« The Question: A life worth living | Main | Theologians to ask Pope to suspend limbo »
November 29, 2005
A blessing
In the Old Testament (Numbers 6:24-26) we find this wonderful blessing, which most of us have heard:
The LORD bless you and keep you;
The LORD make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
The LORD lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace.
This – probably the oldest continuously used blessing in the world – is beautiful in English, and even more so in Hebrew. In either language, there is a progression that tells us something about peace.
When God gave this blessing to Moses, He instructed that Aaron – Moses’ brother and the High Priest – and his sons say these words over the people of Israel. In this way, God said (Numbers 6:27), "…they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.”
The idea that words – especially these words – carry transforming ability is a powerful idea, and as we hear and take into ourselves their import, they transform us, making us into the people of God and opening us to experience the depth of God’s blessing.
In the case of this blessing, the first line is a rather general request that God bless and keep – protect and watch over – the one to whom this blessing is spoken: “God, let your abundance of good things come on this person, and let him or her be enveloped by your loving care.” It’s a good thing, but somewhat generic and fairly impersonal.
The second line gets more personal: May God “shine his face on you” and be gracious to you. God now has the person – let’s say it’s you, since all occurrences of “you” in this blessing are singular – in the influence of the radiance of his presence – his face – which is getting closer and more personal, and where He actively showers his grace on you. This might be “God smiling on you.” The scene comes to mind from the movie Chariots of Fire, where Eric Liddell says, “When I run, I feel God’s pleasure.”
Finally, may God “lift up his countenance on you.” This seems a little strange in English, but it’s fairly straightforward: May God look at you, or turn his face toward you. The Hebrew word is simply "face" – panav – and it’s translated countenance mostly for variety from the line before: May you enter into a face-to-face relationship with Him, a place of presence and intimacy.
As we are in his immediate presence, living “before his face,” we are in a place of peace.
Here is the source of inner peace: Knowing God and seeking to live in His presence. May God smile (shine His face) on you, and may you know the peace of his presence.
Posted by Larry Baden at November 29, 2005 04:34 PM
Comments
Hi,
I was told that having this prayer written out would bring blessings. Can you give me any simple ideas about how I can increase blessing and repel evil over my household & my life? Any information would be helpful. Thanks so much, Ann
Posted by: Ann at December 28, 2006 01:18 PM
Hi Ann,
You question is not an easy one to answer. The blessing was given by God to Moses, and the instructions were that Aaron speak the words over the people of Israel. In this way, said God, Aaron would "put My name" on Israel, and God would bless them. So in some manner, speaking these words of blessing over the people had the effect of making them God's and enabling his blessing on them.
I confess I don't know quite how that works, and especially I don't know if it works for anyone else who uses the blessing. For me and my house, I pray daily for God's blessing and protection, and I focus on knowing Jesus and living as closely attached to him as I possibly can. Seems to work for me.
Larry
Posted by: Larry Baden at December 29, 2006 12:43 AM
"I was told that having this prayer written out would bring blessings. Can you give me any simple ideas about how I can increase blessing and repel evil over my household & my life"
You are believing superstitions which have nothing to do with Biblical Christianity. If a supernatural thing happens to anyone in this life, it is because GOD Himself make it happen for His reasons. There are NO such things as magical words that have power, there are words you ask God in prayer, to ask HIM to do something for your life, then you WAIT on God and trust in HIS CHOICE in the end whether He does something of an exception for you or He does not.
You cannot repel evil, except to personally refuse to do evil. Evil is not a force, evil is term used to describe a deed which someone does which is contrary to the Law/Will of God. Satanic forces are at work every day to tempt us to do acts of evil, we cannot control how others react to being tempted, all we can do is pray to ask God for HIS strength to resist tempation and not to commit evil, and if we do commit evil, we are to ask forgiveness through Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour.
Superstitions are the first sin that you need to repent of which is an evil in God's site. Don't mix Hindu or new age mysticism with Biblical Christianity, that is pagan.
Posted by: Max at August 20, 2007 12:27 AM
