About a half dozen times the Psalms speak of someone being shaken. Typically the psalmist is saying that, because of God’s protection, he will not be shaken. For example, in Psalm 16:8 David wrote, “I have set the LORD always before me; because He is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.”
Why do the psalm writers seem so concerned about being shaken? What does that mean? Were they prone to earthquakes or something?
The word translated as shaken means to slip. Walking through life is hard, as there are many things that can cause us to trip and fall. When the authors say they will not be shaken, they mean God will protect them and keep them upright.
On our honeymoon Alicia and I went horseback riding in the Smokey Mountains of Tennessee. We were going around some sharp curves as we were winding our way up the mountain, and the horses seemed to be about an inch from the edge. It was a little nerve wracking, to say the least. The tour guide rather nonchalantly said, “Relax. They don’t want to fall any more than you do.”
While we were concerned that we might slip and fall, the horses are called sure footed. We paid money to let the horses do the work, so we were just along for the ride. Why waste time worrying? The tour guide was right: relax.
Life can certainly make us nervous, but relax. Our God is sure footed, and He doesn’t want us to fall any more than we do. He will not let us slip. We need to fully trust ourselves to Him and enjoy the ride. Even if we are walking on the absolute edge of a mountain, or through the valley of the shadow of death, there is no need to fear.
As children of God we can say along with David, “I will not be shaken.”
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