“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”
Psalms 23:4 NASB1995
Verse 4 of Psalm 23 takes a darker tone, moving away from the idyllic images of green pastures, still waters, and tranquil paths of righteousness and restoration. David was a warrior and risked death many times in his life, first while spending years running away from Saul, then being personally engaged in wars during his reign as king of Israel. He realized that God is with us, even in the darkest valleys and lows of our lives, when death may loom over us. The imagery and language is so interesting and worth pointing out — we walk through the valley of the shadow of death.
Death comes to everyone and every living thing in this fallen world. Lazarus was raised from the dead by Jesus but he eventually died again (or maybe died again fairly soon, as the Pharisees were infuriated by Jesus and His last miracle before His own Resurrection and they did not want Lazarus to tell his own story). We have all suffered through the deaths of loved ones or had situations where perhaps we were near death from illness or injuries; sometimes we did not know we had just escaped from the shadow of death while driving (later, you read about a horrible accident that occurred mere minutes after you passed through an area or your minor delays result in you just missing a bad accident in front of you).
Steve’s Dad Ed worked for United Airlines for many years. On November 1, 1955, he was supposed to be on a United flight from Denver returning to his home near Seattle (the family later moved to the Denver area, where Steve and I met). He missed his assigned flight, which was destroyed by a bomb over Longmont, Colorado, killing everyone on board. The mother of a career criminal named Jack Graham was on that plane and he put a bomb in her luggage to get the insurance payout (see the Story of United flight 629). Ed talked about that near miss, which was a very frightening moment for him, especially after he served in the Korean War a few years earlier and had been shot at by the enemy more than once. Steve would never have been born if Ed had been on that flight (Steve was born in September, 1957). So Ed certainly knew about the “shadow of death”.
If you truly believe in your redemption and salvation, death is not the final destination, but merely a passage to eternal life and glory with God. David did not fear death, nor did he fear evil because he had his Good Shepherd to guide him. The Shepherd’s rod and staff comfort him. According to Gotquestions.org, a shepherd’s staff is a long stick with an open loop at the end for hooking a sheep around the neck and pulling the clueless creature back from danger. The rod was carried in the other hand by the shepherd and was used to attack predators and prod or guide the sheep back onto the correct path and help with counting (like sheep dogs would do now).
I look at the staff as being the embodiment of our salvation through Jesus’ death and resurrection, pulling us back from the brink of death separated from Him and guiding us into His precepts and commandments and eternal life with Him. The rod also keeps us on the path and is used to ward off evil (predators, temptations). Before David goes to kill Goliath, he tells Saul about his experiences with predators (likely using a rod) while tending sheep:
“David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail on account of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.” Then Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are but a youth while he has been a warrior from his youth.” But David said to Saul, “Your servant was tending his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock, I went out after him and attacked him, and rescued it from his mouth; and when he rose up against me, I seized him by his beard and struck him and killed him. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, since he has taunted the armies of the living God.”
1 Samuel 17:32-36 NASB1995
Finally, let’s turn to David Guzik from Enduring Word for more comforting words about the Valley of the Shadow of Death:
b. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death: This line from the psalm – and the psalm as a whole – has proven itself precious to many a dying saint through the ages. They have been comforted, strengthened, and warmed by the thought that the LORD would shepherd them through the valley of the shadow of death.
i. Near death, the saint still calmly walks – he does not need to quicken his pace in alarm or panic. Near death, the saint does not walk in the valley, but through the valley.
ii. “Death in its substance has been removed, and only the shadow of it remains…. Nobody is afraid of a shadow, for a shadow cannot stop a man’s pathway even for a moment. The shadow of a dog cannot bite; the shadow of a sword cannot kill; the shadow of death cannot destroy us.” (Charles Spurgeon)
iii. “It has an inexpressibly delightful application to the dying; but it is for the living, too…. The words are not in the future tense, and therefore are not reserved for a distant moment.” (Charles Spurgeon)
c. I will fear no evil: Despite every dark association with the idea of the valley of the shadow of death, David could resolutely say this because he was under the care of the LORD his shepherd. Even in a fearful place, the presence of the shepherd banished the fear of evil.
i. We might say that the shepherd’s presence did not eliminate the presence of evil, but certainly the fear of evil.
Another interesting thing that I saw in commentary about this passage is that the “He” of verses 1-3 of this Psalm becomes the more personal “You” in verse 4 when despair and death and evil are looming. The Shepherd is there, for each one of His beloved sheep!! I love this passage so much for how it is a comfort beyond the meaning of words - Death is a mere shadow!
My next devotional will examine verse 5 of the 23rd Psalm: Abundance and Anointment.
Commentary by David Guzik on Enduring Word is used with permission.