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July 1, 2022
Sabbath Blessings
In Jewish homes the Shabbat dinner includes a time when the father (or parents) pronounces part of the priestly blessing over each child. The mother is also blessed by the reciting of part of Proverbs 31 about the woman of valor. We would all benefit from such a lovely tradition that routinely showers ones family with love and encouragement to follow biblical values.
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Sabbath Blessings (Out of Zion Episode #123)
Transcript
1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:05,240
Well, we're in our series talking about the blessings of God, and last week we talked
2
00:00:05,240 --> 00:00:07,240
about the priestly blessing.
3
00:00:07,240 --> 00:00:12,520
This week I want to talk about ways that Jewish families speak the priestly blessing
4
00:00:12,520 --> 00:00:16,640
over their children and what a wonderful tradition it is.
5
00:00:16,640 --> 00:00:21,560
So welcome to this week's Shabbat Shalom devotional, and I seek to share just a little
6
00:00:21,560 --> 00:00:26,840
inspiration and bring a little peace to the end of your very busy week.
7
00:00:26,840 --> 00:00:32,320
Well, I hope you heard my recent Going Deeper interview with Rabbi Shmuel Bohman where we
8
00:00:32,320 --> 00:00:34,520
discussed Shabbat.
9
00:00:34,520 --> 00:00:37,480
If not, you'll want to listen to that.
10
00:00:37,480 --> 00:00:43,920
He I asked him what is his most favorite part of the Shabbat traditions, and he said, it
11
00:00:43,920 --> 00:00:48,200
was when he blesses his children and kisses them.
12
00:00:48,200 --> 00:00:50,320
What a wonderful tradition.
13
00:00:50,320 --> 00:00:55,440
In more traditional homes it's the Father that lays His hand on the children and pronounces
14
00:00:55,440 --> 00:00:56,760
the blessing.
15
00:00:56,760 --> 00:01:02,560
In some homes, both parents do it together, or they may do it one at a time.
16
00:01:02,560 --> 00:01:08,440
In some homes, the Father blesses the boys and the mother blesses the girls.
17
00:01:08,440 --> 00:01:11,660
But they place both hands on the head of the child.
18
00:01:11,660 --> 00:01:17,000
They pronounce a blessing over them and then hug or kiss them, and often they may actually
19
00:01:17,000 --> 00:01:22,480
whisper something into the ear of the child, either a word of encouragement or something
20
00:01:22,480 --> 00:01:25,600
that may have occurred in their life that week.
21
00:01:25,600 --> 00:01:29,040
What a wonderful, wonderful tradition.
22
00:01:29,040 --> 00:01:34,120
The blessing that they pronounce over the children comes from the priestly blessing,
23
00:01:34,120 --> 00:01:40,400
but if it's a boy, they have a special opening, and if it's a girl, she has another opening.
24
00:01:40,400 --> 00:01:43,560
The main part of the blessing is this.
25
00:01:43,560 --> 00:01:46,120
May God bless you and protect you.
26
00:01:46,120 --> 00:01:49,600
May God show you favor and be gracious unto you.
27
00:01:49,600 --> 00:01:53,760
May God show you kindness and grant you peace.
28
00:01:53,760 --> 00:01:57,520
But the opening line for the boys is this.
29
00:01:57,520 --> 00:02:01,160
May you be like Ephraim and Manasseh.
30
00:02:01,160 --> 00:02:03,280
Why Ephraim and Manasseh?
31
00:02:03,280 --> 00:02:12,000
Well, they were born in Egypt into a profoundly idolatrous society, and yet they remained
32
00:02:12,000 --> 00:02:17,880
faithful to the morals and the ideals that their grandfather, Jacob, had passed down
33
00:02:17,880 --> 00:02:19,320
to them.
34
00:02:19,320 --> 00:02:26,160
And so, in a way, this blessing is saying this, have the strength to be able to withstand
35
00:02:26,160 --> 00:02:30,840
the pressures of society and do the right thing.
36
00:02:30,840 --> 00:02:34,560
And then for the girls, their introductory blessing is this.
37
00:02:34,560 --> 00:02:39,680
May you be like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah.
38
00:02:39,680 --> 00:02:45,320
Well, there's lots of lessons in the stories of those four women in the Bible, but in general,
39
00:02:45,320 --> 00:02:49,720
it's saying first, that bring a blessing to your family.
40
00:02:49,720 --> 00:02:56,080
Secondly, to make sure that those blessings are actualized and enjoyed by the family.
41
00:02:56,080 --> 00:03:02,200
And thirdly, that you ensure the continuation of the family in these traditions and the Jewish
42
00:03:02,200 --> 00:03:03,560
faith.
43
00:03:03,560 --> 00:03:10,560
Now, after this blessing over the boys and the girls, there is also another tradition
44
00:03:10,560 --> 00:03:18,240
in the home of blessing the mother or the wife by repeating part of Proverbs 31, of
45
00:03:18,240 --> 00:03:21,200
course, the chapter about the women of valor.
46
00:03:21,200 --> 00:03:26,320
You know, in Judaism, the woman is honored and valued.
47
00:03:26,320 --> 00:03:33,640
And just as God told Abraham to listen to Sarah at one point, and just as Isaac listened
48
00:03:33,640 --> 00:03:40,480
to Rebecca, the Jewish woman is seen as having tremendous effect on her husband and on the
49
00:03:40,480 --> 00:03:43,320
strength of the family.
50
00:03:43,320 --> 00:03:46,840
So I wanted you to know about this tradition.
51
00:03:46,840 --> 00:03:49,160
I think it's so special.
52
00:03:49,160 --> 00:03:53,480
Ask the Lord how you might be able to start a tradition like this in your home, where
53
00:03:53,480 --> 00:03:59,440
every week you're laying hands on the children or on your spouse and blessing them, letting
54
00:03:59,440 --> 00:04:05,200
them know how much you appreciate them, your gratitude for them, and your wishes for their
55
00:04:05,200 --> 00:04:08,440
protection and their peace and their well-being.
56
00:04:08,440 --> 00:04:14,480
You have the power to speak blessing over your family, so see how you can do it.
57
00:04:14,480 --> 00:04:39,240
And with that, I want to wish you a Shabbat Shalom.
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:05,240
Well, we're in our series talking about the blessings of God, and last week we talked
2
00:00:05,240 --> 00:00:07,240
about the priestly blessing.
3
00:00:07,240 --> 00:00:12,520
This week I want to talk about ways that Jewish families speak the priestly blessing
4
00:00:12,520 --> 00:00:16,640
over their children and what a wonderful tradition it is.
5
00:00:16,640 --> 00:00:21,560
So welcome to this week's Shabbat Shalom devotional, and I seek to share just a little
6
00:00:21,560 --> 00:00:26,840
inspiration and bring a little peace to the end of your very busy week.
7
00:00:26,840 --> 00:00:32,320
Well, I hope you heard my recent Going Deeper interview with Rabbi Shmuel Bohman where we
8
00:00:32,320 --> 00:00:34,520
discussed Shabbat.
9
00:00:34,520 --> 00:00:37,480
If not, you'll want to listen to that.
10
00:00:37,480 --> 00:00:43,920
He I asked him what is his most favorite part of the Shabbat traditions, and he said, it
11
00:00:43,920 --> 00:00:48,200
was when he blesses his children and kisses them.
12
00:00:48,200 --> 00:00:50,320
What a wonderful tradition.
13
00:00:50,320 --> 00:00:55,440
In more traditional homes it's the Father that lays His hand on the children and pronounces
14
00:00:55,440 --> 00:00:56,760
the blessing.
15
00:00:56,760 --> 00:01:02,560
In some homes, both parents do it together, or they may do it one at a time.
16
00:01:02,560 --> 00:01:08,440
In some homes, the Father blesses the boys and the mother blesses the girls.
17
00:01:08,440 --> 00:01:11,660
But they place both hands on the head of the child.
18
00:01:11,660 --> 00:01:17,000
They pronounce a blessing over them and then hug or kiss them, and often they may actually
19
00:01:17,000 --> 00:01:22,480
whisper something into the ear of the child, either a word of encouragement or something
20
00:01:22,480 --> 00:01:25,600
that may have occurred in their life that week.
21
00:01:25,600 --> 00:01:29,040
What a wonderful, wonderful tradition.
22
00:01:29,040 --> 00:01:34,120
The blessing that they pronounce over the children comes from the priestly blessing,
23
00:01:34,120 --> 00:01:40,400
but if it's a boy, they have a special opening, and if it's a girl, she has another opening.
24
00:01:40,400 --> 00:01:43,560
The main part of the blessing is this.
25
00:01:43,560 --> 00:01:46,120
May God bless you and protect you.
26
00:01:46,120 --> 00:01:49,600
May God show you favor and be gracious unto you.
27
00:01:49,600 --> 00:01:53,760
May God show you kindness and grant you peace.
28
00:01:53,760 --> 00:01:57,520
But the opening line for the boys is this.
29
00:01:57,520 --> 00:02:01,160
May you be like Ephraim and Manasseh.
30
00:02:01,160 --> 00:02:03,280
Why Ephraim and Manasseh?
31
00:02:03,280 --> 00:02:12,000
Well, they were born in Egypt into a profoundly idolatrous society, and yet they remained
32
00:02:12,000 --> 00:02:17,880
faithful to the morals and the ideals that their grandfather, Jacob, had passed down
33
00:02:17,880 --> 00:02:19,320
to them.
34
00:02:19,320 --> 00:02:26,160
And so, in a way, this blessing is saying this, have the strength to be able to withstand
35
00:02:26,160 --> 00:02:30,840
the pressures of society and do the right thing.
36
00:02:30,840 --> 00:02:34,560
And then for the girls, their introductory blessing is this.
37
00:02:34,560 --> 00:02:39,680
May you be like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah.
38
00:02:39,680 --> 00:02:45,320
Well, there's lots of lessons in the stories of those four women in the Bible, but in general,
39
00:02:45,320 --> 00:02:49,720
it's saying first, that bring a blessing to your family.
40
00:02:49,720 --> 00:02:56,080
Secondly, to make sure that those blessings are actualized and enjoyed by the family.
41
00:02:56,080 --> 00:03:02,200
And thirdly, that you ensure the continuation of the family in these traditions and the Jewish
42
00:03:02,200 --> 00:03:03,560
faith.
43
00:03:03,560 --> 00:03:10,560
Now, after this blessing over the boys and the girls, there is also another tradition
44
00:03:10,560 --> 00:03:18,240
in the home of blessing the mother or the wife by repeating part of Proverbs 31, of
45
00:03:18,240 --> 00:03:21,200
course, the chapter about the women of valor.
46
00:03:21,200 --> 00:03:26,320
You know, in Judaism, the woman is honored and valued.
47
00:03:26,320 --> 00:03:33,640
And just as God told Abraham to listen to Sarah at one point, and just as Isaac listened
48
00:03:33,640 --> 00:03:40,480
to Rebecca, the Jewish woman is seen as having tremendous effect on her husband and on the
49
00:03:40,480 --> 00:03:43,320
strength of the family.
50
00:03:43,320 --> 00:03:46,840
So I wanted you to know about this tradition.
51
00:03:46,840 --> 00:03:49,160
I think it's so special.
52
00:03:49,160 --> 00:03:53,480
Ask the Lord how you might be able to start a tradition like this in your home, where
53
00:03:53,480 --> 00:03:59,440
every week you're laying hands on the children or on your spouse and blessing them, letting
54
00:03:59,440 --> 00:04:05,200
them know how much you appreciate them, your gratitude for them, and your wishes for their
55
00:04:05,200 --> 00:04:08,440
protection and their peace and their well-being.
56
00:04:08,440 --> 00:04:14,480
You have the power to speak blessing over your family, so see how you can do it.
57
00:04:14,480 --> 00:04:39,240
And with that, I want to wish you a Shabbat Shalom.
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