This is my understanding of Psalms 23
I hope you are blessed by reading it, I was blessed by writing it.
Psalms 23 King James Version
1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters.
3 He restoreth my soul: He leadeth 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 Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me.
5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies:
Thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth 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 for ever.
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David the king never forgot David the shepherd boy
It is believed David wrote this when he was an older man
looking back on God's love and forgiveness, protection and provision for him
David uses the metaphor of God being his Shepherd, we and David being the sheep
David is exalting God in worship with a pray of Praise to God
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V. 1. The Lord is my shepherd: I shall not want.
God is called by different names in the Bible.
See the bottom of this page to view some of His names.
The Lord: (Adonai means Lord or my Lord) is.
This is a statement of fact about who God is and what David is saying.
David says, The Lord is MY shepherd : I shall not want.
The usage of "my" here is showing a possessive ownership.
He knew God was his God.
David uses "my" and "I" showing intimacy between God and himself.
To David it was a personal relationship between himself and God.
What is between each of us and God is personal too.
We must come to God as individuals.
No one can believe in Jesus for us.
It is a choice we make as individuals. We must all believe for ourselves.
David is thanking God for taking care of his wants.
He is aware that God is "The Great I Am"
for every need that each of us have.
God takes care of all of my needs and most of my wants.
The wants that are not good for me He withholds.
I think it also means that there is no need to want what others have,
for God will provide everything we need.
We are not to covet (want) what others have.
The last of the 10 Commandments Exodus 20: 2-17 is
"You shall not covet (want) your neighbor's wife;
and you shall not desire your neighbor's house,
his field, his male servant, his female servant,
his ox, his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's."
David had broken this commandment.
Each of us at one time have broken this Commandment too.
He is praising God for His forgiveness and for His provision.
We too must ask for forgiveness and thank Him for the blessings He bestows on us.
This is personal between God and each individual.
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V.2. He makes me to lie down in green pastures: HE leads me beside the still waters.
David is still using the metaphor of God being his Shepherd.
The shepherd makes the sheep lay down in green pastures.
A sheep will not lay down when it is hungry.
This is a picture of the sheep being full and at peace.
He leads the sheep down to still waters.
Sheep will not drank from dirty water or a rushing stream.
Often the shepherd had to dam off the water
so the sheep could have still waters.
If the sheep were to drink from a rushing stream it could fall in.
Its heavy coat of wool would weight it down and it could drown.
David is expressing praise to God for
His bountiful goodness and watch care over him.
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V3. He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the path of righteousness for
His name's sake.
David knew what it was like to have his sins
forgiven and fellowship with God restored.
I know what it is like to have my sins forgiven and fellowship
with Jesus restored,
David says, "For God to lead me in the paths of righteousness".
The Scriptures says there are two roads,
one is wide and leads to destruction the other is narrow.
The narrow road leads to God . We must follow Him on the narrow road.
This is something we cannot do by ourselves.
This is something God does for 'His name sake'.
In the Bible the Shepherd led the sheep. He knew each one personally.
He cared for each one's needs.
Often He would take a sheep on his shoulders and carry it.
There are times in our lives when we are so weary we cannot go on our own.
Those times Jesus the Shepherd picks us up and carries us till
we can walk on our own.
He has carried me many times.
Often I was not aware of being carried till after the crisis was over.
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V.4. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me.
Often David had gone through the valley
of the shadow of death. He had been there many times in his life.
When he was a boy guarding the sheep
he had to fight lions and bears to protect the sheep.
As a young lad he fought the giant Goliath,
and also when King Saul tried to kill him.
He felt the heartache of death when his children died.
He knew how it felt to lose a love one.
We too have been through the Valley of the shadow of death.
God is always there with us, His children.
We may not always feel His presence,
but He is there for us who are called by His name.
David said he would fear no evil for God was with him,
the rod and staff comforted him.
The shepherd had a rod and staff.
The rod was for defense and correction and the staff direction.
The rod was used as a club to defend himself and the sheep.
The staff was used in guiding the sheep to safety.
The curve at the top was used to help steady when walking.
The curve was also used to pick up a sheep when it went astray,
bringing it to a place of safety.
David remembered God's correction when he had sinned and gone astray.
He recalled God calling him back to Him.
God showed He loved David and wanted him to be righteous.
Have you ever been corrected by God? I have.
The Scripture says in Proverbs 3:12
God chastises those who love Him when we sin.
David said he would fear not evil for God was always with him.
Fear is one of the greatest weapons in Satan's arsenal.
He uses it to keep us from living a joy filled life.
All through the Bible God has said to His people "Fear Not".
That is what He is saying to us now.
We are going through turbulent times in this world now.
God has not changed. He is still saying to us His children "Fear Not".
He is still in control and NOTHING will happen
to His children that He does not allow.
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V. 5. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies:
thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
I believe He is talking here to Christians about the Lord's Table.
We are told in the New Testament to observe The Lord's Supper.
It is a Remembrance of the Great Price Jesus paid for us.
The Bread stands for His bloody and beaten body;
His death on that cruel Cross.
When we take of the bread we are to remember His death
the most valuable gift anyone ever received.
If we have ought agains anyone we must ask God to forgive us.
His precious blood and death cleans us and we are forgiven.
The wine stands for His precious blood
that poured down from the thorn of crowns to His pierced side,
to His nail pierced hands and His feet.
Can we forget how He was beaten the day before?
How He was spit upon, How His beard was pulled out.
How He ask God the Father to forgive them,
for they knew not what they did.
This gift is salvation through Jesus Christ our Messiah.
He took my sins and your sins on Himself. It is a free gift He gives us.
We could never deserve it. We could never earn it.
It is given because of God's mercy and love for us.
At the end of the day the shepherd was at the gate
the sheep passed through.
He would pick up each sheep and examine it.
He examined it to see if it had cuts or scratches on it.
He would then put oil on it to aid in its healing.
The same way David examine the sheep to make sure it was in good health.
God examines us.
Because of what He did on that cross,
He declared, we who love Him to be forgiven. He anoints us with oil.
The Oil here speaks of the Holy Spirit.
When we accept (believe) Jesus as our Lord and Savior
the Holy Spirit comes to live in us. He dwells in us.
This is what is meant when it says
our bodies are the Temple of the Holy Spirit.
He, the Holy Spirit will never leave us nor forsake us.
This knowledge is so joyous
we like King David should say "my cup runneth over".
V.6. 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 Romans 8:31 of the New Testament
Paul writes, "What shall we then say to these things?
If God is for us, who can be against us?"
Like David we can KNOW God is in control of our lives,
His goodness and mercy will be with us always.
When our time on Earth is over we will dwell in the House of the Lord for ever.
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Luke 24: 1-5 ask and answers the question
"Why do you seek the living among the dead?
Death on the cross could not hold Jesus.
On the third day He arose from death and
forty days later He ascended to Heaven
Jesus promised when He went back into Heaven He would come again.
He will come for His children who love Him. We will dwell with Him for ever.
This is the Blessed Hope of Christians today.
That day is drawing near. He could come
at any moment. I hope you are ready for His return.
John said in the Book of Revelation 22:20-21,
"He which testifieth these things saith,
Surely I come quickly. Amen. EVEN SO, COME, LORD JESUS."
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
Some of the names used for God in the Bible's Old Testement
El Shaddai (Lord God Almighty)
El Elyon (The Most High God)
Adonai (Lord, Master)
Yahweh (Lord, Jehovah)
Jehovah Nissi (The Lord My Banner)
Jehovah-Raah (The Lord My Shepherd)
Jehovah Rapha (The Lord That Heals)
Jehovah Shammah (The Lord Is There)
Jehovah Tsidkenu (The Lord Our Righteousness)
Jehovah Mekoddishkem (The Lord Who Sanctifies You)
El Olam (The Everlasting God)
Elohim (God)
Qanna (Jealous)
Jehovah Jireh (The Lord Will Provide)
Jehovah Shalom (The Lord Is Peace)
Jehovah Sabaoth (The Lord of Hosts)
Emmanuel (Hebrew עִמָּנוּאֵל "God is with us")
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It is my prayer each of us will allow THE GOOD SHEPHERD to guide us
Blessings and love Kathy Collier
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John 14: 6 KJV JESUS SAITH UNTO HIM, I AM THE WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE: NO MAN COMETH UNTO THE FATHER, BUT BY ME.
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•• I make no claim on any of these pictures≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈
Music behine my poem is Lamb of God - written by Twila Paris
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***I was visisting Janie `Janie/mjfb1954` site today and came across this video.
I know she will be full of joy that I am adding it to my Psalm 23
.Jane, we all miss you and love you. Kathy 7 − 2015