April 16, 2021 -- Psalm 18:34-35 -- The LORD My Shield and Salvation

He trains my hands for war,

so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.

You have given me the shield of your salvation,

and your right hand supported me,

and your gentleness made me great.

Psalm 18:34-35 English Standard Version

The child of God will be engaged in battle. There is a fight against the old nature and the sins which cling so tenaciously. War continues as those who hate Jesus seek to undermine your faith and your confidence in Him. The devil is a roaring lion seeking those whom he can devour (I Peter 5:8). Usually a bow is made of wood, a hard material with some flexibility. A bow of bronze, which has no flexibility, would require great, inhuman strength to use, strength that only the LORD our God can give in times of need.

Beautifully these short verses combine the Old Testament work of the Father and the New Testament work of Jesus. God the LORD promised Abraham “I am your shield and your very great reward” (Genesis 15:1). The word “salvation” is Jeshua, the Old Testament version of the Name Jesus. The Name Jeshua, or Jesus, means God saves, or God is my Salvation. This is evidenced in the Old and in the New Testament it is the right hand of God’s power which has supported and sustained His people through-out all generations.

The final line is odd, isn’t it: Your gentleness made me great? When you read the combination of shield and salvation from the previous line it begins to make sense. Jesus came to this earth, gentle, meek, riding a donkey. He was the rightful king of Israel, Who in complete surrender to His Father’s will, was obedient in all things perfectly obedient to His Father so that He is the sacrifice that takes away the sin of the world. At the cross Jesus was punished for our sins, at the cross His righteousness—His perfect, gentle obedience—is credited to all who believe. More than this, He is now the High King of Heaven, seated at the Father’s right hand, in Whose Name and by Whose victory we are sons and daughters of the Living God. As the opening of this Psalm stated, so we say together “I love You, O LORD, my strength!”

Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be Your Name.

Your kingdom come,

Your will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread,

and forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

For Yours is the kingdom, and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.

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