God’s Desire is to Bless
Amy Pye tells how in 1979 Dr. Gabriel Barkay and his team discovered two silver scrolls outside the old city of Jerusalem. After 25 years of careful research, scholars confirmed that these scrolls were the oldest biblical texts in existence, having been buried in 600 B.C. What I have found interesting in this discovery is what the scrolls contain, namely a priestly blessing that God wanted spoken to His people. The words are: “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face to shine on you.” (Numbers 6:24-25)
Back in the time of Aaron and his sons, the leaders were taught to memorize the words exactly as spoken so they could communicate and speak to the people just as God desired. These words tell us that God is the one who blesses. The Aaronic blessing in Numbers 6 is also repeated in Psalm 67. It begins with: “May God be gracious to us and bless us and make His face to shine on us.”
In this passage, the word bless is used three times. And, just as in Numbers 6, the translation of the word “bless” is the Hebrew word barak. To bless in the Old Testament means to “endure with power for success, prosperity, longevity, etc.”
Think about this with me for a few minutes. The oldest writings of the Bible tell us about God’s desire to bless. God has always wanted to be in relationship with us. If you feel like you are far away from God during these most unusual times, think about the fact that God has wanted to be in relationship with us from the beginning of time. If you feel far away from God today – hold tightly to the promises of these ancient words: “May the Lord bless you; may the Lord keep you.”
Prayer: “Father, thank you for the many blessings you give me each day. Help me to notice the ways you bring me peace and joy, so that I might praise You.”
Numbers 6:24-25 – “The Lord bless you and keep you!”
By the Rev. Tommy Herndon
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