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Over the centuries, the words have brought great comfort and encouragement.  The words are often used as a benediction or a blessing:

 

The Lord bless you and keep you:
The Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you:
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace.  (Num 6:24-26)

 

What in the world is a countenance?  By definition, it is a person's face or facial expression.

So if the Lord’s face shines upon us and if He lifts up His countenance upon us, what does all that mean?

It means that He is giving us His attention.  But even more so, His face shining upon us gives us the picture of a beaming face like that of a parent for their beloved child.  And the reference to Him lifting up His countenance points to God extending divine favor and peace to us.

Sometimes we can appreciate things more by seeing opposites.  The opposite of a lifted face is a face that has fallen, perhaps because of shame or disappointment.  The opposite of a shining face is a face that has become darkened, perhaps by anger or frustration. 

Speaking of opposites, there are times when God does not give attention and actually hides His face:

“And I will surely hide my face in that day because of all the evil that they have done, because they have turned to other gods.”  (Deut 31:18)

“But your wrongs have separated you from your God, and your sins have made him hide his face so that he doesn’t hear you.” (Isa 59:2)

“When you hide your face, they are terrified; when you take away their breath, they die and return to the dust.”  (Ps 104:29)

The overall idea of a hidden face in the Bible is that of withholding support, favor, or peace, while the overall idea of God lifting His face toward his people means that He is giving them peace, prosperity, completeness, health, safety and general well-being.

I know which one I prefer!


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