Ps 91:15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I [will be] with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.
Once again we get the promise in Psalms 91:15 that God will deliver us. In this case the word used for deliver is chalats which means to remove, draw out or rescue. Actually this comes from an old Canaanite word which was a word used for warfare. It had the idea of making a strategic withdrawal in order to recoup and resupply.
So put into the context of this passage we have a promise from God that when the battle gets long, your strength is diminishing, you’re getting the daylights beaten out of you, you are growing weary of being the good soldier, you feel like Rocky Balboa after that third round when you have been battered to the point of giving up and you collapse in the stool in the corner of the ring and the manger asked: “What’s going on out there?” You say: “He’s winning.” That is when God chalats you, draws you in and ministers to you, renewing your strength.
Matthew 4:11: “Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.” That word ministered in the Greek is diekonoun which means simply caring for the needs of others. In the Aramaic it is the word shemesh which means the same thing. The angels came to Jesus and cared for whatever needs he had. Chalats is a word which would be the equivalent to this. The Lord will care for whatever need you may have during and after the battle. This word chalats also has the idea of equipping a soldier. God will properly equip you. I once spoke with a missionary who faced a death threatening situation for the sake of his testimony. I asked how he felt in that situation and he said: “You know, I learned something very important in that experience. Whatever you need, the Lord will be there to give it to you at that time you need it most.” That is chalats.
Then God says something very interesting. He will honor us. Well, that is just dandy. After a long hard battle the last thing I want is to be honored. I just want to rest. You know something, I have found that the closer I get to the heart of God the less I desire any honor. I begin to long for things that are far more important than honor, like the chance just to snuggle up to God, rest in his shadow of His wings. Honor? Big deal.
It is interesting that the Hebrew word used for honor in this passage is kabod which is also the word used for glory. Kabod comes from a Semitic root word for heaviness or weightiness. In ancient times when a king wishes to honor someone who has distinguished himself in service he would put a heavy royal robe and crown on his head. Sort of weight him down with honor and glory. Esther 6 tells the story of how the king of Persia honored Mordecai by placing the royal crest on his head and putting a robe around him that the king had worn.
From this we get the word kabod which has the idea of glory or honor. My study partner and I discussed this. She feels that the glory of God is really something weighty. Some have experience such things. I have not, but either way to give honor and/or glory to someone is to recognize that person and declare that you have favor for that person. Ultimately, what it declares is what the king sought to declare to the kingdom that he had the deepest respect and gratitude toward Mordecai.
Thus, when God honors us in Psalms 91:15 He is declaring that He has the deepest respect for us. When a husband honors his wife, he will make some sort of declaration that he has a deep love and respect for her. If another woman flirts with him or tries to seduce him and he says to this temptress: “Sorry, but I love my wife.” In that little statement he has shown the highest honor to his wife. We spend a lot of time in church trying to kabod or honor God or give Him glory. We sing nice songs, lift our hands, say thank you, clap our hands and all that is a way showing honor. For me, however, if I engage in something like that I am just too aware of people around me and I find myself thinking: “Boy, everyone is going to think this Chaim fellow is really holy, maybe I should give a shout or clap my hands that will really impress the brethren.” Hey, I am only talking about me, I am not saying this is the case for everyone. It is just the case for me so I don’t engage in all this and let people wonder if I am holy or not. But still in my heart I am reviewing the options I had face during the week and I declare in my heart to God, “I did not choose the options that would offend you because I love you.” In that statement I have brought glory to God and honored Him.
Thus, for God to honor me He does not need to put a crown on my head and a royal robe over me and declare to everyone, “This is what God does for the one that He delights to honor.” All he needs to do is let me feel His pleasure and I am honored that I have brought Him some pleasure.
I know some people really crave honor. Abraham Lincoln told the story of a man who was tarred and feathered and ridden out of town on a rail. Someone asked him: “What do you think?” He replied: “If not for the honor, I would prefer to walk.” I mean there are people who so long for attention that they are like the guy Mark Twain mentioned who wanted recognition so bad that when he attended a funeral he envied the guy in the coffin.
I don’t know about this honor stuff. I do know the word kabod covers a lot of territory and it may be shouting hand clapping and dancing around for some as an expression of how they honor and bring glory kabod to God. For others like me I prefer to honor him in the privacy of my heart. That’s me and most likely not you. I will not condemn you in your praisealleuiahs if you do not condemn me in my silence. Apparently God gave us a word for glory and honor kabod that is very ambiguous because He loves it all and there are infinite ways to show Him honor and glory.
As for God showing you kabod personally maybe he will throw you a big party, I hate parties, a simply thank you is good enough for me. So I cannot tell what it means when God will kabod or honor us. That is going to be between you and God and it will be what means the most to you.
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