'Blessing' in the Bible

And [in that garden] the Lord God caused to grow from the ground every tree that is desirable and pleasing to the sight and good (suitable, pleasant) for food; the tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the [experiential] knowledge (recognition) of [the difference between] good and evil.

but [only] from the tree of the knowledge (recognition) of good and evil you shall not eat, otherwise on the day that you eat from it, you shall most certainly die [because of your disobedience].”

For God knows that on the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened [that is, you will have greater awareness], and you will be like God, knowing [the difference between] good and evil.”

And the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us (Father, Son, Holy Spirit), knowing [how to distinguish between] good and evil; and now, he might stretch out his hand, and take from the tree of life as well, and eat [its fruit], and live [in this fallen, sinful condition] forever”—

And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth.

And I will make you a great nation,And I will bless you [abundantly],And make your name great (exalted, distinguished);And you shall be a blessing [a source of great good to others];

indeed I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply your descendants like the stars of the heavens and like the sand on the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of their enemies [as conquerors].

and make me a savory and delicious dish [of meat], the kind I love, and bring it to me to eat, so that my soul may bless you [as my firstborn son] before I die.”

‘Bring me some game and make me a savory and delicious dish [of meat], so that I may eat it, and declare my blessing on you in the presence of the Lord before my death.’

Then you shall bring it to your father to eat, so that he may bless you before his death.”

Suppose my father touches me and feels my skin; then I will be seen by him as a cheat (imposter), and I will bring his curse on me and not a blessing.”

Now as soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had scarcely left the presence of Isaac his father, Esau his brother came in from his hunting.

Isaac said, “Your brother came deceitfully and has [fraudulently] taken away your blessing [for himself].”

Esau replied, “Is he not rightly named Jacob (the supplanter)? For he has supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright, and now he has taken away my blessing. Have you not reserved a blessing for me?”

Esau said to his father, “Have you only one blessing, my father? Bless me, even me also, O my father.” Then Esau [no longer able to restrain himself] raised his voice and wept [loudly].

Then Isaac his father answered and [prophesied and] said to him,“Your dwelling shall be away from the fertility of the earthAnd away from the dew of heaven above;

So Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him; and Esau said in his heart, “The days of mourning for my father are very near; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”

May He also give the blessing of Abraham to you and your descendants with you, that you may inherit the [promised] land of your sojournings, which He gave to Abraham.”

Early in the morning Laban got up and kissed his grandchildren and his daughters [goodbye] and pronounced a blessing [asking God’s favor] on them. Then Laban left and returned home.

Then He said, “Let Me go, for day is breaking.” But Jacob said, “I will not let You go unless You declare a blessing on me.”

Then Jacob asked Him, “Please tell me Your name.” But He said, “Why is it that you ask My name?” And He declared a blessing [of the covenant promises] on Jacob there.

Please accept my blessing (gift) which has been brought to you, for God has dealt graciously with me and I have everything [that I could possibly want].” So Jacob kept urging him and Esau accepted it.

Then God [in a visible manifestation] appeared to Jacob again when he came out of Paddan-aram, and declared a blessing on him.

It happened that from the time that he made Joseph overseer in his house and [put him in charge] over all that he owned, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house because of Joseph; so the Lord’s blessing was on everything that Potiphar owned, in the house and in the field.

All these are the [beginnings of the] twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father said to them as he blessed them, blessing each one according to the blessing appropriate to him.

Now concerning everything which I have said to you, be on your guard; do not mention the name of other gods [either in a blessing or in a curse]; do not let such speech be heard [coming] from your mouth.

Then Moses said [to the Levites], “Dedicate yourselves today to the Lord—for each man has been against his own son and his own brother [in his attempt to escape execution]—so that He may restore and bestow His blessing on you this day.”

I will break your pride in your power, and I will make your sky like iron [giving no rain and blocking all prayers] and your ground like bronze [hard to plow and yielding no produce].

“Water [that is, great blessings] will flow from his buckets,And his offspring will live by many waters,And his king will be higher than Agag,And his kingdom shall be exalted.

“Behold, today I am setting before you a blessing and a curse—

the blessing, if you listen to and obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I am commanding you today;

“It shall come about, when the Lord your God brings you into the land which you are entering to possess, that you shall place the blessing on Mount Gerizim and the curse on Mount Ebal.

Every man shall give as he is able, in accordance with the blessing which the Lord your God has given you.

Nevertheless, the Lord your God was not willing to listen to Balaam, but the Lord your God turned the curse into a blessing for you because the Lord your God has loved you.

The Lord will command the blessing upon you in your storehouses and in all that you undertake, and He will bless you in the land which the Lord your God gives you.

This is the blessing with which Moses the man of God blessed the sons of Israel before his death.

Of Naphtali he said,“O Naphtali, satisfied with favor,And full of the blessing of the Lord,Take possession of the sea [of Galilee] and the south.”

“Happy and blessed are you, O Israel;Who is like you, a people saved by the Lord,The Shield of your help,And the Sword of your majesty!Your enemies will cringe before you,And you will tread on their high places [tramping down their idolatrous altars].”

As you enter the city you will find him before he goes up to the high place to eat, for the people will not eat until he comes, because he must ask the blessing on the sacrifice; afterward, those who are invited will eat. So go up now, for about now you will find him.”

Therefore now, may it please You to bless the house (royal dynasty) of Your servant, so that it may continue forever before You; for You, O Lord God, have spoken it, and with Your blessing may the house of Your servant be blessed forever.”

Then on the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Beracah, for it was there that they blessed the Lord. For that reason they named that place “The Valley of Beracah (blessing)” until today.

Then the Levites—Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah—said, “Stand up and bless (praise, honor) the Lord your God from everlasting to everlasting.May Your glorious name be blessedAnd exalted above all blessing and praise.”

because they did not meet the Israelites with bread and water, but hired Balaam against them to curse them. Yet our God turned the curse into a blessing.

“The blessing of him who was about to perish came upon me,And I made the widow’s heart sing for joy.

Salvation belongs to the Lord;May Your blessing be upon Your people. Selah.

For You make him most blessed [and a blessing] forever;You make him joyful with the joy of Your presence.

He shall receive a blessing from the Lord,And righteousness from the God of his salvation.

You water its furrows abundantly,You smooth its ridges;You soften it with showers,You bless its growth.

He also loved cursing, and it came [back] to him;He did not delight in blessing, so it was far from him.

Nor do those who pass by say,“The blessing of the Lord be upon you;We bless you in the name of the Lord.”

It is like the dew of [Mount] HermonComing down on the hills of Zion;For there the Lord has commanded the blessing: life forevermore.

The memory of the righteous [person] is a [source of] blessing,But the name of the wicked will [be forgotten and] rot [like a corpse].

The blessing of the Lord brings [true] riches,And He adds no sorrow to it [for it comes as a blessing from God].

By the blessing [of the influence] of the upright the city is exalted,But by the mouth of the wicked it is torn down.

The people curse him who holds back grain [when the public needs it],But a blessing [from God and man] is upon the head of him who sells it.

But to those [honorable judges] who rebuke the wicked, it will go well with them and they will find delight,And a good blessing will come upon them.

In that day Israel will be the third party with Egypt and with Assyria [in a Messianic league], a blessing in the midst of the earth,

‘For I will pour out water on him who is thirsty,And streams on the dry ground;I will pour out My Spirit on your offspringAnd My blessing on your descendants;

“Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters;And you who have no money come, buy grain and eat.Come, buy wine and milkWithout money and without cost [simply accept it as a gift from God].

This is what the Lord says,“As the new wine is found in the cluster,And one says, ‘Do not destroy it, for there is a blessing and benefit in it,’So I will do for the sake of My servantsIn order not to destroy all of them.

“Because he who blesses himself on the earthWill bless himself by the God of truth and faithfulness;And he who swears [an oath] on the earthWill swear by the God of truth and faithfulness;Because the former troubles are forgotten,And because they are hidden from My sight.

I will make them and the places around My hill (Jerusalem, Zion) a blessing. And I will make showers come down in their season; there will be [abundant] showers of blessing (divine favor).

The first of all the first fruits of every kind, and every contribution and offering of every kind, from all your contributions and offerings, shall belong to the priests. You shall also give to the priest the first of your coarse meal and bread dough, so that a blessing may rest on your house.

They set up kings, but not from Me [therefore without My blessing];They have appointed princes, but I did not know it.With their silver and their gold they made idols for themselves,That they might be cut off.

Who knows whether He will relent [and revoke your sentence],And leave a blessing behind Him,Even a grain offering and a drink offering [from the bounty He provides you]For the Lord your God?

“Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord,“When the plowman shall overtake the one who gathers the harvest,And the one who treads the grapes [shall overtake] him who sows the seed [for the harvest continues until planting time];When the mountains will drip sweet wineAnd all the hills shall melt [that is, everything that was once barren will overflow with streams of blessing].

And as you have been a curse among the nations, O house of Judah (Southern Kingdom) and house of Israel (Northern Kingdom), so I will save you, that you may be a blessing. Fear not; let your hands be strong.’

Bring all the tithes (the tenth) into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,” says the Lord of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you [so great] a blessing until there is no more room to receive it.

And He took the children [one by one] in His arms and blessed them [with kind, encouraging words], placing His hands on them.

At once Zacharias’ mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he began speaking, praising and blessing and thanking God.

And the Child continued to grow and become strong [in spirit], filled with wisdom; and the grace (favor, spiritual blessing) of God was upon Him.

bless and show kindness to those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.

And it happened that as He reclined at the table with them, He took the bread and blessed it, and breaking it, He began giving it to them.

Then He led them out as far as Bethany, and lifted up His hands and blessed them.

While He was blessing them, He left them and was taken up into heaven.

and they were continually in the temple blessing and praising God.

For out of His fullness [the superabundance of His grace and truth] we have all received grace upon grace [spiritual blessing upon spiritual blessing, favor upon favor, and gift heaped upon gift].

For the Law was given through Moses, but grace [the unearned, undeserved favor of God] and truth came through Jesus Christ.

Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured out this [blessing] which you both see and hear.

Now Stephen, full of grace (divine blessing, favor) and power, was doing great wonders and signs (attesting miracles) among the people.

who found favor (grace, spiritual blessing) in the sight of God and asked that he might [be allowed to] find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.

When the congregation of the synagogue had been dismissed, many of the Jews and the devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who, talking to them were urging them to continue in the grace of God.

But I do not consider my life as something of value or dear to me, so that I may [with joy] finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify faithfully of the good news of God’s [precious, undeserved] grace [which makes us free of the guilt of sin and grants us eternal life].

[I am writing] to all who are beloved of God in Rome, called to be saints (God’s people) and set apart for a sanctified life, [that is, set apart for God and His purpose]: Grace to you and peace [inner calm and spiritual well-being] from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

And in this same way David speaks of the blessing on the one to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:

Is this blessing only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? For we say, “Faith was credited to Abraham as righteousness.”

I know that when I do come to you, I will come in the abundant blessing of Christ.

Grace to you and peace [inner calm and spiritual well-being] from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I thank my God always for you because of the grace of God which was given you in Christ Jesus,

Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the [Holy] Spirit who is from God, so that we may know and understand the [wonderful] things freely given to us by God.

But if anyone loves God [with awe-filled reverence, obedience and gratitude], he is known by Him [as His very own and is greatly loved].

Is the cup of blessing which we bless [at the Lord’s Supper] not a sharing in the blood of Christ? [Indeed it is.] Is the bread which we break not a sharing in the body of Christ? [Indeed it is.]

But by the [remarkable] grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not without effect. In fact, I worked harder than all of the apostles, though it was not I, but the grace of God [His unmerited favor and blessing which was] with me.

The grace of our Lord Jesus [His unmerited favor, His spiritual blessing, His profound mercy] be with you.

Grace to you and peace [inner calm and spiritual well-being] from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

while you join in helping us by your prayers. Then thanks will be given by many persons on our behalf for the gracious gift [of deliverance] granted to us through the prayers of many [believers].

For all [these] things are for your sake, so that as [God’s remarkable, undeserved] grace reaches to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of [our great] God.

Now, brothers and sisters, we want to tell you about the grace of God which has been evident in the churches of Macedonia [awakening in them a longing to contribute];

For you are recognizing [more clearly] the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ [His astonishing kindness, His generosity, His gracious favor], that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that by His poverty you might become rich (abundantly blessed).

And God is able to make all grace [every favor and earthly blessing] come in abundance to you, so that you may always [under all circumstances, regardless of the need] have complete sufficiency in everything [being completely self-sufficient in Him], and have an abundance for every good work and act of charity.