A Good Shepherd for this Life and Eternity
"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Even 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. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever” (Psalm 23).
Grace to you
and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!
Psalm 23 is
the most familiar of all the psalms, and like an old friend, many of us have
known it since childhood. This is the psalm that we want to hear when we are facing
our own mortality, or lying in a hospital bed, or overwhelmed by disaster, or stricken
with grief, or standing at the grave of a loved one.
We depend on
it because of what the words give us—strength to go forward by propping up our
sagging faith. They remind us that the path we are walking is certain, even
though that path is without visible road signs. It is certain because it is not
our path. It is our Good Shepherd’s path along which we are being led.
A good shepherd guides his sheep, feeds His sheep, and gives them rest. Our Good Shepherd guides us in the paths of righteousness, which lead to eternal life. He nourishes and refreshes our bodies with wholesome food and refreshing drink, but the green pastures and quiet waters in this passage are better understood as the truths of the Gospel that give spiritual life and peace to our souls. God provides abundantly through His means of grace. “The Sacrament is given as a daily pasture and sustenance, that faith may refresh and strengthen itself so that it will not fall back in such a battle but become ever stronger and stronger. The new life must be guided so that it continually increases and progresses.”[i] The Good Shepherd gives us rest when He delivers us from the burden of sin and from futile efforts to save ourselves by our own works. His Word revives our souls whenever the assurance of forgiveness brings peace and joy to our hearts.
A good shepherd
also protects his sheep and keeps them alive by his care. He chases away the wild
animals and rustlers. Our Good Shepherd brings His sheep along the safe paths
to their proper destination, including through the “valley of the shadow of
death,” a reference to every kind of protection God gives us, but referring especially
to deliverance from Satan, sin, and eternal death.
Contrast David’s
view of life and death under the care of the Good Shepherd with William Ernest
Henley’s description of reality in his poem “Invictus.”
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade.
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
Our hymns
provide similar counsel. Comfort is found in giving up control and in simple trust.
For example, this one:
Lord, take my hand and lead me
Upon life’s way;
Direct, protect, and feed me
From day to day.
Without Your grace and favor
I go astray;
So take my hand, O Savior,
And lead the way. LSB 722:1
The specter of death as
the looming evil in our lives hangs over all three poems as surely as it does
over our lives. What hope, what consolation do we have against, in Henley’s
words, “the Horror of the shade”? Henley can offer only words that sound
increasingly hollow the closer the enemy of death approaches. Against the
menace of the years, “I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul”
offers as little comfort as the heroic “I am going to beat this disease” offers
to a person with terminal cancer.[iii]
Christian Wiman writes
about a famous novelist who praised his father for enduring a long, difficult
dying without ever seeking relief in religion. Wiman observes:
It is clear from the
son’s description that the father was in absolute despair, and that as those
cold waters closed over him he could find nothing to hold on to but his pride,
and drowned clutching that nothing. This is to be admired? … How astonishing it
is, the fierceness with which we cling to beliefs that made us miserable, or
beliefs that proved to be so obviously inadequate when extreme suffering—or
great joy—comes.[iv]
But the psalmist
speaks about the darkest shadow we must experience in an entirely different way:
“even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death” (Psalm 23:4).
The clause “even though I walk” already undercuts the threat of death without
denying its reality. It hints at hope against the greatest fear. “Even though”
raises my expectations that beyond the horror of death lies a firmer truth. It
suggests that a way out is ahead.
I do not
have to wait long. Death is only a temporary and momentary danger in the psalm—acknowledged
in verse 4 but not dwelt upon. The words “I fear no evil” are as confident as
Henley’s are defiant. And I am eager to have that same confidence and to hear
the reason for it: “For You are with me.”
At this point
the psalmist switches from third to second person. “You are with me. Your
rod and Your staff…” (Psalm 23:4) and he maintains it through Psalm 23:5.
The switch from “He” to “You” adds a sense of intimacy. To talk to someone
instead of about him is to assume that he is near and can hear and
respond. “Talking to” creates a closeness that “talking about” does not.
In Psalm
23:5, the psalmist comes through a dark valley and on the other side to a banquet
hall. If the Good Shepherd is leading us down paths He alone knows, and if He
is with us as we go through the darkest valley, is this the place to which the Good
Shepherd is leading us? Is this what is in store?
The
relationship between Psalm 23:5-6 and 23:1-4 is ambiguous. Psalm 23:1-4 can be
a description of our present experience but also a promise of the age to come,
and Psalm 23:5-6 can be a promise of the age to come but also a description of
the here and now. Jesus is a Good Shepherd for both this life and eternity. Both
are true. When we hold the two possibilities together in our interpretation, we
began to see the many relations between them, and as a result, we get a deeper
insight into the riches of the mystery that is God’s salvation.
The clause “You
prepare a table in the presence of my enemies” is also capable to two meanings.
It is usually interpreted as “you arrange a table before my enemies, who must watch
in envy.” But Scripture holds out another possibility: “you arrange a table before
me and also—surprise—before my (former) enemies, who share the feast with me.”
The Bible speaks about God’s Kingdom in both ways. In other words, the (impenitent)
enemies will be punished, and also the (converted) enemies will share in the
Kingdom.
But there is
a change in our status as well. In Psalm 23:1-4, we were sheep under the Good
Shepherd. Here, in verse 5, we are guests at a banquet arranged by God the King,
who is now the host. This is an easy transition because ancient Near Eastern
kings were often called the shepherds of their people. A king invited his most
honored associates to live in his palace. Such a king spread out rich banquet
tables at which the members of his court could feast.[v]
But more
than that, “You anoint my head with oil” speaks of the treatment that priests
and kings received. Aaron and his sons were anointed with oil as they were set
apart for their office as priest (Exodus 28:41 ff). Saul (1 Samuel 10:1), David
(1 Samuel 16:12-13), and Solomon (1 Kings 1:39) were all anointed as kings. The
tables have been turned for us. Our status as “sheep” has fallen away, and we
are now priestly royalty (1 Peter 2:9) whom the Lord Himself anoints.
Following
such an extravagant hope, the concluding verse brings us back to the present: “Surely
goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life” (Psalm 23:6). The
personification, the humanizing of the abstract “goodness” and “mercy” gives us
yet another dramatic way to think about the Lord; He is goodness and mercy in
the flesh, much like He is “love” in the flesh. By humanizing the abstractions “goodness”
and “mercy,” they become less disconnected and more knowable to us. They become
part of our world—something we experience up close rather than concepts we
reflect on or think about.
The final
line of the psalm is a fitting climax: “and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
forever” (23:6). Many scholars see no reference beyond the material world and
translate accordingly, “and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole
life long,” a reference only to the earthly sanctuary and limited hope. But the
rest of the psalm has raised the hope that the Lord’s reach extends through the
valley of the shadow of death and to the other side, not only up to it.
Who is
stronger, God or death? The voice in Psalm 23 would answer one way, the author
of “Invictus” another. Is death finally the victor? If the Good Shepherd is
with us in death, if, as the prophets say, He arranges a table for us in the
new age, if He anoints us to be priests and kings, if His goodness and mercy
pursue us throughout life, surely His reach does not end at the grave. Surely,
we will dwell in His presence forever.
If it is
read this way, “the house of the Lord” refers at once to both the earthly
sanctuary and also to the heavenly, both of which are places where God’s people
celebrate their fellowship with Him. The Lord is present in both places, and
true salvation is found finally in eternal fellowship that is already
anticipated in the earthly sanctuary.
Much of
Scripture passes in and out of our memory, but there are a few texts that stay
with us, always at hand to provide warmth when hearts grow cold. Psalm 23 is
one of the texts. People want to hear it at the funeral of their loved one so
that they can warm themselves against a cold reality. This is the psalm that
friends share with each other when they are afraid, not only because they may
not know what else to say but also because this is the best anyone can say.[vi]
Why does
Psalm 23 have such a hold on us? Why has it been at the center of the prayer
life of Christians through the ages? I think it is because in it we see the
heart of our Lord most clearly. In it we see His love most truly. When we
recite the psalm as our confession, we acknowledge that the story of God and
David is the story of Christ and us. We are the sheep. We are His Israel.
Behind Psalm 23 is the story of the Lord, the faithful Shepherd, who led His
people out of the land of death and miraculously sustained them in the desert
and brought them to the promised land flowing with milk and honey. This
faithful Shepherd chose David the shepherd boy to become the shepherd of His
people and to bear His promise. And when the flock seemed forever scattered,
this faithful Shepherd promised to through the prophet Ezekiel to gather them
again:[vii]
For thus says the Lord God:
Behold, I, I Myself will search for My sheep and will seek them out. As a
shepherd seeks out His flock when He is among His sheep that have been
scattered, so will I seek out My sheep, and I will rescue them from all places
where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness (Ezekiel
34:11–12).
This story rich in promise and hope reaches its climax in
the New Testament, where we hear that Jesus has compassion on the crowds
because they are like sheep without a shepherd (Mark 6:34), and where He
comforts His disciples by saying: “Fear not, little flock, for it is your
Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom” (Luke 12:32). Jesus is the one
who tells the parable of the shepherd who goes after the lost sheep (Luke
15:4-7) and who says of Himself: “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and
they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no
one will snatch them out of My hand” (John 10:27-28).
Psalm 23
brings Christ to you in all His tenderness and compassion. He guides you
safely, even through death’s dark valley. He serves you His Supper, offering you
the gift of forgiveness here and now. And His Supper is just a foretaste of the
feast He will serve you at the end of time, where you will sit at the head
table (Psalm 23:5). Jesus anoints you with His Spirit (like priests and kings)
and fills your cup to overflowing with His grace and mercy. Jesus gives you a
permanent dwelling with Him in His eternal Kingdom.
Jesus is the
Good Shepherd for this life and eternity. Go in His peace and strength. Serve
your neighbor with joy. You are forgiven for all your sins.
In the name
of the Father and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are
from the Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway
Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All
rights reserved.
[i] Paul Timothy McCain,
ed., Concordia: The
Lutheran Confessions (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House,
2005), 433–434.
[ii] Timothy Saleska Psalm 1-50: Concordia
Commentary: A Theological Exposition of Sacred Scripture (Saint Louis, MO: Concordia
Publishing House), 414.
[iii] Timothy Saleska Psalm 1-50: Concordia
Commentary: A Theological Exposition of Sacred Scripture (Saint Louis, MO; Concordia
Publishing House), 414.
[iv] Wiman, Christian. My
Bright Abyss: Meditation of a Modern Believer. New York: Farrar, Strauss
& Giraux, 2013, 7-8.
[v] John F. Brug Psalms 1: People’s Bible
Commentary (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 114.
[vi] Timothy Saleska Psalm 1-50: Concordia
Commentary: A Theological Exposition of Sacred Scripture (Saint Louis, MO: Concordia
Publishing House, 418.
[vii] Timothy Saleska Psalm 1-50: Concordia
Commentary: A Theological Exposition of Sacred Scripture (Saint Louis, MO: Concordia
Publishing House, 418.
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