Chuck Larsen

Jacob’s final blessings to his 12 sons are very interesting. Clearly, he marks out Judah as the heir apparent of the leadership of the family and thus the one from whom the ultimate leader of the Nation will come. We call the future figure the Messiah. He is referred to here as “the Lion from the tribe of Judah.” This is where the character in the Chronicles of Narnia, Aslan, comes from. He also refers to this messiah as the one to whom the legitimate rule belongs. But it wasn’t Judah’s blessing that caught my attention this morning, it was Joseph’s blessing. It seems that Jacob again reveals Joseph as his favorite. I’d like to have a blessing like this: Genesis 49:25 says, “May the God of your father help you. May the Almighty bless you with all the blessings of heaven above and all the blessings of the watery depth below and all the blessings of the breast and womb.”

There are three kinds of blessings that Jacob extends to Joseph. The first is blessings of “heaven.” According to the translator’s handbook, “…these are the typical blessings of fertility, asking for abundant crops that come about from dew, rain, and sunshine.”¹ The second blessings are “of the deep.” The handbook continues its comments, “Here it is a poetic way of picturing the waters that are stretched out under the earth, ready to be applied for the good of people according to God’s blessings.” The last blessing involves the “breast and the womb.” The handbook says this refers to “the reproduction of animals and humans.” If we look at all these as a figure of speech however, we might see them as including every possible good thing from everywhere. Paul tells us in Philippians 2:10-11, that God has given Jesus the Name above every other name and at that name, “…every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

We too have been blessed with those above. Paul tells us in Ephesians 1:3, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” He also tells the Corinthians in 2 Corinthians 9:8 that “God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times…” As a matter of fact, James 1:17 tells us, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”  Jacob is giving Joseph the blessing above all other blessings. He calls upon his God to give this favorite son every spiritual blessing from above, every blessing from the depth of the earths hidden in the seas, and every blessing upon the earth in his children and relationships. May the Lord bless you that way! May he pour out heavenly blessings from above upon you. May he raise up from the depths all the joys hidden from your sight. May He bless you through all your human relationships. May that begin today!

¹ William David Reyburn and Euan McG. Fry, A Handbook on Genesis, UBS Handbook Series (New York: United Bible Societies, 1998), 1097.

When Joseph introduces his father, Jacob, to Pharaoh, Pharaoh asks Jacob how old he is. In Genesis 47:9, Jacob answers, “The days of the years of my sojourning are 130 years. Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their sojourning.” I guess it’s not that unusual to compare your life with those who came before you. Jacob made two comparisons. First, he compared the length of his life with his ancestors, and it looks like he also compared the quality of those years.

When I reached 64, I remembered that my Dad died at age 64. In my imagination, I said to him, “I caught up to you, old man!” I wonder if he had similar thoughts when he turned 61, the age at which his father, my grandfather, died. Then I turned 72 and remembered that my mother died at 72. I imagined a similar conversation with her but a lot more respectful. I thought that I didn’t have great genes! Then I remembered that my great grandfather, Louis Larsen, who came from Denmark to America in his teens in 1854, lived into his 90s. Now, I have something else to shoot for! He was a great adventurer even in his old age. When World War I broke out, he was too old to join the Army, so he took a government post in the Philippines to help with the war effort. I haven’t been able to find out what that was yet, but he was most likely in his 60s.

Jacob lived to be about 147 years old. He was blessed with another 17 years with his son Joseph in Egypt. Spence observed, “As Jacob’s life fell short of that of his ancestors in respect of duration (witness the 175 years of Abraham, and the 180 of Isaac), so it greatly surpassed theirs in respect of the miseries that were crowded into it.”¹ I don’t know what Jacob was thinking. Still, you can’t help but observe that in the book of Deuteronomy the one should honor their mother and father should “live long and that it may go well with you in the land.” According to The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, “Jacob, who deceived his father and thereby gained the blessing, must not only die outside the Promised Land, but also we learn here that his years were few and difficult. We can see a final recompense for Jacob’s actions earlier in the book from his own words. Abraham obeyed God and lived long in the land (Gen 26:5), so Jacob’s years were short and difficult. Despite such a final verdict on the life of Jacob, the narrative goes on to show that he lived out his remaining years “in the good [b^emêṭaḇ; New International Version, ‘best part’] of the land” (v.11), though not the Promised Land; and Joseph, his son, provided for him and his household.”² Despite all the trickery, the poor relationship with his in-laws, his dysfunctional home life. He was still blessed in so many ways. God has blessed him repeatedly, and even now, he has received Benjamin back, Simeon was released to him, and lo and behold, he is even reunited with his beloved Joseph.

1. H. D. M. Spence-Jones, ed., Genesis, The Pulpit Commentary (London; New York: Funk & Wagnalls Company, 1909), 508–509.

2 John H. Sailhamer, “Genesis,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 2 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1990), 264.

Have you ever felt pretty good about yourself when you shouldn’t? I have. Back in my early high school days, I had to take extra classes in the summer of 1962 because I didn’t pass all my classes at Holy Name that year. I ended up at Tech High School for the summer with two courses. I was tired of all the study and stuff so along with a friend we sneaked into the school offices and stole the final exam for one of the classes. In and out with no problem. We really thought we had it made. I imagine that’s the way Joseph’s brothers were feeling when they left Egypt in Genesis 44. They had faced the trial of their return. Their worries about their money being returned to them were settled. They had vindicated themselves before the greatest man in Egypt. They had received special treatment from him. They had a meal with him and were honored by him. They were allowed to purchase the grain they needed for their families. Simeon was returned to them and as a whole family, all eleven of them, were on their way home. They had vindicated themselves before Pharaoh’s official and they were about to vindicate themselves before their father as they return with food, Simeon, and Benjamin. All this, and they did it all without being found out with regards to their sin against Joseph 20 years earlier. Yes, I’m sure they felt they had made a great escape and were feeling pretty smug and self-satisfied.

But then, Joseph’s guard catches up with them and accuses them of stealing. You can see the smugness in their reply, “why do you speak such words against us. Far be it from your servants to do such a thing.” Earlier when Joseph had accused them of being spies they assured him that they were “honest” men. Yet, for over 20 years they had lived the lie of Joseph’s death before their Father and other family members. The smugness is soon gone when the guard finds the cup in Benjamin’s bag. Verse 13 tells us that “they tore their clothes.” They had once torn Joseph’s clothes and smeared blood on them to promote their lie. But now they tear their own clothes. As tearing their clothes might expose them physically, it is a visual of the pain of being exposed spiritually. It hurts, humbles, and shames us!

Now, we all know that Benjamin didn’t steal the divining cup from Joseph. They were all innocent of that crime but there was another more important crime that they were all guilty of except for the innocent Benjamin. What Judah, still in the leadership role, says to Joseph is quite revealing. He says, “God has uncovered the iniquity of your servants.” He wasn’t talking about the cup Benjamin was accused of stealing. I think he was publicly acknowledging the family guilt concerning the sins against Joseph – who was standing there listening to it all. The scabs must be pulled off before there can be a true healing.  Joseph wanted true healing. Max Lucado writes, “Confession is telling God you did the thing he saw you do. He doesn’t need to hear it as much as you need to say it. Whether it’s too small to be mentioned or too big to be forgiven isn’t yours to decide. Your task is to be honest.” They say “confession is good for the soul.” James 5:16 tells us to “confess our sins to one another so that we might be healed.” Joseph wanted healing. By the way, someone told on us, and we lost all credit for the classes that summer. It feels good to get that off my chest!