“Thy Rod and Thy Staff They
Comfort Me”
In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy
Spirit. Amen. “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in
green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my
soul. He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no
evil; for Thou art with me.” We continue our sermon series, “A Lenten Look at Psalm 23”: “Thy rod
and Thy staff, they comfort me.” These two instruments are the common and universal equipment of the
primitive shepherd. In his book, “A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23,” Philip
Keller has a fascinating explanation of what the shepherd’s rod is, and how it
is used: “Each shepherd boy, from the time he first starts
to attend his father’s flock, takes a special pride in the selection of a rod
exactly suited to his own size and strength. He goes into the bush and selects a
young sapling which is dug from the ground. This is carved and whittled down
with great care and patience. The enlarged base of the sapling, where its trunk
joins the roots, is shaped into a smooth, rounded head of hardwood. The sapling
itself is shaped to exactly fit the owner’s hand. After he completes it, the
shepherd boy spends hours practicing with his club, learning how to throw it
with amazing speed and accuracy. It becomes his main weapon of defense for both
himself and his sheep. “I used to watch the native lads having
competitions to see who could throw his rod with the greatest accuracy across
the greatest distance. The effectiveness of these crude clubs in the hands of
skilled shepherds was a thrill to watch. The rod was, in fact, an extension of
the owner’s own arm. It stood as a symbol of his strength, his power, his
authority in any serious situation. The rod was what he relied on to safeguard
both himself and his flock in danger. And it was, furthermore, the instrument he
used to discipline and correct any wayward sheep that insisted on wandering
away. “There is an interesting sidelight on the word,
‘rod,’ which has crept into the colloquial language of the West. Here the slang
term ‘rod’ has been applied to handguns, such as pistols and revolvers, which
were carried by cowboys and other Western rangemen. The connotation of calling
their weapons a ‘rod’ is exactly the same as that used in this Psalm. “The shepherd’s rod is an instrument of protection
both for himself and his sheep when they are in danger. It is used both as a
defense and a deterrent against anything that would attack. The skilled
shepherd uses his rod to drive off predators like coyotes, wolves, cougars, or
stray dogs. Often it is used to beat the brush discouraging snakes and other
creatures from disturbing the flock. In extreme cases, such as David recounted
to Saul, the psalmist no doubt used his rod to attack the lion and the bear that
came to raid his flocks. “Once in Kenya photographing elephants, I was being
accompanied by a young native herder, who carried such a club in his hand. A
cobra suddenly came into view, ready to strike. In a split second the alert
shepherd boy lashed out with his club, killing the snake on the spot. “‘Thy rod . . . comforts me.’ In that instant I saw the meaning of this phrase in a new light. It was the rod ever ready in the shepherd’s hand that had saved the day for us.” So, the “rod” of our Good Shepherd symbolizes his strength in
protecting and defending us. As Jesus says in the tenth chapter of John:
“I am the Good Shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf
coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and
scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares
nothing for the sheep. I am the Good Shepherd; I know my sheep and my
sheep know me . . . and I lay down my life for the sheep. . . My sheep
listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal
life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.” Your Good Shepherd laid down his life to rescue you from the ultimate
predator, as Peter says, “Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring
lion seeking someone to devour.” Your Good Shepherd laid down his life to
rescue you from the ultimate predator, and he will watch over you and bless you
and protect you all the days of your life, until he takes you to dwell with him
in the house of the Lord forever. As Paul says in 2nd Timothy, “The Lord
will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly
kingdom.” Philip Keller also describes the other instrument a shepherd carries,
the shepherd’s staff: “The staff, more than any other item of his
personal equipment, identifies the shepherd as a shepherd. No one in any other
profession carries a shepherd’s staff. It is uniquely an instrument used for the
care and management of sheep—and only sheep. It will not do for cattle, horses,
or hogs. It is designed, shaped, and adapted especially to the needs of sheep.
And it is used only for their benefit. “The staff is essentially a symbol of the concern,
the compassion that a shepherd has for his charges. No other single word can
better describe its function on behalf of the flock than that it is for their
comfort. Whereas the rod conveys the concept of authority, of power, of
discipline, of defense against danger, the word “staff” speaks of all that is
long-suffering and kind. “The shepherd’s staff is normally a long, slender
stick, often with a crook or hook on one end. It is selected with care by the
owner; it is shaped, smoothed, and cut to best suit his own personal use. “The staff is used for guiding sheep. Again and
again I have seen a shepherd use his staff to guide his sheep gently into a new
path, or through some gate, or along some dangerous, difficult route. He does
not use it actually to beat the beast. Rather, the tip of the long slender stick
is laid gently against the animal’s side, and the pressure applied guides the
sheep in the way the owner wants to go. Thus the sheep is reassured of its
proper path. “Sometimes I have been fascinated to see how a
shepherd will actually hold his staff against the side of some sheep that is a
special pet or favorite, simply so that they are ‘in touch.’ They will walk
along this way almost as though it were ‘hand-in-hand.’ The sheep obviously
enjoys the special attention from the shepherd, and revels in the close,
personal, intimate contact between them. To be treated in this special way by
the shepherd is to know comfort in a deep dimension. It is a delightful and
moving picture. “The Christian life as a sheep in the Good Shepherd’s flock is not just one of subscribing to certain doctrines, or believing certain facts. Essential as all of this confidence in the Scriptures may be, there is, as well, the actual reality of experiencing and knowing firsthand the feel of his touch—the sense of his Spirit upon my spirit. There is for the true child of God that intimate, subtle, yet magnificent experience of sensing the Comforter at his side. This is not imagination—it is the genuine, bona fide reality of everyday life. There is a calm quiet repose in the knowledge that our Good Shepherd is there to direct us, even in the most minute details of daily living. He can be relied on to assist us in every decision, and in this there lies tremendous comfort for the Christian.” So, the “staff” of our Good Shepherd symbolizes his gentleness in
guiding us, as he walks with us along life’s way. As Isaiah says, “He
tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries
them close to his heart; he gently leads them . . .” I am Jesus’ little lamb, ever glad at heart I am;
For my Shepherd gently guides me . . . “Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.” The “rod” of our Good
Shepherd symbolizes his strength in protecting and defending us; the “staff” of
our Good Shepherd symbolizes his gentleness in guiding us, as he walks with us
along life’s way.
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