After laying out all the protection we will ever need, the next verse is consequential.
You shall not be afraid of the terror of the night, nor of the arrow that flies by day, nor of the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor of the destruction and sudden death that surprise and lay waste at noonday. (verses 5 & 6)
The Living Bible paraphrases verses 4-6 this way..
He will shield you with His wings! They will shelter you. His faithful promises are your armor. Now you don’t need to be afraid of the dark anymore, nor fear the dangers of the day, nor dread the plagues of the darkness nor disasters in the morning.
The key word and the one that connects verses 1&2 with 3&4 resulting in verses 5-8 is the word NOW.
It’s time to summarize.
Because…BECAUSE…of where I live—because I have chosen to make my permanent eternal home, and remain and live continually in the secret, hidden, sheltered, defensive, protective, covered place of the Most High— Who is highest, supreme, elevated above and over all…and BECAUSE I TRUST HIM AND SAY, Lord, You are my Defender and Protector. You are my safe and strong place. Like a fort, You are my Place of safety and protection. My God in Whom I trust. You are the One I put my confidence in and attach myself to….
NOW…
We do not need to be afraid!
What exactly is it we don’t need to be afraid of any longer? Actually, the answer is we don’t need to fear anything any longer. But specifically, we don’t need to fear any attacks of the enemy. This verse covers any evil that might come to man through the devil and his bunch as well as through any person being used by the enemy. BUT…we no longer need to be afraid of…
1.the terror of the night
2.the arrow that flies by day
3.the pestilence that stalks in darkness
4.nor the destruction and sudden death that surprise and lay waste at noonday.
Notice first of all that what we do not need to fear falls into 4 categories that come at night, and day, in darkness and at noonday. But remember that our Father’s protection covers a 24 hour period, every day, every year from this day forward and forever. Night and day, darkness, and noonday…we are covered and protected.
It’s fairly simple to look at the bad things in this world and place them in one of the 4 categories.
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What is meant by the “terror of the night”? The word “terror” literally means “fear and/or dread of anything that might cause fear or dread; a sudden alarm”. When I was a little girl, I remember being suddenly awakened in the night by the sound of a fire truck barreling down our street with sirens blaring and lights flashing. A house a few doors down had caught fire, but fortunately it wasn’t serious, and the fire was extinquished quickly with little damage. However, that incident…that “sudden alarm” in the night, caused some fear that lasted for a while. Every time after that when I heard sirens in the night, I would lay there in bed gripped by fear with mental images of a fire truck coming down our street, and stopping at our house! Stinkin’ devil. Fortunately, I shared a room with my older sister who seemed to sleep right through these times. I’d go over to her bedside and ask if I could sleep next to her. She would always consent and allow me to fall back to sleep in the comfort of her presence. As an adult, I’ve had my share of dealings with fear at night or even dreading the approaching nighttime. In the darkness of night we can’t seem to measure things as well as in the daylight. We feel at a disadvantage not being able to see what’s coming or know the extent of any danger. But…
Hebrews 13:6 says we are to take comfort and be encouraged and confidently and boldly SAY, “The Lord is my Helper, I will not be seized with alarm—I will not fear or dread or be terrified. What can man do to me”.
…..Our God never sleeps. He’s on duty 24/7. He sees it all, sends blessings to us while we sleep and has promised that, if we believe Him, no evil will come near us.
Our God protects us in the night!
2. The “arrow that flies by day” is anything that the enemy uses to try and pierce us mentally, emotionally or physically. Ephesians 6:16 tells us to “take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows/darts/missiles of the evil one.” This verse identifies where the arrow come from and what we are to use to extinguish them. The arrows are from the evil one. We are to use faith to deal with the arrows. Faith is trusting Jesus and His finished work on the cross. Faith believes that Jesus has won and given us the victory as well. Jesus has put the enemy under our feet. Faith knows we have been delivered out of the kingdom of darkness and now live in the Kingdom of God. Faith acts on the Truth. Faith speaks. When fear knocks, answer it with one Word…Jesus. When we let Jesus, the Savior and Defender of our soul answer the door, the enemy runs in terror. We do not need to fear the arrow. We hold up our shield of faith and keep it there. We trust in God’s protection and we answer every arrow with the Word.
Our God protects us during the day!
3. The “pestilence that stalks in darkness” is the same thing God has already told us he would deliver us from in verse 3. God doesn’t waste words. He is emphasizing a point…pestilence is not something we need to fear because He’s taken care of any and every deadly disease that would ever be known to man. The words “in darkness” doesn’t necessarily refer to the nighttime. This literally means any disease or plague creating gloom, misery, death, or destruction that moves in obscurity. In Deuteronomy 28 you’ll find a list of them, but these deadly diseases come as a result of the curse that is in this world from the fall of man. The good news is that Galatians 3:13 tells us that Christ has redeemed us from the curse. He bore it all for us and we can count on His protection from any and every deadly disease.
God protects us from anything lurking in the unseen!
4. The last “category” of evil we do not need to fear is “the destruction and sudden death that surprise and lay waste at noonday”. The original Hebrew word for destruction suggests “devastating storms causing devastating ruin”. It may be applied to anything that sweeps away people and/or property. Natural disasters fall into this category…earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, fires, but also includes war and famine. God told us in these last days there would be an increase in all of these evils, but He also provided for His own through the promises of Psalm 91 and others. We can count on His protection of any evils that take place in broad daylight.
God protects us at the height of the day!
“The Lord Himself is caring for you. He is your defender. He protects you day and night. He keeps (patrols, protects and preserves) your life. He keeps His eye upon you as you come and go and always guards you.” Psalm 121
Once again…Our God is on duty 24/7 protecting us day and night from any form of evil any time of day…things seen and unseen.
When the trials come, when we are facing hard things, in the midst of a storm, when it feels like there’s only darkness, we have to be reminded of the Truth. We are children of God. We belong to Him. We live in His home, under His protection and care. Daddy is good. He is great…the greatest…the most powerful being that exists, and best of all, He loves us. He loves YOU. If you’re going through a tough time, know this: He is with you. He is working behind the scenes in places you can’t go and your natural eyes can’t see, to work everything for your good. It may not feel like it, but it is true. It may take time. Be patient and continue to trust and let the Lord fight for you. And you do not need to be afraid.
To be continue….May the peace of Jesus be with you and your family!
