One of the most majestic hymns in church history is Martin Luther’s “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God”:
A mighty Fortress is our God
A Bulwark never failing
Our Helper He amid the flood
Of mortal ills prevailingFor still our ancient foe
Doth seek to work us woe
His craft and power are great
And armed with cruel hate
On earth is not his equal
We don't know much about what led him to write it, but Luther famously said that he "would allow no man to preach or teach God’s people without a proper knowledge of the use and power of sacred song.” We do know that Luther based the hymn on Psalm 46, which includes the verse, “The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress” (Psalm 46:7, ESV).
Other verses express a similar notion about God:
The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.
Psalm 9:9-10 (ESV)
O Lord, my strength and my stronghold, my refuge in the day of trouble, to you shall the nations come from the ends of the earth and say: “Our fathers have inherited nothing but lies, worthless things in which there is no profit. Can man make for himself gods? Such are not gods!” “Therefore, behold, I will make them know, this once I will make them know my power and my might, and they shall know that my name is the Lord.”
Jeremiah 16:19-21 (ESV)
The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
Psalm 18:2 (ESV)
The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
Psalm 27:1-2 (ESV)
The Lord roars from Zion, and utters his voice from Jerusalem, and the heavens and the earth quake. But the Lord is a refuge to his people, a stronghold to the people of Israel.
Joel 3:16 (ESV)
Related: Sunday Thoughts: Using Scripture to Battle Anxiety
“By identifying the Lord as a stronghold, God’s Word stresses that our Creator executes His power to guard His people,” a recent Tabletalk devotional explains. “Armies take refuge in strongholds or fortresses to find protection from their enemies, because these strongholds strive to provide near-impregnable shelter from attack. Of course, even the best man-made fortification cannot guarantee that the enemy will not break through; the same, however, is not true of God our stronghold.”
Proverbs 18:10 tells us, “The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe.” That doesn’t mean that we’re guaranteed an easy, safe life, but it does mean that God protects His people. As believers, we know that eternity with God awaits us and that nothing can snatch us out of His hands.
“We take refuge in Christ, who is God Himself, as our stronghold because only in Him can we find eternal safety,” the Tabletalk devotion reminds us. “He saves us from the wrath of our holy Creator by bearing the penalty for sin and by clothing us in His righteousness, and He saves us from sin, death, and the devil by conquering them. If we are in Christ, we need not fear what anyone can do to us, for ultimately we are safe.”
How comforting is that thought? Rest in it today.
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