You can practice your singing here, to Toulon (the tune of I Greet Thee, Who My Sure Redeemer Art)

From the ESV Study Bible

Songs of confidence … worshipers to deepen their trust in God through all manner of difficult circumstances (e.g., Psalm 23).

Psalm 23 … is usually classified as a psalm of confidence in the Lord’s care. It uses two images: the Lord as Shepherd who cares for the sheep (vv. 1–4), and the Lord as Host who cares for his guest (vv. 5–6). These images would be familiar from everyday experience (for David’s own, cf. 1 Sam. 17:34); but they also evoke other ideas common in the ancient Near East (including the OT), with the deity as shepherd of his people and the deity as host of the meal. In worship, the faithful celebrate God’s greatness and majesty; and when they sing this psalm, they see his majesty in the way he personally attends to each of his covenant lambs. He is the shepherd for Israel as a whole; and in being such, he is the shepherd for each faithful Israelite as well.

From the ESV Literary Study Bible

Psalm 23 is a *pastoral poem built around the motif of the daily acts of provision that a good shepherd performs for his sheep. The sheep-shepherd relationship, in turn, is a metaphor for the providence that God extends to his followers.

*pastoral literature — Literature in which the setting, characters, and actions are those that belong to the world of shepherding. Usually the pastoral world is presented as an idealized “good place” and becomes symbolic of the good life. Much love poetry is pastoral poetry, on the ground that the beautiful rural setting provides an appropriate place for idealized love to occur. Sometimes the characters and events in a pastoral work are allegorical in nature, referring to real-life people and events.

From the ESV Archaeological Study Bible

Ps. 23:1 shepherd. This term is used in the Bible to describe a variety of people in leadership positions, such as kings (2 Sam. 5:2; 1 Chron. 11:2; Ezek. 34:23; 37:24; Mic. 5:4)—including the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II (Jer. 43:12) and the Persian king Cyrus (Isa. 44:28)—judges (2 Sam. 7:7; 1 Chron. 17:6), priests, prophets, and others (Ezek. 34:1–10; Jer. 17:16; Mic. 5:5–6). God is also characterized as a shepherd (Gen. 48:15; 49:24; Ps. 28:9; 80:1; 95:7; 100:3; Eccles. 12:11; Isa. 40:11; Jer. 31:10; Ezek. 34:15; cf. Rev. 7:17). The Babylonian king Hammurabi refers to himself as “the shepherd” (ANET, 164) at the beginning of his law code, reflecting customary usage in the ancient world. The metaphor of God as shepherd also reflects a broader cultural expression. A hymn to Shamash (the Mesopotamian sun god) reads, “You take care of the people of the lands altogether; whatever Ea, the king and ruler, caused to be brought forth is everywhere given over to you. All who have living breath you pasture” (Kraus, Psalms 1–59, 307). Such hymns reflect the desire of mankind for a righteous shepherd to rule them, a desire realized only in the true God, the God of Israel.

Ps. 23:5–6 The image of God as host of a banquet recalls the covenant meal in Ex. 24:9–11 and is implicit in the sacrifices in which the people share the sacrificed animal with God. This imagery is further suggested by this meal being connected with dwelling in the house of the Lord. in the presence of my enemies. The significance of this phrase is illustrated in a passage from Amarna tablet 100, which says of the Pharaoh, “May it please him to give gifts to his servant while our enemies look on” (Kraus, Psalms 1–59, 308). The point of the passage is the public demonstration of the king’s (or, in the case of the psalm, God’s) support and superiority.

From the ESV Gospel Transformation Bible

But this Lamb who laid down his life is also the Good Shepherd (John 10:1–18). Recognizing his sheep’s voice, Christ meets our needs, leads us in the way, and protects us from disaster (John 10:5, 10). Listening to the Chief Shepherd’s voice, the believer’s soul is restored. And we will “dwell in the house of the LORD forever” (Ps. 23:6; cf. 1 Pet. 5:4; Rev. 22:4).

Some Songs to Listen To