Who Do You Think I Am? - Our Buckler
The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. - Psalm 18:2
I love how David continues in his descriptions of the Lord. He could have simply named one or two of these titles, but instead, he felt the Lord was worthy of as many titles as he could come up with. Naturally, some of the terms overlap somewhat in their definitions, but that doesn't make them any less spectacular. Such is the case with our word today:
buckler
.
In short, a buckler is a shield, but it's interesting to note that bucklers were over four feet long and covered the entire body.
No part was exposed. No portion was left unprotected. In that way, God is our buckler. We've already discussed His protection as our refuge, shield and fortress, so I'll try not to overlap too much, but I find it interesting that David came up with so many terms regarding protection. My guess is because that was foremost on his mind. After all, his life was full of events where he needed shelter from something or someone. And in that frame of mind, David examined the myriad of ways that God offers protection to His children.
With a refuge or fortress, we see safety from within God's embrace. When we look at God as our shield and buckler, we see how God provides security from without.
It is said the buckler, in particular, was formed in such a way that arrows and darts glanced off of it. Isn't that what we're up against? Fiery darts of the devil. Isn't it good to know God has us covered. . . literally? Not only does He offer us security, but He provides Himself as that protection.
He doesn't simply give us a shield or buckler; He
is
the shield and buckler.
He stands between our enemies and us and offers a complete defense against the deadly darts hurled our way.
Praise God for His ultimate protection!
Want to find out some of the fiery darts for which you should be on the lookout? Discover ten deadly ones in my book,
The Deadly Darts of the Devil
. You may be surprised by some of the things that make the list!