Article July 22, 1950 Issue

KEEPING THE FLOCK

HAROLD EDWARDS SUTTON

When the Psalmist David composed the twenty-third Psalm, his thought no doubt turned in richly reminiscent mood to the scenes of his boyhood. In the practical knowledge that no shepherd who was worthy of the name could let his flock suffer lack, he said, "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want."

In the pastoral life of early Bible times the shepherd held an important and trusted position as custodian of the flocks, or wealth, of the people. His duties were arduous and included leading out the sheep in the morning, finding them pasture, protecting them from marauders, tending the weak, caring for the wounded, searching for the lost, gathering all to the fold at eventide. The poetic beauty of the Psalm betokens David's deep affection for the old familiar scene.

Throughout the Bible there are constantly recurring references to the shepherd and the sheep. Jesus made frequent use of them in parable and illustration. He said of himself on one occasion (John 10:11), "I am the good shepherd," and on another he exhorted Peter (John 21:16), "Feed my sheep."

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