Numbers 6:25, “…the LORD make his face to
shine upon you…”
What exactly is meant by this phrase? The phrase, “…the LORD make his face to shine upon you…”, speaks of favour, of
God turning towards us, of God extended favour upon us, of God extending
blessing. It speaks of God making Himself known, revealing Himself and in so
doing making known His goodness, love and majesty. God looks upon us with
favour, and when we look up to God we find favour in His eyes.
If we consider what kind of people the Israelites were, it is a
remarkable testimony to God’s goodness and grace that He would cause His face
to shine upon them for so many years and generations. God continued to make His
face to shine upon them even in times of rebellion and great disobedience. God
is indeed grace, slow to anger, patient and abounding in steadfast love!
This phrase is not unique to Numbers 6, it also appears in several other
places in the Old Testament, which help us to understand it more fully:
Psalm
31:16, “Make your face shine on your servant; save me in your steadfast love!”
Psalm
67:1, "May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine
upon us, Selah.”
Psalm
80:1-3, “Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock. You
who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth. (2)
Before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh, stir up your might and come to
save us! (3) Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that
we may be saved!”
Psalm
80:19, “Restore us, O LORD God of hosts! Let your face shine, that we may be
saved!”
Psalm
119:135, “Make your face shine upon your servant, and teach me your statutes.”
Daniel
9:17, “Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to
his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord, make your face to shine
upon your sanctuary, which is desolate.”
In these passages this phrase is used in several different ways. There
is the request for God’s face to shine upon His people so as to save them,
restore them, so as to teach them His Law and so as to pour out His favour and
blessing upon the temple.
All of this points us to the act of God drawing near and then working
in grace and favour for the good of His people. It expresses that God hears
their prayers and responds favourably by coming near and answering them. It
also expresses that God is constantly watching over His people, that God is
amongst His people. His throne may be in heaven, but that doesn’t mean that He
is distant and detached from them, rather His face shines upon them, He is near
and present, He is looking upon them, and doing so with favour. Furthermore He
doesn’t just cause His face to shine upon them, He doesn’t just come among them
or extend favour to them in the good times. God’s face shines upon them, He is
among His people and He extends favour to His people in times of great
distress, when they are in need of help, of salvation, and when they find
themselves in a foreign land and the temple destroyed. God’s face never ceases
to shine upon them, and as they cry to Him so He draws near and answers
favourably.
Thus as we consider this blessing, there is the promise of God to
bless His people, to bless them in every area, to prosper and provide for them
in all ways. God promises to keep them, to protect them from all harm, to be
their shield and defender. And now He promises to draw near to them, to hear
their prayers and to cause His goodness, grace, faithfulness, love and mercy to
shine down upon them in abundance. He promises to look upon them with favour
and for them to look upon Him and find favour. God promises to shine upon them
making Himself, His Word and His salvation known to them. He is the God who
draws near, He is the God who reveals Himself and He is the God who shines us
His people at all times, in all circumstances and in any place.
As with the first two aspects of this blessing, this phrase, “…the LORD make his face to shine upon you…”,
also finds its greatest fulfilment in Christ and then in the lives of those who
believe in Christ. For it is in and through Christ that God has revealed
Himself in the greatest sense. Christ didn’t just make known God’s word to us,
He is the Word of God, He spoke the very words of God. Jesus is the one who
draws near to us bringing salvation and restoration. Jesus is the one who
brings us into the favour of God and causes us to find favour in the eyes of
God. It is through Christ that God now hears our prayers and answers them in
His rich grace. And, finally, it is because of Christ that we shall one day be
brought into the presence of God, where we shall see His face shining brighter
than the sun in full strength. But until that day we have the comfort of
knowing that God’s face is shining upon through all things, He is always near
to us and He is always extending undeserved favour towards us.
Father of light and glory, we thank You
that today we know Your face is shining upon us because of Christ. We thank You
that we can feel and know the warmth of Your presence and favour upon us. Thank
You that You are the God who draws near, the God who saves and restores us, and
the God who both hears and answers the prayers of His people. May we rejoice in
this truth and live in such a way so as to reflect the light of Your glory,
grace and holiness. We look forward with great joy to the day when we shall
finally see You face to face and rejoice in the light of Your glorious
presence. Amen.
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