“They shall bear you up on their hands, lest you dash your foot against a stone. You shall tread upon the lion and adder; the young lion and the serpent shall you trample underfoot.” (verses 12-13)
They—the angels—(spiritual servants of God commissioned on our behalf/our spiritual babysitters :)) apparently have hands, and they use those hands when needed to bear–support and sustain us, or lift us up and carry us away (if necessary), to keep us from dashing our foot against a stone– causing us to trip, stumble and fall.
Do angels have hands? Apparently. The Hebrew definition is a description much like our human hands, but it also carries the meaning of power. I personally don’t care if their hands look like ours. Their hands have the power needed to deliver me, and that’s good enough for me.
We all know what a stone is, right? In this verse it can be literally, a stone. It can also refer to anything strong, solid, firm, or weighty. This stone can be any obstacle on our path. “Dash your foot against” can once again be taken literally or figuratively. Dash means to strike your foot against something which could cause you to stumble and fall. The word foot also refers to your steps, your pace, your gait.
Here’s how I see it. As we travel life’s path at a God ordained pace with our steps ordered by Him, living by faith, being led by the Spirit with our focus on things above, because we live on this earth, we sometimes, even often times, encounter stones..obstacles, weights..on our path designed to cause us to trip and fall. Our angels are commissioned to make sure those stones don’t take us out. And they have the power to make sure we are kept safe.
Along our path we also encounter the enemy–the lion, the adder (poisonous snakes/vipers) the young lion (a weaned lion ready to devour), the serpent (dangerous, venomous, massive creatures). These may be actual physical beings since we see examples in the Word about God’s people being delivered from lions (Daniel 6:16-23) and poisonous snakes (Paul in Acts 18:3). They also are indicative of our adversary who is depicted from the beginning in the Garden of Eden as a cunning serpent (Genesis 3:1), and later described “as a roaring lion prowling around seeking someone to devour” (1Peter 5:8).
Here’s the good news. We have a promise that we shall tread upon that lion and adder, and trample the young lion and serpent under foot. When we encounter a lion or an adder, they get put where they belong, under our feet, and we keep marching on. We come up on a young lion or a serpent, they get put in their place as well, under our feet, and we keep moving forward.
Personally, I don’t even like writing about the devil and in any way giving him descriptive credit. So it’s helpful for me that when I think of our advesary, roaming around as a roaring lion, I picture the cowardly lion from the Wizard of Oz. If you want a good chuckle and a helpful visual of our enemy who is stripped of all authority and lives in total fear himself, go here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMBil4FkLKc
In each of the above cases, in fact throughout all of Psalm 91, we are Perfectly Postioned. We are in the secret place of the Most High so that all the rest of the promises of protection apply to us. We are Secret Place Positioned. We are positioned In Christ and Christ is In us. We are seated with Christ at the right hand of the Father consequently, we are NEVER below our enemy. When needed we get lifted up by the angels and we tread and trample on the enemy by virtue of our position. Our enemy has no authority over us. We have had a kingdom transfer OUT of darkness INTO the Kingdom of God’s dear Son, Jesus.
Ephesians 1:22 “God has put everything under the control of Christ. He has made Christ the head of everything for the good of the church.”
Colossians 2:15 “He (Jesus) disarmed those who once ruled over us—those who had overpowered us. Like captives of war, He put them on display to the world to show His victory over them by means of the cross.”
Luke 10:19 “Behold I (Jesus) have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpians, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall injure you.”
Mark 16:17-18 “And these attesting signs will accompany those who believe; in My name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new languages; they will pick up serpents…”
John 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace and confidence. In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration; but be of good cheer [take courage; be confident, certain, undaunted]! For I have overcome the world. [I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you.]”
Our enemy may come in various forms, but the Truth is that Jesus has already conquered him for us and given us authority over him. We have the name above every other name, Jesus, and just the mention of that name brings all the power, help, and assistance we need in time of trouble or danger. He is, afterall, our Savior!
Fear not, there is nothing to fear for I am with you. I will not in any way fail you, give you up or leave you without support. I will not, I will not, I will not in any degree leave you helpless, forsake, or let you down, assuredly not. I am with you wherever you go. I go before you and level mountains and make crooked places straight. I march with you and my glory is your rear guard. I have given my angels charge over you to accompany, defend and preserve you in all your ways. The angel of the Lord encamps around you. No weapon formed against you can succeed. Because you love me, I am working out everything for your good. What the enemy has meant for evil, I will turn for your good. I have a good future designed for you that is full of peace. I am your Father who loves you.
