The eleven verses of Psalm 46 are presented in three parts with a Selah in place between each section for the worshipper to stop speaking (singing) in order to meditate on what has just been presented in the Word of God while the music continues to play. The sections are:

• Creation - Psalm 46:1-3 is focused on the superiority of the Creator over the forces of chaos and the current instability of creation.
• Jerusalem - Psalm 46:4-7 is focused on the security and peace in the city of God in the midst of the uproar of nations and the falling of kingdoms because God’s presence dwells in there.
• History - Psalm 46:8-11 is focused on God’s ultimate victory and dominion historically on earth among the nations.

The superscript of the Psalm identifies this as a song written by Levites from the family line of Korah which was to be performed while accompanied by an alamoth, an unidentified musical instrument. The general congregation of worshippers would have joined in the singing of this song in national praise song since the first-person plural is used throughout the Psalm: “our”, “we”, “us”.

In the first section (46:1-3) the forces of chaos that were subdued in Genesis 1 continue to be a threat. Even though chaos gave way to the order implemented by the Creator, these forces continue to be maintained by God who is a source of refuge, strength and help for his people when:

• The continental plates give way
• The mountains tremble and tumble
• The seas become tsunamis

In the worst case of natural disaster God is still present to help and provide refuge and strength for his people.

In the second section (46:4-7) the song turns to the security of Jerusalem, the city of God. Here there is an ever flowing supply of water from the Gihon Springs (which still flows today as it has for thousands of years). God’s presence among his people provides them with security, peace and provisions, but among the raging nations he raises his voice to melt the earth causing the nations to fall.

Those who know and trust God have security that goes beyond nature, politics and history. God is an ever present help with provisions that make glad the people of his kingdom.

1534 – In Germany and Switzerland the Reformation against the Catholic Church came from men searching the Scriptures and calling the church to return to a biblical foundation. But, in England King Henry VIII attacked Luther’s views in 1521 and was honored by the Pope as the “Defender of the Faith.”

Henry had married his brother’s widow (Catherine), but she had born no son, so Henry was attracted to the younger woman, Anne Boleyn. Henry petitioned the Pope for a divorce, but the Pope refused the divorce because he feared upsetting Catherine’s nephew, the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V.

So, Henry took matters into his own hands by appointing Thomas Cranmer as archbishop. Cranmer then granted Henry a divorce, Anne had a daughter (Elizabeth) and the English Parliament passed the Act of Supremacy that declared King Henry VIII was the supreme head of the Church of England. In England there was not a rebellion against the Catholic Church (or, a Protestant Reformation), but a rebellion to make King Henry the “pope” of his own church in England and to grant him the divorce that he wanted.