Psalm 91 Vs. 5

Psalm 91 Vs. 5

Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Psm. 91:5

Thou shalt not... Six-fold result of abiding in secret place:

1. Not afraid of night terrors.

2. Not afraid of day arrows.

3. Not afraid of pestilences (Psa_91:6).

4. Not afraid of noonday destructions.

5. Though 1,000 fall at your left hand and 10,000 at your right, the destroyer does not come near you (Psm. 91:7).

6. You see the wicked rewarded (Psm. 91:8).

terror by night... Night is the time of many terrors, treasons, plunders, robbery, murders, evils, and diseases. The terrible things that happen in the night; as fire, storms and tempests, invasion of enemies, murders, thefts, and, robberies. A good man, when he has committed himself and his family to the care and protection of God by prayer, has no reason to be anxiously careful of these things, or to indulge a slavish fear about them (see Psalm 3:5). The Targum is, "thou shall not be afraid for the fear of devils that walk in the night.'' So Jarchi interprets this, and the next verse, of such; as do others of the Jewish writers. A man that trusts in the Lord need not be afraid of men or devils: a fear of evil spirits is natural to men, and very early appeared.

arrow that flieth... Figurative of dangers that come by day. The judgments of God, such as the sword, famine, and pestilence; these are called the arrows of God (Deut. 32:23). Because they move swiftly, come suddenly, and strike surely, and are open and visible. They are sent by the Lord, and are ordered and directed by him, and hit and hurt whom he pleases, and none else. And therefore, such who dwell in the secret of the Lord, and under his shadow, need not be distressed about them. The Targum interprets it of the arrow of the angel of death, which he sends out in the day (see Heb. 2:14). So Jarchi understands it of a demon that flies like an arrow.

To know that you are protected by the Lord, would mean that you would have perfect peace. There is no fear, where there is perfect peace. Look with me at the following Scripture and know that no weapon of the devil, or his crowd, can hurt you.
Isaiah 54:17 "No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue [that] shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This [is] the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness [is] of me, saith the LORD."
Terror is an extreme form of fear. Fear is the opposite of faith. If you trust God, you have an extreme form of faith. There is no terror in extreme faith.

As a result of God’s help in these ways one who trusts in the Lord will not fear… terror at night, attack by day… pestilence or plague (Psm. 91:5-6).