“From following the ewes great with young he brought him to feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance.”
My Notes
What Does Psalms 78:71 Mean?
The psalm ends with David — and the ending is breathtaking in its simplicity. God chose David from among the shepherds, specifically "from following the ewes great with young." The Hebrew me'achar aloth — from behind the nursing ewes — is the most specific, most tender image possible. David wasn't herding rams on a hillside. He was walking behind pregnant and nursing sheep, the most vulnerable animals in the flock. His job was to move at their pace, protect them from predators, and make sure they ate and drank. And God took him from that exact task and gave him a nation.
The parallel is precise: David was caring for vulnerable sheep. Now he will care for vulnerable people. "To feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance" — the Hebrew ra'ah (to feed, to shepherd) is the same word for what David was doing with the ewes. The skill set transferred. The compassion required for nursing sheep was the compassion required for leading a nation.
The phrase "his inheritance" — nachalatho — makes Israel God's inheritance, not David's. David is stewarding something that belongs to God. The flock is God's flock. The people are God's people. David just moved from one set of sheep to another, with the same Owner watching over both.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Who are the 'nursing ewes' in your life — the people who are vulnerable, slow, and demanding of your patience?
- 2.How does God's criterion for leadership — tenderness with the vulnerable — compare to the world's criteria?
- 3.David's shepherd skills transferred directly to kingship. What unglamorous skill in your life might God be preparing to use at a larger scale?
- 4.Are you walking at the pace of the weakest person in your care, or are you leaving them behind to keep up with the strong?
Devotional
God found David behind the nursing ewes. Not at the front of the flock with the strong rams. Not on a hill with the mature sheep that could fend for themselves. Behind the ones who were most vulnerable — pregnant, nursing, slow-moving, easy prey. That's where God saw something worth crowning.
The qualification for leadership in God's economy isn't ambition, visibility, or strength. It's tenderness toward the vulnerable. David's résumé for the throne wasn't military training or political education. It was patience with animals that couldn't keep up. It was walking slow enough for the weak ones. It was caring about the ones nobody else wanted to deal with because they required more attention and moved at an inconvenient pace.
That's still how God evaluates readiness. Not by how impressive your platform is. Not by how many people follow you. But by how you treat the ones who can't do anything for you in return. The nursing ewes don't produce wool efficiently. They don't win competitions. They slow the flock down. And they're exactly where God looked when He was choosing a king. If you want to know whether you're ready for the next thing God has for you, don't look at your strengths. Look at how you treat the people who need you most and can offer you the least.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
So he fed them according to the integrity of his heart,.... Or, "reigned over them", as the Targum; that is, over the…
From following the ewes great with younq - Margin, as in Hebrew, From after. The meaning is, that he followed after…
The matter and scope of this paragraph are the same with the former, showing what great mercies God had bestowed upon…
From following the ewes with their young ones he brought him,
To be shepherd of Jacob his people &c.
This natural…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture