EDITORIAL: Familiar psalm; unexpected words

Marv Knox

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Words simultaneously dumbfound and fascinate me sometimes. I love 'em—how words sound ("perambulate," for example, and "lackadaisical"), subtle differences between words that almost mean the same thing but don't ("impersonate" vs. "imitate"), words that are spelled almost alike but are totally different ("cable" and "cabal") and words that tell you something about a person by the way she pronounces them ("banal" and "schism").

OK, that's weird, but I'm a word guy. Words aren't just tools I manipulate to make my living. They're verbal salsa; they add spice to life and to one of the very best aspects of life—conversation.

Lately, I've been pondering a couple of common words in uncommon sentences. See, I've been laboring over a sermon on the 23rd Psalm. Studying this psalm is like examining your best friend's face. You think you know every square millimeter. But upon close inspection, you see wrinkles and creases, scars and blemishes you never noticed before. Each one tells a story, and each one colors the character of the face you love.

The psalm's first unexpected word is "want" in verse 1: "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want." When I stopped to think about it, I expected "need." The Lord could be expected to supply all our needs. In fact, that's what the Apostle Paul says in Philippians 4:19, "And my God will supply all your needs according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus." But the psalmist says, "… I shall not want."

The key to "want" vs. "need" lies in trusting God as a sheep trusts its shepherd. The sheep depends upon the shepherd to provide what is best, and that, in turn, is what it wants. Through the years, I've realized when my relationship with God is at its deepest, then what I want is exactly what I need. Like when I come in from running in Texas summer heat, the only thing I want is what my body needs more than anything—water. When I'm consistent in practicing my spiritual disciplines, the first thing I want in the morning is precisely what my soul needs—time alone with God through Bible study and prayer.

The second unexpected word startled me when I read verse 4: "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me." If I were King David, I would not have chosen "comfort" to accompany "your rod and your staff." Maybe "your strong hands and resonant voice, they comfort me." Or perhaps "your tender eyes and your sturdy pen, they comfort me."

A rod and a staff are the shepherd's instruments of protection and correction—both valuable, but not necessarily associated with comfort. Some scholars believe both "rod" and "staff" are translations of the same Hebrew word; others believe they're similar, but different.

The rod—a thick club—is an instrument of power. The shepherd protected the sheep and himself with his rod, fighting off predators to save the flock. The rod also represented ownership and control. The shepherd held out his rod as he herded the sheep into the fold, counting each as it passed under the rod.

The staff—a long, curved stick—is an implement of discipline. The shepherd extended his staff to pull an errant sheep back into the flock. He tapped his sheep with his staff to move them along. With his staff, he kept them together and guided them to green pastures and quiet waters.


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Upon reflection, no word could be more appropriate than "comfort" to describe the result of God's protection and correction. Like sheep, we need boundaries for our own good. We're no match for the waywardness of our distractions and for our indiscriminate inclinations. We need the Good Shepherd to stand between us and the evil that would devour us. And like sheep, we need continual correction and guidance, to keep us on the path toward our spiritual home.

The psalmist insists we need not fear the valley of the shadow of death. If you don't believe in that valley, read the newspaper. But fear does not dominate us. The Shepherd walks with us. Take comfort.

–Marv Knox is editor of the Baptist Standard. Visit his blog at www.baptiststandard.com.

 


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