“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.” (Psalm 23:1 New King James Version)
“Yahweh is my best friend and my shepherd. I always have more than enough. (Psalm 23:1 The Passion Translation)
“The LORD is my shepherd; I have all that I need.” (Psalm 23:1 New Living Translation)
“The LORD is my shepherd [to feed, to guide, and to shield me], I shall not want.” (Psalm 23:1 Amplified Bible)
“The LORD is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack.” (Psalm 23:1 Holman Christian Standard Bible)
“LORD JEHOVAH will shepherd me and I shall lack nothing.” (Psalm 23:1 Aramaic Bible in Plain English)
As I have begun pondering this verse, it is obvious that a shepherd has only one thing in mind, the well being of his sheep. The Bible is full of references to my relationship with my Daddy (my Heavenly Abba Father) as being similar in nature to a shepherd and his sheep.
If I am going to receive the full benefit of my relationship with my Daddy it has to start with “Identity.” I have shared this before, however in light of Psalm 23:1 it bears repeating. The first thing that the enemy did in the Garden of Eden was to distort “Identity” in the minds of Adam and Eve. He corrupted the way that they percieved the identities of their Father and themselves. Rather than seeing their Father as the loving provider that He was, the serpent led them into seeing Him as a cruel, selfish person who was holding back on them. Instead of seeing His true identity as their generous provider who had lavishly supplied for their every need and want, they began to fixate on the one thing that he restricted (The Tree of Good and Evil) and saw Him as their opposition. Then the serpent went after their own identities.
Adam and Eve were created out of the Creator of the Universe Himself. He breathed part of His own Spirit into them giving them His own life. They were created as Beings in His class of Being. As His children they were in union with Him. Yet, the enemy very subtly planted the seed that they needed to bypass His restriction on eating from the Tree of Good and Evil to “become” what they already were. Because they perceived their identity as less than what it was, and their Father as less than He was, they listened to the serpent and ate. As we know, this resulted in darkening their minds and living in their false identities. Thus the need for a saviour.
Verse 1 of Psalm 23 begins in a very simple, yet profound, way. It establishes the true identity of the One from whom the rest of this Psalm flows – my Shepherd. From His true identity, my Daddy provides everything that I will ever need or want. He has never been seperated from me in any way. I have bought into the lies of the enemy at times, and have distorted my perception of Him. Like Adam and Eve, when this distortion has taken place I have then accepted a false identity of myself as well and tried to run and hide from the very One who wants nothing more than to be my Shepherd. Even when I run and hide He pursues me in order to provide for me beyond my wildest dreams. He is always on my side. He never stops loving, providing, protecting, and caring for me. In Him I lack nothing.
“Yahweh is my best friend and my Shepherd. I always have more than enough.”
That is why I embrace…
…Eric’s Life Lesson # 204: Life With the Shepherd (Psalm 23): Part 2 – Verse 1