I’m a sheep (cause the Lord is my shepherd)
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 forever.
Psalm 23
So I love music, primarily Rap. I love the culture and the science and everything surrounding it. I love the production. I love the ability of artists like Mac Miller to write an album called “Cycles,” and arrange the song stories in a way where the chord starting the first song is a perfect resolution to the tense chord that ends out the last song, thus creating a musical “cycle” throughout the entire album. I love the ability of producers like Kanye, Tyler the Creator, and Kendrick, to use samples from songs that not only feel like they belonged in the arrangement all along, but add further depth and layers to the song by retelling the broader story! But what I really love is the ability of writers to use similes and analogies to create word pictures and convey a message. I love communication and that is really the part of HipHop I fell in love with. Little lines like “real G’s move in silence like? lasagna” (get it? Cause the “G” in “lasagna” is silent?) or “woman of my dreams; I don’t sleep so I can’t find her” (get it? He works too much and doesn’t sleep so he can’t find the woman of his dreams…) make my brain jump for joy! (lol)
And I think this love for creative communication of ideas is one of the reasons why I love studying the Bible. Psalms were originally songs and poems, so I think unpacking them like I do my favorite songs through the leading of the Holy Spirit would be pretty fun. So let’s prayerfully dissect this one. Psalm 23 is about sheep written by a shepherd. So let’s dive in and see if studying the imagery used can give us a deeper appreciation for this passage.
So the Psalm starts, “The Lord is my shepherd, I have everything I need. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in the path of righteousness for His name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of death I will not fear cause God is with me. His rod and staff comfort me.”
This part seems pretty straightforward. God is my shepherd. I have everything I’ll ever need. He gives me rest in places that sustain me and help me to thrive. He leads me to things I need and makes sure they’re presented in a way that He knows I can handle (if the shepherd leads the sheep to rushing water, they may get their wool caught in the water and drown. That’s a sermon there.) He restores my strength when I get weak. Even when I walk in dangerous places, I don’t have to fear because He is with me. Even His discipline comforts me. (Whew, that’s a sermon too.) Even His rod and staff comfort me.
But that’s not what caught the attention of my Rap aficionado mind. The verses make sense for sheep and we can relate it to ourselves pretty easily in the beginning, but verse 5 is kinda interesting. What a table gotta do with sheep?
Great writers know that double entendres and wordplay are always appreciated. And great rap interpreters know that sometimes you need to do some research to understand the perspective of the writer. When we dive into the world of shepherds, we learn that the flat, elevated plains shepherds love to take their sheep to are called tablelands or mesas, like the word for table in Spanish.
Ok, so what's the significance of that? I did some research on what shepherds do right before they take their sheep to the mesa to graze. The shepherd goes ahead and surveys the area his sheep are about to go to. He goes before them to make sure it is suitable for them. He gets rid of poisonous weeds and looks for other signs of things that could cause his sheep harm like wolves or other predators. The preparation of the mesa also involves landscaping. The shepherd doesn't just make it safe for the sheep, he makes sure the sheep can thrive in these fields. He clears out watering holes and makes the area like a sheep resort. He builds walls and boundaries to protect the sheep and makes it so it's harder for predators to get to the sheep. This is how the “table” is prepared. Our shepherd goes ahead of us and makes sure the areas He is leading us to are suitable.
But how about in the ‘“presence of my enemies” part? This part comes into play when you realize the predators are still around. They can hear the sheep, see the sheep, and are probably very close to touching the sheep, but they cant harm the sheep. The dangers are still apparent but the sheep don’t have to worry. The sheep don’t have to worry because the shepherd has already provided for them. He’s already gone ahead and planned for their arrival. He’s already prepared high places for them before they’re even ready to go to them. The shepherd has already done everything in his power to make sure the sheep are straight.
Is it safe to say that if the Lord is our shepherd, He does all this for us? I believe that David was trying to remind us what it's like to be a part of God's flock. If the Lord is your shepherd, you don't have to have any worries... He makes sure we have what we need and lets us chill out in green pastures. We don’t have to fret because he is right there, showing us where to go next and renewing our strength every step of the way. We don't have to worry about the future cause God has already gone before us and made it right with our safety and sanity in mind. We don't have to fear because God just wants us to chill out and eat, and when I say eat I mean get buckets, be successful, thrive, live our best life. If we stop worrying and trust our shepherd, just imagine how much better our lives can become.
Ok so God is my shepherd and I have everything I need because of that. I am given rest in areas to sustain and grow me. I am led to places I can be replenished and restored. I don’t have to ever fear because He is always with me. Even His rod and staff comfort me. They remind me He is near. He prepares a table before me and provides for my needs. But what does it mean that “He anoints my head with oil”?
We come in contact with another promise when we look at the anointing. Shepherds do all they can to protect their sheep from things that will cause harm. Bugs are another pest that negatively impacts the sheep. Bugs will swarm the sheep, lay eggs in their skin, and eventually kill the sheep if actions are not taken against them. The shepherd knows that the sheep can’t fight these pests on their own. They seem small but, but have a detrimental impact. The bugs can seem insignificant at first but their effects often lead to the destruction of the sheep. The shepherd uses oil to soothe the wounds caused by the bugs and protect against further attacks from this enemy. So often sins come into our space that seem insignificant but once they get inside of us, they have a destructive impact. We try our hardest to fight them but can’t on our own. But thank God for our shepherd. We have a shepherd that saw this pest before it even made itself known in our lives. Before the sheep are destroyed from the effects of these bugs, the shepherd anoints them with oil. The shepherd pours a covering out on the sheep that heals their wounds and sets them free from the pain they caused. I thank God that He sent His Spirit to be a comforter. I thank God that He sent His Spirit to cleanse us from the effects of the sins in and around us.
I’ve never before thought about how much protection and provision is made available to sheep when they have a good shepherd. I thank God that He is a shepherd who cares for His sheep. I have everything I need. I am protected. My needs are provided for. I am set apart and called to be a part of God’s flock. And I thank God for what that means for my life.
I’m happy to be God’s sheep.
The Lord is my shepherd. I have everything I need. He makes me rest in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my strength. He leads me in the path of righteousness for His namesake. Even though I walk through the valley of death, I don’t have to fear because He is with me. His rod and staff comfort me. He prepares a table before me in the presence of my enemies. He anoints my head with oil, my cup overflows. 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
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