Verse of the Day 4/14

Psalm 121:7-8 The Lord will keep you from all evil;   he will keep your life.

⁸ The Lord will keep
    your going out and your coming in
    from this time forth and forevermore.   English Standard Version (ESV)

Last week I was in Las Vegas on business and I had a free day on Sunday and decided to take a drive to visit Zion National Park in Utah.  That morning in the course of my daily reading through the Psalms I came to Psalm 121, a psalm of ascents which is probably most famous for the statement if verse 1, "I will lift my eyes to the hills, from where does my help come from?"  It was the perfect psalm to read in preparation to the visit to this park.  God is good, all the time, -  all the time God is God.

The park is know for and is named for 3 major peaks, named after the patriarchs of the Old Testament, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.  It is a majestic sight to look at them.  But as verse 1 indicates, the psalmist lifts his eyes to the hills or the peaks; he was looking to Jerusalem.  But his strength came from God.  It is the same with us.

Verses 7 and 8 hold some important promises for God's followers.  He will keep our going out and coming in.  He is there with us through the peaks and valleys, towering over us in majesty from this time, today, forward to forevermore.  We should take comfort in the fact that the God who formed these majestic mountains made those promises to us and they will stand longer than these mountains that seem changeless and timeless.  While they seem it, God is.

In this psalm God is our Helper (v. 1 -2), our Keeper (v. 3-4), our Protector (v.5-6), and our Preserver (v.7-8).    He guards you now, He'll guard you always.  (The Message)

--   In Christ,  Mike    Folllow the Verse of the Day blog at http://mikesvotd.blogspot.com  Ephesians 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins,  in accordance with the riches of God's grace.  NIV    

Psalm 121 The Message (MSG)

A Pilgrim Song

121 ^1-2 I look up to the mountains;
    does my strength come from mountains?
No, my strength comes from God,
    who made heaven, and earth, and mountains.

^3-4 He won't let you stumble,
    your Guardian God won't fall asleep.
Not on your life! Israel's
    Guardian will never doze or sleep.

^5-6 God's your Guardian,
    right at your side to protect you—
Shielding you from sunstroke,
    sheltering you from moonstroke.

^7-8 God guards you from every evil,
    he guards your very life.
He guards you when you leave and when you return,
    he guards you now, he guards you always.