****ROCK OF AGES

Psalm 73 is a plea to God for protection. In it, David uses the metaphor of a rock to describe God’s ability to protect him from the evil deeds of his enemies.

  

Be my STRONG REFUGE, For You are my ROCK and my FORTRESS.  Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, Out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.  Let my enemies, who seek to harm me, be confounded and consumed.  

The metaphor is applied to God several other places in scripture.  It speaks of His strength and ability to rescue, protect and keep His people.  In Psalm 18:2, the Psalmist says, “The Lord is my ROCK and my FORTRESS and my deliverer; My God, my STRENGTH, in whom I will trust; My SHIELD and the horn of my salvation, my STRONGHOLD.” 

And Isaiah says, “the LORD God is an everlasting ROCK” (Isa 26:4).

So, God is pictured as a strong stone fort where we are safe from harm. We need the Lord’s protection from both human and demonic enemies.  

But more than that, we should never forget that we come into this world as sinners and enemies of God.  We need Him to protect us from Himself. And the only way to escape the wrath of His righteous justice is to find shelter in the Only One who can save us, the Rock of our Salvation; Jesus Christ alone. 

That is the metaphor Augustus Toplady used in his hymn, ROCK OF AGES.   In the first line, he personifies this cleft Rock; it is Jesus Christ.  

The word “cleft” is a noun that means a split or opening made by striking or cutting.  The allusion reminds us of the day when Moses asked the LORD to show him His glory.   But God said, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live.”   “Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the ROCK.  So, it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in THE CLEFT OF THE ROCK, and (I) will cover you with My hand while I pass by.   Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back, but My face shall not be seen.”  (Ex 33:20-23). 

Did you see that?  Salvation is a work of the Lord.  It was God who put Moses in the Rock.  

And how is it that this Rock, Christ Jesus, is a cleft rock?   

We are reminded of how, after God saved His people and miraculously led them out of bondage, destroyed their enemies, and provided everything they needed in the wilderness, the people began whining and complaining that they were going to die of thirst.  So, the Lord told Moses to strike the ROCK with his staff and the water flowed out from the cleft of the ROCK.

That was a picture of the work of Christ at Calvary where Jesus, our Rock of salvation, was “smitten, stricken, and afflicted” by the LORD, “pierced for our transgressions… crushed for our iniquities” (Isa 53:4-5).

And from His side flowed His “precious blood” that cleanses our sins  (1 Pet 1:19), mixed with water “welling up into eternal life” (Jn 4:13-14).

Toplady’s hymn, ROCK OF AGES, is the prayer of a desperate man. In the second half of the first stanza, he continues his pleading with God, to wash him with the water and blood that flowed from Jesus’ side because, "without the shedding of blood, there is no remission for sin." 

And then he goes on to admit that he is completely helpless; If God doesn’t save him, he will die. He has nothing of value or virtue; no goodness, and no merit.  All he can do is beg for God’s mercy and trust in His grace.   

Another commentary on this hymn can be seen HERE.