JEHOVAH-RAAH!

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1).

The Name of our God is mentioned as “Jehovah.” The meaning of this name is “I am that I am.” God was known with many more compound names along with the term ‘Jehovah.’ The Name Jehovah-Jireh gives the meaning ‘The Lord will see to it’. The Name Jehovah-Shalom gives the meaning ‘The Lord gives peace’. The Name Jehovah-Nissi gives the meaning ‘The Lord, our banner’. Similarly, ‘The Lord is my shepherd’ is the meaning for the Name Jehovah – raah. 

Though David himself was a shepherd, he called the Lord saying ‘Jehovah-raah’ and accented Him as His shepherd. The 23rd Psalm is the one which David sang with love. Though it is a small one with just six verses, it is a very sweet one. It is also one of the most comforting portions of the Scripture. It is being called as ‘Psalm of a shepherd’ and ‘Psalm of confession.’ 

One day, Samuel went towards the sons of Jesse with a horn of oil to anoint one among them as the king of Israel. Jesse made all of them sit but God did not choose any one of them. When Samuel asked Jesse “Are all the young men here?” Jesse replied, “There remains yet the youngest and there he is, keeping the sheep.” 

Thus, David was called for and was anointed as king in the presence of his brothers. See, how happily David says, “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over”. Psalm 23 might have been an old one but when you confess every day saying the promise in it “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want”, God will be your shepherd. You will never be in shortage of anything. 

All the great blessings which a man might seek from God are mentioned in this Psalm. Moreover, all the blessings of this world and eternity are found in verse no 6. “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever”. Are there any greater things than these which could be sought from God? 

Dear children of God, have you accepted the Lord as your shepherd? If it is so, all the blessings mentioned in Psalm 23 will reach you. The Lord will guide you as a Good Shepherd. 

To meditate: “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep” (John 10:11).