The Good Shepherd Psalm 23

Introduction: Grandmother and our elders had a living God (Shepherd) that worship Him. Seven days a week. As a child I complain about being in church all day on Sunday. Sunday School, Sunday morning worship services, 3:00 o’clock services and BTU and nigh worship. But on Monday morning Grandmother would be walking through her shotgun house sing, I know It Was the Blood, I know it was the blood One day went I was lost He die upon the cross, I know it was the blood for me. It was to much for me to understand. I could not comprehend how she could worship all day on Sunday and Monday morning get up cook and go across town to work and somebody’s home, watch their children and clean there home and come home talking about the Goodness of God. If she had company they talk about God.

The Lord is my Shepherd

A shepherd during the time of the Old Testament was often, but not always, a child. Whatever his age, the shepherd’s job was to protect his flock and guide them to good pastures with plenty of food and slow-moving, easily accessible water. If fed grass of poor quality, the sheep would be malnourished. If the water moved too quickly, the sheep would be too afraid to drink from it. Guiding the flock of sheep to a good location was an extremely important task for a shepherd because good pastures kept his flock healthy. A shepherd typically carried a few items with him to aid him in his task of caring for the sheep. First, he would have a rod. The rod was a sturdy stick with a knob at one end. Sometimes the knob even had nails in it to make it a better weapon. The shepherd used his rod to protect his sheep from wild animals or other threats. The shepherd also carried a long staff. The staff was used as a walking stick for the shepherd, who also used it to maneuver sheep when needed. For further protection, shepherds often carried a sling, comprised of a leather pouch on a string. Placing a stone in the pouch, a skilled shepherd could fling rocky projectiles over a good distance in order to scare off or wound wild animals. During biblical times, families in the Middle East relied upon sheep to provide food, wool, and sheepskin. Because sheep were so valuable, shepherds would stay with the flock to protect them day and night. Frequently, the youngest boy in the family served as a shepherd until he grew older and could do harder manual labor. David was a shepherd for his family, and he often used references to shepherding in the book of Psalms. One of the most well-known psalms, Psalm 23, describes the Lord as the Great Shepherd:

2. I shall Not Want

This phrase used to confuse me a lot when I first started reading the Bible because I thought the author meant he didn't "want" The Lord as his Shepherd. First of all, if you read the entire statement as it is in context, it's important to notice the semicolon [See note below] separating it from the first part of the statement: "The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want." These are two separate statements, and the second statement is an extension of the first, a "magnifier" of sorts: 1) God is my Shepherd, and 2) I shall not want. To "not want," or to "lack nothing," is a result of God being our Shepherd, who loves us, cares for us, and provides for us.

It helps to realize that Psalms is a poetic book and a song book, so the words may read differently than they would in a narrative form. In addition, certain translations of the Bible use wording that reflects Old English, which can be harder to understand.

When you read this verse in its original language, Hebrew, the word "want" (Strong's 2637) translates to these meanings:

The psalmist is stating that because God is his Shepherd, he will not lack or have want of anything; he will not decrease or become bereaved; God will not fail him as the Good Shepherd; God will uphold the psalmist and keep him from diminishing to a lowly state. In short, the psalmist is proclaiming his faith in God as his Shepherd to provide for all of his needs; he has all he could ever want because he trusts in God, and his God will never fail him.

[Note: I realize that in the original language, semicolons were not used. The semicolon in our English usage in this instance helps us to understand how this entire statement was originally intended to be read. These are two separate statements, the second one being dependent on the first.]