May 11, 2025
Revised Common Lectionary
Acts 9:36-43
Psalm 23
Revelation 7:9-17
John 10:22-30
Lectionary for Mass (RC)
Acts 13:14, 43-52
Psalm 100:1-2, 3, 5 (3c)
Revelation 7:9, 14b-17
John 10:27-30
The Good Shepherd has long been a deeply compelling image for followers of Jesus, reaching back into the first centuries of the Christian community. The very earliest artistic depiction of Jesus, found in the Roman catacombs—and most likely borrowed from pagan sources—was of the shepherd carrying a sheep around his neck. Even today the depiction of Christ as the Good Shepherd offers comfort to bereaved families and inspires Christians who view stained glass depictions in their churches.
That image from the catacombs got me thinking about today’s reading from the Book of Revelation. I wondered, did those Christians who gathered underground in Rome to avoid becoming targets of persecution by the authorities think of this passage and draw strength from it when they looked at the Shepherd on the catacomb wall? The author of Revelation was writing after all for communities who were either experiencing Roman persecution firsthand or were at least aware of suffering and death in other communities.
Today’s reading presents a vision of the heavenly court in which there was “a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white, with palm branches in their hands” (Rev 7:9). While they may have been victims of persecution, they have now “come out of the great ordeal” and “have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (Rev 7:14).
Disciples who have endured suffering and death have followed on the same path as the Lamb who was slain but now stands before the throne with God. In a stunning juxtaposition of metaphors, the author declares that the Lamb who was slaughtered is also their shepherd. The victim has become the protector who “will guide them to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes” (Rev 7:17).
The Lamb, the Shepherd, has gone before us and has risen to new life. And so, those who are addressed in the Book of Revelation are called to take hope even in the face of suffering. Those who have followed the Lamb, the risen One, are safe from harm: “They will hunger no more, and thirst no more; the sun will not strike them, nor any scorching heat” (Rev 7:16).
Just as it was for communities addressed by the author of Revelation, hope can be difficult for us today. We witness the mistreatment and dehumanization of migrants, ongoing conflicts causing death and misery, and the seeming indifference of political leaders toward the plight of poor and marginalized people. These modern “ordeals” can leave us wondering where the Shepherd is.
Yet today’s passage proclaims an essential aspect of resurrection faith—that the Lamb who suffered is also the Shepherd who leads. The Good Shepherd has laid down his life for the sheep and in rising victorious, continues to love and care for suffering people. For early Christians hiding in catacombs, for persecuted believers in John’s communities, and for us today facing our own ordeals, the message remains: the risen One walks with us in our difficulties, struggles, and griefs, guiding us toward springs of living water.
A Hymn for Today: “We shall walk through the valley in peace”
This African American spiritual, first published in Slave Songs of the United States (Boston, 1867), was likely first sung among enslaved people in the southern United States. The first stanza and refrain are based on a verse from today’s Lectionary psalm, the well-known and much beloved Psalm 23: “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil” (Ps 23:4).
For enslaved people who lived with deep distress, this song was an expression of confident hope in Jesus, the Good Shepherd. The second and third stanzas echo the message of today’s reading from Revelation. Those who were facing persecution could take comfort from the vision of the heavenly liturgy in which “the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes” (Rev 7:17).
We shall walk through the valley in peace;
We shall walk through the valley in peace;
If Jesus himself shall be our leader,
We shall walk through the valley in peace.
There will be no sorrow there;
There will be no sorrow there.
If Jesus himself shall be our leader,
We shall walk through the valley in peace.
There will be no dying there.
There will be no dying there.
If Jesus himself shall be our leader,
We shall walk through the valley in peace.
Text: African American spiritual
Tune: PEACEFUL VALLEY, African American spiritual
Image: Good Shepherd, Catacomb of Priscilla
“Word and Song: A Lectionary Reflection” is written by the Executive Director of The Hymn Society, Rev. Dr. Mike McMahon. For his full bio, click here and scroll down to the “staff” section.
To receive these weekly reflections by email, please send a message to office@thehymnsociety.org and type “Lectionary” in the subject line.