This past week, on Friday the 13th no less, I moved into year 46 in this realm; and, as has been my custom for several years now, I woke up on my birthday and almost immediately opened my Bible to Psalm 46. It seems that this psalm was written regarding a time when the City of God, Jerusalem, was under an extreme level of enemy attack and was perhaps failing to realize that just one nod from their omnipotent God could and would make all the difference in the world. This psalm is titled the “God Is Our Fortress” psalm and is thus one that I believe all of us could stand to camp out in a little these days, as the thought of a genuine fortress down here in this world right now is a most needed thought indeed!
As I read this psalm and began to study it more in depth, I discovered something in the reference notes of my Bible that truly awed me. The beginning of verse 10 in this psalm says, “Be still, and know that I am God.” Over the course of my life, I’ve heard this verse many, many times; but, I don’t remember ever hearing what these words probably meant in the Hebrew language in which they were written. One probable rendering of “Be still” would have been “Enough!” After doing a little more research, I saw numerous other closely-related possibilities such as “Stop fighting!” or “Drop it/let it go!” Regarding the word “know,” I learned that one very likely translation would have been “acknowledge,” which would appear to signify more of any outward than an inward response. So, would, “Chill, children, and please realize who really is in control–I got this, so turn it over to me!” be an accurate paraphrase? It seems that it might be. It seems too that we must actively let go of any and everything that isn’t Him.
I had always viewed “Be still” as a quiet, comforting whisper in my ear and not as a chastisement/rebuke of sorts. Likewise, I had always seen “know” as a private, internal imperative and not as any sort of public declaration. Now, though, a few mere words, like “enough” and “acknowledge,” have changed the 46th psalm for me and have altered the mindset with which I am stepping into my next year of life down here. Such words have served to remind me all over again that our God is a mighty lion and, in the words of C.S. Lewis (as per Narnia) he is not a tame lion but a commanding one–and as such he deserves to be taken seriously by his Creation. He truly deserves to be called upon, in any and all of our battles down here. It is, after all, quite foolish to ignore a lion’s roar, the Lion’s roar–“Enough!” And that’s how I hope to spend this new year with which he has gifted me–by being as serious about my God as he has always been about me.
[And, since I haven’t yet been able to decide upon which word I’d like to choose to characterize my 2017 walk with God (“Jabez” was last year’s word), the word “still,” with its depth of meaning in Hebrew, might just be my word for 2017!]
Leave a Reply