I think I was in college before I understood verse one of the 23rd Psalm. Perhaps others have puzzled over it as well.
The rest of the psalm seemed relatively clear to me. Like a faithful shepherd, our gracious God perfectly provides for us, perfectly protects us from danger, and perfectly preserves us in times of trial.
That last phrase in verse one stumped me, though. What does “I shall not want” mean? I shall not want . . . what exactly? I shall not want a decent house? I shall not want a wife and family? I shall not want nice clothes?
When I started to study the languages of the Bible, however, the truth finally dawned. This passage isn’t using “want” in the transitive sense of “desire” or “wish to obtain,” but rather in the intransitive sense of “have a lack” or “experience an unfulfilled need.” Some English translations give a more easily-understood rendering, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall lack nothing.” (Psalm 23:1 Hebrew Names Version)
“I shall lack nothing.”
With the Lord Jesus Christ as your loving Good Shepherd, there is no possibility of want or lack in your life. “For the Lord will give grace and glory; no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly.” (Psalm 84:11) No good thing will He withhold? Really? Can it really be true that a believing child of God will never lack anything good? That’s what this verse promises, and God always keeps His promises. Even better, you can trust your omniscient Savior to perfectly distinguish between what you think is good for you, and what He knows is good for you. Perhaps your Good Shepherd has a different career in mind for you than the one you’ve set your heart on. Perhaps He has prescribed a health issue or a financial setback that will draw you closer to Him and provide you with priceless spiritual growth. The will of God is always best, as King Solomon acknowledged, “Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me.” (Proverbs 30:8) God knows what is needful for you, and He will take care that you lack nothing!
Could there ever be an exception to this rule? Listen to King David: “I have been young, and now am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his descendants begging bread.” I’m pretty old myself, and I’ve never seen that, either. Have you? He Who fashioned the universe with its innumerable stars and galaxies, leaving out not the slightest detail, will surely provide for all your life’s needs, down to the smallest detail. You are assured in Luke 12:7 that “the very hairs of your head are all numbered.” Not only does your Lord know the total, but each hair itself is individually numbered, and He knows exactly which ones came out in your brush this morning. And the One Who knows all your needs has said, “You shall lack nothing!”
Finally, there is the promise that has comforted believers down through the centuries: “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” (Romans 8:32) It’s the ultimate rhetorical question. Your gracious Lord has done the greater; He will not stint to do the lesser. Or as the Apostle Paul put it even more simply, “All things are yours!” (1 Corinthians 3:21)
“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” (Psalm 23:1)
is academic dean at Immanuel Lutheran College in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and editor of the Lutheran Spokesman.