The Lord Is My ShepherdSample

Goodness and Mercy

The “Mount Everest” of Psalm 23 is in verse 6. What kind of person makes a statement like this? “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life”? Only a person who knows his Shepherd would be able to make such a claim. David is not naïve. He is not too young to understand. He knows, all too well, that life can be tough, unfair, and cruel. He has already lost three kids. But David knows that God is not like life. God is never unfair or cruel. Others may hurt us and do us harm. We may hurt ourselves with our own sin. But not God—God will pursue us in love. God’s goodness and mercy will follow us all the days of our lives. Not just some of the days, but all the days. Every single day, we will experience God’s bounty. We will drink it in like refreshing water. And beyond that, we will dwell in the house of the Lordforever. There is no doubt about our future. No uncertainty or insecurity. We have a secure destiny—with God.

What an expression of trust. Every phrase of this final verse oozes with trust. David had walked with God for all his life. He had learned, often through painful experience, that God is good, that God can be trusted, that God’s goodness and love will follow him all his life. Surely, surely this will take place. What kind of person talks this way? Only a person who knows his God.