Psalm 46

This article is about Psalm 46 in Hebrew (Masoretic) numbering. For Psalm 46 in Greek Septuagint or Latin Vulgate numbering, see Psalm 47.
Psalm 46
"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble"
Print of Luther's paraphrase of Psalm 46 in Klug's Gesangbuch, 1533: Der xlvi. Psalm / Deus noster refugium et virtus
Other name
  • Psalm 46
  • "Deus noster refugium et virtus"
LanguageHebrew (original)

Psalm 46 is the 46th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble". In the slightly different numbering system used in the Greek Septuagint and Latin Vulgate translations of the Bible, this psalm is Psalm 45. In Latin, it is known as "Deus noster refugium et virtus".[1] The song is attributed to the sons of Korah.

The psalm forms a regular part of Jewish, Catholic, Lutheran, Anglican and other Protestant liturgies. According to Charles Spurgeon, Psalm 46 is called a "song of holy confidence"; it is also known as "Luther's Psalm", as Martin Luther wrote his popular hymn "Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott" ("A Mighty Fortress Is Our God") using Psalm 46 as a starting point.[2] Luther's hymn has been quoted in many musical works, both religious and secular, including Bach's cantata Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott, BWV 80. Johann Pachelbel composed the psalm in German, while Marc-Antoine Charpentier and Jean Philippe Rameau, among numerous other composers, chose to set it in Latin.

  1. ^ "Psalmus 45 (46)", Parallel Latin/English Psalter, Medievalist, archived from the original on 2017-09-30.
  2. ^ "Psalm 46". Bible Commentary. Christianity. 2018. Retrieved November 1, 2018.