He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
What does Psalms 91:4 mean?
He that by faith chooses God for his protector, shall find all in him that he needs or can desire. And those who have found the comfort of making the Lord their refuge, cannot but desire that others may do so.
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Keep this verse inside its immediate passage and alongside a few nearby related passages.
Commentary on Psalms 91:4
He shall cover thee with his feathers ... - As the parent bird protects its young. See the notes at Psalm 17:8 . Compare Deuteronomy 32:11 . "His truth." His unfailing promise; the certainty that what he has promised to do he will perform. Shall be thy shield and buckler - literally, "Shield and buckler is his truth." The meaning is, that his pledge or promise would be unto them as the shield of the soldier is to him in battle. Compare Psalm 35:2 . The word rendered "buckler" is derived from the verb "to surround," and is given to the defensive armor here referred to, because it "surrounds," and thus "protects" a person.
Key words
- cover
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He shall cover thee with his feathers,.
- feathers
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He shall cover thee with his feathers,.
Context in Psalms 91
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Psalms 91 belongs to the middle movement of the book, especially the section often described as Book IV. Psalms is the Bible’s great book of sung prayer, teaching the full range of faithful speech from anguish and repentance to jubilation and doxology. Read this chapter with the wider themes of prayer, praise, and lament in view so the individual verses keep their proper weight.
Related topics
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Passages on God as shield, refuge, and fortress, and the promise of divine protection in danger, trouble, and spiritual warfare.
Passages on trusting God, receiving Christ, persevering without sight, and the relation between faith and lived obedience.
Passages on asking, persistence, confession, dependence, and the way prayer shapes Christian life and attention.
Passages on the nature of truth, honesty, deception, the word of God as truth, and Jesus' claim to be the truth.
Bible verses about thankfulness and gratitude
Passages on thanksgiving to God, grateful worship, and the discipline of remembering God’s goodness in ordinary life.