Only those who live in this way, live in the help of the Most High, dwell in the shelter of the Heavenly God, only He dares to say to God: "Thou art my intercessor and my refuge." Only for him is the Lord the Intercessor, only for them is He a refuge. Only those who dare to trust in Him who honor God with all their hearts, who serve Him with their lives, who serve Him with their love for people.

"For He shall deliver thee from the snare of the hunter, and from the rebellious word: His lash shall overshadow thee, and under His krill thou shalt trust: His truth shall encircle thee with a sword" (v. 3-4). Those who dwell in the shelter of the God of heaven, those for whom God is a refuge, He will deliver them from the snare of the hunter and from the rebellious word. What kind of trapper's net is this? There are different kinds of nets, and the most terrible is the one that St. Anthony the Great saw: he was shown a huge, terrible snare spread on the earth, and it was said that this was the snare of the devil.

We walk in the midst of many snares, in the midst of the snares that the devil sets at every step. And these snares of the devil are the most terrible for us. We also walk in the midst of the snares set by evil people who hate us, envy us, people who seek only their own well-being and seek to push away from their path all those who hinder them. They speak words that are rebellious, alien to peace and love, words full of evil and hatred, calling for rebellion.

And from all these snares and from these rebellious words the Lord will deliver those who dwell under His roof. "His lash shall overshadow thee, and under His krill thou shalt trust, His truth shall encircle thee with a sword." As if He would protect you with His shoulders, He would stand before you, He would stretch out His arms, He would set His mighty shoulders to protect you, and you would have a firm hope of safety under these mighty shoulders, under these outstretched wings.

"His truth shall encircle thee with a sword." Truth is a huge, Divine power, more terrible for enemies and, above all, for the enemies of the human race, as a weapon of God, a weapon of God's grace, a weapon of our strong faith in Him and unshakable hope in Him. This weapon will protect everyone and save them from fears. "Fear not the fear of the night, nor the arrow that flies in the days, nor the things that pass away in darkness, nor the garbage and the demon of the noonday" (vv. 5-6).

There are many fears at night: we hear voices, knocks and noises that frighten us; we are subjected to terrible attacks by thieves and robbers. Often, when we are awake, unclean spirits attack us, and torment us, and instill in us a great fear. "From the arrow that flies into the days." What arrows fly during the day? Not only those material arrows that wound us — now, however, they are no longer arrows, now bullets and other instruments of wounding.

From everything that happens in darkness, from all that evil that loves the cover of night, for under the cover of darkness the most grievous sins are committed: murder, theft, fornication and adultery. "From the gristle and the demon of the noonday." "Ot sryashcha" is a Slavic word, it means "from an encounter": from a dangerous and bad encounter with evil and dangerous people and an even more dangerous encounter with demons.

"A thousand shall fall from thy country, and darkness shall be at thy right hand, but shall not come nigh unto thee: behold with thy own eyes, and behold the recompense of sinners" (vv. 7-8). It was, it will be: thousands of people fell near us, both to the left and to the right, fell dead, killed. They have fallen and are falling now, struck down by demons, having lost their faith, blaspheming God, crucifying the Lord Jesus for the second time.

They fall and die spiritual and bodily death around us by the thousands, thousands. (Tma is a thousand thousand). "He will not come near you" — it will not touch you: the angels will fly to you, and Satan himself will not dare to approach, for you live under the shelter of the God of Heaven. "For thou, O Lord, art my hope: Thou hast laid down thy refuge of the Most High" (v. 9).

Oh, blessed is everyone who has taken refuge in the Most High our God! "No evil shall come unto thee, neither shall a wound come nigh unto thy body" (v. 10). Not even a wound will approach: you will be saved from all evil. "As by His angel I have spoken of thee, to preserve thee in all thy troubles. They will lift you up in their hands, but not when you dash your foot against a stone.

Thou shalt tread on the adder and the basilisk, and cross over the lion and the serpent" (v. 11-13). The guardian angel will always be before you, and he is not alone – a whole host of angels will receive an order from God to protect you in all your ways. They will take you by the hands, they will lead you along the right path, they will take care that even your foot does not stumble over a stone. "Thou shalt tread on the adder and the basilisk, and trample upon the lion and the serpent."

Nothing poisonous, evil, even deadly will be frightening: you will tread on the heads of serpents, you will trample on scorpions; neither will the roaring lion be fearful, nor will the lion that seeks to devour be the devil. "For in Me I trust, and I will deliver, and I will cover, and as My name is known" (v. 14). All these things will be given from God if we trust in Him.

He will deliver us from all evil and cover us because we have known His name with all our hearts. "He shall call unto me, and I will hear him: I am with him in tribulation: I will punish him, and I will glorify him" (v. 15). He will even glorify you. He will be exhausted from all evil, from all misfortune, from every misfortune. "By the length of days I will fulfill it, and show it salvation. Mine" (art. 16. He even promises him the length of days. He will show us salvation.

You know this great 90th Psalm, and you love it, and you have high hopes for it, but not in the right way. You put your hopes in the very words of the psalm, write it on paper and carry it on your breast; gird yourselves with a belt with a psalm woven on it; And what—does this protect you? No, for the psalm should not be written on paper, but in your heart. It must be on your lips.