A popular personality test compares people to animals. According to the profile, you are either like a lion, an otter, a beaver, or a golden retriever.
According to the Bible, however, the creature we are most like—all of us—is a sheep.
It’s not exactly a flattering comparison. Sheep are notoriously dim-witted. They’ll eat deadly herbs if you don’t watch them carefully. Or they’ll panic and wander straight into danger. That’s double trouble when it happens, because sheep can’t defend themselves against predators.
Thankfully, if we are like sheep (and it’s true—we are), God is like a shepherd. This is the great idea of Psalm 23, the world’s most beloved Bible passage. In it, David, the former shepherd, shows how God faithfully tends to all our needs.
The primary meaning of shepherd (Ra’ah) is to feed, to tend, to lead to pasture. To do all this, a shepherd has to be up close and personal, intimately aware of the needs of his sheep.
Also a shepherd is the protector of his flock. This is why he carries a rod—to fight off predators that would harm even one of his rams, ewes, or lambs.
If all that is what a shepherd does, what’s the job description of sheep? Easy. A sheep trusts its shepherd. As sheep, we follow. We go where our Shepherd leads. We do what He tells us to do. We look to Him to supply all our needs.
When we follow our own instincts and go our own way, we show disrespect to our Shepherd. We are saying we don’t trust Him.
We also demonstrate arrogance in saying we know better about how and where to find “green pastures.” What’s more, by leaving His protective care, we open ourselves to unnecessary dangers.
Even more, we could lead others astray, even if we don’t mean to.
When you say, “God is my Shepherd,” you are humbly admitting, and gratefully and unashamedly acknowledging, that you need the Lord to guide you and meet the deepest needs of your life.
In what ways has God been a good Shepherd to you?
