He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.
Psalm 23:2
Green pastures and quiet waters act in the same way. They both paint a picture of safety, security, peace, and serenity. As David reflects on the green pastures that his sheep enjoyed, he also includes the quiet waters in which the sheep would drink. Because these two portraits of God’s provision are similar (green pastures and quiet waters), we will use the same three descriptions.
- Quiet waters represent safety and security.
…for the Lamb in the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and will guide them to springs of the water of life; and God will wipe every tear from their eyes.
Revelation 7:17
When the Lord is our Shepherd, we can rest in the safety and security that He provides. It was important for the sheep to be led to quiet waters. Rushing streams and rivers were not conducive for the sheep to safely drink. Because of their wool-covered bodies, a sheep caught in a rushing stream would be easily pulled down and drowned by the absorption of the water into their wool. Quiet waters would provide the opportunity for the sheep to wade into the calm water and get a drink.
In the book of Revelation, we see the ultimate safety and security that will be ours as we rest securely in the provision and love of God. The Lamb (who is Christ) will be our shepherd. Just as the earthly shepherd safely guides the sheep to quiet waters, our heavenly Shepherd will guide us to “springs of the water of life.” Along with the safety and security found in an eternal dwelling with Jesus, God will wipe every tear from our eyes. This picture of tranquility and peace is reserved for those who belong to Jesus Christ. To “be led beside quiet waters” is to enjoy the safety and security that comes from knowing Jesus!
- Quiet waters represent salvation and provision.
Jesus answered and said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.”
John 4:13-14
When the Lord is our Shepherd, we can rely on the salvation and provision that He provides. Jesus used water as an analogy of His salvation and provision when talking to the woman at the well in Samaria. He talked of water that would never fail to satisfy. Unable to understand to what Jesus was referring, the woman still asked for the water Jesus was offering.
We can all relate to times in our lives when our bodies are in need of water. When exercising or working in the hot sun, our bodies begin to send us signals that water and other nutrients in our system are being lost. In times like these, we move way beyond simple thirst to a dire need for hydration. Just like our bodies need physical water, our souls need the spiritual water that comes from knowing Jesus Christ. He compared Himself to that of physical water as He declares, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst.” He goes on to announce that the “living water” in which represents will “become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.”
Just as our bodies require water in which to survive and thrive, our spiritual man also depends on the spiritual life that comes only from a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. To “be led beside quiet waters” is to enjoy spiritually feeding on the salvation and provision that comes from knowing Jesus!
- Quiet waters represent peace and rest.
Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’”
John 7:37-38
When the Lord is our Shepherd, we can enjoy the true peace and rest that only He can provide. Just like with the woman in Samaria, Jesus again uses the analogy of water in referring to the peace and rest that comes to those who yield their lives to Him. “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink” is the invitation. Just like Jesus’ invitation to the weary and burdened (Matthew 11:28), we can come to Him and receive spiritual life. As we place our faith in Him and what He has accomplished on the cross on our behalf, we move from spiritual death to spiritual life effectively becoming those counted as those who believe. At the moment this spiritual transaction takes place, we receive the Holy Spirit who then guides, comforts, teaches, protects, provides, and encourages us as we live our lives for Him. Jesus declares about those who receive His Spirit, “From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.” To “be led beside quiet waters” is to enjoy the peace and rest that comes from knowing Jesus!
As we proclaim, “The Lord is my Shepherd” we can also declare, “I shall not want.” And for those who have found safety, security, salvation, provision, peace, and rest in Jesus, they can truly say, “He leads me beside quiet waters!”
*some thought from God’s Psychiatry by Charles L. Allen
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