BLESSING G-D FROM THE JUDAIC PERSPECTIVE
One way that blessing came to the Jewish people through the ‘B’rachot HaKohanim’ (Priestly Blessing).
Numbers 6:22-27: “And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 23 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, ‘This is the way you shall bless the children of Israel. Say to them: 24 “The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; 26 The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.” ’ 27 “So they shall put My name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them.””
I am an observant Orthodox Jew who came to faith in Yeshua and I have been on both sides of the Biblical spectrum. I have the experience of Judaism and I have the experience of Christianity.
For me, Judaism has more of an understanding of blessing Almighty G-d than Christianity has.
Here is part of the ‘Kaddish’ (Mourners Prayer) and I will expound on this:
“Glorified and sanctified be God’s name throughout the world which He has created according to His Will. May He establish His Kingdom in your lifetime and during your days and within the life of the entire house of Israel, speedily and soon; and say, Amen.
May His great Name be blessed forever and to all eternity.
Blessed and praised, glorified and exalted, extolled and honoured, adored and lauded be the Name of the Holy One, blessed be He, beyond all the blessings and hymns, praises and consolations that are ever spoken in the world; and say, Amen.”
The Hebrew wording for “May He establish His Kingdom in your lifetime and during your days and within the life of the entire house of Israel, speedily and soon” denotes: “May He bring forth His redemption and hasten the coming of ‘Moshiach’ (Messiah) speedily and soon”.
So while we are mourning, we are actually blessing G-d and praying for the return of the ‘Moshiach’, Yeshua.
‘ So what is the ‘Kaddish’ Prayer?
The ‘Kaddish’ prayer is an ancient Aramaic prayer praising G-d.
The ‘Kaddish’ prayer is one of the most sacred and emotionally resonant elements of Jewish tradition.
Recited during synagogue services, it’s often associated with mourning, and it is specially recited by those who have lost a parent, spouse, sibling, or child.
Rather than focusing on death, the ‘Kaddish’ prayer is about sanctifying G-d’s name.
G-d explicitly commands the sanctification of His name – meaning treating it as holy and set apart.
Leviticus 22:31-32: tells us “Therefore you shall keep My commandments, and perform them: I am the Lord. 32 You shall not profane (blaspheme) My holy name, but I will be hallowed (blessed) among the children of Israel.”
Ezekiel 36:23 declares: “And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which you have profaned in their midst; and the heathen shall know that I am the Lord says the Lord God, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes”.
Isaiah 29:22-23 declares: “Therefore thus says the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: “Jacob shall not now be ashamed, Nor shall his face now grow pale; 23 But when he sees his children, The work of My hands, in his midst, They will sanctify My name, And sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, And fear the God of Israel.
In Matthew 6:9 Jesus instructs us to pray: “Our Father in heaven, Hallowed (blessed) be Your name.”
1 Peter 3:15 declares: “But sanctify (bless) the Lord God in your hearts”.
Sanctifying G-d’s name begins with blessing G-d, and much of what we read in the ‘Siddur’ (Jewish prayer Book) is blessing G-d.
Every prayer that we pray to Him begins with: “Baruch Ata Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha’olam” (“Blessed are you, Lord our God, King of the universe”).
And this is another reason why the Jewish people are so blessed; we are always blessing the L-rd our G-d.
David knew how to bless the L-rd and we see this in Psalm 103:1-5: “Bless the Lord, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name! 2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits: 3 Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, 4 Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, 5 Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s”
Psalm 103:20-22 declares: “Bless the Lord, you His angels, Who excel in strength, who do His word, Heeding the voice of His word. 21 Bless the Lord, all you His hosts, You ministers of His, who do His pleasure. 22 Bless the Lord, all His works, In all places of His dominion. Bless the Lord, O my soul!”
And the reason we are to continually bless the L-rd our G-d is found in Psalm 100:5: “For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations.”
You see, G-d is good, He rules the universe with His everlasting kindness, and His trustworthiness in fulfilling His promises will last for all generations.
And it’s in continually blessing G-d that we will learn to bless and be a blessing to our spouse, our children and to others.
Jewish fathers traditionally bless their children on Friday evenings after returning from synagogue before the Shabbat meal. The blessing involves placing hands on the child’s head, reciting the Priestly Blessing, and wishing for them to be like Ephraim and Manasseh (sons) or Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah (daughters).
This is why we always bless the children at the Emet Ministries’ Shabbat services.
And this is why you constantly need to bless people. And the greatest blessing of all is to bless people with the good news of salvation.
G-d’s desire for all people, Jews and Gentiles, is to live in His full blessing; this can only happen if one accepts Yeshua, as L-rd and Saviour.
Only by accepting Yeshua and G-d’s gift of salvation can one’s sins be forgiven and eternal life in heaven be granted.
Some of you reading this are believers in Yeshua; your sins have been forgiven and you have the assurance of eternal life in heaven. You have received the full blessing of G-d.
But what about the people in your sphere of influence: Your family, friends, colleagues, acquaintances and, yes, even strangers?
And what about Jewish people you know?
Romans 11:16-18 tells us that Gentile believers in Yeshua, are grafted into the olive tree of which Jewish people are the natural branches, and the Priestly Blessing is imputed to you.
So, are all Jewish people part of the olive tree? Sadly no! Only Messianic Jews who believe in and follow Yeshua remain the natural branches of the olive tree.
Romans 11:20-23: “Because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear. For if God did not spare the natural branches, He may not spare you either. Therefore consider the goodness and severity of God: on those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness, if you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will be cut off. And they also, if they do not continue in unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again.”
To be grafted back into the olive tree as natural branches, Jewish people must come to faith in Yeshua.
This can only happen if someone tells them about their Jewish Messiah, Yeshua:
Romans 10:14-15: “How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? 15 And how shall they preach unless they are sent?”
As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, Who bring glad tidings of good things! Who proclaims salvation, Who says to Zion “Your God reigns!” (Isaiah 52:7)
For some of you, you may be the only one who can tell a Jewish person about his or her Messiah.
And for some of you, you may be the only one who can tell your family, friends, colleagues and acquaintances about his or her Messiah.
As wonderful as the Priestly Blessing is, G-d’s FULL blessing is the gift of salvation.
And G-d’s heart for all people is found in 2 Peter 3:9: “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.”
As believers in Yeshua, you have been blessed and elevated in Him to be a blessing by being a “light to the world”
If you really want to tap into the riches of G-d and the ‘B’rachot HaKohanim’, make up your mind to be a blessing to others. And the greatest blessing you can give anyone
is by telling them about Yeshua and the blessing of salvation.
As believers in Yeshua, you have a mandate to declare this good news – beginning with the Jewish people.
You have received G-d’s full blessing; now go and be a blessing to others.
So learn from the Jewish people who have the understanding of blessing G-d.
Bless Almighty G-d every single day with your lips, and by being a blessing to others.
For this is blessing Almighty G-d from the Judaic perspective.
