Return of the Prodigal

Henri Nowen describing Rembrandt's The Return of the Prodigal Son:

In Latin, to bless is benedicere, which means literally: saying good things. The Father wants to say, more with his touch than with his voice, good things of his children. He has no desire to punish them. They have already been punished excessively by their own inner or outer waywardness.The Father simply wants to let them know that the love they have searched for in such distorted ways, has been, is and always will be there for them. The Father wants to say, more with his hands than with his mouth: "You are my Beloved, on you my favor rests." He is the shepherd, "feeding his flock, gathering his lambs, in his arms, holding them against his breast."

Page 96 in The Return of the Prodigal Son by Henri Nowen