“The Aaronic Blessing” – Num. 6:22-27; Part #3

“On this wise – in this way” you shall bless My people!” v.24. Aaron, or a priest, or a pastor, or a father, or a Christian believer is just an instrument in God’s hands, that’s all! The LORD, YeHoVaH is the One who does the blessing, v.27, “and I will bless them.” We impart, He implants; We speak, He sparks; We’re instruments, He’s the Conductor! You can impart a blessing and even be a blessing but you can never implant a blessing. Be careful, that is God’s job, and He shares His glory with no one! I Cor. 1:29 & 30. What a privilege we have, to impart God’s blessings on those we come in contact with and minister to, unfortunately for many it is a “Lost Privilege.” But we can do no more than to beg a blessing, in the name of the One who commands the blessing, for the ones who are in desperate need of the blessing.

“The LORD make His face (Paneh – His presence, His appearance) shine upon thee,” (Or – to be resplendent with light);” To go before you. You can’t help but think of the “Pillar of Fire” by night and “The Cloud” by day, going before them, leading them through the desert. What or who leads you on your daily journey through your desert? The LORD gave me a promise May 22, 1992, when He called me into the ‘Mission Field,’ Isaiah 52:12, and I hung unto that verse with all my might; “For ye shall not go out with haste, nor go by flight; for the LORD will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard.” That along with Isaiah 52:7, have been my comfort for over 20 years in the midst of my desert journey.

Moses was very concerned about the presence of God. In Exodus 33:15 he said to God, “If Thy presence go not with me, carry us not up from here.” In other words, let us die right here in the desert. Right after this God put him in the “cleft of a rock” v.22 and allowed him to see His back as He passed by. “Practicing the Presence of God” is a principle we all need to work on and one we all need to pray for, for those around us. If God’s face is shining on us then He is pleased with us and He is guiding us and illuminating our paths.

“And be gracious (chanan – to have mercy, or pity on someone) unto thee; Grace is getting what we don’t deserve, but mercy is not getting what we do deserve. Most of our commentaries agree that this is referring to forgiveness or pardon for our sins. Jewish tradition shows that the priests blessed the people after the morning sacrifice not the evening sacrifice. This became a pattern for ministers today to dismiss their assemblies but it has been lost to the loss of our people. However, God’s blessings are not dependent upon God’s servants but upon God Himself and a holy, separated individual.

What’s interesting about this blessing is that each part of it is personally directed to each individual. Note the personal, singular pronouns in each verse, “Thee” used twice in vv. 24, 25, & 26. Though this blessing is for the nation of Israel and can be for an assembly also, it must be applied individually, “The LORD bless thee.” Each person must prepare themselves to receive their blessing, then they will find fulfillment and happiness in it. In fact you can put your name in place of “Thee” in each instance, “The LORD bless Roger, Mary, Jim, etc.”

The name YeHoVaH is repeated three times with a different accent in the Hebrew each time. The Jewish scholars think there is some mystical meaning behind this. When we compare it to the formula for Christian baptism, “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit;” Or Paul’s blessing in II Cor. 13:14, we are at no loss to determine what that mystery is. We are blessed with spiritual blessings by the triune God of salvation, “The Father who created us; The Son who saved us; and The Holy Spirit who seals & sanctifies us.”

“The LORD lift up His countenance (paneh) upon thee;” This is the same word as in v.24, face, to be resplendent with light. This word appears three times in Psalm 80:3, 7, & 19, “cause Thy face to shine and we shall be saved.” It seems to allude to the smile of a father upon his child or a man on his friend whom he takes pleasure in. The fruits of God’s favor along with salvation are “Protection, Pardon & Peace.” Protection from evil, v.24, “The LORD keep thee;” Pardon from sin, v.25, “The LORD be gracious to thee;” Peace, Shalom, complete happiness, v.26, “And give thee peace;” Isaiah 26:3, “”Perfect Peace” (Shalom, Shalom) peace on the inside and peace on the outside, that’s perfect peace. The only way you can have ‘Perfect Peace;’ is to invite the “Prince of Peace” into your heart to save you, and then He will have to come down and set up His kingdom on earth in Jerusalem and reign as the King of kings, for there to be ‘Peace on earth.’

“And they shall put My name upon the children of Israel, and I will bless them.” What a privilege to put His name on His people, this was their honor, their comfort, their safety, their plea and ours as well. What Christ said of peace is also true of the blessing. When God’s people pronounce a blessing, “Peace be unto you” if the son’s of God and the heirs of salvation are there, then the blessing and peace will rest upon those people and that location. Luke 10:5-6.

It is also interesting to note that in all three verses, “The LORD bless thee,” is in the future tense and the nation of Israel seems to have been collectively intended, and the LORD will absolutely bless Israel and all of its people. Now, how any man can possibly read this blessing or the Old Testament for that matter and seriously believe that God’s blessings for Israel were only temporal and that God is finished with Israel is ludicrous. One look at Israel today and you could not help but believe that God is blessing, “the apple of His eye.” Till next time, we’ll see you “…Between the Lines…”

“The Aaronic Blessing” – Num. 6:22-27; Part #3 – 3/24/14