Finishing Well - Genesis 48
This transcript is generated by artificial intelligence. It may contain errors, misidentifications, or omissions.
10:54:00
Please be seated. Good morning. Take your Bibles.
10:55:00
And turn in them to Genesis, 48. Genesis, 48. Follow along as I read the Word of God, starting in verse 1. Genesis, 48. After this, Joseph was told, "Behold, your father is ill." So he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. And it was told to Jacob, "Your son Joseph has come to you." Then Israel summoned his strength and sat up in bed. And Jacob said to Joseph, "God Almighty appeared to me at luz in the land of Canaan and blessed me. And said to me,
10:56:00
'Behold, I will make you fruitful and multiply you. And will make of you a company of people's and will give this land to your offspring after you for an everlasting possession.' And now your two sons who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt are mine. Ephraim and Manasseh shall be mine. As Reuben and Simeon are. And the children that you fathered after them shall be yours. They shall be called by the name of their brothers in their inheritance. As for me, when I came from Padan, to my sorrow Rachel died in the land of Canaan on the way. When there was still some distance to go to Ephrath, and I buried her there on the way to Ephrath. That is Bethlehem. When Israel saw Joseph's sons, he said, 'Who are these?' Joseph said to his father,
10:57:00
'They are my sons whom God has given me here.' And he said, 'Bring them to me, please. That I may bless them.' Now, the eyes of Israel were dim with age, so that he could not see. So Joseph brought them near him. And he kissed them and embraced them. And Israel said to Joseph, 'I never expected to see your face. And behold, God has let me see your offspring also.' Then Joseph removed them from his knees and he bowed himself with his face to the earth. And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand towards Israel's left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand towards Israel's right hand. And brought them near him. And Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on the head of Ephraim who was the younger and his left hand on the head of Manasseh crossing his hands.
10:58:00
For Manasseh was the firstborn. And he blessed Joseph and said, 'The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my lifelong to this day, the angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the boys.' And in them, let my name be carried on and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac. And let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth. When Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him. And he took his father's hand to move it from Ephraim's head to Manasseh's head. And Joseph said to his father, 'Not this way, my father, since this one is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head.' But his father refused and said, 'I know, my son. I know. He also shall become a people. And he also shall be great.
10:59:00
Nevertheless, his younger brother shall be greater than he. And his offspring shall become a multitude of nations.' So he blessed them and said he blessed them that day saying, 'By you, Israel will pronounce blessing saying, 'God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh.' Thus he put Ephraim before Manasseh. Then Israel said to Joseph, 'Behold, I'm about to die. But God will be with you and will bring you again to the land of your fathers. Moreover, I've given you rather than to your brothers one mountain slope that I took from the hand of the Amorites with my sword and with my bow.' This is the word of the living God. As we near the end of Jacob's life, we can reflect upon all the incredible moments in his life. His striving in the womb with his brother Esau. His stealing of the birthright from his brother for some stew.
11:00:00
His stealing of the blessing from his father through a disguise. When his brother was blind. His encounter with God at Bethel. His sister wives' debacle. His wrestling with God. His 12 sons and their story. Jacob is on his deathbed. And that's what we see at the end of chapter 47, all 48, and then 49. It's really a long discussion about Jacob's end of life. If you were to reflect on your own life, what would make the highlight real? Now, sometimes a graduation's parents put together the highlight real. Up to that time, well, maybe stuff growing, growing. Often at funerals as well, there's some kind of slideshow of key moments. High points in your life. What are the high points in Jacob's life? What makes his highlight real? Well, we listed some of those things. We might ask you like this,
11:01:00
what picture do you put on the front of the program that is funeral? What's going to be that defining picture for Jacob? The author of Hebrews picks out one moment from the life of Jacob as the great illustration of his faith. Hebrews 11, verse 21, we read this, 'By faith, Jacob, when dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, bowing in worship over the head of his staff. That's all we get from about Jacob in the what we call the hall of faith, all these different expressions and demonstrations of faith by various saints in the Old Testament. Jacob's life has been a roller coaster up and down. But here, the author of Hebrews sees a high point in Jacob's life
11:02:00
when he blesses Joseph's sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, and worships as he does it. This is a profound demonstration of his faith. The picture the author of Hebrews wants us to have of Jacob in the demonstration of his faith is blessing his grandsons. Rembrandt, the famous painter, thought the same way, I guess, because he painted this scene. He painted the scene of Jacob blessing his sons. You can Google it sometime. Why would the author of Hebrews pick this moment? Well, I would suggest to you that based on the nature of Hebrews 11, highlighting key points of faith in different saints' lives, that this was viewed as a high point in Jacob's life. In Jacob's faith. This high point comes on his deathbed.
11:03:00
Jacob then is one who has finished well. He finishes his race well. We get to witness it. We get to be in the room in this tender moment, with the family as the last words of Jacob are exchanged between him and his sons and grandsons. It's a precious moment. You want to be on a fly on the wall, a different key moment in history, precious moments. And this is one of them. And we get to be in the room with Jacob, also known as Israel, as he talks to his sons, his last words before he dies. And it's an extended discussion on this. It continues in a chapter 49. Jacob had a rough start. He had many challenges along the way. And yet here is a high point at the end of his life. You and I should want to finish well in our race of faith. Paul wanted this in his life. Acts 20:24 says,
11:04:00
"But I do not account my life of any value, nor is precious to myself. If only I may finish my course, in the ministry that I've received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God." He said in his last letter, before he died, in 2 Timothy 4:7, "I have fought the fight, fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith." What was it that allowed Jacob to finish well? Or we might say it like this. What allowed Jacob to die well? And how is it that you and I can live and then die well? The answer is faith. Enduring faith in the God in whom we have believed, in Christ. So as we look at this chapter, we see three demonstrations of faith in order to help you live and die well. To finish well. Three demonstrations of faith to help you live and die well. We'll see.
11:05:00
I'm going to give them all to you up front. Number one, faith reflects on the word of God. That's in verses 1 to 12. Faith reflects on the word of God. Number two, faith rests in the sovereignty of God. In verses 13 to 20. And then faith relies on the promise of God. In verses 21 to 22. Put this chap ter bookmark it in your mental faculties. For the day that you come to die. If the Lord gives you the ability to reason, before your death, here's a precious chapter to meditate upon and see the way that Jacob endured in faith until the end, by reflecting on the word of God, resting in the sovereignty of God, and relying upon the promise of God.
11:06:00
It is one of the profound sections of scripture where we have one who dies well in the Lord. Number one, we see faith reflects on the word of God. Faith reflects on the word of God. In verses 1 to 12. Jacob, or excuse me, Joseph, is informed of his father's impending death. And so he brings his boys to see their grandfather. The text emphasizes the strength that Joseph musters in this moment, even in his final moments, to speak to Joseph and his grandsons. He strengthened, in part, I think, because of the outlook that he has, his perspective. He's going to reflect upon his past and God's goodness and faithfulness. He's going to reflect on the present and what he hopes for for his grandchildren. And he's going to even look to the future that God has promised. Deuteronomy 33, verse 25 says, "As your days, so shall your strength be." Now notice in verse 1,
11:07:00
the ordering of the sons of Joseph. Manasseh and Ephraim. That is their birth order. And so according to the principle or the law of primogeniture, which is really the idea that the firstborn is to inherit the bulk of the inheritance, the main blessing. Manasseh is slated to be that one because what we're going to see is even though Reuben and Simeon would have been the first two, that were born, they are bypassed, as we'll see, in a moment. And so now Jacob is going to bless Joseph as the favored son, but he's going to do it by adopting and then blessing his two sons. So Joseph, the tribe of Joseph, really is broken into two, different tribes, represented by Ephraim and Manasseh. But at the beginning of this chapter, it's emphasizing Manasseh's born first. But what we're going to see later is the crossed hands
11:08:00
and how he blesses Ephraim instead of Manasseh. So that's just an important note up front. You remember their names. Manasseh and Ephraim. Joseph, though he is in Egypt, everything about his life is Egyptian now, but he has a Hebrew heritage. He doesn't lose his faith. He holds on to his faith. One of the ways we see that is in the naming of his sons. Forgetful and fruitful. Right? Those are their names. Forgetful and fruitful. And so these boys, or not little anymore, they're now in their early 20s. At this time. And Jacob begins to speak to them. And as he does, he begins to go down memory lane. He reflects upon his life. And we see that in verses 3 and 4. Verse 3 says, "And Jacob said to Joseph, God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan." Luz is another name for Bethel. "And bless me." And said to me, "Behold, I will make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will make you a company of people
11:09:00
and will give this land to your offspring after you for an everlasting possession." Jacob goes back to really the time that God had called him. The significant moment in his life where God revealed himself to Jacob. He goes back there. Back to a turning point in his life. And he reflects upon the revelation of God to him. God appeared to him and revealed himself as God Almighty. This term appears first in chapter 17, verse 1, to Abraham. It speaks about God's power, but also his sovereignty. And so it's really God's ability to fulfill his covenant promises. He can do it. He is God Almighty, and he assured Abraham of that. And maybe you remember that when Jacob released Benjamin, his youngest son, to go with the other 10 brothers, yes, get my math right, to Joseph,
11:10:00
that he didn't want to do it. He was reluctant. But when he did send Benjamin with them, he encouraged them that God Almighty would go with them. He was remembering the promise of God, the covenant of God, that he would keep. Even if he couldn't see how he would do it. Joseph, or excuse me, Jacob, also spoke of God this way. To show his continued dependence upon this God, he looks to this God who spoke to him in the past and continues to be faithful to him now. He reflects on when God spoke to him and he reflects upon the word of God to him. What Jacob wants him to remember about his encounter with God is the favor that he was shown. A God spoke to Jacob and essentially he reiterated the promises to Abraham and Isaac in the Abrahamic covenant. He really lists all three of these aspects of land, seed, and blessing.
11:11:00
And the fruitfulness that he would produce in the life of Jacob. And so he's continuing on the promise of the Abrahamic covenant through Jacob. That's what was revealed to him. It was showing God's favor upon him. The Abrahamic covenant was the basis of Israel's identity. It established them as the people of God, to bless the nations. And it ensured the favor of God upon them. This was of greatest importance to Israel. And so in Jacob's dying moments, what does he do? What does he reflect upon? What is on his mind? His mind is on the revelation of God. Or if we were to put it today, it's on the scripture. It's on the word of God. That's what he meditates upon. What God had told him. What was of utmost important to him. For us today, we might say, what should we meditate upon most? It's the word of God,
11:12:00
but it's the great covenant promise of the new covenant. It's the gospel. That's what we should meditate upon. What God promised to me to show his favor to me in Christ. Isn't this not what you should reflect upon often to finish well? Word of God, the scripture, God's revelation of himself and his covenant promises to you. Years ago, I was reading a commentary on some other book of the Bible, and the author brought up a story from a mystery novel writer. And told about a villain in the story that had a stash, a cache of diamonds and jewels that they hid away. And they loved to, at various points, just go to the stash and hold the diamonds and the jewels and just let them fall over their hands and play with them and look at them and say, "Whoa, you know, it's like one of those moments." But they loved to go to that stash of gems. And look at them.
11:13:00
Shouldn't that be the same way for you with the word of God, with the scriptures? That throughout your life, but maybe especially at the end of your life, you would want to go to that stash of promises, of precious treasures in the word of God, those jewels, that God has promised to you and given to you. And just hold them in your hand again. And let them pass through your hands again. If you got great wealth, it's like, wow, look at this. It's amazing, right? God has given me this wealth. That's how you should think about it. But with the promises of God in scripture, those are far greater treasure. And so it's great to just let those truths pass over in your mind, like you're holding these precious gems, holding appreciating them, looking at them. This one is mine. I own this, right? And it's these great truths about what God has promised to you that you want to just pass through your mind. Now, that's true not only for your deathbed, but it should be true for every single day that you are finding truth about God's promises to you in the gospel to meditate on,
11:14:00
to hold the diamond up, and just think over and enjoy. That is what helps you to finish well. That's what helps you to continue to persevere and go on living for God. That's what the content of your faith really is. It is those promises that God has given. And so Jacob, at the end of his life, goes back to the content of scripture, the content of God's promises, to reflect upon. And encourage his faith so that he might continue on. Listen, if you want to persevere in faith and continue in faith, then you need to continue to look at the word of God and God's precious promises to you. Isn't this not what will give you endurance to the end? And isn't this not, if that is true for you, isn't this not what you really want others to do as well? Especially those closest to you? If for you, it is precious, for you to meditate upon the scriptures. And draw strength from that, then don't you want your children, your grandchildren,
11:15:00
your friends to also know those truths? Well, Jacob certainly desired that very thing for his grandsons. And he wanted them to be a part of the blessing and the prize that God had promised to him. And so in the verses that follow in this section, Jacob will formally adopt Manasseh and Ephraim his grandsons and bless them with the blessing that he received from Yahweh. Now, this adoption is not because Manasseh and Ephraim are destitute or needy. It is really more to do with the inheritance rights. So essentially, what he's going to do is he's going to treat Manasseh and Ephraim as if they were one of his sons. And so they will be a part of this foundational role that the 12 tribes will occupy. And it will impact the way the land of Israel is divided up in the future. And how Israel will function into the future. And how other people will trace their lineages
11:16:00
in the future. He actually makes the distinction to say, of the 50-some grandsons that I have at this point, you two will be as my sons, as Reuben and Simeon. That's the way that I'm making you mine. And Joseph, your other sons, your other children, they shall derive their inheritance via Ephraim and Manasseh. Not necessarily through you. So Joseph is going to be represented by his two sons. So he's going to adopt them. Joseph then gets the double portion. He overlooks Reuben and Simeon. The first two, because of their gross immorality and sin that they commit. And now he favors Joseph, but Joseph, through these two sons. Now, he points out that they were born in Egypt. And they have this Egyptian upbringing. I think that's in part significant because they've likely never been to Canaan before. Their mother is Potipharah, priest of On.
11:17:00
These boys to be sure have Hebrew names. To identify them, with their roots, they've been taught about Yahweh, the true God, by Joseph, no doubt. And we have good reason to believe that Potipharah likely was converted as well. Though we're not told that explicitly. But everything about their lives, beyond that, is Egyptian. All they've known. It's like kids who've grown up in a different country because they're families in the military. And so they've known they may be Americans, but they've grown up somewhere else. And so they know that country. They know that culture. And they've been told about it. They know certain things, but they're just kind of this dissidence there. And that was likely the case for Manasseh and Ephraim. All they know is Egypt. Not only that, but both of their parents are Egyptian elites. Joseph is the second in command. And over Egypt. And Potipharah is the daughter of a prominent priest in Egypt. So needless to say, their futures in Egypt are set.
11:18:00
They can write their own ticket in Egypt. And so for Joseph, for Jacob, to formally adopt them into his family is a big deal. It likely burns the bridges in some ways for any Egyptian elevation. In the place of Israelite inheritance. One writer put it like this: In giving his two sons to Jacob, he was virtually consenting to their being rejected in respect to a future position in Egypt. By identifying his sons with the despised shepherding people Joseph sealed them off from ascendancy. It was madness from the perspective of the Nile. But like his father Jacob, Joseph believed the word of promise that God was building a great people who would one day return to the land of promise. Though Joseph apparently lived out his career as viceroy of Egypt, there is no record of any of his children attaining rank during the next 400 years in Egypt. Thus, by faith, Joseph lived without currying the favor of Egypt.
11:19:00
In this, he was very much like their he was very much like the future Moses. Who is also celebrated in the Hall of Faith. Hebrews 11 says, "By faith, Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin." He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt. For he was looking to the reward. And so Jacob ensures really that these boys will identify mostly with Israel than they will with Egypt by adopting them. And so what f ollows then is this formal adoption ceremony. He will inherit they will inherit based upon this adoption. And verse 7, he reflects before he does that, upon a sorrowful event in his life.
11:20:00
One of the probably the most sorrowful events in Jacob's life, the death of his beloved wife Rachel. As they were traveling, and she dies in Bethlehem. She dies giving birth to Benjamin. And so Jacob here not only reflects upon the power of God in his life, but also the pain God brought into his life. And he likely mentions Rachel here because Joseph is the son of Rachel, his beloved wife, Benjamin is the other son. And he's going to bless his favored son, Joseph, and through his sons. But one other principle we might notice here is that one of the benefits of reflecting upon the word of God is that it enables you to endure the pains of life. It helps you to weather all storms in life. And make it safe to harbor. Jacob reflects sorrowfully on the loss of his beloved wife. He still is sorrowful about it. And rightly so.
11:21:00
But he still has hope in the future because of his reflection upon the word of God. Verses 8 to 12 then are the formal adoption ceremony. And that will make sense that's important to know because it will make sense of the way this transaction happens. Look at verse 8. When Israel saw Joseph's sons, he said, "Who are these?" Now, you might be thinking, wait a minute. He was just talking to them. Manasseh and Eva were right there. So how is he saying, "Who are these?" Now, actually, we're told in verse 10 that his eyesight is very bad. So it could be something like that. But more likely, based upon other adoption practices, during this time period, this is like the formal nature of the adoption ceremony. It's similar to the way a wedding happens. I've officiated a number of weddings, and when the bride and her father come down the aisle I'm standing there with the groom, and one of the first things that happens
11:22:00
is I'll say, "In accordance with the pattern that God has given for marriage, that a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife." And the two shall become one flesh. Who then gives this woman to be married to this man? Now, when I ask that question, I'm not asking that question in ignorance of who the people are here. I have talked to the father before. I've talked to the daughter. And I know what's going to happen. There's no surprise here. But it's part of the formal ceremony where the father will say something like, "Her mother and I." And so that is the formal nature of this. And so he says, "Who are these?" And Joseph responds, "These are the children that God has given him in the land of Egypt." And the ceremony continues. He blessed them. He kisses them. He embraces them. Verse 11, during the ceremony, Jacob is in grateful as he reflects upon God's unexpected kindness to him. Verse 11 says, "I never expected to see your face," speaking to Joseph. "And behold, God has let me see
11:23:00
your offspring also." He thought Joseph was dead. And so remember here, this is Jacob's deathbed. He's reflecting on his life. And he's thinking, "God spoke to me. He's thankful for that. He's holding fast to the word of God." Then he's also reflecting with gratitude in his heart. I never thought I would see you again. But not only has God allowed me to see you, he's allowed me to see your children. The seed. And so he just has a grateful, thankful heart as he reflects back on his life. Yes, he reflects upon areas of grief in his life. Rachel's death. But also gratitude. Verse 12, then Joseph removed them from his knees. The picture is likely not that these 20-year-olds are sitting on frail 147-year-old Jacob's knees, but probably they're at his knees for this ceremony. And so he moves them. And Joseph himself bows down, showing his acceptance of this process of adoption. He too wants these young men to share this identity.
11:24:00
And their grandfather's identity. And their identity has come from the word of God to them. So here, first, we see Jacob's faith is demonstrated as he reflects back upon the character of God and the promise of God given to him by the word of God. He desires his grandchildren to inherit the same promise and favor of God. And so he formally adopts them to enjoy the inheritance. James Montgomery Boyce says, "This is what Jacob wanted to pass on to his children. He was right to want this. Is it not sad that so many people try to pass on almost everything else and neglect this one thing that alone is of eternal importance? We try to leave our children well situated in life, with good educations, useful friends, and contacts. And sometimes good bank accounts or other assets. But these can perish overnight. It is the knowledge of God and faith in God that alone remain." End quote. None of those other things are bad to pass on your children.
11:25:00
They're actually very good blessings. But if you do those to the neglect of passing on the truth as the main thing, the knowledge of God and your family identity as followers of Christ, then those things can perish overnight. They can grow wings and fly away. So how important is it to reflect upon our lives with grateful hearts? And the way you do this at the end of your life is to reflect upon your life through the lens of the revelation that God has given to you in his word. So faith reflects on the word of God. Secondly, second demonstration of his faith that you need to live and die well faith rests in the sovereignty of God. Faith rests in the sovereignty of God. Joseph presents his boys to his nearly blind father. In the expected positions, of their birth order to receive a blessing. The right hand is the hand of blessing. Sorry. Left-handers.
11:26:00
And they so he would bless the one who's going to get the greater inheritance with his right hand. And so naturally, Joseph brings menaca, the older, and puts him under and there's this kind of this opposite description. So he's taking his hand and he's putting menaca on the right hand of Jacob. So pretend I'm Jacob. And menaca's here. And then he takes Ephraim and puts him under his left hand. So Jacob's likely probably sitting, leaning and they're there, leaning down by his knees. And he's putting his hands on both of their heads. That's what Joseph presents how he presents his boys. However, Jacob surprises Joseph by switching his hands. He crosses his hands. And so he puts the right hand of blessing on Ephraim's head. And his left hand on Menasa's head. Now, both of them will be blessed as Jacob will remind Joseph but the greater blessing, the one who will be greater is the younger.
11:27:00
Ephraim. And so one person called this the cross-handed theology. Cross-handed theology. God has another plan, which Jacob makes clear. By his hands. And so in verses 15 to 16, having crossed his hands, he then blesses the boys and 15 and 16 is like a sermon in itself. It's like Jacob's mini sermon as he blesses his boys. It's a three-point sermon. Followed with a blessing. And by blessing these boys, or excuse me, it says that he blessed Joseph, but really you understand the context that the way he's blessing Joseph is via his two sons, by adopting them. So he's really saying Joseph gets the firstborn blessing. And he's going to bless him through his sons. Now notice this three-point sermon focuses on God. It's a God-centered sermon. This whole chapter is focused upon God. He reflects upon God speaking to him in the past. He reflects upon God here. And he reflects upon God's presence and promise
11:28:00
in the future. Look at verses 15 and 16. He says, "And he blessed Joseph and said, 'The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my days long, all my life long, excuse me, to this day, the angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the boys.'" Notice these three descriptions of God that he gives. This is these are his three points. First is the communion with God. He speaks of the communion with God. He says, "The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked." This term for walked speaks to the manner of one's life. Communion. With God. The relationship that he enjoyed with God. Now this is a unique verbal form in Hebrew. And it occurs a number of other times. It's not a very common form. So when we see it, we should perk up and listen.
11:29:00
Notice the first occurrence, though, of it. In chapter 3 of Genesis, just go there in your Bibles. Genesis chapter 3. And we'll just kind of walk through a few of these real quickly. And you'll see where these are. Genesis 3, verse 8. This is Adam and Eve. "And they heard the sound of Yahweh God walking." There's our word, walking in the garden. "In the cool of the day. And the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of Yahweh God among the trees of the garden." So this is God's practice to walk with his people in the garden. But of course, they've eaten the fruit and they're hiding from God. It's created distance. Sin has created distance from their communion with God. But there's the first occurrence of this. Walking with God in communion with him. Chapter 5. You're probably familiar with this one. Chapter 5, verse 22 says this, "Enoch, walked with God. After he fathered Methuselah for 300 years and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of Enoch were 365 years."
11:30:00
and he was not, for God took him. Enoch, here's again, walked with God You know, he had an individual rapture. You know, he caught up to heaven. Chapter 6, verse 9. These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, a blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God. Chapter 13, verse 17. This is an interesting one. 13, 17. "Arise! Walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I will give it to you." It's the same term. Telling Abraham. Chapter 17, verse 1. "When Abraham was 99 years old, Yahweh appeared to Abram and said to him, 'I am God Almighty.'" There's our term. Jacob uses. "Walk before me and be blameless. And then 24, verse 40. 24, verse 40 says, "But he said to me, 'Yahweh, before whom I have walked, will send his angel with you and prosper your way.'"
11:31:00
And you shall take a wife for my son, for my clan, and for my father's house. So we see the idea of this is communion with God, walking with God. And we might ask the question, who is it that walked in the garden with Adam and Eve? It is the son, the eternal son of the father, manifesting himself. And a physical form before the incarnation. So walk becomes a term for communion with God. So we often say this, how is your walk with God? Right? So let me ask you that. How is your walk with the Lord? Are you in a season of enjoyment, of God, or distance with God? Are you enjoying times of fellowship with God in his word, and living them out through the day? George Mueller, known for his orphanages, but also was a pastor for 66 years in the same church. Wow.
11:32:00
He spoke about how it took him some years to realize this. But he spoke about on many occasions after he did, different years of his life and his later years. He said about his personal time with the Lord in devotions, that he realized that he should make it his number one goal in spending time with God and reading his Bible and praying. To get his heart happy in the Lord. That was his number one goal when he read the Bible. To get my heart happy in the Lord. He says, "Before I thought about serving other people, about what I would do for the Lord, my first goal was, I want my heart to be satisfied and happy in God." Because he knew that if he was happy in God, satisfied in God, joyful in God, then he would be freed up to serve God, whatever God called him to do. And so make it your aim to say, "God, I want to seek you in your word today so that you would cause me to be happy in you, joyful in you." So first he speaks about communion with God, Jacob does. Second he speaks about the care of God,
11:33:00
the care of God, that God who has been my shepherd all my lifelong to this day. God is his shepherd. Now Joseph told his family, "Hey, tell Pharaoh that you guys are shepherds, because they abominate shepherds." And you'll get this part of the land. You get separated. He wanted that. And so they know all about shepherding. And so this becomes an apt metaphor for what God does for them. And Jacob begins this comforting image of God in scripture. One writer said it was Jacob, not David, who first called God his shepherd. Of course, if you think about the Lord is my shepherd, David says. But before that, he got it from Jacob. And it occurs many times of God speaking about leading his people, guiding his people, even has the imagery of him leading them out of Egypt later in the Exodus. He shepherds them through that.
11:34:00
Of course, Jesus will later identify himself as the good shepherd in John 10. And what he's trying to do by saying, "I am the good shepherd," is show that he's divine by saying, "I am." But even in the term shepherd, he is speaking about his divinity as well, because in Ezekiel 34, God speaks, Yahweh speaks about the false shepherds in Israel. And he's saying, "I will deal with the false shepherds, and I will shepherd the people myself." And so when Jesus comes along and says, "I am the good shepherd," he's not only using the divine name of God, but he's also using the divine characteristic of God as shepherd. Of his people. And he's talking to the false shepherds, the Pharisees, and the religious leaders. He's saying, "You guys are the false shepherds, and who am I in this picture? I'm Yahweh, who shepherds his people." And so what is the way of a shepherd? How does God shepherd you? Well, he knows you. He instructs you. He corrects you. He guides you. He feeds you. He protects you. What a comfort in life and death.
11:35:00
God will guide me through this trial. He will guide you even through the trial of your own death. Who better knows how to shepherd you through death than the Lord Jesus Christ? Who better could walk with you through death than the one who has died in your place and conquered death's sting? And raised himself from the dead. Listen, no one else can shepherd you through death better than Christ. And so he speaks here about the care of God. Third, he speaks about the Christ of God, the Christ of God. Look at the beginning of verse 16. An interesting statement here. The angel who has redeemed me from all evil. Who is this angel? It seems kind of like random. It's like God, God, angel. Well, that's the parallel we see. It's like duck, duck, goose.
11:36:00
Now, if the first two are speaking about God, it stands to reason that this third one might as well. This angel, or really it's a term this angel in particular here, for a messenger, an emissary of God, is God, and yet is distinct in some way. We're getting some of the early grammar of the Trinity here. This is the angel of Yahweh, who appears at various points. Really, almost as a technical term to refer to an appearance of the second person of the Godhead before the incarnation. And this is fitting for the Son to do this, and not the Father or the Spirit, because eternally, the Son is begotten of the Father. We call this eternal generation. He eternally is has life from the Father. John 5:26. And so it's fitting that he would be
11:37:00
the one sent as God's emissary. And so he is. He's the Son who is sent by the Father. And even before the incarnation. There are points where he appears to move God's plan along. And so the Son appeared to Jacob And I believe this is the first time and redeemed him from all evil. He was his Savior. He was his deliverer. this particular word for redemption appears in Genesis. And so how fitting it is that this early reference to redeem being a redeemer would be associated with the Son. For he is the redeemer. Job would speak about his hope for a redeemer as well. Job 19, verse 25. And Job is likely written before the book of Genesis is written. For I know that my redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth.
11:38:00
And so who is the good shepherd of his people? It is the Son. Who is the one whom we walk with, who walked in the garden with his people without him in Eve? It was the Son. And who is this angel who redeemed Jacob from all his trouble? It's the Son. This is a very Christ-centered meditation of Jacob. He didn't know everything. He didn't know Jesus' name. A lot of things he didn't know yet, but he was looking for that hope, that individual, that seed of the woman who would crush the head of the serpent. That was his hope. That was his redeemer. Jesus is referred to as shepherd elsewhere beyond John 10. 1 Peter 2:25. For you were straying like sheep, but now you've returned to the shepherd in overseer of your souls. 1 Peter 5:4. And when the chief shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. Hebrews 13:20 to 21 says, "Now may the God of peace, who brought again from the dead
11:39:00
our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, with the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will. Working in us, that which is pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen." A boy's comments on these three New Testament passages about Christ as shepherd. And he says, "These passages highlight the focal points of Christ's ministry. As the good shepherd, Christ dies for the sheep. As the great shepherd, Christ rises from the dead so that he might serve the sheep. And as the chief shepherd, Christ returns to reward those who have been faithful in the responsibilities to which they have been assigned as under shepherds." Isn't it great to just meditate upon Christ even here in Genesis 48, as Jacob does? He wants his Son's and grandson's to meditate on. Let me ask you this. Is Christ your redeemer? Is he your shepherd? Do you know God in this way to enjoy him and have communion with him? God was Jacob's satisfaction as he walked with him.
11:40:00
He was his shepherd as God led him. And he was his Savior. Is that true for you? Listen, no one else can shepherd you better through death, through life than Christ. There is no way to have communion with God apart from Christ. And there's no way to be redeemed, to be delivered, to be saved from your sin and death, the great enemy than through the redeemer who dies in the place of sinners like you. And has been raised from the dead. And he offers life to all who will come to him in repentance and faith. It's not the amount of your faith. It is the object of your faith. That your faith is in the redeemer, Christ. That was Jacob's hope. And so then, having spoken about the God who blesses, this is the nature of the God who blesses. He is the one whom we communion with. He walks with us. He is our shepherd and our Savior.
11:41:00
Then he blesses them having spoken about God's character. He blesses them. He gives them the blessings of the covenant. Having adopted them. And we should also meditate on the reality as he adopts these sons, these boys, these grandsons, and makes them his own sons and gives them the inheritance. God, in the gospel, if you have repented and believed in Christ, he adopts you into his family. And you have the inheritance. Christ came to be born under the law that we might be adopted as sons. Be able to call him Father. And we have this rich inheritance promised to us, kept in heaven, preserved for us, guarded. In the vault until the time of Christ's appearing. And we enjoy all those blessings. And so consider as well the precious truth of the adoption that you have in God's family. That's another gem to pull out of the vault and hold. Especially as you come to die.
11:42:00
But this action of Jacob is deeply distressing to Joseph. And we need to look at that. Verse 17, when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him. And he took his father's hand to move it from Ephraim's head to Manasseh's head. It's kind of a play on words here. Joseph saw what was happening. And Jacob can't see. But the issue is, Joseph sees physically clearly what's happening. Jacob can't see physically. But he sees clearly what God wants to have happen. Or Joseph doesn't see it yet. In a way, he's resisting what he does and understand. He doesn't understand the sovereign choice of God and why it would be this way. And so he tries to forcefully move his father's hand, his old and firm father. He's like, "Dad, no. It goes like this." Or actually, he's pulling him apart because they're cross. "Put them right here. Do it again, Dad. He doesn't understand." And he thinks his dad is making a mistake.
11:43:00
But Jacob explains that he knows what he's doing. This is intentional. He says, "I know, my son. I know." And he assures him that Manasseh will be blessed. But it is God's will that Ephraim have the greater blessing. This should bring up some déjà vu for you. It reminds us of the blessing of Jacob over Esau, the younger over the older. With a blind father again in Genesis 37. But that happened through deception. The deception of Jacob. Where he was trying to get the blessing. And he dresses up like Esau and hairy guy. And he gets the food from the help of his mom. And so he deceives his blind father. But now it's like déjà vu. But it's different. Because Jacob is submitted to the sovereign will of God for his life. And these boys' lives. This is not just Jacob pursuing his own desires. Trying to play a little trick. This is Jacob proclaiming God's desires for these boys. This is God's decision. One writer says, "Jacob is speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit."
11:44:00
And is therefore telling, not what he wants, but what shall be. He says, "He too will become a people." And he too will become great. Nevertheless, his younger brother will be greater. This is the precise opposite of Jacob indulging his desires. He is putting his own will aside. And his blessing Ephraim first in obedience to the leading of God. And God's sovereign choice. Ephraim the younger will be greater. Than Manasseh the older. And we see this. You can read in 1 Chronicles 5:1-2 how Reuben and Simeon are Reuben's passed over. And Joseph is put in his place. And of course, the blessing goes to Ephraim primarily. Ephraim becomes so significant that you know that when we speak about the southern kingdom, when it divides north and south, we refer to the southern kingdom as Judah. And we refer to the northern kingdom as Israel. But sometimes in the prophets, especially Isaiah and Hosea, he just calls the northern tribes all 10 of them Ephraim. He calls them Ephraim. So interesting. Just think about this. We're studying this 37 to 50.
11:45:00
It's about Joseph and Judah. It's not just about Joseph. It's the story about two brothers, really. And the rest of them too. But focus on Joseph and Judah. And what is later true in Israel's history? The tribes split. And Judah is in the south. And Ephraim, or Joseph's tribe, is in the north. So we see just this continuing pattern through scripture based on what happens here. This is God's pattern through Genesis. Abel versus Cain. Isaac over Ishmael. Jacob versus Esau. Perez versus Zerah. Joseph versus Reuben. Ephraim versus Manasseh. God continues to choose the unexpected choice. The younger over the older. This is part of God's unexpected ways. And yet it demonstrates God's sovereign right to choose whom He will. This is Jacob's final decision. And he refers corporately in verse 22 the nation. How Israel as a whole will in the future pronounce blessings and say, "God make you," speaking to other people,
11:46:00
"God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh." Because they'll come like a prototype, a pattern of God's favor. And blessing. What's the message for us here? Is that God's sovereignly shows favor to whom He will. Romans chapter 9 drives this point home. Romans 9 verse 10 says, "And not only so, but also when Rebecca had conceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, though they were not yet born and had done nothing good or either good or bad, in order that God's purpose of election might continue, not because of works, but because of Him who calls, she was told, 'The older will serve the younger.' As is written, 'Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.' What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God's part by no means? For He says to Moses, 'I will have compassion of mercy on whom I have mercy, and I'll have compassion on whom I have compassion.' So it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God who has mercy. It is not for you and I
11:47:00
to reject or resist His choices or complain about them, but to receive them as good and rejoice in them. We're to submit to God's choices. This is what faith does. Consider the words of Jonathan Edwards at Giant, one of the America's greatest theologians. He wrote about this very subject, the sovereignty of God. He says, "From my childhood up, my mind had been want to be full of objections against the doctrine of God's sovereignty. In choosing whom He would to eternal life and rejecting whom He pleased, leaving them eternally to perish. And be everlastingly tormented in hell. It used to appear like a horrible doctrine to me." And then he says later, "But I remember the very time very well when I seemed to be convinced and fully satisfied as to the sovereignty of God. And His justice in thus eternally disposing of man according to His sovereign pleasure." He says later on,
11:48:00
"The doctrine has very often appeared exceedingly pleasant, bright, and sweet. Absolute sovereignty is what I love to ascribe to God." As God worked in His heart and changed His heart related to that doctrine. I'm not saying that Joseph didn't love the sovereignty of God. He absolutely did. It was what allowed him to forgive and work through his life. But in this moment, he couldn't see how God's sovereign will was working itself out. He had a moment of, "No, it can't be this way. As we will as well. We might say, 'Hey, I believe in the sovereignty of God. I believe in all five points of the doctrines of grace. And yet there might be circumstances in our lives where we go, 'No, God, not that way.' And it goes totally against the theology we profess. But God is patient. And He may bring us nevertheless to come to say, 'God, You did it right. You did it right.' Maybe not now, but at a later point.'" God always doesn't always choose
11:49:00
the way we would choose. Another lesson is to recognize that God is determined what you have and don't have. God gives different stewardships and blessings to different people. So don't become jealous or covetous of someone else's position that they have, their possessions, their privileges, their gifting. God saw fit to give somethings which He does not give to others. He gave more to Ephraim than He did to Manasseh. And He upset the normal expectations in society. And yet we need to come as Jacob did to accept that. And rejoice in that. That God is sovereign and how He disposes of all of His resources and all of His favor and kindness. None of it is deserved. All of it is grace. Finally, and briefly here, we see faith relies on the promise of God. Faith relies upon the promise of God. Verses 21 and 22. Then Israel said to Joseph, "Behold, I'm about to die. But God will be with you and will bring you again to the land of your fathers.
11:50:00
He recognizes He's near death. And He speaks to Joseph, reminding him of the ongoing blessing of the presence of God and the certainty of the promise of God. He says, 'God will be with you. This particular aspect of God's character has been throughout the life of Joseph. It's actually has a high concentration of statements in Joseph's narrative, Jacob's narrative, excuse me, where it says, 'God was with him and God was with him.' Faith hears the promise of Emmanuel I am with you always and I will never leave you or forsake you. And faith believes this and can face fears. And so he says, 'Joseph, remember God is always with you. These are part of His dying words. He knows that for Himself, God is with me. He's with me even as they take my last breath. And He'll be with you.' And then He reminds him of the future promise of God to bring them again into the land. Jacob is certain of the promise that God made concerning the land.
11:51:00
He's so certain He already made plans for His bones to be brought back there. But he's so certain that He gives a piece of land to Joseph, which He doesn't currently inhabit. He possesses it. He took it in the past. And there's some question about, like, what does this event talking about? Say that for another time. But nevertheless, He gives Joseph a special piece of land knowing that one day He will enjoy it. Even if it's in the resurrection. And so He believes this future promise of God that they will be in the land. This is the very nature of faith. It is a certainty of that which God has promised, even if what was promised has yet to come to pass. Hebrews 11, verse 1. Now, faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. That's exactly what Jacob has here. They're not in the land around. They're in Egypt. But He gives them this land before they even inhabit it, knowing that God will prove faithful to His promise.
11:52:00
We too have a future land promised to us, a new earth. Do you believe that this is certain? Because God is the one who said it. Faith relies on the promise of God on all the promises of God. Jacob dies relying on the presence of God with him and the promise of God to him. How is it that you can die well and live well and finish well? By faith. Hebrews 11, 21. By faith, Jacob, when dying, blessed each of his sons, each of the sons of Joseph, bowing in worship over the head of his staff. Faith reflects on the word of God. Faith rests in the sovereignty of God. Faith relies on the promise of God. His eyes were dim with age, so he couldn't see physically. But Chrysostom, the old preacher in the 300s, he says,
11:53:00
'The eyes of Jacob's mind, who though blind, physically saw the future by faith. Often those people of faith in Christ when they come to die.' As one person said, 'They see life with greater clarity.' And so may our spiritual vision grow clearer and clearer even as our physical vision grows more dim. That we would become more thankful for the past, content in the present, and hopeful for the future. Let me pray. Lord, thank You for this word to encourage our hearts so much about You, God, so God-centered. Jacob was in his dying day and so may it be that we would be God-centered in our living days and even in those final days if You would so give us time to reflect and a mind to do so. We ask these things in Jesus' name. Amen.