Genesis 46:1-14
READING
1 So Israel set out with all
that was his, and when he reached Beersheba, he offered sacrifices to the God
of his father Isaac.
2 And God spoke to Israel in a vision at night and
said, “Jacob! Jacob!”
“Here I am,” he replied.
3 “I am God, the God of your father,” he said. “Do
not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation
there. 4 I
will go down to Egypt with you, and I will surely bring you back again. And
Joseph’s own hand will close your eyes.”
5 Then Jacob left Beersheba, and Israel’s sons took
their father Jacob and their children and their wives in the carts that Pharaoh
had sent to transport him. 6 So Jacob and all his
offspring went to Egypt, taking with them their livestock and the possessions they
had acquired in Canaan. 7 Jacob brought with him to Egypt his sons and
grandsons and his daughters and granddaughters—all his offspring.
8 These are the names of the sons of Israel (Jacob
and his descendants) who went to Egypt:
Reuben the firstborn of Jacob.
9 The sons of Reuben:
Hanok, Pallu, Hezron and Karmi.
10 The sons of Simeon:
Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jakin, Zohar and Shaul the son of a Canaanite
woman.
11 The sons of Levi:
Gershon, Kohath and Merari.
12 The sons of Judah:
Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez and Zerah (but Er and Onan had died in the
land of Canaan).
The sons of Perez:
Hezron and Hamul.
13 The sons of Issachar:
Tola, Puah,[a]
Jashub[b] and
Shimron.
14 The sons of Zebulun:
Sered, Elon and Jahleel.
BOARD – Priorities
Personal / Priorities
Practical
/ Posessions
People / Pursuits
1-4 – Personal / Priorities
1 So Israel set out with all that was his, and when he reached
Beersheba, he offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac.
2 And God spoke to Israel in a vision at night and said, “Jacob! Jacob!”
“Here
I am,” he replied.
3 “I am God, the God of your father,” he said. “Do not be afraid to go
down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there. 4 I will go down to Egypt with
you, and I will surely bring you back again. And Joseph’s own hand will close
your eyes.”
Notice the change from Jacob to Israel – the
nation is beginning a pilgrimage – allowed by God but known to bring good for
the nation of Israel
He speaks to Jacob as Jacob and speaks of Israel
as a people and their journey…
Where is Beersheba – how long did they go.
Notice they stopped
along the way to offer sacrifice to God. He remembered what God had told him earlier
in Genesis 26:2-3
FROM BIBLE.ORG:
Jacob had hastily packed his belongings, gathered his family, and begun
the long trek to Egypt, just as Joseph had urged (45:9). When he had gotten as
far as Beersheba, Jacob seemed to feel the full impact of what he was setting
out to do. Beersheba was a place rich in the history of his forefathers. Abraham
had called upon the name of the Lord here (21:33) and had settled in this place
after offering up Isaac on Mt. Moriah (22:19). Here at Beersheba Isaac had been
visited by God, and the covenant made with Abraham was reiterated (26:23-25).
It would seem that Jacob lived at Beersheba when he deceived his father and
obtained his blessing (chapter 27), for it was from this place that he had fled
from Esau and departed to Haran (28:10).
Beersheba was also at the southern extremity of the land of Canaan. Later the land of promise would be
spoken of as “from Dan to Beersheba” (e.g., Judges 20:1), Dan being at the northern border and Beersheba at
the south. Once Jacob left Beersheba, traveling south, he would be leaving the
land of promise, which was the land that God had promised Abraham (12:1-3;
15:7,18-21), Isaac (26:2-4), and Jacob (28:13; 35:12). How could Jacob be
assured of God’s blessing if he was leaving the land of promise?
More than this, Jacob was
leaving Canaan to go to Egypt. Many years before, there had been a famine in
Canaan, and Abram had gone to Egypt to survive. This had proven to be a
very painful experience, one that seemed to be contrary to God’s word (cf. Genesis 12:10ff.). Later there was yet another
famine, and Isaac considered going to Egypt, but God forbade him with these
words:
Do not go down to Egypt; stay in
the land of which I shall tell you. Sojourn in this land and I will
be with you and bless you, for to you and to your descendants I will give all
these lands, and I will establish the oath which I swore to your father Abraham
(Genesis 26:2-3).
How, then, could Jacob leave Canaan to enter Egypt without stepping
outside the will of God? It is this matter which must have overwhelmed Jacob. I
believe that he determined not to go one step further until his doubts were
resolved. Consequently, it was at Beersheba that Jacob offered sacrifices to
the God of his father (verse 1). The precise expression “offered sacrifices” is
employed only once before in Genesis:
Then Jacob offered a sacrifice on the mountain, and called his kinsmen
to the meal; and they ate the meal and spent the night on the mountain (Genesis 31:54).
God spoke to Jacob – the nation through a man –
Jacob responded that he was available
God said:
· Who
He is
· How
He would involve Himself
· He
tells of the future – there and then back again – where do we see the ‘back
again’? Exodus 1:1
· Joseph
is alive and will be so even when you die
Jacob was always concerned with Death so God
spoke to this concern:
FROM BIBLE.ORG
Then all his sons and all his daughters arose to comfort him, but he
refused to be comforted. And he said, “Surely
I will go down to Sheol in mourning for my son.” So his father wept for
him (Genesis 37:35).
But Jacob said, “My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is
dead, and he alone is left. If harm should befall him on the journey you are
taking, then you will bring my gray
hair down to Sheol in sorrow” (Genesis 42:38).
Then Israel said, “It is enough; my son Joseph is still alive. I will go and see him before I die”
(Genesis 45:28).
He will speak of death yet again in our Scripture passage:
Then Israel said to Joseph, “Now
let me die, since I have seen your face, that you are still alive” (Genesis 46:30).
Why would this patriarch be so
eager to die? Jacob’s confession to Pharaoh provides us with a
clue to his preoccupation with death:
So Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The years of my sojourning are one hundred
and thirty; few and unpleasant have
been the years of my life, nor have they attained the years that my
fathers lived during the days of their sojourning” (Genesis 47:9).
5-7 Practical / Possessions
5 Then Jacob left Beersheba, and Israel’s sons took their father Jacob
and their children and their wives in the carts that Pharaoh had sent to
transport him. 6 So Jacob and all his offspring went to Egypt, taking with them their
livestock and the possessions they had acquired in Canaan. 7 Jacob brought with him to
Egypt his sons and grandsons and his daughters and granddaughters—all his
offspring.
Why didn’t then do what they were told?
5 – Does this match what they were to do?
6 – Does this match what they were to do? Why not?
Why didn’t they leave their items?
What was their priority?
7 – does
this match what they were to do?
8-14 People / Pursuits
8 These are the names of the sons of Israel (Jacob and his descendants)
who went to Egypt:
Reuben
the firstborn of Jacob.
9 The sons of Reuben:
Hanok, Pallu, Hezron
and Karmi.
10 The sons of Simeon:
Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad,
Jakin, Zohar and Shaul the son of a Canaanite woman.
11 The sons of Levi:
Gershon, Kohath and
Merari.
12 The sons of Judah:
Er, Onan, Shelah,
Perez and Zerah (but Er and Onan had died in the land of Canaan).
The sons of Perez:
Hezron and Hamul.
13 The sons of Issachar:
Tola, Puah,[a] Jashub[b] and Shimron.
14 The sons of Zebulun:
Sered,
Elon and Jahleel.
· 215
years since God had promised Abraham to make him a great nation
· They
had increased only 70.
· Account
is kept to show God’s timing and that He keeps his promises.
Exodus 1:1-4 and Chronicles 2:1-2 speak of the
same line and people - Obviously this
line and these people are important
to God
Who are these people – what lines are we talking
about?
Reuben
· Future - No judge, prophet, ruler or prince
came from that tribe, nor any person of renown except Dathan and Abiram, who
were noted for their rebellion against Moses. Reuben’s tribe chose a settlement
on the other side Jordan, a further indication of the loss of godly influence
on his brothers to which his birthright entitled him. Although Reuben was the
firstborn, the kingdom was given to Judah and the priesthood to Levi, leaving
Reuben’s tribe to be small and non-influential.
Simeon
· Past - Simeon and Levi treacherously and
barbarously destroyed the Shechemites, which Jacob deeply resented for the
barbarous way in which it was done and the reproach it brought upon his entire
family (Genesis 34:24-30). Simeon’s anger was evil, not
because indignation against sin is unwarrantable in itself, but because his
wrath was marked by deeds of fierceness and cruelty.
· Future - The tribe of Simeon was the smallest
and weakest of all the tribes at the close of their sojourn in the wilderness,
as noted in the second census of Moses (Numbers 26:14), and the tribe of Simeon was
omitted from the blessing of Moses (Deuteronomy 33:8). Further, because of its size, the
tribe of Simeon was forced to share territory with Judah, the larger and more
powerful tribe (Joshua 19:1-9). Jacob did not cut the descendants
of Simeon off from any part in the promised inheritance, but he did divide and
scatter them.
Levi
· Past - Levi treacherously and barbarously
destroyed the Shechemites, which Jacob deeply resented for the barbarous way in
which it was done and the reproach it brought upon his entire family (Genesis 34:24-30)
· Future - The tribe of Levi was scattered
through Israel. But they became, by God’s grace and through their loyalty to
God (Exodus 32:26-29), the priestly tribe and residents
of the cities of refuge. They never possessed their own
designated region, as the other tribes did, but Levi’s priestly office was
certainly a privileged one
· the ultimate lesson in the tribe of Levi, for Christians, is that of
restoration of the sinner to the privileged position of children of God.
Through the high-priestly intercession of Christ, who exchanged His
righteousness for our sins on the cross (2 Corinthians 5:21), we become a nation of priests in our own right. “But you are
a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God,
that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his
wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9).
Judah
Past –
fourth son of Jacob, from Leah – Determined to sell Joseph not throw
him in the pit, Married Shua a cannanite, deceived by Tamar and then recanted
and confessed that he had used a prostitute, Judah offers himself to Jacob for
Benjamin to take back to Egypt
Future
– Line of Christ –
· "Judah, your brothers will
praise you; your hand will be on the neck of your enemies; your father's sons
will bow down to you. You are a lion's cub, O Judah; you return from the prey,
my son. Like a lion he crouches and lies down, like a lioness—who dares to
rouse him? The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from
between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the
nations is his. He will tether his donkey to a vine, his colt to the choicest
branch; he will wash his garments in wine, his robes in the blood of grapes.
His eyes will be darker than wine, his teeth whiter than milk” (Genesis 49:8-12).
· Each part of Jacob’s prophecy for
the tribe of Judah reveals something about the people of that tribe, their
history, and the spiritual application we can draw from it. In verse 8, Jacob
prophesies that Judah’s brothers would praise him. Judah’s name signifies
praise and was given him by his mother, her heart being filled with praises to
God for him (Genesis 29:35) and is here confirmed by his
father. The strength and power of the tribe is also foretold in verse 8. Verse
9 uses the imagery of both a lion and the lion’s cub to portray the tribe of
Judah. Judah was comparable to a young lion for his strength, courage, and
vitality and to a mature lion in that the line of Judah contained those of
national prominence and kingship, including David and Solomon.
· The scepter not departing from Judah
until “he comes to whom it belongs” is a Messianic prophecy. The name “Shiloh”
appears in this verse in several translations, a word that refers to the
Messiah. Commentators differ on the exact meaning of this somewhat obscure
passage, but all agree that He who comes to obtain the obedience of the nations
can be none other than Christ. The rest of the passage, vv. 11-12, refers to
the great abundance of riches that would belong to the tribe of Judah. So
wealthy and blessed would they be that they would be able to tie a donkey to
the choicest grapevine and allow him to eat his fill, an indication of the
abundance that would belong to Judah.
Perez
· Past – born a twin - son of
a Tamar and Judah – the other son Zerah was to be first born and was marked
with a scarlet thread but then went back in and Perez ‘broke out’
· According
to the Book of Genesis,
Pharez/Perez (Hebrew:
פֶּרֶץ
/ פָּרֶץ,
Modern Péreẓ
/ Páreẓ Tiberian Péreṣ
/ Pāreṣ) was the son of Tamar
and Judah,
and the twin
of Zerah.[1][2] The name is transliterated to English as both
"Perez" (NIV,
ESV,
NKJV) and "Pharez"
(KJV). Perez, in Hebrew means
"breach or burst forth" and is named after the narrative of his birth
as recorded in Genesis 38:29. The Book of Ruth lists Perez as being
part of the ancestral genealogy of King David,[3]
and the Book of Matthew
mentions him when specifying the genealogy of Jesus.[4]
· As in
Matthew 1:3 He is part of the messianic line
Issachar
Past – Born
as son of Leah
Future
- As part of the Kingdom of Israel,
the territory of Issachar was conquered by the Assyrians,
and the tribe exiled;
the manner of their exile led to their further history being lost.
– this can relate to where they settled and the prophecy we will get to in
chapter 49 - “Issachar
is a rawboned donkey, lying down between two burdens; He saw that rest was
good, and that the land was pleasant; He bowed his shoulder to bear a burden,
and became a band of slaves” (Genesis 49:14-15).
Zebulun
Past
– youngest of six borne by Leah – remember Leah wanted ‘honor’ based on
bearing Jacob six sons (Genesis 30:20)
Future
– Zebulun was
one of six tribes chosen to stand on Mount Ebal and pronounce curses (Deuteronomy 27:13). By means of these curses, the
people promised God they would refrain from certain behaviors. For example, one
curse says, “Cursed is the man who carves an image or casts an idol – a thing
detestable to the Lord” (Deuteronomy 27:15). Another states, “Cursed is the
man who withholds justice from the alien, the fatherless or the widow” (Deuteronomy 27:19). Still another: “Cursed is the man
who does not uphold the words of this law by carrying them out” (Deuteronomy 27:26). In all, Zebulun helped deliver
twelve admonishments of this sort (Deuteronomy 27:15-26).
· Upon entering the Promised Land,
Zebulun failed to drive out the Canaanites living in Kitron and Nahalol,
although Zebulun did subject them to forced labor (Judges 1:30). This was incomplete obedience to God’s clear
command to drive out all the inhabitants of the land (Numbers 33:52). Not responding fully to God’s
Word, as Zebulun demonstrated, is a trait to which we all can relate. How often
do we choose to follow our own paths for various reasons, many of which may not
be in concert with God’s wishes?
· Later, Zebulun returned to God and
followed His commands. They participated in the battles led by Deborah and
Barak, and they fought valiantly (Judges 4:6; 5:18). The judge Elon was a Zebulunite (Judges 12:11). During the kingdom years, Zebulun joined David at
Hebron to transfer Saul’s kingdom to David (1 Chronicles 12:23, 33, 40). This, too, provides insight into
our behavior. While at times we turn away from God, His love for us, and ours
for Him, draws us back into communion with Him and compliance with His will.
· Zebulun’s territory was located in
what later became known as Galilee, in Northern Israel. Moses’ blessing on the
tribe was that they would prosper in their overseas dealings with Gentile
nations (Deuteronomy 33:18-19). Isaiah prophesied, “In the past
[God] humbled the land of Zebulun . . . but in the future he will honor
Galilee” (Isaiah 9:1). Isaiah’s prediction is Messianic:
Galilee (including Zebulun) would be honored as the first to hear Christ’s
preaching, and this would more than compensate for their humiliation at the
hands of the Assyrians centuries before
From the Jewish Virtual Library
The Tribes of Israel are the traditional divisions
of the ancient Jewish people. Biblical tradition holds that the twleve tribes
of Israel are descended from the sons and grandsons of the Jewish forefather Jacob and are called
"Israel" from Jacob's name given to him by God.
The twelve tribes are as
follows: Reuben, Simeon, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Benjamin, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Ephraim and Manasseh.
Final Questions –
· Are we
personal with God?
· Are we practical
in what we do in relation to the revealed word to us?
· Are we
clearly concerned with God’s people and what HE is doing with HIS
people?
· Or do we
focus on our own priorties, posessions, and Pursuits?
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