Bless and Kneel

Question

Dear Rabbi, thank you for your previous answer. Another question I have now in my studies is that the Torah seems to use the same word to mean both bless and kneel. “Baruch”, spelled bet, resh, chaf, in various grammar forms. Is there any obvious connection between these two meanings for the same word? Thanks

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Answers

  1. The Just Ask! - AskTheRabbi.org Team

    It is true that the three-letter root word “bet resh chaf” can mean bless and it can also mean bow or kneel. In Modern Hebrew the word is also used for a knee. In the Bible the normative usage of the word is “bless” but the other words also appear. What is the connection between them? Rabbi S. R. Hirsch explains that the knee joint contains the strength and the power to move forwards. In the same way, a blessing given and received in the proper way propels a person “forward”.

     

    Best wishes from the AskTheRabbi.org Team