Psalm 23:5 You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You honor me by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings.[1]
What is the connection between sheep and a feast in the presence of enemies? Often shepherds will check a new pasture for toxic weeds. They will go ahead of the sheep to pull poisonous weeds out before the sheep could eat them and become sick. While David was anointed to be the next king, he was also eating with King Saul, who would act as his enemy. When David wrote this, he was best friends with the king’s son and married to the king’s daughter. From the outside, this looked like a great arrangement.
But Saul was jealous and had attempted to kill David several times. Still, David ate at his table. Here David looks to God for honor, not to King Saul. David is also thankful for what God had done to this point and realizes that he has many blessings.
I think this is a picture of an intimate dining situation, one in which the Lord provides despite enemies. We also have a type of intimate dining with our God in the Lord’s supper. Jesus invites us to remember as we partake of this meal. We need to remember because we often forget. Jesus was the anointed, but now as His followers, we are also set aside for God’s work. Communion, or the Lord’s Supper, provides a space for us to be thankful for what the Lord has done for us.
The Lord’s Supper is also a foretaste of the feast to come at the end of this age. Jesus reveals this to John in Rev. 19: 6 Then I heard again what sounded like the shout of a vast crowd or the roar of mighty ocean waves or the crash of loud thunder: “Praise the Lord! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns. 7 Let us be glad and rejoice and let us give honor to him. For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb, and his bride has prepared herself.[2]
Here is a picture of a very intimate feast – one at a wedding. The church, that is all believers, is described as a bride and Jesus the groom. But in order to be present at this wonderful event, you must be a believer. If you are not sure what this means, click on the “new believer” tab on this page. If you are a believer, this event gives us all hope for the future no matter what happens on this earth.
To hear more about David and Psalm 23, listen here: https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/series/david-and-his-songs-the-early-years/the-lord-is-my-shepherd
[1,2] Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.