Tuolumne Community Baptist Church

GENESIS 49: Jacob’s last words to his sons

Jacob calls his sons: This was Jacob’s last significant act as a patriarch and as the heir to Abraham and Isaac. Here, he prophesied blessings upon each son, one-by-one. Some of what follows are not so much blessings as they are prophecies regarding what God will do with these tribes in the future.

• This is the first mindful or deliberate prophecy spoken by a man in the Bible. There were many prophecies announced by God, such as the promise of the triumph of the seed of the woman in (Genesis 3:15) the first reference to the Gospel of Jesus, and other veiled prophecies by men, this is the first declared prophecy through a man in the Bible.
• Jewish traditions tell us that as Jacob was about to bless his sons, he was ready to tell them the “great secret concerning their end of time.” But not just concerning their future, but the future of their tribe.

Genesis 49:1-4                                           New King James Version

Jacob’s Last Words to His Sons

1  And Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days:

2 “Gather together and hear, you sons of Jacob,                                                          and listen to Israel your father.

• Reuben: as the firstborn of the family, Reuben had a claim to the inheritance rights of the firstborn, right?

3 “Reuben, you are my firstborn,                                                                                My might and the beginning of my strength,                                                                 The excellency of dignity and the excellency of power.

• Jacob refers to himself when he was younger man, but the blessing for Reuben is going to change, it sounds more like a rebuke. 

4   Unstable as water, you shall not excel,                                                                    Because you went up to your father’s bed;                                                                    Then you defiled it— He went up to my couch.                                                                                                 

• Reuben’s immorality with his father’s concubine Bilhah (the mother of his brothers Dan and Naphtali) is recorded in Genesis 35:22.
• Unstable as water: Because of Reuben’s instability, the birthright was divided. Usually, the firstborn was the spiritual and social leader of the clan; but among the sons of Israel, the rights of blessing, priesthood, and ruling authority were divided among brothers rather than being centralized in one. 
• You shall not excel: The tribe of Reuben never did excel. No prophet, no judge, or king that we know of came from the tribe of Reuben. Reuben is an example of how the first can be last (Matthew 19:30).
• The phrase “he went up to my couch” this is a solemn rebuke by Jacob (Israel) to his oldest son, Reuben. Jacob shifts from speaking to Reuben to speaking about him in the third person (“he went up”), expressing deep disappointment and emotional distance as he recalls how Reuben slept with Bilhah, his father’s concubine.                                    

“So a man may have great opportunities, and yet lose them. Uncontrolled passions may make him very little who otherwise might have been great.” (Spurgeon)

GENESIS 49:5-6

5  “Simeon and Levi are brothers;                                                                       Instruments of cruelty are in their dwelling place.

• The second-born Simeon and the third-born Levi received the same words for the same evil deed. They were instruments of cruelty when they wiped out all the men of Shechem in retaliation for the rape of their sister Dinah (Genesis 34:25-29).

6  Let not my soul enter their council;                                                                 Let not my honor be united to their assembly;                                                                       For in their anger, they slew a man,                                                                                  And in their self-will they hamstrung an ox.

• Jacob, perhaps in weakness, did nothing at the time except register a small, self-centered complaint (Genesis 34:30). Yet he (and the LORD) remembered this event. 
• This illustrates the principle that the sins of our past can come back and haunt us. Even when forgiven, they may carry consequences we must face for a lifetime.

GENESIS 49:7

7   Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce;                                                                          And their wrath, for it is cruel!                                                                                          I will divide them in Jacob                                                                                                 And scatter them in Israel.

• The Bible speaks of a godly anger, be angry and do not sin, (Ephesians 4:26) in an ungodly anger (Let all bitterness, wrath, anger…be put away from you, Ephesians 4:31). Often, the difference between a godly, righteous anger and an ungodly anger is self-will.
• The prophecy of dividing and scattering turned out to be a curse for Simeon. The tribe of Simeon was the weakest numerically of the 12 tribes(Numbers 26:14) and shared an allotment of land with Judah (Joshua 19:1). The tribe of Simeon became small during the wilderness wanderings. They started out from Egypt being the third largest tribe (Numbers 1:23), but some 35 years later, at the second wilderness census of Israel, 63% of the tribe perished and they became the smallest tribe (Numbers 26:14).
• So, both Simeon and Levi were scattered, but one as a blessing and the other as a curse. “Happy is that man who, though he begins with a dark shadow resting upon him, so lives as to turn even that shadow into bright sunlight. Levi gained a blessing at the hands of Moses, one of the richest blessings of any of the tribes” (Spurgeon).

The American author Washington Irving said: “It lightens the stroke to draw near to him who handles the rod.” When we suffer from our sin, we should draw near to God and anticipate that in mercy He will turn suffering into blessing.

• The tribe of Levi was chosen for religious service because they stayed loyal to God during the Golden Calf sin at Mount Sinai. God set the entire tribe apart to do holy work, replacing the firstborn sons of Israel. However, actual high duties as ordained priests were restricted exclusively to Aaron and his direct descendants, while the rest of the Levites assisted them.

GENESIS 49:8

8  “Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise;                                                         Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;                                                       Your father’s children shall bow down before you.

• Judah wasn’t a complete model character, yet he gets the most press. He suggested a profit motive in getting rid of Joseph (Genesis 37:26). He did not deal faithfully with his daughter-in-law Tamar (Genesis 38:26), and he had sex with her as a prostitute (Genesis 38:18). 
• But he showed good character when he interceded and offered himself as a substitute for Benjamin (Genesis 44:18-34). Overall, this blessing is an example of the richness of God’s grace to the undeserving.

In a powerful way, this prophecy over Judah is a description of Judah’s greatest descendant: Jesus Christ. “The dying patriarch was speaking of his own son Judah; but while speaking of Judah he had a special eye to our Lord, who sprang from the tribe of Judah. Everything therefore which he says of Judah, the type, he means with regard to our greater Judah, the antitype, our Lord Jesus Christ” (Spurgeon).

GENESIS 49:9-12

9  Judah is a lion’s whelp;                                                                                         From the prey, my son, you have gone up.                                                                        He bows down, he lies down as a lion;                                                                         And as a lion, who shall rouse him?

10  The scepter shall not depart from Judah,                                                                           Nor a lawgiver from between his feet,                                                                              Until Shiloh comes;                                                                                                          And to Him shall be the obedience of the people.

11  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.

12  His eyes are darker than wine,                                                                               And his teeth whiter than milk.

• Each of these refer to the ruling position Judah will have among his brethren. He inherited the leadership aspect of the firstborn’s inheritance. This leadership position among his brothers meant that the eventual kings of Israel would come from Judah and that the Messiah — God’s ultimate leader — would eventually come from the tribe of Judah. 
• In Revelation 5:5, Jesus is called the Lion of the tribe of Judah.
• “The firstborn normally had two rights. 
• First, he became the leader of the family, the new patriarch. 
• Second, he was entitled to a double share of the inheritance, receiving twice as much as any of the other brothers.” (Boice)

Until Shiloh comes: The leadership prophecy took some 640 years to fulfill in part with the reign of David, first of Judah’s dynasty of kings. The prophecy took some 1600 years to completely fulfill in Jesus. Jesus is referred to as Shiloh, the name meaning, He whose right it is or to Whom it belongs and a title anciently understood to speak of the Messiah.

• From David until the Herods, a prince of Judah was head over Israel (even Daniel in captivity). The promise was that Israel would keep this scepter until Shiloh comes. Even under their foreign masters during this period, Israel had a limited right to self-rule, until a.d. 7. At that time, under Herod and the Romans, they took their right to capital punishment — a small but remaining element of their self-governance — was taken away.
• Binding his donkey to the vine: This blessing also contained a description of Judah’s material abundance (the vine… the choice vine). Judah’s land was great wine-growing country.

GENESIS 49:13

13  “Zebulun shall dwell by the haven of the sea;                                                                   He shall become a haven for ships,                                                                                And his border shall adjoin Sidon.

• Jacob now skipped the birth order, moving to the tenth-born and ninth-born sons, but keeping his focus on the sons born of Leah. The tribe of Zebulun was noted for its faithfulness to David, supplying the largest number of soldiers to David’s army of any single tribe: 
• Of Zebulun there were fifty thousand who went out to battle,                  expert in war with all weapons of war, stout-hearted men who could keep ranks (1 Chronicles 12:33).
• He shall become a haven for ships: The tribe of Zebulun seems to have settled the piece of land sitting between the Mediterranean Sea and the Sea of Galilee. Literally, shall dwell by the haven of the sea can be translated looking towards the sea. Zebulun did look to the sea, both to the east and west.

GENESIS 49:14-15

14  “Issachar is a strong donkey,                                                                                           Lying down between two burdens;

15  He saw that rest was good,                                                                                           And that the land was pleasant;                                                                                       He bowed his shoulder to bear a burden,                                                                 And became a band of slaves.

• Issachar is a strong donkey: Issachar was a large tribe — third in size according to the Numbers 26 census.
• And became a band of slaves: Because of their size and abundance, they were often targets of oppressive foreign armies who put them into servitude. Thus, they became a band of slaves.
• “The meaning seems to be that Issachar was strong, but docile and lazy. He would enjoy the good land assigned him, but would not strive for it. Therefore, eventually he would be pressed into servitude and the mere bearing of burdens for his masters.” (Leupold)

GENESIS 49:16-18

16  “Dan shall judge his people                                                                                                   As one of the tribes of Israel.

• The tribe of Dan did judge his people. They supplied one of the most prominent of the Judges, Samson (Judges 13:2).

17  Dan shall be a serpent by the way,                                                                                   A viper by the path,                                                                                                        That bites the horse’s heels                                                                                         So that its rider shall fall backward.

18  I have waited for your salvation, O Lord!

• Dan shall be a serpent by the way: Dan was a troublesome tribe. They introduced idolatry into Israel (Judges 18:30). Jeroboam set up one of his idolatrous golden calves in Dan (1 Kings 12:26-30), and later Dan became a center of idol worship in Israel (Amos 8:14).
• Dan is left out of the listing of tribes regarding the 144,000 in Revelation 7:5-8. But Dan is the first tribe listed in Ezekiel’s millennial roll call of the tribes (Ezekiel 48). This is a remarkable sign of God’s redemption.
• I have waited for your salvation, O LORD: The Hebrew word for salvation is “yeshuwah.” At this point in the prophecy, when Jacob was near death, he called out for God’s salvation. Knowingly or not, Jacob called out for Jesus.
• “What a happy breathing-space is this! When you and I also are near our journey’s end, may we be able to say, as Jacob did, ‘I have waited for thy salvation, O Lord.’” (Spurgeon)

GENESIS 49:19

19  “Gad, a troop shall tramp upon him,                                                                          But he shall triumph at last.

• The tribe of Gad supplied many fine troops for the later king of Israel, David (1 Chronicles 12:14).
• A troop shall tramp upon him: In the days of Jeremiah (among other times), foreign armies oppressed Gad (Jeremiah 49:1). Yet victory would be his in the end (he shall triumph at last).
•  He shall triumph at last: “This has been the blessing of many a child of God — to fight, and apparently to lose the battle, yet to win it in the end” (Spurgeon)

GENESIS 49:20-21

20  “Bread from Asher shall be rich,                                                                                  And he shall yield royal dainties.

• Bread from Asher shall be rich: In Deuteronomy 33:24, Moses again took up this prophecy regarding Asher: Asher is most blessed of sons; let him be favored by his brothers, and let him dip his foot in oil.
• He shall yield royal dainties: Apparently, the land eventually occupied by Asher was good enough to bring not only necessities.
• But also luxuries. (Dainties is a noun meaning choice, delicious, or highly pleasing pieces of food)

21  “Naphtali is a deer let loose;                                                                                  He uses beautiful words.

• Naphtali’s land was in a key portion near the Sea of Galilee, the region where Jesus did much of His teaching and ministry.

Matthew wrote about the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali:

Matthew 4:12-16                                  New King James Version

12   Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. 

13   And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, 

14   that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:

15  “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,                                                        By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan,

16  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.”

GENESIS 49:22-26

22 “Joseph is a fruitful bough,                                                                                       A fruitful bough by a well;                                                                                                  His branches run over the wall.

• Key Hebrew Words for “Bough” Anaph (עָנָף): Refers to the main boughs or foliage of a tree, used symbolically for strength, widespread shade, or destruction when lopped off (e.g., Psalm 80:11; Daniel 4:14).
• This was both a description of Joseph’s life and a personal blessing concerning his descendants. In a sense, Joseph’s tribes were already blessed when his sons received their blessing in Ch. 48.
• This description of Joseph — as a fruitful bough by a well — speaks of his being well-watered and provided for in his deep and real relationship with God. 
• “The main point in Joseph’s character was that he was in clear and constant fellowship with God, and therefore God blessed him greatly. He lived to God, and was God’s servant; he lived with God, and was God’s child” (Spurgeon).

23  The archers have bitterly grieved him,                                                                        Shot at him and hated him.

• Though Joseph was shot at and hated by his older brothers, he was still a fruitful tree (bough). 
• This was because the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the Mighty God of Jacob. The idea is that God’s hands were on Joseph’s hands, giving him strength and skill to work the bow expertly. God was there, even when Joseph did not know it.

24  But his bow remained in strength,                                                                            And the arms of his hands were made strong                                                                                       By the hands of the Mighty God of Jacob                                                                (From there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel),

• Joseph was certainly blessed in his posterity. His tribes were some of the most populous. In this sense, he received the material blessing, the double portion aspect of the inheritance of the firstborn.

25  By the God of your father who will help you,                                                             And by the Almighty who will bless you                                                                                         With blessings of heaven above,                                                                           Blessings of the deep that lies beneath,                                                                     Blessings of the breasts and of the womb.

26  The blessings of your father                                                                               Have excelled the blessings of my ancestors,                                                                  Up to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills.                                                        They shall be on the head of Joseph,                                                                        And on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers.

• The blessings of your father have excelled the blessings of my ancestors: Jacob could say this because he was, for much of his life, a scoundrel. Now at the end of his days, he saw just how good God was to him. He was forgiven much and loved much.(Luke 7:47).

The Mighty God of Jacob: In his words about Joseph, Jacob listed five great titles for God. These titles show that Jacob did come to an understanding of who God is.

1. The Mighty God of Jacob.
2. The Shepherd.
3. The Stone of Israel.
4. The God of your father.
5. The Almighty.

This is much better than when Jacob referred to God as the God of Abraham or the Fear of his father Isaac (Genesis 31:53).Now he knew who God was for himself.

GENESIS 49:27

27   “Benjamin is a ravenous wolf;                                                                                In the morning he shall devour the prey,                                                                            And at night he shall divide the spoil.”

• This was the tribe with a reputation for fierceness, great warriors. But I think there’s more to this description. I looked up ravenous wolf and found something interesting. A female wolf with pups is the most ravenous. They hunt and devour their pray, so, that when she returns, the pups will lick her mouth and she will regurgitate the eaten pray, so that it is tenderized for the pups. The tribe of Benjamin had a reputation of great care over their young.
• He shall devour the prey: To see the great extent of this, look at Ehud(Judges 3:15-23),Saul(1 Samuel 9:1, 14:47-52),and Paul (Acts 8:1-3). The cruelty of this tribe in general is seen in Judges 19 and 20.

The tribe of Benjamin was: Elite Military Reputation of Left-handed warriors: The tribe was famous for producing elite, left-handed shock troops and slingers who could shoot a hair and not miss . Fierce protectors: They were characterized in the Blessing of Jacob (Genesis 49:27) as a “ravenous wolf,” devouring prey in the morning and dividing plunder at night.

GENESIS 49:28

28   All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father spoke to them. And he blessed them; he blessed each one according to his own blessing.

• And he blessed them: Some of the things mentioned regarding these tribes may seem a bit cloudy, but only because we may not know their exact fulfillment until the age to come.
• Each one according to his own blessing: Each son and each tribe that would come from them had their own calling and destiny. Yet the remarkable promise remained — that they each would survive and grow into significant tribes, without one perishing during the centuries to come in Egypt.

Jacob’s Death and Burial

GENESIS 29-33

29  Then he charged them and said to them: “I am to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 

30   in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of Ephron the Hittite as a possession for a burial place. 

31  There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife, there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah. 

32  The field and the cave that is there were purchased from the sons of Heth.” 

33   And when Jacob had finished commanding his sons, he drew his feet up into the bed and breathed his last, and was gathered to his people.

• This ends the life of the last of the great patriarchs, of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Yet the work and plan of God did not end. It continued through men and generations to come.
• “Jacob did not yield up the ghost until he had delivered the last sentence of admonition and benediction to his twelve sons. 
• He was immortal till his work was done. So long as God had another sentence to speak by him, death could not paralyze his tongue” (Spurgeon).
• And was gathered to his people: There are said to be three basic attitudes towards death. Among the ancient Greeks, they held to what can be called the death-accepting view. Our modern world is sold out to a death-denying approach. The Biblical approach is the death-defying attitude.