Summer Scripture Verse Mapping Episode 1 - Psalm 23: The Shepherd Who Stays
Show Notes:
Summary
Psalm 23 may be familiar, but it is anything but shallow.
In this episode of Glory & Grit, we begin the summer Scripture Verse Mapping series by slowing down with Psalm 23. Instead of only reading it from David’s perspective, we look at the passage from the perspective of the sheep — vulnerable, dependent, easily distracted, and deeply in need of a Shepherd who knows the terrain.
This episode walks through Psalm 23 line by line, looking at the Shepherd’s care, the meaning of green pastures and still waters, the restoration of the soul, the paths of righteousness, the valley of the shadow of death, the comfort of the rod and staff, the table prepared in the presence of enemies, anointing oil, the overflowing cup, and the promise of goodness and mercy.
At the heart of this episode is one steady reminder:
The Shepherd does not only lead us beside still waters.He stays with us in the valley.
In This Episode
Why Psalm 23 is more than a funeral scripture
What it means to read Psalm 23 from the perspective of the sheep
Why “The Lord is my shepherd” is personal
What green pastures may teach us about daily provision
Why still waters are safe waters
How God restores tired, worn-down souls
Why the valley is not proof that the Shepherd left
What the rod and staff show us about protection, rescue, correction, and comfort
Why God can prepare a table while the enemies are still present
How goodness and mercy pursue us all the days of our lives
Takeaways
Psalm 23 is not only about comfort; it is about relationship with the Shepherd.
“I shall not want” does not mean “I shall not wait.”
Still waters are not stagnant waters; they are safe waters.
The valley is not proof that the Shepherd left.
The table is not proof that your enemies are gone; it is proof they do not get the final word.
Transcript:
Stephanie (00:00)
Psalm 23 isn't just a pretty passage about green pastures and quiet waters. It's a picture of a relationship. It's a picture of a shepherd who leads, protects, restores, corrects, prepares, anoints, and stays. Right? All right. Hang with me. Let's do a deep dive.
and map verse the scripture, Psalm twenty three, my favorite.
Hi friend, welcome back to Glory and Grit, where faith meets real life. I'm your host, Stephanie, and I'm so glad you're with me for our first summer episode, which we are going to do scripture map versing, or also called Bible Mapversing.
it's a deep dive into the scriptures where you not only just read the pretty words, you look up the words that you don't understand, you look up the context of what
happening in that time frame and also you learn ⁓ what the beautiful symbolisms in the scriptures are so like I said Psalm 23 which is my favorite one of my favorite scriptures and I
I used to carry a little credit card in my purse. It was an American Express. Not really, okay. But it said American Express. But what it really was was Psalm 23. So where all the parts of the credit card were there were bits and pieces of Psalm 23. So I've loved that scripture ever since I had that card. And I I am so disappointed that I don't have it anymore.
I learned this one a long time ago.
but
You probably I'm sure you're very familiar with Psalm 23. And by all means feel free to get your scriptures, your highlighters, your pencils, your crayons, and all the things, the sticky notes that you use to mark up your scriptures because I mark my scriptures up so that I can remember the next time I read them and so that these things can be submitted into my mind. and you can pause whenever you need to write something down or you feel inspired ⁓ for inspiration about
Something you want to write down, okay, and don't forget your scripture journal as well. I didn't bring all my stuff tonight because it's a lot going on around here, firecrackers and
23 is a beautiful scripture and it's not just a farewell, you know. You've you've probably heard it at funerals a lot, but it's it's not just it's more than a poem, a poem, ⁓ about mortality, right? It's about God's provision.
God's protection and God's grace and presence, right? So we're going to picture God in two pictures of God in our mind. The first is going to be God as a shepherd, right? That's verses one through four. And then we're gonna see God as a host, verses five through six. But here's what I want you to do for the scripture.
you're probably used to reading it and hearing it from the author's perspective, David, or as if you were the author reading it. Today and hopefully going forward. I want you to switch perspectives and think of yourself as the sheep.
Right? So for this time, think of yourself reading this scripture as if you were the sheep. Now, let's start with the very first line, verse one. The Lord is my shepherd. Hello. That line alone has a lot going on for it and tells you where this ⁓
What this scripture is really about. It's the whole foundation basically. And it doesn't say that the Lord is a shepherd. It doesn't say that the Lord is just the shepherd. It says that he's my shepherd. So if I am a sheep, the Lord is my shepherd. And we're going to talk about
What shepherds are and do and all the things, okay? We're gonna go line by line.
Now this says that there is a personal relationship between me and God.
This is not just I'm out there relying on my own my own thoughts and guidance. I have a personal relationship with my shepherd who leads me, feeds me, protects me, corrects me, watches me, and stays near me. Okay? Sheep are very dependent.
On a shepherd. And it's not because they're entirely useless. They are dumb, but it's mainly because they're so vulnerable because they're so dumb, right? And they need all the guidance that they can get. And that's what a shepherd does for him. So David is saying that.
I'm not leading myself. I belong to somebody who knows this terrain, who knows the right ways to go, right? And the comfort of Psalm 23 starts before the valley ever even shows up. It starts with knowing who is leading me. Right?
the next line, I shall not want. Now this doesn't mean that we never have desires for anything or that we'll never struggle. This is more like we learn to submit our desires, our passions, and our wants to Him in the right way. It points for us to trust God.
to trust in his provision because he's the shepherd and the shepherd knows what his sheep need. A good shepherd knows what his sheep need. And sometimes God provides us what we need, not what we're demanding or what we want, right? There's a difference between having every want met
and being cared for by the shepherd. And Psalm twenty three in Hebrew isn't saying that ⁓ we'll want for nothing, but rather that I shall not lack anything. I shall not want doesn't mean
I shall not wait, okay, because we all know we own the Lord's timer, right? Sometimes provision and timing are two different lessons. And I'm sure you you have or you will find out about that. But this ensures us that God will be there now and he'll be there in the future. It doesn't matter what happens, he's going to look out for me.
And I shall not lack anything. He's gonna look out for you, and you shall not lack anything. Right?
the next line is he maketh me to lie down in green pastures. So two things I want to point out right off the beginning.
Sheep need four things in order for them to be comfortable enough to lie down and rest. One, no friction, because they'll hit bump each other and hit bulk each other, ⁓ trying to fight for whatever reasons may be. No fear. They don't they can't if they're afraid, then they won't rest. They because they have to be on lookout, right? No parasitic pests, because if these parasites
lay eggs in their noses and it causes them severe pain, the sheep will headbutt his head into a rock until he dies because the pain is unbearable, right? For no hunger. If a sheep is hungry, he will wander mindlessly looking for food.
That's how we get lost, okay. and second thing, I want you to get rid of that picture in your head about green grass, right? the word green also has a connotation ⁓ in Hebrew for ⁓ pleasantness or loveliness or something to be enjoyed. And green pastures represent nourishment.
safety and rest. Okay. however we need to understand the time in which this scripture was given. David's time. So I need you to go ahead and get that picture out of your head about this lush green field that you see on your ⁓
screensavers and all that stuff because this is not what he is referring to. Okay. There's no lush green grass that you can just lay down on and it's all green and lovely. That ain't happening, okay?
I don't know if you're f if you've seen pictures of the the time that David lived in and the area, but it's a rocky desert, okay? And at night the sea would blow warm humid air into the area and then it would wet the rocks and then ⁓ condensation and all that stuff on the rocks on the side of the hill and then that would that moisture
would cause a little tuft of grass to pop up overnight or to pop out overnight. Right? Now this was just a clump of grass. Okay, not even a full good mouthful. Just a little clump. And it would be a clump here, a clump over there, a clump over there, a clump a few feet this way, a clump a few feet.
So it's spread out these little clunks. They're not all nicely put together like a plush green green grass, right? Now, the shepherd has to lead these sheep to each little clump of grass. So if you've got a flock, it might be a little spread out, he's leading them on a path where they can find all of these little
patches of grass. And what will happen is the sheep will rip up a you know, that little tuft of tuft of grass and he will chew on it and start to graze on it. And while he's grazing on it, he's walking and chewing. So he's going to the next little tuft of grass. And then he'll start to graze there. And then he'll start chewing and then he'll walk on to the next one.
And that's so on, repeat, repeat, repeat, until they've gotten all the food they they want, they need. Now another important point to remember ⁓ here is that the shepherd is only walking around until every sheep has grace enough to fill his belly for the day. Okay, for today. He's not taking care of
their bellies for tomorrow or for the next day. He's making sure that their needs for today are being met.
God has to lead us into rest because we won't choose it for ourselves. We have to under remember that rest isn't laziness, rest can be obedience. And sometimes the shepherd has to make
me lie down because apparently I think exhaustion is a spiritual gift or something. I don't know. so we need rest sometimes and we talked about that in season one. Next line he leadeth me beside the still waters. Now here's another good part the word still has the Hebrew word comfort in it right
And we know that sheep are not the brightest, but they're also the scariest. their nervous system is like on high alert all the time unless they can see their shepherd on the watch out for them. so when he wants to let them drink water and to restore, it has to be somewhere where the water is very gentle.
Sheep will not drink from a waterfall or from a noisy, busy location. They don't like loud noises and they definitely are not a fan of the water cooler. That's old school if you you know everybody gathers around a water cooler cooler to talk at work. Anyway, the shepherd knows that he has to take them to waters that are gentle, like a babbling brook.
or a gently rolling downstream type of flow of water and then they'll drink. And because they can see him, because they know that they can see their shepherd, they can drink and then they can relax, let that nervous system calm down and start to restore their energy, right? Now the sheep trust that in the desert
The shepherd can and he will lead them to every mouthful of grass and gentle waters so that they can be ⁓ still and find some comfort. He's also providing the sheep what they actually can receive, right? I'm sorry if you hear the firecrackers, so you obviously know what day this is I'm recording. ⁓ I will try my best to edit them out.
Sometimes God leads us to quiet when we're addicted to noise, movement, and you know, urgency.
Still waters are not stagnant waters. They are safe waters. I like that. That's a let's make that a mic thumper. Still waters are not stagnant waters. They are safe waters.
and the next line He restoreth my soul. This is one of the strongest emotional parts of Psalm 23. And another way that we can look at this is that God is helping me to feel like myself again. ⁓ Because he knows that I refuse to take a break and slow down and get rest and heal sometimes. So restoration is
Let's think about that. Restoration means that something has it's been worn down, depleted, damaged, tired, whatever those things. God doesn't shame the soul for needing restoration. He tells you to get rest. And restoration isn't something that's always quick and instant. A restored soul can be walking around through real life problems, but no longer empty inside.
Right.
The next line is He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness and
And this can be more than just be good,
interestingly, David chose the Hebrew word that in fact means circle. And if you remember earlier, we described a little about what the area looked like back then, right? The rocky, remember the rocky desert. Walking down these hills was steep.
You I mean you couldn't just walk down or run straight down. Shepherds used to lead their sheep down the mountainside in a in practically a circular pattern around it, right? Now once the sheep have been on a particular path for a while, then they start to
wear the the trail down and the dirt down so you see the you can see that circle and in the impression in the dirt and so you know that is a righteous path that has been tried and true before and that it'll get you safely down the mountain.
So if you've seen pictures or wondered why the circle around the hill, there you go. You're welcome. Now let's get back to you. You might have noticed times in your life where you felt like you were going around in circles or that there were certain patterns that you were repeating. But give yourself some grace because you are growing spiritually.
Each time that you go through something like that, each time you go through one of those little loops, you're growing spiritually. Even if it feels like you've been there before and you're just doing the same thing. If we don't learn what we need to the last time we were in that circle, then sometimes we have to repeat it again. And even again, until we learn what we need in order
to prepare us for what God is preparing us for. He he leads us so that our grit will become his glory and and we'll be growing into his sons and daughters. Now, righteous paths are right paths, guided paths, covenant paths, purposeful paths.
But remember, God's leading might not always be the easiest route. A path can be right and still be uncomfortable. Okay? The shepherd knows the destination, not just the next step. So are you wandering today?
What is your next right step?
Well, my friend, you are highly favored and greatly blessed, my little sheep. Because you have a shepherd who already gave his life to protect you and is still close by you to lead you and to lead you on the covenant path and help you to take the next steps along that path so that you don't wander off and get lost.
We often talk about the covenant path, and Psalm 23 reminds me that the path is not just a checklist, it's a walk with the shepherd. It's a walk with my shepherd. It's a walk with your shepherd. Right? Next line for his name's sake. This is small, but
powerful because
God's leading reflects his character and he's faithful because he is faithful, not because we're the perfect sheep. Mm-mm. His name is attached to his care, his promises, and his goodness. Okay? So the shepherd's reputation is one of mercy, holiness, provision, and faithfulness.
Now, God is not leading me based on my ability to understand the map. Okay? He's leading me according to his character. Remember that.
Next line. ⁓ this one here. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death. let's unpack this one, okay? ⁓ this is I think right about mid-center of the episode. Now it's important for you to understand that in that day and time, shepherds often had to go.
through the valley to get to the other side where there's other feeding areas so that the sheep could continue to graze until they were full. I don't know if you know but the valley in that time is scary for a good reason. not just because it might be dark.
But the valley allows many opportunities for predators and such to have deep hiding places where they could trap or trick the sheep and they could eventually find themselves being attacked and served up as a meal for a hungry foe.
And we'll talk about how and
what he uses to protect later down in the episode. So the sheep know to stay close to the shepherd while they're in the valley. What can we learn from this in our own lives today?
If she know to stay close to the shepherd, what should we know to do?
Mm.
And remember, the shepherd takes the sheep through the valley. The psalm doesn't say he skips the valley. Okay? Being led by God doesn't mean that every path is gonna bring green pastures, right? Air quotes if you can't because you don't see the video. If you're on the podcast, it's air quotes. the valley is not proof.
That the shepherd left.
Okay. Through matters because the valley isn't the final destination. You just have to go through it. Shadow matters because shadows are frightening, but they're not the same as the ultimate.
But he doesn't send us through alone. He's with us and he's close by.
And the next line is I will fear no evil, for thou art with me.
This is a shift from talking about God to talking to God.
Earlier David says he maketh, he leadeth, he restoreth,
But in the valley it becomes thou art with me.
So the valley changes the language from a description to intimacy.
Because when we're suffering, our faith becomes very personal, very real. And the deepest comfort is not an explanation, It's presence.
I just give you a moment to think about that. It's his presence.
So David doesn't say, I understand everything. He says, Thou art with me.
Sometimes a valley is where God stops being a concept that one-can talk about and becomes the shepherd that we cling to.
Next line. Thy rod and thy staff. They comfort me.
This is protection and correction. And right now we're not going to talk about spare the rod, spoil the child kind of energy. Okay? I mean I'll talk about that right now. In this case, the rod is meant to be a tool of protection and a symbol of love.
So the rod is a heavy wooden club or stick, and it often has a knob on one end of it, And this is used to defend the sheep against predators and against enemies. And as we as we said earlier, sheep are the dumbest. I tried to find a better word, but I couldn't find it. Sheep are the dumbest.
It's the shepherd who defends his little flock.
Don't you just love the scripture when Christ says, I am with thee, my little flock? That's just so tender. I just love that so much. Okay, back on task.
Protection. So the rod in Psalm twenty three ⁓ becomes a symbol of God's protection for us. he goes before the sheep do and he risks his life to protect them. The staff. Now the staff is a long slender stick with a distinctive curve or kind of hooked in on it and
It can be used as a scepter, a crutch, or prop, or it can even be used ⁓ for support to lean upon. A shepherd can use it as a walking stick when the ground is rough or not safe for sitting on, or he just needs to lean upon it to rest.
The staff can be a symbol that we too can find rest when we lean upon the Lord. Now, rescue. It can be used as a rescue because sometimes sheep would get stuck in, say, like a thorn of of bushes, like maybe they went through this thorn of of bushes or whatever you want to call it to get to some grass that was at the bottom of it.
And now the thorns are stuck in their their fleece and they can't come out. Well the shepherd can use his crooked end of his staff and reach in and hook him and pull him out. or if say a little lamb fell over the edge and is down lower in a little pit, he can use his hook to hook him and pull him up, right?
So God rescues us when we're in trouble.
It can be used as a guide. It can help to guide the sheep across the open fields and the rocky hillsides. And this, you know, he can use it to help tap you, keep you in line so that you stay on the right path and that they don't get lost. And the staff can also guide and lead us to places that are peaceful, that we can have restoration.
Amid all the chaos that we have in our lives, right? It also leads us to paths that allow us to make better choices. Hello.
God's comfort isn't always soft, right? Sometimes comfort looks like defending being defended rather. Sometimes comfort looks like being redirected. Sometimes the shepherd pulls back from something we thought we wanted. So sometimes the staff feels rude until I realize it's just keeping me from walking off of
Cliff.
Next line. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies. ⁓ this is another major anchor. God prepares a feast for you. He brings you to the table where you can fellowship with him.
You can rest a bit and you're doing all this under his protection.
Does he know your enemies are still there, still scheming, still watching? Of course he does. But he's not gonna allow them to stop him from giving you not just peace, but also stability. He lays out the best foods and all the chocolate for me. He puts my favorite dishes on the table and
And then he follows that up with some blackberry Dr. Peppers. Mm-hmm. And he's so cold that he even invites my enemies to the table to show them. Like, hmm, look, look what I did for her. In spite of your trifling attempts to keep her down, I'm always close to my child and you can't begin to bring her down.
You might shake the bottle, but in my hands the sand steel falls off and settles calmly on the bottom. I got her.
There is so much comfort.
The table represents God's provision, God's peace, honor, stability, and he's gonna give it to me right in the middle of the opposition. So no. Peace doesn't require the room to be cleared of all your problems. The table isn't proof that the enemies are gone.
The table is proof that they don't get the final word. Hello, mic check, let's say it again. The table is not proof that your enemies are gone. The table is proof that they don't get the final word. Next line
Next line thou anointest my head with oil. This can be both symbolic and practical because again in that time frame in David's time of writing, anointing with oil was a symbol of welcoming someone into your home. It was also blessings and abundant joy, right? And I kind of feel that because I feel that way about my doTERRA essential oils.
Right. So oil represents blessings, consecration, healing and care.
And going back to our shepherd, shepherds used oil. Remember when I said they to put it on their faces and their skin to keep the parasites from nesting there? But they also put it on their bodies. So if they got into a ⁓ one of those headbutting
challenges of position or whatever when the shepherd wasn't near that their horns don't go into their skins and damage each other, that because of the oil it can kind of just roll off, right? Or if they get an injury, the oil can kind of help coat the broken skin so that it doesn't get infected. God tends to what is wounded, irritated, vulnerable or exposed.
Okay. his care is personal. It's not generic.
The shepherd doesn't only lead the flock, he notices the places that need to be tended. God notices where you hurt. God notices when you're in pain, when you're suffering, when you are sad, when you are
in need of help, of comfort, of peace, because he's a good shepherd.
The next line, my cup runneth over. That points to abundance. That's not you didn't just get your cup filled so that you had what you needed. You got it overrunning.
So God is not giving you just what you need, He's making sure that you have all you need and a little cushion for the unforeseeables, right? Now, interestingly enough, both oil and wine were made through the process of crushing. But the end result was something that was amazingly useful.
So you could say this as God's abundant provision for our lives.
Even though our lives haven't always been easy, mine certainly wasn't, and maybe yours wasn't either, but God has blessed me with an amazing life. And I'm sure he's blessed you with an amazing life too. And notice
I said, amazing. Not picture perfect.
There would be no growth if you had a picture perfect life. Okay. So having overflow doesn't always mean that our circumstances are easy, right? But sometimes it might look like grace, strength, peace, mercy, provision, or even endurance.
Sometimes the cup runs over while life is still complicated. so remember, overflow doesn't always mean that life is perfect. Sometimes it means grace keeps showing up when I expect it to run dry.
Do you think that's a mic bumper? I think so.
Let's hear it again. Remember this. Overflow doesn't always mean my life is easy. Sometimes it means grace keeps showing up where I expect it to run dry.
And the last line, surely goodness and mercy shall follow me. That is a beautiful ending, right? And funny, it doesn't really say in Hebrew, it doesn't really say that they will follow me. It's actually more like goodness and mercy or loving kindness.
will chase me down enthusiastically.
Okay. Picture that one. It makes me laugh with joy to think of that. And and not just today, but also tomorrow and for all the days of my life. All the days of your life. Alright? So we too can be chased enthusiastically.
All of our days because we know that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
Goodness and mercy are not waiting for me to get my act together before they follow me.
Thank heavens.
⁓ actually, this is the last line. Sorry about that. I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. That's the ending with belonging.
So the final image is home. Home with Him. Right? The shepherd doesn't just get us through one hard moment. He leads us toward the eternal belonging.
Psalm 23 begins with a relationship.
and ends with a dwelling.
How cool is that? The goal is not just survival. It's be with God. That's our goal.
Psalm 23 begins with my shepherd.
And it ends with the house of the Lord.
Which was in David's writing time a temple. because that's where you would they weren't temples weren't everywhere, so that's where you would go to be with the Lord.
It starts with being led and it ends with being home.
Psalm twenty three is a lifeline in troubled time.
Keep it close to you. Put it on a sticky note. Write it on an index card. Put it in your journal. Type it in your phone. Keep it with you. Or even better, memorize it. Or both. Nothing wrong with having it written down. You may need to give it to someone else to help them.
You can even pick out a phrase that stands out to you today and then let that be the one that you come back to when you need that peace, that comfort, that reassurance, that restoration, right?
thank you for spending this time with me on Glory and Grit today. I'm so happy to have you with our first scripture of the summer. And remember, if this episode encouraged you.
Feel free to share it with someone who might need it. And you can also find the scripture verse mapping companion page for this episode at gloryandgridpodcast.com. And may I say it's a beautiful page. It's not like the reflection guide, it's a beautiful page. It actually has a field and brook a babbling brook on it and then some points and it it's really beautiful. It's it's worthy enough to print out and put in a frame and hang on your wall. Okay. So please check that out when you get a chance.
Until next time, my friend, keep looking for the glory, keep walking with grit, and remember you are not walking alone.
Bye now.
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