GENESIS 49:8-13. BLESSING JUDAH AND ZEBULUN

Jacob’s first three sons received words that seemed more like “curses” than blessings. The fourth son, Judah, was the first one to receive a positive blessing…

4. JUDAH

The two sons that received a longer blessing were Judah and Joseph. This was because Jacob divided the rights of the firstborn between the two of them.

(1 Chronicles 5:1-2) The sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel (for he was the firstborn, but because he defiled his father’s couch, his birthright was given to the sons of Joseph the son of Israel, so that he could not be enrolled as the oldest son; (2) though Judah became strong among his brothers and a chief came from him, yet the birthright belonged to Joseph),

We had seen that Reuben, who was the firstborn son, had his birthrights taken from him. In Chronicles we clearly see that Jacob recognized Joseph as the firstborn, giving him the double portion and the name, but to Judah he gave the authority over the family.

The final blessing to Judah is as follows:

(Genesis 49:8-12) Judah, your brothers shall praise you; your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; your father’s sons shall bow down before you. (9) Judah is a lion’s cub; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down; he crouched as a lion and as a lioness; who dares rouse him? (10) The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples. (11) Binding his foal to the vine and his donkey’s colt to the choice vine, he has washed his garments in wine and his vesture in the blood of grapes. (12) His eyes are darker than wine, and his teeth whiter than milk.

Judah’s blessing has to do with his name (Gen. 29:35).

In Hebrew his name is Yehudah, which means “praised”.

(Gen. 49:8) Judah, your brothers shall praise you; your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; your father’s sons shall bow down before you.

Jacob prophesied that his brothers would recognize his leadership position among the family. In fact, Judah began showing his leadership gifts when the brothers went to Egypt to buy food. He was the one who spoke to Joseph, and made himself responsible for Benjamin.

Further ahead in history, the tribe of Judah would also literally take a leadership role. When the tribes were organized in the desert, the tribe of Judah was the one that went ahead of the rest of the tribes, any time the camp moved (Num. 10:12-14). They were also the head of the spear during the wars of conquest, not just during the time of Moses and Joshua, but also afterwards.

(Judges 1:1-2) After the death of Joshua, the people of Israel inquired of the LORD, “Who shall go up first for us against the Canaanites, to fight against them?” (2) The LORD said, “Judah shall go up; behold, I have given the land into his hand.”

Jacob’s prophesy also said that Judah would have his “hand in the neck of his enemies” (Gen. 49:8). This was fulfilled during the time of David and Salomon, kings of the tribe of Judah, whose kingdom expanded the borders of Israel as far as it ever was. David made a song about the fulfillment of this prophesy:

(2 Sam. 22:40-41) For you equipped me with strength for the battle; you made those who rise against me sink under me. (41) You made my enemies turn their backs to me, those who hated me, and I destroyed them. [This is also in Psalms 18:39-40].

In the blessing, Jacob compares Judah to a lion’s cub.

(Gen. 49:9) Judah is a lion’s cub; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down; he crouched as a lion and as a lioness; who dares rouse him?

The lion begins as a cub, small and immature – that is how Judah was. But that cub eventually becomes a lion. And from Judah’s lineage comes the Messiah, Yeshua, who is known in the Bible as “the Lion of the Tribe of Judah” (Rev. 5:5).

Continuing in the concept of the lion, we have heard it being called “the king of the jungle”. In his blessing to Judah, Jacob prophesied that his descendents would be kings.

(Gen. 49:10) The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.

The phrase: “…until tribute comes to him” means: until the MESSIAH comes.

The Messiah is Yeshua (eng. Jesus), who is descendent of Judah, from the lineage of David (Rev. 5:5). In some versions, this phrase is translated as “until Shiloh come”. Shiloh means: “rest, tranquility”. The Messiah is the only one who can bring true peace and will reign over all the Earth (Rom. 15:12).

After Jesus’ birth, it was prophesied:

(Luke 1:32-33) He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, (33) and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

Israel’s first king, who came from the tribe of Judah, was David (2 Sam. 5:1-5). Then God made a covenant with David, promising him that all the kings of Israel would come from his lineage.

(2 Sam. 7:16-17) And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’” (17) In accordance with all these words, and in accordance with all this vision, Nathan spoke to David.

As Jacob said in his prophesy, all the brothers would bow down before Judah, and they will literally do it before Jesus, descendent of Judah.

5. ZEBULUN

Zebulun was Leah’s sixth son (Gen. 30:19-20). His name means “habitation” (heb. Zebulun). Jacob’s final blessing to Zebulun was the following:

(Gen. 49:13) Zebulun shall dwell at the shore of the sea; he shall become a haven for ships, and his border shall be at Sidon.

If we look at the land that was assigned to Zebulun during the times of Joshua, we could think that Jacob was wrong, since their borders were not on the Mediterranean Sea or on the Sea of Galilee. Actually, they were assigned the land on the Jezreel Valley, which is amongst the most fertile lands in the region.

Although it took a while, the prophesy was fulfilled years later. The blessing that Moses gave to this tribe is related to the fulfillment of the vision that Jacob had of his son and his descendents…

(Deu. 33:18-19) And of Zebulun he said, “Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going out, and Issachar, in your tents. (19) They shall call peoples to their mountain; there they offer right sacrifices; for they draw from the abundance of the seas and the hidden treasures of the sand.”

Zebulun received Moses’ blessing along with Issachar.

These two tribes are neighbors, and are located in the central valley of Israel (Jezreel), one of the most fertile valleys of that region.

None of those two tribes have direct access to the sea. They are really located between the Mediterranean Sea and the Sea of Galilee, with other tribes between them and the seas. However, both of those tribes received blessings concerning the sea. Through their land ran one of the most important commercial routes, known as “Via Maris” (eng. Way of the Sea), which connected Damascus and Egypt. The passing of this commercial route through their land made Zebulun become involved with the trade of the region.

Jacob’s prophesy for Zebulun said that “his border shall be at Sidon”.

Sidon was an important maritime and commercial city on the shores of the Mediterranean. The closest land to it was not Zebulun’s, but Asher’s land. The problem was that the tribe of Asher never fully drove the Canaanites out of the land assigned to them (where today is Haifa and Mount Carmel). This empty space that Asher left began to be occupied by the Zebulunites, who began to infiltrate the land of Asher, because of their access to the sea. The people of the tribe of Zebulun were traders, and the sea made the transportation easier. Today, the valley to the north of Israel, parallel to the coast is known as “Zebulun’s Valley”.

The Zebulunites were not only traders, but they were also brave warriors.

During the time of the judges, they responded to Deborah and Barak’s call to make war against the enemies that were attacking them.

(Judges 4:10) And Barak called out Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh. And 10,000 men went up at his heels, and Deborah went up with him.

The Zebulunites not only fought, but they were also willing to give up their lives in defense of their brothers.

(Judges 5:18) Zebulun is a people who risked their lives to the death; Naphtali, too, on the heights of the field.

Also during the time of David, this tribe contributed many warriors who helped David when Saul was pursuing him.

(1 Chronicles 12:33) Of Zebulun 50,000 seasoned troops, equipped for battle with all the weapons of war, to help David with singleness of purpose.

This tribe not only contributed warriors, but also food for all of David’s brave men, along with Issachar and Naphtali.

(1 Chronicles 12:40) And also their relatives, from as far as Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali, came bringing food on donkeys and on camels and on mules and on oxen, abundant provisions of flour, cakes of figs, clusters of raisins, and wine and oil, oxen and sheep, for there was joy in Israel.

One of the leaders during the time of the judges came from the tribe of Zebulun: Elon.

(Judges 12:11-12) After him Elon the Zebulunite judged Israel, and he judged Israel ten years. (12) Then Elon the Zebulunite died and was buried at Aijalon in the land of Zebulun.