for ages 4-8<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0|\u00a0for ages 9-1<\/a><\/strong>7<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong> | Print<\/a><\/strong> | Audio<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Psalm 23 is one of the best known and most loved psalms. It is both a canticle of trust and a joyful profession of faith expressed by someone who belongs to the people of Israel. Through the prophets, \u00a0the Lord has promised to be their shepherd.<\/strong> The psalmist expresses his personal happiness because he knows that he is protected in the Temple, [i]<\/a> a place of refuge and grace, but also, drawing on his experience, \u00a0he wants to encourage others to have confidence in the presence of the Lord.<\/p>\n “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.”<\/strong><\/p>\n The image of the shepherd and the flock is very dear to all biblical literature. To understand it fully, we must think of the arid and rocky deserts in the Middle East. The shepherd gently guides his flock, for without him they could go astray and die. The sheep must learn to rely on him, listening to his voice. He is their constant companion.<\/p>\n “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.”<\/strong><\/p>\n This psalm invites us to strengthen our intimate relationship with God by experiencing his love. Some may wonder why the author goes so far as to say that \u2018I lack nothing\u2019? Nowadays the problems and challenges of health, family, work, etc are part of everyday life. In addition, there is the immense suffering experienced by so many of our brothers and sisters\u00a0 due to war, the consequences of climate change, migration, violence, etc.<\/p>\n “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.”<\/strong><\/p>\n Perhaps the key to interpretation lies in the verse where we read \u201cfor you are with me\u201d (Ps 23:4). It refers to certainty in the love of a God who always accompanies us and makes us live in a different way. Chiara Lubich wrote: \u201cIt is one thing to know that we can have recourse to a Being who exists, who has mercy on us, who has paid for our sins, and quite another to live and feel ourselves at the centre of God\u2019s predilection, with the consequent banishment of all the fears that hold us back, of all loneliness, of all sense of orphanhood and all uncertainty\u2026 Men and women can \u00a0know they are loved and believe in this love with all their being. They can surrenders to it trustingly and follow it.\u00a0 Everything that happens in life, whether sad or joyful, is enlightened by knowing love\u00a0 has willed or permitted it all.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.”<\/strong><\/p>\n Jesus brought this prophecy to fulfilment: in John\u2019s Gospel he does not hesitate to call himself the \u2018good shepherd\u2019.\u00a0 Relationships with this shepherd are personal and intimate in nature. \u00a0\u201cI am the good shepherd, I know my sheep and my sheep know me\u201d (Jn. 10:14-15). He leads them to the pastures of his Word that is life, particularly the Word that contains the message enclosed in the \u201cnew commandment\u201d, which, if lived, makes \u201cvisible\u201d the presence of the Risen One in the community gathered in his name, in his love. [ii]<\/a><\/p>\n Edited by Augusto Parody Reyes“The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing” (Ps 23[22]:1).<\/h4>\n
\nand the Word of Life Team<\/p>\n