Psalms 91:1-16
1 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abidea under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.
4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;
6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.
8 Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.
9 Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation;
10 There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.
11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
12 They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.
13 Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder:b the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.
14 Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.
15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.
16 With longc life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.
This psalm is one of the greatest possessions of the saints. It is a great song of the safety of such as put their trust in Jehovah, and contains the Divine assurance of such faith as fruitful. Very little of exposition is necessary. There is a change in the use of pronouns from first to second to third at the close; which, although it has created some sense of difficulty, is yet a key to the psalm for purposes analysis.
Let us set out the scheme of the psalm round these changes, leaving its familiar words to speak for themselves. Verse Psa 91:1 The statement of truth Verse Psa 91:2 Personal affirmation of realisation Verses Psa 91:3-8 The address of the singer, either to his own soul, or to some other person, or to the nation, in which he affirms the convictions resulting from personal realisation of the truth.
Verse Psalms 91:9 a Repetition of personal realisation Verses Psalms 91:9; Psalms 91:9 Same as verses Psa 91:3-8
Verses Psa 91:14-15 Conclusion of psalm, in which the singer with holy boldness expresses as in the words of Jehovah, the safety of the trusting soul, and thus gives the testimony of God as well as that of man to the truth.