DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- A PROPHETIC BLESSINGS

DAD'S RAMBLINGS – A PROPHETIC BLESSING

"And Jacob called his sons and said, 'Gather together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days:…...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." (Genesis 49:1 and 28)

Jacob was coming to the end of his days. He was 147 years old (47:28) and didn't have many more days on this earth before he was gathered to his fathers. So he knew that it was important to give each of his sons a blessing. They were prophetic blessings. Some were not very flattering, but he knew the character traits of each of his sons. He called Reuben his firstborn "unstable as water." Simeon and Levi were "instruments of cruelty." Issachar was a strong donkey. Dan a serpent. Benjamin a ravenous wolf. Other blessings were truly blessings: Naphtali spoke beautiful words. Joseph was a fruitful bough. Asher would be rich. Zebulun would be a haven for ships. Gad would be triumphant in the end. All of these would be worthy of study.

But the most important to us is the prophecy concerning Judah because it was through Judah that the Messiah would come. The name "Judah" means praise. So, Jacob said, "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 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? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between is feet, until Shiloh comes; and to Him shall be obedience of the people" (vss. 8-10).

In retrospect, we know that the Messiah came through the house of Judah. But Jacob had no way of knowing that the Messiah would come through the lineage of Judah. It was divine inspiration that formed this prophetic blessing. Consider again this blessing. He will be victorious over all His enemies, and every knee will bow down before Him. He is called a lion, and in Revelation He is called The Lion of the Tribe of Judah (Revelation 5:5). The scepter or kingship shall not depart from the house of Judah – through the kings of Israel and ultimately through Jesus as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. A lawgiver would come from Judah's loins and people would be obedient to Him when Shiloh comes. Shiloh means Peace and tranquility. That will happen when Jesus comes establishes His kingdom here on earth and He rules with a rod of iron. All of this and more through Judah.

God had promised Abraham that through Him all the earth would be blessed (Genesis 12:3). That blessing continued through Isaac, Jacob, and Judah, to us because it is through these men that our Savior, the Lord Jesus, descended. We are blessed because of Jacob's prophetic blessing on Judah.

Love, Dad