“In God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me?” (Psalm 56:11)
If you pay any attention to the news or to social media, and most of us do whether we want to or not, it is easy to see that people can be nasty to each other. People can be petty. People can be mean. People can be unjust. People can even be dangerous. And when people have power, all these can cause enormous and widespread damage.
So when David asks, in Psalm 56, “What can man do to me?” the answer sure seems like an awful lot! Man can hurt you, shame you, tear you down, ruin your reputation, rob you, or even kill you.
So is David just being arrogant? Is he playing the tough guy? Not at all. He’s being totally realistic because he sees and knows something greater than any person or group of people. The words leading up to that question show us what.
When I am afraid,
I put my trust in you.
In God, whose word I praise,
in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.
What can man do to me?
Sure, people can do a lot, but they can’t take God off His throne. They can’t separate us from the love of God. They can’t snatch us out of God’s hand. They can’t take the future or the hope of anyone who trusts in God. They can’t undo the victory of Jesus on the cross. They can’t make God leave or forsake us. So what can man do to me? God holds us today and for eternity, and in his presence is fullness of joy.
I originally wrote this post for my church, Immanuel Nashville, in our Daily Pulse email. If you want encouragement from God’s word delivered Monday thru Friday to your inbox, I encourage you to subscribe!
Photo by Juan Rojas on Unsplash
