Jehovah will give strength unto his people; Jehovah will bless his people with peace.
The psalm has been one long storm of thunder, snapping cedars and shaking wilderness. It ends with two quiet gifts for a small people: strength and peace.
Where the Verse Stands in the Psalm
Before the psalm gives anything to His people, it seats God above the floods.
Jehovah sits on the floods. He is above all the wild movements of the mass of peoples, and He rules them to His own purposes. He sits too as King for ever. As He is above the swellings of men, so He sits in sure, unmoved government for ever. But then there is the connection with His people. He gives them strength; He blesses them with peace. Verse 10 is the possession of power over all and in Himself; verse 11, what He is for the people. It is a call to the mighty to own Jehovah, and the sure blessing of Israel.
Encouragement, Not a Prayer
Many psalms ask God for something. Older translations read this closing line as a promise, not a request: "the LORD will give strength to his people."
This mighty Jehovah will give strength to His people and bless them with peace. It is a positive encouragement for the faithful; not their complaint or appeal, but a testimony for them to encourage their hearts in the presence of the mighty. He that cares for them is mightier than they.
Strength Given to the Weak
God alone wins the victory in this psalm. One writer traces where the good of it goes, and why the world's search for peace keeps failing.
While He alone gains the victory, He will not enjoy it alone. Rather, He "will give strength to His people" (v. 11). They will have found by painful experience that they are pitifully weak. But in depending on the strong One, they will find wonderful strength. He will also "bless his people with peace." What marvellous peace, after centuries of trouble! Today the whole world is crying out for peace. But peace has escaped them, because they have refused the one Prince of Peace, the Lord Jesus.
Strength First, Then Peace
The order of the two gifts matters. One writer sees it acted out in the Gospels, in a woman who came to Jesus afraid.
Here the woman who came to the Lord in fear and trembling is told to depart in peace. The Prince of peace gave His royal gift to a woman whose sorrow of heart had broken her spirit (Proverbs 15:13). At the same time He proved Himself to be the Jehovah of prophecy, giving first strength and then peace: "May the LORD give strength to his people! May the LORD bless his people with peace!" (Psalm 29:11).
Who Enjoys the Promise
The promise has an address. It lands on people who worship.
The closing verses give the blessed result. It belongs to those who have been into the temple and worshipped the Lord in the beauty of holiness. Such realise that whatever the storms of this world, the Lord is above them. However great the might of the mighty ones, the Lord is mightier. They may be mighty for a time; Jehovah is "King for ever."
What ties these worshippers to God is His revealed name.
His name has been revealed. Glory is due to Him as revealed, to His name. That name reveals Himself, and it is also the name of His relationship with His people. There He has placed His name, to form a centre where they gather and a revealed place of worship.
Rest While Judgment Passes By
The peace promised here is not peace because the storm has stopped. It is rest inside the storm, and Scripture keeps picturing it.
The last verses let us see the rest of the faithful and hear their joys. All this time God's power is passing by to destroy the wicked. Think of Noah in the ark while the waters were spreading. Think of Lot in Zoar while fire fell on Sodom. Think of Israel inside their Passover doors while the angel went through Egypt with the sword. In the same way, the remnant will rest in their rooms one day (Isaiah 26:20). They will have a song too, while the appointed vengeance runs its course (Isaiah 30:32), and not a hair will perish.
Commentators differ on timing. Some tie the promise to Israel's blessing still ahead. Others show it already at work in the Gospels.
Summary
- Storm — Thunder, broken cedars and a shaking wilderness are the voice of God. He is mightier than the mighty of the earth.
- Throne — Verse 10 shows His own power. He sits as King forever above the floods. Verse 11 turns that power toward His people.
- Strength — He wins alone, but He does not enjoy it alone. People who have learned how weak they are find real strength by depending on the strong One.
- Peace — The gifts come in order: strength first, then peace. The Prince of Peace sent a trembling woman away in peace.
- Glory — Worshippers carry the result away. Whatever the storms of this world, the Lord is above them, and His people rest while judgment passes by.