VICTORIOUS LIVING IN THE VALLEY

STUDIES IN PSALM 23

By Rev. William Claire Greiner

SESSION ONE

THE FAITHFUL PROVIDER

Psalm 23:1 A Psalm of David. 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.

Robert MacQuilkin calls Psalm 23 "The Psalm of the Victorious Life." Others have described it as as the "sweetest song ever sung," or "The Pearl of the Psalms." Henry Ward Beecher called it "the nightingale of the Psalms, small in size, but big in sound. It sings more sweetly than any other, and sings best when the night of trouble has cast its shadow about us."

Luther described the Psalm as "God’s holy handkerchief" because it has dried the tear-stained eyes of many a saint while facing the ordeal of death.

It is said that Abraham Lincoln often read the Psalm to "cure his blues."

St. Augustine called Psalm 23 the Martyr’s Psalm because it was the song on the lips multitudes of martyrs as they faced lions, the sword, the stake. It is the Psalm which Isabel Allison and Mary Anne Howe sang when they were taken to the scaffold at Edinburgh. Mary Anne (not yet 20 years of age) said, "Come Isabel, let us sing Psalm 23."

No one will ever know how many dungeons have been made brighter by this little Psalm singing its message of fortitude and faith. No one will ever know how many thousands of sick rooms have been blessed by its ministry of comfort and courage. No one will ever know how many lonely people have been cheered by its companionship.

The Psalm is believed to have been written by David after his son Absalom rebelled against him and toppled him from the throne. (2 Samuel 15). David was forced to flee into the Judean wilderness with his family and servants. His life was in jeopardy and he was hunted and hounded for a number of months. Perhaps, because so much of his early life had been spent as a shepherd in that same wilderness, the circumstances recalled his shepherd life.

The Psalm is written from a heart mellowed by age and with a faith pruned by God. That’s why it is so precious to us today. It is a psalm for saints who are experiencing major upheavals in their lives. For parents who have children who are rebelling, whose homes are in turmoil, or where relationships are shattered. The Psalm is relevant to us today.

Notice the position of Psalm 23. It is significant in the fact that it is tucked between the twenty-second and twenty-fourth Psalms.

Psalm 22 has been described as "The Psalm of Mount Calvary." Note the opening words: "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me, And from the words of My groaning?" (verse 1). These were the actual words which Christ quoted while he hung upon His cross on Mount Calvary.

Notice some of the other verses which also remind us of Calvary.

Verse 6: "But I am a worm, and no man; A reproach of men, and despised by the people." Isaiah 53:2--"For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, And as a root out of dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; And when we see Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him."

Verse 31: "They will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born, That He has done this." The Hebrew translates the phrase "He hath done this" to "It is finished." which was Calvary’s consummation cry of redemption.

Psalm 22 is the Psalm of the GOOD SHEPHERD.

John 10:11,15— "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. . . . . and I lay down My life for the sheep."

Psalm 24 on the other hand is known as the Psalm of Mount Zion. It is the prophetic picture of the King of glory entering His kingdom. It is the culmination of the prophesies of the Old and New Testaments which depict Him as the sovereign monarch reigning over His people.

Verses 7,8 -- "Lift up your heads, O you gates! And be lifted up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, The LORD mighty in battle."

In Psalm 24 we have the picture of the CHIEF SHEPHERD.

Here we have two mountains, and it presents a beautiful picture. Between the two mountains, Mount Calvary and Mount Zion, we have a valley which is Psalm 23 with its green grass, its quiet waters, its grazing sheep and a loving Shepherd.

1. The SACRIFICING SHEPHERD. John 10:11,15— "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. . . . . and I lay down My life for the sheep."

2. The SUPPLYING SHEPHERD. Psalm 23:1—"The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want."

3. The SOVEREIGN SHEPHERD. 1 Peter 5:4 --"And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away."

Robert T. Ketcham in his wonderful little book, "I Shall Not Want" says: "We love the Christ of the past and His cross, we love the Christ of the future and His crown, but what is even more precious to us is the Christ of the present with His comforting shepherd’s crook."

Verse 1 -- "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want."

The Hebrew word for LORD in the original text is printed in capital letters. This indicates that it is a translation of the Old Testament personal name of God — Jehovah. Yehovah, yeh-ho-vaw, (the) self-existent one. The great I AM. He who was, and is, and is to come. The One who inhabits Eternity. The Jews had such reverence and awe for the name of Jehovah that they substituted some lesser word for it wherever it occurred in their public reading of sacred Scripture. Only once a year was the name Jehovah pronounced, and that was on the great Day of Atonement, by the High Priest in the most Holy Place.

David is saying here that this mighty being, Jehovah, is our Shepherd.

The Hebrew phrase is "Jehovah-Raah" which means "Jehovah my Shepherd." (The noun form is ROEH or ROEH or ROI or ROHI.)

The verb "is" in our Bibles appears in italics, indicating that it was placed into the text by the translators. Literally we read: Jehovah my Shepherd.

Jesus: (i.e. Joshua, Jehoshua) "Jehovah is Salvation."

Jehovah Jesus is my Shepherd.

The life of a shepherd was difficult and often unpleasant. He was secluded from society, living in the fields with his flock, wearing simple garments, eating plain food, getting by on bare necessities of life. In the summer he dwelt upon the hillsides or mountain slopes with his flocks, even sleeping with them under the Palestinian skies. A shepherd literally became saturated in the life of his sheep, supplying their daily needs at the neglect of his own. He was exposed to the harsh elements of the weather — the fierce heat by day and the bitter frost by night. In Genesis 31:40 we read of what Jacob says to Laban: "There I was! In the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night, and my sleep departed from my eyes."

The shepherd had to face predatory animals such as lions, bears, wolves and bob cats. David, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Amos speak of these animals coming out of the woods and hills to prey upon the sheep. The shepherd was also vulnerable to attack from highwaymen who would beat and rob him for food and sheep.

On top of all that a shepherd endured the biting contempt of many who regarded the vocation of the shepherd as despicable. The Egyptians, for instance, looked with sharp rebuke upon the shepherd. It stemmed out of their deep hatred for sheep. They did not value sheep as a food product nor even desirable for sacrificial purposes. Genesis 46:33,34— "So it shall be, when Pharaoh calls you and says, 'What is your occupation?' that you shall say, 'Your servants' occupation has been with livestock from our youth even till now, both we and also our fathers,' that you may dwell in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd is an abomination to the Egyptians."

It is a fitting picture of our Great Shepherd, the Lord Jesus. He, too, was despised and rejected of men, yet willing to lay down His life for His sheep. He has a shepherd’s heart that beats with sacrificial love even unto death. He has a shepherd’s eye that takes in the whole flock, and doesn’t miss even the poor sheep wandering on the mountains. He has a shepherd’s faithfulness which will never fail nor forsake, nor leave us comfortless, nor flee when he sees the wolf coming. He has a shepherd’s strength, so that He is well able to deliver us from the jaw of the lion or the paw of the bear. He has a shepherd’s tenderness: no lamb so tiny that He will not carry it; no saint so weak that He will not gently lead; no soul so faint that He will not give it rest.

Isaiah 40:11-- "He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, And carry them in His bosom, And gently lead those who are with young."

Mr. Haddad, in Orientalisms in Bible Lands, tells of watching shepherds with flocks on the slopes of Mt. Hermon: "Whenever a shepherd found a new-born lamb he put it in the folds of his aba, or great coat, since it would be too feeble to follow the mother. When his bosom was full he put lambs on his shoulders, holding them by the feet, or in a bag or basket on the back of a donkey, until the little ones were able to follow the mothers."

WHAT A SHEPHERD!

Notice what David says in Verse 1 — "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want."

A little girl quoted the verse: "The Lord is my Shepherd, that’s all I want."

A better translation is: "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not lack."

If He is my shepherd, I lack for nothing. Throughout the Psalm we find that we shall not lack for rest, peace, forgiveness, restoration, guidance, protection, discipline, provisions, joy, service, goodness and mercy. We shall not lack forever.

Notice the personal pronoun, "My." This Psalm has been described as the most personal of the Psalms because of the repeated use of the personal pronouns "HE", "ME", "MY" and "I." Out of the 118 words there are 28 pronouns. The Psalm echoes with assurance and certainty. There is not a "perhaps" or a "maybe" or a"possibly" in any of its verses.

It is good to remember that if Jehovah is to be our shepherd, then we have to begin by recognizing that we are sheep. According to nursery rhymes and pictures we think of sheep as being so cuddly and lovable and "white as snow" like Mary’s little lamb. But sheep are the most stupid animals on the face of the earth. Not only are they dumb, they are dirty. They are timid and defenseless and helpless. They are always getting lost and hurt and snake-bitten. They literally do not know enough to come in out of the rain. Sheep are miserable creatures. And to have God tell me that I am one of them is a humbling, if not demeaning. But, folks, if I am really honest with myself I know it is true, and like sheep, I am inclined to be self destruct.

What does Isaiah tell us chapter 53:60? "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way."

I know my tendency to go my own way and do my own thing. That's me. I'm a sheep. If Jesus Christ is to be my shepherd, I have to admit that I need a shepherd. It is difficult, but that is where we must start. I trust you can say today, "The Lord is my Shepherd."

Verse 2 — "He makes me lie down in green pastures."

The Psalmist say the first thing we will not lack for is rest.

"He makes me to lie down." Not: He allows me to lie down, or He coaxes me to lie down. He makes me to lie down.

Often the shepherd literally has to force his sheep to lie down. Josephus, the great Hebrew scholar writes: "Many times the shepherd found enforced rest periods necessary, especially among the pregnant ewes and frolicking lambs. They would especially take the lambs and fold their legs in a way other than they were accustomed, thus momentarily paralyzing the sheep and giving it its much needed rest."

Our loving Shepherd also brings about such "enforced rest periods" to us. He permits or allows unpleasant or unfortunate experiences to come into our lives, and He does it to slow down the rapid tempo of our lives so we can better learn of Him.

It has been well said that "The stops of a good man are ordered of the Lord, as well as his steps."

Three words describe today’s society: Hurry, worry, bury. It is imperative that we lie down. We need to come apart and rest awhile, or we’ll just come apart!!!

If we neglect to voluntarily lie down in the green pastures, or become too busy to sit beside still waters, then our Shepherd will make us to lie down for soul refreshment and spiritual refueling.

Sheep rancher say it is almost impossible for sheep to be made to lie down unless four requirements are met."

1. Freedom from fear.

Sheep are nervous and fearful creatures, with an uncanny fear of animals or strangers. Any sort of distubance will agitate them.

It is the assurance of the Shepherd’s presence that causes them to rest without fear.

Proverbs 3:24 -- "When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid: yea, thou shalt lie down and they sleep shall be sweet."

There are 365 "fear nots" in the Bible.

You have doubtless heard the familiar saying: "When you can’t sleep, don’t count sheep, talk to the Shepherd."

2. Freedom from friction. In every animal society there is established an order of dominance of status within the group. In a penful of chickens it is referred to as the "pecking order." With cattle it is called the "horning order." Among sheep it is called the "butting order." It is this tension, rivalry, and cruel competition within the flock that destroys their rest.

PHILLIP KELLER: "Generally an arrogant, cunning and commandeering old ewe will be boss of any bunch of sheep. She maintains her position of prestige by butting and driving other ewes or lambs away from the best grazing or favorite bed grounds. Succeeding her in precise order the other sheep all establish and maintain their exact position in the flock by using the same tactics of butting and thrusting at those below and around them."

There is a vivid and accurate word picture in Ezekiel 34:15-16 -- "I will feed My flock, and I will make them lie down, says the Lord GOD. I will seek what was lost and bring back what was driven away, bind up the broken and strengthen what was sick; but I will destroy the fat and the strong, and feed them in judgment." and 20-22. "Therefore thus says the Lord GOD to them: "Behold, I Myself will judge between the fat and the lean sheep. Because you have pushed with side and shoulder, butted all the weak ones with your horns, and scattered them abroad."

PHILLIP KELLER: "Because of this rivalry, tension and competition for status and assertion, there is friction in the flock. The sheep cannot lie down and rest in contentment. Always they must stand up and defend their rights and contest the challenge of the intruder. Hundreds and hundreds of times I have watched an austere old ewe walk up to a younger one which might have been feeding contentedly or resting quietly in some sheltered spot. She would arch her neck, tilt her head, dilate her eyes and approach the other with a stiff-legged gait. All of this was saying in unmistakable terms, "Move over! Out of my way! Give ground or else!" And if the other ewe did not immediately leap to her feet in self-defense she would be bitten unmercifully. Or if she did rise to accept the challenge one or two strong thrusts would soon send her scurrying for safety....This conflict and jealousy is detrimental. The sheep become edgy, tense, discontented and restless. They lose weight and become irritable....But one point that always interested me was that whenever I came into view and my presence attracted their attention, the sheep quickly forgot their foolish rivalries and stopped their fighting. The shepherd’s presence made all the difference in their behavior."

We have all known human sheep who are constantly living in jealousy and bitterness and greed, that they are nervous wrecks and totally devoid of rest.

Ephesians 5:21 — "Submitting yourselves one to another in the fefar of God."

Job 22:21 -- "Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace: thereby good shall come unto thee."

Shepherds tell us that the less aggressive sheep are often far more contented, quiet and restful.

Bitterness, unforgiveness, envy, jealousy, covetousness rob us of joy and rest.

ILLUSTRATION: A teacher in Sunday School told the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus. How the rich man went to hell while Lazarus went to heaven. This Sunday School teacher asked her students which one they would like to be, the rich man or Lazarus. One young boy replied, reflecting the attitude of our age, "I’d like to be the rich man while I’m alive, and Lazarus when I die.

In a cemetery in England stands a grave marker with this inscription: "She died for want of things." Alongside that marker is another which reads, "He died trying to give them to her."

3. Freedom from fretting.

4. Freedom from frustrations.

Do you know what frustrates sheep? Those little gnats and flies and parasites. Sheep can be driven to absolute distraction by these irritating pest, making it literally impossible for them to lie down and rest. Instead they are up on their feet, stamping their legs, shaking their heads, ready to rush off into the bush for relief from pests.

A good shepherd will apply various types of insect repellents to the sheep, and see there are shelters and refuge from their tormentors.

The frustrations in our lives can drive us crazy, getting us discouraged and despondent.

You might be familiar with the story of the man standing on a bridge prepared to jump to his death. A passerby came along, stopped his car and attempted to talk some sense into the man. He asked the man why he was going to jump. In his total frustration and discouragement, the man replied that there were too many things wrong in his life to continue living. The passerby tried to reason with the man, saying that things weren’t as bleak as they looked. For ten or fifteen minutes the conversation went on -- and finally they both jumped! Frustration and discouragement are contagious.

What are the frustrations in your life? What are those nagging thoughts and irritations that are robbing you of rest.

It may be sins of wrong deeds, or wrong thoughts or attitudes. Or many trivial things that waste your time and consume your energy and spend your month. It may be simply anything which gets in your way that keeps you from accomplishing the truly important goals in life. And it frustrates you.

Hebrews 12:1 says to "lay aside every encumbrance."

A hungry, ill fed sheep is forever on its feet, on the move, searching for another mouthful of forage, trying to satisfy its gnawing hunger.

Do you ever get up in the middle of the night because there is a gnawing hunger inside, and you have to raid the refrigerator?

Spiritual hunger is like that. We can’t rest because our heart and soul are not satisfied. We need to fill our minds and souls with the "green pastures."

Notice that David says that the Lord makes him to lie down in"green pastures...."

Sheep are ruminant animals. That is an animal which chews its cud, such as cattle, goats, deer, and camels. The tendency of ruminant animals is to over feed upon roughage. Good shepherds are aware of this, and so they will carefully superintend the feeding pattern of their flocks.

The shepherd starts his flock out early in the morning, often around 3:30 A.M. The sheep begin feeding on the rougher herbage, then move through the morning to the richer, sweeter grasses, until finally they arrive at a shady place for the afternoon rest amongst fine green pastures -- the best grazing of the day, when the heat becomes intense. The sheep will lie down for about three or four hours of rest, and while lying down they contently chew their cud. The shepherd realizes this is necessary for the sheep to put on fat.

So the sheep’s rest is not an idle rest. It is a rest that enables the sheep to chew on these much needed "green shootings," so full of high protein.

There’s a Bible word for this. It is "meditate."

The reason so many Christians fail to put on spiritual fat is that they have nothing stored away on which to chew the cud or meditate.

The "forced rest periods" in our lives do not represent "rests of idleness," but rather those of a refueling nature. We all need to build up our spiritual batteries from time to time.

Psalm 119:17,71—-"Deal bountifully with Your servant, That I may live and keep Your word. 71 It is good for me that I have been afflicted, That I may learn Your statutes."

Know God’s Word in your head, stow it in your heart, show it in your life and sow it in the world.

It is good to lie down at night after feeding in "green pastures." 

When sheep become thirsty they become restless and set out in search of water to satisfy their thirst. If not led to clean and pure water, they will often end up drinking from polluted holes where they pick up internal parasites, and other harmful things.

Sheep can go for days and even weeks, especially if the weather is not too hot, without actually drinking, and if there is heavy dew on the grass each morning. Sheep, by habit, rise before dawn and start to feed. Or if there is a bright moonlight they will sometimes graze at night. The early hours are when the vegetation is drenched with dew which is a clear, clean, pure source of water. So the good shepherd makes sure that his sheep are out and grazing on this dew drenched vegetation."

It is important that we rise early to feed on the fresh dew of God’s Word, in the quiet hours of the day, and at the end of the day to lie down in the "green pastures."

The temperature of Palestine is sub-tropical which means that the afternoon heat is fierce, and the ground is baked and burning. But the good shepherd knows where the watering holes are. He knows where the grassy meadows are. And so he leads the sheep into places where they can rest and feed, and where they can drink, where the streams are cool, where the grass is always moist and cool, and shade abounds.

Alfonso, the great Iberian shepherd writes: "Sheep will never drink from a rushing stream because they are disturbed by its noise. Subsequently, the shepherd will create a little area of "still waters" by damming off the stream with wood debris and small rocks after which the sheep would come and drink peacefully of the stilled waters formed for them by the all-providing hands of their shepherd."

ROBERT KETCHAM described "stilled waters" this way:  "Our little stream of life is on a rampage. It is rushing by with a crashing crescendo of frightening noises, the spray of it is dashing into our faces. We cannot see, and we are afraid. Sorrow, affliction, heartache and heartbreak are breaking the speed limit in our lives. Bewilderment and confusion swirl about us like mighty whirlpools. It is then that our blessed Shepherd moves into the situation and "stills" the waters about us, and we discover that through His gracious ministry we are being refreshed by the very thing which would otherwise have been our ruin."

May I suggest that the "stilled waters" speak of the depth of our prayer life. It is said that still waters runs deep.

This speaks of a hunger for the "green pasture" and a thirst after the "still waters."

Jesus said, "If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink."

If we are to have an adequate output for witness, me must take time to have an adequate intake of worship before God.

In 1 Kings 17:3 God tells Elisha: "Get away from here and turn eastward, and hide by the Brook Cherith, which flows into the Jordan." None of us can afford to dispense with a regular Cherith period, where the sounds of human voices are exchanged for the waters of quietness, and where we take time to taste of the sweets and imbibe from the power of a life hidden with Christ. This takes time and cannot be hurried.

"Take time to be holy,
Speak oft with thy Lord,
Abide in Him always,
And feast on His Word."

I needed the quiet, so He drew me aside
Into the shadows where we could confide
Away from the bustle for all the day long,
I hurried and worried when active and strong.
I needed the quiet, no prison my bed
But a beautiful valley of blessings instead
A place to grow richer, in Jesus to hide
I needed the quiet, so He drew me aside.
                                  —Author Unknown

"Be still and know that I am God."

  "In Christ all things are given unto us that pertain to life and godliness," {2 Peter 1:3}. Everything we need which relates to life and to living godly lives in the world is available in our Great Shepherd.  

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