Divine Dwelling Place

“The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. And He shall throw the enemy out from before you, and shall say, Destroy!” (Deuteronomy 33:27)

Moses knew his time leaving this earth was imminent. “And Jehovah said to Moses, Get up into this Mount Abarim and see the land which I have given to the sons of Israel. And when you have seen it, you also shall be gathered to your people as Aaron your brother was gathered.” (Numbers 27:12-13) In chapter 34 of Deuteronomy we have a description of his death. But before he died, he blessed the Israelites. Our Scripture of study is just one verse of this blessing.

The question is if this blessing also pertains to us. We are great at taking Scriptures that we like and confessing them as for us when they are not. Let’s not waste our time doing that, but also at the same time if it includes us, by all means let’s declare every blessing God has for us.

In our Scripture Moses was literally blessing the Israelites he had led out of Egypt before his death. God told him when he would die. In his blessing he specifically blessed each tribe. (Deuteronomy 33: 6-25) Then in verse 27 he speaks about the eternal God. The eternal God is the Godhead which was from the beginning and ever shall be. He is the Father, the Son Jesus and the Holy Spirit. The Hebrew word God that Moses used is a plural word so it supports the idea of the Holy Trinity, three persons in one God as spoken of from the beginning in Genesis.

We can take liberty with our verse because Moses is speaking about the character of the eternal God. He was a refuge for the Israelites then, throughout their history, now and forever for all who believe. God doesn’t change. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. (Malachi 3:6; Hebrews 13:8) We can trust and rely on His character and Who He is because He doesn’t change nor is He swayed by what anyone says or does.

Solomon in Proverbs wrote about God being a refuge for all the righteous. “The name of Jehovah is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe.” (Proverbs 18:10) The only requirement Solomon mentions is that we have to be righteous. Today, we don’t have any righteousness due to anything we have done. There is nothing righteous in us. But when we received Jesus as our Lord and Savior, Jesus placed His righteousness on us. “For He has made Him who knew no sin, to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (2Corinthians 5:21) We stand before the Father, can come before His Throne of mercy and grace and commune with God because of the righteousness of Jesus. We are righteous in Jesus and not in any righteousness in us for anything we have done. So, yes! We can declare this Scripture as regarding to us. We can include ourselves to take refuge in the Lord.

To understand completely what this verse is saying, let’s look at what the Lord meant by the word refuge. We think it means a place of safety and protection and it is. But the word that was translated refuge in the original Hebrew means habitation or dwelling place. So accurately, it is saying, “The eternal God is your habitation or dwelling place...” This doesn’t diminish from the fact that we find safety and protection in God. When God is our habitation, our dwelling place, we are in a place of safety and protection. In a sense we don’t only run to God when we’re in a dangerous or treacherous place, but it is where we live, in His Presence, in the secret place, under the shadow of His wings, in safety and protection. (Psalms 91:1,2)

The next phrase talks about underneath. This is a preposition not a noun nor in other words a place. When we read the word underneath, we think of a place or position. But this is an ancient way of saying a part of, because of, by reason of, since then or with. So, in other words we can read the beginning of this verse in this way: The eternal God is your habitation or dwelling place, a part of or with everlasting arms. The word arms mean outstretched arms. Everlasting outstretched arms means His power, might and salvation. When God brought out the Israelites from Egypt, He did it by His outstretched arm. “Therefore, say to the sons of Israel, I am Jehovah, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rescue you out of their bondage. And I will redeem you with a stretched-out arm, and with great judgments.” (Exodus 6:6) Then Moses writes in Deuteronomy, “And Jehovah brought us forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with fearful might, and with miracles and with wonders.” (Deuteronomy 26:8) God brought them out of Egypt with power and might. So, in our Scripture when our dwelling place is the Lord we are kept there in safety and protection by God’s power and might, the same power and might that brought the Israelites out of Egypt.

Moses didn’t mince words when he described what the Lord will do to our enemy. Moses was speaking of the enemies the Israelites encountered on their way to the Promised Land and in the Promised Land. But what are our enemies? They are not anyone you may have a dispute with, but the enemy behind every hardship, trouble or tribulation. That is the devil. He not only causes people to come against us, but nature which we may call natural disasters. In some formal contracts and documents, they are termed Acts of God. But they are not acts of God. They are acts of the devil. And the time is coming when the Lord will destroy Him completely. We learn of his fate in the book of Revelation. “And when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be loosed out of his prison. And he will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle. The number of them is as the sand of the sea. And they went up over the breadth of the earth and circled around the camp of the saints, and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of Heaven and devoured them. And the Devil who deceived them was cast into the Lake of Fire and Brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet were. And he will be tormented day and night forever and ever.” (Revelation 20:7-10)

In summary, we can claim the promise of Deuteronomy 33:27 as ours. When the Lord is our habitation, His mighty and powerful arms provide safety and protection. The promise is for Israel and for us also. The enemy who causes so much chaos for us will eventually be defeated forever. Halleluiah!

Let us pray:

Father God, I thank You that You love all of Your creation. You love also the sinner and have provided salvation for all. I pray Lord for eyes and ears of understanding to be opened so that they can see their need for a Savior and understand the Gospel. I thank You Lord that You made provision for all people to come to You. And I thank You for Your mercy and grace toward me. Help me to live in Your Presence at all times where there is safety and protection. Thank You for the Holy Spirit Who helps me. Thank You for Your Word that is alive and able to accomplish what it says. Thank You Lord that You have given me a weapon against the enemy and his darts of pain, affliction and difficult circumstances. Thank You Lord that You give me the victory. I love You Lord. I trust and rely on You even when I can’t see where I’m going and can’t see what is happening. I know You work all things for my good. In the Name of Jesus I pray, amen.