Genesis 49:1-28
– Jacob Blesses His Sons
Jacob’s life is coming to an end. He calls his twelve sons around him and makes
predictions about their future and the future of their descendants. These predictions are called blessings. Some could be called curses. These blessings are empowered by God. These descendants would become the twelve
tribes of Israel. Some would be strong
and some would be weak. Some would be
large and some would be small. They all
would make up one nation called Israel and they would enter the Promise Land of
Canaan.
Some Christians today are strong and some
are weak, but we all are one in Christ Jesus.
We all have a Promise Land, heaven as our eternal home. We all have been blessed with different gifts
and we all have the same heavenly Father.
Like the twelve sons we all have faults and shortcomings, but God made them
one nation and us one body in Christ and uses us for His glory.
Reuben is described as “my firstborn, my might, the first sign of my strength,
excelling in honor, excelling in power.
Turbulent as the waters, you will no longer excel, for you went up onto
your father’s bed, onto my couch and defiled it.” – Gen. 49:3-4. If you remember
Reuben had uncontrolled lust and slept with his father’s concubine in Gen. 35:22. Jacob is telling Reuben that he is just like
water, unstable. He had no
self-control. Matt. 6:22 say if your eyes are bad then your whole body is full of
darkness. One bad deed corrupts the
whole body. James 1:6-8 says, “But when he asks, he
must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea,
blown and tossed by the wind. That man
should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is double-minded
man, unstable in all he does.”
Jacob described Simeon and Levi as having
uncontrolled anger. In Gen.
34 they took revenge on the men of Shechem by killing them because his
sister Dinah was raped. Jacob said this
was cruel and that they would be scattered throughout Israel. They would get no inheritance. But despite their sins, God is full of grace.
Later God set apart Levi and his
descendants to carry the Ark of the Covenant.
They would have no inheritance because they had the Lord as their
inheritance. They would be a tribe of
priests between God and Israel.
How do you suffer from a
former sin?
Do you need to confess
your uncontrolled anger?
Judah received the key promises. He received praise, power and
prosperity. Jacob described Judah as
powerful and predicted a royal line coming from him. “Judah, your brothers
will praise you; your hand will be on the neck of your enemies; your father’s
sons will bow down to you. You are a
lion’s cub, O Judah; you return from the prey, my son. Like a lion he crouches and lies down, like a
lioness -- who dares to rouse him? The
scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,
until he comes to whom it belongs” – Gen. 49:8-10. This is the
prophecy about the Messiah. Rev. 5:5 – “See,
the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed.” Jesus is the Lion of Judah. Judah messed up, but repented. God chose Judah showing He forgives us even
though we don’t deserve grace. God put
us where He wants us to fulfill His plan.
Jacob prophesied about Zebulun. He would live by the sea. Matt.
4:13-16 shows this prophecy was fulfilled.
Issachar would be a farmer and settle in
the valley of Esdraelon which was subject to raids. He would become lazy and satisfied not
defending his land and would become a servant to his enemies. He is like a lot of Christians today. They have all the strength of Christ, but
remain timid and weak. They become lazy
and want to be comfortable in their Christianity.
Dan’s descendants would provide justice
for the people. These are seen in the
book of Judges. One of the great judges
was Samson. Today a spiritual Dan can
discern and judge people. They know how
to apply the truth.
Gad would supply many troops for the
later king of Israel, David.
Asher would become rich.
Naphtali is described as a doe set free. His tribe would have the ability to speak and
negotiate.
Jacob blessed Joseph in Gen 49:22-26 – “Joseph
is a fruitful vine”. He prospered
in Potiphar’s house. He was second in
command in Egypt. “With bitterness archers attacked him; they shot at him with
hostility.” His brothers sold him
into slavery and Potiphar’s wife falsely accused him. “But his bow remained steady his strong arms
stayed limber, because of the hand of the Mighty One of Jacob”. He remained faithful to God. God was always with him and helped him
through all his hardships. Joseph is the
example of an ideal Christian today. Through all his hardships he remained
strong.
Joseph’s blessings were transferred to
his 2 sons, Ephraim and Manasseh as seen in Deu. 33:13-17. Their land
was blessed, they had the best gifts of earth and they had God’s favor.
Benjamin would be a ferocious fighter.
Are you double-minded? Will you learn from Reuben’s mistakes, before
it’s too late?
Are you like Judah so
that your life can give praise to God?
Are you like Issahar so
happy and comfortable that you are not prepared when faced with danger from the
enemy?
Are you like Joseph with
roots in God’s Word that you live by?
Do you still make
excuses why you cannot turn from your sin and receive the gift of grace? Ask God right now for His grace and repent and
believe in Him.
Principle: We all have faults and shortcomings, but God
still uses us for His glory.
Genesis
49:29-33; 50:1-14 – Grief and Hope
Jacob was dying and after he gave
blessings to each of his sons, he gave them final instructions o bury him in
the land of Canaan. It was the land God
gave him and his descendants. He was not
afraid to die because he had faith. He
put his life in God’s hands. Matt. 22:31-32 tells us God was his God
just like God was the God of Abraham and Isaac and that God is the God of the
living not the dead.
We learn more about death from these
verses:
Heb. 9:27 – We all are destined
to die once and then face judgment.
Rom. 3:23 – All have sinned and
fall short of the glory of God.
Rom. 6:23 – The wages of sin is
death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ.
John 5:24 – Whoever hears the
Word and believes in Jesus will have eternal life.
John 8:24 – You must believe in
Jesus or you will die in your sins.
John 11:26 – Whoever lives and
believes in Jesus will never die.
When Jacob died, Joseph threw himself on
him and wept. The Egyptians mourned him
for 70 days. Joseph promised Jacob that
he would be buried in Canaan. Joseph was
faithful to the last and asked Pharaoh’s permission to take Jacob there and
then he would return to Egypt.
All mourned Jacob’s death, because they
deeply respected Joseph. Pharaoh showed
deep respect and support of Joseph and allowed him to leave and take his father
to Canaan. Pharaoh sent officials from
the court and from Egypt to accompany Joseph probably for protection along the
way. Then all Joseph’s family along with
Pharaoh’s chariots and horsemen went with Joseph to bury Jacob. They stopped at Atad near the Jordon and they
mourned for another 7 days. Joseph
buried his father with great pomp and ceremony in the patriarchal tomb in the
land of promise.
Tears are not a lack of faith. Loss is worth grieving. It can be an experience of pain that words
cannot describe. We grieve because death
separates us from our loved ones. We
grieve, but we have hope by faith in God’s promises. The resurrection of Christ is the basis for
our hope of being reunited with our loved ones who have died in Christ.
Principle: God’s promises bring hope and direction in
the midst of grief and loss.
How do you have hope in
spite of your loss, because of what you know about God?
How will you trust God
to live an abundant life while in grief?
Genesis
50:15-21 – Joseph Reassures His Brothers
Now that Jacob was dead Joseph’s brothers
were afraid they had received mercy and forgiveness from their brother only for
the sake of their aged father. They
fully expected punishment from Joseph.
They concocted a story that their father had requested mercy for
them. When Joseph heard this, he
wept. How could they not believe he
would honor his forgiveness and not harm them?
He was deeply hurt that they thought so little of him and doubted his
character. Then they backed up their
plea with a genuine display of humility offering themselves as slaves. Joseph reassured them and spoke kindly to
them. Again Joseph told them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I
in the place of God? You intended to
harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the
saving of many lives. So then, don’t be
afraid. I will provide for you and your
children.” – Gen. 50:19-21.
The key verse here is “God intended it for good.” – Gen. 50:20. Whatever you’re
going through, you can know that others may mean it for evil, God means it for
good. We need to endure trials and trust
Him so that He will be glorified in your life.
Ultimately our lives are not in the hands
of men, but in the hands of God. He
overrules all things for His glory. “And we know that in all things God works for the good of
those who love him.” – Rom. 8:28.
The way Joseph treated his brothers is a
picture of how God treats us in Christ.
They didn’t deserve Joseph’s patience, grace and forgiveness; we don’t
deserve God’s patience, grace and forgiveness.
Joseph loved and provided for them and God loves and provides for
us. He sent us Jesus to die for us.
Do you treat your family
with kindness, love and forgiveness?
Do you provide for them
and give them guidance?
God’s purpose for Joseph was the saving
of many lives as well as saving the lives of his people, which later would be
the nation of Israel. Joseph’s belief in
God transformed his pain into praise.
Principle: Believing in the sovereignty and grace of God
transforms our fear and pain into peace and praise.
What pain can you
surrender to God and turn into praise?
Do you have doubts of
His love because of your past?
Genesis
50:22-26 – The Death of Joseph
After a full and prosperous life,
Joseph’s departing words related to the fulfillment of God’s promises. When Joseph was about to die, he wanted his
brothers to know that God would keep His promises. “I am about to
die. But God will surely come to your aid
and take you up out of this land to the land he promised on oath to Abraham,
Isaac and Jacob.” – Gen. 50:24. Twice in his dying words he said “God will surely come to your aid” and predicted that
God would deliver the future Israelite nation from Egypt and bring them into
the land promised. He wanted to assure
and encourage them in their faith to trust God and His plan.
Joseph made only one request of them,
that the sons of Israel take his bones out of Egypt and back to the land of
Canaan, the Promised Land – “you must carry my bones up
from this place” – Gen. 50:25. Canaan is like heaven for believers today.
Are you ready to die?
Are you ready to meet
God?
Has your life
demonstrated your faith in God?
Do you trust God’s
timing?
What will be your last
words to your family?
Will you reassure them
of Christ’s love for them?
Joseph was never buried. His coffin lay above ground for 400 years
until it was taken back to Canaan by Moses in Ex. 13:19 – “Moses took the bones of Joseph
with him because Joseph had made the sons of Israel swear an oath. ‘God will surely come to your aid, and then
you must carry my bones up with you from this place.’”
Joseph lived for a purpose beyond
himself. He was thinking about his
brothers. Like Jesus, his final words
show what was on his heart. In John 17:20-26 Jesus prayed for his
disciples and for future believers. Jesus knew he would experience a hard
death. He was thinking about you before
He died. Because of Jesus Christ we can
have hope and assurance.
Joseph lived 93 years where he did not
choose. If God has you somewhere you do
not want to be, He is there and will bless you as he did Joseph. “God will surely come to your aid” – that is
Joseph’s story, totally confident and with no worries. He did not want his family to live in fear,
but know God would be with them.
Principle: Because of Jesus Christ, believers can live
each day including our last, with assurance of a true and faithful God.
This concludes our study of Genesis. What a great study this has been! We’ve learned so much about God and how He is
sovereign in all things. During the
summer I will be posting on miscellaneous topics and then in the fall I will be
posting on the book of Matthew. I hope you will continue to check out my
insights taken from my Bible studies. --
I encourage you to trust in Jesus.
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