Genesis
Genesis 49:1-28
As we approach the end of the book of Genesis, we see the life of Jacob coming to an end, at least on this earth. In chapter 48, He blessed Joseph and his two oldest sons, but now Jacob has called his other sons to come to him for one last blessing. If you haven’t yet, please stop reading this and start with Genesis 49:1-28. Jacob gathers his children and, right out of the gate, says something extremely interesting. Verse two reads like this: "Assemble and listen, O sons of Jacob, listen to Israel your father.”
Do you notice that Jacob calls himself both Jacob and Israel in the same sentence? Right at the beginning of these prophetic blessings that Jacob would speak over his boys, he recognizes that he has been both Jacob and Israel to his sons. How comforting it must have been to them to hear their father admit that he hasn’t always been the man that he is today.
One of the great comforts I take as a father, who still struggles with imperfections, is that there aren’t any perfect, earthly fathers in Scripture. All of them are messed up. All of them have had their struggles, yet God still used them. In this phrase, I can hear their father saying, “I haven’t always been who I am today, and the man I was before wasn’t the best example, but listen to me as the man I am today, Israel.” What an uplifting reminder that we aren’t perfect, but God doesn’t leave us that way. He finishes in us what He starts.
Israel then begins the prophetic blessings:
Reuben
- This is so hard to swallow. Reuben, the firstborn, should be receiving the double portion inheritance, yet, because of his instability, the rights to being the firstborn are no longer his. As we read this, we must see that our decisions and the things we do in this life really do matter. Yes, God is sovereign, but any definition of God’s sovereignty that allows us to live without considering the consequences of our actions has greatly missed the biblical understanding of what it means for God to be fully in control.
Simeon and Levi
- These two sons are lumped together for their involvement in the Shechem massacre. Because it was the response to the assault of their sister, Dinah, it might have seemed justified, but their response was a gross retaliation for what had happened. This yet again shows us why we must leave vengeance to the Lord. The end result is that the brothers’ inheritances would be scattered. As we go through the rest of the Old Testament, you will see both of them respond differently to this scattering:
Simeon would leave Egypt eventually as the third-largest tribe in Israel.[1] However, as the Israelites go through this wilderness season, this time of great trial would decimate over 60% of their population.[2]This should be a grave reminder of what self-righteous anger can do in our lives.
Levi’s scattering would become more of a blessing. Again, this was linked to how the tribe of Levi responded to this prophetic blessing spoken over them. In Exodus 32, the entire tribe of Levi was on the Lord’s side, and God scattered them throughout the entire nation of Israel.
- From these two young men, we learn yet again that our actions matter. We also learn that, when suffering from the consequences of our sin, we should draw closer to God and believe that He is a merciful God.
Judah
- One could write pages about this blessing, but for brevity, we can write just one word: GRACE. He certainly did not have the character of Joseph, yet this is the tribe that the Lion would come from- JESUS!
Zebulun
- There isn’t much said about this son, yet everything that is said comes true. This tribe would be sandwiched between the Sea of Galilee and the Mediterranean.
Issachar
- This prophecy in verses 14-15 would certainly come true. This tribe would dwell in an extremely fertile land. They would be one of the larger tribes (as listed in Numbers 26) but would come to be the easy and steady target of oppression from foreign nations. There is also a hint that Issachar’s passivity would be passed along to all of his descendants.
Dan
- The first line in his prophecy is that he shall judge his people. This would become true as one of his descendants became none other than the most famous judge: Samson.[3] As for the rest of the prophecy, every single bit of it would come to pass, as this tribe would be the one that introduces idolatry into Israel.[4] At the end of these words, Jacob cries out and says, “I have waited for your salvation, O LORD!” Interestingly enough, the Hebrew word for salvation is “yeshuwah.” While looking at the dismal plight of Dan, Jacob cries out for Jesus. Right here in the Old Testament, we see the Gospel!
Gad
- Jacob prophesied that Gad would be attacked on many angles, but that he would come out of each and every one victorious.[5]
Asher
- Not only would this tribe be bountiful in food, but they would also yield exquisite food from their region.
Naphtali
- While this isn’t the tribe that Jesus would come from, this is the region in which Jesus would do much of his ministry. It appears that this prophecy is alluding to the fact that Jesus would speak much in this tribe’s land.
Joseph
- To get a better understanding of the final words given to Joseph, listen to the message on Genesis 48.
Benjamin
- This tribe would be known for being rather fierce. This not only applied to Benjamin, but to everyone after him.
After reading these “blessings,” one has to wonder if they were “blessings” indeed. Why do some of the boys get great things spoken over them while others do not? It just doesn’t seem fair. Nothing could be further from the truth. What is fair is that we die in our sins. Every single one of these tribes, even though some of their circumstances were more severe than others, would still become an inheritor of the covenant made to Abraham. In reality, they got way better than fair.
Even though it might look like others have it better or easier, the truth is that we have it much better than “fair” too. As recipients of the New Covenant, we have been grafted into this family and are getting far more than we deserve. We get Jesus!
Even when He seems far away in the passage. Even when it doesn’t look “fair.” Even when we suffer from our sinful choices, Jesus is still there.
Every word on every page whispers the name, Jesus. This is the Bible.
By Pastor Daniel Weeks
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[1] Numbers 1:23
[2] Numbers 26:14
[3] Judges 13:2
[4] Judges 18:30
[5] Jeremiah 49:1