favor as a shield (Ps 5)

(11) But all who take refuge in you will be glad;
they will sing out their joy for ever.
You will shelter them,
so that those who love your Name may exult in you.
(12) For you, O LORD, will bless the righteous;
you will defend them with your favor as with a shield.

David connects the LORD's protection with gladness, joy, and exultation. The LORD is to be a refuge, a shelter, and a defense for the righteous. How often I take refuge in other things, and literally get defensive. And in some way or other, this looking to or trusting in anything but God brings some relief temporarily, it seems to promise some kind of well-being.

But, as the last line declares, God's favor is a shield for the righteous. And again, it comes down to knowing and believing the love of God and the word of God. To know deep down that all is well because the Lord has triumphed and the Lord is King, and that I am beloved and secure in his love, and that though all may be against me, nothing can deter God's purposes for me or for his world. This can release a deep sense of joy that nothing else can bring.

"Lord, I believe; help my unbelief."