I’ve heard this benediction many times, and I always enjoy a pastor or teacher closing a service with these words:

The Lord bless you and keep you;

The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you;

The Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.

But I forget these words came directly from the mouth of God. The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is how you are to bless the Israelites.'”

This is referred to as the priestly blessing, as Aaron and his descendants served as the priests for the nation of Israel. But as followers of Jesus, members of a new royal priesthood (1 Peter 2:9), we may also pronounce this blessing on those around us.

Feel free to bless others today, and if you need some words to do so, you won’t find any better than these.

Numbers 6 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by Illiya Vjestica