The Significance of the Blessing

The Blessing of the Father

for Fletcher - blessings have had great spiritual and familial significance.

He has made a note to bless each of his grand children - in writing so that they can remember it.

Here is Zoe’s blessing:

What is a blessing?

Here are some comments from the Lexham Theological Wordbook

Blessing pertains to favorable situations, conditions, and experiences enjoyed by the person or persons to whom the blessings belong. It can either refer to pronouncements intended to bring about these beneficial circumstances, or to the resulting circumstances themselves.

Barak (בָּרַךְ ) is the most common Hebrew word

Asar(אָשַׁר ) or asre ( אַשְׁרֵי) are the verbs that connote being identified as bless or to convey happiness.

The basic meaning of the verb bārak conveys the idea of declaring or enacting beneficial circumstances upon the person or object to whom the blessing is directed

Directions of Blessing:

from God - to a person or people - through speech (Gen 1:28) or actions where a person receives benefits (Gen. 24:1)

to people, through a person, on behalf of God (Melchizedek to Abraham; Aaron to the people of Israel)

To God - as an act of praise or worship (Ps. 145:1)

person to person - as a proclamation of Good fortune

David Payne notes in his “Theology of the Older Testament”

The pagans that surrounded Israel (and doubtless some Israelites to), entertain the superstitious belief in the inherent efficacy of blessings and curses, for example, in the magical power of the utterances of Balaam (numbers, 22:6). A blessing or a curse could, indeed, serve as a valid prediction, if it were inspired by God's spirit; and this actually turned out to be the case in the oracles of Balaam and (numbers 23:12), at least in those that are preserved in scripture. Compare also the long list of Mosaic, blessings, and curses in Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28.

Examples of Blessings

Let’s consider a few examples of blessings and how they have been used: Let’s also ask: (who did the blessing? who was blessed? What is the benefit/outcome of the blessing?)

Genesis 1:22 “And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.””

Genesis 1:28 “And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.””

Gen. 12:1-3 “Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.””

Gen. 27:26-29 “Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near and kiss me, my son.” So he came near and kissed him. And Isaac smelled the smell of his garments and blessed him and said, “See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field that the Lord has blessed! May God give you of the dew of heaven and of the fatness of the earth and plenty of grain and wine. Let peoples serve you, and nations bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers, and may your mother’s sons bow down to you. Cursed be everyone who curses you, and blessed be everyone who blesses you!””

Gen. 27:39-40 “Then Isaac his father answered and said to him: “Behold, away from the fatness of the earth shall your dwelling be, and away from the dew of heaven on high. By your sword you shall live, and you shall serve your brother; but when you grow restless you shall break his yoke from your neck.””

Numbers 6:23-27 ““Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them, 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. “So shall they put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them.””

Job 1:21 “And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.””

Psalm 5:12 “For you bless the righteous, O Lord; you cover him with favor as with a shield.”

Psalm 103:1-5 “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”

Our Study of Blessings

Over the next several weeks, we are going to consider the blessings that Jacob/Israel spoke over his children/grand children. Some of his comments are truly blessings, some of them are predictions. Each week we’ll consider a little bit about the life of the one(s) being blessed in light of the blessing that Jacob is pronouncing.

As we look at these, we’ll also consider how we might be/pronounce a blessing over our children/grand-children/fellow church members/friends, etc.

Next week: Reuben - Gen. 49:3-4

Sources:

Mathews, Joshua G. “Blessing.” Ed. Douglas Mangum et al. Lexham Theological Wordbook 2014: n. pag. Print. Lexham Bible Reference Series.