“The Shepherd Who Provides Peace”
Jesus, the Good Shepherd: Part 2
(Psalms 23:2 and Selected Scriptures)
The Greenhouse ~ 20th Sunday after Trinity
As I write this sermon, the Middle East is at war. It occurs to me that someone could stumble across this sermon sometime in the future and they would need a lot more context to know what I’m talking about, simply because it feels as though the Middle East has been perpetually at war during my lifetime. In fact, the Middle East has been at war since the beginning, to some degree because humanity has been at war since the beginning. One of the greater challenges we face as Christians in a world of war is that war can become commonplace, and we are in significant danger of thinking that war is inevitable and necessary. But God did not create the world so that we would be at war, nor will eternity be marred by the horrors of war. Rather, the intention of the garden, the hope of the New Jerusalem, and the goal toward which we work in the present, is peace.
In Hebrew, the word for peace is shalom. But shalom means much more than the absence of war, though that is a necessary start. Shalom is human flourishing—the absence of strife, yes, but also the presence of health, security, and all the things that make relationship with God and one another thrive. Psalms 23:2 speaks to some of these key features of shalom: “He lets me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside quiet waters.” Both green pastures and quiet waters are images that evoke peace.
First, let’s explore green pastures. Following the provision of verse 1, we can see an extension of that idea with green pastures. Green pastures provide food and nourishment for sheep. In Ezekiel 34:1-10, which we read last week, the LORD rebukes Israel’s shepherds for failing to feed the sheep. In Ezekiel 34:11-16, we see the LORD take over the role of shepherd and cause His sheep to “lie down in good grazing places” (v. 14a). As in Ezekiel 34, Psalms 23:2 speaks of green pastures that serve as food for the sheep. But green pastures suggest not only food, but also a peaceful dwelling. In Ezekiel 34:15, these green pastures (the good grazing places) are a place where the LORD can tend His flock and let them lie down. The sheep are permitted to lie down because they are in a place of safety. In the wilderness where shepherds kept their flock, there was often danger of attack from wild animals. If there was the possibility of a threat, the sheep would need to be mobile, ready to follow the shepherd’s lead to run away as necessary. But here in these green pastures they are permitted to lie down because they are safe. They are at peace.
Second, Psalms 23:2 speaks of quiet waters. Like the green pastures, the quiet waters provide necessary sustenance for the sheep. Food and water are necessities, so both extend the notion of provision we see in verse 1. But like green pastures, quiet waters also include elements of peace. Water was a common symbol in the ancient Near Eastern cultures of which Israel was a part. Waters often represented chaos, danger, lack of order. We see this in the creation account, where the Spirit of God hovers over the face of the waters. Apart from God’s ordering work that follows, a “land” covered by waters was merely chaos. One of the ways that YHWH shows His greatness to Job is by telling Job how He had given boundaries to the waters (Job 38:10). Even into the New Testament, especially in Revelation, we see the seas and the waters as forces of chaos. But here we do not have the raging, untamed seas. Instead, we have quiet waters. We have calm streams. Psalms 1, which serves alongside Psalms 2 as an introduction to the Book of Psalms, speaks of trees planted by streams of water. This water is not chaotic, but life-giving, fruit-bearing, and peaceful. It serves as a marked contrast to the way of the wicked, the sinners, and the scoffers (Psa 1:1). So, too, the quiet waters of Psalms 23:2 are not only practical—serving as necessary water for the sheep—but also symbolically peaceful. These are calm waters that bring peace and security. “He lets me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside quiet waters.” These are words of provision, and the provision of peace.
And yet, we live in a world of war. We live amidst chaos. For many (perhaps most) Christians, at best our lives are busy, at worst our lives are marked by chaos, danger, pain, and threats of death. In a world defined most often by raging seas rather than quiet streams, can we ever pray Psalms 23 with hope that God may answer it? I think the biblical answer is yes, but it requires a fundamental reorientation of the way we view the world. Peace, we will see, comes not from circumstances, but from the Shepherd.
I have had the blessing of living in places and times where I was not under constant threat of death or bodily harm. I’ve never needed to go around in fear, nor have I experienced a great deal of physical pain, hunger, or other challenges that many in our world face. I certainly don’t thank God as often as I should for providing so abundantly in these ways. Yet, war, hunger, insecurity, and other threats to our physical body are not the only way to lack peace. In fact, I have seen and read examples of many who had an inner sense of peace despite being in the midst of such circumstances. Though physical circumstances can hinder our pursuit of peace, of human flourishing, they are not the last word. They are perhaps not even the most important word. Paul speaks in Philippians 4 of learning to be content whatever his circumstances, whether well-fed or hungry, whether in abundance or in need (v. 12). These words come immediately after two commands with promises. First, set your minds on things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely commendable, of moral excellence, and praiseworthy—"And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil 4:7). Second, “Do what you have learned and received and heard from me, and seen in me”—"and the God of peace will be with you” (Phil 4:9). For Paul, peace appears to be a promise for those who set their minds on godly things and follow Paul’s example in learning contentment regardless of the circumstances.
How, then, is it really, truly possible for peace to reign in our hearts despite our circumstances? Because we worship the Prince of Peace, the Good Shepherd, who has promised to provide us with peace in the person and work of the Holy Spirit. In John 14, not too long after Jesus has spoken of Himself to His disciples as the Good Shepherd, He tells them about the Holy Spirit. In John 14:25-27, Jesus says: “I have spoken these things to you while I remain with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have told you. Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Don’t let your heart be troubled or fearful.” Jesus promises that the Father will send the Holy Spirit in Jesus name to remind them of all He has told them. And then He continues: “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you.” The gift of the Holy Spirit is a gift of peace.
I think the message is clear, but the application is astoundingly difficult. Jesus is the Good Shepherd who makes us to lie down in green pastures and leads us beside quiet waters, and He does so with the gift of the Holy Spirit. Many of the Psalms cry out to God for a change of circumstances, for enemies to be removed, for God to bring justice, and the like. There is nothing wrong with praying for our circumstances to change. But I’m learning more and more that peace is not wholly dependent on circumstances. Peace can come regardless of the circumstances if we will set our mind on the things of God and learn to be content in our circumstances. Most importantly, this peace comes from allowing the indwelling Holy Spirit to lead our souls to the place of green pasture and quiet waters. One way to do this is certainly through prayer. Another is to be saturated in the Scriptures and allow the Word of God to wash over us, cleansing us from the fears of the world and bringing peace to our souls. May we cease living in the anxiety and fear of the world and allow the Good Shepherd to guide us to green pastures and quiet water that provide us peace. Amen.
Discussion Questions
When have you experienced true peace?
What circumstances in life tend to disrupt your peace?
What has proven helpful for you in remaining at peace or finding peace after a season of chaos?
What images in our culture would evoke peace in the way that green pastures and quiet waters would for the psalmist?
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