May 7, 2023
Genesis 49
Chapter 49
Blessings/Prophecies
Part IV
Gad:
He was Jacob’s seventh son by Zilpah, Leah’s handmaid. His full brother was Asher.
Gen 49:19 “Gad, a troop shall tramp upon him, But he shall triumph at last.
Three of the six Hebrew words in verse 19 are a play on words using variants of the root word.
Gad means “attack” or troop.
The verse says “gad, gdud, goode, hu hiy, good, aqeb iqqbah”
The verb form means “to break into” or “to attack.”
Gad will be attacked by a raid of attackers, but he will attack.
Border raids were common and because invaders often came from east of the Jordan River, they settled in what was essentially a buffer zone between Israel and her enemies. 1 Chr 5:18-22.
This tribe was fierce and warlike; they were “strong men of might, men of war for the battle, that could handle shields and bucklers, their faces the faces of lions, and like rose upon the mountains for swiftness” (1Chr 12:8-15).
Elijah was a Gadite (1 Kgs 17:1).
Deu 33:20 And of Gad he said: “Blessed is he who enlarges Gad; He dwells as a lion, And tears the arm and the crown of his head.
Deu 33:21 He provided the first part for himself, Because a lawgiver’s portion was reserved there. (Numbers 32:16-17) He came with the heads of the people; He administered the justice of the LORD, And His judgments with Israel.” (Joshua 4:12)
Asher
Gen 49:20 “Bread from Asher shall be rich, And he shall yield royal dainties.
Asher’s territory was the northeast coastal region of Canaan, from Mt Lebanon to the Mediterranean (Joshua 19:24-31), Their land would be fertile and productive, providing rich food.
“Royal Dainties” = workmen and materials?
They supplied materials and labor to both David (2 Sam 5:11) and Solomon (1 Kgs 5:1-10) for the building of the Temple.
Moses said of Asher in Deut 33:24-25:
Deu 33:24 And of Asher he said: “Asher is most blessed of sons; Let him be favored by his brothers, And let him dip his foot in oil.
Deut 33:25 Your sandals shall be iron and bronze; As your days, so shall your strength be.
A foot operated oil press was the common way of extracting oil. The implication is that the produce would be abundant.
Shoes of iron and bronze are suitable for both soldiers and workmen.
Possible allusion: Oil is symbolic of the Holy Spirit (See Zech 4:11-14).
Bronze is the material that could take the heat of judgment.
In the days of Hezekiah Asher was one of three tribes that kept the passover;
2Ch 30:1 And Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah, and also wrote letters to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they should come to the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, to keep the Passover to the LORD God of Israel.
2Ch 30:2 For the king and his leaders and all the assembly in Jerusalem had agreed to keep the Passover in the second month.
2Ch 30:3 For they could not keep it at the regular time, because a sufficient number of priests had not consecrated themselves, nor had the people gathered together at Jerusalem.
2Ch 30:4 And the matter pleased the king and all the assembly.
2Ch 30:5 So they resolved to make a proclamation throughout all Israel, from Beersheba to Dan, that they should come to keep the Passover to the LORD God of Israel at Jerusalem, since they had not done it for a long time in the prescribed manner.
2Ch 30:6 Then the runners went throughout all Israel and Judah with the letters from the king and his leaders, and spoke according to the command of the king: “Children of Israel, return to the LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel; then He will return to the remnant of you who have escaped from the hand of the kings of Assyria.
2Ch 30:7 And do not be like your fathers and your brethren, who trespassed against the LORD God of their fathers, so that He gave them up to desolation, as you see.
2Ch 30:8 Now do not be stiff-necked, as your fathers were, but yield yourselves to the LORD; and enter His sanctuary, which He has sanctified forever, and serve the LORD your God, that the fierceness of His wrath may turn away from you.
2Ch 30:9 For if you return to the LORD, your brethren and your children will be treated with compassion by those who lead them captive, so that they may come back to this land; for the LORD your God is gracious and merciful, and will not turn His face from you if you return to Him.”
2Ch 30:10 So the runners passed from city to city through the country of Ephraim and Manasseh, as far as Zebulun; but they laughed at them and mocked them.
2Ch 30:11 Nevertheless some from Asher, Manasseh, and Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem.
The prophetess Anna who recognized Jesus in Lk 2:36 was from the tribe of Asher.
Asher is sealed in Rev 7…
Naphtali was the 5th son of Jacob: Born to him by Bilhah, Rachael’s handmaid. Dan was his brother.
Gen 49:21 “Naphtali is a deer let loose; He uses beautiful words.
Deu 33:23 And of Naphtali he said: “O Naphtali, satisfied with favor, And full of the blessing of the LORD, Possess the west and the south.”
They settled “like a deer let loose” in the mountainous region northwest of the Sea of Galilee (Sea of Kinnereth).
Deer-like speed and agility in military matters was also a characteristic of this tribe.
In Judges 4 & 5 Naphtali along with Zebulun were called to service in delivering the Israelites from the hand of Sisera:
Jdg 4:4 Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, was judging Israel at that time.
Jdg 4:5 And she would sit under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the mountains of Ephraim. And the children of Israel came up to her for judgment.
Jdg 4:6 Then she sent and called for Barak the son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, and said to him, “Has not the LORD God of Israel commanded, ‘Go and deploy troops at Mount Tabor; take with you ten thousand men of the sons of Naphtali and of the sons of Zebulun;
Jdg 4:7 And against you I will deploy Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his multitude at the River Kishon; and I will deliver him into your hand’?”
Jdg 4:8 And Barak said to her, “If you will go with me, then I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go!”
Jdg 4:9 So she said, “I will surely go with you; nevertheless there will be no glory for you in the journey you are taking, for the LORD will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” Then Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kedesh.
Jdg 4:10 And Barak called Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh; he went up with ten thousand men under his command, and Deborah went up with him.
Here’s mention of them in the Song of Deborah:
Jdg 5:18 Zebulun is a people who jeopardized their lives to the point of death, Naphtali also, on the heights of the battlefield.
Naphtali is also sealed in Rev 7.
Joseph:
Rachael’s firstborn, older brother of Benjamin, Jacob’s 11th son.
He was favored by Jacob, but despised and hated by his brothers. He was sold into slavery, falsely accused and imprisoned, but ultimately exalted by God to the position as Prince of Egypt to save many souls alive…
He superseded Rueben into the position of First Born, along with the double portion of wealth and prosperity, but NOT the priesthood, which went to Levi, and not the Kingly right to rule, which went to Judah.
Gen 49:22 “Joseph is a fruitful bough, A fruitful bough by a well; His branches run over the wall.
Psa 1:1 Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
Psa 1:2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night.
Psa 1:3 He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.
Gen 49:23 The archers have bitterly grieved him, Shot at him and hated him.
Gen 49:24 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),
Gen 49:25 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.
Gen 49:26 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 double portion given to Joseph was accomplished by Jacob adopting Joseph’s two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, in Genesis 48.
Ephraim was the second son of Joseph. Although he was younger than Manasseh, Jacob blessed him before Manasseh (Gen 48:5).
He became the leading tribe of the Northern Kingdom (of “Israel”); Isa 7:2-17; Jer 31:9,20.
“Ephraim” is sometimes used as a label for the Northern Kingdom.
The N tribes never did desire to yield to David’s reign…
Manasseh
First son of Joseph and Asenath.
Their inheritance was ½ tribe east of Jordan ( Num 32:33,39-42) and ½ tribe west of Jordan ( Josh 16:9; 17:5-11).
This tribe was renowned for being mighty men of valor.
Gideon in the W (Judg 6:15). and Jephthah in the E (Judg 11:1) are two examples.
Moses blessing in Duet 33:
Deu 33:13 And of Joseph he said: “Blessed of the LORD is his land, With the precious things of heaven, with the dew, And the deep lying beneath,
Deut 33:14 With the precious fruits of the sun, With the precious produce of the months,
Deut 33:15 With the best things of the ancient mountains, With the precious things of the everlasting hills,
Deut 33:16 With the precious things of the earth and its fullness, And the favor of Him who dwelt in the bush. Let the blessing come ‘on the head of Joseph, And on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers.’
Deut 33:17 His glory is like a firstborn bull, And his horns like the horns of the wild ox; Together with them He shall push the peoples To the ends of the earth; They are the ten thousands of Ephraim, And they are the thousands of Manasseh.”
In Revelation 7 the “Bakers Dozen” is employed.
12 tribes are sealed with 12,000 per tribe, but Dan is not mentioned. Instead of Dan, the tribes of Joseph and Manasseh are sealed for a total of 12 tribes.
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