An essayist made a long list of major characteristics of sheep; and to say the least, they are unflattering. Let us go over four of them, each of which he described with several adjectives. Firstly, they are timid, fearful, and easily panicked. Secondly, they are dumb, stupid, and gullible. Thirdly, sheep need the most care of all livestocks. Goats can easily range and through a can-do attitude find sustenance. That is not fully applicable to sheep. Fourthly, sheep have no means of self-defense. If you have observed, most sheep either have no horns at all or where present they are very short. Horns are for defenses. The fact that sheep lack them is a pointer to their vulnerability.
Horns are for defenses. The fact that sheep lack them is a pointer to their vulnerability…What we lack in ourselves is simply provided for us by the Shepherd.
All these attributes may have inspired people like Elizabeth Kenny who said, “It is better to be a lion for a day than a sheep all your life”. Ironically, God’s stand is the exact opposite to Kenny’s. We are not described as lions, we are sheep. That much is clear from our text. Psalm 95:7 says the same thing almost verbatim: “For He is our God, And we are the people of His pasture, And the sheep of His hand. Today, if you will hear His voice:” (NKJV). Being described as sheep is both bad news and good news. Bad news because we have no defenses of our own; but good news because we have a Shepherd. This Shepherd is Jesus, who leads His own steadily to the green pastures and watches over them with tender care. He promised that He would never leave nor forsake us. What we lack in ourselves is simply provided for us by the Shepherd.