Getting to Know Our Good Shepherd Through Psalm 23

Trusting the Shepherd Who Never Leaves

By Jen Ludwig

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”
~ John 10:11

I don’t know about you, but I am not friends with any shepherds. I know a few folks that are involved in agriculture for a living, and I have one friend that I hung out with in my twenties in Los Angeles who now has a cattle ranch in Idaho. (I did not see that one coming.) But nope, no shepherds. Maybe you can relate? Or rather, maybe you can’t relate to the imagery Jesus uses in John 10.

In contrast, as Jesus spoke to the crowds, they knew exactly who He was talking about. Shepherds were commonplace. Those listening to Jesus compare Himself to a good shepherd knew the time, the care, and the sacrificial life of a shepherd.

To help those of us living in the twenty-first century become familiar with some of the responsibilities of a shepherd, we can look to Ps. 23. This psalm was written by King David. You may recall that David himself was once a herdsman (who used his slingshot to fight Goliath), so he knows how a good shepherd would care for his sheep.

The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. (Ps. 23)