Post 1 of Lifting Up the Soul.
A Priestly Blessing Held Close
In 1979 two silver scrolls were found in a tomb just outside of Jerusalem. They were tightly rolled to be worn like pendants; and they carried a message that was not revealed in its totality until 1994, when researchers were able to use advanced imaging technology to reveal the words, “May Yahweh make his face shine upon you and grant you peace.”
The words written on each scroll differ, but they both draw inspiration from the same blessing given to the priests to bestow on God’s people.
“The LORD bless you and keep you. The LORD make His face shine upon you and be gracious unto you. The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.” (Numbers 6:24-26)
By wearing the tiny silver scrolls, God’s blessing was kept close to the heart of the wearer. What a powerful reminder to carry!
In the last line of this priestly blessing in Numbers, the reader is given a picture of God’s presence and favor in the words “The LORD lift up His countenance upon you…”
God’s Paniym
The word for countenance, paniym, describes more than just the physical face; it also describes His relationship toward His people. God reveals His attitude by describing the direction of His face. When His face was turned toward the Israelites, this expressed God’s approval. When His face was turned away, it expressed His rejection. Psalm 34:16 says, “The face of the LORD is against them that do evil, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.” The word for face in this verse is, again, paniym. God turns His face away from those who do evil. The same word is used and translated “presence” when Adam and Eve hide from the presence (paniym) of the LORD in the garden. In Psalm 51:11, the psalmist says, “Cast me not away from thy presence (paniym); and take not thy holy spirit from me.”
Looking back at Numbers 6:24-26, where the priestly blessing describes God lifting up His countenance, our Heavenly Father is depicted as approving and supporting His children. He is listening to their supplications, ready to help His people. David knew this concept, and he pleaded, “LORD, lift thou up the light of thy paniym upon us” (Psalm 4:6bKJV).
Similarly, when you lift up your face to God, you are delighting in the relationship you enjoy with your Creator. You are open to His words and His guidance. God wants you to lift your face to Him, to seek His counsel and His comfort. How much more, then, does it mean when you lift up your soul to Him? What does it mean to lift up your eternal being to Jehovah God?
Lifting Up the Soul
The first time the word for soul (nephesh) is used, God creates Adam. It is one of the most moving verses in the Bible.
“And Jehovah God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” (Genesis 2:7ASV)
God forms man. He breathes into man’s nostrils. Our Creator draws close to His creation when man is created. God is spirit, yet His description of the moment He gives Adam life is physical. He forms Adam from His own hands and gives him His own breath to breathe. The human body and soul in this moment are pristine. This is how the body and soul were meant to be—directly dependent on the Creator, pure and living, no corruption or death existing.
After Adam sinned and death entered the world, the human body succumbed to a life-shattering state. We can only long for perfection because perfection has been riddled with corruption. Yet, the soul begins life differently from the body. It does not enter the world riddled with the devastations of sin. Each soul comes into being in its sinless state—that is, still in a right relationship with our Creator. The soul is the eternal being who does not require the physical food, shelter, and air that the body does. Why does the soul become subject, so closely linked, to the physical body in this life?
The soul gains refreshing from the care of the physical body. The soul finds food in the wisdom one attains. But mainly, the soul thrives in human and divine relationship. The bond of one soul with another is profoundly necessary. God expresses through His creation of Eve His perfect understanding of mankind’s relationship needs and how He can fulfill all human desires in a perfect and “very good” way. Though the sins that began with Adam and Eve have caused destruction of our earthly home, and though our sins have been the unraveling of our relationships, God is still able to fulfill all physical and emotional needs. God works in our lives, bringing the comfort and answers to the troubles we go through. Through the physical blessings, He reminds us there is a greater need for the soul that He can fulfill.
Your soul needs a relationship with Him. When you lift up your soul to Jehovah God, you are coming face to face—spirit to spirit—with your Creator in the relationship you were meant to have… an eternal relationship with the One who loves you most. Psalm 25 focuses on that close relationship with God by looking at the different ways that Satan tries to cast down one’s soul. Satan, our Adversary, attempts to take us away from God’s presence. Psalm 25 makes the reader aware of the devices Satan is using to keep you from your beautiful relationship with God—a relationship that was always meant for you. The writer of this psalm is believed to be David, and it is David’s life that the reader can look to to see the soul-struggles we go through today. Dear one, your trials are not new. Let David’s story encourage you to use what God gave you to go to Him, to focus on Him, to lift up your soul to God in the midst of any trial or hardship.
This study is designed to speak to women who believe Jesus is their savior and have accepted and obeyed His invitation to put off the old man of sin and put on Christ. A soul stained by sin cannot come into the presence of Jehovah God or have an eternal relationship with Him because God does not look on sin. If you are unsure of your soul’s situation, please read Coming to Him the True and Only Way.
This is the introductory post in the Lifting Up the Soul study from Psalm 25. Subscribe to WomEnCourage to be notified as this study continues.