The apple of his eye

A “through the bible” devotion from Psalm 17.

“Keep me as the apple of your eye” (Psalm 17:8).

I’m sure I’ve glossed over that phrase dozens of times. I kind of know what it means, but I really don’t know what it means. Do you know what it means? Let’s find out.

It is actually a reference to the pupil of your eye. It’s small, round, and of great value. Your eyelids reflexively close if anything comes near your eye, protecting the aperture that lets in light. It is valuable, protected, and a treasured part of your body.

So if you’re the apple of God’s eye, you are treasured, valuable, and something that he’ll protect no matter what. This is one of the ways David pleads for God’s surrounding presence and powerful protection. Isn’t that a poetic way of submitting yourself to God’s loving protection in the presence of enemies?

How do we protect those things most valuable to us? We lock them away. We insure them. We keep them close to us. We install cameras and an alarm system. We ask someone to keep an eye on it. We put a chain on it, like a wallet. Or we just don’t let it out of our sight.

So this is like praying, “God, don’t let me out of your sight. Protect me like the most precious part of you.” God sees everything. Nothing escapes his eye. His eyes go way beyond the miracle of sight that we know. So the pupil, or apple, of his eye, is precious beyond measure.

And so are you and I. God treasures us as the apple of his eye, his most valued possession. He never lets us out of his sight. Nothing is getting close to us unless he allows it. He’s our personal bodyguard, security system, and guard dog all in one.