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The Lord is good, a Stronghold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him. But with an overruning flood he will make an utter end of the place thereof, and darkness shall pursue his enemies. The previous verses were introductory to the subject which the prophet now takes up, namely, the safe keeping of the Jews by Jehovah, in view of the tremendous attack the King of Nineveh was about making on their country and their city, and also to announce the terrible doom of Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian foe. In these verses there is a very striking and significant contrast

(1) between the characters of men, and

(2) between the lines of Divine procedure in relation to them. Here we have -

I. TWO OPPOSITE TYPES OF HUMAN CHARACTER.

1. Here we have the friends of God. There is here a twofold description of them.

(1) "They trust in him." This is the universal character of the good in all ages. Instead of placing their chief confidence in the ever-changing creature, they centre it in the immutable Creator. They trust his love ever to provide for them, his wisdom as their infallible guide, and his power as their strength and their shield. "Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord."

(2) He acknowledges them. "And he knoweth." This means that he recognizes them as his loyal subjects and loving children, his people. In Hosea 13:5 he saith, "I did know thee in the wilderness," which means, "I did acknowledge thee, and took care of thee!" The words imply the cognizance of special sympathy with the just. He knows them; they are always in his mind, his heart. "Can a mother forget her sucking child," etc.?

2. Here we have the enemies of God. "Darkness shall pursue his enemies." The men who misrepresent our characters, oppose our expressed wishes, seek to undermine our influence, and are ever in association with those who are opposed to us - such men, whatever may be their professions of regard and friendship, we are bound to regard as enemies. Is it not so with men in relation to God? Those who pursue a course of life directly opposite to the moral laws of Heaven, whatever they may say, are his enemies. How numerous are God's enemies! These two great classes comprehend the human race today. The race may be divided into very numerous classes on certain adventitious principles, but on moral grounds there are but two - God's friends and God's enemies.

II. TO OPPOSITE LINES OF DIVINE PROCEDURE. God's procedure is very different towards these two opposite classes of men.

1. He affords protection to the one. When the hosts of Sennacherib were approaching Jerusalem, Hezekiah the king, under Divine inspiration, said to the people, "Be strong and courageous, be not afraid nor dismayed for the King of Assyria, nor for all the multitude that is with him: for there be more with us than with him: with him is an arm of flesh; but with us is the Lord our God to help us, and to fight our battles. And the people rested themselves upon the words of Hezekiah King of Judah" (2 Chronicles 32:7, 8). Thus it is ever. God is always the Refuge and Strength of his people in times of tribulation. As a Refuge, he is:

(1) Ever accessible. However suddenly the storm may come, the refuge is at your side, the door is open. "I will never leave thee," etc.

(2) Ever secure. The sanctuary once entered, no injury can follow. Amidst the most violent convulsions of nature, the wreck of worlds, the shatterings of the universe, there is no endangering the security of those who avail themselves of this refuge.

2. He sends destruction to the other. "But with an overrunning flood he will make an utter end of the place thereof, and darkness shall pursue his enemies." The image of a flood which breaks through every barrier is not unfrequently used in the Bible to represent overwhelming armies of invasion. The primary allusion here, no doubt, is to the way which Nineveh was captured by means of the Medes and Babylonians. A flood in the river, we are told, broke down the wall for twenty furlongs. The rolling tide burst its barriers, bore away the defences of the city, and opened an easy and unexpected way for the invading armies. On all finally impenitent men destruction must come as irresistibly as a flood. The destruction, however, of existence, conscience, or moral obligations would be the destruction of all that would make existence worth having.

CONCLUSION. The grand question of every man is - How do I stand in relation to God? If I am his friend, his procedure is in my favour, it guards me and blesses me every step. It I am his enemy, his procedure is not in my favour, not because he changes, but because I put myself against him, and it must be my ruin if I change not. As he proceeds in his beneficent and undeviating march, he showers blessings on the good, and miseries on the evil, and this forever. - D.T.

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KJV: The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him.

WEB: Yahweh is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and he knows those who take refuge in him.