Guide to The Pilgrim's Progress Part Two

Now supper was ready, the table spread, and all things set on the board. So they sat down, and did eat, when one had given thanks. And the Interpreter did usually entertain those that lodged with him with music at meals; so the minstrels played. There was also one that did sing; and a very fine voice he had.

His song was this:

“The Lord is only my support
And He that doth me feed:
How can I, then want anything
Where of I stand in need?”

Notes and Commentary

At last the pilgrims sit down to a table spread with a fine meal. They have been anticipating this feast since arriving at the Interpreter’s House. Before they can continue the long journey ahead, they need nourishment and strength. The meal they enjoy highlights several important biblical truths.

1) God is the One who sustains us and provides all our needs.

The Word of God teaches us that God waters the earth and causes it to be fruitful.

You visit the earth and water it,
You greatly enrich it;
The river of God is full of water;
You provide their grain,
For so You have prepared it.
You water its ridges abundantly,
You settle its furrows;
You make it soft with showers,
You bless its growth.
You crown the year with Your goodness,
And Your paths drip with abundance.
They drop on the pastures of the wilderness,
And the little hills rejoice on every side.
The pastures are clothed with flocks;
The valleys also are covered with grain;
They shout for joy, they also sing.
(Psalm 65:9–13)

Air, food, water, sunlight—all that is needed to sustain life comes from the hand of God. And so Jesus teaches us to pray to the Father: “Give us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11). God knows all our needs, so we can trust and rest in Him.

Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you (Matthew 6:31–33).

2) We should remember to thank and praise God.

Because God is the One who supplies all our needs, Scripture exhorts us to come before Him with thanksgiving and praise.

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
(Psalm 100:4)

God’s Word also instructs us that we are to use music, both instruments and voices, as a means of praise and giving thanks to God.

It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High;
To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning,
And Your faithfulness every night,
On an instrument of ten strings,
On the lute,
And on the harp,
With harmonious sound.
(Psalm 92:1–3)

Praise the Lord!
For it is good to sing praises to our God;
For it is pleasant, and praise is beautiful.
(Psalm 147:1)

When the pilgrims sit down to eat they hear minstrels playing musical instruments accompanying “one that did sing.” The song that the pilgrims hear echos the words of Psalm 23. The Lord is a faithful shepherd. He guides and provides for the needs of His people for the entirety of their journey in this life.

The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
Forever.
(Psalm 23:1–6)

The “one that did sing” is a reference to David, the “sweet psalmist of Israel” (2 Samuel 23:1) and the composer of Psalm 23. God’s Word not only instructs us to sing and make music, it also includes the words of many songs.

We need to sing the words of Scripture. The Psalms are the foundation and wellspring of music for the church. They provide words that speak of Christ (Luke 24:44) and anticipate His coming. They teach us how to pray and praise through music. They model how to use our voices and instruments in ways that honor God. And they set a pattern and precedent for all future music composed to the glory of God. It is in the Psalms that we hear minstrels playing all kinds of musical instruments in a glorious crescendo encouraging “everything that has breath” to “praise the Lord!” (Psalm 150:6).

3) Our physical need for nourishment is a daily reminder of our need for God’s Word.

We need food and drink each day to sustain our physical life. But our need to feed our bodies is a daily reminder of a much greater need. We must care for the nourishment of the soul. Jesus spoke of this greater need when He was tempted in the wilderness:

But He answered and said, “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4).

Scripture is the nourishment we need to grow up in the faith. It is the “pure milk” we need as newborns:

Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious (1 Peter 2:1–3).

And it is the “solid food” we need as we grow and mature:

For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil (Hebrews 5:12–14).

And so we should feast on God’s Word. We feast on the Word when we read it, study it, hear it, and memorize it. And we savor its truth when we sing it. Scripture itself affirms that one of the best ways to remember and delight in God’s Word is through music. The first song recorded in the book of Psalms opens with a promise of blessing for those who delight in God’s Word.

Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper
(Psalm 1:1–3)

In the New Testament Paul encourages the church to continue making music to praise and give thanks to the Lord. Singing “psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” is one of the ways that we can let God’s Word dwell in us richly:

And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him (Colossians 3:15–17).

We also feast on God’s Word when we hear it taught and preached. The pilgrims have already learned the value of belonging to a local church through the instruction they received in the Interpreter’s Garden. Here at supper we find another benefit. As we come together each Lord’s Day to worship, we can feast regularly at the preaching of God’s Word.

In the Old Testament, God promised to seek out His people and provide for them as a shepherd provides for his sheep:

For thus says the Lord God: “Indeed I Myself will search for My sheep and seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock on the day he is among his scattered sheep, so will I seek out My sheep and deliver them from all the places where they were scattered on a cloudy and dark day. And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land; I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, in the valleys and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them in good pasture, and their fold shall be on the high mountains of Israel. There they shall lie down in a good fold and feed in rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. I will feed My flock, and I will make them lie down,” says the Lord God (Ezekiel 34:11–15).

He promised to give them shepherds who would faithfully preach and teach His Word.

And I will give you shepherds according to My heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding (Jeremiah 3:15).

I will set up shepherds over them who will feed them; and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, nor shall they be lacking,” says the Lord (Jeremiah 23:4)

So gather regularly with your church family and sit under the preaching of God’s Word. It is a feast for your soul! Pray that God’s Word would fill hearts and accomplish all His purposes. And pray for your pastors as they shepherd the flock and set this feast before you each Lord’s Day.

A Prayer for the Preaching and the Preacher of God’s Word

Lord, we lift up to Your care
Him who stands now to declare
Truth that teaches, warns, consoles;
Bless this feast to feed our souls.
For Your Word, O Lord, we yearn;
Empty, let it not return.
Come, accomplish all Your will —
Draw, convict, give life and fill.
(from “Lord, We Come to Hear Your Word” by Ken Puls)

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The text for The Pilgrim's Progress
and images used are public domain
Notes and Commentary for Part II ©2014, 2021–2024 Ken Puls

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from
the New King James Version (NKJV) ©1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

Above image created from Unsplash

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