Meditation 272
Psalm 23
This week the readings remind us of the loving care we receive from God, beginning with the well known and loved shepherd’s psalm, which is accepted as a psalm of David.
David had worked as a shepherd when he was young, so he knew that a shepherd was to keep the sheep safe and healthy. A good shepherd would find lush pasture with clean still water where the sheep could be nourished, and a good shepherd would protect the sheep from predators. Sheep are creatures that are followers; who are not able to protect themselves. Sheep are weighed down and slowed down by their coats of wool, and they have neither sharp teeth nor claws to protect themselves. They rely completely on the shepherd.
The psalm begins by saying that the Lord is David’s shepherd, and because of that: David will not want, he will have a safe place to lie down, and he will he given food and drink. The Lord, as a good shepherd, will do more than simply look after the physical needs of the one who follows. The Lord will restore the soul. The inner life will be nurtured as well as the physical being. The Lord will also lead the one who follows in the right paths, and this depends upon the reputation of God, as the phrase “for his name’s sake” implies. The psalmist is describing a life of security that relies upon God.
The Lord will not just be a fair weather shepherd. Even if the psalmist was taken from the green pastures and find that the path is in the darkest valley, even here it is both known, and felt in the heart, that no evil is to be feared; the Lord is with David, and the rod and staff of the shepherd will guide and protect the one following the shepherd.
So far we are told that the Lord will the give care of green pastures and protection in the darkest valley. The shepherd’s protection does not stop here. Even in the presence of enemies, the Lord will give a public demonstration of the affection and care for the one who follows. To prepare a table and anoint a person’s head with oil was to show hospitality. In the day in which this psalm was written, hospitality was considered a virtue, and a way of showing compassion. When a host anointed the head of a guest it was an act of welcome and an implied promise of protection.
In response to the goodness that David knows of the Lord, David’s cup overflows. In other words, he has received abundantly from God. He is confident that goodness and mercy will be with him for his entire life and that he will live in God’s presence forever.
As believers we are privileged to be able to take the psalms and the faith life that they describe, and make them our own. As we begin each day, we like David may do so in the confidence that the Lord is our shepherd who guides us in right ways.