Psalm 48 Reflection – Selina Fyfe
Kronborg Castle stands beautiful in the sunlight, its walls straight and tall and its towers stretching up to the sky. It sits on the edge of the island of Zealand, in Denmark, with only four kilometres of water between it and neighbouring Sweden. During my time in Denmark, I walk through and around Kronborg castle, marvelling at its strength and history. Psalm 48 has been my special Bible passage for this trip, and as I walk around the castle I’m struck by the fortress analogy this psalm uses to describe God.
Psalm 48 (NIV)
A song. A psalm of the Sons of Korah.
1 Great is the Lord, and most worthy of praise,
in the city of our God, his holy mountain.
2 Beautiful in its loftiness,
the joy of the whole earth,
like the heights of Zaphon is Mount Zion,
the city of the Great King.
3 God is in her citadels;
he has shown himself to be her fortress.
Kronborg Castle was built as a fortress in the 1420’s and then later, in the 1500’s, it was rebuilt into a castle. It was important as one of two fortresses that controlled the ships and boats passing through this stretch of water, as they travelled to and from the sea. As I look at this castle, I’m reminded that Psalm 48 isn’t the only psalm that describes God as our fortress. Psalm 18:2 says, ‘The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.’ Like a castle that provides refuge in times of trouble, so God is a refuge for us. We can always go to him, praying to him and bringing our hearts and lives before him, taking refuge in his steadfast and unfailing love.
4 When the kings joined forces,
when they advanced together,
5 they saw her and were astounded;
they fled in terror.
6 Trembling seized them there,
pain like that of a woman in labor.
7 You destroyed them like ships of Tarshish
shattered by an east wind.
A fortress is a place of protection and a stronghold where people go to stay safe from enemy attacks. Inside the castle I watch a video about how it was designed to be used for defence. The fortifications of the castle protected those inside, providing refuge, shelter and ways to resist. The number of fortifications in Kronborg surprises me, I walk around the outer walls, through the tunnels underneath and over the bridge across the moat. Psalm 48 describes how God was a fortress to the Israelites, saving them from their enemies. Our fortress God is our saviour too; he sent Jesus to earth to conquer death so that each of us can be saved for all eternity.
8 As we have heard,
so we have seen
in the city of the Lord Almighty,
in the city of our God:
God makes her secure
forever.
Fortresses like Kronborg last for hundreds of years providing strength, protection and defence. But even these castles will not always provide absolute security. Yet God, our refuge and fortress, will always be a place we can go to, his saving grace will keep us secure forever.
9 Within your temple, O God,
we meditate on your unfailing love.
10 Like your name, O God,
your praise reaches to the ends of the earth;
your right hand is filled with righteousness.
11 Mount Zion rejoices,
the villages of Judah are glad
because of your judgments.
Knowing God as our fortress means knowing him and knowing about him. As we grow closer to God we learn and experience how his love is unfailing. He is everlasting through all time and he is all encompassing, reaching across the whole world, even to the ends of the earth. God is righteous and his judgements are right, and like the writer of this psalm, we can rejoice knowing this.
12 Walk about Zion, go around her,
count her towers,
13 consider well her ramparts,
view her citadels,
that you may tell of them
to the next generation.
The people who use a fortress to protect themselves need to know every detail of it. They have to learn and consider how to use its walls and towers, its tunnels and passages. This is how we are supposed to know God, learning about him, walking with him, reading his word and praying to him. We can know and experience his unfailing love and his righteousness. We can go to him as our refuge, our rock, our deliverer, our shield, our saviour, our strength and our fortress.
14 For this God is our God for ever and ever;
he will be our guide even to the end.
Unlike a castle, which will one day crumble and deteriorate, God will always be a fortress we can go to, a right hand filled with righteousness. Our God was a fortress for the Israelites in the Old Testament, and is the same God in the New Testament and the same God today. For this God is our God for ever and ever, he will be our guide even to the end.
God bless, Selina Fyfe.
