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PSALMS 46

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STROPHE DIVISIONS OF MODERN TRANSLATIONS

NASB NKJV NRSV TEV NJB
God the Refuge of His People
MT Intro

For the choir director. A Psalm of the sons of
Korah, set to Alamoth. A Song.		 God the Refuge of His People and Conqueror of the Nations A Song of Zion Celebrating God’s Ultimate Victory Over the Nations God Is With Us God Is With Us
46:1-3 46:1-3 46:1-3 46:1-3 46:1-3b
        46:3c
46:4-7 46:4-6 46:4-7 46:4-6 46:4-6
  46:7   46:7 46:7
46:8-11 46:8-9 46:8-11 46:8-10 46:8-10
  46:10      
  46:11   46:11 46:11

READING CYCLE THREE (see
“Bible
Interpretation Seminar”)

FOLLOWING THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR’S INTENT AT PARAGRAPH LEVEL

This is a study guide commentary, which
means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the
light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not
relinquish this to a commentator.

Read the chapter in one sitting. Identify the subjects (reading cycle #3). Compare
your subject divisions with the five translations above. Paragraphing is not inspired, but it is
the key to following the original author’s intent, which is the heart of interpretation. Every
paragraph has one and only one subject.

  1. First paragraph
  2. Second paragraph
  3. Third paragraph, etc.

CONTEXTUAL INSIGHTS

  1. This Psalm is the Scriptural inspiration for Martin Luther’s hymn, “A Mighty Fortress
    Is Our God.”

     

  2. There is no known historical setting.
  3. God is both
    1. a fortress for protection (cf. Ps. 46:7, 11)
    2. a warrior who caused war to cease in all the earth (cf. Ps. 46:9)

      However, the great blessing is not just His power, but

    3. His presence (cf. Ps. 46:1b)
    4. His universal purposes (cf. Ps. 46:10, see
      SPECIAL
      TOPIC: YHWH’S ETERNAL REDEMPTIVE PLAN      )

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: PSALM 46:1-3
 1God
is our refuge and strength,
 A
very present help in trouble.
 2Therefore
we will not fear, though the earth should change
 And though the mountains slip into
the heart of the sea;
 3Though
its waters roar and foam,
 Though
the mountains quake at its swelling pride.  Selah.

46:1 “God” The second book of Psalms uses the title Elohim far more than
YHWH. See SPECIAL
TOPIC: NAMES FOR DEITY.

▣ “our refuge and strength” These are recurrent descriptions of God
(cf. Ps. 14:6; 18:1-2; 40:17; 62:7-8; 142:5).

46:2-3 The psalmist’s faith assertion (i.e., “will not fear,” cf. Ps. 23:4; 27:1) is
made amidst times of crises.

  1. though the earth should change
  2. though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea
  3. though its waters roar (BDB 242, המה) and foam (BDB 330 I,
    חמר, sound play)
  4. though the mountains quake at its swelling pride

These kinds of cataclysmic events could refer to

  1. what happens when YHWH approaches His creation (i.e., “melts,” BDB 556, KB 555,
    Qal IMPERFECT, cf. Ps. 46:6b; 97:5; Micah 1:4; Nah. 1:5)
  2. metaphor for trouble (i.e., “tight places,” BDB 865 I, FEMININE NOUN,
    cf. Deut. 31:17,21; 1 Sam.10:19; Ps. 71:20; Pro. 1:27)

46:3 This verse has three IMPERFECTS (i.e., ongoing action).

  1. waters roar — BDB 242, KB 250, Qal
  2. waters foam — BDB 330, KB 330, Qal
  3. mountains quake — BDB 950, KB 1271, Qal

The Jewish Study Bible (p. 1333) says this is “mythological language going back to
Canaanite traditions. Before these myths were recovered, the psalm was often connected to the
eschatological battles (so Rashi and Radak).”  See
SPECIAL
TOPIC: ANE CREATION AND FLOOD MYTHS.

The Anchor Bible (AB) on The Psalms by Mitchell Dahood, uses the literature
of the Ras Shamra found at Ugarit to explain the Hebrew poetry and form of the Psalter. These
Ugaritic texts are poetry about Ba’al and the Canaanite pantheon. Often Israel took the titles,
imagery, and myths of the nations and changed them to extol their covenant Deity, YHWH, the one true God!

SPECIAL TOPIC: MONOTHEISM)

▣ “Selah” This term breaks the Psalm into three strophes.

  1. Ps. 46:1-3
  2. Ps. 46:4-7
  3. Ps. 46:8-11

For the possible meaning see notes at Ps. 3:2 and Introduction to Psalms, VII.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: PSALM 46:4-7
 4There
is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
 The holy dwelling places of the Most
High.
 5God is
in the midst of her, she will not be moved;
 God will help her when morning
dawns.
 6The
nations made an uproar, the kingdoms tottered;
 He raised His voice, the earth
melted.
 7The
Lord of hosts is with us;
 The
God of Jacob is our stronghold.  Selah.

46:4-7 This strophe describes the tranquil peace surrounding God when the earth is in
turmoil (i.e., Revelation 4-5).

  1. a river continually flows (lit. “irrigation canal,” BDB 625, cf. Ps. 36:8; 65:9;
    Ezek. 47:1; Joel 3:18; Zech. 14:8; Rev. 22:1,17) in “the city of God”
    (cf. Ps. 48:1,8; 87:3; 101:8; Isa. 60:14; Rev. 3:12)
  2. the city of God will not be moved (i.e., shaken) because YHWH is in her midst
    (cf. Hos. 11:9; Zech.2:5; Heb. 11:10; 12:22; 13:14)
  3. God will help her (cf. Ps. 37:40; Isa. 41:14) when morning dawns (imagery of perfect timing,
    cf. Ps. 5:3; 17:15; 30:5; 90:14). This “help” links with “the nations made an
    uproar” in Ps. 46:6a (same VERB in Ps. 46:3a, cf. Psalm 2). The
    “nations” are mentioned again in Ps. 46:10b. God’s purposes have always included
    the nations (see
    SPECIAL TOPIC: YHWH’S
    ETERNAL REDEMPTIVE PLAN    )!
  4. the city of God will not be moved (i.e., imagery of stability and continuance)
46:4b
NASB, JPSOA   ”The holy dwelling places”
NKJV   ”the holy place of the tabernacle”
NRSV   ”the holy habitation”
TEV   ”the sacred house”
NJB   ”it sanctifies the dwelling “
REB   ”sanctified his covert”
LXX   ”the holy dwelling”

The MT (BDB 1015) has

  1. tabernacle ‒ Exod. 25:9; 26:30; 38:21; 40:34-35; Num. 9:18,22 (i.e., “tent of
    meeting”); Ps. 78:60
  2. dwelling place
    1. of Korah (i.e., tents) ‒ Num. 16:24,27
    2. of Jacob ‒ Ps. 87:2
    3. of YHWH (i.e., temple) ‒ Ps. 26:8; 74:7
    4. of YHWH (but PLURAL, i.e., all the buildings on the temple mount) ‒
      Ps. 43:3; 84:1; 132:5,7; Ezek. 32:27

The PLURAL could refer to

  1. all the buildings of the temple
  2. the PLURAL OF MAJESTY (i.e., most holy)

You can see from the translations that some change “holy” (ADJECTIVE,
BDB 872) into the VERB “sanctify” (LXX, Vulgate, NJB), which is a change of
only vowels.

▣ “the Most High” This title
for Deity (Elyon, BDB 751 II, see

SPECIAL TOPIC: NAMES FOR DEITY) is used
in Gen. 14:18-22; Num. 24:16; and Deut. 32:8, but mostly (16 times) in the
Psalms and in Daniel 7 (4 times). The basic meaning is “high.”
It is used mostly by non-Israelites.

46:6 Notice the contrast between

  1. the nations uproar, Ps. 46:6a (ineffective)
  2. YHWH’s voice, Ps. 46:6b (effective)

The VERB “melted” (BDB 556, KB 555, Qal
IMPERFECT) can be used

  1. figuratively of enemies’ courage ‒ Exod. 15:15; Jos. 2:9,11,24; Isa 14:31
  2. figuratively of judgment ‒ Amos 9:5
  3. literally (i.e., final cleansing of earth) ‒ 2 Pet. 3:10

46:7 This same promise,

  1. YHWH of Hosts is with us (cf. Ps. 24:10; see
    SPECIAL
    TOPIC: NAMES FOR DEITY    , cf. Num. 14:9; 2 Chr. 13:12)
  2. God of Jacob is our stronghold (cf. Ps. 9:9; 48:3; 59:9,16,17)

is repeated in Ps. 46:11 for emphasis! These statements are the psalmist’s hope and YHWH’s
promises to His people.

▣ “is with us” This is the greatest promise (cf. Num. 14:9; 2 Chr. 13:12;
Ps. 9:10; 37:28; 94:14; Heb. 13:5 [from Deut. 31:6; Jos. 1:5]). We need God!

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: PSALM 46:8-11
  8Come,
behold the works of the Lord,
 Who
has wrought desolations in the earth.
  9He
makes wars to cease to the end of the earth;
 He breaks the bow and cuts the spear
in two;
 He burns the
chariots with fire.
 10“Cease
striving and know that I am God;
 I
will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
 11The Lord of hosts is
with us;
 The God of Jacob
is our stronghold.  Selah.

46:8-11 This strophe reveals the purpose of God. Notice the two IMPERATIVES of
Ps. 46:8 and the parallel ones of 46:10.

  1. come ‒ BDB 229, KB 246, Qal IMPERATIVE, Ps. 46:8
  2. behold (lit. “see”) ‒ BDB 302, KB 301, Qal IMPERATIVE,
    Ps. 46:8, cf. Job 23:9; Ps. 63:2; Isa. 26:11; 33:17,20; 48:6
  3. cease (YHWH speaks in Ps. 46:10) ‒ BDB 951, KB 1276, Hiphil IMPERATIVE,
    Ps. 46:10 (i.e., in context a call to the world to stop fighting)
  4. know ‒ BDB 393, KB 390, Qal IMPERATIVE, Ps. 46:10 (i.e., YHWH’s power
    and deliverance; this is theologically parallel to #2)

YHWH causes all wars to cease to the ends of the earth! A new day is coming (i.e., the Prince
of Peace, cf. Isa. 9:6; 66:12; John 14:27; 16:33; 20:19). A day of exaltation for the merciful God of
creation. All nations will acknowledge Him (cf. Isa.2:2-4; 25:6-9; 56:6-8; Eph. 2:11-3:13).

SPECIAL TOPIC: YHWH’S ETERNAL
REDEMPTIVE PLAN

46:8 “desolations” The TEV has “come and see what the Lord
has done. See what amazing things he has done on earth.” The word “desolations” (BDB 103 II)
is used only twice in this Psalms (here and Ps. 73:19), where it denotes destruction. The events of the
exodus are called “amazing things” (see
SPECIAL TOPIC: WONDERFUL
THINGS), so military destruction could be so characterized. The word appears most often in
Jeremiah (24 times) and all of them denote destruction, ruin, horror, desolation. Apparently YHWH
stops war by defeating the nations’ military (cf. Ps. 46:9; Psalm 2).

46:9
NASB, NKJV   ”chariots”
NRSV, TEV, NJB, REB, LXX   ”shields”
JPSOA   ”wagons”

It is uncertain if the Hebrew root is

  1. “round” ‒ BDB 222, עגל עגול
    (DSS, “round shield,” 1QM6:15)
  2. wheeled cart” ‒ BDB 722, עגלה (never in MT as war chariot)

In this context a “round shield” fits best.

46:11 The parallelism demands a global emphasis! The wonderful city is for all (i.e., new
Jerusalem, cf. Revelation 21-22!)

For “earth” (Ps. 46:2,6,8,9,10) see
SPECIAL TOPIC: LAND,
COUNTRY, EARTH.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

 

This is a study guide commentary, which means that you are
responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You,
the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.

These discussion questions are provided to help you think through the major issues of this
section of the book. They are meant to be thought-provoking, not definitive.

  1. Is the imagery of Ps. 46:2-3 from end-time events or Canaanite mythology?
  2. Explain the significance of a river flowing from God’s city.
  3. How is Ps. 46:6 like Psalm 2?
  4. To whom is YHWH speaking in Ps. 46:10?
  5. Is Ps. 46:10 about the nations’ defeat or the nations’ inclusion into the people of God?

 

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Lessons International

 

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