Year One, March 1

The LORD Bless You and Keep You1

Genesis 49:1-15

1Then Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you what shall happen to you in days to come.

2 “Assemble and listen, O sons of Jacob,

listen to Israel your father.”

Jacob was about to speak by inspiration. The blessing of a parent whose tongue is taught by God is more precious than can be imagined.

3 “Reuben, you are my firstborn,

my might, and the firstfruits of my strength,

preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power.

4 Unstable as water, you shall not have preeminence,

because you went up to your father’s bed;

then you defiled it--he went up to my couch!”

Though he was the firstborn Reuben missed the birthright, because he was immoral and not serious. Whatever good points may be in a person, if they are not levelheaded, steady, and true, they will come to nothing. To be unstable like the waves of the sea is one of the worst faults and spoils the whole character.

5 “Simeon and Levi are brothers;

weapons of violence are their swords.

6 Let my soul come not into their council;

O my glory, be not joined to their company.

For in their anger they killed men,

and in their willfulness they hamstrung oxen.

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.”

Jacob washes his hands of a great wrong committed by two of his sons. He could not prevent it, because they acted quickly in self will and he did not know about it until after the murderous deed was done. He takes care to give his witness against it in the most serious way. The foolishness of youth will come home to people in their mature years. It is a great mercy from God when we have a good moral compass from our childhood.

8 “Judah, your brothers shall praise you;

your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;

your father’s sons shall bow down before you.”

When Jacob came to Judah, (Judah being a type2 of Christ), the dying patriarch rose to a higher level. He had no more faults to mention, only blessings.

9 “Judah is a lion’s cub;

from the prey, my son, you have gone up.

He stooped down; he crouched as a lion

and as a lioness; who dares rouse him?”

Who would dare to defy the Lion of the tribe of Judah? Jesus the Lord is terrifying to his enemies.

10 “The scepter shall not depart from Judah,

nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,

until tribute comes to him;3

and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.”

When our Lord came to earth as man, his enemies said, “Look, the world has gone after him.”4 To this day, he is the greatest of magnets to attract the hearts of people. He came just when the kingdom had departed from Judah and now he reigns as the Prince of Peace.

11 “Binding his foal to the vine

and his donkey’s colt to the choice vine,

he has washed his garments in wine

and his vesture in the blood of grapes.

12 His eyes are darker than wine,

and his teeth whiter than milk.”

Truly in our Immanuel’s land the wine and milk flow in rivers. “Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.”5

13 “Zebulun shall dwell at the shore of the sea;

he shall become a haven for ships,

and his border shall be at Sidon.”

May the people who make their living at sea be favored by the Lord and never live in darkness as Zebulun came to do.

14 “Issachar is a strong donkey,

crouching between the sheepfolds.

15 He saw that a resting place was good,

and that the land was pleasant,

so he bowed his shoulder to bear,

and became a servant at forced labor.”

Quiet and industrious, Issachar may have been somewhat lacking in courage and energy. There are no perfect people; but we wish that some of our brothers, who seem so satisfied with themselves, were more energetic in their work for God. Yet as Issachar was a true son of Jacob, we trust our more methodical brothers are too. It is good to be serious in the service of our God, because we serve a serious God.

We will leave the rest of Jacob’s blessing for our next reading.

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¹ Numbers 6:24

² type - something or someone that represents something or someone else, usually in the future. As man, Jesus descended from the tribe of Judah. Revelation 5:5 speaks of the Lord Jesus and includes, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David.”

³ ESV footnote: “until Shiloh comes” or “until he comes to Shiloh”

⁴ John 12:19

⁵ Isaiah 55:1