Psalm 91 is, perhaps, one of the most beautiful descriptions of the protection afforded to those who put their trust in God. It is a thesaurus of images; chicks sheltering under the wings of a hen, war, disease, dangers at night and day. We would do well to memorize this Psalm to allow the promise of divine protection given here to sink in.

However, there is also a tension. The Bible is full of wonderful stories of the way God has protected his people. David’s life most aptly fits this psalm; he could testify to a long life of God’s overshadowing presence keeping him from ultimate harm. He died full of years and in good health. But what about those who died? What about godly kings like Josiah who brought about one of the most important revivals of worship in the Old Testament yet died young? That requires more thought.

Satan quotes this psalm to Jesus the wilderness of Judea to try to get him to perform a spiritual stunt that will build a following. Jesus knows Satan’s aim is to force God’s hand, to demand he protect us on our terms and based on choices we make for our own agenda. He refuses such a temptation and trusts the Father to protect him as he sees fit in his timing. And of course the Father does.

But maybe the most important thing to say about this theme is that not only does Jesus not force the Father’s hand, he chooses to leave the protection of the Father’s presence to redeem mankind. Jesus willingly accepted the cross; he willingly exposed himself to the danger of human life apart from God, abandoned by God. He is our captain in the faith who has journeyed into the heart of darkness and shown us that the light of the Father’s love can pierce that darkness. Jesus was free from slavery to the fear of death and he came to set us free from that slavery as well (Hebrews 2:14-15).

God certainly can and often does protect his people from mortal dangers in this life. But all of us know those who have died senseless deaths before their time. The promise of God’s protection is not a promise that we will live the kind of life we expect. None of us know when we will die. But we have learned from Jesus to trust our Father that he can snatch us even from the jaws of death. In the name of Jesus may we live so free from the fear of death that we, too, can follow Jesus into dangerous places for the sake of a lost world.