Poetry
Scripture · Psalms
Divine Comfort and Protection
Psalm 23:4
— NLTEven when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me.
A verse offering reassurance of God’s protection even when faced with adversity.
The passageThe psalm's grammar turns at exactly this verse. Until now God has been spoken about — he leads me, he restores me. In the valley he is spoken to: thou art with me. The tradition reads the darkest line as the one where the distance closes.
Scripture · Psalms
The Lord is my shepherd
Psalm 23:1
— NLTThe Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need.
The beloved psalm expressing calm trust in divine provision, comfort in dark valleys, and abiding protection.
The passageShepherd was a royal title across the ancient Near East — kings of Egypt, Mesopotamia and Israel all claimed it — so the line assigns to God an office human rulers were failing at. The Hebrew that follows says not that the sheep prospers but that it lacks nothing.
Scripture · Psalms
Be still, and know that I am God
Psalm 46:10
— NLTBe still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world.
An invitation to cease striving and recognize the absolute sovereignty of the Divine in the midst of chaos.
The passageNot a call to meditation. The Hebrew verb means to let the hands drop, to desist, and the psalm addresses nations that have been making war — the previous verse breaks bows and burns chariots. Read in context it says: stop fighting, and recognise who is God.
Poems from the Masnavi 38
- ‘Allah’ and ‘Here Am I’Sufism
- Ayāz and His SheepskinSufism
- Daqūqī and the Seven CandlesSufism
- I Died as a MineralSufism
- Moses and the ShepherdSufism
- Muʿāwiya and IblīsSufism
- The Bear and the FoolSufism
- The Bird's Three CounselsSufism
- The Chickpea to the CookSufism
- The Chinese and the Greek PaintersSufism
- The Dream of the Treasure in CairoSufism
- The Elephant in the DarkSufism
- The Embryo in the WombSufism
- The Faqir and the Hidden TreasureSufism
- The Four Men and the GrapesSufism
- The Garden WithinSufism
- The Grammarian and the BoatmanSufism
- The Greengrocer and the ParrotSufism
- The Journey Through the KingdomsSufism
- The King and the HandmaidenSufism
- The Lion and the HareSufism
- The Lover and the Night PatrolSufism
- The Man Who Planted ThornsSufism
- The Merchant and the ParrotSufism
- The Moaning PillarSufism
- The Mouse and the CamelSufism
- The Old HarperSufism
- The Ruby and the SunSufism
- The Sage and the PeacockSufism
- The Snake-Catcher and the Frozen SnakeSufism
- The Song of the ReedSufism
- The Sufi's DonkeySufism
- The Tanner in the Perfume MarketSufism
- The Three FishSufism
- The Three TravellersSufism
- The Turkish Amir and the MinstrelSufism
- Who Is at the Door?Sufism
- ʿAlī and the KnightSufism
Poems from the Dīvān-e Shams-e Tabrīzī 11
- Every Form You SeeSufism
- Every Moment the Voice of LoveSufism
- Neither Christian nor JewSufism
- On the Day of My DeathSufism
- Out Beyond Ideas of Wrongdoing and RightdoingSufism
- Seek Him in the PlacelessSufism
- Show Thy FaceSufism
- The Man of GodSufism
- Up, O Ye LoversSufism
- When the Names Were NotSufism
- Why Does Not the Soul Take WingSufism
Passages 11
- A Lamp to Guide My FeetPsalms
- Be still, and know that I am GodPsalms
- Create in me a clean heart, O GodPsalms
- Divine Comfort and ProtectionPsalms
- I am fearfully and wonderfully madePsalms
- The heavens declare the glory of GodPsalms
- The Lord is my light and my salvationPsalms
- The Lord is my shepherdPsalms
- The Shelter of the Most HighPsalms
- The Two PathsPsalms
- Where My Help Comes FromPsalms