Jacob’s Last Words to His Sons (Part 3)
Genesis 49:3-28
These prophecies are broad in scope, foretelling the future of the different tribes in general terms.
In the last lesson, we read Jacob’s words to Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Zebulun, and Issachar.
In this lesson, we will read Jacob’s words to Dan, Gad, Asher, Naphtali, Joseph, and Benjamin.
Jacob’s Last Words to His Sons (Part 3)
Genesis 49:1-2 NLT
49:1 Then Jacob called together all his sons and said, “Gather around me, and I will tell you what will happen to each of you in the days to come.
2 “Come and listen, you sons of Jacob;
listen to Israel, your father.
Genesis 49:16-28 NLT
16 “Dan will govern his people,
like any other tribe in Israel.
17 Dan will be a snake beside the road,
a poisonous viper along the path
that bites the horse’s hooves
so its rider is thrown off.
18 I trust in you for salvation, O Lord!
19 “Gad will be attacked by marauding bands,
but he will attack them when they retreat.
20 “Asher will dine on rich foods
and produce food fit for kings.
21 “Naphtali is a doe set free
that bears beautiful fawns.
22 “Joseph is the foal of a wild donkey,
the foal of a wild donkey at a spring—
one of the wild donkeys on the ridge.
23 Archers attacked him savagely;
they shot at him and harassed him.
24 But his bow remained taut,
and his arms were strengthened
by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob,
by the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel.
25 May the God of your father help you;
may the Almighty bless you
with the blessings of the heavens above,
and blessings of the watery depths below,
and blessings of the breasts and womb.
26 May my fatherly blessings on you
surpass the blessings of my ancestors,
reaching to the heights of the eternal hills.
May these blessings rest on the head of Joseph,
who is a prince among his brothers.
27 “Benjamin is a ravenous wolf,
devouring his enemies in the morning
and dividing his plunder in the evening.”
28 These are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father said as he told his sons good-bye. He blessed each one with an appropriate message.
Examine the Scriptures
Jacob’s Last Words to His Sons (Part 3)
Genesis 49:1-2 NLT (previous lesson)
49:1 Then Jacob called together all his sons and said, “Gather around me, and I will tell you what will happen to each of you in the days to come.
2 “Come and listen, you sons of Jacob;
listen to Israel, your father.
Genesis 49:16-28 NLT
Jacob is telling his sons what would become of them in the days ahead.
16 “Dan will govern his people,
like any other tribe in Israel.
Dan was one of Jacob’s 12 sons, he will be the head of one of the 12 tribes.
The name Dan means “judge”.
Dan was called to provide justice.
- In many ways, the tribe of Dan will be like the other tribes of Israel.
But the tribe chose treachery.
17 Dan will be a snake beside the road,
a poisonous viper along the path
that bites the horse’s hooves
so its rider is thrown off.
This is not a prediction of success and prosperity.
- The tribe of Dan had trouble taking possession of the land assigned to them.
Joshua 19:
The Land Given to Dan
40 The seventh allotment of land went to the clans of the tribe of Dan.
41 The land allocated as their homeland included the following towns: Zorah, Eshtaol, Ir-shemesh, 42 Shaalabbin, Aijalon, Ithlah, 43 Elon, Timnah, Ekron, 44 Eltekeh, Gibbethon, Baalath, 45 Jehud, Bene-berak, Gath-rimmon, 46 Me-jarkon, Rakkon, and the territory across from Joppa.
47 But the tribe of Dan had trouble taking possession of their land, so they attacked the town of Laish. They captured it, slaughtered its people, and settled there. They renamed the town Dan after their ancestor.
48 The homeland allocated to the clans of the tribe of Dan included these towns and their surrounding villages.
Judges 1:34-35 NLT
34 As for the tribe of Dan, the Amorites forced them back into the hill country and would not let them come down into the plains. 35 The Amorites were determined to stay in Mount Heres, Aijalon, and Shaalbim, but when the descendants of Joseph became stronger, they forced the Amorites to work as slaves.
Judges 18:27-29
27 Then, …, the men of Dan came to the town of Laish, whose people were peaceful and secure. They attacked with swords and burned the town to the ground. 28 There was no one to rescue the people, for they lived a great distance from Sidon and had no allies nearby. This happened in the valley near Beth-rehob.
Then the people of the tribe of Dan rebuilt the town and lived there. 29 They renamed the town Dan after their ancestor, Israel’s son, but it had originally been called Laish.
- The tribe of Dan was not known for moral stature or religious faithfulness.
The tribe chose to worship idols.
Judges 18:1-31 tells us that the tribe of Dan turned idolatrous and abandoned God after they entered the Promised Land and moved north.
Judges 18:30-31 NLT
30 Then they set up the carved image, and they appointed Jonathan son of Gershom, son of Moses, as their priest. This family continued as priests for the tribe of Dan until the Exile. 31 So Micah’s carved image was worshiped by the tribe of Dan as long as the Tabernacle of God remained at Shiloh.
1 Kings 12:28-30 NLT
The Northern Tribes Revolt
28 So on the advice of his counselors, the king made two gold calves. He said to the people, “It is too much trouble for you to worship in Jerusalem. Look, Israel, these are the gods who brought you out of Egypt!”
29 He placed these calf idols in Bethel and in Dan—at either end of his kingdom. 30 But this became a great sin, for the people worshiped the idols, traveling as far north as Dan to worship the one there.
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18 I trust in you for salvation, O Lord!
(This follows all we know about Dan)
At this point, Jacob interjects an expression of hope.
“I trust in you, O Lord!)
There are a lot of tough years ahead for the Children of Israel.
Revelation 7:4-8 NLT
4 And I heard how many were marked with the seal of God—144,000 were sealed from all the tribes of Israel:
5 from Judah 12,000
from Reuben 12,000
from Gad 12,000
6 from Asher 12,000
from Naphtali 12,000
from Manasseh 12,000
7 from Simeon* 12,000
from Levi 12,000
from Issachar 12,000
8 from Zebulun 12,000
from Joseph 12,000
from Benjamin 12,000
(No mention of Dan)
- The tribe of Dan is not mentioned with the 144,000 marked with the seal of God in Revelation 7:4-8.
- Samson known as a judge and deliverer of Israel was from the tribe of Dan.
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19 “Gad will be attacked by marauding bands,
but he will attack them when they retreat.
The name Gad means “attack”.
Tribes located east of the Jordan River were often raided. This resulted in the development of valiant fighters.
They were all skilled in combat and armed with shields, swords, and bows.
1 Chronicles 5:18 NLT
The Tribes East of the Jordan
18 There were 44,760 capable warriors in the armies of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh. They were all skilled in combat and armed with shields, swords, and bows.
1 Chronicles 12:8 & 14 NLT
8 Some brave and experienced warriors from the tribe of Gad also defected to David while he was at the stronghold in the wilderness. They were expert with both shield and spear, as fierce as lions and as swift as deer on the mountains.
14 These warriors from Gad were army commanders. The weakest among them could take on a hundred regular troops, and the strongest could take on a thousand!
- The tribe of Gad was skilled in combat and armed with shields, swords, and bows.
The demise of Gad
2 Kings 10:32-33 NLT
The Death of Jehu (The 11th king of the separate kingdom of Israel – the Northern kingdom)
32 At about that time the Lord began to cut down the size of Israel’s territory. King Hazael conquered several sections of the country 33 east of the Jordan River, including all of Gilead, Gad, Reuben, and Manasseh. He conquered the area from the town of Aroer by the Arnon Gorge to as far north as Gilead and Bashan.
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20 “Asher will dine on rich foods
and produce food fit for kings.
Asher was located on the agriculturally rich coastal region of the Mediterranean Sea.
- The land of Asher was fertile and productive producing rich food.
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21 “Naphtali is a doe set free
that bears beautiful fawns.
- Naphtali, like a doe, would be a free mountain people.
(The hilly region northwest of the Sea of Galilee.)
Their lives were not always carefree.
Judges 5:18 NLT
The Song of Deborah
18 But Zebulun risked his life,
as did Naphtali, on the heights of the battlefield.
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The next blessing is addressed to Joseph but applicable to his two sons.
- Jacob reserved his longest blessing for Joseph, confirming his special standing.
22 “Joseph is the foal of a wild donkey,
the foal of a wild donkey at a spring—
one of the wild donkeys on the ridge.
Genesis 49:22 KJV
22 Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall:
Genesis 49:22 ESV
22 “Joseph is a fruitful bough,
a fruitful bough by a spring;
his branches run over the wall.
Genesis 49:22 NIV
22 “Joseph is a fruitful vine,
a fruitful vine near a spring,
whose branches climb over a wall.
23 Archers attacked him savagely;
they shot at him and harassed him.
24 But his bow remained taut, – the promise of victory
and his arms were strengthened
by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob,
by the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel.
25 May the God of your father help you;
may the Almighty bless you
with the blessings of the heavens above, (rain for crops)
and blessings of the watery depths below, (streams and wells of water)
and blessings of the breasts and womb. (Abundant offspring)
26 May my fatherly blessings on you
surpass the blessings of my ancestors, (Abraham and Isaac)
reaching to the heights of the eternal hills.
May these blessings rest on the head of Joseph,
who is a prince among his brothers. (A reflection of both his character and position)
1 Chronicles 5 NLT
1 The oldest son of Israel was Reuben. But since he dishonored his father by sleeping with one of his father’s concubines, his birthright was given to the sons of his brother Joseph. For this reason, Reuben is not listed in the genealogical records as the firstborn son. 2 The descendants of Judah became the most powerful tribe and provided a ruler for the nation, but the birthright belonged to Joseph.
Samuel was from Ephraim
Gideon was from Manasseh
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27 “Benjamin is a ravenous wolf,
devouring his enemies in the morning
and dividing his plunder in the evening.”
A description of a violent tribe.
- The Benjamites were a cruel and violent tribe.
Read Judges Chapters 19 and 20.
The Levite and His Concubine
Israel’s War with Benjamin
- Both Sauls in the Bible were from the tribe of Benjamin.
Both exhibited streaks of cruelty.
Old Testament Saul
1 Samuel 9 NLT
1 There was a wealthy, influential man named Kish from the tribe of Benjamin. … 2 His son Saul was the most handsome man in Israel—head and shoulders taller than anyone else in the land.
1 Samuel 19:10 NLT
10 Saul hurled his spear at David. But David dodged out of the way, and leaving the spear stuck in the wall, he fled and escaped into the night.
New Testament Saul
Philippians 3:5 NLT
5 I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin …
Acts 8:3 NLT
3 But Saul was going everywhere to destroy the church. He went from house to house, dragging out both men and women to throw them into prison.
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28 These are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father said as he told his sons good-bye. He blessed each one with an appropriate message.
- These prophecies are broad in scope, foretelling the future of the different tribes in general terms.
