The Fight for Favor
According to the Bible, ever since the Garden of Eden humankind has been fighting for the favor of the Most High God. Many in the modern age may deny it, but this is what they live for. Favor is also why non-believers despise believers; they can sense the favor on believers and they hate it because they wish they had it. Favor (or lack thereof) was what turned Cain into a murderer. Favor, and how much we long for it, shows us just how much Esau erred; he exchanged a father’s favor for food. Favor was the key element in Esther’s story; had she not had it, then she would have died, and the story of the Jews in Persia would be so much different today. Fortunately, Esther had divine favor which transferred to favor with the Persian king.
What is favor and why do we long for it so much?
Favor, or “ratsown” in Hebrew, means delight, desire, favor, good pleasure, doing something with one’s own will. In English favor can mean a couple of things — approval, support, or liking someone/something. Favor can also mean an act of kindness.
In the Bible, favor has been described in different ways:
Exodus 28:38 - Aaron bore the iniquity of the Israelites so that they would be accepted by the Lord
Leviticus — many verses describe voluntary and self-willed offerings and things that are accepted by the Lord
Deuteronomy 33:23 — Naphtali was favored and blessed
Ezra 10:11 — Ezra encourages the people to do God’s will and pleasure
Psalms talks much about favor and seeking God’s pleasure and will:
Favor is a shield, life and a mountain (Ps. 5:12, 30:5, 30:7)
The psalmists encourage the readers to seek the Lord’s will and His pleasure, and says they will be blessed (Psalm 40:8, 51:18, 103:21, 143:10)
In favor our horn (represents success, victory) is exalted (Ps. 89:17)
Our desires are satisfied in the Lord (Ps. 145:16,19)
Proverbs tells us how to obtain favor:
If you find wisdom, you find favor (Prov. 8:35)
Justice is God’s delight (Prov. 11:1)
Those who are upright are God’s delight (Prov. 11:20)
Seek good and you will find favor (11:27)
Good men obtain favor (12:2)
Speaking truth his God’s delight (12:22)
The righteous have favor (14:9)
Wise servants receive favor from kings (14:35)
The prayer of the upright are God’s delight (15:8)
Righteous speaking delights kings (16:13)
A king’s favor is like rain and dew (19:12) (gives life)
Finding a wife is obtaining favor from the Lord (18:22)
Isaiah speaks of the Acceptable Day of the Lord — 49:8, 58:5, 61:2
Daniel speaks of mighty kings who do things according to their own wills
Another way many scriptures use this word (ratsown) that can be translated as favor - giving a sacrifice that is acceptable to the Lord.
We all desire favor, to be accepted by the Lord, to be blessed. We have all seen that guy who has favor — the Abels, Josephs, Daniels, Davids and Esthers of the world. Seeing them forces us to choose whether we should despise the favored (e.g. Joseph’s brothers) or seek to befriend them. Do not be the one who despises and abuses the one who has God’s favor and be on the wrong side of history. We have also seen those who lack favor — the Cains, Esaus, Sauls and Absoloms of the world. Do not follow them but rather learn from them.
The Aaronic Blessing
Favor is the key theme of the Aaronic Blessing (Numbers 6:24-26, ESV, from biblegateway.com):
Aaron's Blessing
22 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 23 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them,
24
The Lord bless you and keep you;
25
the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
26
the Lord lift up his countenance[a] upon you and give you peace.
27 “So shall they put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them.”
While the Hebrew word for favor is not expressly used here, the entire blessing describes favor to a tee. Every element in the blessing depicts someone who is being given favor and its cousin, grace. We all long to be blessed, kept, have the Lord’s face shine upon us and be gracious to us, to for Him to give us peace.
One thing that has impressed me recently is finding out that a common Sabbath (or Shabbat in Hebrew) ritual is for fathers to speak this blessing over their children. This weekly blessing focuses on protection, grace and peace. How beautiful is that? How powerful must that be as a child to start the week receiving the favor of the Lord? The priests at the synagogues also perform this blessing upon the attendees. These are things that our hearts long for, God’s grace and favor.
What did Jesus say about favor or grace?
Jesus was not recorded speaking about favor, per se. However, He was witnessed to demonstrating and operating in favor. In Luke 2:52 it says that Jesus increased in wisdom, in stature and in favor with God and man. Jesus also quoted Isaiah, speaking of the Acceptable Year of the Lord (Luke 4:19).
As for grace, Jesus did not use this word (Greek: kharece), but grace is a central theme to the Christian’s new covenant through Jesus Christ. The gospels of John and Luke also both describe in just a few verses how Jesus was full of grace, and he bestowed that upon us as a new covenant:
John 1:14, 16, 17
Luke 2:40
The apostles Peter and Paul both wrote extensively about grace and how it is one of the major elements of the Christian faith. This makes sense that grace would be so impactful for them as they both experienced deep failures in their walks, and God restored them both. Imagine being Peter, one of the original “called” and probably the disciple who made the greatest leap in faith and discipleship. He also experienced the love, grace, favor and miracles of Jesus first-hand. He also saw Jesus transfigured. Then, on the night that would require the most of Peter, he failed in his loyalty to Jesus. How could anyone come back from that. Yet, Peter did. He wasn’t another Judas but rather he overcame and became one of the greatest apostles. The Catholics call him the first pope.
While there is nothing written about Paul ever encountering Jesus in person, we all know who he was in the early days after Pentacost as depicted in Acts. He was one of the greatest enemies of the church and its leaders, such as Peter. He murdered and persecuted the early church thinking that he was doing the right thing. Jesus turned an awful account into a beautiful story as He encountered Paul, leaving him blind, helpless and with a lot of time to think about his encounter and reflect on his life. Paul’s encounter with Jesus was so impactful that Paul was willing to do anything for Jesus and the gospel. Jesus won the heart of a Pharisee, and through him He has won (and continues to win) the hearts of billions. Paul sang the glorious hymns of grace and so inspired others like John Newton to put these lyrics to music.
Peter, Paul and many others lived out the legacy of grace and favor, which we now have with the Father through Jesus Christ. If you believe in Jesus, you have the same grace and favor, which will enable you to live a life worthy of the gospel and of the kingdom of God.
