2 Chronicles 29:29

29:29 When the sacrifices were completed, the king and all who were with him bowed down and worshiped.

Numbers 6:23-27

6:23 “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is the way you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them:

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

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

and be gracious to you;

6:26 The Lord lift up his countenance upon you

and give you peace.”’

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

Joshua 22:6

22:6 Joshua rewarded them and sent them on their way; they returned to their homes. 10 

Joshua 22:1

Joshua Sends Home the Eastern Tribes

22:1 Then Joshua summoned the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh

Joshua 8:1

Israel Conquers Ai

8:1 The Lord told Joshua, “Don’t be afraid and don’t panic! 11  Take the whole army with you and march against Ai! 12  See, I am handing over to you 13  the king of Ai, along with his people, city, and land.

Joshua 8:1

Israel Conquers Ai

8:1 The Lord told Joshua, “Don’t be afraid and don’t panic! 14  Take the whole army with you and march against Ai! 15  See, I am handing over to you 16  the king of Ai, along with his people, city, and land.

Joshua 16:2

16:2 The southern border 17  extended from Bethel to Luz, 18  and crossed to Arkite territory at Ataroth.

Luke 24:50-51

Jesus’ Departure

24:50 Then 19  Jesus 20  led them out as far as Bethany, 21  and lifting up his hands, he blessed them. 24:51 Now 22  during the blessing 23  he departed 24  and was taken up into heaven. 25 


tn Or “thus.”

tn The Piel imperfect has the nuance of instruction. The particle “thus” explains that the following oracle is the form to use.

tn Here is the only use of the verb אָמַר (’amar) as an infinitive absolute; it functions as a verb form, an imperative or an imperfect of instruction. Several commentators have attempted to emend the text to get around the difficulty, but such emendations are unnecessary.

tn The short blessing uses the jussive throughout, here the Piel jussive with a pronominal suffix. While the jussive has quite a range of nuances, including wish, desire, prayer, or greeting, the jussives here are stronger. The formal subject of the verb is the Lord, and the speaker pronouncing the blessing is the priest, notably after emerging from the holy of holies where atonement has been made. The Lord says in this passage that when the priest says this, then the Lord will bless them. The jussive then is an oracle, not a wish or a prayer. It is a declaration of what the Lord imparts. It is as binding and sure as a patriarchal blessing which once said officially could not be taken back. The priest here is then pronouncing the word of the Lord, declaring to the congregation the outcome of the atonement.

tn The verb “to keep” concerns the divine protection of the people; its basic meaning is “to exercise great care over,” “to guard,” or “to give attention to” (see TWOT 2:939). No doubt the priestly blessing informed the prayer and promise that makes up Ps 121, for the verb occurs six times in the eight verses. So in addition to the divine provision (“bless” basically means “enrich” in a number of ways) there is the assurance of divine protection.

tn Whereas the first line of the blessing had three Hebrew words, the second has five, and the third has seven. In this second line and the following third, the blessing takes the form of an emblem followed by the truth. For the Lord to make his face shine on them would mean to be gracious to them. M. Noth rightly calls this image of the shining face “a figure of speech for benevolence and favour” (Numbers [OTL], 59); see, for example, Pss 4:7; 31:17; 44:4; 67:2; 80:4, 8, 20; 119:135; Dan 9:17). The image may have its inspiration in the theophanies. The picture is of divine favor – the beaming face of a parent for his beloved.

tn The last line of the blessing also has first the image and then the parallel interpretation – for God to lift up his face is for God to give peace. The idea of the fallen face is one of anger (see Gen 4:6,7); and the idea of the hidden face is that of withholding support, favor, or peace (see Deut 31:18; Ps 30:8; Ps 44:25). If God lifts his face toward his people, it means he has given them peace – peace, prosperity, completeness, health, safety, general well-being, and the like.

tn The idea of their putting the name of Yahweh on the people is somewhat problematic. The pronouncing of the name of Yahweh in this context over the people was taken to be the effectual means of blessings. “Putting the name on them” is an expression that emphasizes the truth that he is their God and they are his people or that having his name is having his blessing.

tn Heb “blessed.” However, see v. 8, where rewards are given.

10 tn Heb “and they went to their tents.”

11 tn Or perhaps “and don’t get discouraged!”

12 tn Heb “Take with you all the people of war and arise, go up against Ai!”

13 tn Heb “I have given into our hand.” The verbal form, a perfect, is probably best understood as a perfect of certitude, indicating the certainty of the action.

14 tn Or perhaps “and don’t get discouraged!”

15 tn Heb “Take with you all the people of war and arise, go up against Ai!”

16 tn Heb “I have given into our hand.” The verbal form, a perfect, is probably best understood as a perfect of certitude, indicating the certainty of the action.

17 tn Heb “it”; the referent (the southern border) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

18 tn In the Hebrew text the place name “Luz” has the directive ending, indicating that the border went from Bethel to Luz. Elsewhere Luz and Bethel appear to be names for the same site (cf. Judg 1:23), but here they appear to be distinct. Note that the NIV translates “from Bethel (that is, Luz)” here, following the reading of the LXX, εἰς Βαιθηλ Λουζα (eis Baiqhl Louza, “from Bethel [Luz]”).

19 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

20 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

21 sn Bethany was village on the Mount of Olives about 2 mi (3 km) from Jerusalem; see John 11:1, 18.

22 tn Grk “And it happened that while.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

23 tn Grk “while he blessed them.”

24 tn Grk “he departed from them.”

25 tc The reference to the ascension (“and was taken up into heaven”) is lacking in א* D it sys, but it is found in Ì75 and the rest of the ms tradition. The authenticity of the statement here seems to be presupposed in Acts 1:2, for otherwise it is difficult to account for Luke’s reference to the ascension there. For a helpful discussion, see TCGNT 162-63.