SermonStudio
Easter 4
Preaching
Hear My Voice
Preaching The Lectionary Psalms for Cycles A, B, C
(See Lent 4, Cycle A, and Easter 4, Cycle C, for alternative approaches.)
If asked how many images of God this most familiar of all psalms includes, most people would probably say one, that of shepherd. (And, while saying it, there's a good chance they'd actually be picturing Jesus with a lamb in his arms, thanks to the famous painting of that scene hanging in Sunday school rooms all over America.) But, in fact, there are two images of God in this psalm -- the shepherd (vv. 1-4) and the host at a banquet in the temple (vv. 5-6).
If asked how many images of God this most familiar of all psalms includes, most people would probably say one, that of shepherd. (And, while saying it, there's a good chance they'd actually be picturing Jesus with a lamb in his arms, thanks to the famous painting of that scene hanging in Sunday school rooms all over America.) But, in fact, there are two images of God in this psalm -- the shepherd (vv. 1-4) and the host at a banquet in the temple (vv. 5-6).