He leads me beside quiet waters

Today we are moving on to scene two of the seven scenes which take place in Psalm 23. I have identified those scenes in Psalm 23 as the present tense actions of God mentioned in Psalm 23 which describe for us all that the Lord does as the shepherd of his people. We began last week by looking at the first scene: He makes me lie down in green pastures. Today we move to the second scene which is found in verse 2 of Psalm 23: He leads me beside quiet waters.

As we did last week, I want us to take these phrases from Psalm 23 and use them as launching points to bring us elsewhere in scripture. This is not at all hard to do since the language and imagery of shepherds and sheep and pastures is so prevalent all throughout the Bible. Today we are going to split our time in this message between two passages. One passage is a fast-forward to the end which will bring us all the way to the last book of the Bible: Revelation. The other passage is a rewind which will bring us back into the Old Testament again. But what I want us to see is that both these passages are essentially describing the same scene for us. And in both cases it is a scene which takes off from the image in Psalm 23 of the shepherd who leads his sheep beside quiet waters.

Fast Forward

Revelation 7:13–17 NIV

13 Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?” 14 I answered, “Sir, you know.” And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15 Therefore, “they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence. 16 ‘Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat down on them,’ nor any scorching heat. 17 For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; ‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’ ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’”

Let me set the scene here in Revelation 7. The apostle John is having a vision of the throne room of God in heaven. This is description that begins all the way back in chapter 4 of Revelation. In the throne room of God in heaven John sees a scroll that is locked with seven seals. One-by-one the lamb of God breaks open the first six seals on the scroll. What we read today in chapter 7 takes place between the opening of the sixth and seventh seal on the scroll. The chapter begins with mention of where these people gathered around the throne of God come from. John tells us there are 144,000 people; 12,000 from each of the 12 tribes of Israel.

144,000 in front of God’s throne: 12x12x1000 — a number signifying ALL of God’s chosen people

Let me stop there are pay closer attention to the meaning of numbers in the Bible. Remember last week we talked about the meaning of number seven. Things that occur in groups of seven in the Bible often symbolize God’s divine activity within the creation. That is what we noted as the meaning of the seven scenes in Psalm 23 — they each point to God’s divine activity within the world as the shepherd of his people.

Today we see in Revelation a gathering of people numbering 144,000. John breaks it down a little bit for us. The number is 12X12X1000. The number 12 and the number 1000 are also very symbolic numbers in the Bible. 12 is the number which signifies God’s chosen people. There are 12 tribes of Israel in the Old Testament. Jesus chooses 12 disciples in the New Testament. The number simply signifies that these are the chosen people of God. 1000 is used in the Bible to signify any very large number that is too large to count. For example, when Psalm 50 declares that the Lord is owner of the cattle on a thousand hills, it means all the cattle on all the hills. When Psalm 84 says better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere, it means one day with God is better than all other days without God.

Bring it back to Revelation 7. The multitude of people gathered around the throne numbering 144,000 is a symbolic reference to all of God’s chosen people. 12X12X1000 is the combination of God’s chosen people of the Old Testament combined with God’s chosen people of the New Testament numbering such a large amount that nobody can actually count it. This is the church of God spread throughout all time going back to the very beginning of time gathered at the throne of God in heaven. That is what John is picturing for us in Revelation 7.

robes are white because they have been washed in the blood of the lamb

And each one of these people gathered before God is wearing a white robe. The angel tells John that their robes are white because they have been washed in the blood of the lamb. In other words, they are now considered clean and righteous before God because the lamb of God has purified them and made them clean with his own righteousness (his own blood).

Now then, all of that is the set up for what John describes next. Here is what God continues to do for his people.

Revelation 7:16–17 NIV

16 ‘Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat down on them,’ nor any scorching heat. 17 For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; ‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’ ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’”

points to two things: God’s provision for his people and God’s comfort for his people

These words are the quoted fulfillment of Isaiah 49 tied together with Psalm 23. This is a picture of what it means for God to shepherd his people in ways that lead them beside quiet waters. This picture points to two things, the provision of God for his people and the comfort of God for his people.

living water of Jesus is a fountain of righteousness which feeds our souls for all eternity

The provision of living water means that God’s people will never hunger or thirst again. Remember that the book of Revelation is symbolic language. It is not necessarily a message telling us that people will eventually not need to eat or drink anymore. The picture here around the throne is one of people who have been purified and made clean by the righteousness of Jesus—the lamb of God. The living water of Jesus is a fountain of righteousness which feeds our souls for all eternity. God’s people will never starve for righteousness again. The living water of Revelation 7 is symbolically spiritual provision, not necessarily just physical provision.

wiping away of tears is a picture of God’s comfort for his people

And the wiping away of tears is a picture of God’s comfort for his people. The loving and caring embrace of God around his people is like that of a shepherd who embraces and cares for the sheep of his flock. The sheep graze in the pasture with assurance when they know the shepherd is nearby keeping watch. The sheep know peace when the shepherd right there beside them. This is the picture we see in Revelation 7 of how it is the good shepherd leads his flock beside quiet waters.

Rewind

There is something else I want us to see in this image of God’s people gathered before his throne in Revelation. It is actually a flashback moment. This is the recreation of a scene which has already taken place. It is not the first time in scripture we find a great gathering of multitudes of God’s people before his throne. This all happened before. For that we need to rewind back to 1 Kings 8 where we read about King Solomon’s dedication of the newly built temple.

1 Kings 8:56–61 NIV

56 “Praise be to the Lord, who has given rest to his people Israel just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises he gave through his servant Moses. 57 May the Lord our God be with us as he was with our ancestors; may he never leave us nor forsake us. 58 May he turn our hearts to him, to walk in obedience to him and keep the commands, decrees and laws he gave our ancestors. 59 And may these words of mine, which I have prayed before the Lord, be near to the Lord our God day and night, that he may uphold the cause of his servant and the cause of his people Israel according to each day’s need, 60 so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other. 61 And may your hearts be fully committed to the Lord our God, to live by his decrees and obey his commands, as at this time.”

Let me set the picture here again. After construction of the temple is Jerusalem is complete, Solomon directs the priests to carry the ark of the covenant and place it in the temple. When the priests place the ark and leave the holy place, the glory of God’s presence fills the temple in the form of a thick cloud. Solomon calls together the elders and representatives from all the tribes of Israel to gather there before the presence of the Lord at the temple. It is the rewind moment of what we see in Revelation 7.

Hebrew manochah = “rest” (in Psalm 23 = “quiet”)

In 1 Kings 8 Solomon gives a lengthy prayer of dedication for the temple. When his prayer is complete, Solomon turns around to face all the people and gives them this blessing. It begins with these words, “praise be to the Lord, who has given rest to his people Israel just as he promised” (emphasis mine). I want us to focus in on one word here. What is it that the Lord gives his people? Rest. It is the Hebrew word manochah. Although the English word “rest” appears many times in the Bible, this particular Hebrew word only appears 21 times in the entire Bible. 15 of those times it is translated in to English as “rest.” In Psalm 23 it is translated into English as “quiet”—as in, he leads me beside quiet waters. Once again, there is a connection between the words of David in Psalm 23 and the picture of God’s people gathered before his throne. In Revelation we saw a focus on the shepherd’s leading to eternal waters. Here in 1 Kings 8 we see the shepherd’s leading to manochah—rest.

not activity of resting, but place of resting

This is not just any kind of rest. It’s not catching a breather or taking a vacation. It is not the same kind of rest that is wrapped up in the Hebrew word sabbath, which is a ceasing of activity. The kind of rest spoken of in the Hebrew word manochah is a location. It is meant to refer to a place of rest. For Solomon and the people of Israel, the dedication of the temple in Jerusalem was an arrival at a place of rest. It is a rest that accompanied the place in which they were dwelling—or more correctly, the place to which God has brought them.

implication is to continue abiding in the place where God gives rest

Maybe it seems like the differences in these nuances of rest is trivial or insignificant. But the implication in this blessing coming from God through the words of Solomon given to the people is one of abiding. In the wars and turbulence which took place during all the time in Israel, the people had never known rest before Solomon built the temple. In the time of Joshua it was constant war. In the time of the judges it was back-and-forth conflict with the pagan canaanites. In the time of Saul it was strife with the Philistines. With King David it was the completion of war to bring about peace. And now finally with Solomon, there is the dedication of God’s temple and the pronouncement that the people of God have now arrived at a place of rest in the presence of God.

it is the Lord (good shepherd) who brings us (flock) to the place of rest

But the connection with Psalm 23 also reminds us that it is not Solomon or the people of Israel who have brought about this place of rest. It is God who has lead his people to this place. It is God who takes up residence in the temple at Jerusalem. It is God who tends and shepherds his flock closely from within their midst. It is not so much the people abiding with God as it is God abiding with his people. And that is what makes this temple, this city, this nation, this world a place of rest.

I mentioned last week that Psalm 23 is present tense. It is not a memory of all that God has done for his people in the past. It is not a hopeful trajectory of all that God will eventually someday do for his people. Psalm 23 contains seven distinct statements of what God is actively currently doing for his people right now. David writes that God leads us beside quiet waters.

the place of rest in God’s abiding presence is right now the living water of Christ’s righteousness feeding our souls to be purified and clean is right now

The place of rest in God’s abiding presence is right now. The living water of Christ’s righteousness feeding our souls to be purified and clean is right now. It is worth asking, what is the result? God—the good shepherd—leads us beside quiet waters; what is the result or outcome of that? The scene at the temple with Solomon gives us a clue. Solomon says in verse 60.

1 Kings 8:60 NIV

60 so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other.

result: “so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other”

May it always be so that the LORD—and only the LORD—is our shepherd. You don’t have to keep trying to find your own way to fabricate perfection again and again, over and over. The living water of Jesus has been provided for your righteousness already now. You do not have to keep trying to find your own way to fabricate a place of rest and peace and serenity again and again, over and over. The abiding presence of the LORD is with you already now.

the place of no water is deadly; and the place of raging water is also deadly

The landscape in Israel is very different than what we are used to here in Michigan. It is very dry and hilly and rocky. The extremes can be deadly. The lack of rain can leave places so dry and desolate that a person would die of thirst. But when the rains came, the hilly landscape funneled all the rainwater down the slopes into the ravines and through the wadis (dry riverbed). Very quickly, what was dry and desolate becomes a raging flash flood that can sweep people away to drown in the overwhelming destructive current. The place of no water is deadly; and the place of raging water is also deadly.

place of dry desolation — alone, isolated, parched, empty, lost, abandoned | place of raging flood — attacked, destroyed, overwhelmed, pulled under current of bitterness

Doesn’t it seem like our broken world pins us into one or both of these extremes? We are either pushed to a place of dry desolation in which we feel all alone and isolated. We feel parched and empty. We feel lost and abandoned. Or we are pushed to a place of raging flood in which we feel swept away. We feel overwhelmed and struggling. We feel destroyed and pulled under a current of bitterness and anger.

what do you need to do this week to abide in the place of God’s rest within the living waters of Christ’s righteousness?

The good shepherd beckons you to a place which is not dry and parched and empty of life; and it is neither a place that is raging and flooded and overwhelming. The good shepherd leads you to a place in which there is quiet water. Drink in the life-giving water of his righteousness. Abide in the presence of his Holy Spirit every day by soaking in the words of scripture. Remain in the comfort of a good shepherd who will lead you to a place of rest.