Psalms 23

Psalms 23THEME: Christ as the great ShepherdPsalm 23, which is so popular, would be meaningless without Psalms 22, which leads me to say that we have a trilogy or triptych of psalms that belong together. They are Psalms 22, 23, and 24, and they are called the shepherd psalms. These three psalms present the following picture of our Lord: In Psalms 22 He is the Good Shepherd. The Lord Jesus Himself made the statement, “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep” (Joh_10:11). Now here in Psalms 23 He is the Great Shepherd. Notice this title in the great benediction at the conclusion of the Epistle to the Hebrews: “Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever.

Amen” (Heb_13:20-21). Psalms 23 reveals Him as the Great Shepherd. Next, we see Him in Psalms 24 as the Chief Shepherd. “And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away” (1Pe_5:4). To put it succinctly, in Psalms 22 we see the cross, in Psalms 23 the crook (the Shepherd’s crook), and in Psalms 24 the crown (the King’s crown). In Psalms 22 Christ is the Savior; in Psalms 23 He is the Satisfier; in Psalms 24 He is the Sovereign. In Psalms 22 He is the foundation; in Psalms 23 He is the manifestation; in Psalms 24 He is the expectation. In Psalms 22 He dies; in Psalms 23 He is living; in Psalms 24 He is coming. Psalms 22 speaks of the past; Psalms 23 speaks of the present; and Psalms 24 speaks of the future. In Psalms 22 He gives His life for the sheep; in Psalms 23 He gives His love to the sheep; in Psalms 24 He gives us light when He shall appear. What a wonderful picture we have of Christ in these three psalms! Now let us zero in on Psalms 23, probably the most familiar passage there is in the Word of God. No portion in writing of any time or of any work has been so widely circulated. Jews, both Orthodox and Reformed, know this psalm. Christians of all denominations are acquainted with this psalm. The world has caught its beauty. Much has been written about this psalm, although its six verses are short and simple. It is like the Gettysburg Address as far as brevity is concerned. Someone has said, “I do not care how much a man says, if he says it in a few words.” Someone else has said, “If folk who do not have anything to say would refrain from saying it, it would be a better world.” Psalms 23 has few words. There was a business executive years ago who had a little motto on the wall of his office for all to see. It said, If you have anything important to say, say it in five minutes. Well, it only takes about forty-five seconds to read Psalms 23. It is brief. It is not the language of philosophy. It is not the language of theology. It is not a legal or scientific document. It is sublimely simple and simply sublime. Before we look at the text itself, there are some things we should consider about this psalm. It is agreed that David is the author, but the question has always been: Did he write it when he was a shepherd boy or when he was an aged king? It is important to know the answer. Dr. Frank Morgan has called this “The Song of the Old Shepherd.” I like that, and I agree with him. David the king never forgot David the shepherd boy.

In Psalms 23 you do not have the musings of a green, inexperienced lad but the mature deliberations of a ripe experience. You see, David, when he came close to the end of his life, looked back upon his checkered career. It was then that he wrote this psalm. The old king on the throne remembered the shepherd boy. Life had beaten, battered, baffled, and bludgeoned this man. He was a hardened soldier, a veteran who knew victory, privation, hardship.

He knew song and shadow. He was tested and tried. Therefore in Psalms 23 we do not have the theorizing of immaturity but fruit and the mature judgment born of a long life. This psalm begins by saying, “The LORD is my shepherd.” By what authority do you say my shepherd? Is this psalm for everybody? I don’t think so. Since Psalms 22, 23, and 24 go together and tell one story, you have to know the Lord Jesus Christ as the Good Shepherd who gave His life for the sheep before you can know Him as the Great Shepherd. You must know the Shepherd of Psalm 22 before you can come to Psalms 23 and say, “The LORD is my shepherd.”

Psalms 23:1

REVELATION OF THE SANCTUARY OF THE SHEPHERD’S SOULNotice “my shepherd …I shall not want …He maketh me to lie down …he leadeth me.” This is a “he and me” psalm. The emphasis is upon the fact that there is nothing between the man’s soul and God. “The LORD is my shepherd.” Verse Psa_23:1 is a declaration and a deduction. It is one thing to say, “The Lord is a shepherd"many people say that, and it sounds good. But can you make it personal and say, “The LORD is my shepherd”? By the authority of His redemptive work, His death and resurrection, you can trust Him and call Him your shepherd. It is also easy to say, “The Lord will be my shepherd,” but David did not say that either. He said, “The LORD is my shepherd.” This is his declaration. “I shall not want"notice that David does not say, I have not wanted, but “I shall not want.” What is it that I need? Well, I need safety. I’m a sheep, a stupid little animal. Therefore, my Shepherd sees to it that I won’t want for protection. He protects me. When a little sheep says, “I shall not want” and “I shall never perish,” it is because it has a wonderful Shepherd. “I shall not want” looks into the future and gives assurance to the child of God. The security of the believer rests upon the Shepherd. And the believer’s deduction rests upon his declaration. A friend of mine who moved to Oregon once heard me talk about sheep. He said to me later, “Dr. McGee, you gave me the impression that sheep are nice, sweet little animals. You made them appear so helpless. I want to show you some sheep.” He invited me to dinner. He gathered several sheep together, and after dinner we went out to look at them. As we watched them, he told me, “These sheep are stubborn, hardheaded, and pigheaded animals. Besides that, they are dirty and filthy.” I said, “That’s a picture of the human race.” They do set us forth! Not only do sheep need safety, they need sufficiency and satisfaction. “He maketh me to lie down in green pastures.” That is sufficiency. Folk that know sheep tell us that a hungry sheep will not lie down. When sheep are lying down in green pastures, it means they have their tummies full. And Christ is our sufficiency. “And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst” (Joh_6:35). “He leadeth me beside the still waters.” Sheep are frightened by turbulent water. And they don’t like stagnant water. They don’t want to drink where the hogs drink. All of this applies to the human family. We need rest in our daynot so much physical or mental rest, but rest of the soul. Remember what David said in Psa_55:6: “Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest.” He wanted to get away from it all. But he found out that getting away from it all did not solve his problems. He had to learn to put his trust in the Lord, rest in Him, and wait patiently upon Him. The Lord Jesus says, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will rest you” (Mat_11:28).

Psalms 23:3

RECORD OF THE THOUGHTS OF THE SHEPHERD’S MIND"He restoreth my soul.” David knew what that was. David had sinnedhe was that little lost sheep that had strayed from the fold, and his Shepherd had restored him. “He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.” He leads, but we must follow. The Lord Jesus said to the religious rulers who were actually His enemies, “…I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father’s name, they bear witness of me. But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (Joh_10:25-27). Sheep will follow their own shepherd. That is the way you can tell the one to whom the sheep belong.

In Jesus’ day the shepherd never drove his sheep; he led them. That is no longer the case. When I visited the land of Israel, I very seldom saw a shepherd walking ahead of his sheep. But in the time of Christ, the shepherd was with his sheep day after day. They knew him and they followed him. Our Shepherd leads us in right paths, and it is up to us to follow Him. “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.” Here is courage and comfort. Death is the supreme test of life. This is not just talking about the deathbed. Our human family lives in the shadow of death. When a person is born, he starts down a great canyon, and that canyon is the valley of the shadow of death. You are in it constantly.

In Los Angeles they say that when you cross the street, you better move in a hurry because we have only the quick and the dead. If you are not quick, you will be dead. All of us walk in the shadow of death. As someone has said, the moment that gives you life begins to take it away from you. All of us are in death’s valley. The shadow of death is on us.

But, all the while I walk through that valley, I will fear no evil. This is the encouraging comfort He gives. If one of our loved ones dies as a child of God, this is our courage and comfort. “I will fear no evil: for thou art with me.” We can know that our Shepherd is with us at all times, and even at the time of death. And I want Him with me when my time comes to die. “Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” A rod was for defense, and a staff was for direction. He gives us gentle reproof and severe rebuke. He has a rod for our defense, but He also has a staff for our direction. He has a staff for the little old sheep that are bound to stray. That comforts me. Now that I am getting to be an old man, I look back on my life and I realize that indeed that rod is a comfort. He used it on me several times, and I thank Him for it because it got me back into the fold. We all need that.

Psalms 23:5

REFLECTION OF THE HAPPINESS AND HOPE OF THE SHEPHERD’S HEARTThese two verses reflect the happiness and hope of the Shepherd’s heart. “Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies.” Here we have felicity, fruitfulness, and fullness. All of that is undergirded with joy. What is that table today? I think it speaks of the Lord’s table. At the time this psalm was written it spoke of God’s promise to Israel of physical blessings; to us He promises spiritual blessings. “Thou anointest my head with oil.” That oil speaks of the Holy Spirit. We need that anointing today. We cannot face life alone. “My cup runneth over.” This is symbolic of joy. We need to be undergirded with joy today. The Lord says, “…I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (Joh_10:10). The Lord wants our joy to be full. It reminds me of the little girl who said, “Lord, fill up my cup. I can’t hold very much, but I can run over a whole lot.” Oh, how this world needs Christians who are running over! This brings us to the final verse of this psalm. Our Shepherd brings us all the way from the green pastures and the still waters to the Father’s house. “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.” In Joh_14:2-3 the Lord says to us, “…I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” You know, we are not pedigreed sheep, and sheep are not worth much anyway, but we do have a wonderful Shepherd. Can you say at this moment, “The LORD is my shepherd”? If you can, all the wonderful promises of this psalm are yours. If He is the Shepherd who gave His life for the sheep and He is your Savior, this psalm is for you.