¹⁹O Lord God of hosts, restore us; cause Your face to shine upon us, and we will be saved.

The bitter longing of their hearts throbbed unremittingly. The prophets proclaimed God’s severe judgment on Israel, both ahead of time as a warning and during Israel’s Babylonian captivity, and the memory of their judgment continued into their restoration to the Promised Land. The psalm writers (particularly from the musical guild of Asaph) put into writing the desperate, heartbroken response of the godly remnant of loyal believers.

The refrain occurs three times: “O God, restore us and cause your face to shine upon us, and we will be saved.” They wanted back what they had lost. The subtle change of reference reveals a progressive intensity: First, they cry out to “God” (Elohim) in verse 3, then “God of Hosts” (Elohim Sabaoth), and finally, “Lord God of Hosts” (Yahweh Elohim Sabaoth”) in verse 19. They remember that He is not just a deity among others, but He is Yahweh, their covenant-keeping God who promised to always be there for them in a real and tangible way. He wasn’t a powerless, disinterested deity like that imagined by their pagan neighbors. He was (and is) real, and He was there. The true nature of claims to faith in God is revealed when the bottom is reached, when it can get no worse. And that is where Israel was—and they (under the leadership of godly men) turned to the Lord God of Hosts.

Verses 1-3 introduce the psalm, calling on God as Israel’s Shepherd, rehearsing that His care for them goes back to the patriarchal family of Jacob and their rescue from captivity, known as the Exodus from Egyptian captivity. God should now also rescue the descendants of that first family from the oppression they are experiencing currently.

The request, though, is not just to be freed from captivity or suppression in the land, but that God’s face would shine on them once again. God does not just save His people from something, but to something! Restoration was not to be just a geographic return to the land but a restoration to the favored status with the Lord; in other words, they desired the Lord’s face to shine upon them, of which salvation from captivity would be the clear evidence.

In the second movement of this psalm, the writer speaks in the plural to reflect that he is praying on behalf of all Israel, and he confesses and recognizes that their present situation is due to God’s anger (vs. 4-6). Yet, he holds out hope that God will answer their prayer and turn from an angry face to a shining face of mercy and grace (vs. 7). This desperate cry is nonetheless a significant act of faith. May that be ours also when God brings judgment on our sinful or unwise actions and we suffer the consequences. He is not unjust in His anger, but He is also merciful and gracious to those who humble themselves in hope.

Verses 8-19 capture the third movement of the psalm, ending with the refrain that God would shine His face upon them. Referring to Israel metaphorically as a vine, he pictures his people as uprooted from Egyptian captivity and replanted in the Promised Land of Cana. The land was cleared of the weeds of pagan worshipers, and the people of God were planted and became a blessing and testimony of the true God.

Israel, however, over time did not prosper as God intended, because of their disobedience and disloyalty to God. And now, at the time of this psalm’s writing, the Lord’s judgment was justified. Israel is desperate for God’s rescue; they have come to recognize their hope is not in military action but in God’s mercy. So, in the end, the final refrain bursts out in their appeal for a restored relationship with God. They want the fullness of His blessing, as communicated through Moses:

The Lord bless you, and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine on you,
       and be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance on you,
       and give you peace.
(Numbers 6:24-26)

While this psalm is situated amid Israel’s struggle for full restoration to the land, it became part of their worship, to be sung repeatedly throughout their history. And it is a prototype for us today as we continue to long for God’s full blessing in this fallen world.

Lord, thank You for the peace of my salvation. I pray that You would be gracious to strengthen my faith so that I might continually sense Your face shining in my life.