Behold our shield, O God, and look upon the face of Your anointed. For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand outside. I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness. For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord gives grace and glory; no good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly. (Psalm 84:9–11)

Discovering the meaning of a word is part etymology (the study of the way word meanings change over time) and part usage. In Psalm 84:9-11, the basic meaning of the word “sun” is that yellow ball in the sky. In context, the word is obviously being used metaphorically.

We can easily jump to the idea that the Lord God brings brightness to our lives. But it is more than that, when we consider the rich context. We must remember that light and dark are a common antithesis in Scripture. From the first days of creation, God separated out the light from the dark (Gen 1:1-4). In the Gospel According to John, this dichotomy is seen in John 8:12, 12:35, 12:46. So the contrast in Scripture is stark.

Paul writes of this most notably: “Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness?” (2 Cor 6:14). In this sense, the psalmist writes, “I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.” He would rather “look upon the face of Your anointed” than to see in the darkness. There is absolutely no comparison with being in God’s presence (“courts”); it’s a thousand times better than anything else. To be in God’s presence is to bask in His “grace and glory.”

Why, knowing all this, would anyone want to live any other lifestyle than one that God would describe as “walk[ing] uprightly”? Why would one want to live in the darkness, where things are difficult to see, when one can live in the bright sunlight, with clear sight? Why would anyone desire to grope through life, stumbling over worldly enchantments and sins that feed the dark side of the soul, when one could dance along with clear purpose and perspective?

We believe, with the psalm writer, that “no good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.” When life gets difficult, when God seems to be silent, when He appears to be AWOL, faith means continuing to believe He will still reward us with “good thing[s].” We believe He is good when our circumstances would whisper to us that He is not. Why? Because by faith we choose to see as clearly as the noonday sun Him who will guide our footsteps and continue to infuse us with His purpose for us.

Lord, You are the Sun of my life, and through You I can see more clearly.