Psalm 36:7: “How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God! / Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings.”

February 11th, 2024 by Pastor Ed in devotional

When David said “the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings,” some believe he was referring to the wings of the cherubim over the ark. But it seems to us that David was using a picture of the protective care of a mother bird over her young to describe how God covers us. Jesus used this same picture Himself: “How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!” (Matt. 23:37).

One news service reported that shortly after the great 1988 forest fire in Yellowstone National Park (the largest recorded in a national park), forest rangers began their trek up a mountain to assess the inferno’s damage. One ranger found a bird literally petrified in ashes, perched statuesquely on the ground at the base of a tree. Somewhat sickened by the eerie sight, he knocked the bird over with a stick. As he struck it, three tiny chicks scurried from under their dead mother’s wings. The loving mother, keenly aware of impending disaster, had carried her offspring to the base of the tree and gathered them under her wings. She could have flown to safety but had refused to abandon her babies. When the blaze had arrived and the heat had scorched her small body, the mother had remained steadfast. Because she had been willing to die, those under the cover of her wings had lived.

“Thank You, LORD, for Your covering of protection over our lives today.”