Midday
Psalm 90 (91): In the Shelter of the Most High
“He that dwells in the help of the Highest, shall sojourn under the shelter of the God of heaven.”Psalm 90:1 (91:1)
Reflection
This is the psalm of God's protection, and the Church prays it often. It is one of the three psalms of the Sixth Hour at midday, and it is read again at Great Compline at night. The Greek Septuagint, which the Orthodox Church uses for the Old Testament, numbers it Psalm 90; most English Bibles, following the Hebrew, call it Psalm 91. Notice the line about “the evil spirit at noon-day.” St John Cassian records that some of the desert elders called acedia, the restless midday heaviness that makes us want to drop our prayer and our work and be anywhere else, “the midday demon” of this psalm. If that is how your afternoon feels, pray this psalm slowly. It does not promise that nothing hard will ever happen; the devil quoted it to Christ himself as a dare (Matthew 4:6). It promises that nothing can tear us out of God's keeping. Text: Brenton's translation of the Septuagint (1851), with the psalm's heading left out.
A prayer
He that dwells in the help of the Highest, shall sojourn under the shelter of the God of heaven. He shall say to the Lord, Thou art my helper and my refuge: my God; I will hope in him. For he shall deliver thee from the snare of the hunters, from every troublesome matter. He shall overshadow thee with his shoulders, and thou shalt trust under his wings: his truth shall cover thee with a shield. Thou shalt not be afraid of terror by night; nor of the arrow flying by day; nor of the evil thing that walks in darkness; nor of calamity, and the evil spirit at noon-day. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou observe and see the reward of sinners. For thou, O Lord, art my hope: thou, my soul, hast made the Most High thy refuge. No evils shall come upon thee, and no scourge shall draw nigh to thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge concerning thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up on their hands, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. Thou shalt tread on the asp and basilisk: and thou shalt trample on the lion and dragon. For he has hoped in me, and I will deliver him: I will protect him, because he has known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will hearken to him: I am with him in affliction; and I will deliver him, and glorify him. I will satisfy him with length of days, and shew him my salvation. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now, and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia: glory to you, O God.
Carry this with you
Which promise of this psalm do you most need this afternoon? Say it again before you go back to work.