Psalm 23:1

When God brought His people out of Egypt through the Red Sea into the wilderness, He made a treaty with them saying, “I am your Jehovah”. The fulfillment of seven covenant Names of God is seen in this Universal Psalm by David, the shepherd turned king.

Good leaders like Moses and David were trained by God to shepherd four legged animals in the wilderness, before they were commissioned to lead two-legged human beings. David by relating himself with God as his shepherd and by caring for his sheep in the wilderness, developed an intimate sheep-shepherd relationship with Jehovah. Even as David’s eye was upon every sheep in his fold, God’s eye is on every single sheep in various folds distributed throughout the world.

Jacob, who also took care of Laban’s sheep in Padanaram, while returning with his share of the flock, met his brother Esau on his way back and reconciled with him. He told Esau, that some of his sheep were so very young that they could not walk fast and advised his brother to go forward with his flock, while he would ‘walk at the pace of his sheep’ (Genesis 33:14). The Lord also walks with us according to our pace!

Enoch walked with God and they had probably gone too far away from his home, when God ‘stepped’ into heaven and Enoch followed suit. God in spite of His Greatness, walks with us at our pace, though at times we the sheep try to run ahead!

On the cross of Calvary, we witness the culminating work of Jesus Christ the Good Shepherd, who became the Lamb of God, just to save all His other sheep from being slain!

Thought for the day: After His resurrection, Jesus the Good Shepherd (John 10:10) is now seated at the right hand of God as the Great Shepherd (Hebrews 13:20) and will soon be coming back to take us home as the Chief Shepherd (1 Peter 5:4).