Cover Thee with his Feathers

One of the most delightful and heart-warming sights of the animal kingdom is the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings. When danger impends, the mother hen gives an urgent call, and her chicks run to her. She spreads her wings and makes room for every one of them under her feathers. She is then ready to give her very life for their defense. It is one of the most touching scenes imaginable to see the love and devotion of a mother hen. Jesus used this identical illustration:

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem; which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee. How often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not!” Luke 13:34

This is the kind of love and devotion which is conveyed by the expression, “He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust.” The psalmist gives the same thought in a way that is appropriate for the Lord’s people in these troublesome times:

“From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee. When my heart is overwhelmed, lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy. I will abide in thy tabernacle forever. I will trust in the covert of thy wings.” Psalms 61:2-4

“Be merciful unto me, O God; be merciful unto me. For my soul trusteth in thee. Yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge.” Psalms 57:1

These beautiful illustrations are given for our assurance and encouragement during this time of trouble. We should accept them and appropriate them to ourselves. We should enter and dwell in “the secret place of the Most High,” separating ourselves from and rising above the turmoil that is on every side. The Lord invites us to do this:

“Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee. Hide thyself, as it were, for a little moment until the indignation be overpast.” Isaiah 26:20

How can we do this? There is no literal door to a secret place, no literal fortress, no literal feathers and wings. How, then, do we have access to the secret place of refuge? Is this place purely imaginary, only in the mind? “His TRUTH shall be thy shield and buckler,” the psalm says. This is the key. Do you believe the truth? Do you really believe in the Divine Plan and your place in it? Are you running for the prize of the high calling for which you have given up all earthly hopes? Are you a member of the body of Christ? Are you a new creature? Are you following in the footsteps of Jesus? To sum up: Are you really in the truth and is the truth in you? If yes, “His TRUTH“ shall be thy shield and buckler; and to you, the “secret place of the Most High” is a very real, literal, and substantial condition: a condition in which the almighty power of God overshadows you. It is a very real arrangement whereby God’s protecting care is a safe refuge for you, like a strong fortress around you; he literally delivers you from the snare of the fowler, Satan, and from the noisome pestilence. If you are in the truth, you truly and actually have the Lord’s complete and absolute protection from everything injurious to your highest spiritual welfare. There is nothing imaginary about it. This wonderful condition is a real and tangible thing. We are totally and entirely surrounded by the power of God in this “secret place of the Most High. “Behind and before hast thou hedged me in, and thou placest upon me, thy hand.” Psalms 139:5, Leeser Or, as Moffatt renders it: “Thou art on every side, behind me, and before, laying thy hand on me.”

Sometimes we tend to forget that we are in this secret place and become frightened at the uncertain conditions of the world about us. We become panicky like Peter, seeking to walk on the water, who, when he saw the boisterous, wind-tossed sea, began to sink, crying, “Lord save me!” (Matthew 14:30) When this happens to us there IS a door we can use to again enter our secret place.

“But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet [or private room], and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father who seeth in secret, and thy Father, who seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.” Matthew 6:6

This is like the frightened child who runs to its mother to be enfolded safely in her arms: “The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.” (Deuteronomy 33:27)

Be Not Afraid of the Terror by Night

This “terror by night” is what the world of mankind is experiencing now, in the night just preceding the full dawn of the Millennial Day. We read about this time:

“Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” Psalms 30:5

Referring to the final intense phase of the nighttime of trouble, Jesus said, “The night cometh when no man can work.” (John 9:4) We are not to fear this phase of the trouble, but should emulate the example of Jesus, who said: “I must work … while it is day.” We should work in the Lord’s vineyard as long as it is possible. When the time comes to end our work, it will be ended for us. Conditions will be such that it will be no longer possible to give any public witness. Then, and only then, are we to cease our work during this time when “no man can work.”

During the interim, while it is still “called day,” while opportunities for service still exist, we can expect Satan to attack us with his arrows of opposition and false doctrine. Psalm 64:3 calls these arrows “bitter words.” We will not fear these arrows because we have on the whole armor of God, regarding which Paul says:

“Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.” Ephesians 6:16

No Pestilence, No Destruction

A pestilence is a plague, a wasting disease capable of sweeping away entire populations within a few days. History records a plague in Rome in 262 AD that killed 5000 persons a day. In the fourteenth century, a plague called the “black death” swept over Europe, killing enormous numbers. But the Lord’s people are not promised immunity from literal plagues or pestilences. The reference is to pestilential doctrines, doctrines so subtly deceptive, so gradually introduced, so insidious, that if possible they will deceive the very elect. (Matthew 24:24) Like the virus of a plague, unseen and only recognized after it has done its deadly work, it has caused many thousands to waste away from the truth. That is why the next verse of the psalm says, “A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand, but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold, and see the reward of the wicked.”

I saw this happen. I was there. It is something I have been through. The Lord used Pastor Russell as his instrument to restore to his people at this end of the age the same light of truth enjoyed by the early church. After Pastor Russell died, the pestilence began its destructive work. The very society that Pastor Russell himself organized and used for so long was now used to undermine and pervert the truths he taught. Little by little, persuasively, insidiously, and very gradually, the truth was eroded and thousands fell away. It was a terrible and heartbreaking experience. That is why some of us who witnessed this plague are so vigilant about the old truths and cannot tolerate even seemingly slight deviations. God grant that it not happen again! It could happen again if we are not alert. The virus of this pestilence must be shunned.

Not Come Nigh Thee

This is true only if we have made his truth our shield and buckler. We must not lower the shield, even slightly. In 1911 Brother Russell commented on this part of the psalm with almost prophetic insight:

“Great will be the falling away from the truth, even amongst those who, like ourselves received it once with joy; and who did, for a time, run well.” Reprints, page 4926.

He saw this test coming and sounded a warning.

Now we come to the most precious and reassuring part of the psalm which speaks personally and individually to each one who has found refuge in the secret place of the Most High:

No Evil Befall Thee

This does not refer to the common, ordinary evils of the “present evil world.” It does not refer to the daily difficulties and annoyances we experience, to which Jesus referred when he said, “Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” (Matthew 6:34) Such evils do not amount to much. We can take them in stride and are not entirely shielded from such evils. What then, is this special and serious evil from which we are promised protection? Ask yourself, “What is the greatest possible loss I could sustain? What is the most valuable thing I could lose?” The answer is, of course, THE TRUTH. If we lose the truth and consequently the Lord’s approval, there is nothing left. We have lost everything. This would be the supreme evil and it is the evil referred to in the psalm. If you remain in the secret place of the Most High, “There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.” You will stay in the truth! You will not “dash thy foot against a stone.” You will never repudiate the ransom. Jesus will never be “a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence” to you, as he has been to so many.

Treading upon the Adder

Because we are in the secret place of the Most High, because he is our refuge and fortress, because we are under his wings, because he has given his angels charge over us to keep us in all our ways, we shall triumph over every device of Satan, whether it be an attempt to overpower us, or beguile us, whether he goes about as a roaring lion, or whether, snake-like, he stealthily lurks about, to inject his venomous poison. We tread upon him, and trample him! We spurn his devices! We reject him! We also know that soon “the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly.” (Romans 16:20)

To this point in the psalm David has been telling us about God and his wonderful provision for us. Now God speaks. He speaks of us but not directly to us. He speaks to another person about us, and what he will yet do for us. The one he is speaking to is undoubtedly his Logos, our Lord Jesus Christ, who has gone before and has himself experienced all these things. What God says here has first applied to him, and now applies to us as members of his body.

The heavenly Father carefully notes the love you have for him. He looks at your heart and knows. Your love for him is like a continuous prayer. It is because of your love and devotion and consecration to him that he says he will “set you on high.” This is the “HIGH Calling!” He will be with you in the trouble of this present life and will finally deliver you and honor you. He will deliver you from “this body of death” (Romans 7:24) and raise you to “glory, honor and immortality; eternal life.” (Romans 2:7)

Satisfying Us with Long Life

To this wonderful promise of immortality we reply, in the language of the psalmist:

“As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness. I shall be satisfied when I awake with thy likeness!” Psalms 17:15

The Shepherd Psalm

ONE of the most inspiring psalms David wrote is Psalm 23, the Shepherd Psalm. There is something so comforting and reassuring about this psalm that even those who do not understand it, find, in times of danger and stress, just reading it soothes their troubled hearts and restores their courage. Although composed of the simplest words “shepherd words” it has a sublime quality, exalting the soul and creating a spirit of calmness, security and peace.

This psalm came from the fullness of David’s heart and the wealth of his experience. As he devotedly cared for his sheep, he pitied their helplessness and realized their utter dependence upon him. It was he that provided their food and water, their rest and refreshment, and defended them from their enemies. When they injured themselves, they cried to him and he healed their hurts. He gave special attention and consideration to the weak and to the young. He called them each by name, and they responded to his voice and to no other. His sheep adored him with all the love their little hearts were capable of.

As David mused over these things, he was struck with the similarity between the relationship of a shepherd to his sheep, and that of the Lord God to his people. He had personally tasted of the care and goodness of the Lord, whom he loved with all his soul. Picturing himself as a lamb of God with all the wonderful implications the relationship involved, he wrote with simple beauty:

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures, he leadeth me beside the still waters, he restoreth my soul; he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies; thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely, goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”