Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

This evening we continue with our study of God’s names as given in Scripture.

As many of you know, we just finished one of the most significant names of God which is His name, Jehovah or YHWH.

In studying His name, Jehovah, we discovered that He is a God of righteousness and truth.

However, God’s revelation of Himself to man as Jehovah did not stop with just that name.

God continued to reveal Himself by using His name Jehovah in conjunction with other nouns.

These compound names offer us a developing revelation of His true nature and how He loves His people.

If you have your charts, take them out.

Please note that in the box we just finished that we have the name Jehovah.

Below it are several other boxes.

Those are boxes in which we are going to fill out as we study each compound compilation of Jehovah.

In the first box, you can put this name - Jehovah-Rohi.

The quintessential passage for this name of God is Psalm 23.

I find it interesting that day we do this study that Psalm 23 was part of my daily Bible reading this morning as I was having my personal devotions.

I do not believe that is a coincidence.

However, I digress.

Take your Bibles and turn to Psalm 23.

Note that it begins with “The LORD (Jehovah) is my shepherd.”

In Hebrew, the word for shepherd is the word “r’h.”

Now, remember that in Hebrew there are no vowels.

As a verb, it is pronounced as “raha” and as a noun, it is pronounced “rohi.”

ra˓ah (רָעָה, 7462), “to pasture, shepherd.”

This common Semitic root appears in Akkadian, Phoenician, Ugaritic, Aramaic, and Arabic.

It is attested in all periods of Hebrew and about 170 times in the Bible.

To understand it in context, we must turn to Genesis 29:7 and the life of Jacob.

Here we see a shepherds responsibility is to “feed” the sheep.

Later, in Genesis 37:2, we read the following.

Joseph also, as a shepherd, tended the sheep by ensuring they were fed.

Later, as we move into the Old and New Testaments, the Holy Spirit takes the responsibility of shepherds and applies to a myriad of authoritative positions such as a king, a leader, and, eventually in the New Testament, a pastor.

Note this example concerning kings.

As you can see, the word “r’h” is used figuratively as providing nourishment for those under a person’s care.

They were to “feed them.”

Now, as we go back to Psalm 23, we find the noun form when it states “The LORD is my shepherd.”

In other words, Jehovah, the God of righteousness and truth, is the One Who feeds me.

He is the Great Shepherd.

We can take these thoughts and give it this consideration.

God revealed Himself to Israel as “YHWH” [Jehovah], the God of righteousness.

Later, as Israel wandered through the wilderness and, even later, as they lived in Canaan, they behaved like sheep.

They were in need of someone to guide them, feed them, protect them, and care for them.

As we know, God did just that.

Through all the trails, temptations, dangers, and difficulties, God was their shepherd.

He lovingly provided nourishment, guidance, and protection.

He was their faithful Shepherd.

This is interesting when you consider that Israel was, in a sense, a pastoral people.

They were shepherds themselves.

Many of them had herds of cattle and flocks of sheep.

Without any doubt, they fully understood the duties and demands of shepherding.

Consequently, as God revealed Himself as the Great Shepherd there was no doubt in their minds what that entailed.

Going back to our text, David was a shepherd long before he became a king.

And, as we know, David had a wonderful relationship with God.

Therefore, it should not surprise us that he would pen the words “The LORD [YHWH, Jehovah] is my Shepherd [r’h].”

David begins this great Psalm with name of Jehovah and ends it with the name of Jehovah.

The Hebrew word “r’h” is found in 142 verses of the Old Testament.

It is used 171 times.

When you examine how it is translated into English you gain a great understanding of its use.

It is most often translated as “shepherd, shepherd’s, and shepherds.”

However, it is also translated as “feed, feeding, feedeth, feedest, or fed.”

Additionally, it is translated as “pastor, pastors, herdmen, keeper.”

However, in Proverbs 28:7, we read this.

Here, “r’h” is translated as “companion.”

You will find the same rendering in Judges 14:20.

I note all that to say this.

These different renderings gives us a complete picture of the LORD as our Great Shepherd.

He is our Feeder as He continually provides for us.

He is our Keeper as He protects us.

He is our Companion Who is always there to cheer us and to comfort us.

He is our Pastor as He guides us.

He is our Herdsman as He gathers us.

Finally, He is our Shepherd as He watches over us.

All of which we could spend an enormous amount of time studying.

However, I simply want you to understand that when God revealed Himself as our Shepherd, He chose a designation which pictures Him as a loving, caring, and personal God.

His Revelation as a Shepherd

Let’s do a little interactive exercise this evening.

Here is the exercise.

The Old Testament is replete with men who were shepherds.

For example, who is the very first man to be noted as a shepherd in the Old Testament?

Does anyone know?

The answer is Abel.

Now here is the exercise.

Help me list in order after Abel the notable men of the Old Testament that were shepherds.

Let’s try to name them and put them in order.

It does not have to be a comprehensive list.

Do the exercise!

Now, here is what I want you to see from our exercise.

God used a very common, blue collar occupation as a means to reveal Himself to us.

Each of these men were experienced shepherds.

Everyday, as they watched over their flocks, they understood that these sheep were defenseless.

Sheep needed someone who was stronger and much more intelligent than them to guard them and protect them.

All around these sheep were predators who were waiting to pounce on them and destroy them.

These men, who we see today as faithful men of God, needed to see themselves as sheep.

Spiritually speaking, these men were just as defenseless and lost as sheep.

Therefore, God provided Himself as a mirror of their own occupation.

He showed them He was the only One Who could feed them, lead them, and protect them spiritually.

They needed One Who was stronger and more intelligent than them to do so.

Thus, it was Jehovah Who reached down with His loving and strong arm.

He gathered them into His bosom and became their defender and nurturer.

This picture of God revealed Him as a close personal companion to His people.

There was close bond between the shepherd and his sheep.

Later, as men took on leadership roles, God used that same relationship to illustrate their responsibility to those placed under their care.

We noted this earlier when we read 2 Samuel 5:2