Translation and Sermon by Nate Wilson for Christ The Redeemer Church Manhattan KS 5 Apr 2015
1. A psalm belonging to
David.
Yahweh being my shepherd, I will not be lacking.
2 He will cause me to bed down in pastures of
sprouting-grass.
He will guide me to water along pooled waters.
3 It is my soul that He will refresh!
He will guide me in tracks of righteousness for the sake of His reputation.
4 Even when I shall walk in a ravine of the shadow of death,
I will not be afraid of evil because You are with me.
Your rod and Your staff will comfort me – they will!
5 You will organize a buffet in front of me, opposite my
adversaries.
You will fatten me with rich [food]; my cup is satisfyingly-full.
6 It is goodness and lovingkindness that will certainly
pursue me all the days of my life,
and I will settle down in Yahweh’s house for extensive days.
· Around 600 BC the prophet Micah wrote, “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth; then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel. And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth. And he shall be their peace... Shepherd your people with your staff, the flock of your inheritance... (Micah 5:2-5a, 7:14, ESV)
· Around 30AD, Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep... [He was speaking of his death on the cross and His resurrection.] ... the Jews gathered around him and said to him, "How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly." Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father's name bear witness about me, but you do not believe because you are not part of my flock. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.” (John 10:14-19, 24-28 ESV)
· David prophesied this when he wrote Psalm 23:
· This participle “shepherd” is based on the Hebrew word for “pasture” so sometimes it is translated “feed” as in “pasture-fed.”
· God’s people ever since Adam and Eve’s time domesticated sheep, and David wasn’t the first to call God “shepherd” in the Bible (Jacob was, in Gen. 48:15),
· but we know from the history books of the Bible that David spent a good deal of his childhood caring for sheep. He understood what it meant to be a shepherd; he had lived it. To call God his shepherd had many ramifications in his mind, some of which he unpacks in this psalm.
· As I approach this psalm, I am at a disadvantage because I have never tended sheep, so I will have to rely on the insights of others who have.
o I’ll be drawing from the experience of my son Amos, who took care of sheep during his farm internship last summer,
o as well as man named Phillip Keller, who was a sheep rancher and wrote a commentary called A Shepherd Looks at the Twenty-Third Psalm.
o I also remember hearing a message by the Christian comedian Ken Davis about sheep. Ken grew up on a farm with sheep, and his most memorable comments about sheep were that they were really stupid animals and that they were very fearful animals. He tells the story of when he literally frightened one old ram to death: the ram came around the corner of the barn, Ken said, “Boo,” and he died. Just like that. Years later Ken’s dad asked him, “So what did you really do to kill that ram?” and Ken said, “Honestly Dad, I just said BOO and he died!” If sheep are so dumb and frightened, David is not flattering himself to call the Lord his shepherd, because it is an admission of his own foolishness and fear.
· What does it mean that “I won’t want”? Moses used the word “lack/want” to remind the Israelites of God’s provision of manna in the desert: "...These forty years the LORD your God has been with you; you have lacked nothing." (Deut. 2:7b, NKJV)
· The next time this word occurs in the Psalms explains further: “The young lions lack and suffer hunger; But those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing.” (Psalm 34:10, NKJV)
· The promises made to the believers in the Old Testament were renewed by Jesus and the Apostles to believers in the New Testament.
o Remember Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6, “Start looking at the birds of the sky, because they are not sowing seeds neither are they reaping harvests, nor are they gathering into storage, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you yourselves more valuable than them? .... Also concerning clothing, why are y’all caring [so much]? Start studying the lillies of the field; how is their growth? Theirs is neither to labor nor to spin [threads]. Yet, I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory wrapped himself like one of these! Now, if God thus dresses the grass of the field, being [here] today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t He rather more you, you barely-trusting ones? Therefore, don’t start caring [too much], saying, ‘What might we eat,’ or ‘What might we drink?’ or ‘What might we wrap up in?’, for all these things are what the nations are eagerly seeking, and your heavenly Father sees that you are in need of every one of these. But continue seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added onto you.” (vs. 26-33, NAW)
o The Apostle Paul applies the same promise spiritually in Romans 8:32 “...If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” (NKJV)
· God’s attitude toward us is not that of miserly stinginess calculated to keep you on the edge of survival. God’s attitude toward you is that of generous provision.
o I know it doesn’t always feel that way, but that is because, let’s face it, we are kinda foolish and greedy like sheep, and we would consume more than would be healthy for us if He were not moderate in His blessings of us.
o We see that problem in our own pet dogs and cats – they get unhealthily fat if we keep their food trays full all the time with their favorite food.
o The sheep that Amos tended at Shepherd’s Valley loved the taste of the chicken feed and didn’t particularly like the taste of the hay they were supposed to eat, but their stomachs were not built to handle what chickens eat, and they needed to eat that hay to get the right mix of fiber and vitamins. Amos had to watch those sheep or they would reject the hay and try to eat the chicken feed and get sick.
· Now, saying that he would not be in need because the Lord is his shepherd is a statement that the Lord is a better caretaker than any other human institution or god because God’s resources are unlimited. It is not a guarantee that you will never feel a need for anything, but it is a guarantee that God will not deprive you of what you truly cannot do without; He is more trustworthy than any other provider.
· “He will cause me to lie down” is the same Hebrew Imperfect tense as “I shall not want.” If we’re going to translate “I shall not want” in the future, then it seems consistent to translate the other verbs in the future in the following verses. If these are indeed futures, then this is an expression of faith more than a self-satisfied lay.
· The shepherd in Canticles 1:7 “beds down” his sheep at noon. Zophar speaks of one who is right with God “bedding down unafraid,” and both Moses and Isaiah mention quite a number of animals nesting/ bedding/ pasturing with this verb.
· When I’ve gone hunting or hiking in the wilderness, I have often spooked a deer that had bedded itself down in this very way in a quiet, out-of-the-way place near water and good grazing.
· Note that this is not old, dry, yucky grass, these are the tender new shoots that taste good and are full of nutrition!
· Phillip Keller observed that the sheep on his ranch didn’t rest unless they were completely at peace, and that meant that he as a shepherd had to work to keep them free from stress – free from hunger, free from flies or parasites, free from friction with other sheep even. One time some friends came over to Keller’s ranch, and they brought a tiny little Pekinese dog with them. Well as soon as that little dog started yapping, all two hundred sheep suddenly bolted. Keller wrote, “In the course of time, I came to realize that nothing so quieted and reassured the sheep as to see me in the field.”
· Do you feel that way about Jesus?
o “Jesus, the very thought of Thee with sweetness fills my breast, but sweeter far Thy face to see, and in Thy presence rest!” (Bernard of Clairvaux, tr. Edward Caswall)
o Jesus said, “Come here to me, all who are laboring and have been burdened, and I myself will refresh you.” (Matt. 11:28, NAW)
· God begins with rest, but He also leads forward.
o “You in Your mercy have led forth The people whom You have redeemed; You have guided them in Your strength To Your holy habitation.” (Exodus 15:13 NKJV)
o “For You are my rock and my fortress; Therefore, for Your name's sake, Lead me and guide me.” (Psalm 31:3 NKJV)
o Isa 40:11 “Like a shepherd He will shepherd His flock: With His arm He will gather lambs, And in His bosom carry; Those who are nursing He will lead gently.” (NAW)
o Isa. 49:10 “They will not hunger and they will not thirst, and heat and sun will not strike them down, for their Compassionate One will lead them, and He will lead them to water upon springs of water.” (NAW)
o “He leadeth me, o blessed thought, O words with heavenly comfort wrought. Whatever I do, wherever I be, still it is His hand that leadeth me. He leadeth me... His faithful follower I will be, for by His hand He leadeth me.” (Joseph Gillmore)
· The good shepherd finds both food and water near each other, although in the Judean desert it took some skill to find these things! Naturally, a good water source means good greenery watered by that tributary.
· Sheep don’t like fast-moving water, though. As Ken Davis put it, they’re afraid it might splash up their nose and if it does they’ll drown. So a rushing stream won’t do; the shepherd has to find places where the water is “at rest” – which I interpret as “pooled up” and running slowly, so it is still and quiet for the sheep to drink.
· The emphatic placement of “my soul” at the beginning of this Hebrew sentence indicates the unselfishness of our Good Shepherd. The wonder of this Shepherd is that instead of refreshing Himself, He refreshes me, His sheep!
o Jesus pointed out in John 10 that hired ranch-hands generally don’t care about the sheep as much as the owner does (John 10:13). If a lamb dies, it’s no skin off the ranch-hand’s back as long as the owner gives him his paycheck. The shepherds who are not like Jesus are just out to take what they can get (10:8), and when a life-threatening situation develops, the bad shepherd just runs away to preserve his own life rather than prioritizing the well-being of the sheep. He wouldn’t risk his life to save those sheep.
o So, the fact that David had stood up to a bear and a lion to protect his family’s sheep led him to realize that God Himself would face down bigger things that threatened David.
o Do you believe God would do this for you? Do you look for Him to refresh you? Let us take the time to rest one day a week and spend time in prayer and worship.
o God often uses fellow believers as His means of bringing refreshment to us – giving a hug, delivering a meal, listening and saying a comforting word, giving a gift, God has often refreshed me with these things through other people. When you see an opportunity to refresh a fellow-pilgrim in one of these ways, follow God’s promptings. You may be like one of those under-shepherds that First Peter 5 talks about who brings restoration to a sheep under the direction of Jesus the over-shepherd.
· There is a hike that I like to take my family on when we vacation in the Rocky Mountains in Clark, Colorado; it goes through open grazing land from the dam at Pearl Lake down to a tributary of the Elk River. The problem is, there is no trail. It’s four miles of bushwacking through steep stream valleys, and, in places, the grass grows higher than the heads of my younger children. The first time I did it, I had to beat down the grass and bushes and make a path that Josh and Beni could follow, and when they became too tired to take another step, I carried them the last mile or so. God makes paths for us and even carries us along them.
· Back in Psalm 17:5, we encountered God’s tracks/paths: “By the word of Your lips... I myself have guarded [against] paths of robbery, to hold onto my progress in Your tracks; my footsteps have never been overthrown.”
· The Hebrew word for “guide/lead” shows up often in the Psalms:
o Psalm 5:8 “Yahweh, guide me in your righteousness because of my opponents; level your way in front of me.” (NAW)
o Psalm 43:3 “Oh, send out Your light and Your truth! Let them lead me; Let them bring me to Your holy hill And to Your tabernacle.”
o 73:24 “You will guide me with Your counsel, And afterward receive me to glory.”
o 77:20 “You led Your people like a flock By the hand of Moses and Aaron.”
o 78:14 “In the daytime also He led them with the cloud, And all the night with a light of fire.”
o 139:24b “... lead me in the way everlasting.”
o 143:10 “Teach me to do Your will, For You are my God; Your Spirit is good. Lead me in the land of uprightness [yashar].” (NKJV)
· Although this phrase “paths of righteousness” doesn’t occur anywhere else in the Hebrew Bible, Proverbs 2 has the words of this phrase in it and explains what it means: “My son, if you receive my words, And treasure my commands within you, So that you incline your ear to wisdom, And apply your heart to understanding... Then you will understand the fear of the LORD, And find the knowledge of God. For the LORD gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding... you will understand righteousness and justice, Equity and every good path.” (Proverbs 2:1-9 NKJV) The paths of righteousness are the ways that God thinks and acts, and this is mapped out for us in the Bible!
· And He does all this “‘For his name’s sake,’ that is, out of loyalty to his character and promises... he will not allow me to go astray.” ~John Stott, The Canticles and Selected Psalms, p.80.
o It is a wonder that God would tangle His name and reputation up with us, because we have all sinned and fallen short of glory (Rom. 3:23). When we try to do what we think is best, we just make messes and do not give God a good reputation.
o There are lots of non-Christians out there who say, “If those Christians represent Jesus, then I don’t want anything to do with Christianity.” It could be said that we ourselves pose a threat to God’s reputation!
o So what does God do for the sake of His name and reputation?
o “Our fathers in Egypt... rebelled by the sea—the Red Sea. Nevertheless He saved them for His name's sake, That He might make His mighty power known.” (Ps. 106:7-8, NKJ)
o “I am writing to you...” said the Apostle John, “because your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake.” (1 John 2:12, NAW)
o Psalm 23 tells us that for His own reputation, God restores, refreshes, literally “turns back” souls and guides them in righteousness. When God converts a soul and turns someone who was rebellious against God into someone who is right with God, God makes a name for Himself.
o What is God’s name? “Jesus/Y’shua” means “He saves.” That is God’s name and that is the reputation God wants, “He saves!” That’s why Jesus died on the cross, and that’s a major focus of His heavenly life right now – saving people! (2 Pet. 3:15, etc.)
o May God’s name increase! May He take messy sinners like us and turn them into His own people that He guides through the wilderness in the footstep of His righteous ways!
· Animals like sheep and cows feel safer when they are up on high places where they can see down on the predators. (That’s one reason people hunt from deer stands: deer aren’t able to look up and see you.) However, the water doesn’t pool up on the mountains, it pools up in the valleys, and that’s where the best grass grows too (Keller), so that’s where the shepherd has to lead his flock, is down into the valleys. But predators could be lurking down there, hidden under branches; it can be a scary place.
o Job seems to have coined the phrase “shadow of death,” which some scholars think was just a poetic way of forming a superlative of the word “shadow” – like “the shadowiest of places” (GHW), but Job did use the phrase several times to refer to dying (e.g. Job 16:16).
o Medieval Jewish commentator Rashi believed the death-shadow referred to the threat of Saul’s army trying to kill David in the wilderness.
o Many years after David, the Jews from the exile in Babylon would interpret the “shadow of death” to speak of their life in exile in a foreign country.
o We know for sure that David’s battle with Goliath was in a ravine in the Valley of Elah (1Sam. 17:2). It was at the bottom of that ravine that he picked up the stone that he used in his slingshot to kill Goliath. Maybe David was thinking of that frightful contest, or thinking forward to the time in later life when death is imminent.
o Yes, even when my body systems are failing with age I will not be afraid of the Evil One, the Devil, and I will not be afraid of being harmed by evil!
· Why? Because the LORD is Immanuel, “God with us.” In his prayer book commentary, John Stott made an excellent observation, “My security lies not, then, in my environment [whether it be the green pastures, or the still waters, or the house of the Lord, or even the valley of the shadow of death - no, my security lies] in my shepherd.” “Because you are with me I will not fear.”
· Isaiah also spoke of how the Messiah (Matt. 4:16) would remove our fear of the shadow of death: Isaiah 9:2 “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of death’s shadow, a brilliant light has arisen on them... v.6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government is on His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of His empire’s increase and of peace there will be no end. On David’s throne and over his kingdom to cause it to be established and to uphold it in justice and righteousness, from now until eternity.” (NAW) I am not afraid anymore!
· What is the “rod and staff” and how do they comfort us? The Hebrew word for “rod” is pretty generic. It can refer to the scepter of a king (Gen. 49:10, Ps. 45:6), or it can refer to an instrument of discipline (Ex. 21:20, 2 Sam. 7:14, Ps. 89:32, Prov. 23:13-14) or a club to incapacitate an enemy (2Sam. 18:14, 23:21, Ps .2:9, Isa. 10:24[2]). It can have other meanings too, but let’s just consider the comfort that we can find if we interpret the “rod” according to these 3 meanings.
o If we know that our Lord is not merely a lowly shepherd equipped with a staff but also the King of Kings whose authority (represented by the scepter) will never be overruled by another powerful person, that is a tremendous assurance for us that our Lord, who has our well-being in mind, will never be prevented from taking good care of us.
o On the other hand, some Bible commentators[3] have focused on the comfort that comes from the rod of fatherly discipline. The Bible says that spankings from a rod can save a child from hell and give him wisdom (see above), and God talks about using a rod to discipline His own people. The rod trains beloved family members away from doing evil by causing immediate suffering when they do what is wrong. Such discipline is painful, but helpful. Hebrews 12:6 “FOR WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE CHASTENS, AND SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES... v.10 He chastens us for our profit that we may become partakers in His holiness” (NKJV).
o On the other hand, there are Bible commentators who emphasize the interpretation of the “rod” as a weapon used against enemies (Delitzsch, GHW). If that lion or bear comes vaulting out of the bushes to eat you up, your shepherd has a club that he can use to beat back the predators and keep you safe! Is it not a comfort that God can dash His enemies in pieces with His rod when the time comes, as Psalm 2:9 says?
o So, those are three ways of interpreting the “rod” as a comfort,
· and it appears to me that the staff can be applied in much the same way.
o This is the only time in the Psalms that a “staff” is mentioned, but in other places in the Bible (Ex. 21:19, 2 Kings 18:21, Zech 8:4) it refers to a walking stick which lends stability to the person who is walking (cf. Kimchi). This is, again, a comfort, especially to those who are in a weakened condition.
o It could also refer to guidance, like a cattle-prod that nudges the wandering sheep back in the right direction so that they will get to food and safety (Delitzsch, GHW).
· Also, notice that what David is seeing is not the Shepherd Himself but the shepherd’s rod and staff. We can’t see God, so, as much as we would like to be comforted by being able to sense His presence with us physically, we have to be content in this earthly life with the indirect evidences He provides – His rod and staff (Barker). We can find comfort in the fact that
o we have received guidance in what to do,
o we have felt the sting of punishing consequences when we did wrong,
o and we have seen God incapacitate enemies that could have destroyed us.
o When these kinds of things happen in our lives, we need to see them as evidence that God is with us and take comfort that He is still shepherding us!
· Now the scene changes from God as a shepherd to God as a host to His guests. That makes a natural point to break for the week, and we can finish the psalm next week.
Comparison of Bible Translations with notes by Nate
|
Psalm23[4] |
NAW |
KJV |
NKJV |
ESV |
NASB |
NIV |
LXX |
Brenton |
|
1מִזְמוֹר לְדָוִד יְהוָה רֹעִי לֹא אֶחְסָר: |
1. A psalm belonging to David. Yahweh being my shepherd[5], I will not be lacking[6]. |
1 A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. |
1 A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. |
1 A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. |
1 A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want. |
1 A psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. |
1) Ψαλμὸς τῷ Δαυιδ. Κύριος ποιμαίνει με, [καὶ] οὐδέν με ὑστερήσει. |
1 A Psalm of David. The Lord tends me as a shepherd, [and] I shall want nothing. |
|
2 בִּנְאוֹת דֶּשֶׁא יַרְבִּיצֵנִי עַל-מֵי מְנֻחוֹת יְנַהֲלֵנִי: |
2 He will cause me to bed down[7] in pastures of sprouting-grass. He will guide me to water[8] along pooled[9] waters. |
2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. |
2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. |
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. |
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. |
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, |
2) εἰς τόπον χλόης, ἐκεῖ με κατεσκήνωσεν[10], ἐπὶ ὕδατος ἀναπαύσεως ἐξέθρεψέν[11] με, |
2 In a place of green grass, there he has made me dwell: he has nourished me by the water of rest. |
|
3 נַפְשִׁי יְשׁוֹבֵב יַנְחֵנִי בְמַעְגְּלֵי-צֶדֶק לְמַעַן שְׁמוֹ: |
3 It is my soul that He will refresh[12]. He will guide[13] me in tracks of righteousness[14] for the sake of His reputation[15]. |
3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. |
3 He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name's sake. |
3 He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. |
3 He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness For His name's sake. |
3 he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. |
3) τὴν ψυχήν μου ἐπέστρεψεν[16]. ὡδήγησέν με ἐπὶ τρίβους[17] δικαιοσύνης ἕνεκεν τοῦ ὀνόματος αὐτοῦ. |
3 He has restored my soul: he has guided me into the paths of righteousness, for his name's sake. |
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4 גַּם כִּי-אֵלֵךְ בְּגֵיא צַלְמָוֶת לֹא-אִירָא רָע כִּי-אַתָּה עִמָּדִי שִׁבְטְךָ וּמִשְׁעַנְתֶּךָ הֵמָּה יְנַחֲמֻנִי: |
4 Even when[18] I shall walk in a ravine of the shadow of death[19], I will not be afraid of evil because You are with me. Your rod and Your staff will comfort[20] me – they[21] will! |
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. |
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. |
4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. |
4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. |
4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. |
4) ἐὰν γὰρ καὶ πορευθῶ ἐν μέσῳ σκιᾶς θανάτου[22], οὐ φοβηθήσομαι κακά, ὅτι σὺ μετ᾿ ἐμοῦ εἶ· ἡ ῥάβδος σου καὶ ἡ βακτηρία σου, αὐταί με παρεκάλεσα. |
4 Yea, even if I should walk in the midst of the shadow of death, I will not be afraid of evils: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, these have comforted me. |
[1] Because Psalm 23 is so familiar and because there is so little variation in the standard English translations of this Psalm, I thought it best to depart from the standard translations wherever possible in order to interrupt what is familiar in our memories and therefore encourage more thoughtful meditation on what this Psalm says. That’s not usually my translation philosophy, but I thought it would be a helpful strategy for such a famliar passage.
[2] which also mentions the staff in the same connection
[3] including Cohen and Augustine
[4] Two notes on translation: 1) Neither the Cairo Geneza nor the Dead Sea Scrolls contain a copy of Psalm 23, so they are not available for cross reference. 2) Because Psalm 23 is so familiar and because there is so little variation in the standard English translations of this Psalm, I thought it best to depart from the standard translations wherever possible in order to interrupt what is familiar in our memories and therefore encourage more thoughtful meditation on what this Psalm says. That’s not usually my translation philosophy, but I thought it would be a helpful strategy in this passage.
[5] This participle is based on the Hebrew word for “pasture” so sometimes it is translated “feed” as in “pasture-fed.” God’s people ever since Adam and Eve’s time have domesticated sheep, and David wasn’t the first to call God “shepherd” in the Bible (Jacob was in Gen. 48:15), but we know from the history books of the Bible that David spent a good deal of his childhood caring for sheep. He understood what it meant to be a shepherd; he had lived it. To call God his shepherd had many ramifications in his mind, some of which he unpacks in this psalm. As I approach this psalm, I am at somewhat of a disadvantage because I have never tended sheep, so I will have to rely on the insights of others who have. I remember hearing a message by the Christian comedian Ken Davis about sheep. Ken grew up on a farm with sheep, and his most memorable comments about sheep were that they were really stupid animals and that they were very fearful animals. He tells the story of when he literally frightened one old ram to death: the ram came around the corner of the barn, Ken said, “Boo,” and he died. Just like that. Years later Ken’s dad asked him, “So what did you really do to kill that ram?” and Ken said, “Honestly Dad, I just said BOO and he died!” David is not flattering himself to call the Lord his shepherd, because it is an admission of his own foolishness and fear. I’ll also be drawing from the experience of my son Amos, who took care of sheep during his farm internship last summer, as well as man named Phillip Keller, who was a sheep rancher and wrote a book called A Shepherd Looks at the Twenty-Third Psalm.
[6] Moses used this word “lack/want” to remind the Israelites of God’s provision of manna in the desert: "...These forty years the LORD your God has been with you; you have lacked nothing." (Deut. 2:7b, NKJV) The next time this word occurs in the Psalms explains further: “The young lions lack and suffer hunger; But those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing.” (Psalm 34:10, NKJV) The previous occurrence of this word in the Psalter is at 8:5, “made lower than God,” but that does not seem to be relevant to the meaning here. The promises made to the believers in the Old Testament were renewed by Jesus and the Apostles to believers in the New Testament. Remember Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6, “Start looking at the birds of the sky, because they are not sowing seeds neither are they reaping harvests, nor are they gathering into storage, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you yourselves more valuable than them? .... Also concerning clothing, why are y’all caring [so much]? Start studying the lillies of the field; how is their growth? Theirs is neither to labor nor to spin [threads]. Yet, I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory wrapped himself like one of these! Now, if God thus dresses the grass of the field, being [here] today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t He rather more you, you barely-trusting ones? Therefore, don’t start caring [too much], saying, ‘What might we eat,’ or ‘What might we drink?’ or ‘What might we wrap up in?’, for all these things are what the nations are eagerly seeking, and your heavenly Father sees that you are in need of every one of these. But continue seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added onto you.” (vs. 26-33, NAW) The Apostle Paul applies the same promise spiritually in Romans 8:32 “...If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” (NKJV) God’s attitude toward us is not that of miserly stinginess calculated to keep you on the edge of survival. God’s attitude toward you is that of generous provision. I know it doesn’t always feel that way, but that is because, let’s face it, we are kinda foolish and greedy like sheep, and we would consume more than would be healthy for us if He were not moderate in His blessings of us. We see that problem in our own pet dogs and cats – they get unhealthily fat if we keep their food trays full all the time with their favorite food. The sheep that Amos tended at Shepherd’s Valley loved the taste of the chicken feed and didn’t particularly like the taste of the hay they were supposed to eat, but their stomachs were not built to handle what chickens eat, and they needed to eat the hay to get the right mix of fiber and vitamins. Amos had to watch those sheep or they would reject the hay and try to eat the chicken feed and get sick. Now, in saying that he would not be in need because the Lord is his shepherd is more a statement that the Lord is a better caretaker than any other human institution or god because God’s resources are unlimited. It is not a guarantee that you will never feel a need for anything, but it is a guarantee that God will not deprive you of what you truly cannot do without; He is more trustworthy than any other provider. Hammurabi and other Near Eastern kings called themselves shepherds of their people, so this was a widely-understood metaphor (GHW).
[7] This is the same Imperfect tense as “I shall not want.” If we’re going to translate it future there, then it seems consistent to translate it future in the following verses. If these are indeed futures, then this is an expression of faith more than a self-satisfied lay. The shepherd in Canticles 1:7 “beds down” his sheep at noon. Zophar speaks of one who is right with God “bedding down unafraid,” David later mentions young lions “bedding down” in their dens (Ps. 104:32), and both Moses and Isaiah mention quite a number of animals nesting/bedding/pasturing with this verb. When I’ve gone hunting or hiking in the wilderness, I have often spooked a deer that has bedded itself down in this very way in a quiet, out-of-the-way place near water and good grazing. Note that this is not old, dry, yucky grass, these are the tender new shoots that taste good and are full of nutrition! Phillip Keller observed that the sheep on his ranch didn’t rest unless they were completely at peace, and that meant that he as a shepherd had to work to keep them free from stress – free from hunger, free from flies or parasites, free from friction with other sheep even. One time some friends came over to Keller’s ranch, and they brought a tiny little Pekinese dog with them. Well as soon as that little dog started yapping, all two hundred sheep suddenly bolted. Keller wrote, “In the course of time, I came to realize that nothing so quieted and reassured the sheep as to see me in the field.” Do you feel that way about Jesus? “Jesus, the very thought of thee with sweetness fills my breast, but sweeter far Thy face to see, and in Thy presence rest!” (Bernard of Clairvaux, tr. Edward Caswall) Jesus said, “Come here to me, all who are laboring and have been burdened, and I myself will refresh you.” (Matt. 11:28, NAW)
[8] “You in Your mercy have led forth The people whom You have redeemed; You have guided them in Your strength To Your holy habitation.” (Exodus 15:13 NKJV) For You are my rock and my fortress; Therefore, for Your name's sake, Lead me and guide me.” (Psalm 31:3 NKJV) Isa 40:11 “Like a shepherd He will shepherd His flock: With His arm He will gather lambs, And in His bosom carry; Those who are nursing He will lead gently.” (NAW) Isa. 49:10 “They will not hunger and they will not thirst, and heat and sun will not strike them down, for their Compassionate One will lead them, and He will lead them to water upon springs of water.” (NAW) “He leadeth me, o blessed thought, O words with heavenly comfort wrought. Whatever I do, wherever I be, still it is His hand that leadeth me. He leadeth me... His faithful follower I will be, for by His hand He leadeth me.” (Joseph Gillmore)
[9] The good shepherd finds both food and water near each other, although in the Judean desert it took some skill to find these things! Naturally, a good water source means good greenery watered by that tributary. Sheep don’t like fast-moving water, though. As Ken Davis put it, they’re afraid it might splash up their nose and if it does they’ll drown. So a rushing stream won’t do; the shepherd has to find places where the water is “at rest” – which I interpret as “pooled up” and running slowly, so it is still and quiet for the sheep to drink.
[10] Aquilla: en wraiothti poiaV katekline me “in pleasant grass he was reclining me”
[11] Aquilla: diabastaxeiV “He was carrying” Symmachus: ethmelhse “He cared for”
[12] The emphatic placement of “my soul” in this Hebrew sentence indicates the unselfishness of our good shepherd. The wonder of this shepherd is that instead of refreshing himself, he refreshes me, his sheep! Jesus pointed out in John 10 that hired ranch-hands generally don’t care about the sheep as much as the owner does (John 10:13). If a lamb dies, it’s no skin off the ranch-hand’s back as long as the owner gives him his paycheck. The shepherds who are not like Jesus are just out to take what they can get (10:8), and when a life-threatening situation develops the bad shepherd just runs away to preserve his own life rather than prioritizing the well-being of the sheep and even laying down his life for the sheep that they may be saved. The fact that David had stood up to a bear and a lion to protect his family’s sheep led him to realize that God Himself would face down things that threatened David. Do you believe God would do this for you? Do you look for Him to refresh you? Let us take the time to rest one day a week and spend time in prayer and worship. God often uses fellow believers as His means of bringing refreshment to us – giving a hug, delivering a meal, listening and saying a comforting word, giving a gift, God has often refreshed me with these things through other people. When you see an opportunity to refresh a fellow-pilgrim in one of these ways, follow God’s promptings. You may be like one of those under-shepherds that the book of Hebrews talks about who brings restoration to a sheep under the direction of Jesus the over-shepherd.
[13] I wonder if there is some intentional word-play here in the use of nahal “lead/guide” (v. 2b), nachah “guides/leads” (v.3b) and nacham “comfort” (v. 4b).
[14] There is a hike that I like to take my family on when we vacation in the Rocky Mountains in Clark, Colorado; it goes through open grazing land from the dam at Pearl Lake down to a tributary of the Elk River. The problem is, there is no trail. It’s four miles of bushwacking through steep stream valleys, and in places, the grass grows higher than the heads of my younger children. The first time I did it, I had to beat down the grass and bushes and make a path that Josh and Beni could follow, and when they became too tired to take another step, I carried them the last mile or so. Now, back in Psalm 17:5, we encountered God’s tracks/paths: “By the word of Your lips... I myself have guarded [against] paths of robbery, to hold onto my progress in Your tracks; my footsteps have never been overthrown.” This Hebrew word for “guide/lead” shows up in the Psalms way more than in any other Old Testament book: Psalm 5:8 “Yahweh, guide me in your righteousness because of my opponents; level your way in front of me.” (NAW) Psalm 43:3 “Oh, send out Your light and Your truth! Let them lead me; Let them bring me to Your holy hill And to Your tabernacle.” 73:24 “You will guide me with Your counsel, And afterward receive me to glory.” 77:20 “You led Your people like a flock By the hand of Moses and Aaron.” 78:14 “In the daytime also He led them with the cloud, And all the night with a light of fire.” 139:24b “... lead me in the way everlasting.” 143:10 “Teach me to do Your will, For You are my God; Your Spirit is good. Lead me in the land of uprightness [yashar].” (NKJV) Although this phrase “paths of righteousness” doesn’t occur anywhere else in the Hebrew Bible, Proverbs 2 has the words of this phrase in it and explains what it means: “My son, if you receive my words, And treasure my commands within you, So that you incline your ear to wisdom, And apply your heart to understanding... Then you will understand the fear of the LORD, And find the knowledge of God. For the LORD gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding... you will understand righteousness and justice, Equity and every good path.” (Proverbs 2:1-9 NKJV) The paths of righteousness are the way that God thinks and acts, and this is mapped out for us in the Bible!
[15] “For his name’s sake, that is, out of loyalty to his character and promises... he will not allow me to go astray.” ~John Stott, The Canticles and Selected Psalms, p.80. It is a wonder that God would tangle His name and reputation up with us, because we have all sinned and fallen short of glory (Rom. 3:23). When we try to do what we think is best, we just make messes and do not give God a good reputation. There are lots of non-Christians out there who say, “If those Christians represent Jesus, then I don’t want anything to do with Christianity.” It could be said that we ourselves pose a threat to God’s reputation! So what does God do for the sake of His name and reputation? “Our fathers in Egypt... rebelled by the sea—the Red Sea. Nevertheless He saved them for His name's sake, That He might make His mighty power known.” (Psalm 106:7-8, NKJV) “I am writing to you...” said the Apostle John, “because your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake.” (1 John 2:12, NAW) Psalm 23 tells us that for His own reputation, God restores, refreshes, literally “turns back” souls and guides them in righteousness. When God converts a soul and turns someone who was rebellious against God into someone who is right with God, God makes a name for Himself. What is God’s name? You know what the name “Jesus/Y’shua” means? “He saves.” The only places in the NT where the Septuagint phrase eneken tou onamatos autou from this Psalm occurs are in contexts where Christians take risks in order to preach the Gospel that more people might be saved! Matthew 19:29; Luke 6:22; 21:12 That is God’s name and that is the reputation God wants, “He saves!” That’s why Jesus died on the cross, and that’s a major focus of His heavenly life right now - saving people! (2 Pet. 3:15, etc.) May God’s name increase! May He take messy sinners like us and turn them into His own people that He guides through the wilderness in the footstep of His righteous ways!
[16] Symmachus: anekthsato me “he renewed me”
[17] Symmachus di atrapwn “through out-of-the-way places?”
[18] This Hebrew phrase gam ki only occurs half a dozen other times in the O.T. Ruth 2:21 “Moreover He said that...,” Proverbs 22:6 “Initiate for a child over bounding of his way, for he will grow old and also he will not turn away from it.” (or even when he grows old...”), Isaiah 1:15 “And when you spread out your hands, I will hide my eyes from them; and although you multiply prayers, I am not listening. Your hands are full of blood.” (NAW), Lamentations 3:8 “Even when I cry and shout, He shuts out my prayer” (NKJV), and Hosea 8:10a “Even though they hire allies among the nations, Now I will gather them up... 9:16b ...Even though they bear children, I will slay the precious ones of their womb.” (NASB)
[19] Animals like sheep and cows feel safer when they are up on high places where they can see down on the predators. (That’s one reason people hunt from deer stands: deer aren’t able to look up and see you.) However, the water doesn’t pool up on the mountains, it pools up in the valleys, and that’s where the best grass grows too (Keller), so that’s where the shepherd has to lead his flock, is down into the valleys. But predators could be lurking down there, hidden under branches; it can be a scary place. Many years after David, the Jews from the exile in Babylon would interpret the “shadow of death” to speak of their life in exile in a foreign country. Medieval Jewish commentator Rashi believed the death-shadow referred to the threat of Saul’s army trying to kill David in the wilderness. We know for sure that David’s battle with Goliath was in a ravine in the Valley of Elah (1Sam. 17:2). It was at the bottom of that ravine that he picked up the stone that he used in his slingshot to kill Goliath. Maybe David is thinking of that frightful contest and also thinking forward to the time in later life when death is imminent. Job seems to have coined the phrase “shadow of death,” which some scholars think was just a poetic way of forming a superlative of the word shadow – the shadowiest of places (GHW), but Job did use the phrase several times to refer to dying (e.g. Job 16:16). Yes, even when my body systems are failing with age I will not be afraid of the Evil One, the Devil, and I will not be afraid of being harmed by evil, why? Because the LORD is Immanuel, “God with us” In his prayer book commentary, John Stott made an excellent observation, “My security lies not, then, in my environment [whether it be the green pastures, or the still waters, or the house of the Lord, or even the valley of the shadow of death - no, my security lies] in my shepherd.” “Because you are with me I will not fear.” Isaiah also spoke of how the Messiah (Matt. 4:16) would remove our fear of the shadow of death: Isaiah 9:2 “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of death’s shadow, a brilliant light has arisen on them... v.6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government is on His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of His empire’s increase and of peace there will be no end. On David’s throne and over his kingdom to cause it to be established and to uphold it in justice and righteousness, from now until eternity.” (NAW) I am not afraid anymore!
[20] The Hebrew word for “rod” is pretty generic. It can refer to the scepter of a king (Gen. 49:10, Psalm 45:6), or it can refer to an instrument of discipline (Ex. 21:20, 2 Sam. 7:14, Psalm 89:32, Prov. 23:13-14) or a club to incapacitate an enemy (2Sam. 18:14, 23:21, Psalm 2:9, Isa. 10:24 – which also mentions the staff in the same connection), or it can have other meanings too, but let’s just consider the comfort that we can find if we interpret the “rod” according to these three meanings. If we know that our shepherd is not merely a lowly shepherd equipped with a staff but also the King of Kings whose authority (represented by the scepter) will never be overruled by another powerful person, that is a tremendous assurance for us that our Lord, who has our well-being in mind, will never be prevented from taking good care of us. On the other hand, some Bible commentators (including Cohen and Augustine) have focused on the comfort that comes from the rod of fatherly discipline. The Bible says that spankings from a rod can save a child from hell and give him wisdom, and God talks about using a rod to discipline His own people. The rod trains beloved family members away from doing evil by causing immediate suffering when they do what is wrong. Such discipline is painful, but helpful. Hebrews 12:6 “FOR WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE CHASTENS, AND SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES... v.10 He chastens us for our profit that we may become partakers in His holiness” (NKJV). On the other hand, there are Bible commentators who emphasize the interpretation of the “rod” as a weapon used against enemies (Delitzsch, GHW). If that lion or bear comes vaulting out of the bushes at you, the helpless sheep, the shepherd has a club that he can use to beat back the predators and keep you safe! Is it not a comfort that God can dash His enemies in pieces with His rod when the time comes, as Psalm 2:9 says? Those are three ways of interpreting the “rod” as a comfort. It appears to me that the staff can be applied in much the same way. This is the only time in the Psalms that a “staff” is mentioned, but in other places in the Bible (Ex. 21:19, 2 Kings 18:21, Zech 8:4) it refers to a walking stick which lends stability to the person who is walking (cf. Kimchi). This is, again, a comfort, especially to those who are in a weakened condition. It could also refer to guidance, like a cattle-prod that nudges the wandering sheep back in the right direction that will take them to food and safety (Delitzsch, GHW). Also, notice that what David is seeing is not the Shepherd Himself but the shepherd’s rod and staff. We can’t see God, so, as much as we would like to be comforted by being able to physically sense His presence with us, we have to be content in this earthly life with the indirect evidences He provides – His rod and staff (Barker). We can find comfort in the fact that we have received guidance in what to do, we have felt the sting of punishing consequences when we did wrong, and we have seen God incapacitate enemies that could have destroyed us. When these kinds of things happen in our lives, we need to see them as evidence that God is with us and take comfort that He is still shepherding us!
[21] This is my attempt at bringing out the emphatic pronoun “they” in the Hebrew text.
[22] Symmachus: dia faraggoV skepomenhV qanatw “through a ravine smothered in death”