A deeper look at the Aaronic Blessing

A deeper look at the Aaronic Blessing

By Gloria Freeman

As I was looking into the Aaronic Blessing. In English, it seemed simple:

It is as follows

The Lord bless thee, and keep thee:

The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:

The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.

(Numbers 6:24-26 KJV)

I found the meaning behind the Hebrew words was astounding. Let’s look at the key words and phrases from each verse.

Bless

Barak::  To kneel and present gifts in respect

Keep

Shamar: To keep, watch and guard

Full translation: The Lord kneel and present gifts and watch over you to keep and protect you.

Make His face shine upon thee

Paniym:  in the presence of

‘owr:  To be illuminated

Gracious unto thee

chanan :  a verb that is often paralleled with other Hebrew words meaning healing, help, being lifted up, finding refuge, strength and rescue. From a concrete Hebraic perspective, this verb means to “provide protection.” Where does one run to for protection? The camp, which in Hebrew hanah: a word related to chanah. Psalm 91 shows us where the camp of the Lord is: The Secret Place of the Most High.

Full translation: The Lord illuminate the fullness of His presence to you and bring you to the Secret Place of the Most High.

Lift up

nasa’: be lifted up, carry up, rise up,  

Into His presence

paniym: This is the same word from the last verse: In the presence of

Give thee peace

Shalom (Shalowm):  Completeness, wholeness in every way

Full translation: The Lord rise you up into His presence and receive wholeness, completeness.

It is to our best interest to say this blessing as often as we pray… What a beautiful blessing.