Genesis

בייה

Genesis 9 Authentic Blessings

Our study is in the Loving Memory of my mother, Ethel Channah ‘Betty’ bat Channah.

May her memory be a blessing.

Does anyone need some extra help from the Lord now and then? Saying a Blessing is the act of requesting God’s favor upon someone or something. The Blessing giver can be God, Himself, an Angel, a Prophet, or a person. Blessings are meant to benefit their recipient, with material goods or having many offspring. בְּסָרַט רִאשׁוֹן – In our first film, Blessings, I noted humanity’s need for Blessings. Some call Blessing good luck, but it’s actually blessings. Who knows the power of giving or receiving a blessing? Rebbe Jonah, Simeon bar Abba said in the name of Rebbe Joḥanan: A Word that is impossible to say “enough” enough is a blessing. The (Jerusalem Talmud Taanit 3:9:2) says, ‘Rebbi Berekhiah, Rebbi Ḥelbo, Rav Abba bar Ilay in the name of Rav: Until your lips will wear out saying, we have enough blessings, we have enough blessings.

In (Genesis 9.1-2) ‘And God Blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them, ‘Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every bird of the air, upon all that moves upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; to your hand are they delivered.‘

God’s Blessing is authoritative and ALWAYS reliable. God’s Blessing cannot be neutralized. Procreation is one of The Mitzvot of Ha Torah, which is partly why we at JewishPath.org teach life is very precious. When Cham emasculated his father, he prevented him from having a fourth son. The Torah does not record Noach as having more children. So, due to being emasculated, Noach curses Canaan, Cham’s fourth son. Noach cursed Canaan because he could not curse Cham. God Blessed Cham/Ham. The depth, height, and width of a Blessing are enormous. It is fruitless to curse what God has Blessed. Cham was the recipient of a 360° blessing. Therefore Noah said, ‘Cursed be Canaan; a slave of slaves shall he be to his brothers’ (Genesis 9.25). (Numbers 23.18-20) says, ‘And he took up his discourse, and said, Rise up, Balak, and hear; listen to me, you son of Zippor; God is not a man, that he should lie; nor the son of man, that he should repent. Has he said, and shall he not do it? Or has he spoken, and shall he not make it good? Behold, I have received a command to bless, and he has blessed, and I cannot reverse it.‘

מַלְאַךְ – Malak – a single for Angel – מַלְאָכִים Malakim – Angels – They are Messengers who speak for God. נָבִיא – Naw Vee – Prophet – Prophets – נְבִיאִים – Nih Vee Eem – Prophets that speak for God. Every day people may also bless and speak for the Lord God. (Proverbs10.22) says, ‘It is the blessing of the LORD that enriches, And no toil can increase it.’

(Deuteronomy 10.12) says, ‘And now, O Israel, מָה (mah) What does the Lord your God Demand of you?’ Our sages of blessed memory said, ‘Don’t read מַה mah – ‘what,’ but rather מֵאָה (me’ah), meaning a hundred. In other words, ‘A hundred [Blessings’ is what the Lord your God Requires from you.’ There are 99 letters in this Scripture. Adding the letter א Aleph increases that Scripture to 100. In (2 Samuel 23.1), R. Bahya, in his Torah commentary, introduces two mystical interpretations. The one above and this one. King David (peace be upon him) said, ‘The utterance of the man set עָל – Awl – upon high has the numerically equivalent to 100 [Blessings}. Why are 100 Blessing a day important? Blessings have Spiritual power. In David’s time, one hundred men of Israel died each day of a plague. All these deaths deeply moved King David, so he reinstituted [tiken] 100 blessings. Once the People of Israel began saying a hundred Blessings a day, the plague ended. (Midrash Tanhuma Korah 12) reminds us that Tiken – when ‘instituted’ also has the connotation of Tikkun – ‘repair’ as in the sense of a cosmic repair through blessings of a world diminished by the loss of 100 lives per day. David didn’t institute them per se but re-established them since people had drifted away from saying a hundred Blessings each day over time. David re-established them. According to this midrash, Moses initially established the blessings. Afterward, when they had been forgotten, so David re-established them. After David’s era, they have forgotten again until the Talmud’s sages re-established them. (Chavel). (Psalms 128.4) reminds us who are discouraged and feel like life is hopeless to reinstate a hundred Blessings. Essentially if one attends morning, afternoon, and evening prayers, they will say a hundred Blessings. Explore a little. Tap into an online group or two to pray/say blessings.

נֵּה כִי־כֵן יְבֹרַךְ גָּבֶר יְרֵא יְהֹוָה: ס

‘Behold, thus shall the man who fears the Lord be blessed.’ The word יְבֹרַךְ yivorakh – ‘shall be blessed’ is spelled without the Letter ו vav, which means that by the numerical equivalent of כִי־כֵן Cee Cayn – 100 [Blessings] results for the person who fears the Lord both bless and will be blessed.’

(Psalms 115.12-15) says, ‘The LORD is mindful of us. He will bless us; He will bless the house of Israel; He will bless the house of Aaron; He will bless those who fear the LORD, small and great alike. May the Lord increase you more and more, you and your children. May you be blessed by the LORD, Maker of heaven and earth.’

Noach understood the spirituality of God’s Blessing. Noach was righteous. May we follow the Guidelines of righteous living. May we help others and bring peace and healing to our world. May this coming Sabbath and every Sabbath be a blessed Day.

May the Lord Bless each of us with a beautiful pleasant happy Sabbath observance.

Dr. Akiva Gamliel Belk

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