The Lord is My Shepherd

 The Lord is My Shepherd 

March 7, 2025

Psalms 23

1 The LORD is my shepherd ^h7462a,

I shall not want.

2 He makes me lie down in green pastures;

He leads me beside quiet waters.

3 He restores my soul;

He guides me in the paths of righteousness

For His name’s sake.

4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I 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 have anointed my head with oil;

My cup overflows.

6 Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life,

And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

h7462a. רָעָה raah; a prim. root; to pasture, tend, graze:--

John 10:11

11 “I am the good shepherd; the goodshepherd lays down His life for the sheep.

As we consider the names of God, we come to Jehovah Raah, The Lord is my Shepherd. This speaks of the care and concern that the Lord has for each of us. The twenty third Psalm expresses this beautifully and thus is one of everyone’s favorites. I’m sure it was one of the first Psalms I memorized in Sunday School as a small child. I remember reciting it often, and we also had a painting of the Good Shepherd on the wall of our Sunday School classroom. This particular copy of that famous religious painting was a memorial to one of my Sunday School teachers who died tragically, trapped in her car in a snow storm one winter. She was a young lady who represented the Lord’s love and concern for me, so her accident was a tragedy in my young life and the image of the Good Shepherd was powerfully etched in my mind.

Jesus applied this name to himself in John 10; “I am the Good Shepherd”. By this, He not only identified identified himself with the Lord God, but also with King David, who wrote Psalm 23 and who represented the kingly shepherds of the nation of Israel. But unlike the kings of old, Jesus was the good shepherd who layed down his life for the sheep. Such powerful love has been shown by no other king or leader. How can we comprehend the love that the Lord has for us that He not only provides for our care and comfort, but actually lays down His life for us so that we can be redeemed and live with Him forever? 

My cup overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life,

And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Amen