Thurs.’s Devo - Jacob’s Burial

Read Gen. 50:1-14 I can’t believe we are on our last chapter of Genesis. Where should we go next? Maybe Exodus? When Jacob died Joseph greatly mourned for him and had his body embalmed. They did such a good job of embalming back then that they are finding these bodies today in caves in Egypt. Jacob’s body didn’t stay in Egypt but was carried to Machpelah and buried. The Egyptians mourned for Jacob’s body 70 days before getting permission from the Pharaoh to bury his father where he had requested. All the households of Joseph and his brother’s families traveled back to Canaan. When they got to the threshing floor of Atad they stopped and mourned 7 days. Atad means “to pierce or make fast a thorn tree”. One day a thorn tree would be twisted and made into a crown that would pierce the brow of the saviour of all Israel and the world. But now it was a place of mourning for Israel himself. When the Cannanites of the land saw how hard and long Joseph’s caravan mourned for Jacob, they knew he was an important man. They renamed the place Abel-mizraim to mean the “mourning of the Egyptians”. They continued on to Machpelah and buried him in their family burying place where the other patriarchs were buried. Then they returned to Egypt. The last of the patriarchs was dead. Abraham showed us the love of a father and became the father of many nations. Isaac, showed us the sacrifice Jesus would pay on the cross, and Joseph showed us how Jesus went ahead into heaven to prepare a place for us. Now they are gone and those remaining must carry on their example. Death has a way of sobering us to what is important in this life. It brings a depth that little else can. I got news this morning that my roommate in college lost her 23 year old son. It was her only son. I can’t imagine her grief and can only pray that God’s Holy Spirit will wrap her in his comfort and bring about his purposes in her life.

Wed.’s Devo - Benjamin

Read Gen. 49:27-33 Benjamin is called a “ravin wolf”. His tribe had a reputation for bravery and skill in war. They were famous for their left-handed slingers. (Judges 3:17: 20:16, 1 Ch. 8:40) Ehud, Saul, Esther, and Paul were all from the tribe of Benjamin. God loves to hide things in a mystery so that only those who are serious in seeking will find. I think Benjamin’s prophesy is one of those hidden things. It makes you think that Benjamin is a violent godless man but nothing could be more wrong. Benjamin whose name means “son of my right hand” is a picture of the bride. We are to be girded with truth, our feet shod to prepare the good news, our head covered with a helmet of salvation, a breastplate of righteousness over our hearts, and a sword that has two edges sharp enough to divide bone to the marrow. Of course, this is all figurative and talking about our stance in Christ but we are to be ready to fight. The prophecy says that “in the morning he shall devour the prey”. Jesus is known as the morning star that is given to us. In the morning, in Jesus, we will devour the devil and his plans. Night is a time usually associated with evil and the devil’s time to shine but as overcomers it will be a time when we will divide the spoil of what we have taken from him. God gave the children of Israel a fire to walk in during the night. This was light that dispelled darkness. God wants us to shine in the darkness and rule over the dark. We are to be children of the light who shine as lights in the darkest of times. After Jacob had given out his blessings he gave his burial instructions. He wanted to be buried in the cave of Machpelah where Abraham purchased to be a burying place for Sarah. So Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah and now Jacob would be buried there. This is where they would abide till Jesus died and took them to heaven - “gathered to his people”. The last verse gives us the impression that he commanded his sons, then commanded his body to die. There is so much about death that we don’t understand. I read 1 Thes. 4:13-18 this morning in my regular reading and as many times as I have read it I still have so many questions. We look at things and measure them by time when Jesus sees everything as right now, all happening simultaneously, which makes the wording hard for us to comprehend. All I know is that “our times are in the Lord’s hands”. Lord, may we comprehend the important things and leave the rest to you.

Tues.’s Devo - Asher, Naptali, and Joseph

Read Gen. 49:20-26 Asher whose name means “happy” was prophecied prosperity and the riches of kings. The territory assigned to Asher was some of the richest land in the Promise Land. No heroes came from this tribe, only Anna who prophesied over Jesus at the temple after his birth. I think the Ashers are the wealthy Christians who give freely and anonymously of what God has entrusted to them. Naptali means “my wrestling”. It is described as an impetuous hind yet a giver of goodly words so I see the fight. The land of Naptali is primarily where Jesus walked while here on earth so it was full of spiritual wrestling. It was plagued with religious tradition and false teachings till Jesus came and preached truth which caused an outrage. The Naptali’s are those who wrestle for truth while surrounded by the world. Joseph is next. His name means “let him add”. The tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh are Joseph’s tribes. Joseph’s life was a type of Jesus: despised and hated by his own brothers; learned obedience by the things he suffered; sent ahead to prepare a place for his family. He died to birth the church. Joseph birthed Ephraim and Manasseh who were types of the body of Christ. He is prophesied to be fruitful, watered and overflowing. He will also be the target of the enemy’s darts and his hatred. But God has made him strong and a mighty warrior. He is blessed in heaven and death, blessed from the time of conception. He will be greater than all that have gone before. Jesus said that we, the Church, would do greater things than he did when he walked the earth. Lord, may we be worthy warriors who fight for truth and may we do the greater things that you talk about.

Mon.’s Devo - Zebulun, Issachar, Dan, and Gad

Read Gen. 49:13-19 Next we have Zebulun which means “a habitation or dwelling”. He will be a haven of the sea and a haven for ships. His border will be to Zidon. The Zebulun’s are those who are a shelter to the sea of humanity and for the ship (the church). Zidon means a “fishery that catches fish”. The Zebuluns are soul-winners and safe places to grow. Issachar means “he will bring a reward”. It says of Issachar that he was like a strong ass that was made to rest between two burdens and he saw that the rest was good and a good place to lie so he bowed himself and submitted to the forced labor. The Issachar’s are the ones who are strong in themselves but learned to find rest under submission. Later in scripture it tells us that Isachar’s knew the signs of the times and that they were some of the wisest members of the Sanhedrin. We need more Issachar’s. Dan means “judge”. Samson was from the tribe of Dan. Dan is omitted from the list of tripes in Revelation 7:5-8. Some believe that this is so because they believe the antichrist will come from Dan which makes sense since the antichrist will bring judgment on the whole earth. (Jer. 8:16) If the antichrist is to come from Dan then he is that serpent that strikes the heel and his riders fall backward. When the antichrist comes we will be praying verse 18. Gad means “a troop” and it says of Gad that a troop would overcome him but he will overcome it in the end. I wonder if the fact that his name means the same as his enemies tells us that he was his own enemy. In the end he overcame himself. I know many times I am my worst enemy. Lord, help us to be a haven for new believers, wise in understanding the future, victorious over sin, and may we leave judgment to you.

Fri.’s Devo - Rueben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah

Read Gen 49:1-12 Jacob gave a special blessing to Joseph and his sons privately then invited all his sons in for their blessings. He wasn’t blessing them as much as he was prophesying over them, and it wasn’t even for now… it was for the last days. For us. He started with Reuben, the first born and worked down. Rueben was rebuked and cursed for dishonoring him and sleeping with his concubine. He called him unstable and told him he would not excel. Rueben stands for the entitled group of people that think because they call themselves Christians they are can live their lives for themselves and rely on a gracious Father to forgive them. They will be unstable and not be able to hold down a job because they despise authority. They dishonor God with their testimony and think it is O.K. Simeon and Levi were called “instruments of cruelty”. They had killed a man out of rage and tore down someone’s wall. In the last days they would be scattered and divided. The Simeons and Levi’s are the people who live their lives with a chip on their shoulder and revenge in their hearts. They tear down other people’s walls and expose their sins instead of covering them with love. They will walk divided and not in unity with the body. Judah would be praised by all and choke the enemy. Generations would bow before them. He was referring to Jesus who would be born of this tribe. He likened him to a lion. Jesus was called the lion of the tribe of Judah. He went on to say that Judah’s rule would never depart and until they enter into peace, then they will gather before him. Jesus reign is eternal and when we enter the millennial peace we will gather and worship around the throne. Verse 11 says that the foal will be bound to the vine and the blood of this vine would wash their garments. His eyes would be red with wine and his teeth white with milk. Jesus was bound to his father and his own blood washed him and the world of sin. Everything he sees is from the perspective of the blood and wisdom would be the milk of the word of God. This is a good description of the body that looks like the head. This is the bride. Lord, may we hail from the tribe of Judah.

Thurs.’s Devo - The Blessings of Ephraim and Manasseh

Read Gen. 48:8-22 Jacob now turns his attention to Joseph’s two sons and though he can not see well he knows exactly what he is doing… or maybe God knew exactly what he was doing. He kissed and hugged them then proceeded to bless them. Since Manasseh was the older Joseph put him in front of Joseph so that his right hand would be on him. But Jacob crossed his arms and put his left hand on Manasseh. This went against the custom of the right hand being on the first born signifying that he would be the stronger and the leader. When Joseph noticed what his father had done, he tried to correct him explaining why. But Jacob refused to change saying that they would both be great but Ephraim would be greater than Manasseh. Ephraim and Manasseh did become a tribe of Israel making the number of the tribes 13. Levi is sometimes omitted in the counting since they are the priestly tribe and are treated differently. Ephraim means “double fruit” which described its future. The boundaries of the portion of the land assigned to Ephraim are given in Josh 16: 1-10. It included most of what was afterwards called Samaria. It was the centre of all traffic, from north to south, and from Jordan to the sea, and was about 55 miles long and 30 miles wide. It became a very prosperous and prideful tribe. The tabernacle and the ark were placed within its boundaries at Shiloh, where it remained for four hundred years. Joshua was from the tribe of Ephraim. Both Ephraim and Manasseh had territory on both sides of the Jordan. Manasseh means “God has caused me to forget”. Half of the tribe wanted to stay on the other side of the Jordan and the other half wanted to cross it. So one side was in the promised land and the other not. The west side was the promised land which was some of the most valuable land in the promise land. It was where Palestine was and springs of water. They were on the west arm of the promised land. It think they are indicative of the church now. Some Christians want to stay on the comfortable side of life and not cross over to the promises of God. To cross over Jordan is to die to self and give everything to God. Lord, may our prayer be the prayer that Joshua prayed, “as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord”.

Wed.’s Devo - Jacob’s Last Words to Joseph

Read Gen. 47:28-48:7 Jacob lived in Egypt 17 years which is the exact amount of time he had with Joseph before he was taken from him as a boy. He was 147 years old which means the full reward of his reign on earth was complete. (One hundred means “full reward”; forty means “reign tested”; and seven means “complete”). When he was about to die he called in Joseph so he could be with him one more time before he passed. He made Joseph promise to bury him in the burying place where Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Leah and his forefathers were buried (Machpelah). Burying places were very important to people in the Old Testament. He didn’t want to be buried in Egypt. Joseph made a similar request when he died. He made his sons promise they would take his bones with them when they left Egypt. One day Joseph was summoned to his father’s bedside because the time had come to pass. He took Manasseh and Ephraim with him to see their grandfather once more and receive his blessing. Jacob rallied strength to sit up and speak to them. He reminded them of the promise of God to multiply his seed and give them the land. He then adopted Ephraim and Manasseh as his own children. But their children would be Joseph’s. He went on to talk about Rachel’s death. Rachel which means “an ewe” died in Bethlehem giving birth to Benjamin which means “so of my right hand”. (Jesus sits at the right hand of God.) That was the same place where another lamb - the Lamb of God would be born whose death would bring life to the whole earth. Lord, you have planned everything. Truly our times are in your hand.