Genesis 49:5

Jacob had twelve sons who were destined in the plan of God to be the fathers of the tribes of the nation of Israel. But this does not mean that all twelve of his sons would become everything that they ought to have been in the service of God: In fact much to the contrary happened. As in most families, only some of Jacob’s children grew in the knowledge of God and served Him faithfully, but some of the children did not do so. What Jacob has to say about Simeon and Levi is not very flattering. In Genesis 49:5-7 Jacob is speaking about his sons Simeon and Levi. Jacob said, “Simeon and Levi are brethren; instruments of cruelty are in their habitations. O my soul, come not thou into their secret; unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou united: for in their anger they slew a man, and in their selfwill they digged down a wall. Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel.”

Notice the descriptive words and phrases that Jacob used to speak about Simeon and Levi: “Instruments of cruelty,” “anger” is used twice to describe them, “they slew a man,” “their selfwill,” “they digged down a wall,” “wrath,” and “cruel.” It is a terrible thing if a believer is known for his or her anger. It is rare that the anger of man will be used in the service of God. Usually when a human being is angry, it is for the wrong reason. That is why it says in James 1:20, “The wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.” Christians are told in Colossians 3:8, “But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth.” This does not mean that all anger is sin, but it certainly means that human beings tend to sin when they get angry, and believers should not be known for their anger.

One of the reasons that Simeon and Levi became angry was probably because of their “selfwill.” A person led by “selfwill” will easily be angry, because such a person is not learning to trust in the Lord or to wait upon the Lord. A selfish person wants what they want now, and they get angry if they must wait. This anger causes them to do things against property and against persons. Thus Simeon and Levi “digged down a wall,” and thus “they slew a man.” Of course, Christians should be known for building things up, not digging them down. And Christians should be known for helping people, not for hurting them. That is one of the reasons that anger in a Christian can be so bad. Anger can cause a believer to do things that should never be associated with a follower of Jesus Christ.

Concerning his son Judah, Jacob said in Genesis 49:8-12, “Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy father's children shall bow down before thee. Judah is a lion's whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up? The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes: His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk.” The most significant of these verses is verse 10 which is a prophetic verse about the coming of the Messiah. It says, “The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.” Of course, we know that the Messiah came in the lineage of David, and David was of the tribe of Judah. The fact that the Messiah must come in the lineage of David is why it was so important to establish that Jesus was born of the lineage of David both through His mother, Mary, and through his step-father, Joseph. The New Testament begins in Matthew 1:1 with the phrase, “The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David.” To say that He is the son of David means that He is in the lineage of David. Matthew gives the lineage of Jesus through Joseph. Luke gives the lineage of Jesus through Mary. It says in Luke 3:21-24, “Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened, And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased. And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli, Which was the son of Matthat, which was the son of Levi, which was the son of Melchi,….” In this passage the phrase “the son of Heli” means that Joseph was the son-in-law of Heli. The lineage continues until it says in Luke 3:31, “Which was the son of Melea, which was the son of Menan, which was the son of Mattatha, which was the son of Nathan, which was the son of David.”

The prophecy that Jacob gave about the Messiah reveals several things about the Messiah. Jacob spoke of “the scepter.” A scepter is symbolic of the one who is in power and authority. Jesus is the King of kings. Jacob said that the Messiah would be a “lawgiver.” More than any other person who was ever on this earth, Jesus was the great teacher. The teachings that Jesus gave will stand forever: forever inscribed as the greatest of all truth. Jesus Himself said in Mark 13:31, “Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.” Jacob said clearly that “Shiloh” would come. The word Shiloh means “rest.” Jesus is the Prince of Peace. He said in Matthew 11:28, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

Jacob said about the Messiah, “unto him shall the gathering of the people be.” This paints a picture of people coming to Christ. People come to Jesus Christ for a good reason: they know that He is the answer to their every need. Jesus will receive everyone who comes to Him, and Jesus will forgive their sins. Jesus will give grace and mercy. Jesus will give everlasting life to those that come to Him. Jesus said in John 6:37, “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.”

In Genesis 49:13-21 Jacob spoke about more of his sons, and Jacob said, “Zebulun shall dwell at the haven of the sea; and he shall be for an haven of ships; and his border shall be unto Zidon. Issachar is a strong ass couching down between two burdens: And he saw that rest was good, and the land that it was pleasant; and bowed his shoulder to bear, and became a servant unto tribute. Dan shall judge his people, as one of the tribes of Israel. Dan shall be a serpent by the way, an adder in the path, that biteth the horse heels, so that his rider shall fall backward. I have waited for thy salvation, O LORD. Gad, a troop shall overcome him: but he shall overcome at the last. Out of Asher his bread shall be fat, and he shall yield royal dainties. Naphtali is a hind let loose: he giveth goodly words.” In this passage of scripture Jacob is talking about the abilities and the strengths of Zebulun, Issachar, Dan, Asher, and Naphtali. It is important to notice that in the midst of talking about these human accomplishments, Jacob says, “I have waited for thy salvation, O LORD.” It is always best to make sure that you are focused on the Lord and on what He can do for you. Human beings, even believers, too easily become focused on or too often uplift other human beings, especially when they see certain gifts or abilities in those human beings. The Apostle Paul wrote about this problem taking place among Christians in First Corinthians 3:3-11, “For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men? For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal? Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase. Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour. For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's husbandry, ye are God's building. According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

Jacob spoke about his sons Joseph and Benjamin in Genesis 49:22-27. Jacob said, “Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall: The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him: But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob; (from thence is the shepherd, the stone of Israel:) Even by the God of thy father, who shall help thee; and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lieth under, blessings of the breasts, and of the womb: The blessings of thy father have prevailed above the blessings of my progenitors unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills: they shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren. Benjamin shall ravin as a wolf: in the morning he shall devour the prey, and at night he shall divide the spoil.”

When Jacob spoke of Joseph’s victories and Joseph’s strength, Jacob immediately stated that God was the reason for capabilities. Jacob said about Joseph, “the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob.” If you are strengthened by the Lord, you have all the strength that you need. The opposite is also true: if you are not strengthened by the Lord, then you do not have the strength that you need to face the difficulties, the sorrows, and the challenges of life. The Apostle Paul also learned how to enter into the strength of the Lord Jesus Christ through faith. Paul wrote in Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth me.”

Jacob told Joseph that he had been helped “by the God of thy father, who shall help thee.” One would think that those who are raised in Christian families would have the best opportunities for learning to trust in the Lord. They have seen faith in their parents. They have seen the Lord bless, and the answer to prayers, and the working of the Lord in decisions that were made, and the comfort of the Lord given in times of trouble. Paul wrote to Timothy in Second Timothy 3:15, “And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” Unfortunately, some children who are raised in Christian homes do not take advantage of such a great opportunity, and instead they choose the way of the world. Everyone has a free choice, and it is the unwise people, young and old, who make the wrong choice. The Bible says in Joshua 24:15, “Choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

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