Our God Who Takes Us Under His Wing

Our God Who Takes Us Under His Wing.

“Like the birds that fly, even so will the LORD of Hosts shield Jerusalem, shielding and saving, protecting and rescuing.” (Isaiah 31:5).

Birds are mentioned over 300 times in Scripture, are used as examples of beauty and powerful symbols in countless pieces of the visual arts, and are singled out in more songs than one could imagine. Birds have been used as visual aids to represent qualities of God, to illustrate aspects of our relationship to Him, and to teach us spiritual truths. Birds are ready-made symbols for God’s protective care and divine provision. Every circumstance known to mankind could easily find a suitable symbol in one bird or another. So it’s easy to see why one of David’s favorite images of God in his psalms was as a protective bird, with him hiding in safety beneath God’s wings like a fledgling chick during a storm.

“Kanaph”= The Hebrew word for “wings” used over 100 times in the Hebrew Bible which has a variety of meanings, often giving us a picture of God in action or revealing for us aspects of God’s character… the literal wings of a bird; the corners of a prayer shawl; the outer extremities of a garment; the outstretched wings of angels; the protective presence God as a refuge and shelter; the glorious rays coming out of the sun; the sudden swooping presence of judgment; the strength of God to rescue and deliver from danger.

“Tsel” = The Hebrew word for “shadow” or shade; the root word means to be in the dark or to grow dark. In Scripture it is used literally to mean the physical shadows cast by an object like a tree, a mountain, a building, a cloud; as a metaphor it can refer to the idea of security, protection or shelter; also can refer to something temporary or easily changed, or something without much substance; is also a poetic image of spiritual safety and divine care.

“May the Lord Yahweh reward you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge.” (Ruth 2:12).

• What did Ruth do that so impressed Boaz? The truth is that Ruth heroically went far beyond the call of duty. Here she is, a Gentile from the enemy nation of Moab, in the family line of the notorious Lot, and she chose to remain with her Jewish mother-in-law Naomi after Ruth was widowed. Ruth’s unexpected vow of commitment to Naomi has rightly come down as the very picture of covenant loyalty… “Urge me not to leave you, or to return from following you. For where you go, I will go; and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die, I will die, and there shall be buried. May the Lord punish me – and even more so – if anything besides death comes between us!” (Ruth 1:16-17). Ruth was thus welcomed into the Jewish fold, into the full Hebrew covenant community, and Boaz had the honor of blessing Ruth by introducing her to the protective wings of God. The rest of the story is legendary, and true… Boaz and Ruth eventually married, Ruth became the great-grandmother of King David right there in Bethlehem, and most glorious of all, she succeeded in continuing the family line of Jesus Himself, the Anointed One! Ruth was privileged to be an early family blood-donor to the Messiah! That simple blessing of Boaz over Ruth turned out to be quite the inspired mouthful, didn’t it?

“Whoever dwells in the secret shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord Yahweh, ‘You alone are my refuge and my fortress! You alone are my God in Whom I trust!’ … He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you will find refuge. His truth will be your protective shield; His faithful promises are your armor and sure defense.” (Ps. 91:1-4).

• On the one hand, one of David’s favorite phrases in his psalms was to picture himself “under the wings” of the Lord, hiding “in the shadow of His wings,” like a fledgling bird resting within the refuge of God’s protective presence, as if God was a mother bird providing shelter. On the other hand, many scholars of the Hebrew Bible take this phrase in another direction, especially here in Psalm 91 and in Psalm 61  below. This other rich meaning is revealed in a way that highlights God’s character of mercy. The “wings” in these Psalms could also be referring to the wings of the golden cherubim over the Mercy Seat on the Ark of the Covenant in the tabernacle’s Holy of Holies. The “secret shelter of the Most High” could be taken as a reference to that Most Holy Place in the Tabernacle that was always hidden from public view, the secret place reserved for conversations between Moses and Yahweh, and for the one day a year when the high priest would enter that sacred space.

“Wondrously display your great mercy! By Your mighty power You rescue those who seek refuge from their enemies. Guard me as the apple of Your eye. Hide me in the shadow of Your wings.” (Ps. 17:7-8).

• The “apple of your eye” was a common Hebrew saying that has a few different dimensions to it. First, that phrase literally means, “the little man of the eye,” referring to the mini-reflection of oneself that is seen in someone else’s eyes when standing very near to that loved one and seeing one’s reflection in the other person’s eye. David is asking God to be so closely intimate with him that when he looks into God’s eye, he sees a reflection of himself. Secondly, the pupil is the most sensitive, vulnerable and irreplaceable part of the eye, and so it demands the best protection possible. David is asking that the Lord rush to protect him, much like when everything that surrounds the eye (eyelashes, eyelids, etc.) reflexively rushes to protect the eye if threatened. Guard me the same way You would be protecting Your own eye, David is asking the Lord. Finally, David seems to be asking to be placed in the center of God’s attention, the person who enjoys God’s complete focus. May I be your pride and joy, your precious possession, your cherished prize, David is asking of the Lord. Doesn’t David remind us much later of St. John, the “beloved disciple,” who on many occasions let it slip that Jesus loved him best, the “disciple whom Jesus loved“? David and John are two peas in a pod, both wanted to be the apples of God’s eye, and they were happy to report that they enjoyed a special bond with God. But isn’t that the privilege of every parent of multiple kids… Love each of them individually in such an intimate and unique way that each child fully believes s/he is the parent’s favorite, the one that maybe the parent loves best? I would think that the Father God of love would be perfect at that sort of thing. The genius of God’s love is that we are, each one of us, God’s favorite.

“When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You through the night watches. For you have always been my help, and I will rejoice, loudly singing for joy in the shadow of Your wings. My soul clings to You, for Your strong right hand supports me securely.” (Psalm 63:6-8).

• The Jewish way, the David way, to meditate was vastly different from what we might think these days. The Hebrew word for meditate is very active in every way and required a full-bodied participation, and was not merely an inner mental exercise. To the Jew, when one was meditating, one could have been literally sighing with pleasure; moaning in sorrow; audibly murmuring while processing whatever was being pondered; thinking out loud in unintelligible mumbles; intellectually chewing on what is being contemplated like a cow ruminating on his cud; studying carefully whatever is being imagined in the mind of the meditator; the physical act of moving the upper torso back and forth while meditating in order to mimic the flickering light of a candle. The same Hebrew word is used for the sounds a lion makes as it growls over its prey. For David, his nightly act of meditation on the Person of the Lord meant he was fully involved in focusing on God… mentally, physically, emotionally, verbally, imaginatively, spiritually. David meditating on his God was more like a hungry dog with a bone than passively taking a seat in a quiet corner.
• Night was an important time for prayer in ancient Israel. The night watch was a time for vigilance, for worship, for seeking God’s protection. The three traditional watches of the night were from sunset to 10 pm, from 10 pm to 2 am. and from 2 am to sunrise. The Temple priests kept the watch as they prayed, worshiped, and tended the altar fire and Temple lamps. Night was seen as a symbol of our vulnerability to dark powers, and God was seen as the one sure defense. Early Christians continued that Jewish focus on night prayers. Jesus often spent entire nights in prayer. He intentionally encouraged believers to be vigilant during the night by having the bridegroom arrive at midnight in his famous parable (Matthew 25). Paul and Silas courageously kept the midnight watch when shackled in prison stocks (Acts 16:25). Many Christian churches to this day encourage a night watch in a prayer chapel or site of worship. Thank God there will be no night watches in heaven. There will, after all, be no night (Rev. 21:25).

“Your mercy extends to the heavens, Your faithfulness reaches the clouds. Your righteousness is like the highest mountains of God, and Your justice is like the deepest sea. How precious is Your mercy, O God! How excellent is Your loving-kindness! All of humanity puts their trust in your protection, for they find shelter in the shadow of Your wings.” (Psalm 36:5-7).

“Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me, for my soul trusts in You. I will make my refuge in the shadow of Your wings until danger passes. I call to God Most High, to God who is good to me.”  (Ps. 57:1-2,).

• Here we find in these two passages above the wings of mercy which provide our refuge and hiding place. Yes, mercy has feathers that are water- and wind-resistant, and give us all the shelter we might need. What is God’s mercy? God’s will to satisfy all mankind with His goodness; to strongly desire what is best for someone, especially for those in need; to graciously treat someone in distress with compassion, especially when one could ignore that needy person if he wanted; to have a readiness to show practical love to someone in any type of trouble or need; to have an eagerness to put  love into action; to personally relieve the suffering of someone; to demonstrate an act of good will towards someone who needs it; to show a lovingkindness that is way beyond the call of duty; to demonstrate to a complete stranger the same type of compassion one would reveal to a friend or family member. The Hebrew words for mercy are… “Chanan,” gracious, generous, joyfully compassionate, quick to forgive and quick to show favor, especially to someone who is in need; “Rachem,” which is rooted in the word for “womb,” a tender compassion that is warm and affectionate, a strong desire to relieve suffering and cherish the sufferer. It has been said that this word for God’s mercy implies a tender, protected place where life springs forth, and that living in God’s mercy is to live in the womb of God’s love; “Hesed,” often translated as lovingkindness, indicating a steadfast love, a compassionate faithfulness and loyalty to covenant love. It is used 26 times in the classic Psalm 136 in order to focus on God’s continued and unwavering forbearance and patience because of His faithful lovingkindness, His remaining true to his promises out of sheer love.

“I call to You from the ends of the earth when my heart is overwhelmed and weak within me. Lead me to the towering rock of safety, the rock that is higher than I. For You have been my refuge and shelter, a tower of strength where my enemies cannot reach me. Let me live forever in Your sanctuary (literally, tabernacle), safe beneath the shelter of Your wings. (Psalm 61:2-4).

• In other words, we can rest assured in peace as we dwell over the tabernacle’s Mercy Seat, between the wings of the cherubim of the Most High God. In the shadow of the Almighty and Merciful One, our sins have been forgiven, and we can find eternal shelter within God’s acceptance. We find a true spiritual refuge as we stand beneath the wings that overshadow the Mercy Seat. The wings of the cherubim remind us that the Cross is our fortress and shield against judgment. We can stand forgiven between the wings that keep us safe in His merciful presence.