Headed home. That means a lot of things for people doesn’t it.
1. For some of you it’s a weekly feeling; after a week of traveling it means boarding the flight
and ultimately seeing the city lights of Atlanta in the darkness of your descent and at the 5
mile fixed point of descent and feeling the lowering of the landing gear and knowing soon
you’ll be home.
2. For others, it’s the feeling of rounding the bases, passing 1st, 2nd, then moving that 127 and 3
3/8 inches from third base to home base meeting your team that is awaiting you.
3. For others, it’s the final minutes of their life, when they begin uttering their final words and
preparing for the moment they will see Jesus for the first time, as He comes and ushers them
on home to their heavenly home.
As we meet Jacob today, he had that traveling feeling. His life was full of sojourn; just like his family. He had traveled to Haran and fell in love, He had traveled to Beersheba and met with
God; He had traveled to Egypt and was reunited with Joseph.
But now, he was traveling home. But as He prepared to head home; he foretells about Jesus.
A lot of people ask: “How do I know Christianity is the right religion?” One of the ways is through prophecy and Jacob is one of the first to prophecy about Jesus.
His parting words are interesting. In verse 28 we read that his final words were a final blessing to his boys, but in verse 1 we discover that his words were more than a blessing; they were a prophecy of the things to come.
In verse 1 this is affirmed as we read: “Then Jacob summoned his sons and said, Assemble yourselves that I many tell you what will befall you in the days to come.”
Then, in verse 2 the invitation is offered as we read the simple words: “Gather together and hear, O sons of Jacob; and listen to Israel your father.”
Jacob’s words are significant because they are more than the final words of a dying man; they are the introductory words to introduce us ultimately to Jesus.
You see, God also is a Father that wants to bless His children. In Genesis 1:28 God pronounced a blessing on all of us; yet that blessing was forfeited when man choice to sin which is known as “the fall” or “the curse.”
Now, Jacob not only blessing his boys but also tells us how God will restore the blessing that He desires for mankind; He will restore that blessing to the world through Israel’s coming king.
Although Jesus would come 1800 years after Jacob; Jacob knew He was coming and prophesied about him. He did it by foretelling about the coming king. Literally, before his funeral; he talked about Christmas and the King who was coming.
The big question is “Who is this King of Kings?” It’s Jesus; and Jacob shows us why:
I. Jesus Is The Only Worthy King
vs 3- 12- “Rueben you are my firstborn...uncontrolled as water...”
Explanation:
The expectation is that the first born of Jacob should take the position as king, right?
Isn’t this what we just saw take place in England. When Queen Elizabeth died she passed on her scepter to Prince Charles. In the moment of her death, immediately many of the people in England began calling Charles King; even before he was coronated. Right?
As we read the prophetic blessing of Jacob on his sons; we immediately discover that none of his sons are qualified to be the king that Israel will be looking for. The King had to be worthy:
Let’s unpackage this:
1. Reuben- In verses 3-4 we read: “Reuben, you are my first born, my might and the beginning
of my strength, preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power.” Sounds good so far right?
Then we read: “ Uncontrolled as water, you shall have no preeminence, because you went to
your fathers bed; then you defiled it--- he went up to my couch.”
Reuben had an uncontrolled sexual appetite. He was unqualified for the kingship because he had an affair with one of Jacobs wives. In huge scandal Reuben forfeited his qualifications for king of Israel because he was found with sin. So Reuben is unqualified.
2. Simeon and Levi- In verse 5 we read that they also are unqualified. They were the second
and the third born sons so they would be next in line to be King of Israel. Yet, they were also
sinners. They were men of violence.
With their swords, in Genesis 34 they retaliated against a man who raped their sister Dinah by killing all the men who were in Shechem. They murdered every Hivite male in the city. While what this man did to Dinah was wicked; their reaction was to kill every man there and they were disqualified.
Not only were they disqualified but it would be played out in their new land as well. Simeon would be basically forgotten in the land of Israel and we will read virtually nothing about the tribe of Simeon from then on, but for Levi they will be scattered in Israel.
Ultimately, the grace of God will be seen in this though because they would serve as Pastors or Priests in Israel for all the people. Yet, they would be priests but were unqualified as “the King.”
They would have no inheritance of their own; the Lord their God would be their inheritance.
3. Judah- In verse 8, we are introduced to Judah. Judah was the fourth son and through Him
would come this prophecy and blessing. You see, Jesus would come from the Tribe of Judah.
Now notice what is said in verse 8: “Judah your brothers will praise you.” Judah’s name means:
“Praise.”
Then we read: “Your fathers sons will bow down to you.” Vs. 8 You will remember in the story of Joseph that Joseph told his brothers that they would bow down to him. Yet, now we see something interesting. We are told that the brothers will bow down to him.
In the Joseph narrative we discovered that the brothers did come to Egypt and bowed down to
Joseph, so that prophecy was fulfilled. But now, no longer will we read about Joseph’s brothers
bowing down to Joseph; now we read about the brothers bowing down to Judah.
Why will they bow down to Judah? Verse 9-10 tells us:
a) First, Judah is a lion. (He’s King of the Jungle right?)
b) Second, from Judah will arise “the King”. (The scepter will not depart from Judah)
God will raise up a King from Judah and He will be an everlasting King. He will reign forever and ever.
Finally, the verse says in verse 10: “...and to him will be the obedience of the people.” In other words, not only will the brothers bow down to this King; but everybody will bow down to this King. This is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!
All the nations of the world will arise from this King that comes from the lion of the Tribe of Judah. From Judah would come the King who is worthy.
Illustration: King Louis XIV of France and the King of Kings
There was a preacher in 19th century Scandinavia who, in the vestry one Sunday morning, heard that the King Louis the 14th would be present at worship. Understandably rattled he ditched his well-prepared sermon about Jesus and spoke on and on about the Christian virtues of their King.
King Louis XIV
Even though the King said nothing after the service the preacher could not help but wonder if he would receive some reward for his loyal support. Sure enough some time later a very large crate was delivered to the Church.
Immediately the preacher pried open the crate to find inside a huge cross. He could hardly contain his disappointment "We’ve got lots of crosses already," he thought. As he looked inside the crate he saw a letter under the royal seal. Excitedly he opened it. The letter contained the kings instructions as to the placement of the cross in the Church.
It was to go on the back wall of the church so that the preacher had to stare at it every time he preached. In the letter he said: “There are two hundred and fifty-six names given in the Bible for the Lord Jesus Christ, and I suppose this was because He was infinitely beyond all that any other name, there is only one name one should express.”
Application:
The first three sons are immediately disqualified to produce the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
Yet, Judah is set apart and qualified by Jacob to be the one who would be able to produce the rightful King.
Judah tells us, if you want the right religion, look to Judah and discover, “Who is the lion of the Tribe of Judah?”
In the Book of Revelation, Jesus is pointed to in heaven as the elders of glory says: “Do not weep! See the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David has triumphed!” Revelation 5:5
In Jacob’s final words, before he goes home, he points to the one who is the way home. He points to Jesus- the Lion of the Tribe of Judah.
The big question is “Who is this King of Kings?” It’s Jesus; and Jacob shows us why:
II. Jesus is the King of Unsearchable Riches
Vs. 11- “He ties his foal to the vine, and his donkey coat to the choice vine...”
Explanation:
To communicate the abundance and wealth of this King; he uses three illustrations to help us understand the abundant and unsearchable riches and wealth of this King.
Paul spoke of this saying: “To me, though I am the least of the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ.” Ephesians 3:8
To speak of the unsearchable riches of Jesus, Jacob uses the three pictures:
1. The vines
2. The wine
3. The milk.
In verse 11 he explains saying: “He ties his foal to the vine and his donkey colt to the choice vine..” The only reason why you would tie a donkey to a vine is because you do not care about the vine.
The reason why you don’t care is because you have so many vines producing good grapes that you have a superabundance of good vines that you ignore the fact that the donkey is going to destroy the vine.
Verse 11b-12 says: “He washes his garments in wine, and his robes in the blood of grapes. His eyes are dull from wine and his teeth white from milk.”
The same is true about wine. The only way you would treat your wine like washing machine water would be because you have so much wine, you can use it to wash your clothes in it.
It’s similar the phrase: “They’ve got money to burn.” Lending to the idea that someone would have so much money that they could use it for firewood.
Judah’s King is not only qualified but he has a superabundance of the greatest needs. In that day people needed purified water to drink. Therefore, the reason why wine was present was that it provided distilled, clean, drink.
Milk was a basic need of people. Babies require milk to feed and live. It is the staple need.
But the King of Judah would be so rich that his wine will so available that it will be like wine being used for washing someone’s clothes and the milk would be so abundant that it would be like.
Now a contrast is made:
a) Zebulon- He will dwell near the seashore and ships will flank to him- He will draw his wealth from the sea. But that’s limited. He only gets his wealth from the sea.
b) Issachar- He will draw his wealth from the land. He will lie between the sheepfolds. Yet,
his wealth will come to an end and become a slave to forced labor. He will struggle to
stay afloat. His riches are limited.
c) Dan- He would make his living by being a judge. The word “Dan” means “judge.” He will head of the tribe that judges Israel. Samson will be from the Tribe of Dan. The whole tribe was to have a role of governing and judging in Israel. Yet, Dan does not live up to this. He becomes like a “horned snake in the path, he bites the horses heels so that the rider falls backward.”
He’s not a godly judge. He is not a blessing and a good judge; he’s a corrupt judge. His value is greatly diminished. He as a result is excluded from most of Israel. In Revelation 7:5 where all the tribes are listed; Dan is excluded from that list. He is not only limited. He is corrupt and inadequate.
As a result verse 18 says: “For your salvation I wait, O Lord.” Jesus name means: “Salvation.”
In other words, there’s a better judge coming; a perfect judge. There’s a perfect supplier coming. His name will be “Salvation.” His name is Jesus.
Illustration: New and Improved
Have any of you bought something recently that is “new and improved?” I laugh at that statement in marketing because it’s an oxymoron0. It can’t be “new” and “improved” at the same time.
If its new- it was just created.
If its improved- it’s been around a while.
Do you know what they are saying: “I don’t know about you, but Lay’s cappuccino flavored chips might be new--- but they are definitely not improved.”
I recently saw an advertisement for “Hapee toothpaste.” I’ve never heard of it so it must be new; but I am wondering if it is “improved” if it previously was the “unhapee” toothpaste.
Application:
Listen: As you go through Jacobs list of the tribes, I guess you can say that some of these boys were better than others; yet the bottom line is; not one of them compares to Jesus.
Jacob even compares himself to his son Dan as he says: “He bites the horses heels.”
This word for “heel” is a very close word to the word “Jacob.” The name “Jacob” meant “grabber of the heel.” From his birth, he had hold of his brothers heel and for much of his life he spent trying to “trip people up” and make things go his way.
Yet, as he looks at Dan he sees a little of himself. This was an expression of his faith and repentance. He now “looks for God’s salvation” --- he’s admitting that he himself not only was lacking spiritually; but he is aware that there is one who is coming who was the perfect provider of salvation.
A lot of people ask me as a Pastor: “How were people in the Old Testament saved?” Right here we get the picture. Jacob was looking forward to the cross; and today, we look back to the cross.
Listen: Jesus can provide salvation for people who came before he was born; and those after he was born because he is limitless in his perfection, power, and grace. It extends beyond time, and beyond the trouble we’ve brought upon ourselves.
The big question is “Who is this King of Kings?” It’s Jesus; and Jacob shows us why:
III. Jesus Is The King Who Rises Above All Our Enemies
vs. 19- “As for Gad, raiders shall raid him, but he will raid that their heels.”
Explanation:
Jacob was a struggler. He was sometimes was his own worst enemy; and sometimes he had a continual battle with enemies. His life was a struggle but now he was headed home.
As he does, he points us to “the King” that will be the ultimate end of all struggles.
Jesus said: “I have told you these things, so that you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
As Jacob continues blessing his boys and talking about their tribe, he compares several of the boys whose family will consistently battle the enemy.
He speaks about:
1) Gad- (vs. 19) -He would be attacked by foreign raiders; and it would be an endless fight. The
enemy would never give up; forcing Gad to do the same.
2) Asher-(vs. 20) would be a tribe of wealth but will not be able to contain it. The people of this
Tribe will come under the spiritual influence of foreign people. He will “yield to royal
dainties or delacacies”’
These delicacy will go mainly to foreigners and royalty of the enemy. Ultimately, they will
live close to the Canaanites and Phoenicians and will get caught up in foreign nations and
idolatry because of their exchange of goods with godless people.
They will lose the spiritual fight due to perversion. There’s more than one way to lose the
battle for your life and people.
3) Naphtali- (vs 21) – She will lose her spiritual battle by not drawing lines for their tribe. In short, they will not secure their borders physically; and because they’ve drawn no lines, they will be like a “doe let loose”--- full of beautiful words; but lacking in boundaries. Their tribe had no northern boundary.
4) Joseph- (vs. 22-26)- We are more familiar with him. He was a fruitful man and is described as a fruitful bough by a spring.
Yet, even he could not avoid the attacks of his brothers. They were like archers who shot at him and harassed him. Yet, he held strong despite the difficult battle.
5) Benjamin- (vs. 27) – He strangely enough becomes like a ravenous wolf. Benjamin is a fierce tribe yet his wolf like character will go in two directs; one for good, the other for evil. King Saul was from the tribe of Benjamin and is a great example of this; he in I Samuel 11 did something good; he mobilized a whole kingdom to come to the aid of Jabesh Gilead that is under attack by foreign powers; that’s to his credit.
Yet, it also comes out in Judges 19 when Benjamin rapes and murdered a young woman and is told in the same types of language as the language that described Sodom and Gomorrah.
Conclusion:
Jacob concludes his prophetic message about Jesus and now it is the end of his life. The Bible says in verse 33: “When Jacob finished charging his sons, he drew his feet into the bed and breathed his last, and was gathered to his people.”
It might have been the end of his life on earth; but it was the beginning of his life in heaven. Do you know why? At that moment he may have come to the end of his life; but long before he had come to the end of himself.
He knew he needed a king and he found one in Jesus.
Many kings would rise up in Israel through these tribes, but only one King could redeem and save him. He foresaw him, prophesied of him, and trusted him as he said: “For your salvation I wait oh Lord.”
In his final plea he longed to be buried in the tomb with Abraham and Isaac; who did the same.
This is the end of the period of time of “Abraham, Isaac, and now Jacob.”
Yet, these three are laid in a tomb together in Israel, looking and waiting for this King who will conquer death in a similar tomb just 17 miles from the place where they will be laid to rest and today they live because Jesus lives.
Jacob points us to THE KING; and that’s what I do as well right now. Christianity is the right religion for one reason alone; Christ is King. Will you come to the end of yourself and receive Him like Jacob did? Why not now? Why not today?
