Seeking relief from life’s cares, worries, conflicts, and trials, we seek God, our Heavenly Father, who sent His healing Son into the world to bring us back to His divine presence. We seek restoration of health, emotional stability, family unity, and life in Jesus Christ, the true Shepherd.
We also want to be restored to His divine embrace through the Holy Spirit[i], that comfort and overwhelming sense of love and peace that only the Father and the Son can give.
The word “restores” in the Bible is the word “shuv” in Hebrew, which according to Strong’s International Concordance means return, turn back and repent.[ii] “Shuv” is used in Malachi 3:7:
“Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts.”[iii]
Here we see the full meaning or metaphor. When we turn to God like David did, He turns to us. It is kind of like He meets us halfway when we seek him by repenting. Jesus said to his disciples:
“I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.”[iv]
In Psalm 23, as a whole, we see all the ways that God, like the Good Shepherd, turns to us, to restore our relationship to Him as His sons and daughters. He gives us living water, a banquet of divine spiritual food, and protection from the adversary.
By Roger J Simpson
[i] John 14:26
[ii] https://biblehub.com/hebrew/7725.htm
[iii] Malachi 3:7 KJV
[iv] John 14:18 KJV