Read Psalm 23 at Bible Gateway.
Psa 23:1 Shepherd. Strong’s H7462 רעה ra’ah, a primitive root meaning, “to shepherd, to pasture.” The ancient pictographs are resh + ayin + hey.
resh ר = the head of man, thus head, first, top, beginning, man
ayin ע = the eye, thus watch, know, shade
hey ה = man with upraised arms, thus look, reveal, wonder, worship, breath
The story: The man (resh) watching over (ayin) with sighing in his chest/ heart (hey), i.e. invested by love and duty to succeed in his commission, for tending God’s creation was his original commission from his Creator (Gen 1:26).
Notice the verb “to shepherd” is translated as the noun, “Shepherd.” That is to say, YHVH shepherds me: He watches over me invested by love and duty.
Psa 23:2 still. Strong’s H4496, menuwchah, a concrete noun meaning, “resting place;” from Strong’s H4494, manoach, a concrete noun meaning, “rest;” from Strong’s H5117 נוח nuach, a primitive root meaning, “to rest.”
Psa 23:2 water. Strong’s H4325, mayim, plural of a concrete noun meaning, “waters.”
Psa 23:3 to restore. Strong’s H7725 שוב shuv, a primitive root meaning, “to return.” The 3-letter root is shin + vav + bet.
shin ש = two front teeth, thus sharp, press, eat, two, again
vav ו = the tent peg, thus add, secure, hook
bet ב = the house, thus house, household, family, in, within
The story: to again (shin) secure oneself (vav) to the house (bet). The house we have left, to which He restores us, is His house, because history began with Father God, a beautiful garden, and the two children He had made to dwell with Him forever, to be a part of His household. “He restores my soul” is like saying, “He restores my soul to Himself, to His household, to the household of faith.” Shuv is the root of teshuvah, “repentance.” The term most often used to describe this restoration in the New Testament, is salvation or justification.
Psa 23:3 soul. Strong’s H5315, nephesh, a concrete noun meaning, “the living soul.”
Psa 23:3 paths. Strong’s H4570, magal, a concrete noun meaning, “path;” from Strong’s H5696 agol, an adjective meaning, “round;” from an unused root meaning, “to revolve.” The 3-letter root of the adjective is ayin + gimel + lamed.
ayin ע = the eye, thus watch, know, shade
gimel ג = the foot, thus foot, walk, gather
lamed ל = the shepherd’s staff, thus teach, yoke, to, bind
The story: The watchful eye observes (ayin) while walking (gimel) under the yoke (lamed). It is most likely a reference to the established circle or rutted track that an ox trained to turn the grindstone would follow. The same word is the root of the Hebrew for round, circuit, or circle. The paths of YHVH are therefore a Hebrew idiom that refers to the cyclical returning of His feasts, which travel the circle of the year, year after year, so that a rutted track is made by their keeping.
Psa 23:3 righteousness. Strong’s H6664 tsedek, a concrete noun meaning, “justice;” from Strong’s H6663 צדק tsadak, a primitive root meaning, “to be right or straight.” The 3-letter root is tsadey + dalet + quph.
tsadey צ, ץ = the trail, thus a man concealed, journey, chase, hunt
dalet ד = the door, thus enter, move, hang
quph ק = sun on the horizon, thus condense, circle, time
The story: The path (tsadey) that is straight (as when a hung door (dalet) is measured against the plumb line) in perpetuity (quph), as the setting sun is the biblical symbol of the seventh day Sabbath marking the close of the week, and thus the endless cycle of time and completion of time. The idea is of absolute truth or righteousness applying across all cultures and at all times, rather than what a culture considers an ethical custom, but which only applies to a narrow place or time.
God bless you so much I’m really so blessed
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