You’re not the only one to feel like you’re under attack. King David understood what it was like to be threatened from multiple fronts. Also, King David understood that God is a shield. In this post, I will explain how God protects you even when you feel attacked from all around as we look at Psalm 3. Read on to the end to see how God is a shield for you.

So Many Foes

King David wrote Psalm 3 based upon his having to flee from his son Absalom. As recorded in 2 Samuel 15 and 16, Absalom plotted against David to kill him and take his throne. David found out about the plot and fled from Absalom.

Can you imagine having to flee for your life from your own child? David’s own son became his enemy, yet this wasn’t the first enemy David had.

Absalom Wasn’t David’s Only Enemy

Psalm 3 starts with David saying, “how many are my foes” (Psalm 3:1). For David, Absalom was one more enemy in a line of many enemies. This wasn’t the first time David was under attack.

Even when he was a kid, he fell under attack by wild animals as he watched over the family sheep. Then, King Saul attacked David often. Of course, the Philistines plagued him relentlessly. 

Everywhere David turned, he came under attack. Now, it was from his own son.

Furthermore, they not only attacked David, but they also attacked David’s faith in God to save and protect him. They said, “God will not deliver him” (Psalm 3:2).

You May Feel Attacked on All Sides

Just like David, you may feel attacked on all sides. You may feel the pressure at home, at work, or even out and about among society.

This attack can come in the form of relationship issues, arguments, or even outright accusations. Think about all of the bashing that occurs on social media. Sometimes, it may even lead to physical altercations. 

On top of that, you may feel like you’re under spiritual attack. You have an enemy in the devil that will do anything to keep you from walking with God. The devil exists and not in the cartoonish pitchfork and horns kind-of-way.

The Bible warns us, “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” ( 1 Peter 5:8). 

In fact, the word Satan is literally translated as “adversary” or “opponent”. 

Along with others and the devil, you may find yourself attacked from within. That’s right. You also have to fight against your own sinful nature. 

The sin nature, or flesh as its referred to in the Bible, wants nothing to do with God. It will tempt you to sin and separate you from God. 

Romans 8:7-8 states that “the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”

As you can see, you can be under attack from:

• Others
• The Devil
• Within

Just like David, you may be able to say, “Many are my foes”, and they may be ridiculing your faith in God. Ultimately, they want to separate you from your walk with God. 

God is a Shield For You

Even in the midst of such an onslaught, David held on to his faith in God. David wholeheartedly believed God would:

• Protect him
• Deliver him
• Comfort him

God’s Protection

David answers his enemies by saying, “But you, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, the One who lifts my head high” (Psalm 3:3). David trusted that God would protect him. The Hebrew word translated shield here is magen. 

It usually refers to a buckler. A buckler was a small circular shield a soldier held in their hand or wore on their arm. It provided protection while allowing for movement for counterattack. David used military terms because he was very much a soldier at heart. 

In regards to God, He didn’t just provide David with limited protection like a buckler. Instead, he protected David on all sides. David said God was a shield “around” him. God was protecting David on all sides against all his attackers at once.

God’s Deliverance

In addition to God’s protection. David also believed in God’s ability to deliver him. David states this in the last line of this psalm when he states, “From the Lord comes deliverance” (3:8).

David knew that military might wouldn’t be enough. Also, he knew that he couldn’t rely on clever tactics. No, he would need God’s help to get out of the mess he was in.

As David expected, God delivered him from the hands of Absalom. 

How could David be sure of God’s deliverance?

God had proven himself faithful to his people over and over again. For example, at an early age, David experienced God’s deliverance against the giant Goliath. David knew God saved him then, so he could trust that God would do it again. 

David said, “I call out to the Lord, and He answers me from His holy mountain” (Psalm 3:4).

God’s Comfort

In the midst of this trying time, God comforted David. God’s that powerful. He can protect, deliver, and comfort David at the same time. 

While fleeing from Absalom, David said, “I lie down and sleep, I wake again, because the Lord sustains me” (Psalm 3:5). 

God’s comfort put David at ease. He had nothing to fear with God on his side. David could then proclaim, “I will not fear though tens of thousands assail me on every side” (Psalm 3:6).

The Shield of Faith

You see, God is a shield, but it takes faith to believe that. David had that kind of faith. He did not flee Absalom out of fear. He fled because he did not want to fight his son. Even when confrontation was the only option, David commanded his army not to kill his son. 

David didn’t fear because he placed his trust in God. He had a shield of faith. The apostle Paul talks about the shield of faith in Ephesians 6 when he talks about the armor of God. This shield of faith, “with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one” (Ephesians 6:16) is faith in God. 

You have the shield of faith because God is a shield for you Himself. For you to take up that shield, you first have to believe that God exists. Plus, you have to believe that He is on your side. 

God Fights Your Battles

Ultimately, David had to believe that he would survive this conflict with Absalom because he wasn’t really the one fighting the battle.

In fact, it wasn’t any human fighting on David’s behalf. God fought on David’s behalf.

When you have God fighting your battles, how can you lose?

As Romans 8:31 says, “If God is for us, who can be against us?”

Therefore, we have nothing to fear when we call on God in the midst of our battles. He is a mighty warrior. Nothing can stand against Jesus Christ. 

God is so powerful that even death and hell can’t stand against him. Jesus proclaims in Revelation 1:18, “ I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.”

David understood this. He knew God to be the all-powerful King of Heaven and Earth who controls everything. Therefore, he gave the situation to God in prayer in faith knowing that God would act. 

When David prays, “Arise, Lord! Deliver me, my God!” (Psalm 3:7), he is speaking in the present tense. The deliverance hadn’t happened, but David had confidence that it would because God fights for His children.

Can You say, “God is a Shield for Me?

As you can see, David experienced attacks often, and God delivered him often. God proved Himself faithful by answering when David asked for help. 

Consequently, David could say with confidence, “God is a shield for me”

Can you say the same?

In the midst of your trials and tribulations, turn to God and ask for his help. Just as He did for David, he will answer you and will be a shield for you. He will provide you with protection, deliverance, and comfort. 

Thanks for taking the time to read this. I pray that you grow closer in your walk with God every day. If you found this post encouraging, please let me know in the comments or contact me.Also, please share this with others so they may be encouraged, also.

One last thing- Maybe one of the battles you face is not having a personal relationship with God. Maybe you feel all alone in the midst of your troubles. If so, take a look at my post Why Ransomed and Restored to find out how you can experience a personal relationship with God.

The post God Is a Shield for You appeared first on Ransomed and Restored.

Read on as I explain in more detail what it means to be ransomed and restored. 

We’ve All Messed Up

To start off, if you think about the things you’ve done wrong, it won’t take you long to get a list going. Sure, you may not have made major, life-changing blunders (or, maybe you have like me), but everyone has done something wrong.

That’s what the Bible means when it says in Romans 3:23 that “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” We’ve all messed up and done something wrong. 

Think about it. 

Have you ever told a lie? 

Did you ever thought or done something in anger that was hurtful toward someone else?

Have you ever broken the law? Maybe, driving over the speed limit?

The answer is easy. Of course, you have. Nobody is perfect. We’ve all done something that goes against God’s commands. It’s human nature. More importantly, it’s sinful nature, and we are all born with it. 

Separation From God

Unfortunately, our sins damage the original relationship God intended to have with us. 

When God created mankind, He created us for a relationship with Him. He made Adam and Even and placed them in the garden of Eden. In the midst of the garden, God would meet with them. Except, one day Adam and Eve broke the one law God gave them.

God told them they couldn’t eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Unfortunately, they sinned by breaking this law, and their relationship with God was severed. In their shame, they hid from God. 

In the Bible, it says, “Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, ‘Where are you?’”

When God came looking for them to spend time with them, they hid from Him. Thus, the relationship was broken. 

How does that affect you and me?

Because we are all descended from Adam and Eve, we are all born into sin and make wrong choices for ourselves. In other words, we are born with a sinful nature and break God’s commands within our own choices. 

Jesus Paid the Price

Thankfully, God didn’t want to leave the relationship broken. He provided a way to restore the broken relationship. In fact, to restore the broken relationship, God required that mankind seek forgiveness for their sins.

It makes sense. As a kid, when I hurt a classmate, my teacher made me say “I’m sorry”. Also, I was constantly having to ask forgiveness from my mother when I did something she didn’t want me to do.

Therefore, we can understand how God would require us to seek forgiveness for our sins. To do this, God required that blood had to be shed to cover our sins. 

Romans 6:23 tells us, “The wages of sin is death.”

Furthermore, Hebrews 9:22 states “without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness.” You see, we sinned against God and needed to atone for that sin. Since we sinned against the highest authority, the God of the whole universe, the price had to be severe: our lives.

Thankfully, God loves us so much that He went even one step further. Jesus paid the price for our sins with His own life.

Jesus Gave Himself as a Ransom

That’s right. 

God Himself stepped down from heaven and came to earth as a man to take our place and atone for our sins.Jesus paid the price for our forgiveness. Since the price was so steep, out of His love, God paid the price for us.

Jesus, who is fully God, came down to earth, and became a man to shed His blood for all of mankind.

Jesus Himself speaking about His own act of sacrifice said, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His live as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45)

Interestingly, the word for ransom in the original Greek is lutron. It means the liberty price to free a slave. In our sinful state, we are slaves to sin. It controls us, and we can’t get free on our own. 

Instead, Jesus paid the price by sacrificing Himself and dying on the cross to pay the ransom for our sins. 

God Restores the Relationship

Once Jesus paid the price by dying on the cross, that caused the original relationship between God and man to be restored. The sin was covered, and atonement had been performed. 

To complete the transaction, one more event had to occur. It was not enough for Jesus to have died. He had to be raised from the dead. 

Yes, His death covered our old sins, and our old self died with Him on the cross. If God stopped there, we would just be dead. We require a new life lived in relationship to Him.

Therefore, after three days in the tomb, God raised Jesus from the dead. In Jesus’ resurrection, God gives us new life, too. Now, we can live in fellowship with God.

We believe this because the Bible says this in Romans 6:4 says, “We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.”

The Blessings of the Restored Life

Along with this restoration of relationship with God, we also receive many blessings from God through Jesus. For example, we are no longer strangers to God. Because of Jesus’ sacrifice, “we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). 

Plus, we have hope in Jesus. In our old sinful life, we were without hope. I don’t know about you, but my life before Jesus was empty and dark. Now, I wake up with hope because my relationship with God gives my life meaning and purpose. 

Finally, my restored life in God provides me with access to communion with God. Apart from God, I never knew what I was missing. I just knew that there was something missing. 

Through Jesus, I realize God’s love was missing in my life, and God’s love overwhelms me. It is a perfect love that “drives our all fear” (1 John 4:18). 

Why Ransomed and Restored?

As you can see, I chose ransomed and restored as the name of this website because that’s what Jesus did for me. He ransomed and restored me when He paid the price for my sins. 

He did the same for you. You just have to believe it and accept Him. 

Romans 10:9 says, “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, then you will be saved.”

After that, enjoy the relationship you were created to have with God and experience His love. 

It’s one thing for me to talk about His love. It’s a completely different matter to experience it. 

If you’re reading this, and you haven’t confessed Jesus as Lord, it’s my prayer that God stirs your heart to do so.

If you already have, I pray that you grow closer to God in your relationship with Him.

Either way, thank you for reading this post and may God bless you.

If you’re needing someone to talk to or pray with you, contact me.

If you enjoyed this post, be sure to share it with others.

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