Then the LORD said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?” Genesis 4:9

He will not let your foot be moved;
he who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, he who keeps Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.
The LORD is your keeper;
the LORD is your shade on your right hand.
The sun shall not strike you by day,
nor the moon by night.
The LORD will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.
The LORD will keep
your going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore. Psalm 121:3-8

[God said to Jacob, after Jacob's vision at Bethel:] “Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” Genesis 28:15

[The Levitical priestly blessing:] 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. Numbers 6:24-26

You keep him in perfect peace
whose mind is stayed on you,
because he trusts in you. Isaiah 26:3

[Jesus prayed:] Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. John 17:11-12

To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ… keep yourselves in the love of God… Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling… Jude 1, 21, 24

The LORD bless you, and keep you;
The LORD make His face shine on you, And be gracious to you;
The LORD lift up His countenance on you, And give you peace.’
Numbers 6:24-26, NASB

Love and grace,

Daniel & Caitlin

http://seg.sharethis.com/getSegment.php?purl=http%3A%2F%2Fasimplemanofgod.wordpress.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost-new.php&jsref=&rnd=1325383125736

The priests and the Levites stood to bless the people, and God heard them, for their prayer reached heaven, his holy dwelling place. (2 Chronicles 30:27)

As short as this verse is, I am going to take two entries to meditate on the two aspects of this gem that I am enjoying meditating upon: today I want to take a closer look at the priestly blessing, and then I invite you on Day 73 to ponder with me the true destiny of our prayers.

This chapter chronicles the return of the priesthood in Hezekiah’s day. First we are told that “a sufficient number of priests had not consecrated themselves” (30:3). Then, we are told when the laity were outshining the priests and Levites with their zeal to “take away the altars (to false gods) that were in Jerusalem and they took away all the incense altars and cast them into the Brook Kidron”(14)  and that they beat the priesthood to the punch in slaughtering the Passover lambs (15), that “the priests and the Levites were ashamed, and sanctified themselves and brought the burnt offerings into the house of the Lord” (15). After Hezekiah’s prayer which we looked at yesterday, the priests and Levites are back into full swing, finding what they were ordained to do, “praising the Lord day by day, singing to the Lord, accompanied by loud instruments (21)”  As the celebration is touching the whole assembly so much that they all decide to extend the feasting for another seven days, we are told that “a great number of priests sanctified themselves” (24). To understand what this involved, read about the elaborate process in Leviticus 8, or read this powerful chapter (one of the best chapters I’ve ever read, seriously) on Priestliness from Art Katz’ profound book Apostolic Foundations here. And finally at the end of this 30th chapter in 2 Chronicles, we are told that the priests and Levites stood to bless the people and their voice was heard and that their prayer came up to God’s holy dwelling, to heaven. I think it is fitting, that for fourteen days, the people first blessed and ministered to the Lord, and then here at the end, having put first things first, the priests and Levites take time to bless the people. Though they started off shakey, at the end of the day, they kept their priorities straight.

When the Chronicler tells us that the priests and the Levites stood to bless the people, we can be sure that they were using the prescribed Aaronic blessing laid out in Numbers 6:23-27:

And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying:  “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, ‘This is the way you shall bless the children of Israel. Say to them: “The LORD bless you and keep you; The LORD make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.”’ “So they shall put My name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them.”

Though the priests are said to have blessed the people, it is clear by the way this blessing is bookended that it is God who does the blessing. Studying what rabbinic traditions have developed around this blessing is fascinating. There is not space to comment on all the prescribed manner in which this blessing was to transpire, but one tradition I could not pass up commenting on is how the priests would raise their hands when saying this blessing with a two handed version of what we all know as Spock’s “live long and prosper” pose. Leanord Nemoy, who grew up in an Orthodox Jewish home, actually was inspired from noticing the priests do this blessing, when he was supposed to not be looking (part of the tradition that has developed around the blessing – lest one look upon the face of God and die). The priests would stretch out their hands as if the Almighty were standing behind the congregation. The idea was to create a sort of lattice through which the face of God would actually shine upon the people. This is taken from an allegorical understanding of Song of Songs 2:9 that speaks of God as the bride’s “beloved”: My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag. Behold, he stands behind our wall; He is looking through the windows, Gazing through the lattice. When the Spock gesture is doubled, it creates five “windows” or “cracks” by the empty spaces between fingers, including the space between the two thumbs coming together. The desire to create five such cracks comes from a breakdown of the Hebrew word for lattice which is ha-charakim, the first letter of which is “heh” which equals “five“, hence, ha-charakim alludes to five cracks.

Another common rabbinic interpretation that I found fascinating, in keeping with the theme of allegorical cues taken from Song of Songs, was how the 60 Hebrew letters of this blessing are believed to be what the sixty valiant men from Song of Songs 3:7,8 speak of:

Behold, it is Solomon’s couch, With sixty valiant men around it, Of the valiant of Israel. They all hold swords, Being expert in war. Every man has his sword on his thigh Because of fear in the night. 

Many rabbis believe(d) that when this blessing speaks of God “keeping” us, it is speaking of His hedge of more than adequate protection, especially at night, as this verse in Song of Songs alludes to. Hence not only was this blessing spoken in synagogues throughout the years, but also at children’s bedsides before going to bed.

I found the following remarks by Jeff A. Benner from his website Ancient Hebrew Research Center so good, I will just quote him at length:

The Hebrew word for “bless” is “barak” which literally means “to kneel”. A berakah is a “blessing” but more literally, the bringing of a gift to another on a bended “knee”. When we bless God or others, we are in essence, bringing a gift on bended “knee”. A true king is one who serves his people, one who will humble himself and come to his people on a bended knee. 

The Hebrew word for “keep” is “shamar” which literally means “to guard”. A related word is “shamiyr” which means “thorn”. When the shepherd was out in the wilderness with his flock, he would construct a corral of thorn bushes to protect the sheep from predators, a guarding over of the sheep. 

With this more Hebraic concept of Hebrew words we can now read the beginning of the Aaronic blessing as, “Yahweh will kneel before you presenting gifts and will guard you with a hedge of protection”. The remaining portions of the Aaronic blessing can also be examined for its original Hebraic meaning revealing the following: 

Yahweh will kneel before you presenting gifts and will guard you with a hedge of protection, Yahweh will illuminate the wholeness of his being toward you bringing order and he will beautify you, Yahweh will lift up his wholeness of being and look upon you and he will set in place all you need to be whole and complete.

Reading the next two chapters of 2 Chronicles shows how this blessing was practically worked out for the nation in Hezekiah’s day: abundant provision for people and priesthood (chapter 31), supernatural protection from military threats, and Hezekiah’s miraculous healing (chapter 32). Truly Yahweh was illuminating the wholeness of his being towards Israel and beautifying her.

Just as there was a restoration of the priesthood in Hezekiah’s day, so there is in this hour in the Body of Christ, a restoration of our identity as “a royal priesthood” (1 Peter 2:9). Though we will have apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers and evangelists “until” we attain to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (Ephesians 4:11-13), we will forever be a kingdom of priests (Revelations 5:10) just as Jesus is a priest forever (Psalm 110:4). That’s why the author of Hebrews can say “Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus”: because His heavenly calling is our calling. So what does priesting entail? Much more than I have time to unpack here. But, as demonstrated in the above verse, it involves sanctifying ourselves that we might minister to the Lord first, praising the Lord day by day, and then blessing the people. That’s why every prayer the apostle Paul prays is positive in nature, for he knew what it was to be a priest before God and before men. The whole world will be blessed when those who have been called as priests cause the face of Christ to shine on all who would seek his face with all of their hearts.

More on last week’s Kaddish Yatom quandry: Pesukei and Shacharit were led this morning by a fellow who uses Koren Sacks when he isn’t leading. We had a great chat after services about our mutual love of Koren.

Anyway, I was surprised that he did Ps. 92 during Pesukei. Of course, as we discussed last week, we did it again after the Amidah when we did that whole Kaddish Yatom thing.

I was also amused this morning when I noticed that in the Koren Talpiot siddur, Ps. 92 actually follows the Kaddish Yatom at the end of the service. Which isn’t confusing–it’s just funny.

More from “Orthodox By Design”: I’m still reading “Orthodox By Design: Judaism, Print Politics and The ArtScroll Revolution.” Today, I was reading a bit in which it explains the popularity of Daf Yomi, the practice of studying on page of Talmud every day to complete the entire thing in seven years. And this passage struck me as a description of a wonderful textural element of reality:

One rather famous study circle, led by Rabbi Pesach Lerner, consists of a group of lawyers, accountants, and other professionals who have been meeting daily since the early 1990s on the 7:51 a.m. commuter train from Far Rockaway [outer Queens] to Penn Station in New York City.

That’s all for now. Shabbat Shalom

And you may eat it in every place, you and your household; because it is your wage in exchange for your work in theO′hël Mo•eid′.

The L^әwi•yim′ lived in a number of special cities throughout Ë′rëtz Yis•râ•eil′. This passage clarifies that they weren’t confined to eating these ma•as•rot′ within the confines of the Beit ha-Miq•dâsh′, as applied to some of the sacrifices. [Quote]

I recommend you now to read this article to learn more about how to relate to the Creator:

Recomended readings based on your religious background.

Much of the beauty of Judaism is its sense of Mystery.  We’ve all heard
that expression, “The Lord moveth in mysterious ways.”  So true.

As you know from reading our blog, one of our favorite icons of Judaica is the Hamsa, the protective hand. And our “Hidden Hands” series of necklaces and bracelets is among our most alluring and meaningful.

This design is not the straightforward Hamsa, or stylized protective hand, which appears in many of our most popular pieces, though we love those, too. The “Hidden Hamsa” pattern looks like a delicate, dainty, floral filigree abstract, punctuated with a tiny
gem. We offer this design in several different iterations—silver, gold-dipped,
on leather, or on a fine chain.  (Check out our items Hidwn, hid4, hidn3, hidhn1.)

The fact that the protective hands
are  “hidden” from plain sight is
intriguing. Perhaps a reminder that even when we can’t see the actions of the
Almighty, we are always in good hands.

CAPTION : On the
subject of hands, here is a drawing of the traditional Priestly Blessing of
Aaron. Occasionally, one sees this esoteric image carved into the entryway of
Temples. The interpretation of the characters and the mathematical meaning of
the numerical sections of the drawing could cross a Rabbi’s eyes. Suffice to
say, the name of G-d, and the word “Koach”, or strength (derived from the
Hebrew number for 28, since the hands are divided into 28 sections), are the
take-away message.

I hope and pray this scripture will speak to you and facilitate a daily relationship with God. I encourage you to go beyond just reading these passages. Read them, re-read them, meditate, and pray on them. Discern for yourself what God is saying to you through the scripture. When and how you do that is entirely up to you. — Kelly Parker

We got there bright and early, around 7:45, through Jaffa Gate and a maze of tiny downhill streets in the Jewish Quarter. The place was already starting to fill up – lots of people turn out for this blessing. We decided to go ahead and pray while we were there, instead of standing in the sun, waiting around.

I had already decided that one of the first things for which I’d pray when I got to The Wall would be Christine. She’s been suffering from really bad headaches for a while now, and it was weighing on my heart to specifically ask G-d for healing for her in Jerusalem. I had found the Prayer for the Sick in the back of my siddur, and, although it is typically meant for someone on the verge of death, G-d knows what’s going on.

So I pushed and elbowed my way through all the women, and started with Ahavat Olam (Eternal Love). I prayed through the Shacharit server (morning prayer service), and by the time I got to Tachanun (Putting Down the Head), I felt ready to pray for more specific prayers. With so many woman so closely packed together, it was a little hard to concentrate. But I got used to it, as I prayed.

I continued with the special prayer you’re supposed to say at The Wall. Then, when I was finally close enough to the actual wall to touch it – wow – I found the Prayer for the Sick. It begins with the 13 Attributes of G-d, found in Deuteronomy (although, you’re only supposed to say those when praying with a minyan (10 men)), and continues with several sentences praising G-d for His omnipotence and sovereignty.

And in Your Hand is the strength and the power to make great, to strengthen and to cure every man, even he who is crushed, crushed to the very depths of his soul.

When I got to that sentence, I really lost it. I haven’t cried in over a year and a half, but praying, from the bottom of my heart, for G-d’s mercy and healing in His Holy Land, at His Holy House, was overwhelming.

So that was the emotional part of the experience for me. Big news, since I am not an emotional person.

THEN, I started listening to the chazzan (the leader of the prayer service) on the loudspeaker. Incredibly enough, I was able to pick up bits and pieces of what he was saying, probably because I know the prayer service pretty well, and finally found where he was and started following along. Prayers are SO much easier to understand than conversation!

Finally, the big moment came – the one for which we’ve all been waiting: Birkhat HaKohenim (the Priestly Blessing)! Each word was sung very slowly, with the Ashkenazic pronunciation, and everyone assembled shouted it out after the cantor. At the end of each of the three lines, there was a thunderous noise as everyone fervently prayed, “Keyn y’hi ratzon! (So may it be!)”

How cool to be right there amidst it all. What an amazing first-time-at-the-wall experience!

I haven’t posted a self portrait in awhile. So for you guys who may not follow my new blog, here’s a little something to remember me by. I took this with my iPhone and edited it on my iphone and in Picnik.

As parents, we consider their physical appearance, making certain our kids have clean, pressed clothes and appropriate footwear.  Sometimes, we prepare them emotionally, by warning them about peer pressure and bullying.  But how often do we prepare our children spiritually to be victorious and to succeed?

With my own children, for the past 7 years, before they leave for school, I always pray (aloud) the priestly blessing to start their day.  The priestly blessing is found in Numbers 6:24-26 which says “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.”  I am a firm believer that by speaking the Word of God over them each morning, it has made a HUGE difference.  God’s Word will not go out and return to Him void.

What I’ve found to be true is children need structure in every area.  Physically, we teach them not to cross the street without looking both ways first.  We also teach them what time to be home, better known as a curfew.  Moreover, lets remember that there are things our children need that money cannot buy.  Remember to be a blessing by speaking a blessing.  Children today hear so much negativity, so start each day by professing the Lord’s Word over them.  They can be victorious, so let that encouragement begin at home.

Related Articles

• The Iconic “Live Long and Prosper” Hand Gesture Was Originally a Jewish Sign (todayifoundout.com)

Die beiden gespreizten Hände (jede formt sich dabei dreiteilig und soll das hebräische Schriftzeichen Schin – sch darstellen, welches als Buchstabe den Gottesnamen Schadai abkürzt  – auch auf zahlreichen Mesusot zu finden, etc.) sind im Grunde genommen ein Familienwappen, sehr wahrscheinlich das älteste der Welt. Es kennzeichnet die Mitglieder der Kohen, also der Nachkommen Aharons, des Bruders von Moses aus dem biblischen Stamm Levi welche in den Heiligtümern Israels den Dienst leiteten. Die ältesten archäologischen Zeugnisse des Symbols auf Gräbern im antiken Israel werden in die Zeit des ersten Tempels datiert.

Das Symbol der Hände bezieht sich auf eine wesentliche Tätigkeit der Kohen, nach dem Ganzopfer auf den Stufen der Vorhalle des Heiligtums das Volk zu segnen:

 יברכך ה וישמרך 

יאר ה פניו אליך ויחנך  

      ישא ה פניו אליך וישם לך םולש     

(Numeri = 6.24-26  ספר במדבר)

Der Herr segne dich und verteidige dich, der Herr lasse seine Stirn strahlen über dir und begünstige dich, der Herr erhebe seine Stirn über dir und gebe dir Frieden.

The Lord bless and guard you, the Lord make his front illuminate upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord will lift up his front upon you and give you peace.

Kohen grave marker at the old Jewish Cemetery Munich:

Der Segen der Kohen, auch geläufig als nesiat kafajim (die Hände erheben), wurde zwei bis vier Mal täglich im Heiligtum und schließlich auch noch abends beim Schließen der gesprochen. Dass dazu die Hände genommen wurden, ist in der Mischna bereits bezeugt. Diese hielt der Kohen im Heiligtum in Höhe des eigenen Kopfes, außerhalb des Heiligtums auf Schulterhöhe. Der einzige Tag im Jahr, an dem der Segen gesprochen wurde, ohne in Verbindung mit einem Opfer im Heiligtum zu stehen war Jom Kipur, der Tag der Versöhnung.  Dies wurde bereits zur Zeit des Heiligtums so gehandhabt. Sehr früh belegt ist mit Ismael ben Elischa die Praxis der Kohen belegt, vor dem Segen die Hände zu waschen (vgl. Baw. Sota 39a), während mit Jochanan ben Sackai bereits bezeugt ist, dass die Kohen ihre Schuhe ausziehen. Auch die Fingerspreizung geht zumindest auf diese Zeit zurück. R. Akiwa verbietet, das Ansehen der Kohen beim Sprechen des Segens, weshalb es früh üblich wurde, dass diese sich unter einem ausgebreiteten Tallit-Schal verbargen. Der Segen als solcher wird vom Vorbeter vorgesprochen und von dem oder den anwesenden Kohen wiederholt, was gemäß Sifre 39 eine verbindliche Pflicht darstellt. Im Heiligtum war der Brauch den Segen am Stück vorzusprechen und nachzusprechen, außerhalb in Synagogen wurde es üblich, ihn einzeln in drei Teilen vor- und nachzusprechen.  

Nach Zerstörung des Heiligtums wurde der Segen Bestandteil der Tfila, also des Gebetes in den lokalen Häusern der Versammlung (Knesset – griechisch:  Synagoge). Gesprochen wird der Segen nun nur noch in der Wiederholung der Tfila, des Hauptgebetes und zwar als Einschub zwischen der 18. und 19. Segnung.

Während der Segen im östlichen Mittelmeerraum täglich gesprochen wurde (gegenwärtig ist dies auch Praxis in entsprechenden Gemeinden in Israel), wurde es in Europa üblich, ihn nur noch an hohen Feiertagen (jom tov) und am Schabbat zu sprechen, im mittelalterlichen Spanien nur noch an Festtagen, schließlich auch dort nur noch zum Musaf, also dem Zusatzgebet, ehe R. Jakow Molin um 1400 (der auch Rabbiner in Augsburg war), verfügte, dass der Segen auch zu שחרית, also morgens gesprochen werden soll.

Seit dem Maharam ist es üblich, dass der Vorbeter einen Teil des einleitenden Gebets leise spricht, während die Kohen sodann laut vorfahren, während in sefardischen Gemeinden alles laut gesprochen wird.

Die reformistischen Gemeinden in Europa schafften das Sprechen des Priestersegens in ihren Gottesdiensten ab und übertragen diese Aufgabe dem Vorbeter. Seitens der überlieferten Gemeinden stieß dies auf schärfste Ablehnung unter dem Hinweis darauf, dass die Anmaßung priesterlicher Befugnisse in Bibel und Talmud todeswürdige Verbrechen darstellten. So oder so werden mit dem Ausgang des 19. Jahrhunderts in reformistischen Gemeinden nun auch die früher häufigen Kohen-Grabsteine mit den berühmten Händen immer seltener, ehe sie ganz verschwinden.

Der Priestersegen wird auch bei Christen im christlichen Gottesdienst gesprochen, während sich die Geste des Duchan der gespreizten Finger in der Science Fiction Serie Star Trek findet.

Numbers 6-10

Pericope: Numbers 6:24-27

6:24 “The Lord bless you ⁶⁰ and protect ⁶¹ you;

6:25 The Lord make his face to shine upon you,

and be gracious to you; ⁶²

6:26 The Lord lift up his countenance upon you ⁶³

and give you peace.”’

6:27 So they will put my name ⁶⁴ on the Israelites, and I will bless them.”

The above passage is the Priestly blessing which would be proclaimed over God’s people during certain ceremonial occasions. It is amazingly encouraging as it radically proclaims God’ desire to bless his people. One of the greatest lies about God is that he was to sap his people of freedom and fun. Life in the community of God’s people is anything but bondage and boredom! God’s desire is to freely bring His people into a relationship with Him where they can fully experience peace with God in a way that would allow for Him to richly protect and provide for them. Who would not want that? What’s even more ridiculously amazing is that God commanded the spiritual leaders of Israel to bless them with this prayer. It was a way of imprinting God’s name on His people. God wants His name on His people so that He can bless them! Isn’t that completely amazing? This wreaks of grace!

Numbers 6:24-26
“The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you;
the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”

How about we pray this blessing over each other and believe for the difference that having God shining in your world can make, the difference that his peace can bring and the confidence we can have knowing that he will keep you!

What has God spoken to you today?

Rabbi Chaim Richman, one of the organizers of the trip, said:

This was probably the first time since the destruction of the Temple [1,937 years ago] that the Priestly Blessing was delivered on our holiest site. At times like these, when there is talk of giving away our precious places, and when despair is sometimes in the air, events of this nature serve to remind us that G-d has not forgotten about us, and that He still has big plans for both us and the Holy Temple – and that the Temple will yet become the focal point of the world once again.

Read the news report by clicking here.

Orthodox Jews and many conservative Christians believe that the Jewish Temple will be rebuilt soon. For many, the rebuilding of the Temple is a necessary event that must happen before the coming of the Messiah.

My question is: should Jews and Christians look at this event as a sign that the Temple will be rebuilt?

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Archaeology, Priestly Blessing, Temple , Temple Mount

Gracie
May the LORD bless you and protect you;
May the LORD smile on you,
And be gracious to you;
May the LORD show you his favour,
And give you his peace.
(Numbers 6:24-26)