His Watchful Eye
No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength.
A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save.
But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.
We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name.
May your unfailing love be with us, Lord, even as we put our hope in you. Psalm 33:16-22
God watches over us. This thought may evoke feelings of comfort and security or the opposite; anxiety or fear. I suppose it depends on one’s past experiences Some may feel fearful at the thought of being watched as if the aim of the watcher is to see every fault; while others see such attention in a positive light, as a sign of the watcher’s care. It is in this second sense that this psalm and many other scripture passages speak of God watching over the earth and its inhabitants. The watchful eye of God is described as a benevolent one.
In the passage above it is compared to the ability of a horse or a whole army to provide safety or deliverance. Though these have great strength they are no guarantee of help. In contrast, God’s watchful eye delivers even from death. God’s power surpasses any other and so we can be confident in His ability to save.
Contrary to what some people think of God, he is not watching to find reasons to punish us. He is watching over us as a caregiver watches over a child, seeing to its welfare. Verse 19 says he keeps us alive in famine.
Here are two other passages that speak of his benevolent watchfulness:
The LORD watches over you— the LORD is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD will keep you from all harm— he will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore. Ps 121:5-8
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will guide you with My eye. Ps 32:8
God has our interest at heart. Is it not wise therefore to engage with Him and to put our trust in Him? There is no one else who knows us as completely and seeks our good with such tenacity.
In addition to our personal welfare God also watches to see the state of our hearts toward Him.
God looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who
understand, any who seek God. Psalm 53:2
God is watching to see if we are getting the point. If we realize how much He loves us and are responding to that love, to see if we will desire Him and not just His benefits. God has so much more to offer us than meeting our needs, He offers us Himself…how incredible is that! He is inviting us to a love relationship with Him with all that brings: companionship, adventure, partnership, friendship and more.
How kind is God to offer us so much! As the children’s chorus we sang in Sunday School says: “There’s a Father up above looking down in tender love.” God is love and wants us to love Him in return. Thank you, God.
Dahlia Fraser
