Psalm 46:4 - There is a river whose streams make glad, the city of our God, the Holy Habitation of the Most High.

This verse is in the context of a psalm about the end of the age, God bringing and establishing peace by bringing “desolations” (vs.8) on the earth. The Prince of Peace’s fury is unleashed as the harvest of righteousness and wickedness is being brought to full measure during this time (Matt. 13). In this time that is so terrible that it must be shortened or no flesh should survive (Matt. 24), and increasingly more so until then - the people of God are exhorted to look unto the Lord as a mighty fortress, and a refuge in that time of trouble.

Though the earth be removed and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, we can trust in the heart of our God. He is for us, and His intentions are pure towards us! God is “in the midst” of His holy habitation, and though the nations shall rage against His leadership and His supremacy, He can not be shaken. No matter what the news says or who is elected where and when - we, who are in Him, should not fear at all, as “the Lord of hosts is with us.” (vs. 7) And if He is for us, who can be against us? Oh, my soul, take remembrance of this wherever I go!

However, God is not merely staying put in that holy habitation, blocking us from all harm and keeping us safe in a defensive posture. Consider that He is actually the one that is “bringing desolations to the earth”. God actually desolates the earth to end war. What a statement! God’s wrath actually brings peace. He “breaks the bow and shatters the spear and burns the chariots with fire.” (vs. 9) God is the One on the offensive. And we are tucked in the shadow of His wings.

Romans 16:20 says it is the “God of peace that will soon crush Satan underneath our feet.” The gates of Hades shall not prevail against the church, and gates are not offensive weapons, but defensive. The stronghold of the Lord, the fortress of our God, is the place of refuge, but also the place of offensive victory, tearing down the strongholds of the enemy and advancing the Kingdom of God in violent supernatural power.

We are not speaking of physical war, as “we wrestle not with flesh and blood” and “our weapons are not carnal but mighty, pulling down strongholds and every idea or imagination that exalts itself against the knowledge of God.” (2 Cor. 10:4) From the place of the shelter of the Most High, where the knowledge of God is pure because the experiential revelation of Christ is near and dear, God wages war, even through the saints, against the powers of darkness that keep people and the earth in bondage. God will destroy the earth, not entirely, but using the least severe means necessary to bring about the greatest harvest of souls at the deepest level of love without violating any man’s free will.

God is our refuge, and our fortress, but “Come, behold the marvelous works [active tense] of our God”. Jesus said “my Father is always working, and therefore so am I” (John 5:17) And “The Son of God appeared to destroy the works of the devil.” (1 John 3:8) The Trinity is tirelessly working to destroy the kingdom of darkness and reveal the Kingdom of the Light, and the more that we abide in Christ, the more we understand for ourselves the knowledge of God (who He is), and therefore understand and have security in the fortress that He is, beholding the marvelous works of the Lord that we may worship in Spirit and Truth.

Imagine - the omnipotent, omnipresent, and transcendent God - and we are in the midst of Him! This omnipresent, transcendent fortress that makes desolations on the earth to destroy the works of the devil and bring an end to war! His eyes are like fire, His voice like the sound of rushing waters!

Speaking of water, what then is the stream that flows into this habitation, which makes the people, who are already in the midst of God Himself, glad? (vs. 4)