(Psalm of David) The Lord is my shepherd; I will lack nothing.
Jehovah is my shepherd. Ps 79:13; Salt 80:1; Isaiah 40:11; Jer 23:3, Jer 23:4; Eze 34:11, Eze 34:12, Eze 34:23, Eze 34:24; Mic 5:2, Mic 5:4; Joh 10:11, Joh 10:14, Joh 10:27-30; Hebrews 13:20; 1Pe 2:25; 1Pe 5:4; Rev 7:17.
I will lack nothing. Ps 34:9, Ps 34:10; Ps 84:11; Matt 6:33; Luke 12:30-32; Romans 8:32; Phil 4:19; Hebrews 13:5, Hebrews 13:6.
Source: The Treasury of Biblical Knowledge
David, Ps 23:1-6.
Source: The Treasury of Biblical Knowledge
it is a psalm of trust. In all five verses there is a development of the single theme of the first verse: David does not fear or worry, because the Lord is his Shepherd. This psalm of trust presents David in two ways. On the one hand, it is the “sheep” whose Shepherd is the Lord. At the same time, one of the most common descriptions of kingship in the ancient world is that of a shepherd. In this sense, David as king was shepherd of the flock of Israel. This means that the Ps 23:1-6 it is also a royal psalm. Although the word “king” does not appear in it, this psalm is a description of what it means to be a good ruler. Furthermore, the psalm speaks prophetically of Jesus. He is the Good Shepherd and his sheep trust him (Joh 10:1-42), and the King whose perfect law will be established. (Luke 23:2, Luke 23:3; Rev 17:14). The psalm has two movements:
(1) a description of the Lord as a Shepherd who takes care of all the psalmist’s needs each day (vv. Ps 23:1-4);
(2) a description of the Lord as a Shepherd who extends his mercy to all (vv. Ps 23:5-6).
Source: New Illustrated Caribbean Bible Commentary
The LORD is my shepherd: David’s image of God comes from his own life and experience. He was a shepherd in his youth (1Sa 16:19).
Source: New Illustrated Caribbean Bible Commentary
JEHOVAH. This psalm, conceived in the mind of the Lord and inspired by the Holy Spirit, expresses his concern and diligent care for those who follow him. They are the prized object of his divine love. He takes care of each one of them as a father takes care of his children and as a shepherd takes care of his sheep.
Source: Full Life Study Bible
JEHOVAH IS MY SHEPHERD. Using a metaphor frequently found in the OT (see Ps 28:9; Ps 79:13; Salt 80:1; Ps 95:7; Isaiah 40:11; Jer 31:10; Eze 34:6-19), David compares God to a shepherd in order to illustrate God’s great love for his people. The Lord Jesus used the same metaphor to express his relationship with his people (Joh 10:11-16; see Hebrews 13:20; 1Pe 5:4). Two truths stand out here:
(1) God, through Christ and the Holy Spirit, is so interested in each of his children that he wants to love them, care for them, protect them, guide them and be close to them, that is, the same thing that a good shepherd wants to his sheep (see Joh 10:11; Joh 10:14 grades).
(2) Believers are the sheep of the Lord. They belong to Him and are the special object of His affection and attention. Although “all of us are emaciated like sheep” (Isaiah 53:6), the Lord has redeemed with the blood of Christ those who believe in Him (1Pe 1:18-19), and now they belong to him. As his sheep, they can claim the promises of this psalm when they respond to his voice and follow him (see Joh 10:3-5; Joh 10:28note).
I WILL MISS NOTHING. This means
(1) that believers will lack nothing necessary for God’s will to be fulfilled in their lives (see 1Jn 2:1-29note), and
(2) that believers will be content with the Good Shepherd’s provision and care in their lives, even in times of personal hardship, because they trust in God’s love and commitment to them (cf. Joh 10:11; Phil 4:11-13).
Source: Full Life Study Bible
Psalm 23 (Vg 22): God, Shepherd of the Just.
In this beautiful idyllic poem, the psalmist plays with two allegorical similes: a) the good shepherd (1-4); b) the father of families, who shows splendid and generous hospitality. Under these similes, the psalmist expresses the blind trust of the just in the caring providence of his God. Nothing can disturb him. The tone is markedly personal; therefore, it does not lend itself to a collective interpretation, as the Targum wants, as if it were Yahweh’s request for the Israelite community.
As in the previous psalms of this first collection of the Psalter, this magnificent poetic piece is attributed to David himself. Really, no one knew better than David what was the life of the shepherd and his concern for the sheep, since it was his profession in the days of his childhood. However, since v.6 refers to the “house of Yahweh,” the temple in Jerusalem, it appears that the composition is later than Solomon, the builder of the sanctuary. For this reason, not a few critics believe that the psalm was composed in Persian times.
Metrically we can distinguish two stanzas formed on the basis of couplets of the elegiac type 2. From the doctrinal point of view, the psalm is a lesson of calm trust in God, attentive Shepherd and Father of families, who protects the guest from all danger and provides abundantly of everything.
Yahweh good shepherd (1-4).
1 Psalm of David. Yahweh is my shepherd; nothing I miss. 2 he makes me lie down in green pastures and leads me to cool waters. 3 he Recreates my soul, he guides me along the straight paths for his name’s sake. 4 Even if I have to pass through a dark valley, I fear no evil, because you are with me. Your club and your staff are my consolations.
Beautifully, the psalmist compares his God to the diligent shepherd who cares for his sheep. As such, he seeks out the best pastures for his flock and the coolest waters. In semi-steppe lands such as Palestine, small oases and meadows are greedily sought after by herders. In the psalms it is frequent to affirm that Yahweh is the Shepherd of Israel, his people 3. Jacob already spoke of the “God who shepherded him” 4; in prophetic literature this simile is frequently applied to Yahweh 5. David had been called “shepherd” 6, but this title was especially reserved for the future Messiah7. Jesus Christ will appropriate it in the beautiful parable of the Good Shepherd 8.
The psalmist, in the shadow of the solicitous Shepherd, feels that he lacks nothing. In Deuteronomy, Israel was promised that it would lack nothing, as it had lacked until now 9. The prophet Jeremiah uses the allegory of the shepherd to reflect the request of the future Messiah on Israel: “There will still be deserts in these places… sheepfolds where the shepherds will herd their flocks…, the cattle will still pass under the hand of the one who counts it, word of Yahweh”10. Yahweh is for the psalmist the shepherd who makes him go to the fresh and juicy places, taking him along the straight paths so that his soul may be recreated there, as the sheep rest in the oasis after having walked under the ardor of the sun of the desert. Also in life the just man has to go through arid zones, in which he deprives vice and systematic contempt for his heroic virtue. Only with Yahweh’s help does he find intimate satisfaction, the fresh waters of liturgical life in the temple and the green pastures of his consoling promises.
The name of Yahweh is a guarantee of triumph and protection in life against all adversities (v.3). Yahweh is manifested in his works, and his glorious name is a reflection of his achievements. Such is the trust that he has in Him that, even though he has to walk through dangerous places, deep valleys where wild beasts dwell, he feels safe under the protection of such a Shepherd. The psalmist plays with the simile of a shepherd who has to go through dangerous areas before reaching safe oases. In life, the dark valleys are the systematic opposition on the part of the wicked to the conduct of the faithful Yahwist, who does not want to separate himself from the Law of his God. The club and the shepherd’s crook are sufficient guarantee to feel safe in the face of danger. The shepherd goes before the flock, opening the way, with his club ready against any beast that wants to attack him, and with the staff pointing the way to the defenseless sheep.
Hospitable Yahweh (5-6).
5 You set before me a table in front of my enemies. You pour the oil on my head, and my chalice overflows. 6 Only kindness and benevolence accompany me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of Yahweh for long days.
A new simile to express Yahweh’s solicitous providence towards the psalmist. Before, he was the Good Shepherd who defended him against the dangers and took him to lush pastures, now he is the kind father of the family or the sheikh who lovingly receives the righteous in his shop, lavishing him with all the attention that is law in traditional oriental hospitality. n. Faced with the psalmist’s enemies, to give a further sensation of favor, Yahweh sets a well-stocked table for his honored guest, and, according to the rite of great stately homes, pours oil on her head (v.5 ); in the oriental banquets the perfumed anointing cannot be missing 12. The host, in addition, personally offers the overflowing cup of drink to the guest: my chalice overflows. Everything is generosity and lordship in the house of Yahweh, who delicately honors the psalmist. His chalice, that is, the intimate friendship of the psalmist with his God, overflows without measure before the envy and spite of his enemies, who are witnesses of the largesse of the Lord of the just. Next to his God, he feels safe, because he daily experiences his goodness and benevolence. As is the law in the psalms, the just finds his greatest happiness in living in the house of Yahweh (v.6), participating in his liturgical solemnities, in which the “face of the Lord” is manifested daily. Perhaps the psalmist is of the Levitical or priestly class, and then the house of Yahweh has a special meaning for him, since he is the qualified guest of it by official prescription of the Law.
1 Cf, Podechard, OC, II 2. – 2 Cf. J. Calés, OC, I 28θ . – 3 Cf. Ps 28:9; Ps 79:3! 80.2; Ps 95:7; – 4 Gen 48:15; Gen 48:49.24- – 5 Cf. Eze 34:11-16; Isa 63:11.14- – 6 Cf. 2 Sam 5.2′. 7:7-100.3. – 7 Cf. Jer 33:15f; Eze 34:23-31- – 8 Cf. Joh 10:1-16. – 9 Cf. Deu 2:7; Deu 8:9; Hebrews 13:20; 1Pe 2:25. – 10 Jer 31:10· – 11 Cf. Gen 43:16; 2Sa 9:75; 2Sa 19:33; 1Ki 4:27; Ps 5:5; Ps 15:1. – 12 Cf. Amos 6:6; Eccl 9:8; Luke 7:46.
Source: Annotated Bible
Jehovah is my shepherd. (Cp. Gen 48:15; Gen 49:24; Deu 32:6-12; Ps 28:9; Ps 74:1; Ps 77:20; Ps 78:52; Ps 79:13; Salt 80:1; Ps 95:7; Ps 100:3; Isaiah 40:11; Jer 23:3; Eze 34:1-31; Hos 4:16; Mic 5:4; Mic 7:14; Zech 9:16) about the image of the Lord as Shepherd. This figure of speech was commonly used in royal applications and is frequently applied to Jesus in the NT (eg. Joh 10:1-42; Hebrews 13:20; 1Pe 2:25; 1Pe 5:4).
Source: MacArthur Study Bible
This psalm is probably the most well-known passage in the OT. It is a testimony from David about the faithfulness of the Lord throughout his life. As a hymn of confidence, he describes the Lord as the Shepherd-King-Host of a disciple. David, by employing some common Near Eastern imagery in the Ps 23:1-6progressively reveals his personal relationship with the Lord in three stages.
I. David’s exclamation: “The Lord is my shepherd” (Ps 23:1 a)
II. The expectations of…