I ran across a verse in Psalm 84 that I don’t remember noticing before. I love that about the Bible. I can read it from cover to cover every year, and still God has surprises and “new” things to show me.
In Psalm 84, verse 5, the Psalmist states, “Blessed is the man whose strength is in You, whose heart is set on pilgrimage.” I noticed two parts of the description of this blessed man:
- His strength is in God
- His heart is set on pilgrimage
I thought about what it meant to have one’s strength be in God. It seems to me the strength here can be compared to the strength of an army:
- God is his fortress
- God is his strong tower
- God is his rear guard
- God is his shield and buckler (his weapons of defense)
It could also be that strength here has the meaning of the one who “strengthens” the man, who cares for and befriends the man, who makes sure his physical and emotional needs are met:
- God is his provision
- God is his guide, the light to his path
- God is his comfort
- God is his hope (gives him the will to go on)
It could also be that God is his strength because God makes him stronger:
- God is the father who chastens his beloved son
- God is the refining fire that purifies him
With God, strength can mean so many things. When my strength is in God, I don’t rely on my own reasoning, my own resources or my own abilities. I cast myself entirely on my God, keeping no area of my life in which I am “strong” apart from God. May the LORD bless you and may He be your only strength.
I will have to save the discussion of the second part of the verse, “whose heart is set on pilgrimage” for my next post.
Rooted and Grounded 