The Shepherd (Blake) of The Shepherd as Christ is initially found in another Song, The Little Black Boy. Psalm 23 depicts God as a shepherd of mankind, and the capitalization of the word 'Shepherd' in the first and last lines furthers the idea that the Shepherd is a symbol of God. In the bible, a shepherd's presence is representative of guidance. In this poem, the Shepherd can be viewed as the spiritual guide or a savior of the herd, rejoicing in their numbers. Jesus is also referred to in the bible as the Lamb of God. Since the poem depicts The Shepherd as
Psalm 102 where it is split as an antiphon into a "call" ("Lord, listen to my prayer", or "Hear my prayer, O Lord") and the response ("and let my cry come unto Thee"). This psalm occurs in the Monastic office of St Benedict (480-547) in the Saturday vigils or Matins. It occurs in the same place in the Roman Breviary of St Pius V (1568) and occurs at Saturday Terce in the Roman Breviary of St Pius X (1911). In the revised office of Pope Paul VI (1971) the Psalm occurs on Tuesday Week 4 Vigils The second verse is set in