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When I was a youngster and I heard the word “blessing,” I could only imagine that it had to do with getting something good from God. So, it was jarring to read in Scripture or hear people talk about “blessing God.” What on earth could humans possess by way of something good that they could bestow on God whereby God would say, “These humans have blessed me”?

In the Bible, I learned, to speak blessing recognizes that words matter. Our speech does things. And when we speak well of God, when we speak well to God, there is power in our words. To bless God is often to express gratitude and praise.

Let’s examine a few places in Scripture where people bless God. Frequently, it is in response to a particular action they have seen. In the Old Testament, King Nebuchadnezzar observes the deliverance of three Israelites from the fiery consequence that they chose instead of bowing down to his idol. In Daniel 3:28 Nebuchadnezzar says: “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent His angel and rescued His servants who believed in, trusted in, and relied on Him! They violated the king’s command and surrendered their bodies rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.”

In Psalm 68, blessing is repeatedly directed to God as the psalmist rehearses God’s deeds and being:

• 1 “God shall arise, his enemies shall be scattered; and those who hate him shall flee before him!”
• 19 “Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears us up; God is our salvation.”
• “Our God is a God of salvation, and to GOD, the Lord, belong deliverances from death.”
• 26 “Bless God in the great congregation, the LORD, O you who are of Israel’s fountain!”
• 34 “Ascribe power to God, whose majesty is over Israel, and whose power is in the skies.”
• 35 “Awesome is God from his sanctuary; the God of Israel—he is the one who gives power and strength to his people. Blessed be God!”

Finally, in Ephesians 1:3-4, we find familiar words: “3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.”

This blog was adapted from a video devotional by Peter Smith. Click to watch it on Instagram.