Deuteronomy 33:12, NIV
“Let the beloved of the Lord rest secure in Him, for He shields him all day long, and the one the Lord loves rests between His shoulders.”
How great it is to hear words of blessing from people in authority. Moses, the leader of God’s people, spoke beautiful words – words of blessing over each of the twelve sons of Jacob, the twelve tribes of Israel. In our text He speaks about Benjamin whose name means ‘son of my right hand’ (Genesis 35:18). He was given a place of privilege and intimacy. How like every true child of God! As Paul writes: ‘In love He predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will’ (Ephesians 1:5). So we too can receive these words of blessing as those who have been brought into that place of privilege and intimacy to the Lord, through His grace and purpose.
Let’s think about these beautiful words from our text: ‘Let the beloved of the Lord rest secure in Him’. As those greatly loved by the Lord there’s absolute security – we’re ‘in Him’. We can therefore enter into His peace. ‘For He shields him all day long’. By His almighty power we have safety and we can therefore experience His protection. He says: ‘The one the Lord loves’. The truth is, we’re so precious to Him (do you believe that?), and because we’re loved by Him we can know His succour and can enjoy His presence.
‘The one the Lord loves rests between His shoulders’ – what a place of strength where we can experience His power! We could ask the question: “Where is that place – between His shoulders?” In verses 26-27 we read that the One who’s our Helper, runs to our aid. How amazing! The One who’s our Refuge, the eternal God, holds us in His everlasting arms. We’re cradled like an infant in His loving arms – held close to His breast – where we can hear His heartbeat. Let’s enjoy today that beautiful place of intimacy where there’s security, safety, succour and strength – close to His heart.
Prayer: Thank You, Lord, for the wonder of Your love for me. Thank You that I’m safe in Your arms. Lord, I want to stay close to Your heart, so I can really know the joy of Your presence and the blessing of Your peace. In Jesus’ name. Amen.