The Star Spangled Banner, part 4
This week is the study of the last verse of The Star Spangled Banner, by Francis Scott Key. Thank the Lord for giving us this wonderful song to remind us of the price of freedom and the Author of freedom. May God bless you as you read.
Oh, thus be it ever when free men shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war’s desolation;
Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the Heav’n-rescued land
Praise the Power that made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just;
And this be our motto, “In God is our trust!”
And the Star-spangled Banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.
“Oh, thus be it ever when free men shall stand Between their loved homes and the war’s desolation;
Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the Heav’n-rescued land Praise the Power that made and preserved us a nation.” Sometimes the men and women of our country are called upon to stand between their loved homes and the war’s desolation. Sometimes they pay the ultimate price for freedom. Freedom can only be purchased at the price of blood. May it always be that our soldier’s are free men; for free men will have the victory over their enemies because they trust in God. Their fear will be turned to shouting and praise of the Power that made and preserved us a nation.
Perhaps the words of Psalm 91 came into Mr. Key’s mind as he wrote the words to this last verse. Some of the verses in Psalm 91 say, “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation.” (verses 1-9)
Mr. Key was aware of the great destruction from which God had saved America and America’s free men. Though there was much desolation, these men could look and say, “We are still free. There is still an America. Our great God has preserved our nation by His great power.”
Mr. Key went on to write, “Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just; And this be our motto, ‘In God is our trust!’ And the Star-spangled Banner in triumph shall wave O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.” Mr. Key understood some important things. If our cause is just, we must win. We cannot give up or give in. And we will win if we can say with all our hearts, “In God is our trust!” He recognized that only with God as our trust will the Star-spangled Banner continue to wave in triumph O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.
Consider the words of Psalm 146:3-10, “Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help. His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish. Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the LORD his God: Which made heaven, and earth, the sea, and all that therein is: which keepeth truth for ever: Which executeth judgment for the oppressed: which giveth food to the hungry. The LORD looseth the prisoners: The LORD openeth the eyes of the blind: the LORD raiseth them that are bowed down: the LORD loveth the righteous: The LORD preserveth the strangers; he relieveth the fatherless and widow: but the way of the wicked he turneth upside down. The LORD shall reign for ever, even thy God, O Zion, unto all generations. Praise ye the LORD.”
The power of man cannot help us. The power of man cannot keep us free. The best leader in the world will soon pass away and all his power with him. God is eternal. He is the Creator of heaven, earth, the sea, and all that is in them. He is always true. He will judge the poor and the fatherless and feed the hungry and deliver the prisoners. He will overthrow the wicked. “Princes,” rulers of men, will die and return to the earth (dust) to reign no more. But the Lord shall reign for ever and ever. Praise ye the LORD.
Oh, won’t you join with me and give praise and thanks to the Power that made and preserved us a nation? Thank you, God.
What a wonderful God we have, and what a privilege He has given us to live in freedom. May we never forget the price.
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Ever-changing Sky Blog
Name: Suzy Quzy
And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters... And God called the firmament Heaven. (Genesis 1:6,8a)
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