2. (24-26) The Aaronic blessing.

♪♥ The Priestly Blessing ♪♥ 

(from www.ackworthstudio.co.uk )

 

In my never ending endeavor to encourage as JESUS did

"...to BLESS... and to curse not":

Here is a little part of a study I found on the Priestly Blessing.

Just click on it to be taken to the page and read the entire study.

SHALOM

 

2. (24-26) The Aaronic blessing.

 

"The Lord bless you and keep you;

The Lord make His face shine upon you,

And be gracious to you;

The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,

And give you peace."

 

a. The Lord bless you: This simple desire prefaces everything. God loves to bless His people, and He loves to have leaders long that the people be blessed. This also recognizes that all blessing really comes from God; and without His blessing, all is futile.

 

i. We remember also that God’s blessing has always in mind our greatest and highest good; we often expect God’s blessing in our life to mean a world of comfort and ease - but that certainly isn’t for our greatest and highest good. God knows how you need to be blessed, even if you don’t!

 

ii. We have often settled for happiness or comfort or wealth when God wanted us to be blessed. True blessing from God is higher than happiness or wealth or comfort.

 

b. And keep you: To be kept by the Lord is blessing indeed. Some are kept by their own sin and desire, some are kept by idolatry and greed, and others are kept by their own bitterness and anger. But to be kept by the Lord insures life, peace, and success.

 

c. The Lord make His face to shine upon you: To have the glorious, happy face of God shining upon man is the greatest gift one could have. To know that as God looks upon you, He is well pleased - not because of who you are, or what you have done, but because you are in Jesus Christ - there is no greater source of peace and power in life.

 

i. We can imagine a father disciplining his son and putting the son out of his presence - and then receiving the son back to see his face again. This is how God receives sinners who come to Jesus by faith.

 

ii. “Why should he fret when God smiles? What matters though all the world should censure, if Jehovah countenances his servant. A look of approval from God creates a deep, delightful calm within the soul.” (Spurgeon)

 

d. And be gracious to you: The idea is that God shows tender mercy and care for His people.

 

e. The Lord lift up His countenance upon you: The priest prays God would look upon His people; when God blesses, keeps, shines, and is gracious towards His people, any look He casts towards His people is filled with nothing but blessing. His loving attention is on the believer!

 

To lift up one’s eyes or face means to pay attention

 

f. And give you peace: The Hebrew word is shalom, which is more than the cessation of hostility - it is God’s word for wholeness and goodness and total satisfaction in life. This is the abundant life Jesus promised! (John 10:10)

 

g. The Lord . . . the Lord . . . the Lord: The three-fold repetition of Lord does not prove the Trinity, but it certainly illustrates it.

 

·                                God the Father blesses and keeps His children

·                                God the Son makes God’s face to shine on us and brings us grace

·                                God the Holy Spirit communicates God’s attention to us, and gives us peace

 

i. "I will not say that this teaches the doctrine of the Trinity; but I must say that, believing the doctrine of the Trinity, I understand the passage all the better. The shadow of the Triune God is on the sacred benediction in the name thrice repeated." (Spurgeon)

 

h. You . . . you . . . you . . . you . . . you . . . you: It is repeated six times for emphasis - God wants to bless you. We often feel as if God really wanted to bless someone else. He wants to bless us.

 

i. "So long as you are resting upon Christ—Jesus, the great High Priest, speaks from the eternal glory, and he says, 'The Lord bless thee.' 'Oh! but I do not deserve it.' Just so; but 'the Lord Bless thee.' 'I am so unworthy,I am so backsliding.' Yes, but the Lord Jesus Christ knows all, covers all. We will read it, then: 'The Lord Bless thee - thee, and keepthee: the Lord make his face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: the Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.' Oh! have you got that wrought into your very hearts?" (Spurgeon)

 

ii. As God bestows His blessing on us, we must receive it by faith. We must be like Jacob - whowould not let go of God until God blessed him.

THE PRIESTLY BENDICTION: THE POWER OF THE WORD
Judith Z. Abrams, 2002

There is probably no more powerful prayer, one so universally recognized and sought, no prayer so poetically constructed as the priestly benediction (Numbers 6:24-26). It is constructed of 3,5 and 7 words in each respective verse. There are 15, 20 and 25 letters in the verses. When arranged as a pyramid, the center words contain the heart of the blessing itself: Adonai panav elecha.

Y'varech'cha Adonai v'yishm'recha
Ya'eir Adonai panav eleicha vi'huneka
Yisa Adonai panav elecha v'yaseim l'cha shalom