Hebrew word study – paths of righteousness  tsedeq ‘akel –   Ayin Gimmel Lamed Yod   Sade Daleth Qop

Psalms 23:3: “He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.”

He (the Lord) leads me in paths of righteousness.  Remember that we are speaking of God Jehovah, YHWH nor God Elohim.  The Psalmist is looking at God as YHWH not Elohim, the feminine nature of God and not the masculine.  Better yet, he is viewing God as a mother, not a father.  Ancient thought as is in most modern thought is that when you speak of a father you think of the protector, provider, and disciplinarian of the family. When you speak of the mother you think of the hugging, caring, nurturing and merciful partner in the family.  God is neither male nor female He embodies both. The Son of God was not produced because Mary had a sexual relationship with God.  That could only be carried out with another human fleshly body and God is not made of flesh with male organs. 

The word lead in Hebrew is the word nachah which is in a verb in a Hiphal imperfect form. That is God is causing you to be lead or the motivation behind this leading is God and as an imperfect, this leading is taking place at this moment and will continue.  The word nachah is to lead or guide one to a satisfying or pleasing goal or outcome.  Now if we keep in mind the Psalmist is considering the feminine nature of God then the goal of this journey is to experience this leadership as showing the loving, caring and nurturing nature of God, rather than the protection or corrective nature of God.  As you go down this path God will point out all the examples of his love and mercy.  He will point out each tree, each leaf, and how it changes carbon dioxide into oxygen. He will make you aware of each little chipmunk that runs up to you and twitches his nose and melt your heart with its cuteness. It is not a journey led by a former special-ops warrior who is showing you how to survive or be aware of every danger.

He is leading us in the path of righteousness.  The word path in Hebrew is ‘egal which has the preposition Mem and literally means a circle.  It is used for the circle of a wagon wheel.  This is really a circular path. Circular motion and the circle have fascinated the human beings throughout the ages.  The circle is found everywhere in nature in the sun and the moon.  It is an ancient symbol of perfection, wholeness, oneness. A circle is a sign of the absolute. It has no beginning and no end. The circle is present in the world of each individual as well as throughout the entire universe. It is a universal sign of feminism that fits this motif of God in this Psalm. 

He guides me in a loving, nurturing way through the circle of righteousness.  Here is a poetic contradiction because righteousness in Hebrew is tsadek which means straight. Literally, he leads me in straight circles. Most commentators will say that the straight means walking a straight path is circular.  That is, we try to walk that straight and narrow but we end up failing and we are right back to repentance.  It is one big circle. 

That sounds pretty discouraging that we sin, confess our sins, and then fall right back into the same old sin. This is especially true for someone struggling with an addiction. The Bible a555ddresses this issue that has many Christians down in a funk.  For one thing, Jesus gives us this reassurance in Matthew 18:21-22: “Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? (22) Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.”  Seventy times seven is an idiomatic expression for unlimited.  There is no limit to forgiveness and if Jesus is laying that in our laps we do recognize that He is a no do as say not as I do God.  He too has unlimited forgiveness. We just need to remember that without repentance, there is no remission of sins Acts 3:19.  God knows the heart and He knows your motives for seeking forgiveness.  He has you pretty well vetted when you come to Him seeking forgiveness.  If you have this crazy idea that you can sin all you want and just get forgiven, it will not work.  There must be true repentance, turning away from that sin.  So, someone with an addiction who sincerely comes to God for forgiveness wanting with all his heart to abandon that addiction, he will be forgiven even if he returns to it in the next hour. 

This is what the Psalmist is addressing, that God will lead you into that circular path of righteousness where you will seek that righteous life, but because you are human and have a sinful nature He knows you will fail but you just circle around and try it again and again.  It is a lifelong struggle to live a righteous life, but if you seek to live a righteous life with sincere motives, you need never let your failure stand in your way. This circle is like a spiral, each time you fail, it will be a little easier to succeed the next time around. 

​

Hi there! Thank you for reading this Daily Word Study. Can I ask a favor? Share this Daily Word Study with your friends on Facebook and Twitter by clicking one of the icons below.

Thanks & Blessings, it means a lot to me!