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I Shall Not Want Psalm 23

How many times have we heard these words? We have heard it sung, acted out, recited in many different versions. There are few people – believers or not – who are not familiar with the words of David. As the choir sang just now, artists, ranging from Johann Sebastian Bach to

Marilyn Manson, yes, you heard me right, Marilyn Manson, have created musical expressions of the 23rd Psalm. It has been part of movies as wildly varied as musicians – Titanic, War Horse, and even Terminator Salvation. In an episode of the television show The Twilight Zone in the early 60’s, an ‘obsolete’ librarian played by Burgess Meredith said the Psalm as he awaited capital punishment for the crime of possessing unauthorized books. The 23rd Psalm is deeply embedded in our culture – and has been for three thousand years.

One of the most memorably touching ways the Psalm has been used was not in a musical creation or a carefully crafted script but in the heartfelt and spontaneous response of a young man facing death. Cell phone recordings have left us with the voice of Todd Beamer, a software salesman on his way from Newark to San Francisco, saying the 23rd Psalm just before he and fellow passengers attempted to stop the hijackers of Flight 93 on September 11, 2001.

Such is the power of these ancient words. At the moment when life crystallizes into a single moment, this 23rd Psalm speaks to us – and for us.

The words are beautiful and comforting in ways that are inexplicable. Simply hearing the opening words calms and soothes us, touches our very souls in ways few words can. “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.”1 Can’t you feel the peace come over you? “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” As well known, as familiar, as is the 23rd Psalm, it is never old, never out-dated. What in it appeals to us so much? What is the power behind the words that

1 Unless otherwise noted, scriptural references are from Psalm 23, RSV. 2

cause them to resonate in our hearts three millennia later? Each time I read or hear this Psalm, be it part of worship or on my own, it is like travelling down a road that I know so well, a road that is, at the same time, burgeoning with surprising nuances and delights. That is what God does for us – continuously opening new doors and showing us new vistas – even in words so dear and familiar to us as is this 23rd Psalm.

Listen to the words closely. Hear them, really hear them, and invite them into your very being. “He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul.” This is a Psalm about God, the God who loves us wildly and extravagantly, who would do anything for us, who gives us all we need and more, who loves us enough to become intertwined in every corner of our lives. This 23rd Psalm is a love song to God, the expression of someone who is both humbled and overwhelmed by the love of an astoundingly generous, compassionate God who cares, really cares, about us and everything about us. “He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.” This is a song to the God who has given us the most sacred of all gifts – life itself. Life in its creation and life in its ever-unfolding re-creation.

One of the most holy times in this wonderful journey called ministry is the privilege of being with people is some of the more vulnerable moments in life – illness, aging, death, loneliness – those times when we all feel so exposed and alone. Even for those whose memories have faded, who can barely communicate, these words are heard deep in their souls.

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for thou art with me; thy rod and staff, they comfort me.” This past week I, along with so many others, grieved with the people of Emmanuel AME Church in Charleston for the senseless loss of life. One of the victims, Ethel Lance, was the mother of a friend and seminary classmate. How does one explain that kind of violence and hurt? How does one react when you find yourself or ones you love walking through that dark valley? In an interview Rabbi Harold Kushner said, “The role of

God is not to explain and not to justify but to comfort, to find people when they are living in 3

darkness, take them by the hand, and show them how to find their way into the sunlight again.”2

That is what God does through the 23rd Psalm – helps us find life in the midst of a hurting, confusing world.

“Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies; thou anointest my head with oil; my cup overflows.” How wonderful is that imagery! God is here, not simply offering us comfort and hope, giving us more than we could ever deserve, filling our lives with more than we’ll ever need, loving us far beyond our ability to comprehend. With each phrase of the Psalm God draws us deeper and deeper into relationship and fills us with a deep, deep love, with life.

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Thus concludes the Psalm. It is wonderfully expressive in

English, but in Hebrew it’s a magical melody. The words flow like music and overflow with meaning. Goodness and mercy – all that is good and pleasant along with hesed, one of the most vividly, rich words in all the Old Testament. It’s grace, faithfulness, and love all rolled into one, a concept far greater than mere words can convey. Hesed is the very nature of God, and that nature follows us, or in Hebrew, pursues us all our days. God does not walk along meekly beside us but actively seeks us out, wanting to be in communion with us. Goodness and mercy are “the hounds of heaven pursuing souls.”3

That is the beauteous strength of the 23rd Psalm. It begins with God standing before us, leading us on a journey of exploration and delight, of challenge and comforts, of hope. It is not only a love song to God. It is God’s love song to us, the song that sings ‘I am with you always.’

2 Interview with Rabbi Harold Kushner. www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/?p=15271. November 26, 2004. 3 Edwin Searcy in Theolog: The Blog of the Christian Century, 2008. 4

Now that you have heard it sung and walked through it, listen now to the words of the 23rd

Psalm:

A Psalm of David:

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want; he makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies; thou anointest my head with oil, my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

The Word of the Lord. Amen.

Melodie Long United Presbyterian Church Sackets Harbor, New York June 21, 2015