Genesis | Chapter 49

Genesis 49:1-12

 “All in the family (part 1)”

  1. Intro.
  2. Vs. 1-2 The final words
  3. III. Vs. 3-12 The future of the sons of Leah

Intro.

These are the final words of Jacob and they are to his sons. They have particular interest as fulfillment of prophecy and refocus our attention upon future events, although most of Jacob’s words now would be of historical interest. The truth is we, like Jacob’s sons, have a tendency to live our lives as if they have no future. We become so involved in the present that we fail to prepare for the future and in so doing become so earthly minded that we are no heavenly good. These words of Jacob for his son’s ought to motivate us to live our life in Him, with all purity having our hope assured that what awaits us is of greater importance then what we have now.

Vs. 1-2 The final words

There are five things that we need to realize prior to looking at the details of this prophecy from Jacob to his 12 sons.

  1. First, we are told in verse 33 that these are the final words spoken by Jacob and that they were done so on his death bed. Generally, the words of any person on their deathbed are taken as truth even more then the word of a father to his sons.
  2. Second, notice how the words are printed in our Bibles, they are written in poetry format. What this suggests is that these words were not written in haste, but spoken with much fore thought. Jacob prayed for his sons and their future and the Lord had spoken to him concerning these things with these words being from the Lord.
  3. Third, these words are more then poetry they are prophecy as we are told as much by Jacob himself in verse 1 “Gather together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days”. For us they have become more history then prophecy, to these sons they were able to hear the words of the Lord through their father and look down the halls of time to see the general peoples that would come from their loins.
  4. Forth, we are told in verse 28 that these words were intended to be a blessing. Now as you read through the individual prophecies for each family it is hard to call them a blessing. So how do we see them as a blessing? Though they reveal the individual characteristics of each family those characteristics didn’t need to be true of each individual in the specific tribe. In some ways they were a blessing, as they would provide an early warning system to potential fleshly behavior. Ruben’s descendants who would read of their family heritage as being “unstable as water”, could repent and turn from such behavior.
  5. Finally, the future that was told of each tribe had an extension to the past. For instance, Ruben’s family’s future was unstable because he was unstable, thus the words spoken to each family were related to there past behavior. What a great lesson and tool this would be for future change, without having to repeat the mistakes of our forefathers!

Vs. 1-2 The words “in the last days” will become an expression that will command our attention used some 8 times and this will be the first time it is used to speak consciously with regards to the future. There had been many times where God had spoke directly of future events but this is the first time where man has been conscious of the fact that what he was saying was going to happen.

It seems as though this event happens soon after the last chapter as we are told that Jacob summed strength while on the bed. Then in verse 33 at the conclusion “he drew his feet up into the bed and breathed his last, and was gathered to his people.” This ties in with the author of Hebrews words “By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.” Jacob was a man on the go the difference was in what powered him as he went for most of his life it was the power of his own flesh, at the end of his lie it was the power of the Spirit.

III. Vs. 3-12 The future of the sons of Leah

Vs. 3-4 Here Jacob gives Ruben’s future who was the first born of the family and as such had the rights of the first born which were to be the spiritual leader (priesthood) as well as the social leader (ruler). Notice how the Lord describes Ruben “you are my firstborn, My might and the beginning of my strength”. It seems as though Jacob saw a lot of himself in Ruben a man of natural talents and abilities but he got in his own way as he often operated in his own power. Further more Jacob says that Ruben and his descendants will be “The excellency of dignity and the excellency of power “but” unstable as water.” It was the struggle with his own flesh that made him unstable, which was most clearly scene in the incident recorded in 35:22 where Ruben went into his father’s concubine Bilhah, which as we noted then was not about sex but rather about power that Ruben wanted then and now. It was his pride that caused him to commit sexual immorality. From this tribe we know that no one ever excelled, they had not one prophet, judge, King or priest from among them. How could this be seen as a blessing? Simple, it is a blessing, as they would know of the bent of their flesh and the struggle they would have on handling success, which would cause them to fall into pride. So God in His wisdom did not allow for their outward success.

Vs. 5-7 From Ruben Jacob moves to his net two son’s Simeon and Levi. They also had not demonstrated godly character as you will recall in 34:25-29 where they had killed all the men of the city of Shechem for the action of one man who had taken advantage of their sister Dinah. Because of this they receive a blessing from their father that fits this deed.

Their problem was anger, which was rooted in their “self-will”. In the 34th chapter we were told of the killing the of the men of the city but here we are told of another detail this incident which was “hamstrung an ox.” Horses were hamstrung by cutting the tendons of the leg because of their use in a military use, but oxen were not used for anything other then a peaceful purpose. Thus these sons did this just for the sake of violence which teemed from their anger. Their blessing was to be that of a division and scattering.

Simeon: We know that as they departed from Egypt 450 years, latter they did so as the 4th largest tribe, yet 35 years after that after taking a census 63% of the tribe had perished in the wilderness and they became the smallest tribe. Their portion allotted to them in the land of promise was surrounded by the tribe of Judah and they became mostly absorbed by that tribe. They were blessed as they were divided by a far better tribe and not left to their own self-wills.

Levi: They were scattered to serve the people as servants in the sanctuary. They were the lone faithful tribe at the rebellion in the wilderness over the worship of the golden calf. They received no portion of land, as the Lord was their inheritance. They were blessed and became a blessing.

Vs. 8-12 Jacob here reveals the 4th son’s “Judah’s” future. In the 37th and 38th chapter you will recall that he did not act very well either. It was he who had suggested selling Joseph to make a buck. It was him as well who had not dealt right with his daughter in law Tamar having sex with her thinking she was a prostitute. But it was also Judah who offered himself as a substitute for Benjamin.

The grace of God is clearly evident as this blessing is bestowed upon Judah. All of these statements refer to the fact that this tribe shall be over all the other tribes and they shall praise the Lord for it. The rights to become the ruler and priest are therefor given to Judah and they are described not only in terms of ruling over their brothers but over other nations. Militarily he is described as strong as a lion a term applied to Jesus in Rev. 5:5. In verse 10 we are told that the extent of his government will be until “Shiloh comes”. The word means tranquil or rests and is an epithet of the Messiah. In effect what this is saying is that Judah’s tribe will have a ruler over the land until the Messiah who brings rest comes. So from David’s kingdom until the beginning of the reign of the Herod’s a prince of Judah was head over the nation. The promise was Judah would keep that scepter until Shiloh or rest came and even under foreign occupation they maintained limited rule until 7 A.D. when under Roman occupation Herod an Edomite began to reign. The Rabbis struggled with this verse in light of that and walked through out the streets of Jerusalem saying, “Woe unto us, for the scepter has been taken away from Judah.” There are many that believe that it was at this very time that Jesus was discussing God’s word in the temple telling them of God’s promise spoken of here.

Judah blessing has three parts to it:

  1. That there they are to be the ruler over all other tribes and although this will take some 640 years to be fulfilled it will start with the reign of David.
  2. The second part of it deals with Judah being a “law giver” or priest, which would take 1600 years when Jesus came.
  3. The third part of this has to do with “Binding his donkey to the vine, and his donkey’s colt to the choice vine, He washed his garments in wine, And his clothes in the blood of grapes.” And this deals with the prosperity of Judah’s material blessings. Again fulfilled in Christ as we have all of His spiritual blessings in heavenly places.

These words record by Joseph and edited by Moses neither of which saw their fulfillment and now we look at them and await their final consummation.

Genesis 49:13-32

 “All in the family (part 2)”

  1. Intro.
  2. Vs. 13-21 The future of the son’s of concubines
  3. III. Vs. 22-27 The future of the son’s of Rachel
  4. Vs.28-32 Final resting place

Intro.

In the first 12 verses of 49th chapter Jacob spoke poetically and prophetically using words to bless his sons born to him through Leah. This week he continues his words to the son’s born him through the concubines of Leah (Zilpah) and Rachel, (Bilhah), then he speaks to the two son’s of Rachel. These words speak to us as the final declaration of a father to his sons. Words that you no doubt would want to say to your children about pitfalls to avoid and what matters most in this life. For most of us we don’t appreciate what we have until it is gone. We spend most of our lives striving for things in this world rather then enjoying what we already have in Christ! My Grandmother had something she use to do for her four grandchildren that drove my mother nuts, and I’m told she never permitted her to have as her mother. She would often allow us to have desert before we had our dinner. She would say to my mom, “Rae, life is to short not to enjoy what you heart desires now and then!” Our Lord has called us to enjoy our reward now and in fact it is in doing so that we are the most productive for His Kingdom. There is something about age that teaches you the value of enjoying the life He has given you now! Paul spoke of this to a young pastor named Timothy when he wrote saying; “Godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.”  Contentment is one of the most difficult attitudes to learn yet it is one of the most important. It’s so easy to get all caught up in the worlds attitude of working harder and harder to gain things which we think will bring more contentment and happiness. What we have in Jesus cost us nothing and it is in Him that we have the most joy!

II. Vs. 13-21 The future of the son’s of concubines

Vs. 13 Jacob skips the chronological order here and stays instead with Leah’s 9-10 sons through her concubine Zilpah. What Jacob shares with Zebulun primarily deals with the location of the tribe in the land of promise. The word “by” here can also be rendered “towards” as the allotment of land given this tribe touched the Sea of Galilee on the east and had the tribe of Asher between it and the Mediterranean coastline, thus they did look towards the Sea both on its eastern and western boarders. In 1 Chron 12:33 the tribe is noted for its faithfulness to David and its supply of the largest amount of soldiers of any of the tribes. There is no other mention of achievement or blessing of this tribe other then its location and that they would be involved in trade and commerce. It was this land and the land that bordered it, Naphtali, which prompted Jesus’ comment in Matt. 4:15-16 saying, “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned.”

Vs. 14-15 Jacob then speaks to Issachar whose characteristics are described as a “strong donkey”. They were the tribe that did most of the labor and were content with what they had. According to the census taken in Numbers 26 they were the 3rd largest tribe and though they had the numbers to fight for the nation they chose not to do so. Because of this they were most often enslaved by invading armies, hence the prophetic word of Jacob that they would be a “band of slaves”. Judah subdued her enemies, Issachar was mastered by hers and like a donkey had physical strength but a weak character and was far too lazy and docile. God gave them “pleasant land” and “good rest” but they did not use this to pursue victory. The truth is that which we fail to master will end up mastering us! The lesson learned is that pleasant land and good rest but failure to root out the enemy in your life will cause you to become enslaved by what we possess. God has blessed each of us with that which He gave Issachar and if we do not take advantage of that and possess our possession instead choosing to bury it we will not prosper as we should.

Vs. 16-17 Jacob next brings up the tribe of Dan and says that they shall judge his people and people like Samson came from this tribe. Though Dan was going to supply judges we are told that they would also be “a serpent by the way, a viper by the path, that bites the horse’s heels so that its rider shall fall backward.” Simply put it was through the tribe of Dan that idolatry was introduced to the rest of the nation which caused them to “fall backwards”. Based upon this verse and Daniel 11:37 and Jeremiah 8:16 some feel that the antichrist will come from this tribe. The land which Dan occupied became the center of idol worship in Judges 18:30 it is for this reason that it is omitted in the listings of the tribes in Rev. 7:5-8 although mentioned as have land during the 1000 year reign of Christ.

Vs. 18 At the end of the words concerning Dan, Jacob calls saying “I have waited for your salvation, O LORD!” The words here are where we get the word “Yeshuw’ah” or in English “Jesus”. Jacob has very little strength left as well as seeing that the tribe’s future has not been good and thus their only hope is in the God of salvation. The cry of our heart ought to be like Jacob as we see that our hope lies not in our nation or us but rather in our God. If our hope and security is based upon our goodness and not upon Jesus then we have no hope. It is far better to wait upon Him for our salvation then to take matters into our own hands.

Vs. 19-21 Here we are given the futures of Gad, Asher and Naphtali.

  1. Gad will continue to be invaded be her enemies, but in the end will be victorious. They supplied many troops for David (Chron. 12:14). I can’t help but think of us in as much as we too may go through seasons of being invaded by our enemies but in Christ will “triumph at last”.
  2. Asher was to be a wealthy tribe. Their land allotment was below Mount Carmel to the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. In Deut. 33:24 Moses would speak prophetically of this tribe saying, “Asher is most blessed of sons; Let him be favored by his brothers, and let him dip his foot in oil.” The produce grown here did indeed fill the king’s tables and it is interesting that many have used these words of Moses to dig for oil in Israel but perhaps the reference deals with an oil pipe that flows through this territory to the bay at Haifa.
  3. Naphtali is described as a “liberated deer” that speaks beautiful words. The Judges of Deborah and Barak came from this tribe in Judges 5 but most likely this is a reference to Jesus teaching ministry, which was mostly done in the land, allotted to them on the shores of Galilee.

III. Vs. 22-27 The future of the son’s of Rachel

Vs. 22-27 Jacob moves to the two sons of Rachel, Joseph and Benjamin.

Joseph, out of all the sons has the most blessings pronounced upon him. His future is described as both “fruitful and abundant.” This in spite of his early disadvantage from the hands of his brothers. Joseph did not wonder away from the Lord based upon man’s injustices instead he remained true to the Lord. In verse 26 we are told that his ancestor will never attain to his stature. So this makes these words of Jacob more of a personal testimony then a prophetic one. His tribe already received a double portion when Jacob took as his own Joseph’s two sons in chapter 48. Although Jacob blesses Joseph he also realizes that this was not Joseph’s character but rather the God of Joseph who is given five titles that depict His influence upon the life of Joseph:

  1. 24 Mighty God
  2. 24 The Shepherd
  3. 24 Stone of Israel
  4. 25 God of your fathers
  5. 25 The Almighty

It is great to see how Jacob now describes God compared to how he saw him back in chapter 31:53 only as the God of Abraham and the fear of Isaac.

Benjamin will be known by its fierceness. King Saul came from this tribe as well as Paul the apostle. Judges 3:15-23 and chapters 19-20 will reveal the depth of their cruelty. Moses in Deut. 33:12 speaks of a gentler side of the tribe when he predicts that they will be “The beloved of the LORD shall dwell in safety by Him, who shelters him all the day long; and he shall dwell between His shoulders.” It was only this tribe that went with Judah when the nation divided.

IV. Vs.28-32 Final resting place

Vs. 28-32 Jacob concludes his blessing of the future of his sons and though some hardly seems a blessing they were as they provide great godly insight into character defects. Jacob recognizes that Egypt is not his home and he makes his sons promise that upon his death they will take his body back to the land of promise. Egypt was filled with the glory of man honoring the death of their pharaohs but none of them were good enough to place Jacob in he preferred an old cave in Cannon. Why? Well he waited for a city which has foundations, builder and maker is God! How about us?