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Yahweh make his face to shine on you, and be gracious to you.
Numbers 6:25 · World English Bible
Parallel translations
  • KJV The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:
  • BSB may the LORD cause His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
  • NKJV The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you;
  • NASB ¶The Lord cause His face to shine on you, And be gracious to you;
  • NLT May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

The blessing asks that the Lord's shining face and grace rest upon His people.

Overview

God's shining face is a vivid image of His pleasure, favor, and gracious presence. To seek His face is to seek the warmth of His acceptance rather than the darkness of His displeasure. This grace is fully revealed in 'the face of Jesus Christ,' where God's glory shines (2 Cor 4:6).

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 13

  • Ps 80:19Turn us again, Yahweh God of Armies. Cause your face to shine, and we will be saved.
  • Ps 119:135Make your face shine on your servant. Teach me your statutes.
  • Ps 31:16Make your face to shine on your servant. Save me in your loving kindness.
  • Ps 67:1For the Chief Musician. With stringed instruments. A Psalm. A song. May God be merciful to us, bless us, and cause his face to shine on us. Selah.
  • Dan 9:17Now therefore, our God, listen to the prayer of your servant, and to his petitions, and cause your face to shine on your sanctuary that is desolate, for the Lord’s sake.
  • Ps 80:7Turn us again, God of Armies. Cause your face to shine, and we will be saved.
  • Exod 33:19He said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim Yahweh’s name before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.”
  • Mal 1:9“Now, please entreat the favor of God, that he may be gracious to us. With this, will he accept any of you?” says Yahweh of Armies.
  • Gen 43:29He lifted up his eyes, and saw Benjamin, his brother, his mother’s son, and said, “Is this your youngest brother, of whom you spoke to me?” He said, “God be gracious to you, my son.”
  • John 1:17For the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.
  • Ps 21:6For you make him most blessed forever. You make him glad with joy in your presence.
  • Ps 86:16Turn to me, and have mercy on me! Give your strength to your servant. Save the son of your servant.
  • Ps 80:1–3For the Chief Musician. To the tune of “The Lilies of the Covenant.” A Psalm by Asaph. Hear us, Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock, you who sit above the cherubim, shine out.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (2)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Numbers videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Numbers 6:25YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on NumbersMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

In the wilderness Christ is the water from the rock, the bronze serpent lifted up that the dying might look and live (John 3:14), and the star and scepter that Balaam saw rising out of Jacob.

How Numbers 6:25 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.