Psalms in Poetic Form: Psalm 46

Click here to read PSALM 46 in poetic form.

Background

Some Bible teachers believe that Psalms 46, 47, and 48 were written by King Hezekiah regarding the siege of Jerusalem by Sennacherib (II Kings 18:13—19:37; II Chronicles 32:1-23; Isaiah 36:1—37:38). Some references relate to specific aspects of Jerusalem and its environs, as well as to conditions in a siege.

The Psalm is separated into three sections, each closing with the Hebrew term “Selah,” which means to pause. Some Bible teachers say this connects the truths that come before and after the term. All three sections describe God as a “refuge” for His people.

Structure

(Verses 1-3) Trust in God as a refuge in the midst of evil

Pause

(Verses 4-7) God helps as a refuge in the midst of evil

Pause

(Verses 8-11) Trust in God as a refuge in the midst of evil

Pause

Key Scriptures

Verse 1—“ God is our refuge and strength.” Note that this is repeated in verse 7: “the God of Jacob is our refuge,” and in verse 11: “the God of Jacob is our refuge.” These multiple uses show God’s continual help and presence, even when Hezekiah and those at Jerusalem were under siege. This verse also says that God is “a very present help,” He is ever near.

Verses 2, 3—“mountains be carried…” “waters thereof roar…” “mountains shake…” Despite the attacks upon other mountains and waters, Mount Zion and its waters beneath Jerusalem would not fail. For God was a very present help in trouble.

Verse 3—“Selah.” This connects the roaring and troubled waters before it (like Sennacherib’s attacks) in verse 3 with the river and streams that make glad (the spring Gihon and the rock-hewn channels under Jerusalem) in verse 4.

Verse 4—“ There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God.” This “river” refers to Gihon, a well-spring near Jerusalem that was known from the time of Melchizedek, King of Salem, and later by the Jebusites who lived on the mount.

When David captured this Jebusite stronghold, his men came through the “gutter” (II Samuel 5:8) or shaft that brought water from Gihon into their fortress. Before Hezekiah’s reign, this water source could be threatened or the shaft used as an entry point of attack. But before Sennacherib and the Assyrian army besieged Jerusalem in 603 B.C., Hezekiah built a tunnel from Gihon to a special pool. Nehemiah 2:14 says, “Then I went on to the gate of the fountain [Gihon], and to the king’s pool….” The “king’s pool” is the special pool used by Nehemiah.

When Sherry and I visited Israel, we walked through a part of this tunnel that comes out at the Pool of Siloam (John 9:7,11). We saw an inscription, discovered in 1880, on the stone wall of the tunnel that confirms Hezekiah built it.

II Chronicles 32:3 says that Hezekiah “took counsel with his princes and his mighty men to stop the waters of the fountains which were without the city: and they did help him.” They hid this ancient water source from the Assyrians and were able to have water during the siege from the tunnel that led from Gihon.

Jesus Christ would have learned much about God supplying his need in any situation. Hundreds of years later, Jesus was “under siege” at Jerusalem by the Devil working in the religious leaders there. These evil men were unable to stop the “living water” that Jesus Christ made available to all (John 4:10; 7:38).

Verse 7—“Selah.” This connects God as refuge in verse 7 with his mighty works in verse 8.

Verse 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 chariot in the fire.” This is similar to what Isaiah prophesied concerning the siege and Sennacherib in II Kings 19:32-37:  “Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with shield, nor cast a bank against it. By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith the Lord. For I will defend this city, to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant David’s sake. And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the Lord went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses. So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh. And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword: and they escaped into the land of Armenia. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.”

Verse 10—“ Be still, and know that I am God.” The Hebrew reads: “Desist from your own efforts, and recognize that I am God!” Jesus Christ learned so much from this Psalm about God rescuing his ancestor Hezekiah at Jerusalem. More than any other, Jesus Christ recognized his heavenly Father and desisted from his own efforts. Jesus said, “I can of mine own self do nothing” (John 5:30). Remember that God granted Hezekiah 15 years of life after his illness (II Kings 15:1-7). The fifteen “songs of degrees” (Psalms 120-134) show Hezekiah’s thankfulness to be healed and to live that many more years—during which time he bore a son to carry on the ancestral line of Jesus Christ.

Verse 11—“Selah.” This connects Psalm 46 with Psalms 47 and 48, which also refer to God delivering Hezekiah and His people from the Assyrians.

FOR FURTHER STUDY

All 150 of The Psalms in Poetic Form are available from Amazon in a book, either Large Print or a smaller Bedside Reader. Also available for free with a Kindle Unlimited membership. Enjoy!

The entire blog series is now available in the publication The Psalms: Background & Structure with Key Scriptures Explained.