In The Shadow of thy Wings
Psalm 63:7
Intro: David had a lot he wanted to say in this chapter.
David wrote about:
A. His Search for God – vs. 1
B. His Sanctuary of God – vs. 2
C. His Satisfaction with God – vs. 3-6
D. His Safety in God – vs. 7-11
I want to draw your attention to verse 7.
In this verse, and many others, we discover that God has wings.
This statement caught my eye.
This statement is what we call anthropomorphic expressions of God.
John 4 says that God is a Spirit.
Yet throughout the Bible, we find multiple references to God using human elements.
· His feet - 1 Corinthians 15:25 For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.
· His arm - Isaiah 53:1 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?
· His eyes - Proverbs 15:3 The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.
· His heart – David was a man after God’s own heart.
· His hands and His ears - Isaiah 59:1 Behold, the LORD’S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:
But humans do not have wings. Only the birds and the angels have wings.
The word WING and WINGS is mentioned 70 times in the Bible.
There were wings on the Mercy Seat covering the Altar of God. (Exodus 25:20)
The cherubims and seraphims have wings. (Isaiah 6:2;
Many of the animals seen in the visions of Ezekiel and Daniel had wings.
In this text verse, and many others, we discover that God has wings.
This is a descriptive term used to describe particular aspects of God’s relationship with us.
David looked at it as being under the shadow of God’s wings.
He was excited about it, to the point that he was rejoicing about being under the shadow of the wing of God.
What was he talking about?
The Shadow of thy Wings is:
I. A Place of Delivering Providence
Exodus 19
· 3 And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel;
· 4 Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles’ wings, and brought you unto myself.
· 5 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:
· 6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.
Deuteronomy 32
· 9 For the LORD’S portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.
· 10 He found him in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness; he led him about, he instructed him, he kept him as the apple of his eye.
· 11 As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings:
· 12 So the LORD alone did lead him, and there was no strange god with him.
The Shadow of thy Wings is:
II. A Place of Divine Protection
Psalm 17
· 8 Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings,
· 9 From the wicked that oppress me, from my deadly enemies, who compass me about.
· Psalms 57:1 «To the chief Musician, Altaschith, Michtam of David, when he fled from Saul in the cave.» Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast.
Psalm 61
· 1 «To the chief Musician upon Neginah, A Psalm of David.» Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer.
· 2 From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
· 3 For thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy.
· 4 I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever: I will trust in the covert of thy wings. Selah.
Psalm 91
· 1 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
· 2 I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
· 3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.
· 4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
Jesus looked out over Jerusalem and wept at their failure to come to Him.
· Matthew 23:37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
The Shadow of thy Wings is:
III. A Place of Delightful Provision
Psalm 36
· 5 Thy mercy, O LORD, is in the heavens; and thy faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds.
· 6 Thy righteousness is like the great mountains; thy judgments are a great deep: O LORD, thou preservest man and beast.
· 7 How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings.
· 8 They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house; and thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures.
· 9 For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light.
Boaz said to Ruth: in Ruth 2
· 11 And Boaz answered and said unto her, It hath fully been shewed me, all that thou hast done unto thy mother in law since the death of thine husband: and how thou hast left thy father and thy mother, and the land of thy nativity, and art come unto a people which thou knewest not heretofore.
· 12 The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust.
The Shadow of thy Wings is:
IV. A Place of Destructive Punishment
Jeremiah 48
· 39 They shall howl, saying, How is it broken down! how hath Moab turned the back with shame! so shall Moab be a derision and a dismaying to all them about him.
· 40 For thus saith the LORD; Behold, he shall fly as an eagle, and shall spread his wings over Moab.
· 41 Kerioth is taken, and the strong holds are surprised, and the mighty men’s hearts in Moab at that day shall be as the heart of a woman in her pangs.
· 42 And Moab shall be destroyed from being a people, because he hath magnified himself against the LORD.
· 43 Fear, and the pit, and the snare, shall be upon thee, O inhabitant of Moab, saith the LORD.
Jeremiah 49
· 20 Therefore hear the counsel of the LORD, that he hath taken against Edom; and his purposes, that he hath purposed against the inhabitants of Teman: Surely the least of the flock shall draw them out: surely he shall make their habitations desolate with them.
· 21 The earth is moved at the noise of their fall, at the cry the noise thereof was heard in the Red sea.
· 22 Behold, he shall come up and fly as the eagle, and spread his wings over Bozrah: and at that day shall the heart of the mighty men of Edom be as the heart of a woman in her pangs.
Conclusion: As a child of God, we can take refuge under the shadow of His wings.
As an unsaved person, you can too, if you’ll come to Him and be saved.
· Malachi 4:2 But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings;
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