Thursday, August 15, 2024

Psalm 34:6-7

6          This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him

                        and saved him out of all his troubles.

7          The angel of the LORD encamps

                        around those who fear him, and delivers them.

            Which fear surrounds you; the fears that come from the world, or the fear of the LORD? In the Old Testament reading for this week, we hear about Elijah who is running for his life because Jezebel is rather hot under the collar. Elijah just did in 450 of her priests. Do you remember the odds? It was 450 priests of false religion to ONE of Yhwh’s servants, Elijah. God worked His power in front of all the people that day showing that He, and He alone, is the One true and only God.

            Jezebel sends a messenger to Elijah stating that there’s a contract out on him, and that he is going to get slaughtered very soon. This sends Elijah into a panic—and fear!

            However, there was another messenger that came to him, the Angel of the LORD. (The Angel of the LORD is the Second person of the Trinity[1]—Jesus, before He enfleshed Himself and was born in the manger.[2]) This messenger also had a message for Elijah. “Get up and get going. There’s still work to be done. Don’t be afraid.”

            Elijah ate the food and drank the water, and then he lay down again! The Angel of the LORD came back a second time. “Let’s get going. The journey’s long.”

            Psalm 34:7 tells us that the Angel of the LORD encamps around those who honor and revere Him. “Encamp” is a military term. The Angel of the LORD is always on duty. He’s always alert. God never slumbers nor sleeps. He’s with His people 24/7/365. He works on Christmas and Easter, and He never takes union breaks.

            Satan seeks to instill fear in the lives of people, especially God’s people. The messengers of the world speak doom and gloom. The message of Jesus is “Do not fear.” In fact, there are 365 times in the Bible that tell us that we should not be afraid. How many days are there in the year? 365 days—one “don’t fear” for each day of the year.

            What are you afraid of? What causes you to panic? Remember that the Angel of the LORD is with you and fights for you.

---

[1] Timothy E. Saleska, Psalms 1–50, ed. Christopher W. Mitchell, Concordia Commentary (Saint Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 2020), 546.; Hans-Joachim Kraus, A Continental Commentary: Theology of the Psalms (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1992), 48–49.

[2] There are many different appearances of the Angel of the LORD in the Old Testament. These are called Christophanies because God is revealing, or manifesting, His Christ to people. The final Christophany takes place in the manger, and His name is Jesus.