“No king is saved by a great army; a mighty man is not delivered by great strength. A horse is a vain hope for safety; it will not deliver by its great strength. The eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His lovingkindness, to deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine. Our soul waits for the LORD; He is our help and our shield.” Psalm 33:16-20

In what should we place our trust? Can a mighty army or powerful weapons of war save us from our enemies? Can we, by our own great strength, escape the assaults of those who would harm us and take away our property or life?

The Bible teaches us that it is foolish to trust in these things, for without the LORD’S help, we would all perish, no matter how great our strength or how powerful and sophisticated our weapons of war may be.

History shows us that the mightiest have fallen, and the Bible provides numerous examples of the LORD giving victory to the smallest and weakest of armies (cf. Judges 7; 1 Sam. 14; Gen. 14). Consider also what the LORD did for His people when He brought them into the land of Canaan. The walled and fortified cities could not stand against the armies of Israel because the LORD fought for His people.

Shall we place our trust in our own strength, in the guns in our homes, or in the mighty armies or sophisticated weaponry of our nation? Such would be vain and foolish, for no earthly strength can deliver us from our enemies if the LORD is not with us!

In what should we place our trust? God’s Word tells us: “The eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His lovingkindness, to deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine” (Psalm 33:18-19).

Our trust should be in the LORD God who made the heavens and the earth, who “spoke, and it was done,” who “commanded, and it stood fast” (Ps. 33:6,9). Certainly, He who created all things by His almighty Word can protect and defend us against the greatest of enemies!

And the LORD promises to watch over those who honor and respect Him as their Maker and hope in His mercy. He has redeemed us in His Son, Jesus Christ, and His help and protection are upon those who trust in Him to mercifully forgive their sins for the sake of Christ’s blood shed for them on the cross.

God has delivered our souls from death by sending His Son to suffer death in our stead and rise again so that we might have spiritual and eternal life through faith in His name (cf. John 3:14-16; Col. 1:12ff.; Eph. 2:1ff.).

The Bible also says: “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” (Rom. 8:32).

Since God has so loved us that He sent His Son to redeem us and has adopted all who trust in Christ as His children and given them eternal salvation in His Son, will He not also protect and defend those who trust in Him against their enemies and provide for their earthly needs, even in times of shortage and famine? Certainly so! (Cf. Matt. 6:31-33.)

Therefore, with the Psalmist, we say it is vain and useless to place our trust in great numbers or strength; all of these have failed. But the LORD will never fail those who place their trust in Him! “Our soul waits for the LORD; He is our help and our shield” (Ps. 33:20).

Dear LORD God, teach us to place our trust in You alone to grant us eternal salvation and to watch over and keep us in this life. In the name of Jesus our Savior, we pray. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.]