? It is God’s presence. David was a man of God’s presence. He understood how important the presence of the Lord was in his life. Everything he did and accomplished was because of the hand and anointing of the Lord upon his life.

The Hebrew word for live here means sit, sit down, remain sitting; dwell; be inhabited; marry[1]. When we live in the presence of the Lord, it becomes our dwelling place. We are intimately connected to it. It becomes our aim and our passion. It becomes our priority and our obsession.

Too many treat their relationship with Jesus so flippantly. They simply treat it as an add on to their life. But when we truly follow Christ, He becomes our life. Paul said it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me (Gal 2:20). Paul understood the crucified life. When we begin to build our life on sound biblical doctrine, we will see the very life of Christ produced within us. The reality Paul spoke about in Galatians 2:20 will become a reality in our own lives.

God calls us to live in the protective shadow of the Sovereign One. The Hebrew word for sovereign here means Shaddai; almighty, Almighty God — the God of Israel understood according to his absolute power[2] . The God we serve is the creator of all. He is the Alpha and Omega. He is the Sovereign One. It means that all things are held together by His mighty power. It means that there is nothing outside of His control. When we dwell in His presence and make it the place where we live, it is the greatest place of protection and safety.

God is our shelter and our stronghold. The word shelter means place of refuge; refuge. Stronghold means mountain stronghold, stronghold (structure) — a strongly fortified defensive or military structure[3]. We are engaged in spiritual warfare daily. God is our military stronghold. He is the place where we not only find safety and protection, but through His leading and guidance we enter into kingdom advancement. When the presence of God becomes the priority of our lives is when we no longer live in defeat and run from the enemy, but we stand our ground, and we take ground. This all happens in the place of prayer.

God is the one who we can trust. He is the faithful one. All throughout scripture He shows us time and time again how He is always faithful in the lives of His people. What set David apart from many of the other kings of Israel is that He worshipped God alone. David never had any idols before the Lord. The great King Solomon would give his heart to the worship of idols and false gods, but David never did. David knew that his greatness was simply a result of trusting the Lord.

He will rescue us. Here it says that we will be rescued from the snare of the hunter and from the destructive plague. The enemy of our soul has real plans and purposes not only to destroy our lives, but our marriage, our family, and anyone else connected to us in relationship. But God has not called us to run and hide. God has not given us a spirit of fear. He has given us a Spirit of power, love, and sound mind. Jesus has called us to pray that we would be delivered from the hand of the enemy and temptation. Daily we must bring all our life before the Lord in prayer and ask for His will to be done and for His mighty hand to deliver us. Because of Jesus, we have nothing to fear. In this world He told us we will have trouble, but His grace and provision are sufficient for all things.

He will shelter us with His wings. The word shelter here means shut off as a protection; shut off, make inaccessible, to cover (provide a cover) — to provide with a covering or cause to be covered[4]. This is a picture of a massive mother bird who protects her chicks under her mighty wings. Often during a great storm the chicks will huddle in the nest under the protective cover of their mother’s wings in complete peace and comfort, while their mother braves the storm and protects them. This is our God. We are called to stand under the cover of His protective presence. As we draw near and develop deep intimacy with Him, His presence fills our lives, covers our lives, and protects us.

We will find safety in His presence. His faithfulness is like a shield and a protective wall. The word faithfulness means firmness, trustworthiness; constancy, duration; faithfulness[5]. He is always trustworthy. He will never fail us. No matter how great or long the storm or trial, the faithfulness of God will endure. He calls us to draw near and seek His face. He will be a protective wall around us. No matter how hard the enemy tries, the Lord will defend and protect us. There is nothing that the enemy can do without God allowing it. If God has allowed it, that means there is a blessing in it because He will work all things together for our good.

If we will take prayer seriously and make it a priority, we will see God move supernaturally in our lives and circumstances. Jesus molded how important prayer is in our lives by living His life before us. Everything He did was born out of prayer. The more we pray, the more we become like Him. The more we pray, the more we come to know how to pray. Make the pursuit of Him your obsession and aim and watch His presence fill and overflow in your life.

Prayer

Father help me to grow deeper in the place of prayer. Help me to make prayer the priority of my life, my passion, and my obsession. Remove anything that is an idol or hindrance. Father pour out your presence in all areas of my life. May your presence so fill my life that where ever I go it touches those I come into contact with. Hide me this day in the shelter of your wing. Help me to live from a place of your authority and your power in the name of Jesus, Amen!

[1] Rick Brannan, ed., Lexham Research Lexicon of the Hebrew Bible, Lexham Research Lexicons (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2020).

[2] Rick Brannan, ed., Lexham Research Lexicon of the Hebrew Bible, Lexham Research Lexicons (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2020).

[3] Rick Brannan, ed., Lexham Research Lexicon of the Hebrew Bible, Lexham Research Lexicons (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2020).

[4] Rick Brannan, ed., Lexham Research Lexicon of the Hebrew Bible, Lexham Research Lexicons (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2020).

[5] Rick Brannan, ed., Lexham Research Lexicon of the Hebrew Bible, Lexham Research Lexicons (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2020).