And in your salvation how greatly shall he rejoice. To be restored implies that you have spent yourself in service to god. The lord is my shepherd he hath showed himself to be so by his gracious providences toward me. David has left no sweeter psalm than the short twenty third. There were times when david did not have a home to hang his hat in, and he had to run from cave to cave to escape saul. Joy in the salvation of the lord to the chief musician.
Under a metaphor borrowed from scenes of pastoral life, with which david was familiar, he describes gods providential care in providing refreshment, guidance, protection, and abundance, and so affording grounds of confidence in his perpetual favor. So, lets see what this shepherdturnedking says about gods pastoral provisions. Psalms 23 commentary, one of over 110 bible commentaries freely available, this commentary, by the leading authority in the church of christ, presents a verse level look at the bible. David guzik commentary on psalm 23 explains this most well known psalm, which. Yeah, well, lately the water is a little too still. Read these psalms as a group and compare similar expressions. He swore by his throne and kingdom to take revenge on all the territories of cilicia, damascus and syria, of the moabites and of the ammonites, of judaea and egypt as far as the limits of the two seas, and to ravage them with the sword in the seventeenth year, he gave battle with his whole army to king arphaxad and in. Thats not saying that you will never have any desires. Travel the shepherds path to the green pastures and cool, refreshing waters of psalm 23. Recommend good books, fiction or nonfiction, featuring the beloved psalm 23. Deuterocanonical is more catholic and means of or relating to a second canon. If we trust god, we have the tranquility of knowing that god watches over us, like a shepherd watching over the sheep. He makes me lie down in fresh, tender green pastures. Its typical that a predatory animal might follow or pursue a sheep.
You have given him his hearts desire, and have not withheld the request of his lips. Psalms 23 commentary spurgeons verse expositions of the. Throughout the book, it seems judith merely smiles and men collapse judith 10. The lord is my shepherd april 2, 2017 introduction. If the sheep are to eat, its the shepherd who leads them to the pastures. Lord god, to whom all strength belongs, prosper what my hands are now to do for the greater glory of jerusalem. Psalm 23, with its vivid portrait of yearning for and trust in god, is one of the most well known chapters in the book of psalms. Psalms 23 commentary james burton coffman commentaries on. From the perspective of form criticism, psalm 23 is a song of trust, as are psalms 4, 11, 27, 16, 62, and 1. The catholic study bible commentary on psalms oxford biblical.
Guided by scholars, pastors, and laity representing diverse traditions, academic experience, and involvement in the church, this entirely new collection of writings is specifically prepared to meet the needs of preachers, teachers, and all students of the bible. This name for god is frequently combined with other words to form more specific descriptions of him. Freedom from fear, from friction within the flock, from parasites, and from hunger keller, 24. Besides about onehalf of the psalms in which it thus appears, psalms 2 and 95 are ascribed to him ac 4. If you dont appreciate the green pastures, if the water is stagnant. Apocryphal is a protestant term which means hidden or of uncertain authenticity. Psalms 23 commentary matthew henry commentary on the. From a very young age, david was the shepherd of his fathers sheep. He guides me in the paths of righteousness for his names sake.
The first half of the book is all about military maneuverings. In his book, a shepherd looks at psalm 23, phillip keller who served for many years as a shepherd, says that sheep need four things before they will lie down. Psalm 23 commentary by jerome creach working preacher. Arphaxad was then reigning over the medes in ecbatana. Many of davids psalms are full of complaints, but this is full of comforts, and the expressions of delight in gods great goodness and dependence upon him. Structure the book of judith is basically divided into two parts. Gods presence in our struggles at work psalm 23 bible. But what is it that david says follows and pursues him. Score a books total score is based on multiple factors, including the number of people who have voted for it and how highly those voters ranked the book. This book is often called the psalms of david, he being the only author mentioned in the new testament lu 20. Psalm 23, amplified bible, classic edition ampc the. If the sheep are thirsty, they count on the shepherd to.
It is a psalm which has been sung by good christians, and will be while the world stands, with a great deal of pleasure and satisfaction. Psalm 2123 nkjv joy in the salvation of the lord to. Wisely appealing to their senses of sight and smell, she mesmerizes them. The scope of this psalms is to show the happiness of that man who has god for his protector, and is under his care and tuition. The book of psalms has been designed to be the prayer book of gods people as they wait for the messiah and his coming kingdom. With bible gateway plus, you gain instant access to a digital bible study library, including complete notes from the niv cultural backgrounds study bible and the new bible commentary. Psalm 23 commentary by nancy declaissewalford working. And if the lord is your shepherd you can proclaim with david that you shall not want. Chapter 23 many of davids psalms are full of complaints, but this is full of comforts, and the expressions of delight in gods great goodness and dependence upon him.
Verse 1a declares, the lord is my shepherd and thus acknowledges god as the one who protects and guides. Psalms 23 commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. Psalms 23 commentary james burton coffman commentaries. Psalms 23 commentary spurgeons verse expositions of the bible. The lord is my shepherd to feed, guide, and shield me, i shall not lack.
It has remanded to their dungeon more felon thoughts, more black doubts, more thieving sorrows, than there are sands on the seashore. Here is a prince of the blood royal of heaven attended by two body guards, goodness and mercy, which keep close behind him. The idea begins as early as the book of genesis, where moses called the. Psalm 23 shows the lord as the great shepherd, who cares for his sheep and equips them for ministry. Goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. The book of judith is a deuterocanonical book, included in the septuagint and the catholic and eastern orthodox christian old testament of the bible, but excluded from the hebrew canon and assigned by protestants to their apocrypha. It psalm 23 has charmed more griefs to rest than all the philosophy of the world. So, its not that as a sheep of our lord the shepherd you will never desire anything.
But when we examine psalm 23 in its canonical location within the book of psalms, new insights into its meaning may emerge. He had been a shepherd, and he was not ashamed of his former occupation. Selah for you meet him with the blessings of goodness. Nov 17, 2015 the book of psalms has been designed to be the prayer book of gods people as they wait for the messiah and his coming kingdom. So, like the book of tobit, this book is probably of the genre of a historical novel. In the psalm, barzillai made a great dinner for david. Its function would have been to instruct, encourage, and entertain. In the same way in the second book of kings, chapter 23, verse 1 it says. Psalm 51 is one of seven penitential psalms 6, 32, 38, 51, 102, and 143.
The book of psalms psalm 23 the shepherd psalm objectives in studying this psalm 1 to remind ourselves of the wonderful provision, protection, and preservation the lord furnishes his people 2 to note how this psalm foreshadows the blessings provided by the good shepherd, jesus christ summary this muchbeloved psalm of david makes. The book is an anthology of individual psalms, with 150 in the jewish and western christian tradition and more in the. In the greek septuagint version of the bible, and in its latin translation in the vulgate, this psalm is psalm 22 in a slightly different. Instead of using their considerable exegetical expertise to pronounce a single meaning for each psalm or verse, the author and contributors point out a variety of ways in which the psalms can be. Psalm 23 30 literary commentary t he lord is my shepherd is probably the bestknown statement in the book of psalms. The superscription of psalm 51 alludes to the biblical event of. It tells of a jewish widow, judith, who uses her beauty and charm to destroy an assyrian general and save israel from oppression. The book of judith is an apocryphal or deuterocanonical book. Psalms, books 23, in the wisdom commentary series, is a rich resource with a multivoiced format that honors the psalms own interpretability. Weldon phillip keller 19201997 wrote more than thirtyfive books on christian subjects, including his most popular book a shepherd looks at psalm 23 the son of missionary parents in kenya, keller grow up in africa before becoming a world citizen as a photographer, agronomist, and author. In the online version of this commentary, you will find connections to several. Psalm 23 is the 23rd psalm of the book of psalms, generally known in english by its first verse, in the king james version, the lord is my shepherd. There is a valley called the valley of the shadow of death in palestine. The book of psalms is the third section of the hebrew bible, and a book of the christian old testament.
Select book from az list, enter chapter and verse number, and click go. View the entire commentary more information on commentaries. This verb bdb 996, kb 1427 is the very verb used of repentance. Bagoas closed the tent from the outside, having shown out those who still lingered in his lords presence. David compares himself to a lamb contentedly grazing, resting, and drinking while the shepherd watches over him. Surely this is another of the psalmist s inferences, and a very sure one.
Psalm 23 follows psalm 22, a heartfelt lament, one connected with the passion of jesus in the new testament. It is a psalm which has been sung by good christians, and will be while the world stands, with a. Jan 01, 1970 weldon phillip keller 19201997 wrote more than thirtyfive books on christian subjects, including his most popular book a shepherd looks at psalm 23 the son of missionary parents in kenya, keller grow up in africa before becoming a world citizen as a photographer, agronomist, and author. Book 2 psalms 4272 bible commentary theology of work. Psalms 23 commentary commentary critical and explanatory on. It tells of a jewish widow, judith, who uses her beauty and charm to destroy an assyrian general and save israel. Below, the author offers his own translation of the psalm, followed by his interpretation, which focuses on the ambivalence inherent in the narrators wish to serve adonai god fully.
Because our god is our shepherdand he is the most powerful, wise, balanced, loving, and caring being everwe are never going to want, that is, lack for proper management. Business ethics psalms 15, 24, 34 trusting god in the face of institutional pressure psalm 20 gods presence in our struggles at work psalm 23 gods guidance in our work psalm 25 book 2 psalms 4272 gods presence in the midst of disaster psalm 46 anxiety when unscrupulous people succeed psalms 49, 50, 52, 62 book 3. He brings my wandering spirit back when i forsake his ways. Save default make selected bible the default for lookup tool. In fact, it is a very contemporary teaching from an ancient book.
Psalm 23 is in reality a brief expounding of eight names of god in the first five verses. It has sung courage to the army of the disappointed. Commentaries for psalm chapter 23 confidence in gods grace and care. This is a reminder to see our work from gods perspectivenot primarily as an instrument for our gratification, but as our part in gods mission in the world. Often mistakenly attributed to the new testament, it is actually one of the psalms of david, as indicated in its superscription v. Charles spurgeon wrote, i like to recall the fact that this psalm was written by david, probably when he was a king. Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me is a testimony of security.