Him Whose Voice Melts The Earth

Psalm 46
For the choir director. A Psalm of the sons of Korah, set to Alamoth. A Song.

God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change
And though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea;
Though its waters roar and foam,
Though the mountains quake at its swelling pride. Selah.
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
The holy dwelling places of the Most High.
God is in the midst of her, she will not be moved;
God will help her when morning dawns.
The nations made an uproar, the kingdoms tottered;
He raised His voice, the earth melted.
The LORD of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah.
Come, behold the works of the LORD,
Who has wrought desolations in the earth.
He 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.
"Cease striving and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."
The LORD of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah.

This Psalm is a poetic account of the way human estimations and assurances melt away in the presence of the Almighty God.

He raised His voice, the earth melted.

However consistent we see things happen in this life with our limited vision, God has the power to bend or break every known law in the physical universe. Analysts may judge a nation's military by the size of it's standing army and it's military budget, but it is God who decides the outcome before the battle begins.

He doesn't need bows and arrows to win a war. He doesn't need bloggers like me to spread his message. He doesn't need money, or electicity, or popular support. He needs nothing from the world or in the world, and His reign is not by its consent.

These verses present a terrible and severe claim to those who live according to the normative laws of the world. The day will come when Christ returns and the unbelievers of the world will tremble because they will know (and already know) how they have squandered their days.

At the same time these verses present the children of God with a peace that is higher and more profound than anything our human understanding provides us today or has ever provided anyone.

It is not only the physical laws which God turns back. He not only melts the mountains with his Word. He has melted away the law of death with His word, for his Son is His word. The regulations which have exposed our guilt for what it is have been nullified for those who have faith in him.

God has prepared a place in heaven for the people of Israel, for the people who have become sons of Abraham through faith. God dwells in this place, and he provides the waters that make his people glad.

Praise the Lord, who watches over his people. He delivers them in His timing and with his perfect judgment. He knows their weaknesses, and He gives good things to those who fear Him.