A sheep’s look at the Shepherd of Psalm 23
Psalm 23 is one of the most beloved passages in Scripture. I have memorized it and found it comforting in times of need. A short while back I was asked by a close friend to clarify a verse of this psalm to him. I told him that the best way to unpack part of a passage is to actually go back to beginning to see what the passage was speaking about. I did so and these next few postings will be my pondering on the six verses of this beloved Psalm number 23. We will carefully ponder one verse at a time to see what God will have for us. One thing that makes this one of the most precious Psalms is that was written for us to claim passion of. Those of us who claim the name of Christ can relate to this as one of the most truly personalized passages. There are over 16 personal pronoun statements in this passage. It is no wonder that David started out by saying, “The Lord is MY Shepherd.”
Verse 1
Psalm 23:1, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.”
What a beautiful and timeless passage of Scripture this is. This passage starts out a picture in words of who our Savior is to us, “The Lord is my shepherd.” Here we see the Psalmist lovingly introducing the Lord to us in a way that was very familiar to him. He does not say “if” or “I hope” he distinctly says, “The Lord is my shepherd.” He expressly calls him “my” Shepherd. You can almost hear the precious longing in His voice, He is actually saying that the Lord is a Shepherd to me; He not only cares for me, He watches over me, and He preserves me. He is stating and claiming His submissiveness to the shepherd. He was not his own, he belongs to the shepherd. This verse is implying to us that we, who are His followers, are considered not just a flock but His flock. If we look at this verse along with the gleanings of Christ our shepherd in John chapter 10 and we see the blessedness of our Great shepherd. We are not simply under His guidance and direction. We are His, we belong to Him.
We know and understand that the shepherd leads the flock, and our Lord does so in a way that that meant for our safety. He is constantly watching over the flock and keeping them always in His care. When they are hungry He has already provided a safe pasture to feed them, graciously providing the need at the most opportune time. If any have strayed (and we are all guilty of doing so from time to time), He brings them back to the fold. He provides shelter in the time of storm. In times of great affliction, He becomes our haven of rest. No matter what the need He is there, “And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19)
This passage also says, “I shall not want.” To this I must add how can they want, how can we? John 10:27 says, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” Jesus Christ is not just a good shepherd, He is our Great Shepherd, and because of this I shall not want. We are His and are known of Him. He, as our Shepherd laid down His life to save his flock. We have what we have in Him because of this. If this is what He has done for us should we not be in tune with His voice? Should we not want to hear and rest upon His every word?
This passage says, “I shall not want.” And in regards to His strength and protection, I shall not want. This Great Shepherd has all power in heaven and earth; therefore he can protect them. There is no need to fear, there is no need to fret He is there and had promised to never leave us. “Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.” (Deut. 31:6) and again in Hebrews 13:5, “…For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
This passage says, “I shall not want.” And in regards to His meeting the needs of my daily life, I shall not want. The bible says that all the silver and gold are His, and the cattle on a thousand hills; with this in mind we know that there is nothing with in His ability to sustain us. As he sent the ravens to feed the prophet and few fishes to feed the multitudes, He will meet my needs as well. Paul said in Philippians 4:19, “And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” In this passage again we see ownership to the Shepherd, notice “…my God...”
This passage says, “I shall not want.” And in regards to His fellowship, love and compassion, I shall not want. He has all that we need, and His heart is full of love reaching out to man. The problem is that we do not talk to Him. Jeremiah 33:3 says, “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.” There is nothing therefore that falls with in His will that He will withhold from anyone of His own. That which stops the blessings of God is man’s sin, his selfishness and stubbornness. Isaiah 59:2, “But your iniquities have separated you from your God; and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear.”
This passage does not say “I do not want,” it says, “I shall not want.” In other words no matter what comes my way He will be there. In this life I may face famine, ship wreck or desertion of friends and family but through it all “I shall not want.” Even in the midst of the aging process with its frailty or even death He will be with me, “The Lord is my shepherd.” The lost always want, they strive selfishly to meet there own needs because their heart is far from satisfaction. I shall not want because He is my shepherd; this thought alone causes us to dwell in the palace of content which the psalmist is speaking of. I am reminded of the passage in proverbs “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6) In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6 KJV) If He is our shepherd then should we not, as this passage says, place our full hope and trust in Him.
I do know that panic and despair sets in once someone has taken their eyes off of the Saviour. Once someone redirects their focus from Him, for some, all hope is lost. Remember Peter in Matthew 14:28-32, “And Peter answered Him and said, ‘Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.’ (29) So He said, ‘Come.’ And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. (30) But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, ‘Lord, save me!’ (31) And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, ‘O you of little faith, why did you doubt?’ (32) And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.”
I know that it is sometime hard to focus upon the Lord at all times and especially when we are stressed out beyond measure or burdened beyond belief but that is the call of this passage. As sheep of His flock we are not free to make our own choices, to strike out on our own paths, we are to lean upon Him and to trust in Him. Why? Because we belong to Him, He is Our Shepherd, He is our guardian and He is our guide. We are His responsibility and our responsibility is to Him.
Notice what this passage in Ezekiel says:
Ezekiel 34:12, 16, “As a shepherd seeks out his flock on the day he is among his scattered sheep, so will I seek out My sheep and deliver them from all the places where they were scattered on a cloudy and dark day. (16) “I will seek what was lost and bring back what was driven away, bind up the broken and strengthen what was sick;…” Verse 31 goes on to say, “‘You are My flock, the flock of My pasture; you are men, and I am your God,’ says the Lord GOD.”
I cannot help but overemphasize this; those of us who are saved and who claim the name of Christ belong to Him. He is Our Shepherd, He is our guardian and He is our guide. We are His responsibility and our responsibility is to Him. He will care for us; notice the possessive statements in Ezekiel 34:30, My flock, My pasture and I am your God. What a powerful statement!
To be continued…
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