John Calvin Commentary Psalms 27:1

"Jehovah is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? Jehovah is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?" — Psalms 27:1 (ASV)

Jehovah is my light. This opening statement can be understood to mean that David, having already experienced God’s mercy, publishes a testimony of his gratitude. However, I am more inclined to another meaning: namely, that perceiving the conflict he had to wage with the sharpest temptations, he fortifies himself beforehand and, as it were, gathers reasons for confidence. For it is necessary for the saints to earnestly wrestle with themselves to repel or subdue the doubts that the flesh is so prone to cherish, so that they may cheerfully and quickly turn to prayer.

David, therefore, having been tossed by various storms, at last recovers himself and shouts triumphantly over the troubles with which he had been harassed, rejoicing that whenever God displays His mercy and favor, there is nothing to be feared. This is further intimated by the accumulation of terms he employs, when he calls God not only his light, but also his salvation, and the rock or strength of his life. His purpose was to set up a threefold shield, as it were, against his various fears, sufficient to ward them off.

The term light, as is well known, is used in Scripture to denote joy, or the perfection of happiness. Furthermore, to explain his meaning, he adds that God was his salvation and the strength of his life, since it was by His help that he felt himself safe and free from the terrors of death.

Certainly, we find that all our fears arise from this source: we are too anxious about our life, while we do not acknowledge that God is its preserver. Therefore, we can have no tranquility until we arrive at the conviction that our life is sufficiently guarded, because it is protected by His omnipotent power.

The question, too, shows how highly David esteemed Divine protection, as he thus boldly exults over all his enemies and dangers. Nor, assuredly, do we ascribe to God the homage that is His due unless, trusting in His promised aid, we dare to boast of the certainty of our safety. Weighing, as it were, in scales the whole power of earth and hell, David considers it all lighter than a feather, and considers God alone as far outweighing the whole.

Let us learn, therefore, to place such a value on God’s power to protect us that it puts all our fears to flight. Not that the minds of the faithful can, because of the weakness of the flesh, always be entirely devoid of fear; but immediately recovering courage, let us, from the high tower of our confidence, look down upon all our dangers with contempt.

Those who have never tasted the grace of God tremble because they refuse to rely on Him, and imagine that He is often incensed against them, or at least far removed from them. But with the promises of God before our eyes, and the grace that they offer, our unbelief does Him grievous wrong if we do not with unshrinking courage boldly set Him against all our enemies.

When God, therefore, kindly allures us to Himself and assures us that He will take care of our safety—since we have embraced His promises, or because we believe Him to be faithful—it is fitting that we highly extol His power, so that it may enrapture our hearts with admiration for Him. We must carefully consider this comparison: What are all creatures to God? Moreover, we must extend this confidence still further, in order to banish all fears from our consciences, like Paul, who, when speaking of his eternal salvation, boldly exclaims,

If God be for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:34).