The Lord is your keeper;
The Lord is your shade on your right hand. (121:5).

Psalm 120 is the beginning of fifteen psalms that bear the title, “song of ascents.”

“Some have the thought that the Hebrew for ‘ascents’ mean stairs and refers to 15 steps leading up to the temple so that the title means ‘a song of the stairs’ and indicates that the songs were to be used in the liturgical procession up to the temple. Most, however, believe that it refers to the annual religious pilgrimages to Jerusalem which brought the worshipers singing to Mount Zion… and reflects post exilic usage rather than the original purpose of the composition of each of the several psalms bearing [the title, ‘song of ascents]… it is probably not coincidental that they begin with a prayer that evokes the experience of being far from home and beset by barbarians and end with a call to praise in the sanctuary.” From NIV Study Bible

As believers, we too are far from home, making our pilgrimage through life, beset by an enemy who is barbaric and ruthless in his attacks, as we look toward the day when we will ascend into His presence and praise Him in His Heavenly Sanctuary. And He guarantees our safe arrival, for He Is Our Keeper Who watches over us to keep us, preserve us, guard us, and care for us throughout every step of our pilgrimage.

Keeper: “8104. שָׁמַר šāmar: A verb meaning to watch, to keep, to preserve, to guard, to be careful, to watch over, to watch carefully over, to be on one’s guard,” Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance

Consider Him, Our Keeper

• He is Our Keeper Who answers us in our trouble
  • In my trouble I cried to the Lord,
    And He answered me. (120:1).

• He is Our Keeper Who is our Omnipotent Helper
  • I will lift up my eyes to the mountains;
    From where shall my help come?
    ² My help comes from the Lord,
    Who made heaven and earth, (121:1-2).

• He is Our Keeper Who is Constant in His Care
  • He will not allow your foot to slip;
    He who keeps you will not slumber.
    ⁴ Behold, He who keeps Israel
    Will neither slumber nor sleep, (121:3-4).

• He is Our Keeper Who Shields us in His Strength
  • The Lord is your keeper;
    The Lord is your shade on your right hand, (121:5).

• He is Our Keeper Who Protects us from all evil
  • The sun will not smite you by day,
    Nor the moon by night.
    ⁷ The Lord will protect you from all evil;
    He will keep your soul, (121:6-7).

• He is Our Keeper Who is our Eternal Guardian
  • The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in
    From this time forth and forever. (121:8).

• He is Our Keeper Who is Gracious in our suffering
  • Be gracious to us, O Lord, be gracious to us,
    For we are greatly filled with contempt. (123:3).

How do we respond to Him, Our Keeper?

Oh, such comfort to know He is Our Keeper Who answers us in all our troubles, Who is Omnipotent and Constant in His Help and Care, Who Shields us in His Strength and Protects us from all evil, Who will Guard us for all of Eternity and Whose Grace is made known in our suffering. But there is coming a day when our pilgrimage on earth will end and we will be able to joyfully celebrate His Presence in Heaven.

Until then, He has provided the assembly of the saints in our local churches, to encourage each other in the hope and love of our faith, and to remind one another along our pilgrimage together that we are secure in His Strength and Protection for He is Our Keeper.

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; ²⁴ and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, ²⁵ not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near, (Hebrews 10:23-25).

Oh, may we be so grateful and glad for the gift of our local church body, that we would gather together to praise and give thanks to the name of the Lord.

I was glad when they said to me,
“Let us go to the house of the Lord.”
…⁴ To which the tribes go up, even the tribes of the Lord—
An ordinance for Israel—
To give thanks to the name of the Lord, (122:1, 4).

Let us ask the Lord to grow our love as we gather and pray for others. Let us be diligent to pray for His peace, over Jerusalem, over our own nation, over our local churches, and over our families. Let us ask Him, Our Keeper to bless and prosper us with His Grace.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:
“May they prosper who love you. (122:6).

And let us never forget, the One Who sits enthroned in the heavens is Our Keeper!

To You I lift up my eyes,
O You who are enthroned in the heavens! (123:1).

Does that not just blow your mind? The God of the entire universe watches and cares and Keeps us! Oh how can we not surrender all that we are to Him? Let us always lift our eyes up to Him, Our Keeper, for everything we need is in His hands of Grace. Let us look to Him in faith and surrender, trusting that His Grace is sufficient, for He alone is the Lord, and He is Our Keeper!

Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master,
As the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress,
So our eyes look to the Lord our God,
Until He is gracious to us. (123:2).

Let’s Grow Together!