Dr.

Jack Collins
Covenant Theological Seminary
OT 340: Psalms & Wisdom and Worship

Translation Paper: Psalms 23

Natalia M Martínez Encarnación

Friday, December the 1st 2017
Text and Translation: Psalm 23

;‫א ִמזְ מֹור ְלדָ וִ ד‬ A Psalm1 of David,

.‫ ל ֹא ֶא ְח ָסר‬,‫ְיה ָוה רֹעִ י‬ 1 The LORD [is] my shepherd, I shall not want

;‫ י ְַרבִ יצֵ נִ י‬,‫ב בִ ְנאֹות דֶ ֶשא‬ 2 He makes me lie down2 in green pastures.
.‫מֵ י ְמנֻחֹות יְ נַהֲ ֵלנִ י‬-‫עַ ל‬ He leads me beside waters of rest3.

;‫ג נַפְ ִשי ְישֹובֵ ב‬ 3 He restores my soul

,‫צֶ דֶ ק‬-‫ַי ְנחֵ נִ י בְ מַ עְ גְ ֵלי‬ He leads me in paths of righteousness4
.‫לְמַ עַ ן ְשמֹו‬ for his name’s sake.5

,‫א ֵלְך בְ גֵיא צַ לְ מָ וֶ ת‬-‫י‬

ֵ ִ‫ד גַם כ‬ 4 Even though I walk through the valley of the
;‫א ָתה עִ מָ ִדי‬-‫י‬ ַ ִ‫ כ‬--‫ירא ָרע‬ ָ ‫א‬-‫ֹא‬
ִ ‫ל‬ shadow of death6,
I fear no evil, for You7 [are] with me;
.‫ ֵהמָ ה יְ נַחֲ מֻ נִי‬,‫ּומ ְשעַ נ ְֶתָך‬
ִ ‫ִשבְ ְטָך‬ Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
;‫ ֶנגֶד צ ְֹר ָרי‬--‫ שֻ ְלחָ ן‬,‫ה ַת ֲערְֹך ְל ָפנַי‬ 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of
,‫ֹאשי‬
ִ ‫ִד ַש ְנ ָת בַ שֶ ֶמן ר‬ my enemies;8
.‫כֹוסי ְר ָויָה‬
ִ You have anointed9 my head with oil;
My cup overflows.
‫ טֹוב ָוחֶ סֶ ד‬,‫ו ַאְך‬ 6 Surely goodness and loving-mercy10

1
The term ‫( ִמזְ מֹור‬mizmor) “a psalm” most likely refers to a song accompanied by instruments that is “unto the
Lord”, as it is a term that occurs exclusively in the inscriptions of fifty-seven psalms and not found elsewhere in the
Bible (see Delitzsch 59, Jacobson 73 and Hakham 12).
2
‫ רבץ‬Hiphil Imperfect 3rd Mas. Sing.
3
The English translations usually render the phrase still or quiet waters though the Hebrew is literally waters of rest.
The point is to present a place where sheep get both the water and rest they need.
4
It must be kept in mind that sheep do not know right from wrong, thus one must not be quick to apply a moral
sense to the phrase, rather paths that lead to flourishing and covenantal faithfulness.
5
The verb ‫( יְשֹובֵ ב‬shoob) "to restore" means simply to return. So, the verse could read as the psalmist straying and
the Lord leading him back on the right path, just like wandering sheep would do. Nevertheless, it can also mean to
restore and renew to life and vitality after the time of refreshment and rest in v.2.
6
‫לְמוֶ ת‬
ָ ַ‫ צ‬From the words from ‫( צֵ ל‬tsel) and ‫( ָ֫ ָמ ֶות‬maveth). Lit. death-shadow. The Septuagint takes "shadow of
death" as composed of two words; shadow and death. More likely though is that the word "death" is used here to
give a superlative force to "shadow," thus meaning a valley of "deep/thick darkness” where danger lurks.
7
The author switches the person of the pronoun referring to God from "he" to "you." There is now an awareness of
the psalmist own personal relationship to God.
8
In v. 5 the metaphor changes to a banquet.
9
Or anoint | ‫ דשן‬Piel Perfect 2nd Mas. Sing | The psalmist switches to a perfect (‫ְת‬ ָ ‫ ִדשַ נ‬, dishanta)
10
‫( ֶח ֶסד‬hesed). The Hebrew word is difficult to translate into English. It is usually represented with words such as
"loving-kindness," "mercy," "steadfast love," and sometimes "loyalty”. The LXX translates it as ἔλεός, which in turn
is often translated as pity, mercy, and compassion. HALOT defines the word as “loyalty,” or “faithfulness.” (336-
37). It is often connected with covenant-making and keeping (Deut. 7:9, 12, 1 Sam 20:8, Isaiah 54:10; 55:3) and in
the book of Psalms in poetic parallelism (Psalm 89:28, 33-34,). Archeologist and rabbi Nelson Glueck notes that
“hesed in the Bible generally refers to “good deeds performed where mutual relations exist, i.e., the substance of a
covenant between two partners.” (See Nelson Glueck, Hesed in the Bible (trans. from German, Alfred Gottschalk;
Cincinnati: Hebrew Union College Press, 1967, 55). This translation chose to render the word as “loving-mercy”

2
 ;‫יְמֵ י חַ יָי‬-‫ ָכל‬--‫ִי ְר ְדפּונִ י‬ will follow me all the days of my life,
.‫ ְלא ֶֹרְך י ִָמים‬,‫ ְיה ָוה‬-‫וְ שַ בְ ִתי בְ בֵ ית‬ And I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever11.

What is the stanza structure of this Psalm?

One of the clearest divisions that can be made for the Psalm in relation to structure and

form is from vv. 1-4, and vv. 5-6. Most every scholar agrees to divide the Psalm by the two

images that the psalmist presents; the Lord as shepherd and the psalmist as a lamb (vv.1-4), and

the Lord as a host and the psalmist as his guest (vv.5-6). There are few who argue that the

shepherd imagery continues on to verse 5, nevertheless their argument hinges on the committal

of dittography.

More recently, Psalm 23 is argued to have a chiastic structure. However, there are quite

different ways to present the chiasm. For example, Goldingay structures the chiasm thematically

in the following way:

A. 1. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

2.
He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.
3.
He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
B 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.
B’ You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
5a.

A’ 5b.You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

B’ 6a. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,
6b.
A’ And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

A = Steady Provision/Shepherding
B = Protection/ Shepherding
B’= Protection/Hospitality
A’= Steady Provision/ Hospitality

Additionally, he structures the psalm in terms of second and third-person references:

A = Yhwh is my shepherd (third person; vv.1-3)

B = You are my shepherd (second person; v.4)

intending to convey the emotion expressed and action carried out in the covenantal context by the stronger and able
party.
11
Lit. for length of days.

3
 B’= You are my host (second person; v.5)
A’= Yhwh is my host (third person; v.6)

Still, the B’ and A’ layers of his structure are a bit problematic as they do not fit as nicely as one

would hope for an ideal chiasm, as he himself acknowledges.12

This examination would propose, building on Marlowe’s structure13, a chiastic structure of A B C

B’A’, with a slight alteration.

Marlowe argues for a A B C B’A’ chiastic pattern where the A outer layers composed of

vv.1-2 paralleling v.6 speak to God’s provision, the B inner layers, composed of v.3 paralleling

v.5 speak to God’s renewal and restoration and the C climaxes with proclamation of being

fearless in light of the Lord’s presence. The alteration suggested would be to group vv. 2 and 3

rather than 1 and 2 as verse 2 parallels verse 5 considering how it presents the abundant physical

& spiritual refreshment the Lord provides through food (pastures14 and table) and drink (waters

and cup). Then so, the chiastic pattern for Psalm 23 put forward is as follows:

A 1. The Lord is my shepherd;

I shall not want.
B 2. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.
3.
He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
C 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.
B’ You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
5.

You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

A’ 6. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

A= Provision/Shepherding (v.1-2)
B = Renewal and Renovation/Shepherding
C = Never Fear!/Shepherding (v.4)
B’= Renewal and Renovation /Hosting (v.5)
A’= Provision/Hosting (v.6)

12
Goldingay, 346-347.
13
See W. Creighton Marlowe, "No Fear! Psalm 23 as a Careful, Conceptual Chiasm," Asbury Theological
Journal 58, no. 1 (2003): 65-80.
14
Though some might argue that pastures here does not allude to food, but rather to rest, it does not exclude that
green pastures are suitable for grazing.

4
The rod and staff of v.4b work as a beautiful transition into the host imagery, which includes the

psalmist’s enemy, as they are not only instruments of guidance but also of defense.15

Admittedly, the chiastic structure is not as typical or clean as accustomed to in other psalms, but

there is still intentional poetic layering perceivable as suggested. As a final note on structure, it

can be noted that the psalm begins and ends with the divine tetragrammaton ‫( ְיה ָוה‬yəhvāh), the

Lord’s personal name.

What kind of psalm is this?

It is important to first comment that not every psalm fits neatly into a single category16.

However, as Collins goes on to say, it is “used reasonably, this approach can shed light on the

different purposes of the various psalms.”17 That being said, Psalm 23 is widely agreed and

understood to be a psalm of confidence (or trust). This genre’s dominant mood is confidence that

the Lord will deliver the psalmist as there is usually some sort of trouble in view (though not

with the intense anguish as in lament psalms).18

What interpretive matrix does this psalm presuppose?

In a general sense, the psalms function as the songbook of God’ people in Israel, and

consequently Christians today. They aid in expressing and shaping the emotions of the Covenant

community to worship God no matter the circumstances. The inscription in Psalm 23 gives us no

clue as to the historical circumstance or setting of the psalm, but only that David is its author.

Delitzsch suggests that the psalm was written during David’s flight from Absalom. Still, it is

clear that the psalmist was individual who in his trouble was confident in the LORD’s ability to

deliver him in this life and in the life to come.

15
Delitzsch, 330.
16
Collins, Study Guide, 94.
17
Ibid, ESV Notes, 940
18
Study notes on Psalms. In The Reformation Study Bible,, 826-1005. Orlando, FL: Reformation Trust Pub, 2015

5
 More so, it is not difficult to envision David drawing from his experience as a shepherd.

And the image of shepherd in the Ancient World was applied to kings and gods. It would be easy

then for the Israelite worshipping community to see relationship between God and his covenantal

children through this shepherd metaphor. Furthermore, the ‫( לְמַ עַ ן ְשמֹו‬lə-ma-an šə-mōw)

“name’s sake” in v.3 and ‫( חֶ סֶ ד‬ḥe-seḏ) “loving-kindness, mercy,” in v.6 convey the covenantal

commitment of God to his people.

Who are the participants?

According to the inscription, David is the psalmist. The first participant mentioned is the

LORD, whom is likened to a shepherd (v.1) and then a host (v.5). The LORD performs all kinds of

activities: he “makes to lie down,” “leads,” “restores,” “is present,” “comforts,” “prepares a

table,” and “anoints.” The next active participant is the psalmist himself whom accordingly

likens himself to sheep and a guest, whom are for much of the psalm the objects of action by the

LORD. Consequently, the I’s and me’s in the psalm can and should be understood to be David as

an individual member of covenant community of God expressing confidence in the LORD’s

active doing on his part. The you’s in vv.4-5 should also be understood to be the LORD as the

psalmist directs is expression and prayer to God himself. The enemies are present in the host’s

table and should best be understood as general adversaries (or adversities!) one encounters in

life. Some scholars, in their understanding of the table as victory celebration, label them as

captives19, nevertheless, this imagery should not be viewed as literal.

19
See Kidner, 112 and Collins, ESV, 966.

6
What kind of situation does the psalm most suit?

Since the historical circumstances and situation under which this psalm was written are

not clear, relying on the genre of psalm and what it informs us is helpful. As explained above,

psalms of confidence “enable worshipers to deepen their trust in God through all manner of

difficult circumstances,”20 especially circumstance in which one would lack confidence. For the

most part, the psalm is written from the perspective of the sheep, more so an individual sheep,

putting forward the individual member of the people of God.21 This member is understood to be a

faithful member, whom is aware and recognizes his need for and trusts in Shepherd’s guidance

and also sees the way the LORD “attends to his covenant lambs.”22 Furthermore, the LORD

attends to each individual in the midst of daily activities such as eating, drinking, resting, seeking

security…23

How does singing this in corporate worship shape the hearts of the covenant people?

In a corporate context, the singing of a psalm of confidence is there to instill in each

member of the covenant community of God confidence for living. It shapes them to long to be in

God’s presence because it is there that one can find confidence in his provision of all one’s basic

needs (vv.1-2), direction and guidance in all kinds of decisions (v.3b), comfort in the deepest

darkness (v.4), and abundance on account of his loving-mercy (v.5). And though God cares for

us individually, he also cares for us through others; through the body of Christ. The corporate

singing of a psalm like this helps us “fulfill the law of Christ,” loving one other, growing in unity

through union in and imitation of Christ. This in turns shapes our hearts to live more freely and

flourish individually and corporately under the care of our Creator.

20
Collins, ESV, 940
21
Craigie, 209
22
Collins, ESV, 966
23
Goldingay, 353

7
What liturgical and hymnic resources will enable a congregation to carry out the purposes
of the psalm?

With a psalm as familiar and popular as Psalm 23, we must take special care to prepare

the congregation to understand its meaning and choose liturgical and hymnic resources that will

convey its beauty and purpose. Below are a couple of songs that engage in the language and

mode of confidence and trust:

- My Shepherd Will Supply My Need - Isaac Watts

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUvxPGxZt-s

- The King Of Love My Shepherd Is – Words: Henry Baker | Indelible Grace

http://hymnbook.igracemusic.com/hymns/the-king-of-love-my-shepherd-is

- 'Tis So Sweet To Trust In Jesus - Lyrics: Louisa M. R. Music: William James Kirkpatrick
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DdgkvnsHjM

- Psalm 23 (The Lord's My Shepherd) - Stuart Townend

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eIQQayhpak

- I Will Trust in the Lord – Negro Spiritual

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ampc61h3X-0

- El Señor Es Mi Pastor – Danilo Montero

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXhCNgeyqpI

In addition to singing, our Prayers of the People, Responsive Readings, and such other liturgical

elements should create intentional spaces of expressing confidence and trust with the affective

and emotional level they require.

8
 Bibliography

Bratcher, Robert G., and William David. Reyburn. A Handbook on Psalms. New York, NY:
United Bible Societies, 1993.

Collins, John C. A Partial Study Guide for Psalms and Wisdom and Worship. PDF. St. Louis:
Covenant Theological Seminary, 2016.

---------. Study notes on Psalms. In ESV Study Bible, Personal Size, 935–1128. Wheaton, IL:
Crossway, 2011

Craigie, Peter C., and Marvin E. Tate. Psalms 1 - 50. 2nd ed. Vol. 19. World Biblical
Commentary. Nashville: Nelson Reference & Electronic, 2004.

Delitzsch, Franz, and Carl Friedrich Keil. Psalms. Translated by Francis Bolton. Vol. 5.
Commentary on the Old Testament. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 2006.

Goldingay, John. Psalms. Vol. 1. 3 vols. Baker Commenatry on the Old Testament Wisdom and
Psalms. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2006.

Ḥaḳham, Amos. Psalms: with the Jerusalem commentary. Translated by Mosad Harav Kook.
Vol. 1. Jerusalem: Mosad Harav Kook, 2003.

Kidner, Derek. Psalms 1-72. Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2014.

Kirkpatrick, Alexander F., ed. The Book of Psalms. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
1951.

Mariowe, W. Creighton (2003) "No Fear! : Psalm 23 as a Careful, Conceptual Chiasm,"

The Asbury Theological Journal: Vol. 58: No. 1, p. 65-80.
Available at: http://place.asburyseminary.edu/asburyjournal/vol58/iss1/6