Psalm 23 – Verse 4

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. – Psalm 23:4 NKJV

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death

This verse is why we often hear this Psalm at funerals. Due to the fact that this Psalm reminded me of funerals, I didn’t appreciate it in my younger days. But after I really began studying this Psalm more, I grew to understand it better. And now it has become my favorite Psalm.

Something to keep in mind is that it says the “shadow” of death. It is not death itself. The original Hebrew word means “deep darkness.” As Christians we don’t have to fear death itself. When we pass on from this life, we will be in heaven with our Lord and Savior.

“The Good Shepherd laid down His life for His sheep and bore our death full force. As a result, we’re hit only by the shadow of death. There is no such thing as real death for the Christian.” [1]

This is good news! This is reason for us to rejoice every day.

However, while on this earth, we will still walk through dark times and valleys. While it’s usually not something we would choose, it is reality.

You might wonder why I said “usually” in that last sentence. This is because there are times when we cause our own dark valleys. There are often three ways the darkness comes into our lives – our own sinful nature, the world, and the enemy.

The good news is that no matter what the case may be, we can turn to our Heavenly Father. We can seek His help and guidance towards a better path. And we can find peace in His arms.

It says in Psalm 139:12 (NKJV), “Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, But the night shines as the day; The darkness and the light are both alike to You.”

It doesn’t matter whether it’s night or day, it’s all light to the One who is holding our hand. So even when we are walking in deep darkness, we can cling to our Good Shepherd and He will lead the way.

And these words that David wrote thousands of years ago help show us the way. The words “walk through” in this verse tell me two things. First, when dark times come, we have to keep walking out our faith to help us get to the other side. And second, if we are “walking through” this means we won’t get stuck there. The challenges we face will pass. Some circumstances take longer than others. And no doubt all of our troubles take longer than we would like. But they will pass. As we walk through the valleys of life, let us remember to keep trusting in the Lord every step of the way.

“We must trust God. We must trust not only that he does what is best, but that he knows what is ahead.” [2]

I realize this isn’t always easy. And I don’t say any of this lightly. Thankfully, this twenty-third Psalm has been teaching us that our Shepherd is always there and always caring for us. Which brings us to our next point in this verse.

I will fear no evil; For You are with me

Something beautiful in this verse is the reminder that our Good Shepherd is with us. No matter what we are walking through, He doesn’t leave our side. Sometimes we might wonder about this. We might think He is not there or He is not helping us. But our human eyes are limited. We can’t always see what the Lord is doing. We have to rely on the truth that we know. We have to remind ourselves that He is with us and He is working on our behalf.

“God is 100 percent committed, 100 percent involved, and 100 percent purposeful in everything He allows into our lives.” [3]

When we walk through darkness, this should push us closer to the Lord. We should be clinging to Him like never before. In the midst of trials, we can find refuge in our Almighty God.

Isaiah 40:11 (NIV) says, “He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.”

This is our God’s heart for us. He wants to gather us close, especially when we are walking through a difficult season.

This verse tells us that we don’t have to fear. However, I know our fears can feel very real in our hearts and minds. At times our fears might even be irrational, yet they still can be difficult to shake.

“Sometimes we think of fear as an emotion, but we need to realize that fear is actually a spirit. In fact, I believe fear is one of Satan’s favorite tools, and he particularly loves to torment Christians with it. At every possible opportunity, he will whisper in your ear, telling you that God has forgotten you and there is no hope.” [4]

Remember there is always hope, when we have Jesus. Our Shepherd’s perfect love casts out fear. (See 1 John 4:16-18.) So when fear strikes, let us remind ourselves to hold onto the Lord and His perfect love.

Psalm 56:3 says, “When I am afraid, I will put my trust in you.” This takes a conscious decision on our part – to trust God. But we can choose to do just that, when fears hit us.

“In order to teach you faith, the Father must bring you to the end of yourself so you will choose to trust Him. This is a necessary lesson and an indispensible part of maturing you as a believer.” [5]

Notice how in verse 4 of Psalm 23 David switched from talking about his Shepherd in third person, to now talking to his Shepherd in first person. I think this is perfect because talking to Him helps us to acknowledge and feel our Shepherd right beside us.

When we keep in mind that whatever we walk through, the Lord is with us, this changes how we face each day. We are never alone. He is always helping and working on our behalf. We can lean on Him and His strength. The words “You are with me” are words we can hold onto every day.

In fact, “the message of the whole Bible can be summarized in four simple words: ‘You are with me.’” [6]

Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

“The rod mentioned in Psalm 23 is a symbol of the Lord’s strength and protection. The rod was a sturdy wooden stick used as a weapon to fight off wild animals who might have hoped to make an easy meal out of an otherwise defenseless flock of sheep. The shepherd also used the rod to help him keep count of the sheep within the flock (as alluded to in Leviticus 27:32).” [7]

“The staff mentioned in Psalm 23 is a symbol of the Lord’s guidance and lovingkindness. The staff was a long, slender stick, often hooked at the tip, used primarily to direct the flock. Sheep are notorious wanderers, and once away from the shepherd’s watchful eye, they get into all sorts of trouble (Matthew 18:12-14). The shepherd used his staff to keep his sheep out of danger and close to himself. If a sheep became trapped in a precarious position, the shepherd would loop the curved end of the staff around the neck of the sheep and retrieve it back to safety.” [7]

When we have a better understanding of the rod and the staff, it’s easy to see why David said they comforted him. David was a shepherd and he had to use his own rod and staff to protect his herd. So David knew well that our Good Shepherd keeps a watchful eye on each of us, in order to protect us and guide us.

No matter what we are walking through, God sees it all. He doesn’t miss a thing. He doesn’t forget a single prayer. He doesn’t stop caring for one second.

We don’t have to doubt that. He is always there. And He is ready to help us in the best way possible. Whether we are in danger or if we are on the wrong path, God is there to help us get to safety.

Our Shepherd is not a weakling. He is strong and mighty. He can handle anything and everything that comes against us. Let us praise God for His never ending love!

Thank you for reading. I hope you have a blessed week.

© 2018-2025 Bridget A. Thomas. All rights reserved.

[1] The Lord is My Shepherd by Robert J. Morgan. Copyright © 2013 by Rob Morgan. Published by Howard Books.

[2] Safe in the Shepherd’s Arms: Hope and Encouragement from Psalm 23 by Max Lucado. Copyright © 2002, 2009 by Max Lucado. Published by Thomas Nelson.

[3] Fully Alive by Susie Larson. Copyright © 2018 by Susie Larson. Published by Bethany House Publishers.

[4] Battlefield of the Mind Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Joyce Meyer. Published by FaithWords, a division of Hachette Book Group.

[5] Every Day in His Presence by Charles F. Stanley. © 2014 by Charles F. Stanley. Published by Thomas Nelson.

[6] The Lord of Psalm 23: Jesus Our Shepherd, Companion, and Host. © 2023 by David Gibson. Published by Crossway.

[7] https://www.gotquestions.org/rod-staff-Psalm-23.html