Psalm 23: 4
"Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me." (KJV)
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Our mortal life on earth takes place under "the shadow of death." Yet this verse reminds us that it is just a part of our walk with God. He will lead us through and out of this valley. There is more to come. There is a popular country song that constantly refrains "live like you were dying." Well, as Chistians, we must live like we're going to live forever. As we shape our character through our actions, will the trajectory of our lives bring us closer to God or further away?
What man fears most is his mortality (although public speaking apparently ranks very high on the list too) and so man's innate tendency to gratify his own needs/wants (in this case, man's desire to feel alive and victorious over death) can tempt him to make decisions that are only temporarily and superficially satisfying. As I mentioned in regard to the first 3 verses of this psalm, being a sheep of the Lord gives man the peace and confidence and comfort to live free of his weaknesses. What an incredible feeling! By the way, the term "death" here can be both in the physical/secular sense as well as in the spiritual/eternal sense.
It's also interesting to me that in this verse, our perspective shifts from talking ABOUT Him ("He") to talking TO Him ("You"). This personlization of praise seems to directly acknowledge God's omnipresence in both space and time. "He" does not refer to some third-party who's somewhere out there. "He" is here with/around/in me right now.
Finally, the idea of security in this verse makes me realize that Psalms 23 is basically the original blueprint for Maslow's well-known hierarchy of man's needs (#1 is hunger/thirst/shelter, #2 is safety/security, #3 is love/affection, #4 is esteem/status, and #5 is self-fulfillment/personal growth). It's remarkable really to see how closely Maslow's hierarchy ties with this Psalm and, or course, many other bible verses (like Matthew 6:25-34). What's even more remarkable is that this psalm pre-dates Maslow and modern pscyhology by a few thousand years. We often think we're so smart and so advanced in our thinking and yet we're only starting to scratch the surface of the cornucopia of truths that God has already granted to us through His word.
This verse reminds me of my favorite Matt Redman song which I am humming as I type. This verse in particular, and psalm 23 in general, tells me that God is with me and He is for me (for He loves me, and ultimately for His glory and name - v.3). This knowledge of God is where I want to bank my trust and security as I face the frailties of life. What an assurance, God is for us and He sent His son that we may have life.
Even before becoming a Christian, I've always found this verse to be cool. Every time I see someone repeat this verse in a movie/show other places, I just had an instant "dang awesome" moment.
Looking at it now, it definitely gives me an assurance and an example of how I should not fear evil.
I need to think about the usage of rod and staff... and how they refer to comfort.
This one reference says that Staff represents God's ability and symbol of judgment... my thought is why rod and staff? to me they seem similar. If staff represents God's power and judgment, then rod is??
Nevertheless, his presence and being "with me" definitely comforts me.
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