Numbers 6:23-27
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This verse emphasizes that the priests weren't just offering a casual wish, but were commissioned by God to speak His words with authority. The phrase "On this wise" signifies a specific, divinely appointed method, showing that God actively designed how His blessing would be conveyed to His people.
“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.”
English Standard Version (ESV)
God, speaking through Moses, is giving specific instructions to Aaron and his sons, the priests. This follows closely after God established the sacrificial system and the tabernacle, highlighting the priests' role in mediating God's presence and favor to the people of Israel. The verses immediately following will reveal the exact words of this priestly blessing, which God Himself dictates for them to speak.
Did you know God commands priests to bless His people? This isn't just a nice suggestion, but a sacred duty.
It reveals God's heart for us and the authority He delegates.
In Numbers 6:23, God gives Moses specific instructions for Aaron and his sons: 'Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them.'
God's Initiative
This command highlights that blessing originates from God. He ordains the blessing and equips His servants to pronounce it. It wasn't a spontaneous human idea but a divine assignment.
Priests as Vessels
Aaron and his sons, as priests, were God's chosen conduits. They weren't performing a ritual out of their own merit, but as representatives, speaking God's words and invoking His power. This shows us that God uses people to communicate His grace.
A Public Declaration
The blessing was meant to be spoken publicly, for all of Israel to hear. It was a tangible sign of God's favor and a declaration of His covenant promises.
Why is God so specific about how the priests bless? It's all about invoking the right name.
The blessing's power doesn't come from the priest, but from the God whose name is spoken.
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The instruction in Numbers 6:23 is not just about uttering words, but about invoking the very 'name' of the LORD.
More Than a Title
In the ancient Near East, a name represented a person's essence, character, and authority. When God commands the priests to bless 'in the name of Jehovah,' it means they are to invoke His very being – His power, His faithfulness, His promises.
God's Commitment
The repetition of 'Jehovah' in the full blessing (which follows this introductory verse) emphasizes God's unwavering commitment. It's a declaration that the blessing comes from the eternal, covenant-making God.
An Efficacious Word
This wasn't just a perfunctory utterance. The commentaries suggest this was meant to be a powerful, efficacious act. When God's name is invoked as He has commanded, His promises are activated.
Understand the original words
barak · Hebrew Verb
To bestow divine favor, prosperity, and spiritual well-being. It is an act where God communicates His benevolence and life-giving presence to His people.
shamar · Hebrew Verb
To guard, protect, preserve, or watch over with care. It implies God’s active intervention to keep His people from harm and sustain them within His covenant.
panim · Hebrew Noun
In this context, it symbolizes the manifestation of God’s personal presence, favor, approval, and joy directed toward the believer. When God’s face shines, He is actively looking upon His people with love and protection.
chanan · Hebrew Verb
To show unmerited favor, mercy, or compassion. It reflects God’s character in providing help and kindness to those who are in need or undeserving.
Yahweh · Hebrew Proper Noun
The personal name of the self-existent, covenant-keeping God of Israel, who revealed Himself to Moses at the burning bush. It signifies His holiness, faithfulness, and eternal nature as the Redeemer of His people.
panim · Hebrew Noun
In biblical imagery, the face represents the presence, attention, favor, or disposition of a person. For God to 'lift up' His face upon someone signifies His active, gracious notice and His bestowal of divine approval.
shalom · Hebrew Noun
A multifaceted Hebrew concept representing not merely the absence of conflict, but total well-being, completeness, prosperity, and relational harmony with God and others. It is the restoration of the divine order and the ultimate gift of God's favor.
shem · Hebrew Noun
In the ancient Near East, a name represented the person’s character, authority, reputation, and essence. Putting God’s name upon His people signifies ownership, protection, and the authorization to represent Him in the world.
barak · Hebrew Verb
To confer divine favor, prosperity, and spiritual endowment upon an individual or group. In this context, it indicates God's active commitment to sustain, prosper, and protect those who belong to Him.
This passage mentions Aaron blessing the people after the sacrifices, highlighting the priestly role in invoking God's favor, though it doesn't provide the specific words found in Numbers 6:23.
Deuteronomy 10:8This verse separates the tribe of Levi for the specific ministry of carrying the ark and blessing in the name of the Lord, reinforcing the sacred and appointed nature of the priestly blessing.
Psalm 118:26David's exclamation, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD!' echoes the sentiment of this priestly blessing, pointing to the one who comes with God's authority and favor.
Luke 24:50Jesus lifting His hands and blessing His disciples before His ascension is seen as the ultimate fulfillment of this priestly function, showing Christ as the true High Priest bringing God's blessing.
2 Corinthians 13:14This New Testament benediction, invoking the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, mirrors the structure and the Trinitarian undertones often seen in the Aaronic blessing.
ellicottNumbers 6:23: "Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them,"
(23) On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel. —The occasions on which this blessing was used are not recorded. The blessing itself, which marks in a special manner the spiritual character of the chosen people, consists of three double clauses. In each of these three clauses the sacred name Jehovah is repeated, and there is a rising gradation in the blessin…
gillNumbers 6:23: "Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them,"
Speak unto Aaron, and unto his sons,.... Aaron and his sons that succeeded him in all after generations, being the persons that were in a public manner to bless the people of Israel, they are particularly addressed, see Deuteronomy 10:8 , saying, on this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel; in such manner and with such words as after expressed; standing upon a…
This verse emphasizes that the priests weren't just offering a casual wish, but were commissioned by God to speak His words with authority. The phrase "On this wise" signifies a specific, divinely appointed method, showing that God actively designed how His blessing would be conveyed to His people.
God, speaking through Moses, is giving specific instructions to Aaron and his sons, the priests. This follows closely after God established the sacrificial system and the tabernacle, highlighting the priests' role in mediating God's presence and favor to the people of Israel. The verses immediately following will reveal the exact words of this priestly blessing, which God Himself dictates for them to speak.
God, speaking through Moses, is giving specific instructions to Aaron and his sons, the priests. This follows closely after God established the sacrificial system and the tabernacle, highlighting the priests' role in mediating God's presence and favor to the people of Israel. The verses immediately following will reveal the exact words of this priestly blessing, which God Himself dictates for them to speak.
"“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…" — This verse emphasizes that the priests weren't just offering a casual wish, but were commissioned by God to speak His words with authority. The phrase "On this wise" signifies a specific, divinely ap…
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Last reviewed October 2026
