Psalm 23

The Lord the Shepherd of His People

A Psalm of David

1 The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.

2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.

3 He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.

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.

5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.

Psalm 23 in the New King James Version

The Book of Psalms is a collection of songs -- songs which the Jewish people of old, sang to the Lord.

One of the more famous psalms is this one written by King David, the 23rd Psalm.

David before he became king of Israel was a shepherd boy. His father gave him the responsibility of taking care of their sheep.

In the many days he was alone with their sheep, he must have had long boring moments and lots of opportunities to have conversations with God.

Quiet Time

He had to, because being young, ignorant, alone and having big responsibilities -- a lot of sheep to tend for and having to keep safe from predators and the sheep's own wrong doings, he needed all the help he can get.

During his long experience as a shepherd, David would have several periods of quiet times with God, during which he would have had many opportunities to receive revelations that as he was shepherding his flock of sheep, the Lord Himself, was shepherding him.

The way he was able to take care of his sheep was a reflection of how he would have understood how the Lord was taking care of him.

In this psalm, David wrote a poem to the Lord meant to be sang. The song is like he was one of God's sheep. In David's heart and mind, God was a Good Shepherd to him.

Like him who have fears and insecurities, he would have taken care of his own sheep and they would have had nothing more to ask of him and nothing to fear.

In the same way David showed this when he too had nothing to fear from the giant Goliath.

In 1 Samuel 17:34-36, David was recorded to have was mentioned to King Saul that wild animals have come to prey on the sheep he was tending but he was able to rescue those sheep which have been taken by predators. A Goliath would be a walk in the park.

Such is the picture of how the Lord takes care of us, His lost sheep, and how secure we are to have been found and back in His care.