This is part 8 of a 10-part series. View the entire series here.
“May the God before whom my grandfather Abraham and my father, Isaac, walked—the God who has been my shepherd all my life, to this very day, the Angel who has redeemed me from all harm—may he bless these boys.” – Genesis 48:15-16 NLT
It’s amazing how God always finds the most personal, intimate ways to relate to His children.
The Hebrew word for shepherd in this verse is ra’ah. It literally means to shepherd, to tend, to pasture, or to feed. From the very first book of the Bible, God is referred to as our Shepherd. This is a beautiful image that His people—who lived in a highly agrarian society—were very familiar with, and one that spoke directly to their lived experience.
The title Shepherd is used many times throughout the rest of the Old Testament. Perhaps the most well-known reference is found in Psalm 23. David, the author of this psalm, was a shepherd himself. He knew what it meant to care for his flock, to keep them fed and healthy, to tend to their needs, and to protect them from attack.
He also knew what it meant to walk closely with God, and to allow himself to be shepherded. So when he says “The Lord is my shepherd,” he’s both identifying with God and acknowledging his own need for a shepherd.
So what did it look like for David to be shepherded? It looked like finding satisfaction in God’s presence (23:1); it looked like permission to rest (23:2); it looked like protection and comfort when he walked through darkness (23:4). He knew he was never alone because his Shepherd was always with him (23:6).
The same is true for us. Jesus, our Shepherd, guides us along the right path with His shepherd’s staff. He protects us from harm with His shepherd’s rod. Though God doesn’t promise we’ll never go through periods of darkness, or that we’ll never face attack—as Jacob and David both knew very well—He does promise to always be with us in those seasons.
One of the most amazing things about the relationship between a shepherd and his flock is how the sheep come to know the sound of their shepherd’s voice, and then don’t answer to anyone else. In the gospel of John, Jesus refers to Himself as our Shepherd, and to us as His sheep. “‘I am the Good Shepherd; I know My own sheep, and they know Me, just as My Father knows Me and I know the Father. So I sacrifice My life for the sheep’” (10:14-15 NLT). When we walk closely with Jehovah-Ra’ah, our Good Shepherd, we learn the sound of His voice, and we’re able to more easily identify counterfeits. When we cling to the Shepherd, we find safety, security, and rest.
