The Lord is My Shepherd (part 1 of 4)

Psalm 23 says, “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake. 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. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: Thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.”

The 23rd Psalm is the most popular of the 150 psalms, and I think it is the most well-known part of the Bible. Kyle Yates said about this psalm, "More griefs have been put to rest by its sweet assurance. More sadness has been driven away. More confidence has been instilled than tongue can tell or pen can record. It pictures God in love with His people, with rest in His bosom, with grace for all of their needs.” I like that. Truly, Psalm 23 is one of the most blessed parts of the Bible to read and study.

David, a shepherd boy who later became the King of Israel, wrote Psalm 23. God sent the prophet Samuel to Jesse's house to anoint the next king of Israel with oil. God had rejected Saul. Jesse brought all of his sons in front of Samuel. He had seven big, strong, and good-looking sons. Samuel was shown Jesse's oldest son, Eliab. Jesse said, "This must be your pick." "The Lord does not see as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." (See 1 Samuel 16:7). So Samuel said, "No, it's not him," and he went down the line of sons until all seven were rejected, which Jesse was probably very surprised by.

Samuel then asked, "Do you have any other boys? I know God sent me here to choose the next king, and none of these boys are it.” Jesse probably thought, “These are my oldest and best-looking." Samuel said, "I have one more son, but he's the smallest and youngest. He is out watching the sheep." Being a shepherd was the lowliest and worst job in the family.

So they went out to find David. Samuel said, "We won't sit down until he gets here." I can almost see them running to get David. "David, David! Samuel is at our house and wants to talk to you. You're next in line to be interviewed for the job of King of Israel!” David probably thought, "Me? Are you kidding?” He probably put down his harp and ran home with his brothers.

When the prophet Samuel saw David, God told him, "Get up and anoint him; this is the one!" So Samuel got up, took the oil, and poured it over David's head. I can picture David shaking as the oil was poured on him. He might have thought, "One minute I'm watching sheep, and the next minute I'm with the prophet Samuel! I'm going to be the next ruler of Israel!” For a while, David went back to watching his sheep and probably just forgot about what had happened. But in the end, God brought David to the throne and made him the King of Israel.

This shepherd boy, who was also the King of Israel, wrote most of the Psalms. God chose David to be king because he was "a man after His own heart" (see 1 Samuel 13:14), God said, that is the heart of a shepherd.

When did David write this Psalm? Maybe it was when he was a shepherd-king? We don't know. Some say it was when he was a young boy playing his harp in the woods. I can see David sitting on a rock with his sheep and the green fields below him, playing his harp and singing to them. Then he understood that God was his shepherd, just like he had been protecting his sheep out of love for them.

He might have had a sword in his hands instead of a harp. David was likely middle-aged, strong, and armed in the fight against the enemy. He may have returned home after a day of battle and penned, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.”

But I would rather believe that David wrote this Psalm when he was older. His long hair falls over his shoulders, his beard is gray, and his crown may be crooked. No doubt, David thought about his life again. He remembered Jesse's call. He thought back to when the Lord kept him and his sheep safe from the lion and the bear in the wilderness. He thought about all the times Saul chased him and he was able to hide in a cave. He thought about how his son Absalom had died. He thought about all the sins God had forgiven him for.

The Psalms are songs. They are poems in Hebrew. They were supposed to be sung to God. In this Psalm, David started to tell the Lord everything that was on his mind. "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want." I can picture David, an old man, sitting on his throne and writing this beautiful psalm. Although we don't know when David wrote this Psalm, but we do know that the Holy Spirit inspired him to do so. The Bible says that "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable..." (2 Timothy 3:16). This means that all kinds of writing, whether it's poetry, prophecy, or literature, can be used to teach, correct, and guide people in the right way.

David sees the Lord as his shepherd in this Psalm. He believes that the Lord gave him everything he needed in life, death, and for all eternity. The Good Shepherd would take care of all of his and our needs.

This Psalm's main idea is in verse 1. The word "LORD" is important here. It is in all capital letters: "the Lord, Jehovah Yahweh." It is a compound name for God that means "Jehovah" or "Yahweh." The Bible has compound names for God, like "Jehovah Raah" which means the Lord my shepherd. There are other Old Testament names like: Jehovah Tsidkenu, the Lord our Righteousness; Jehovah Nissi, the Lord my Banner; and Jehovah Shalom, the Lord my Peace. God puts His name with these truths to show us who He is. The name "LORD" in all caps or "Jehovah Yahweh" means "I AM," which is God's supreme name. Jesus used it in the New Testament as "Ego eimi" or "I AM."

We know from John 10 that this I AM or Jehovah Raah is Jesus Christ. "I am the good shepherd," says John 10:11. Jesus is saying, "I am the Shepherd, the good one." There are many bad shepherds, but Jesus is the Good Shepherd. Jesus Christ is our Good Shepherd, which means that He is Jehovah, Yahweh, and God. It says that Jesus Christ is God and that He is our Lord and Shepherd.

We are sheep because the Lord is our shepherd. I mention this to remind us that sheep are not intelligent. They are weak, defenseless, and dirty animals. They're not the adorable, fluffy, white sheep you like. They get dirty when they are in the pasture. Sheep aren't very smart either. They don't know where they're going. The Bible says that we are like sheep.

It's not flattering to be a sheep, but we are His sheep, and He is our Shepherd. The sheep need to be led, fed, and kept safe. Jesus is our Good Shepherd. He leads us, takes care of us, and keeps us safe in life, death, and even after we die.

The first verse of the Psalm sets the tone: "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want."

I want to divide this Psalm into three parts that show how the Lord our Shepherd takes care of us. First, He looks after our weaknesses. Second, He looks after our worries. Third: He looks out for our ways. ​