Word Up Ministries

The Lord himself watches over you!
The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade.
The sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon at night.‍

Psalm 121:5-6

Psalm 121 is a picture of God as our refuge and protection. The Psalmist uses identifiable images in nature that give a picture of God’s protection.

Tzel is the Hebrew word for shade and can denote literal shade or defense or protection, so the picture in Psalm 121:5 is using the very real benefit of shade to give a picture of God’s protection.
“It is interesting to see how in Psalm 121, it speaks of the sun “smiting” us, the same word also translated as “to hit, attack, or strike down.” In ancient times, it was thought that just as the sun was the source of heat that “attacks” us by day, the moon is the source of cold that “attacks” us by night. So when God led his people in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night, God was sheltering them from the ever-present enemies of cold and heat in the desert.” The Necessity of Shade by Lois Tverberg
The Israelites knew the power of shade because they knew the power of heat. Sometimes it's when we know or experience something really hard or difficult that we best know the power of God in our circumstances. God does not cause our suffering, but the depth of our suffering is not greater than the power of His comfort and healing and provision.