Category: 2020 – Psalm 23

What do you know about the shepherd’s rod & staff? 

In the Middle East, the shepherd carries only a rod and staff.  The rod is an extension of the shepherd’s right arm.  It’s a symbol of his strength, his power, his authority in any serious situation.  The rod was what he relied on to safeguard both himself and his flock in danger.  And it was, furthermore, the instrument he used to discipline and correct any wayward sheep that insisted on wandering away.

Whereas the rod conveys the concept of authority, of power, of discipline, of defense against danger, the word “staff” plays 3 important roles:

1. Drawing sheep together in an intimate relationship.
2. Drawing sheep close to the shepherd for intimate examination. 
3. Guiding sheep.  Only the use of a staff could free sheep from their entanglements. 

Whether the danger comes from outside ourselves (necessitating the rod) or our own foolishness (requiring the staff), we have a shepherd who is watching carefully and guarding constantly.

What are your equivalents of the rod & staff?

Click here for more from Keller, Morgan, and Lucado

From the shepherd’s point of view, this statement marks the halfway stage in the Psalm, which turns to address the shepherd directly.

David assumes that all of us will at some point or another walk through the valley of the shadow of death, hence his use of the term “even though.”  So, our approach should not be one of figuring out how to avoid it, but understanding what we need to do to remain faithful along the way.

To David, “the valley of the shadow of death” wasn’t a poetic notion.  He was describing a real place, where he led his sheep from the folds of Judea toward the heights of Galilee, threading many canyons—some of them deep and steep—infested with thieves and predators, riddled with caves, rimmed by narrow trails.

If you’re not in the valley today, you will find yourself there at some point. Which shepherd do you plan to turn to when that day arrives?

Click here to learn more from Keller, Lucado, and Morgan