Numbers 6:24 – Priestly Blessing a Stumbling Block?

12 Sivan 5783 – 2 June 2023

“May Hashem bless you and safeguard you” (Numbers 6:24).

The Priestly blessing for abundance can become a stumbling block. In the Torah, God warned the Jewish people about what might happen when they finally settle in the Promised Land. “Lest you eat and become full, and build good houses and live in them. And your cattle and sheep will multiply, and silver and gold multiply for you, and everything you own multiplies. And your heart may become prideful and you forget Hashem your G-d“(Deuteronomy 8:12-14. See also 6:10-12).

Later in the Torah, Hashem confirms this concern, “Yeshurun (Israel) grew fat and rebelled” (Deuteronomy 32:15). Therefore, when blessing the congregation, the Priests also ask that Hashem safeguard us and ensure that we won’t become corrupted as a result of our increase. (Sefer Nachalas Yaakov)

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