Our help is in the name of the LORD, who made heaven and earth.
Our help comes from the Lord alone as the only true source of help, and his name stands for the Creator of heaven and earth. The verse closes Israel's confession that without the Lord on their side when angry men rose against them they would have been swallowed alive, drowned under overwhelming waters, and torn as prey, yet their soul escaped like a bird from a broken snare. By calling him Maker of heaven and earth it sets the living true God apart from all false gods and idols, appealing to creation as proof of his power and authority as Lawgiver, the same facts named in the fourth commandment as the basis of the Sabbath given to keep their memory alive and to mark those who worship the God who sanctifies them. It promises his help, safety, refuge, hope, guidance, and deliverance in temptation and fierce conflict, upholding even the faint and weak who follow duty through dangers they could not overcome alone. It assures that same help amid persecution and unjust treatment, when men rise in anger, when believers face loss of homes and land, and in the time of sifting and judgment, so that with the Lord on their side they are not swallowed up and his work goes on.
Words and Psalm Setting
Psalm 124 belongs to the Songs of Ascent sung by pilgrims as they approached Jerusalem, and chanting these songs with the holy city in sight stirred their souls toward true worship. It was one of the Psalms of Degrees chanted while worshipers climbed the fifteen steps leading to the temple's inner court. It stands among the inspired songs of Zion, which express human need and insufficiency alongside God's all-sufficiency, and its place there connects it with trust in God as the source of help.
The psalm confesses that if the Lord had not been on His people's side when men rose up against them, they would have been swallowed up alive. Their adversaries rose with kindled wrath, and without the Lord the people would have been overwhelmed when the waters, the stream, and the proud waters went over the soul. They would have been given as prey to teeth, but the Lord is blessed because He did not so give them. The snare of the fowlers was broken, so the soul escaped as a bird out of the snare.
In its setting Israel has escaped destruction and gives God credit for deliverance, expressing confidence that the Lord who made all things is able to help His people. The verse serves as the lesson of Israel's bondage in Egypt, where although the Israelites seemed forgotten by God, the Lord preserved their lives and increased their number under severe trial, showing that their help was in Him.
Help is declared to come from the Lord, whom the verse identifies as the Maker of heaven and earth. He is the sole source of real help. His name stands for the Creator of heaven and earth.
That help comes from Jehovah the Creator of heaven and earth, not from the hills. The hills were the high places where the heathen worshiped, but God dwells above all earthly human shrines. As Maker of all things He guides His people and can preserve them from dangers they could not overcome on their own, by power and wisdom exceeding human skill.
Creator's Help in Trial
By calling the Lord the Maker of heaven and earth, the verse marks Him out as the living true God distinct from all false gods and idols. Creation is appealed to as proof of His existence, power, and authority as Lawgiver, whose dominion extends over all creation. Those facts of creative power are the very ones named in the fourth commandment as the basis of the Sabbath. The Sabbath was given to perpetuate the proof and memory of those facts among men, and to be a sign by which people may know that they are worshiping the true God who sanctifies them.
Help, safety, refuge, hope, guidance, and deliverance come from the Lord in temptation and fierce conflict. The soul that has escaped the enemy's snare can trust in Him as its refuge. Those who follow the path of duty may confidently expect Him to uphold them, even when they seem faint and weak to themselves or others. He guides His people by power and wisdom exceeding human skill, and can preserve them from dangers they could not overcome on their own.
That help holds amid persecution and unjust treatment. When men rise against them in anger, those who refuse to join the church and world federations have their help in the Lord, who is on their side and keeps them from being swallowed up. Believers facing loss of homes and land and other hardships are assured the Lord is their help, and despite such trials His work continues and people are made ready for baptism.
In the psalm's setting Israel has escaped destruction and gives God credit for deliverance, expressing confidence that the Lord who made all things is able to help His people. So after escaping imprisonment and persecution, deliverance is credited to the Lord, Maker of heaven and earth. He protected the advent message from the fierce opposition it faced and enabled it to advance. He likewise brings survival and renewed strength to His cause through dangers and hardship.
In the time of sifting and coming judgment this gives courage to seek purity, endure the testing, and serve the Lord wholeheartedly in hope of overcoming. God's protection as refuge in trouble calls for gratitude and reconsecration. Yet trust in Him does not remove the duty to take practical steps to protect the buildings and work entrusted to His people.
Our help comes from the Lord alone as the only true source of help, and his name stands for the Creator of heaven and earth. The verse closes Israel's confession that without the Lord on their side when angry men rose against them they would have been swallowed alive, drowned under overwhelming waters, and torn as prey, yet their soul escaped like a bird from a broken snare. By calling him Maker of heaven and earth it sets the living true God apart from all false gods and idols, appealing to creation as proof of his power and authority as Lawgiver, the same facts named in the fourth commandment as the basis of the Sabbath given to keep their memory alive and to mark those who worship the God who sanctifies them. It promises his help, safety, refuge, hope, guidance, and deliverance in temptation and fierce conflict, upholding even the faint and weak who follow duty through dangers they could not overcome alone. It assures that same help amid persecution and unjust treatment, when men rise in anger, when believers face loss of homes and land, and in the time of sifting and judgment, so that with the Lord on their side they are not swallowed up and his work goes on.
Words and Psalm Setting
Psalm 124 belongs to the Songs of Ascent sung by pilgrims as they approached Jerusalem, and chanting these songs with the holy city in sight stirred their souls toward true worship. It was one of the Psalms of Degrees chanted while worshipers climbed the fifteen steps leading to the temple's inner court. It stands among the inspired songs of Zion, which express human need and insufficiency alongside God's all-sufficiency, and its place there connects it with trust in God as the source of help.
The psalm confesses that if the Lord had not been on His people's side when men rose up against them, they would have been swallowed up alive. Their adversaries rose with kindled wrath, and without the Lord the people would have been overwhelmed when the waters, the stream, and the proud waters went over the soul. They would have been given as prey to teeth, but the Lord is blessed because He did not so give them. The snare of the fowlers was broken, so the soul escaped as a bird out of the snare.
In its setting Israel has escaped destruction and gives God credit for deliverance, expressing confidence that the Lord who made all things is able to help His people. The verse serves as the lesson of Israel's bondage in Egypt, where although the Israelites seemed forgotten by God, the Lord preserved their lives and increased their number under severe trial, showing that their help was in Him.
Help is declared to come from the Lord, whom the verse identifies as the Maker of heaven and earth. He is the sole source of real help. His name stands for the Creator of heaven and earth.
That help comes from Jehovah the Creator of heaven and earth, not from the hills. The hills were the high places where the heathen worshiped, but God dwells above all earthly human shrines. As Maker of all things He guides His people and can preserve them from dangers they could not overcome on their own, by power and wisdom exceeding human skill.
Creator's Help in Trial
By calling the Lord the Maker of heaven and earth, the verse marks Him out as the living true God distinct from all false gods and idols. Creation is appealed to as proof of His existence, power, and authority as Lawgiver, whose dominion extends over all creation. Those facts of creative power are the very ones named in the fourth commandment as the basis of the Sabbath. The Sabbath was given to perpetuate the proof and memory of those facts among men, and to be a sign by which people may know that they are worshiping the true God who sanctifies them.
Help, safety, refuge, hope, guidance, and deliverance come from the Lord in temptation and fierce conflict. The soul that has escaped the enemy's snare can trust in Him as its refuge. Those who follow the path of duty may confidently expect Him to uphold them, even when they seem faint and weak to themselves or others. He guides His people by power and wisdom exceeding human skill, and can preserve them from dangers they could not overcome on their own.
That help holds amid persecution and unjust treatment. When men rise against them in anger, those who refuse to join the church and world federations have their help in the Lord, who is on their side and keeps them from being swallowed up. Believers facing loss of homes and land and other hardships are assured the Lord is their help, and despite such trials His work continues and people are made ready for baptism.
In the psalm's setting Israel has escaped destruction and gives God credit for deliverance, expressing confidence that the Lord who made all things is able to help His people. So after escaping imprisonment and persecution, deliverance is credited to the Lord, Maker of heaven and earth. He protected the advent message from the fierce opposition it faced and enabled it to advance. He likewise brings survival and renewed strength to His cause through dangers and hardship.
In the time of sifting and coming judgment this gives courage to seek purity, endure the testing, and serve the Lord wholeheartedly in hope of overcoming. God's protection as refuge in trouble calls for gratitude and reconsecration. Yet trust in Him does not remove the duty to take practical steps to protect the buildings and work entrusted to His people.