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Be Still and Know That I am God

Be Still and Know That I am God

Last updated on: September 12, 2026 at 6:56 pm by Rev. Jared V. Ingle

Be Still and Know That I am God 2026-09-12T18:56:23-04:00 Rev. Jared V. Ingle

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“Be still and know that I am God,” is one the most beloved promises in the Psalms. It is found in Psalm 46. The version for this article is the New Revised Standard Version.

First, I want to take a look at the Psalm in general surrounding the “Be still” command.

Secondly, I can provide a little bit of background. For instance, did you know this is the very Psalm which inspired Martin Luther to write his famous hymn “A Mighty Fortress is Our God”? Also Psalm 46 may be part of a set of Psalms written when the Lord took up the cause of Hezekiah and routed Sennacherib.

Thirdly, I am not going to look at the Psalm in order. You can do that with your own Bible. I am going to highlight specific themes.

The Poetry

The Psalmist, or team of Psalmists (Korahites), includes quite a bit of Hebrew poetry in this piece.

Everything is explained using parallelism, the hallmark of Hebrew poetry. One line makes a statement. The next line restates or supports the first line.

Throughout Psalm 46 a bicola parallelism is in play. The only exceptions are the two verses where a tricola parallelism is used.

9: He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
he breaks the bow, and shatters the spear;
he burns the shields with fire.
10: ‘Be still, and know that I am God!
I am exalted among the nations,
I am exalted in the earth.’

This draws special attention to these verses.

Also there are only 6 lines of parallelism in each paragraph. Paragraph 2 and 3 add a refrain, and therefore 2 more lines (verses 7, 11).

The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah

Each paragraph is followed by a Selah, 3 in total. No one really knows what Selah means. Most believe it is a musical interlude.

God is Good

The first two paragraphs begin with God is good statements.

1: God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.

4: There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy habitation of the Most High.
5: God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved;
God will help it when the morning dawns.

This is enough for a Psalm, very positive statements about God. In fact some of them so closely resemble some of the eschatological language in Isaiah that it is possible Isaiah could have been an influence.

However, the Psalmist doesn’t stop there. He uses stark contrasts.

The Mysteries

2: Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,
though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;
3: though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble with its tumult. Selah

Are we talking about an earthquake when we say, “the earth should change”?

Are we talking about a tsunami when we say, “the mountains shake in the heart of the sea”?

The, “waters roar and foam… mountains tremble.”

Natural disasters follow the first God is good statement, but it doesn’t end there. After the second God is good statement, God Himself is involved in the mysteries.

6: The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter;
he utters his voice, the earth melts.

For all intents a purposes, this looks like God is pouring out His wrath on the nations and kingdom by the very sound of His voice. Then God enters the war, whether it is with Sennacherib or not.

8: Come, behold the works of the Lord;
see what desolations he has brought on the earth.
9: He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
he breaks the bow, and shatters the spear;
he burns the shields with fire.

God actually fights war itself. He fights to make it cease in all the earth. Granted, this has not yet happened in history. It is yet to be fulfilled in the Millennium. Nonetheless, God is somehow present in the mystery of war.

This is far from a still Psalm: earthquakes, tsunamis, melting earth, desolations, wars, etc.

“Be still”

Here we are reading this Psalm, perhaps with a sense of wonder at the mystery of a God who can be both good and yet at work in some of the darkest moments known to man.

In the midst of the turmoil, God Himself breaks into Psalm 46. Not every Psalm has a direct quote from God, but this one does.

10: ‘Be still, and know that I am God!
I am exalted among the nations,
I am exalted in the earth.’

To “Be still” simply means that. It means to desist. It means to cease all activity. If this is all God would have said through the Psalmist, this would have been enough.

When we’re in the middle of turmoil, when we’re facing the mysteries, when we’re wondering what hand God is playing in all of it, we simply need to be reminded to “Be still”!

“and know”

He says, “and know”. Once again this is a phrase that stands on its own. It’s yada, one of the most common Hebrew words for knowing.

It is a great word, too big to describe here. In simplified terms it also means to know through experience. So God says to cease all activity and know by experience…

“that I am God!”

Once again, the Psalmist could stop here.

Just for the record, the Tetragrammaton does not appear in this verse. I know it says, “I am God – I am exalted – I am exalted.” However none of these occurrences of “I am” is YHWH.

So there is only one reference to God and it is Elohim. This is important because this is the name ascribed to God in the early Pentateuch, most often by Abraham, before YHWH is revealed to Moses at the burning bush.

Elohim is the personal name God uses in His communications with Abraham, not the general name that He gives the 2 million Hebrews through Moses.

Elohim, oddly enough, is plural. Perhaps Abraham knows a little more about God, if not Trinitarian revelation, than we give him credit for.

When God says, “I am Elohim” (verse 10) He is saying, I am the God of your Father Abraham. I am the God who is known intimately in all the many ways I communicated personally with the Patriarchs…

and in that, I can “Be still…”

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