Psalm 17:8: Keep me as the apple of Your eye; Hide me under the shadow of Your wings.
Experiencing Jesus in the Psalms
Keep me as the apple of the eye. No part of the body is more precious, more tender, and more carefully guarded than the eye; and of the eye, no portion is more especially to be protected than the central apple, the pupil, or, as the Hebrew calls it, “the daughter of the eye.” The all-wise Creator has placed the eye in a well-protected position, and has given to every man so high a value for his eyes, and so quick an apprehension of danger, that no member of the body is more faithfully cared for.
Thus, Lord, keep me, for I trust I am one with Jesus, and so a member of his mystical body. Hide me under the shadow of thy wings. As a parent bird completely shields her brood from evil, and meanwhile cherishes them with the warmth of her own heart, by covering them with her wings. This clause is in the Hebrew in the future tense, as if to show that what the writer had asked for but a moment before he was now sure would be granted to him. Confident expectation should keep pace with earnest supplication. 1
Living the Transformed Life
How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings. Psalm 36:7
- Thank You for protecting me from seeing all the wickedness of this world.
- Thank You for revealing all the wonderful beauty of Your creation.
- Thank You for covering me from the assaults that were intended to destroy me.
He provides, He protects, and He covers, because He loves you.
Praise and Prayer
Thank You Father, for never leaving me. Dear Jesus, thank You for teaching me to trust You, and not in the promises of people.
1. Spurgeon, C. H. (1993). Psalms (p. 51). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
