Psalm 146:5

Psalm 146:5

Our God is the God of Jacob

The first question that this verse prompts is why does our help come from the God of Jacob, why not Abraham or Isaac or even Noah? Presumably, because the Israelites all identified with their common link to the father of all tribes and families, they were all related through Jacob who was the natural progenitor of every one of them, without Jacob’s 12 sons Israel would not exist. In addition, Jacob and Israel were synonyms, as we all know Jacob was actually renamed Israel by the Lord. After Jacob had spent the night wrestling with an unidentified man who turned out to be the Lord, the man said to him, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and overcome.” Genesis 32:22-32. 

There are two lovely blessings in this verse; we are blessed if our help is the God of Jacob. If the Mighty One who wrestled and conversed with the ancient patriarch is with us, then we have no reason to fear anyone or anything!

Secondly, if we trust in the Lord who is our God, then, despite all that happens to us or around us, we will always have hope. In other words, whatever the future holds, He is with us, He holds us in His hands, and He always plans for our protection, safety and blessing. Israel is our example, look at all that happened to them, look at the heights and lows of their experience and be amazed at how the Lord has kept them right to this present day. He is amazing and they are an outstanding example of what it means to hope in the Lord our God, even when we don’t obey Him or give Him credit for all that He has done.

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