Daily Meditations

Psalm 23:5a   Dignitaries at His table      We have not finished with this scene of convivial fellowship at the table of the Shepherd King for He rises from His chair and produces a bottle of fragrant oil. He stands behind me and tenderly anoints my head, a ceremonial act that bestows honour and privilege. It is the oil of joy and acceptance, the oil of welcome and pleasure at my company. It sets me apart and shows my place in the heart of my host! Really! Does my King honour me so? Am I worthy of such acclaim and distinction? He thinks so. Then He refills my cup, the cup of blessing and salvation, He fills it until it overflows with His abundance and I know that I am esteemed and treasured beyond measure. What can I say? I am humbled beyond words and my heart is broken with love. This is no fanciful depiction; the oil is His Holy Spirit that anoints my head and flows down and through to my inner being such that I am filled with joy and gladness and overwhelmed with the honour tha

Psalm 23:5   Come and dine      The scene has changed, we are through the valley and no longer out in the fields with the Shepherd, instead we have been invited into the intimacy of a home where a table is prepared and a meal is about to be served. Let’s forget, for a moment, about 21 st  century living with our spacious homes and dining rooms and evening meals and the endless chains of restaurants and cafes available day and night. In ancient times it was a privilege, and something of an event, to be welcomed as an honoured guest into someone’s home, and to sit down and enjoy hospitality and good food. Here the Shepherd King has invited David to His house, to sit down at His table and to enjoy His protection and His generosity. This speaks of friendship and mutual acceptance but also of fortification and safety, for David’s enemies are amassed outside. However, he has no fear of conflict or danger for in this house he is secure and free from assault.  This is our position dear

Psalm 23:4b   Rod and staff      And so we come to the Shepherd’s equipment – His rod and His staff. The nature and purpose of these tools is not exactly shrouded in mystery! The Hebrew word for rod is  “sebet” . It is simply a short stick, used every day for a variety of tasks including; - counting the sheep, defending the sheep and disciplining the sheep. The rod was always in the shepherd’s hand and always in use. The staff also has a variety of uses, the Hebrew word is  “mishena”  which suggests a support, something to lean upon and trust. The staff had a crook at its end for lifting lambs and pulling a sheep away from trouble. It was also a very basic symbol of authority.  It’s hard to imagine an ancient shepherd going anywhere without these simple tools; the days were long, the dangers existed all around and whilst he had his bare hands, he was more than adequately equipped if he had a strong staff and a stout stick. That’s all he needed, the sheep would be safe and the sh

Psalm 23:4a   You are not alone      We need to stop and mediate for a moment, for the valley is but a shadow. Shadows are sometimes threatening, sometimes they bring comfort, for they hide us from the full heat of the sun. The valley of the shadow of death sounds like a most unwelcoming place doesn’t it? I picture myself in a narrow ravine with towering cliffs on either side. No sun ever reaches this place and the path ahead looks torturous and difficult. There will be many rest spots and yet we must keep moving because loose rocks could come tumbling down those cliff walls at any time and block the way, or worse still injure us. Indeed, to remain here is in itself life threatening. Shadows are reminders that it is still day, that somewhere out there the sun still shines, that there are wider, safer and sunnier places ahead. And so we plod on, the terrain does not improve, the way is difficult and the surroundings are fearsome. Then, one day, we realise that we are not alone; we

Psalm 23:4    The valley of the shadow      This intense verse of Scripture seems to divide into three parts but when put together they form a remarkable and deeply comforting whole! All of us have walked through dark valleys and many have taken that difficult journey through the valley of the shadow of death. It can be the death of a loved one, a spouse, a child, a parent or a close friend; suddenly that face has gone, the conversations have ended, their presence is no more and the effect can be devastating. We are faced with an empty vacuum and silence and our memories. Loss, regret, anger, emptiness; it’s impossible to describe the depth of the feelings that we have and yet, the Lord Jesus promises that He will be with us. We are not alone. We can hold His hand. He is before us, behind us, beneath us and above us. There is nowhere in this dark valley where He will not be ready to comfort and encourage us. Eventually when we can lift up our heads and look ahead, He whispers,  “I

Psalm 23:3a   The right path      It has been a recurring theme in my experience recently that the Lord guides and helps me and honours my faith, simply because it is His name that is at stake. Turn this around and it means that we may pray or witness and act in faith because His name will be honoured. It is not our reputation that is on the line but His. And if we constantly find ourselves heading in the wrong direction, taking the wrong paths and listening to the wrong guidance then our faith is going to suffer. Does He want that to happen?  Of course not. The paths that sheep take can be precarious, those tough old mountain ewes seem to be able to go anywhere, without fear, but they are often left to their own devices anyway. The flock that we have joined is not for loners, it is comprised of those who stay together, who stick close to the Shepherd and who are vulnerable without Him and without each other. Be sure that for His name’s sake, He will guide us in the right paths! P

Psalm 23:3    He restores my soul       Bible commentators seem to be divided as to whether the Lord refreshes or restores our souls. I suppose the two ideas are not dissimilar. Commentators also seem to disagree, amicably, as to whether it is our souls or spirits that get refreshed! Let’s just assume that He does it all – and maybe that’s the point! The Good Shepherd restores and refreshes, He cares for my soul and for my spirit. My inner being is cared for as well as my outer, physical needs. The richness of His pasture, the scope of His tender care, the depth of His compassion and his wisdom and experience mean that I am in the best place, with the best shepherd and nothing I need will ever be withheld.   There is a passage in Ezekiel 34 where the Lord condemns the shepherds of Israel who have prospered at the expense of the care of the flock. The sheep have scattered, they have become prey for wild animals and no one searches for them. The Lord is angry with the shepherds an

Psalm 23:2     In green pastures       Implicit within the statement that the “Lord is my Shepherd” is the awareness that He will feed me. As we have seen, a major responsibility of any shepherd is to provide satisfactory grazing for the sheep. This Shepherd, however, is not satisfied with scratchy patches of scrubland; He takes His sheep to green pastures and causes them to lie down in contentment. There is no scene more peaceful or serene than a flock of contented animals in a green field in summer. However, think carefully here, it’s not a common sight is it – sheep lying down?        ·        Sheep are edgy creatures and particularly timid, they will run if you approach them, whereas cows tend to munch away and regard you with inquisitive eyes. Sheep will only lie down if they are without fear.  ·        Sheep also suffer from a variety of pests such as flies and parasites hence they need regular dipping; an irritated sheep will not lie down.  ·        Thirdly sheep are,

Psalm 23:1    My Shepherd      This shepherd – flock relationship has so much to teach us and I will leave you to think about your own experiences but here are a few pointers: - ·        The Lord always goes before us. ·        We are free so long as He is with us. ·        He guards us at all times. ·        He is constantly looking to feed us. ·        Our relationship with Him is intimate and individual. ·        He calls us and knows us by name. ·        We do well to heed His voice. ·        We can be totally dependent upon Him. THE LORD IS  MY  SHEPHERD! It is because of this that I lack nothing. You see, I don’t have to worry or fret about my needs if I have learned to trust Him absolutely. He does all the providing, all I have to do is remain in the flock, under His care, and everything will be supplied for me. Those animals that I watched in Israel were not anxious. They did not have to plot their course. They were not even looking out for themselves

Psalm 23: Intro   The Lord is my Shepherd      What can be said about this Psalm that has not been said a thousand times before? I’ve read about it, meditated upon it, listened to it, quoted it, preached it and lived it and yet I’m sure I have never and will never, exhaust it’s meaning! In May 1992 I stood, looking south, over the plain between Jerusalem and Bethlehem, an undulating, rock strewn, tract of land that was parched and, in my English eyes, pretty barren. Then I heard the tinkle of a small bell and looking to my right I saw a rough-hewn, weather-beaten Arab man with a staff. As he came closer, I realised that he had a small herd of mixed animals following him – a donkey with the bell round its neck and then an eclectic group of sheep and goats. This little troupe remained in view for several minutes and I learned a lot about a Middle Eastern shepherd!  The scene was one that I am sure had not changed for millennia, just one man and his flock, roaming across the la

Psalm 22:30-31   He has done it!      The last 2 verses of this Psalm are extraordinary. The NIV says that  “posterity will serve Him,”  but other versions of the Scripture use the word “seed”. “A seed will serve the Lord Jesus.” What is the seed? Is It Israel? The Bible uses this word regularly to mean descendants. Isaiah 53:10 tells us that,  “He will see His offspring and prolong His days and the will of the Lord will prosper in His hand.”  The way the Lord Jesus will prosper is not through wealth and riches but through His successors. Hebrew thinking puts more emphasis on descendants and the development of the family line than it does on financial success. Psalm 22 is addressing future generations who will be told about the Lord. These people, who are not yet born, will declare the righteousness of the Lord. Who are these successors who will prosper Him? It’s you and me folks. And what is our great heart cry, the cry that has gone up from successive generations? HE HAS DONE IT

Psalm 22:29   Every knee will bow      To worship is to offer obeisance to a greater power and to acknowledge their superiority. Worship is not just about singing songs or saying prayers, it is all about our attitude before One who is wiser, mightier and more honourable than we. It’s about how much our faith will allow us to depend upon Him and put Him first in our lives.  Man worships himself, until or unless He recognises there is a God. In this verse the vast expanse of humanity is embraced in just a few words; the rich and powerful on earth, who feast and get fat, will bow down and pay obeisance to the Lord God in the same way as the men and women who can barely keep themselves alive. All will worship the Lord. All who go down to the dust describes those whose physical bodies are returning to the earth from whence they came. The expression was also commonplace as a description of the underworld. The world below - Sheol or Hades. The song writer rightly affirms that we have no

Psalm 22:27-28   The Lord reigns!       What a privilege it is to have received an Invitation to join with the great assembly in verse 25, to witness the Lord Jesus as He fulfils His vows, to share in the anthem of praise that rocks heaven’s foundations. That is the privilege afforded to those of us who have received Him now, by the Holy Spirit.  However, the Bible predicts a day when every knee will bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. He will reign in power upon the earth and  all the families of the nations will bow down before Him.  Micah 4:1-8 describes this time in detail and I urge you to take time to read those verses carefully. They speak of Zion’s hill being the highest of mountains and a Temple being re-established there. It will not be a Temple of sacrifice but one of worship and learning. A Temple is simply a place where the Lord dwells amongst His people. God’s rule and reign over the whole earth will be centred on Jerusalem and the world will f

Psalm 22:26   Blessed are the poor       The word poor is often used in the Scriptures and we, of course, immediately think of those who are poor financially, with few worldly possessions. More often than not, the scriptural connotation is spiritual, the Bible talks of the poor in spirit, the humble, the abased, those who think little of themselves. The Lord does not want us to be cowed before Him or else we would not be invited to the great celebration mentioned in these verses, but He is worthy of our reverence and our deepest respect. The hardest thing for all believers is to let go of our own free will and to seek instead, God’s will. In other words - to be obedient. That takes faith and contrition and a great deal of humble pie for human hearts are, by nature, proud and self-serving. The humble will be satisfied in His presence, says the Psalm, they will praise Him, and praise with Him, and their hearts will live forever. I guess what we are really saying is that when we look

Psalm 22:25   I will fulfil my vows      The making of vows in Jewish culture was a serious matter. A man or woman’s word was more than just a gentleman’s agreement, it was binding. Even more serious was a vow made to God, often accompanied by freewill offerings to give tangible evidence of the promise made. The Scriptures are full of references to this practice and Numbers 30 is devoted to the kinds of vows made and the importance of keeping them. Many people regard God’s pronouncements in the same way; what God says, God will do. His Word is His Word and will not and cannot be broken. Thus John 3:16 is a vow in biblical language.  All that Jesus Christ has said and promised He will fulfil. Every statement or promise that came from His lips that implicates you and me, He will keep. So, when the Assembly of the Righteous gathers before the Lord God, our Lord Jesus will offer praise in line with the themes of worship and exaltation practiced in heaven’s vast courts. He will worsh

Psalm 22:23 -24  Fear Him and praise Him         For some people the word “fear” in this verse conjures up images of terror and cowering and it is better translated, “revere.” We revere the Lord God Almighty, we are amazed at His power, overwhelmed by His mercy, dumbstruck at the extent of His grace, but also wary of His judgements. That is reverence but it leads to praise, not to cringing before Him. He does not want us to shrink away, He wants us to draw near! This cry from the heart of Christ still echoes, over the centuries, to this very day, to the physical descendants of Jacob and to all of Israel; “Revere Him!” You Jewish people, scattered across the earth, turn back to your God, accept His Messiah and walk in His ways. V24       “He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held Him in low esteem.”  Isaiah 53:3. That is how mankind treated the Lord Jesus but is th

Psalm 22:22   Dramatic scene change      What a change in the tone and focus of the Psalm! Suddenly, the suffering is over, the loneliness and anguish of the previous lament is left behind as the writer begins a symphony of praise and joyful anticipation of all that lies ahead. Isaiah does something similar in chapter 53 where the sufferings of the Lord Jesus are vividly depicted for 10 verses; then, just as suddenly, the prophet starts talking about the One whose days will be prolonged, who will see the light of life.  Having borne our sins and faced our enemies and suffered with all the indignities of our humanity, the Lord Jesus Christ deliberately turns away from the darkness and anticipates future glory.  “I will declare Your name to my people,”  He says. Hebrews 2:12 translates this,  “I will declare Your name to my brothers and sisters, ” and the preceding verse tells us that these are those who have been made holy, those who are God’s family. Has our Lord Jesus not done

Psalm 22:20-21   The only One!       The striking imagery all comes together here. The violence of the sword that brings bloodshed and death.     The yapping dogs of Roman military might. The roaring lions of Satan’s demons and the bulls or oxen from Bashan – the leaders of Israel. All of these arrayed against the defenceless Son of God who chose not to fight back, for He knew that in His death lay the keys to victory! How we long to defend Him, to stand up for Him and to cry out against the injustice, but Heaven says, “No! He could be avenged in seconds, a single angel could wipe out all of the rabble, but then God’s purpose would be thwarted because the Lamb of Sacrifice must die.” There is an unusual phrase in verse 20, “ Deliver me from the sword, my  precious life  from the power of the dogs…”   The literal translation reads, “Deliver my UNIQUENESS from the power of the dogs.” It means “ONLY ONE” and is a direct reference to Yeshua; to Jesus. Isn’t that amazing. “I am the O

Psalm 22:19   Come quickly!         I have heard it said, many times, that when God seems far away, He hasn’t moved, we have. For us mere mortals, I suspect that is true, but it could not have been true for Jesus could it? He was the Son of God. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are one; they co-exist. So, if Jesus made this cry from the cross it shows us something of the depth of His isolation. To ask His Father to come quickly reveals the desperation in His heart.     When we call an ambulance to a very sick person, we don’t say “Take your time”. We are desperate. “Come quickly,” we cry. Our dear friend and brother Jesus pleaded with His Father, “Do not be far away. Please come quickly to help me.”     Why? Could He not cope?     No, He could not, He was on the very brink of cracking, He had gone further into suffering than any man and He had no strength for Almighty God was His strength. Oh, the lonely desperation of these heart cries! What may have seemed like an innocuous verse

Psalm 22:18   Just a prayer shawl     Yet another extraordinary prophesy! You really could not make this up could you? 1,000 years after the Psalm John wrote,  “When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took His clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom. “Let’s not tear it,” they said to one another. “Let’s decide by lot who will get it.” So this is what the soldiers did.”  John 19:23-24. And so the Scripture was fulfilled. In Jerusalem today, engraved into the floor of the Antonia Fortress are the marks of a game played by the Roman soldiers whereby they gambled over the fate of their prisoners. They would clothe them to look like a king and laugh and jeer at the unfortunate victim before them. It was more than likely that it was the Tallit of Jesus that was gambled over – His Prayer Shawl. A sacred garment – all Jewish men wore them; the Orthodox Jews still do. Th

Psalm 22:17  He did it all for me      Luke’s Gospel tells us that the people stood watching the Lord Jesus – just watching as He was suspended by nails from the rough, Roman cross. Maybe some of them wondered why the miracle man was being treated like this, but the majority were smugly satisfied. They took the side of the religious leaders, of course they would. No one in that crowd had the courage to protest the injustice of it all – not with brutal soldiers standing close by. To all intents and purposes Jesus was just another insurrectionist, guilty of treason against the State, a potential terrorist, better to nip the problem in the bud and keep the peace. They all knew He had been building quite a following and the appointed leaders of the nation knew best how to deal with Him.  What were they staring at? A naked man. Roman crucifixions spared no blushes, there was no dignity, the unclothed body of the Son of God was hanging in full view of the public, another dreadful indi

Psalm 22:16     They pierced his hands and feet   In John 19:34, 37 we read,  “One of the soldiers pierced Jesus side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water.”  Zechariah 12:10 tells us, “ They will look on the one they have pierced.” As we turn again to the cruel crucifixion scene, outside Jerusalem’s walls, it does not take too much imagination to work out who the dogs are does it? If the sophisticated religious Jews were the Satan-inspired bulls of Bashan and the lions were the untamed demonic powers, then the dogs were the Roman soldiers. Primitive and unrefined probably, violent, aggressive men, masters of torture and inflicting misery, they yapped, growled and attacked the Son of God. Who was it who brought violent persecution against the early church and who killed and tortured the first Christians, it was Rome! Note these words written by Paul to the Philippians in Ch 3:2. “ Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh.”  The “

Psalm 22:14-15  Poured out like water       The suffering of Calvary continues and now we are confronted with the physical torture that Jesus endured. He has faced the silence of His Father. He has experienced the desertion of His friends. He has heard the taunts of the mob around Him and the screams of the demon spirits. All of this was part of His ordeal and yet, too often, we think only of His physical pain. Yes it was, very much a physical ordeal, how can anyone begin to comprehend what a man is going through when He says,  “I am poured out like water, all my bones are out of joint, my heart has turned to wax, it has melted within me. My mouth is dried up like a piece of broken pottery and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth?” I’m afraid I find myself unable to offer insight into what that kind of suffering might mean. Maybe those who have experienced such immense suffering never came back to tell the tale and Jesus had to undergo this in order to be able to say that He w

Psalm 22:12-13    The bulls of Bashan      The land of Bashan was a northern, frontier area of Israel that was occupied by half the tribe of Manasseh. It fell on the eastern side of the Jordan and today is part of Syria. Ancient Bashan was renowned for its forests and fertile grazing land and herds of cattle were bred there; there was no bull so powerful or great as a Bashan bull, although these were domesticated animals. Asiatic  l ions  once prowled from the Middle East to India. Now, only a fraction of these magnificent animals survive in the wild. There were lions in Israel up to the 19 th  Century when the last of them was killed and today, sadly, they are no more. What is interesting here is that David takes the most powerful of domestic and wild animals and depicts both of these as angry predators encircling their prey. We must take the analogy to the cross of the Lord Jesus, as has happened in all of this Psalm so far, and wonder what could it mean? The Bible is quite

Psalm 22:11    No one to help      Have you ever felt like there is no one to help? Jesus did! There are times in the Bible when individuals and Israel, as a nation, are reduced to dependence on themselves alone, there is no knight in shining armour coming to the rescue. David, I’m sure, had this experience when he cowered on his bed in the dark hours, surrounded by enemies, not knowing who he could trust in the Royal Household or even his family.   It is extraordinary to think that the Lord Jesus entered this state of helplessness for us. As His eyes flickered across the hostile crowd, there was no one. His mother and John and a few women stood bowed with their tearful eyes cast down, not daring to look at His face. He had appealed to heaven and there was no answer. It is this loneliness, this isolation, this dread sense of utter remoteness that hurt the most; imagine that you were alone in the world, hanging from a crucifix, surrounded by wild animals baying and slavering for