(Part 1)

JBTM Jeffrey G. Audirsch
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God. 35 Thus, reading the recontextualized shepherding metaphor in reverse—Jesus as the
Shepherd of Israel (Ezek 34) and Jesus as the Shepherd of David (Ps 23)—an important
Christological truth becomes clear. With Jesus being “the shepherd in David’s place,” he
is “the one who restores our souls, leads us in the paths of righteousness, accompanies us
through danger, spreads the holy supper before us in the presence of sin and death, and
pursues us in his gracious love all the days of our lives.” 36 To allow Jesus to become our
shepherd, we must recognize that he is sovereign over our lives and by submitting to his
authority He proudly accepts us into his kingdom. It is within the kingdom of God that life
in Jesus Christ becomes a life of eternal well-being and glorious satisfaction.
35
Also, the imagery of the banquet in vv. 5–6 foreshadows the Lord’s Supper and the “anticipation
of the eschatological messianic banquet at the end of day.” See Miller, Interpreting the Psalms, 119.
36
Mays, Psalms, 119.