Psalm 23 - the Lord is my shepherd

By admin-goldspur on 8 April 2020

Psalm 23 - The Lord is my Shepherd

The path of purification to anointing and authority

Psalm 23 with the title "The Lord is my shepherd" describes in concise words and vivid images the path of man to fullness, wholeness and thus to God. The loving care of the good shepherd also leads him down into the underworld and through the realm of shadows and death. Afterwards, overflowing fullness, joy and security await - forever.

Metamorphosis: from matter into spirit

Thus, through various phases of life, man passes from attachment to matter into the freedom of the spirit.

[S. Man 3-in-1, Body, Soul, Spirit; The Feminine Way (of Love) down into Matter and The Masculine Way (of Life) into Spirit].

Figuratively speaking, this transformation can also be equated with the metamorphosis of a caterpillar into a butterfly.

Back to:

Transformation - the human journey as metamorphosis

The whole text of Psalm 23, "The Lord is my Shepherd".

1. sufficiency, protection and security

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures, he leadeth me beside still waters,
restoreth my soul,
leadeth me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

2. purification, integration of the shadows

Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil,
for thou art with me: thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.

3. fullness and returning home to the Father (to the realm of the spirit).

You prepared a table before me in the face of my enemies;
you anointed my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Only kindness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life;
and I will return to the house of the LORD for life.

First phase: The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want ...

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside still waters,
He restoreth my soul,
He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

No lack, but sufficiency and protection

This phase is characterised by the loving care of the Lord. The one who stands trustingly in life is given everything he needs to build up earthly existence (food, job, family, belonging).

"We always get what we need, but not always what we want."

Second phase, crisis: Even though I walk in the valley of the shadow of death ...

Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil,
For thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.

The road through the underworld: the crisis of the middle years

In this phase the "HE" ("the Lord") becomes the "YOU" (your rod and staff). For in the dark night of the soul, a new closeness to the one who gives comfort and light arises.

The path through the valley of the shadow of death or the path through the underworld is the hero's trial by fire and leads to purification. He is confronted with his own shadows and is challenged to integrate them.
So while outwardly not much happens, inwardly everything is dissolved that has no eternity existence ("pupation stage", see Dying and Rising: In the Here and Now!). This means in particular also that the ego (the identity of separation) dies, so that the self (the identity of love) can rise (see From Ego to Self).

[S. The Way Through the Underworld.]

Communion with Christ

Man is not alone on this path. He walks with Christ and is in harmony with the Great, Whole, which has also initiated the process of expanding his personality. It is necessary to integrate the shadows by bringing them to the light of the loving consciousness (see The Integration of the Shadow). In this way, the personality gains access to further resources and also to his Self, the identity of love (s. The Ego and the Self).

Third phase: You anoint my head with oil ...

You prepare a table before me in the face of my enemies;
thou hast anointed my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Only goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life;
and I will return to the house of the Lord for life.

Entry into the "Kingdom of God

In the third phase, the hero, who has overcome the ego and thus death by passing through the underworld, is bestowed with abundance and eternal life. In union with Christ, the eternal identity of love, he has now also taken kingship in his own life and receives authority over matter (the anointing).

On the way home

In this way he is born anew into the eternal existence of love (through the great MOTHER, life itself) and has gained access to the comprehensive spirit ("FATHER", love). In other words, he can free himself from the bondage to matter and "fly"! (p. Father and Mother, Spirit and Matter and The Hero's Path). Thus he finally comes "home", into his true home, into the boundless freedom of the spirit.