Familiar words, contemporary challenge: the beauty of blessing

By Dean Collins

Have you noticed a growing tendency to do more cursing than blessing? I’m not referring to mere cussing, although do I think there’s more of that than necessary. And I am not referring to people trying to practice dark magic like we read about in Harry Potter.

One of the dictionary definitions of cursing is wishing or even attempting to bring about unhappiness or evil on another person. The definition also includes the idea of thinking and saying bad things about another. I’m seeing more of this in our country and, sadly, even in our faith communities. Maybe this negativity is a symptom or byproduct of COVID-19, but I doubt it. Civility seems to have generally been thrown out the window in our quick-reply, social media-driven culture. Even when we set our devices aside for a minute to have a conversation, there seems to be more negative and harmful talk about others, especially if the others are people we disagree with on some issue.

Words of blessing

As I read Numbers 6 this morning, I found a verse you probably know quite well. You’ve probably memorized it without even realizing it! This is because it’s a familiar blessing you likely heard pronounced over the congregation back in the good old days. I’ve heard it at weddings, special events, and funerals as well. And we have all heard choirs sing these words.

Just before the children of Israel left Mt Sinai on the way to the Promised Land, Aaron was instructed to pronounce this blessing over the 12 tribes. It was a daily blessing on their journey. It’s a blessing still used by those of Jewish faith and those of Christian faith. (We do share a lot of common ground you know.) Here it is:

“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.”

God is the subject of each blessing. He is the one who initiates each action. Hebrew scholars tell us the first line has three Hebrew words, the second has six, and the last has seven. As God acts, his goodness and graciousness extend both poetically and generously in our lives.

Six verbs describe the actions in this short and powerful blessing:

• Bless you
• Keep you
• Make his face to shine on you
• Be gracious to you
• Lift up his countenance upon you
• Give you peace

Beneficiaries of blessing

The children of God throughout history, including God’s children today and forever, are the beneficiaries of these blessings from God. It’s interesting to consider that God can do any of these things without Aaron’s pronouncement. Yet he chose that the priest say this prayer and blessing out loud and over the people. God wanted his children to hear the blessing. God had no secrets. We may sometimes want to hide our actions or motives from God, but he wants to audibly bless us even as he delivers on his promises.

God was thousands of years ahead of the neuroscientists who conducted research on the impact of words on our brains and our wellbeing. As reported by the Business Relationship Management Institute, researcher Maria Ritcher and her colleagues found that the hearing of words has the power to change brain behavior, resulting in both situational stress and long-term anxiety.

Having Aaron declare God’s blessing audibly, then, would not only bring God’s favor, it would also reduce the anxiety of his children and give them a reminder of his hope.

Intentional blessing

In 1 Peter we are reminded that, as followers of Christ, we are a part of his royal priesthood. So maybe as priests of God, we should be offering more blessings over our family and over our family of faith. The absence of our intentional offering of blessings may also be a part of how far we have digressed toward behaving like the world instead of like the bride of Christ, the church. The negative, angry, and even hostile words from the mouths of Christians in social media and in conversation is unacceptable and unchristian.

It’s fine to have different opinions on politics, policy, and even interpretation of Scripture, but to express these opinions with hatred and name-calling is out of bounds for followers of Jesus.

I challenge you to practice praying and speaking Aaron’s blessing over your communities and your families. Meanwhile, let’s give up our angry, belligerent, and even sinful behaviors of speaking evil and cursing those with whom we disagree. If we want to extend God’s kingdom on earth as it is in Heaven, then we will have to change what comes out of our mouths. Pure hearts must not spew evil words.

Your time with God’s Word
‭‭Numbers‬ ‭6:23-27; James‬ ‭3:10; ‭‭Galatians‬ ‭3:10-14;‬‬ ‭‭‭Psalm‬ ‭24:3-5; 28:9; 67:1-2‬; 128:5‬; ‭133:3; 134:3‬; ‭‭Leviticus‬ ‭9:22; 1 Peter‬ ‭2:9, ESV‬‬

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