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| A study of Psalm 23: #1 “Possessing the sheep…” |
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#1 “Possessing the sheep…”
Before the Shepherd can care for the sheep, He must possess the sheep
There was once a Shakespearean actor who was known everywhere for his one-man show of readings and recitations from the classics. He would always end his performance with a dramatic reading of Psalm 23. Each night, without exception, as the actor began his recitation—”The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want”—the crowd would listen attentively. And then, at the conclusion of the psalm, they would rise in thunderous applause in appreciation of the actor’s incredible ability to bring the verse to life.
But one night, just before the actor was to offer his customary recital of Psalm 23, a young man from the audience spoke up. “Sir do you mind if tonight I recite Psalm 23? “The actor was quite taken back by this unusual request, but he allowed the young man to come forward and stand front and center on the stage to recite the psalm, knowing that the ability of this unskilled youth would be no match for his own talent.
With a soft voice, the young man began to recite the words of the psalm. When he was finished, there was no applause. There was no standing ovation as on other nights. All that could be heard was the sound of weeping.
The audience had been so moved by the young man’s recitation that every eye was full of tears. Amazed by what he had heard, the actor said to the youth, “I don’t understand. I have been performing Psalm 23 for years. I have a lifetime of experience and training but I have never been able to move an audience as you have tonight. Tell me, what is your secret?
“The young man humbly replied, “Well sir, you know the psalm... but I know the Shepherd.”
Few people fail to appreciate the simplistic beauty and comfort contained in the 23rd Psalm. Most of us know it by heart.
I feel somewhat like a tourist guide standing before you in the shadow of a magnificent mountain peak, attempting to describe its beauty—or like a guide in an art museum telling you of the magnificence of a priceless painting which has been universally regarded as a classic work for decades.
Perhaps Bernhard Anderson has best expressed the value of the 23rd Psalm when he wrote: “No single psalm has expressed more powerfully man’s prayer of confidence ‘out of the depths’ to the God whose purpose alone gives meaning to the span of life, from womb to tomb.”
While few of us understand the life of the shepherd in the ancient Near East, most have been able to grasp the message of comfort and assurance conveyed in the psalm. Especially in times of distress, such as the death of a loved one, we instinctively turn to the assuring words, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”
Though written by David three thousand years ago, this short poem has never been improved upon or surpassed in any language. To our day it remains the sweet-singing nightingale of the soul, the majestic oak among the trees of faith, the Mount Everest of reliant devotion. What Handel's "Messiah" is to music, and Hunt's "Light of the World" is to art, the Twenty- third Psalm is to mankind.
Henry Ward Beecher wrote of this Psalm, "It has filled the air of the world with melodious joy, greater than the heart can conceive. It has charmed more griefs to rest than all the philosophy of the world. It has com- forted the hearts of the poor. It has sung courage to the army of the disappointed."
The remarkable thing about the 23rd Psalm is that it is everybody's Psalm. The little child learns it at his mother's knee. The youth seeks its wisdom in hours of temptation and uncertainty. The aged quote it with quivering lips as death approaches. During all the years from childhood to old age, it is read and quoted repeatedly. Why? Because of its amazingly universal appeal.
Not only is the 23rd Psalm everybody's Psalm, but it meets everybody's need. Whatever the urgency or necessity, this Psalm assures us that if the Lord is our Shepherd, He will undertake.
· Am I famished in soul, depressed and discouraged? He provides rest and refreshing nourishment. "He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters."
· Have I committed sin and lost the joy of blessed fellowship with Him? If I confess, His mercy will prove sufficient. "He restoreth my soul."
· Does the future with its uncertainties confuse and perplex me? If so, I have , surely forgotten all about His shepherding care. "He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake.
· Could it be that I am fearful of death and the life beyond the grave? What little faith! "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."
· Do I become disturbed by those who, because of hate, seek to injure me by their deceitful tricks and unkind words? Why should I? He will not forsake me. "Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies."
· Is there a sense of weakness and fruitlessness as I try to be a faithful witness for the Lord? There are no limits to His power. "Thou anointest my head with oil."
· Do I complain and grumble because of an envious heart? I must take time to count my blessings. "My cup runneth over."
· Do I look to failing self, and because of my own unworthiness, do I doubt my salvation and the assurance of Heaven? I need a greater vision of Him and less of myself. "Surely good- ness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever."
Praise God! In Him, every need is met. The Twenty- third Psalm tells me so.
In portraying the dependent sheep following the Shepherd in his moment-by-moment watchfulness, the Psalmist reminds us of the necessity of constantly trusting our Great Shepherd's love for all things if we would continue on in the path of victory.
It is interesting to note, there isn't a single petition in the Psalm. It is a catalog of the mercies of God. Not once does the Psalmist ask or beg for anything. He rejoices repeatedly in God's gracious and abundant provision. David knew all about the peaceful and happy contentment known only to those who fully trust in the Lord.
Before going any further, we should acquaint ourselves with the preparation essential for the complete understanding of the passage. Consider what precedes and what follows the Psalm. It is providentially placed in a most significant environment. Without experiencing the truth of the 22nd Psalm it is impossible to appropriate the blessings of the 23rd.
The 22nd Psalm IS well-known as "The Psalm of the Cross." In it we see numerous prophecies of the agony our Lord suffered in His crucifixion. It may have been actually repeated word by word by our Lord when hanging on the tree; it would be too bold to say that it was so, but even a casual reader may see that it might have been. It begins with, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” and ends, according to some, in the original with “It is finished.”
For plaintive expressions uprising, from unutterable depths of woe we may say of this Psalm, “there is none like it.” It is the photograph of our Lord’s saddest hours, the record of his dying words, the picture of his last tears, the memorial of his expiring joys. David and his afflictions may be here in a very modified sense, but, as the star is concealed by the light of the sun, he who sees Jesus will probably neither see nor care to see David.
Before us we have a description both of the darkness and of the glory of the cross, the sufferings of Christ and the glory which shall follow. Oh for grace to draw near and see this great sight! We should read reverently, pulling off our shoes from off our feet, as Moses did at the burning bush, for if there be holy ground anywhere in Scripture it is in this Psalm.
The Psalm begins with the mystical question our Lord was heard to utter on the cross, "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" (Psalm 22: 1) and ends with the solemn words, "He hath done this," which may also be translated, "It is finished." Throughout the 22nd Psalm we see the horrors of Mount Calvary descriptively and pictorially revealed.
Spend time looking at verses that take us forward to the Savior on Calvary:
(Psalms 22:1) "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from the words of my groaning?"
(Psalms 22:7-8) "All who see me mock me; they hurl insults, shaking their heads: {8} "He trusts in the LORD; let the LORD rescue him. Let him deliver him, since he delights in him.""
(Psalms 22:18) "They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing."
(Psalms 22:31) "They will proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn-- for he has done it."
Now look beyond the 23rd Psalm to the 24th. Read through it and what do we see? It is unmistakably clear. This is "The Psalm of the King." There is no trace of the humiliated Saviour, but rather the Man of Glory who returns to earth to rule and reign in righteousness.
From the title we learn nothing but the authorship; but this is interesting, and leads us to observe the wondrous operations of the Spirit upon the mind of Israel’s sweet singer, enabling him to touch the mournful string in Psalm twenty–two, to pour forth gentle notes of peace in Psalm twenty–three, and here to utter majestic and triumphant strains. We can do or sing all things when the Lord strengtheneth us.
This sacred hymn was probably written to be sung when the ark of the covenant was taken up from the house of Obed–edom, to remain within curtains upon the hill of Zion.
The words are not unsuitable for the sacred dance of joy in which David led the way upon that joyful occasion. The eye of the Psalmist looked, however, beyond the typical upgoing of the ark to the sublime ascension of the King of glory.
"Lift up your heads, 0 ye , gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the ij King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle" (Psalm 24:7-8). As yet, this has not been fulfilled. But indeed it will be, when Christ returns to reveal His authority and power.
Now see the picture.
· Psalm 22 looks to the past, presenting the Good Shepherd as the Saviour who was crucified for the sin of the world, proving His unlimited love.
· Psalm 24 looks to the future, presenting the Chief Shepherd as the Sovereign who will return for His coronation.
· On one side of the 23rd Psalm we have Mount Calvary, on the other, Mount Zion.
· Nestled between these two great mountains of revealed truth we see the 23rd Psalm with its quiet, green valley and still waters, with the Great Shepherd gently and tenderly leading His sheep.
We are living in the "valley days." The 23rd Psalm is for today. It is a Psalm of new life and resurrection glory. For all who have believed on the Lord Jesus, the Psalm may be a present reality. All the promises are for believers.
But before going deeper into the rapturous truths of this wonderful Psalm, let there be no misunder-standing about the gate of entry. It is impossible to realize the joy of the 23rd Psalm without first of all going through the 22nd. What do I mean? Just this-you have no right to the promises of the 23rd Psalm until you recognize the redeeming work of Christ in the 22nd.
Then realizing what He did for you, believe on Him as your living Lord. No one can know Christ's gracious and shepherding care until he knows Him as his Redeemer.
Some want to get to the 23rd Psalm without the 22nd. This is impossible! Before the Shepherd can care for the sheep, He must possess the sheep.
The prophet Isaiah tells us, "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all" (Isaiah 53:6).
Because of our sin we have shut ourselves out from the fold of God. But the way into the fold has been provided. The Lord Jesus is the Way. "The Lord laid on Him the iniquity of us all."
Christ died on the cruel cross for your sin and mine. Indeed He is the "Good Shepherd," of whom we read in John 10: 11, "the good shepherd gives His life for the sheep."
This is the truth of Psalm 22 , Christ crucified. In Psalm 23 we see Him as the living Lord, and indeed He is. He arose from the dead and longs to save and keep all who believe on Him.
Have you accepted Christ through baptism as your sacrifice for sins? If not, do so now, then enter into all the joys of the wonderful 23rd Psalm. Let the Lord truly be your Shepherd.
A fuller study of Psalm 22
In many ways this is the most amazing of all the psalms. In it we have a picture of the crucifixion and resurrection of the Lord Jesus, painted by David the Psalmist one thousand years before Jesus Christ was born. It constitutes one of the most amazing predictions of all time.
At least nine specific events or aspects of the crucifixion are described here in minute detail. All of them were fulfilled during the six hours in which Jesus hung upon the cross, from nine o'clock in the morning until three o'clock in the afternoon. Moreover, the latter part of the psalm clearly depicts the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.
The probability that the predictions of these nine events would be fulfilled by chance in one person, on one afternoon, is inconceivably small. The chance that all this could occur by accident is beyond any realm of possibility our minds could imagine. Yet all was fulfilled as predicted in this amazing psalm.
All the world knows that on November 22, 1963, President John Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas, while riding down a Dallas street in a motorcar. Suppose there had been in existence a document which predicted this event and which we knew to have been written in A.D. 963. That was about the time of the height of the Byzantine empire, when most of the Western World was ruled from Constantinople, much of Europe was only sparsely inhabited by barbarian tribes, and America was not yet discovered.
Suppose that a document had been prepared in that ancient day which predicted that a time would come when a man of great prominence, head of a great nation, would be riding down a street of a large city in a metal chariot not drawn by horses, and would suddenly and violently die from the penetration of his brain by a little piece of metal hurled from a weapon made of wood and iron, aimed at him from the window of a tall building, and that his death would have world-wide effect and cause world-wide mourning. You can imagine with what awe such a document would be held today. Such a prediction would be similar to what we have in Psalm 22. That hypothetical prediction would have been made even before the invention of the motorcar, or of firearms, and five hundred years before the discovery of America. It would be regarded as fantastically accurate. Yet we have that very sort of thing in this psalm.
The psalm has two major divisions. The first twenty-one verses recount for us the sufferings of an unknown sufferer who is all alone and is crying out unto God in his agony. Many scholars assert that these first twenty-one verses represent the thoughts which went through the mind of the Savior as he hung upon the cross, the full range of his thoughts as he was suffering there.
From verse twenty-two to the end the sufferer is no longer alone but is in the midst of a large company and is praising God and shouting in victory. It ends with his claiming the worship of the entire world.
The best and simplest way to approach this psalm is simply to read it through, making certain observations. It is so clear, so unmistakable, that it hardly requires comment.
The title of Psalm 22 says that it was written by David. We have no reason to doubt the Davidic authorship, but we cannot determine the cir- cumstance in David's life to which the psalm refers. Obviously, he was in the throes of danger and distress too terrible for common words to describe. He piled description on top of description in highly figurative and emotional wording as he made his condition known to his God.
The psalm is a lament and is quoted or alluded to at least seven times in the New Testament. Verse 1 was appropriated by Jesus on the cross (Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34). Verse 18 seems to be in the background of Matthew 27:35, Mark 15:24, Luke 23:34, and John 19:23. Verse 22 is applied to Jesus in Hebrews 2:12.
As one begins reading, however, his first I impression is that David was writing in figurative language, poetic hyperbole, about a siege of persecution he was undergoing-perhaps as he fled from the attacks of Saul. Because of the intensely personal character of the psalm, one does not immediately observe that a detailed prediction of the sufferings of Christ is being given. The writer presented his deathly struggle in prayer to God in the first person as a representation of his own sufferings. This has led to two questions: "How are we to interpret this psalm?" and "Is the psalm presenting the writer's experience, the Lord's, or both?"
The best explanation of this difficulty is the view that the psalm has its roots in David's own trial of fire, but its language reaches beyond his experiences to the sufferings of Christ. While David may have understood that he was writing in exaggerated poetic language about a bitter experience he was having, he was in fact-by the guidance of the Holy Spirit-portraying the actual sufferings of Jesus in pictorial prophecy. David's sufferings were typical of the far greater sufferings that the Christ would know. The account of David's sufferings was recorded by the Holy Spirit in such a way that the descriptions foreshadowed in detail many of the circumstances of the crucifixion of our Lord.
We may look at the psalm as depicting an unbelievable trial of David which typifies the ultimate trial, the agonies of Jesus-or we may see it as being solely a prophecy of the sufferings of Jesus for our sins. Either way, we can derive from it an outline of what to do when we are overwhelmed by a vicious world and heaven seems to be silent to our supplications.
I. WHEN OVERWHELMED, PRAY (vv.1-21)
My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me? Far from my deliverance are the words of my groaning. a my God, I cry by day, but Thou dost not answer; and by night, but I have no rest. Yet Thou art holy, a Thou who art en- throned upon the praises of Israel. In Thee our fathers trusted; they trusted, and Thou didst deliver them. . . . (vv. 1-5).
When we are engulfed by the torment of enemies or distress of any kind, the first step this psalm teaches us to take is to pray. When we pray, however, we should remember that our prayers may not be immediately answered. For that matter, some prayers may never be answered the way we would like for them to be.
The beginning picture in the psalm is that of a person who believed that he was alone in his terrible situation: "My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?" No one was responding to his cries for help, not even God. He knew that he should pray about his persecution, and he had been praying; however, his appeals to God seemed to go unheeded. Heaven was silent.
The afflicted righteous one was in such pain that his prayers were expressed in groans. He was ceaseless in his praying; day and night he asked God to hear him, but God was silent. The words of the first line are enshrined in our minds because our Lord quoted them as He j experienced the darkness of being separated from God when "He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf,” (2 Corinthians 5:21). ‘Eli’ in Matthew is the Hebrew word used for ‘my God ‘in this psalm (Matthew 27:46), while Eloi in Mark is the Aramaic equivalent (Mark 15:34).
The description of the loneliness that he felt is followed by a recounting of the faithfulness of Jehovah to Israel in the past. David said he knew that God is holy, pure, free from defilement, and cannot entertain any evil. God would never be unfaithful to any of His people. He has been and is enthroned upon the praises of Israel. His people praised Him for His mighty acts in the past, and their praises rose up to Him. They were like a huge cloud, and that cloud was received by God, who allowed it to surround His throne as acceptable worship. Surely, the Lord wants the same type of praise now, the psalmist implied.
But I am a worm, and not a man, a reproach of men, and despised by the people, All who see me sneer at me; they separate with the lip, they wag the head, saying, "Commit yourself to the Lord; let Him deliver him; let Him rescue him, because He delights in him" (vv. 6-8).
The writer's case was different from that of his forefathers. In his desperate situation, he found that he was not being heard by God as his ancestors had been. He thought he was being: regarded as a mere worm, defenseless and worthless, having become the object of the worst words and gestures of ridicule. As the people who passed him made scornful facial expressions at him and gestured with their heads, jeering and "humiliating him, they added to his affliction.
Those who saw him said, If you really think that God is pleased with your life, ask Him to deliver you from the danger you are in. He will if He is pleased with you. Their implication was that God had brought this disaster upon David for displeasing Him. Similar words to these maybe these very words-were used in Matthew 27:43 to describe the taunts of the crowd as Jesus was suspended upon the cross.
Upon Thee I was cast from birth; Thou hast been my God from my mother's womb. Be not far from me, for trouble is near; for there is none to help (vv. 9-11).
As David prayed, he reminded God that he had believed in Him and served Him from his infancy. Jehovah had been his God from the day of his birth. His argument was "You have protected me from the earliest days of my life. Will you not be with me now?" He said he had no one else to come to his aid. If his God did not assist him, then there could be no help at all for him.
Many bulls have surrounded me; strong bulls of Bashan have encircled me. They open wide their mouth at me, as a ravening and a roaring lion. I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within me. My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue cleaves to my jaws; . . . For dogs have surrounded me; a band of evildoers has encompassed me; they pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my bones. . . . they stare at me; they divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots (vv. 12-18).
He compared his enemies to homed bulls which were charging at him with the intention of killing him. These were the strongest of bulls from Bashan, a region of rich pasture lands that produced the highest quality of cattle. Then, changing the figure, he said that his enemies were coming at him with their mouths open like lions approaching their prey.
He asked God to look at him. He had no strength; he was like water poured out, like an empty bowl. He was like a skeleton with its bones out of joint. He had no heart; it had dissolved as wax does before a fire. He could not reason because of his being sick with pain. His tongue seemed to be sticking to the top of his mouth, and he could not talk.
He said that God had allowed him to be thrown into the dust of death or thrown at the door of death. Encircling him were his enemies, a band of vicious dogs who were encouraging the arrival of his death by biting his hands and feet. He would be pierced by their teeth. In prophecy, a far higher truth was being revealed: the actual piercing of the hands and feet of Jesus in the crucifixion.
In his persecution, he had been reduced to a skeleton, and he could even count his bones. These enemies of his were waiting for his death so that they could divide up his clothes among them. No doubt an echo of this passage is found in all four Gospels in the scene of the soldiers' rolling dice for the seamless robe of Jesus (Matthew 27:35; Mark 15:24; Luke 23:34; John 19:24).
But Thou, 0 Lord, be not far off; 0 Thou my help, hasten to my assistance. Deliver my soul from the sword, my only life from the power of the dog. . . . (vv. 19-21).
After depicting his awful physical and emotional condition, he called upon God again to remove his enemies and his grief. He likened himself to an only child of God, someone very precious.
Through the desolate picture the psalmist gave of himself, we can almost see his tormented body and hear his cries for God to listen to him. To this point, God had not seen fit to answer him. The writer knew that he should continue to pray and describe his misery to God.
That we need to pray when we do not see God responding to us is a difficult lesson for us to learn. This psalm, however, says that when no answer comes, we should talk to God about the fact that there has been no answer to our prayers. The place to be in any spiritual conflict is on your knees before God.
II. WHEN OVERWHELMED, PRAISE HIM (vv. 22-26)
I will tell of Thy name to my brethren; in the midst of the assembly I will praise Thee. You who fear the Lord, praise Him; all you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him, and stand in awe of Him, all you descendants of Israel. For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; neither has He hidden His face from him; but when he cried to Him for help, He heard. from Thee comes my praise in the great assembly; I shall pay my vows before those who fear Him. The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek Him will praise the Lord. Let your heart live forever! (vv. 22-26).
The second step to be taken when one is over- whelmed is to praise God. Any time is an appropriate time to give glory and thanks to God- even in the midst of an indescribable ordeal. A marked change comes at this point in the psalm. The writer seems to have decided to praise God as if an answer had already been given to him. His response may have been the anticipation of a trusting heart. The writer of the Book of Hebrews borrowed the phrases "I will tell of Thy name to my brethren; in the midst of the assembly ["congregation"; KJV and NIV]. I will praise Thee."
Hebrews 2:12 puts these words in the mouth of Jesus. The "congregation" is the Old Testament term for what the New Testament calls the church (or assembly). In other words, David would lead his fellow Israelites to praise and glorify God because he knew that God is always moved by the pain of the afflicted and hears the cries of His people.
The psalmist further said that God was the Source of his praise. David would offer thank offerings to Him and fulfill the vows that he had made (Leviticus 3). He would invite the meek to join him in his sacrificial meal and rejoice with them over God's goodness. At that meal, he would encourage the dispirited to take heart and praise God. His wish for them would be "May you be quickened by the thought of God who defends His people."
We have here a picture of one trusting in God while in the dark pit of pain. David had not received an answer to his prayers; but he believed that it would be given, because he knew that God is full of lovingkindness and grace. He trusted God so completely that he could praise Him for answering his prayers in advance.
III. WHEN OVERWHELMED, TRUST HIM (VV. 27-31)
All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will worship before Thee. For the kingdom is the Lord's, and He rules over the nations. All the prosperous of the earth will eat and worship, all those who go down to the dust will bow before Him, . . . Posterity will serve Him; it will be told of the Lord to the coming generation. . . . (vv. 27-31).
The third step to be taken when we are over- whelmed is to trust God to work out the situation according to His will. Next, David began to speak of God, the future of mankind, and the world. David knew
that God would act graciously toward all people in the days ahead. He anticipated a time when all will worship God, for He is the true King of the earth and rules over all nations, whether they know it or not.
Even the wealthy will find their strength in the worship of God. Those who have come to the portal of death will receive new hope because of God and will be revived.
A small number of people will serve the rest; the multitudes will be blessed by a few. God will always have His handful who will inspire others to worship Him. The good works of God will be told from one generation to the next. The psalmist believed that the praise which he had started would be taken up by Israel and then by the whole world, even in the ages to come.
The writer trusted in God completely and viewed the future in light of how God had treated His people in the past. Those who are in God's hands-whether an individual, a nation, or the world-are in safe hands, hands that bring glorious events to pass.
On a higher level of prophecy, the Holy Spirit was predicting, through the psalmist's description of the future praise of God, a time when even the Gentiles would praise and trust God. This prophetic depiction includes the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, as well as the going out of the gospel into all the world in the Christian Age.
CONCLUSION
Let us recognize, then, how the psalmist faced his overwhelming situation. In the midst of his agony, he had prayed earnestly to his God. Even though he had not been heard, he continued to pray. He took heart in his praying and said that he would praise God knowing that, at some point and in the way of His choosing, God would come to his aid. In his praise, he anticipated what would happen in the future.
Regardless of how dark the moment was, he believed that God would do wondrous deeds for him, for Israel, and for the world.
In his cries to God and in his faith in God for the present and for the future, David demonstrated the response we ought to make to any crisis. We should pray about it, praising God for who He is, what He does, and what He will do for His people. We should trust Him to do wonderful things today and tomorrow.
"When we cannot trace God's hand, we can trust His heart."
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