The Lord is My Shepherd (Eastman Johnson) The Lord is My Shepherd (Eastman Johnson) The Lord is My Shepherd is an 1863 oil on wood painting by American artist Eastman Johnson. The painting measures 16 5/8 x 13 1/8 in. (42.3 x 33.2 cm.) and is on display at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. The title of the painting comes from Psalm 23, which begins with the line: "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want." Johnson painted it just after the Emancipation Proclamation was announced in 1863. Its imagery includes an African-American man reading the first part of a Bible, possibly the Book of Exodus.
Psalm 121 Psalm 121 Psalm 121 (Greek numbering: Psalm 120) is the 121st psalm from the Book of Psalms. It is one of 15 psalms categorized as "A song of ascents" ("Shir Hama'alot"), although unlike the others, it begins, "Shir LaMa'alot" ("A song "to" the ascents"). As a song of ascent it is recognized that this psalm was sung by pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem. At the beginning of the pilgrimage, in the mountainous region of the Judean Hills, the pilgrim makes sure the Lord's help. The one who trusts in the Lord is certain that He will bring him protection