Book excerpt: The Old Testament idea of "salvation" shows an important relationship between God's activity of blessing and the deliverance of his people. This relationship is the stimulus for Claus Westermann's search for a theological clarification of blessing. In a study that analyzes both Old and New Testament concepts, Westermann finds that, more than simply the act of bestowing, blessing encompasses the results that come of it. Blessing is not a magical transferal of power but a manifestation of divine activity.