Why read Psalm 22?
Psalm 22 offers comfort and trust when you are afraid. The image of the Lord as shepherd, present even in the valley of the shadow of death, expresses confidence in His care throughout life.
You can read this psalm when its themes speak to your circumstances, or as part of your regular reading of the Psalter. This explanation draws on the text itself; the psalm is not reserved for one particular need.
The full text of Psalm 22 (7 verses), from the 3rd Kathisma of the Psalter. Its opening words — «The Lord shepherds me, and nothing will I...» — are also the psalm’s traditional “name”: our grandmothers did not say “psalm 22”, but called it by its first words.
The text of Psalm 22
1. The Lord shepherds me, and I will lack nothing.
2. In a place of pasture He settled me; by the water of rest He nourished me.
3. He restored my soul and guided me along the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.
4. Even if I walk in the midst of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me.
5. Your rod and Your staff have comforted me.
6. You have prepared a table before me, facing those who trouble me; You have anointed my head with oil, and Your cup refreshes me mightily.
7. And Your mercy will follow me all the days of my life, so that I may dwell in the house of the Lord for many days.
When Psalm 22 is read
- The shepherd’s psalm — for consolation and at the Divine Liturgy.
- At the end of each psalm, tradition adds: «Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.».
Adjacent psalms
The numbering follows the Orthodox Psalter (Septuagint). The same psalm may have a different number in other Bible editions.
