God doesn't merely save us. He restores us.
The verse I am focusing on today is repeated two other times in this psalm in verse three and in verse seven. Although the wording is basically the same, there is some progression in the way Asaph addresses God. The progression goes "Restore us, O God", "Restore us, O God Almighty", and "Restore us, O LORD God Almighty". A possible explanation for this progression is a growing sense of desperation.
This psalm, like others, is a historical psalm which tells the story of his people. What is different this time around is that Asaph uses the metaphor of a vine to describe his people. The vine was a metaphor that many of its original hearers (this psalm was meant to be sung) could identify with. Asaph recounts how God brought this vine out of Egypt, and took care of it so that it "sent out its boughs to the Sea, its shoots as far as the River." (vs. 11) However, the vine was, at the time of the writing of this psalm, "cut down" and "burned with fire" (vs. 16). Asaph was desperate to have the vine restored to its original glory, not merely saved from destruction.
In the same manner, all of us are in need of both restoration and salvation. Humanity has gone down a long way from its original glory in Eden. The good news is that much of that original glory can be restored. Sure, we will not be restored so that we will be the same physically as our original parents, but we can be restored in a spiritual sense.
Thank you, God that You don't merely save us from the flames, but You work within us so that, through Your power, we can be the best people that we can be.
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