Bible Strands
Psalms 46:2
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth is transformed and the mountains are toppled into the depths of the seas,
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The psalmist addresses the worshiping community, declaring collective resolve amid descriptions of geological and cosmic collapse. This statement functions as the logical conclusion to the opening claim that God remains an ever-present refuge and strength during trouble.
The words — The Hebrew construction כֵּן לֹא נִירָא (ken lo nir’ah) literally translates “therefore we will not fear,” tying the psalmist’s stance directly to the preceding declaration of God’s nature. The verb נִירָא (nir’ah) conveys a settled, corporate dread rather than a fleeting personal startle.
The thread — This pattern of defiant confidence in the face of imminent danger recurs in Psalms 27:3 and Psalms 23:4, where the psalmist refuses fear despite approaching armies or lethal terrain. The same theological logic appears in Hebrews 13:6, which grounds the refusal to fear in the Lord’s active role as helper.
Why it lands — The text requires a reader to locate their stability in God’s established character rather than in predictable external conditions. It demands that the reader treat trust in divine refuge as the necessary precondition for the absence of fear, regardless of how severe the surrounding catastrophe appears.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
Cross-references
- Psalms 23:4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
- Hebrews 13:6 So we say with confidence: “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?”
- Psalms 27:3 Though an army encamps around me, my heart will not fear; though a war breaks out against me, I will keep my trust.
- Luke 21:9 When you hear of wars and rebellions, do not be alarmed. These things must happen first, but the end is not imminent.”
- Matthew 21:21 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “if you have faith and do not doubt, not only will you do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen.
- Luke 21:33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.
- Psalms 18:7 Then the earth shook and quaked, and the foundations of the mountains trembled; they were shaken because He burned with anger.
- Psalms 82:5 They do not know or understand; they wander in the darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken.
- 2 Peter 3:10 But the Day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar, the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and its works will be laid bare.
- Luke 21:25 There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among the nations, bewildered by the roaring of the sea and the surging of the waves.