Dan and Naphtali
Naphtali was Jacob's sixth-born son and two sons by Rachel's maidservant, Bilhah. Naphtali's older brother was Dan.
Rachel was so delighted at the birth of another son that she called the child Naphtali, which means "my wrestling." She chose this name because she felt vindicated (Justified) after struggling with her older sister, Leah, to provide Jacob with heirs: "Then Rachel said, 'I have had a great struggle with my sister, and I have won.' So, she named him Naphtali" (Genesis 30:8).
Little more is written of Naphtali in the Bible; we know that he had four sons: Jahzeel, Guni, Jezer, and Shillem (Genesis 46:24), and, eventually, he moved his family with Jacob to Egypt to escape the famine.
Jacob's deathbed blessing upon Naphtali was, "Naphtali is a doe set free that bears beautiful fawns" (Genesis 49:21) or "gives beautiful words" (NASB). Scholars suggest many interpretations for Jacob's blessing of Naphtali. Some say it implied gentleness of character; others think it may have alluded to agility in battle or hastiness.
Naphtali's descendants came to be known as the tribe of Naphtali, one of the twelve tribes of Israel. The first census in the wilderness credited 53,400 adults, battle-ready males to the tribe of Naphtali (Numbers 1:42–43). A later census taken near the end of the wilderness wanderings counted 45,400 men of Naphtali who were capable of battle (Numbers 26:48).
When Israel entered the Promised Land, it pronounced a blessing on Naphtali's tribe: "Naphtali is abounding with the favor of the LORD and is full of his blessing; he will inherit southward to the lake" (Deuteronomy 33:23). As indicated in this blessing, Naphtali settled in northern Canaan in the high regions west and northwest of the Sea of Galilee.
Three Levitical cities reserved for the family of the Gershonites existed within the tribe's borders (Joshua 21:32; 1 Chronicle 6:62) along with Kadesh, a city of refuge (Joshua 20:7). Naphtali successfully conquered the region but did not drive out the Canaanites. Instead, the Canaanites were the geographical position of the tribe which led to several significant conflicts in the region. The most significant was the war against Jabin, King of Hazor. Victory over Jabin came by the hand of Barak, the Hebrew Warrior.
Barak, the Hebrew warrior
Barak was a ruler of Ancient Israel. As military commander in the biblical Book of Judges, Barak, with Deborah, from the Tribe of Ephraim, the prophet and fourth Judge of pre-monarchic Israel, defeated the Canaanite armies led by Sisera.
Barak was the son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, and Barak's mother was from the Tribe of Benjamin. His story is told in the Book of Judges, Chapters 4 and 5.
The story of the Hebrews' defeat of the Canaanites led by Sisera, under the prophetic leadership of Deborah and the military leadership of Barak, is related in Judges Chapter 4 and repeated in poetry (Chapter 5, which is known as the Song of Deborah).
Chapter 4 makes the chief enemy Jabin, King of Hazor, though his commander-in-chief, Sisera, played a prominent part.
Deborah summoned Barak, the son of Abinoam, from his home at Kedesh in Naphtali and ordered him, in the name of YHWH, to take ten thousand men to Mount Tabor. He agreed on the condition that Deborah should go with him. As Deborah had expected, he was attacked by Sisera, whose forces were put to flight, and the more significant part of them were slain by Barak's army.
Because Barak would not go to battle without Deborah, in turn, she prophesied that the honor of victory would not go to him but rather to a woman (Judges 4:9). Barak asked Deborah to go with him because of her connection with God. Some Scholars see Barak as spineless, while others might see Barak as making an intelligent decision since Deborah was a mediator between God and humans. Most authorities believe this passage refers to Jael's killing of Sisera in her tent following the battle, while others believe this refers to Deborah herself.
Scripture reading: Revelation 7:13 And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? 14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. Moreover, he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
The 144,000 mentioned here are people whose beginnings were far from holy. However, they are going to stand pure and holy finally. However, how do they get there?
We are reviewing the tribes of Israel, which comprise 144,000, and we have seen and will continue to see the process by which these people will be made perfect: They come out of great tribulation, wash their robes, and make them white in the blood of the Lamb.
Jacob fought with God and became Israel because he persevered through this purifying exercise. Because he wrestled with God and prevailed, he was called Israel; and it is this that constitutes those who come out of Jacob's trouble as the purified 144,000. They did not give up; they persevered to the end as Jacob did, and Jacob's trouble is their experience.
Next, let us recall The Dark Beginnings of These Twelve Sons. The sin of Jacob, and the train of events to which it led, had not failed to exert an influence for evil. What was the sin of Jacob? It was what he did in embezzling the birthright from his older brother. It was a sin that caused him to flee from home, and it unfolded a train of events in his life that finally did not fail to exert an influence for evil, an influence that revealed its bitter fruit in the character and life of his sons. As these sons arrived at adulthood, they developed serious faults. The results of polygamy were manifest in the household. This terrible evil tends to dry up the very springs of love, and its influence weakens the most sacred ties.
We see here another segment of this horrifying experience – the jealousy of the several mothers had embittered the family relations, the children had grown up contentious and impatient and out of control. Moreover, as they grew to adulthood, serious faults were brought forth, and they had to be purged and cleansed from those severe faults.
The Birth of Dan and Naphtali provide us with a look at another segment of the life of these twelve sons in the story of the conflict into which the various mothers bore them.
(Genesis 30:1-8) And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, give me children, or else I die. 2 And Jacob's anger was kindled against Rachel: and he said, [Am] I in God's stead, who hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb? 3 And she said, Behold my maid Bilhah, go in unto her. She shall bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by her. 4 And she gave him Bilhah her handmaid to wife: and Jacob went in unto her. 5 And Bilhah conceived, and bare Jacob a son. 6 And Rachel said, God hath judged me, and hath also heard my voice, and hath given me a son: therefore, called she his name Dan. 7 And Bilhah Rachel's maid conceived again, and bare Jacob a second son. 8 And Rachel said, with great wrestling have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she called his name Naphtali.
Dan and Naphtali – is our lesson. We will learn why those of the tribe of Dan were not in Revelation chapter 7. Indeed, Dan was not included in those twelve tribes. There is no 144,000 segment from Dan at all. We want to know why Naphtali is there but not Dan, his older brother; however, we need to continue with the life of Balak, so we must discontinue much of the story of Dan and Naphtali however, we will save the rest of their story for another time.
You remember, the last thing I said was, "The most horrifying experience was the war against Jabin, King of Hazor. Victory over Jabin came by the hand of Barak, the Hebrew Warrior."
By comparing these two, Dan and Naphtali, you can decide to be part of the tribe of Naphtali. There is a direct contrast there. Despite the terrible beginning of Naphtali and Dan, Naphtali responded uniquely as time went on. How is he described?
(Genesis 49:21) “Naphtali [is] a hind let loose:”
What is a hind like out in nature? It is timid, and it runs away. It fears you. If you come into its path, what does it do?
The timidity that developed in Naphtali can be an adverse condition. Timidity is also the fruit of self-protective selfishness, a legacy from birth. However, look how it can be overcome. Timidity, like judgment, is a good thing if correctly managed. Dan did not overcome his judging ability, but this man was timid and could overcome his timidity.
The Timid Can Become Resolute (firm, unyielding,unwavering,steadfast).
God has chosen you for a great and solemn work. He has been seeking to discipline, test, prove to you, refine and ennoble (dignify) you that this sacred work may be done with a single eye to His glory, which belongs wholly to God.
It is a work that belongs wholly to God.
What a thought that God chooses a man and brings him into close connection with Himself and gives him a mission to undertake, a work to do for Him. A weak man is made strong, and a timid man is made brave. The irresolute becomes a man of firm and quick decision. What! Is it possible that man is of so much consequence as to receive a commission from the King of kings! Shall worldly ambition draw from the sacred trust, the divine commission?
Under God's discipline, a timid man will become resolute brave. To be a deer is precious; a deer is a lovely creature, and it can become strong in God's school. Timidity is something that Naphtali inherited from his experience in that dysfunctional family, but under God's instruction, he could develop other traits of character.
Those outside the city are among the most confident, boastful, and apparently zealous ones who love in word but not deed and truth. Their hearts are not right with God. His fear is not before them. The fearful and unbelieving, who are punished with the second death, are of that class who are ashamed of Christ in this world. They are afraid to do right and follow Christ, lest they should meet with pecuniary (monetary) loss. They neglect their duty to avoid reproach and trials and escape dangers. Those who dare not do right because they will thus expose themselves to trials, persecution, loss, and suffering are cowards, and, with idolaters, liars, and all sinners, they are ripening for the second death.
When Moses was blessing Naphtali, these are the words he uttered: "O Naphtali, satisfied with favor, and full of the blessing of the LORD: possess thou the west and the south." - Deuteronomy 33:23
What was Naphtali's timidity? He would not push himself, but he would be satisfied. Under God's instruction, Naphtali could develop bravery, and so forth.
Bits and Pieces from this article.
• Because Rachel cannot bear children with Jacob, she envies Leah (who has borne four sons).
• Rachel says to Jacob, "Give me children, or I shall die!"
• Jacob is less than supportive—he says that God has withheld children from her.
• Rachel then gives her maid, Bilhah, to Jacob "so that she may bear upon my knees and that I too may have children through her."
• Bilhah's name means "faltering" or "bashful."
• Rabbinic sources say that Bilhah is Laban's daughter from one of his concubines.
• Genesis 29 states she is his handmaid. He gives her to Rachel when she marries Jacob.
• Bilhah conceives and bears a son, Jacob's fifth son.
• Rachel names him "Dan" because "God has judged me, and has also heard my voice and given me a son." Therefore, "Dan" means "judgment" or "he has judged me."
• Little is known about Dan's activities as one of Jacob's twelve sons.
• Dan has one son, Hushim.
• When Jacob blesses his sons upon his deathbed, he says, "Dan shall judge his people, as one of the tribes of Israel."
• Indeed, Samson, the most celebrated descendant from the Tribe of Dan, is a judge of Israel.
• Jacob also says Dan will be "a serpent, by the way, an adder in the path, that bites the horse's heels, so that the rider will fall backward." As it turns out, the Tribe of Dan becomes associated with the shrewdness of a serpent and the wickedness of Belial.
• Dan is the ancestor of the Tribe of Dan.
• According to the first census in the Book of Numbers, the Tribe of Dan is second only to Judah. The number is 62,700 men.
• By the second census, the number was 64,400 – a gain of 3%.
• When the land is allocated, the Danites are given land in the south between Jerusalem and the Mediterranean Sea.
• Dissatisfied with their assigned territory, the Danites demanded more space and moved northward, past the boundaries of Israel, to establish the northernmost city of Israel. They name it Dan.
• Later, a northern king, Jeroboam, built a pagan temple there, complete with a golden calf for worship.
• The tribe is admonished in the Song of Deborah for not helping fight against the Canaanites.
• Jeremiah associates the northern boundaries with darkness and evil.
• In the apocryphal writing, The Testament of Dan, the early church fathers thought the Antichrist would arise from the Danites.
• The tribe is not mentioned in the Book of Revelation among the 144,000 to be sealed.
• Scholars believe the Danites are instrumental in leading the Israelites into idolatry.
• The Assyrians conquer the territory of Dan in 722 BCE.
• Bilhah's second son with Jacob is Naphtali, Jacob's sixth son.
• Rachel says, "With mighty wrestling, I have wrestled with my sister and have prevailed!"
• Naphtali means "My struggle" or "I have wrestled."
• Little is also known about Naphtali as one of Jacob's twelve sons.
• He and his four sons, Jahzeel, Guni, Jezer, and Shillem, are among those who go to Egypt with Jacob.
• The Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs states that Naphtali dies at the age of 137.
• According to The Testament of Naphtali, Bilhah and Zilpah are sisters. Their father is Ahotay. He is taken into captivity and later redeemed by Laban. Laban gives him Hannah for a wife, who is Bilhah's mother. This goes against rabbinic sources that say that Laban is their father. Then, they will be half-sisters with Rachel and Leah.
• On his deathbed, Jacob proclaims Naphtali to be energetic like a deer and able to run swiftly.
• Naphtali is also the ancestor of the Tribe of Naphtali.
• According to Numbers, the tribe is 53,400 strong at the beginning of the wilderness experience, but only 45,400 at the end – a decrease of 15%.
• Unlike the Danites, most of the stories about the tribe of Naphtali are quite positive.
• Their territory is in the north. It is mountainous and fertile.
• They were one of the first tribes to be captured by the Assyrians.
