What have we learned so far about the shepherd?
He is the LORD Jehovah and He is my shepherd. He cares for me personally. He not only provides all that I need, He is all that I need. He gives me rest and refreshment. He restores me when I wander. He is Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd, the Great Shepherd and the Chief Shepherd. He knows me and I know Him.
What have we learned so far about sheep?
Sheep are not so smart, they are helpless and defenseless. They are easily frightened and totally dependent. They need the Shepherd to feed them, lead them, guide them and protect them. Never is this made clearer than in the phrase: Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me.
Usually, people think “rod and staff” are the same things. But each is a different instrument.The word “rod” is more than a stick it is a club to beat off enemies, i.e., the wolf, bear, or robbers. It is protection against negative attacks.The word “staff” is used as a positive tool. It is used for direction, assistance in walking, pointing and lifting, etc.
The rod and staff together symbolize His presence, protection and guidance. They both in a graphic way summarize the shepherd’s role.
No doubt David used both in the events he described in……
1 Samuel 17:34-35
34 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, 35 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. NAS
v The Rod
According to Robinson,
The “rod” an oak club about two feet long, was used to defend the flock against
wild beasts. The rod had a round head, usually whittled from the knot of a tree
bough, into which the shepherd had pounded sharp bits of metal. A skillful
shepherd not only swung the club to smash the head of an attacker, but he could
also hurl the club like a missile over the heads of his flock to strike a wolf
lurking in the distance. (pp. 23)
Phillip Keller adds,
The rod was, in fact, an extension of the owner’s right arm. It stood as a
symbol of his strength, his power, his authority in any serious situation. The
rod was what he relied on to safeguard both himself and his flock in danger. And
it was, furthermore, the instrument he used to discipline and correct any
wayward sheep that insisted on wandering away. (A Shepherd Looks at the Psalm
23, pp. 93)
The rod was used by Moses as he was sent to deliver Israel out of Egypt and Pharaoh’s bondage. It was used to demonstrate the power vested in him. This rod was used to perform miracles, to not only convince Pharaoh but also to reassure God’s people.
The rod represents God’s expressed intent. It implies the authority of divinity. “It carries with it the convicting power and irrefutable impact of “Thus saith the Lord” (Keller pp. 94). In the same sense the Scripture is His rod. It is the extension of His mind and will and intentions to mortal man.
“Living as we do in an era when numerous confused voices and strange
philosophies are presented to people, it is reassuring to the child of God to
turn to the Word of God and know it to be His Shepherd’s hand of authority. What
a comfort to have this authoritative, clear-cut, powerful instrument under which
to conduct ourselves.” (Phillip Keller pp. 94-95)
The Shepherd uses the rod (a demonstration of His power and authority) in three ways…..
o For the defense of the sheep – 2 Timothy 2:15; 3:16-17
The rod was used for both himself and the sheep and as both a defense and a deterrent against anything that would attack. Often the rod would be used to beat the brush discouraging snakes and other creatures from disturbing the flock.
What did the Lord Jesus use as He faced the serpent / snake Satan in the wilderness? He used the word of God (Matthew 4:1-11).
Whether it is as a snake in the grass or a roaring lion the word of God is the Rod we need for protection.
o For the discipline of the sheep – Psalm 119:11
Sometimes, herders would actually throw rods at recalcitrant sheep who were wandering away on their own or who were approaching poisonous weeds or getting too close to some other kind of danger. The rod would go whistling through the air to send the wayward animal scurrying back to the bunch.
There is an old saying that goes something like this, “This book will keep you from sin and sin will keep you from this book.” When we get too close to sin the Spirit of God works with the Word of God to convict us and warn us of the danger. This will help us to stay on the paths of righteousness.
o For the detecting of problems in the sheep – Ezekiel 20:37; Psalm 139:23-24
In the evenings the shepherd would cause the sheep to pass under his staff one by one in order to count them.
Leviticus 27:32
32 'And for every tenth part of herd or flock, whatever passes under the rod, the tenth one shall be holy to the LORD.
But there is more.
“As each animal comes out of the corral and through the gate, it is stopped by the shepherd’s outstretched rod. He opens the fleece with the rod; he runs his skillful hands over the body; he feels for any sign of trouble; he examines the sheep with care to see that all is well.” (Keller pp. 96)
There will be no pulling the wool over His (the Good Shepherd’s) eyes!
Hebrews 4:12
12 For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
This process of examination and detection is comforting to us as sheep because we know that this is the only way that the Shepherd can find the hidden problems and deal with them. It tells us that the Shepherd cares for us!
v The Staff
“The shepherds staff, or crook, was sometimes hooked at one end. With the staff
the shepherd restrained the sheep from wandering or hooked their legs to pull
them out of holes into which they had fallen. He also used it to pull branches
aside when a sheep became tangled in a thicket or to beat back the high grass to
drive out serpents coiled in the path.” (Robinson, pp. 23)
Keller explains,
“In a sense the staff, more than any other item of his personal equipment,
identifies the shepherd as a shepherd. No one in any other profession carries a
shepherd’s staff. It is uniquely an instrument used for the care and management
of sheep – and only sheep. It will not do for cattle, horses or hogs. It is
designed, shaped and adapted especially to the needs of sheep. And it is used
only for their benefit.” (pp. 99)
The staff is in essence a symbol of the compassion and care that a shepherd has for the sheep. Whereas the rod speaks of the authority of the shepherd, the staff speaks of the concern of the shepherd. The rod of God is emblematic of the Word of God and the staff of God is emblematic of the Spirit of God (cf. the consolation of the Spirit).
There are three areas of sheep management where the staff plays a role.
The first involves the drawing of sheep together into an intimate relationship.
The shepherd would often use the staff to lift a newborn lamb that had become separated from its mother. He would gently lift the lamb and set it beside its mother (using the staff so that the lamb does not bear the odor of the shepherd. In addition, the staff was used to reach out and catch an individual sheep so that he could draw it close for examination. In the same the Holy Spirit, the “Comforter” draws us together into warm fellowship with one another. cf. John 14:16-17
Philippians 2:1-2
1 If therefore there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, 2 make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose.
2 Corinthians 13:14
14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.
Secondly, the staff was used to guide the sheep and to help keep it on the right path.
In using it as such the shepherd was communicating to the sheep that he was there. It was an act of special attention that the sheep loved.
John 16:13
13 "But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.
Through the gentle nudgings of the Holy Spirit we are reminded that we are “in touch” with Jesus, the shepherd.
“There is a calm, quiet repose in the knowledge that He is there to direct even
in the most minute details of daily living. He can be relied on to assist us in
every decision, and in this there lies tremendous comfort for the Christian.”
(Keller pp. 102)
The third use of the staff was to rescue sheep that were in danger.
These circumstances include such things as climbing onto cliffs for one more mouthful of grass, getting caught in briars and brambles and so on.
“Likewise with us. Many of our jams and impasses are of our own making. In
stubborn, self-willed, self-assertion we keep pushing ourselves into a situation
where we cannot extricate ourselves. Then in tenderness, compassion and care our
Shepherd comes to us. He draws near and in tenderness lifts us by His Spirit out
of the difficulty and dilemma. What patience God has with us! What longsuffering
and compassion! What forgiveness!” (Keller pp. 103)
“In His comfort God offers more than a pocket handkerchief to dry their tears—He offers them His power and His might” (Robinson, pp.23). The Shepherd is as tender as He is powerful. His power is always regulated by His love.
Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me is a statement of power and affection.
2 Corinthians 1:3-7
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort; 4 who comforts us in all our affliction so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5 For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ. 6 But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer; 7 and our hope for you is firmly grounded, knowing that as you are sharers of our sufferings, so also you are sharers of our comfort. NAS
2 Thessalonians 2:16-17
16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace, 17 comfort and strengthen your hearts in every good work and word. NAS
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