Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; — Psalms 46:2
The word therefore is doing enormous work. Because of verse 1 - because God is refuge and strength - the psalmist draws a logical conclusion: we will not fear. The absence of fear is not denial of danger. The earth is removed. The mountains fall. These are real catastrophes being described. The psalmist is not pretending things are fine. He is saying that even if the worst imaginable happens, the foundation of our confidence stands untouched.
Mountains carried into the sea was the ancient world's image of total cosmic collapse - the most unthinkable, irreversible disaster possible. And even then: we will not fear. This is not bravado. It is theology. The one who made the mountains is not carried away with them.
The word therefore is doing enormous work. Because of verse 1 - because God is refuge and strength - the psalmist draws a logical conclusion: we will not fear. The absence of fear is not denial of danger. The earth is removed. The mountains fall. These are real catastrophes being described. The psalmist is not pretending things are fine. He is saying that even if the worst imaginable happens, the foundation of our confidence stands untouched.
Mountains carried into the sea was the ancient world's image of total cosmic collapse - the most unthinkable, irreversible disaster possible. And even then: we will not fear. This is not bravado. It is theology. The one who made the mountains is not carried away with them.