The Jewish Blessing for Children

The Jewish blessing for children is a short blessing parents speak over their sons and daughters as Shabbat begins, usually on Friday night with a hand resting on each child’s head. Sons are blessed to be like Ephraim and Manasseh, daughters like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah, and every child receives the Priestly Blessing from Numbers 6:24-26.

It takes less than a minute. But a child who hears it every week learns something without a lecture: before the meal, before the songs, before the week starts again, my father and mother ask God to bless me.

A Shabbat blessing at the family table

This blessing belongs to the Friday night Shabbat table. In many Jewish homes it is said just before or just after Kiddush, the blessing over the wine. Traditionally the father says it, though in some homes the mother joins him or says it herself.

The custom is simple. A parent places a hand on the child’s head, or blesses each child in turn, and speaks the blessing. Some families say it in Hebrew. Some say it in English or another language. Many do both.

If you are learning the shape of the evening, our guide on how to celebrate Erev Shabbat in 7 simple steps shows where this blessing fits alongside the candles, Kiddush, and the bread. Many families also sing Shalom Aleichem earlier in the evening.

Where the words come from

The blessing has two parts. The opening line for a son comes from Genesis 48:20, where Jacob blesses Joseph’s sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. The opening line for a daughter is a Jewish family blessing that names the four matriarchs of Israel: Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah.

The second part is the Priestly Blessing from Numbers 6. God gave these words to Moses for Aaron and his sons to speak over Israel:

“The Lord said to Moses, ‘Tell Aaron and his sons, this is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them: “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”’” (Numbers 6:22-26)

The Torah words are ancient. The regular household custom of saying them over each child on Friday night is later Jewish practice. That distinction matters. We do not need to pretend the whole ritual existed in the same form in the first century in order to value it. The blessing is rooted in Scripture, and Jewish homes found a faithful way to put those words into the mouths of parents.

Hebrew text

For a son

יְשִׂמְךָ אֱלֹהִים כְּאֶפְרַיִם וְכִמְנַשֶׁה.

For a daughter

יְשִׂמֵךְ אֱלֹהִים כְּשָׂרָה רִבְקָה רָחֵל וְלֵאָה.

The Priestly Blessing, for every child

יְבָרֶכְךָ יְהוָה וְיִשְׁמְרֶךָ.

יָאֵר יְהוָה פָּנָיו  אֵלֶיךָ וִיחֻנֶּךָ.ּ

יִשָּׂא יְהוָה פָּנָיו אֵלֶיךָ וְיָשֵׂם לְךָ שָׁלום.

Transliteration

For a son

Yesimcha Elohim ke-Efrayim vechi-Menasheh.

For a daughter

Yesimech Elohim ke-Sarah Rivkah Rachel ve-Leah.

The Priestly Blessing, for every child

Yevarechecha Adonai veyishmerecha.

Ya’er Adonai panav eilecha vichuneka.

Yisa Adonai panav eilecha veyasem lecha shalom.

English translation

For a son

May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.

For a daughter

May God make you like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah.

The Priestly Blessing, for every child

May God bless you and keep you.

May God shine His face on you and be gracious to you.

May God turn His face toward you and grant you peace.

Why bless sons like Ephraim and Manasseh?

This is usually the first question. If a father wants to bless his son, why not say, “May God make you like Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob”?

The simplest answer is Genesis 48:20. Jacob blessed Joseph’s two sons and said, “In your name will Israel pronounce this blessing: ‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’” So when a Jewish parent says these words, he is joining a blessing Jacob himself gave to Israel.

There is also something striking in the story. Genesis is full of brothers in conflict: Cain and Abel, Isaac and Ishmael, Jacob and Esau, Joseph and his brothers. Then Jacob crosses his hands and gives the younger Ephraim the firstborn blessing (Genesis 48:14-20). Joseph objects, but the text does not record a fight between Ephraim and Manasseh.

That silence speaks kindly. Parents pray that their sons will not tear the family apart through jealousy, pride, or rivalry.

Ephraim and Manasseh were also raised in Egypt, not in the tents of Jacob. Their mother was Asenath, daughter of an Egyptian priest (Genesis 41:50-52). Yet Jacob received them into the family of Israel, and they became tribes among God’s people. To bless a son in their names is to ask God to keep him faithful even when the surrounding culture is powerful.

Why bless daughters like the matriarchs?

The blessing for daughters names Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah. These women are not paper saints. Their stories are full of waiting, family strain, barrenness, disappointment, courage, and covenant promise.

Sarah waited long years for Isaac. Rebecca left her family to join Isaac’s household (Genesis 24:58). Rachel and Leah lived in a difficult family situation, yet through them came the tribes of Israel. Ruth 4:11 remembers Rachel and Leah as the women who “built up the house of Israel.”

So the blessing does not mean, “May your life be easy.” It means, “May you be faithful to God, fruitful in His purposes, and strong in the household He gives you.” That is a good prayer for a daughter.

The Priestly Blessing and the name of God

The three lines of the Priestly Blessing move in a beautiful order. First, God blesses and keeps. That is provision and protection. Then His face shines, a picture of favor and grace. Finally, He lifts His face toward the child and gives shalom.

Shalom means more than quiet. It is peace, wholeness, safety, order, and life as God intends it.

Numbers 6:27 explains what happens when the priests speak these words: “So they shall put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them.” The human mouth speaks, but God is the one who blesses. That is why a parent can say the words with humility. We are not controlling God. We are asking Him to do what He promised.

The Mishnah, compiled after the time of Yeshua, preserves memories of the Temple service and includes the Priestly Blessing among the daily prayers of the priests (Tamid 5:1). So while the Friday night family custom is later, the blessing itself belongs to Israel’s worship from the Torah onward.

Yeshua, children, and blessing with hands

We should be honest: we do not have evidence that Jewish families in the first century used this exact Shabbat ritual as it is practiced today. But the themes are very much at home in the world of Yeshua (Jesus) and the apostles.

Jacob blessed Ephraim and Manasseh with his hands crossed over their heads (Genesis 48:14). Hebrews remembers that moment as an act of faith: “By faith Jacob, when dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph” (Hebrews 11:21).

Yeshua also welcomed children for blessing. When the disciples tried to stop people from bringing children to Him, He corrected them. Mark tells us, “He took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them” (Mark 10:16). Matthew 19:13-15 tells the same scene with the laying on of hands.

At the end of Luke’s Gospel, Yeshua lifted His hands and blessed His disciples (Luke 24:50). That gesture echoes Aaron lifting his hands to bless the people in Leviticus 9:22. The apostles lived in a world where blessing was not just a nice thought. It was spoken, embodied, and passed on.

Paul also reminds Timothy that faith was handed down in his own family, first through his grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice (2 Timothy 1:5), and that Timothy had known the Holy Scriptures from childhood (2 Timothy 3:15). A home that blesses its children is doing something very biblical.

How believers can use this blessing today

You do not have to become Jewish to bless your children with words from Genesis and Numbers. Christian parents can receive this custom as a simple, Scripture-shaped way to speak life over their children. We are not replacing prayer in the name of Yeshua. We are adding the words God gave Israel to bless His people.

Here is a simple way to begin. Choose a regular time, with Friday night as the traditional choice. Call each child to you. Place your hand on the child’s head. Say the line for a son or a daughter, then say the Priestly Blessing in Hebrew, English, Spanish, or the language your child understands best.

You may also add one personal sentence. “Father, thank You for the kindness I saw in her this week.” “Lord, give him courage to tell the truth.” Keep it short. Children remember words that are repeated with love.

This blessing is also fitting at milestones: a brit milah for a baby boy, a naming for a baby girl, a bar or bat mitzvah, a wedding, or a child leaving home. For more on building faithful patterns in the home, see our article on a strong biblical family.

If you begin this Shabbat, do not worry if it feels awkward the first time. Good family habits often do. Put your hand on your child’s head and ask God to make His face shine there, in that room, over that son or daughter.

Questions people ask

What is the Shabbat blessing for children?

The Shabbat blessing for children is a short blessing parents say over each child on Friday night, usually before or after Kiddush. Sons are blessed to be like Ephraim and Manasseh, daughters to be like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah, and every child receives the Priestly Blessing from Numbers 6:24-26.

What is the Jewish blessing for sons?

The Jewish blessing for sons, or bendición judía para los hijos varones, is: “May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.” It comes from Genesis 48:20, where Jacob says Israel will bless using the names of Joseph’s two sons.

What is the Hebrew blessing for a daughter?

The opening blessing for a daughter is: “May God make you like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah.” It names the four matriarchs of Israel and is followed by the Priestly Blessing said over every child.

Can I say this blessing over a new baby boy?

Yes. Many families say this blessing at a brit milah, the circumcision ceremony for a baby boy. The same blessing is also fitting for a baby naming, a bar or bat mitzvah, a wedding, or another family milestone.

Can Christian parents use the Jewish blessing for children?

Yes. The heart of the blessing comes from the Torah, especially Genesis 48:20 and Numbers 6:24-26. Yeshua Himself laid His hands on children and blessed them (Mark 10:16), so believing parents can pray these words with faith and humility.