Why Psalm 23 is encouraging

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Psalm 23 He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. 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. (Ps. 23:3–4)

To be alone— really, truly alone—is one of the greatest hardships a human being can ever bear. A long-running study in loneliness conducted by Harvard University recently concluded that “loneliness kills. It’s as powerful as smoking or alcoholism.” This is why the confession of faith that comes in this middle section of Psalm 23 is so beautiful: 

 I will fear no evil, for you are with me. (v. 4) 

Linger with me in the riches of the simple fact of the shepherd’s presence. It is an astonishing thing to be walking through a valley of deep darkness and to not fear it for the simple reason that you know you do not walk it alone. 

It is at this point, for the very first time in the psalm, that we move from hearing about the shepherd to speaking to the shepherd. We transition from the third person (“he”) to now addressing him directly in the second person (“you”). The meaning of the words, which I think we just intuitively sense, is that it is one thing to be able to say that someone is with me but quite another thing to be able to turn toward that individual and address him personally by saying, “You are with me.” 

It is as if all other sheep are not in the frame at this moment. The individual relationship that has been presumed and implied all along now takes centre stage for this central confession of faith to resound so clearly: this is between you and me, personally, and the deepest comfort I have is that you are with me. 

The comfort of the good shepherd’s presence is all the more wonderful when we take seriously the reality of the darkness and the presence of evil. It is essential to clarify that David is not suggesting the presence of the shepherd eliminates evil or eradicates darkness, as if being able to say “you are with me” implies that the room is now filled with light and happiness. No, the point is that because “you are with me,” I will not fear the very real darkness and the very real evil I am facing. 

The comfort is the presence of the shepherd amid the danger rather than the comfort of the removal of the danger Psalm 23:4 does not counsel that the reason for lack of fear lies in the true nature of shadows; on the contrary, its assumption, I think, is precisely that shadows can be genuinely terrifying places full of grotesque evil, maybe even catastrophic danger, and yet the reason for not fearing is precisely because of who is there with us. David is not reflecting on the truth about shadows; he is proclaiming the truth about his shepherd. 

The reason for not fearing resides in who the shepherd is, where and how the shepherd leads. This is the comfort of being in the presence of true strength that is now turned toward me with personal and individual attention to do me good by providing for my every need at every point on my long journey home.

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