23:1 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.
23:2 He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters;
23:3 he restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for his name's sake.
23:4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are
with me; your rod and your staff-- they comfort me.
23:5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my
head with oil; my cup overflows.
23:6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I
shall dwell in the house of the LORD my whole life long.
Raising sheep in a harsh environment is a demanding job. The challenges of wild animals
and the continual search for water and food are the constant themes of this life. What was
true for sheep in the time of this psalm was also true for the nation of Israel. Israel
was constantly under threat by dangerous superpower nations. It is in this atmosphere that
the writer of the 23rd Psalm paints a picture of peace and security.
Like a shepherd, God will have constant and careful watch over the people. The people
will lack nothing; their wandering will cease because their every need will be supplied.
The soul or strength of the people will be restored by such plenty. Furthermore, God will
put God's name and reputation on the line. A shepherd who does not know the land, where
the danger is and where water and food are to be found, loses sheep and loses reputation
as a shepherd. God will lead the people always on true paths.
Even in times analogous to the most threatening of environments, the ravines between
one pastureland and another which cannot be avoided, the psalmist declares that the people
will have nothing to fear. God will be present with the people. In verse four, the
psalmist switches from speaking about God to speaking to God, "for you are with
me" and describes the comforting symbols of a shepherd's protection.
The final two verses of the psalm paint a picture of a glorious utopia. Right in the
place of danger, right on the contested ground of Israel where empires clash, right at
ground zero, God will enact a ritual of peace. God will provide a banquet where
recognition, honour, and bountiful sustenance will be made available to all. At this
banquet, the people will no longer be pursued by enemies, but rather by the goodness and
mercy of God.
The Lord is not just the shepherd, but he is MY shepherd.
He "makes me" lie down in the green pastures, because I tend to run around
too much and don't want to be lay down.
He "restores" my soul (back to original condition, since the world around me
damaging it everyday in my interaction with the world.)
He lead me in the right path, even straight into the darkest valley in the next verse,
where I fear no evil since He is still there and comfort me.
Lord, you are so good to me! Help me to follow you obediently, and help me not to have
you chase after me in disobedience!
Coho, Midway City.
I have heard that a closer translation of "follow me" in "surely
goodness and mercy shall follow me" would be "pursue me" I like that. It
speaks of a persistent God who will not let us go, or let one be lost, or snatched from
'his' hand. Blessings LGB
LGB,
Good memory. It does me pursue, like enemies pursue us, nipping at our heels, being
doggedly persistant.
Isn't that incredible? That God pursues us with goodness and mercy in such a way?
mm in pa
Someone on the Gospel thread for this week reminded us that shepherds tend to *follow*
the sheep, rather than leading them. (It's true -- I have 4 shepherds in my congregation,
believe it or not, and I've seen them work.) If God is indeed our shepherd, God *does*
follow us/pursue us.
Good connection!
~Squeeze
This is a late addition, but still may be helpful to those who are very desperate--as I
often am.
On Good Friday, I took part in a stations of the cross that wound through the streets
of my neighborhood that a local Catholic church puts on every year. As the 75 of us
crowded down the main street in the area in which I live, at one point a young man was
walking against our tide, and as he passed me, I heard him going "baa, baa, baa"
implying we were all just dumb sheep for being followers. Little did he know that his
strong rejection of our faith stances that day would actually be something very useful to
me just a few weeks later!
