Psalm 23 (22)
The good shepherd. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. The table and the cup of Christ are before me. I have received better than the anointing of holy oil, that of the Spirit (Jn 2:27). It is not the repose of death that I await but the resurrection that brings me to the Father.
1 The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside the still waters,
3 he restores my soul.
He guides me through the right paths
for his name’s sake.
4 Although I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil,
for you are beside me:
your rod and your staff comfort me.
5 You spread a table before me
in the presence of my foes.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup is overflowing.
6 Goodness and kindness will follow me
all the days of my life,
I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
as long as I live.
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Comments Psalms, Chapter 23
Your rod, your staff: one is to open a way through the undergrowth, the other to defend the flock.