910 Biblical Characters - Jacob & The 12 Tribes of Israel
Exploring Biblical Characters • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 7 viewsNotes
Transcript
- The penny hadn’t dropped; he/she didn’t get it
- Some people, including Christians, don’t pick up on what is said or what is happening in the word of God & apply it to their lives - its like there’s a certain level of blindness there
- Sometimes, it’s a matter of not understanding or getting the point that is being made in the Scripture
- Other times, its sheer EGO – that I, me, could never be wrong – its always the other person, isn’t it
---------------------
- Esau seems to have had the same issue
- You would have thought that he would, or should, have understood what God was doing
- Yet, he was blind – blind to what God was doing & mostly blind to the fact that he was not living the way he should have lived in the sight of God
- This is where we left off last week...
5 Then Isaac sent Jacob away, and he went to Paddan-aram to Laban, son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, the mother of Jacob and Esau. 6 Now Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Paddan-aram to take to himself a wife from there, and that when he blessed him he charged him, saying, “You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan,” 7 and that Jacob had obeyed his father and his mother and had gone to Paddan-aram. 8 So Esau saw that the daughters of Canaan displeased his father Isaac; 9 and Esau went to Ishmael, and married, besides the wives that he had, Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, the sister of Nebaioth.
- He seems to have had no clue that marrying Hittite women would have upset his parents
- He had no clue that the line of Abraham & Isaac was, in fact, the only important line as regards to the line of promise
- Even near the deathbed of Isaac, he still thinks that marrying into Ishmael’s line will, sort of, perhaps, redeem himself
--------------------
- I suppose its debatable whether he was trying to redeem the relationship he had with his parents or just to vex them further by strengthening ties with Ishmael
- Either way, it made no difference to his situation
- It just showed that he had no heart for what God was doing since he was not only blind to the truth of what was actually happening, but he was no further advanced in his understanding of God
- In one sense, we could say that he was living in darkness
-----------------
- Jesus made strong points about the distinction between living either in darkness or in the light
46 “I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness.
12 Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”
- So darkness remains on those who willingly disbelieve in Jesus
- But a person may claim to follow Jesus but live in darkness which is shown by the fact that they don’t practise the truth
- Part of that practise is loving believers in Christ
5 This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; 7 but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.
9 The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now. 10 The one who loves his brother abides in the Light and there is no cause for stumbling in him. 11 But the one who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
- The blindness of believers, come when they are too egotistical to realise that God may, in fact, present a challenge to them about an area of their life
- No, not that person over the other side of the isle, because that’s the first ingredient you find in the recipe of darkness
- Pointing fingers at others & having no introspection of one’s own is what cements people in darkness
31 But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged.
- We need to be humble enough to check ourselves - before God checks us at the judgement seat of Christ – I hope we would all agree on that
1. Jacob Seeks a Wife
1. Jacob Seeks a Wife
- We could say that Jacob had a heart for God
- He was obedient to his parents & went to find a wife at the place where Isaac found his wife
- Of course, the difference there was that Abraham’s servant went back to Paddan-aram & the town of Haran to get a wife – a Rebekah – for Isaac - Isaac was not permitted to go
- Whereas because of the threat from the vexed Esau, it was more necessary for Jacob himself to go to Paddan-aram to bring back a wife
----------------------
- I find this incredibly interesting
- Abraham did not take the risk of having his son Isaac go look for a wife himself, but sent his servant instead
- The promise was contingent upon Abraham’s descendants remaining in the Promised land so he was not going to risk Isaac going to another land & not coming back – that would nullify the promise
---------------------
- Yet, when risks are weighed up with the pros & cons, Isaac decides to send Jacob away from the Promised land to get a wife for himself
- The risk was far greater from Esau (who consoled himself by planning to kill his brother) than in keeping Jacob in the Promised land
41 So Esau bore a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing with which his father had blessed him; and Esau said to himself, “The days of mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob.” 42 Now when the words of her elder son Esau were reported to Rebekah, she sent and called her younger son Jacob, and said to him, “Behold your brother Esau is consoling himself concerning you by planning to kill you. 43 “Now therefore, my son, obey my voice, and arise, flee to Haran, to my brother Laban!
Q. But how would Rebekah convince Isaac to allow Jacob to go to Haran? Like this...
46 Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am tired of living because of the daughters of Heth; if Jacob takes a wife from the daughters of Heth, like these, from the daughters of the land, what good will my life be to me?”
- You may think that’s being a little melodramatic!
- But it made the point & Isaac agrees to send Jacob to Haran of Paddan-aram to find a wife
-----------------
- While in Paddan-aram, Jacob comes across Rachel, the daughter of Laban who is Rebekah’s brother & Abraham’s brother Nahor’s, grandson (I’ll post this graph on the Telegram chat for you to look at)
- Jacob is overwhelmed by God’s providence in that he comes across the very relatives he seeks & he weeps (balls his eyes out)
- It’s like that when we are seeking to please God & we wonder whether we are having success or not
- This is a time of joy for Jacob as he releases all that emotion of finding his like-minded kindred
-----------------------
- Rachel is so excited that she leaves him there to runs to tell her father
- Her father Laban is so excited he ran to meet Jacob
- Family ties were very strong in those days, particularly when it came to religious ties
-------------------------
- Laban had two daughters from which Jacob could make a pick
- Jacob believes he has found his wife in Rachel
- Leah was the older of the 2 & is said to have “weak” eyes - if they had them in those days, Leah would possibly be wearing glasses - although, there is uncertainty in what the word means here in this context
- It is possible that Leah’s eyes were, in the words of the New Revised Standard version, “lovely”
- The Hebrew word means tender, delicate, soft & you know as well as I do that it could mean that her eyes were weak as in tender
- Or that her eyes were lovely as in soft or delicate
- Perhaps if she did have weak eyes, it would be helpful if Jacob was not the most handsome man around
---------------------
- But Rachel was the younger one & would have been somewhat of a model in today’s world
- It says that she had beauty & form – as in figure – a number of translations using the word, “shapely”!
- Unfortunately, too many men are caught up with the form & figure & make poor choices in a wife
- I don’t watch the show, but you see ads for “Married at First Sight” & they only use women & men of form & figure
------------------------
- Jacob wanted Rachel but he didn’t have the money for the bride price
- Part of the usual arrangement was to provide a sum of money, a bride-price for the father of the woman you’re marrying – you could only secure her with a monetary sum – it was compensation for his loss
- But the father usually provided a dowry for his daughter
- To deal with the lack of bride-price for Laban, Jacob would work 7 years for Laban so he could marry Rachel
- But oh, for Rachel’s hand in marriage, 7 yrs seemed, but like a few days
Q. What woman, would not be flattered by that sort of love?
- After 7 yrs, Laban would give Rachel in marriage to Jacob
2. Sometimes What Goes Around, Comes Around
2. Sometimes What Goes Around, Comes Around
- Yes, that’s a good saying – what goes around comes around
- What it means is that what you have done to others will come back upon you
- We see that happen to Jacob here
- By deception, Jacob cheated Esau out of the promised blessing
- Now, by deception, we see that Laban cheats Jacob out of his wife to be
-------------------
- Instead of finding that he was given Rachel on his wedding night, he wakes up in the morning & finds that he married & spent the night with the older of the sisters, Leah
Q. You are probably wondering, how on earth could she be mistaken?
- Well, firstly, remember that the women wore a veil & had on elaborate wedding clothes which could have cloaked who was the woman standing with him when they were married
- Secondly, there was a lot of festive activity prior to the wedding night so he could have been quite merry on his wedding night & if they retired in darkness, then he might not have discovered the truth till morning
- Remember, it was not a culture where the women worn bikini’s down at the local Oasis
- The woman was always heavily covered so its not like he would have known instantly
25 So it came about in the morning that, behold, it was Leah! And he said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served with you? Why then have you deceived me?”
- What goes around, comes around – he met his match in Laban
---------------------
- Now getting Leah as a bride, Jacob had to agree to another 7 yrs of labour as a bride-price for Rachel
- It was a pathetic excuse for what Laban had done, but he banked on Jacob being desperate enough to secure Rachel & if 7 yrs seemed like a few days then perhaps another 7 yrs might work
- But Laban knew that he would be in trouble if he withheld Rachel for another 7 yrs, so he allows Leah to complete her bridal week, then he gives Rachel to Jacob as a wife & Jacob has to serve another 7 yrs
- Now that he has Rachel, I’ll guarantee that those 7 extra yrs didn’t seem like a few days
Q. What a crook – Jacob got to experience what Esau experienced!
-----------------------
Q. Do you remember that song from the 1970’s, “Shame & Scandal in the Family”?
- It sounds a bit like the chaos of that song
- This polygamous relationship ends up bringing out so much jealousy, envy, bargaining & strife
------------------------
- I include bargaining as we have that very thing happening here
- Rachel was barren – the Lord had held her back from bearing children, yet Leah, the “unloved” had borne 4 sons already
- Leah had some Mandrakes & Mandrakes are a plant with a root that is believed to be an aphrodisiac – that is, it is suppose to help encourage vigorous love-making & hence potency & pregnancy
- Rachel had hoped that this might help her conceive
13 “The mandrakes have given forth fragrance; And over our doors are all choice fruits, Both new and old, Which I have saved up for you, my beloved.
--------------------
- So because she is the favoured one & Leah really wants her husband, she enters into an arrangement with Rachel
- Rachel asks for the Mandrakes in exchange for a giving Leah a night with Jacob which probably shows to us that he spent most of, if not all of, his time with Rachel – here Leah to Rachel...
15 But she said to her, “Is it a small matter for you to take my husband? And would you take my son’s mandrakes also?” So Rachel said, “Therefore he may lie with you tonight in return for your son’s mandrakes.” 16 When Jacob came in from the field in the evening, then Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must come in to me, for I have surely hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” So he lay with her that night.
- Oh brother, what a mess – but wait, there’s more!
3. The 12 Tribes of Israel
3. The 12 Tribes of Israel
- Rachel was barren & this is why she “bought” the mandrakes off Leah with the price of a night with their husband Jacob because he spends all his time with Rachel
- But any magical attempt to procure a child was simply the nonsense superstition of a pagan culture
- The mandrakes didn’t work, however, we see that God gave heed again to Leah & she conceived again
- The greatest gift of God to a woman in these times was to have children & Leah was blessed with an abundance
18 Then Leah said, “God has given me my wages because I gave my maid to my husband.” So she named him Issachar. 19 Leah conceived again and bore a sixth son to Jacob. 20 Then Leah said, “God has endowed me with a good gift; now my husband will dwell with me, because I have borne him six sons.” So she named him Zebulun.
- Maids were given to both Leah & Rachel – they belonged to them
- It was not unusual in that day that the maid was an extension of her master – in the case here, of Leah or Rachel
- Leah wanting to secure her husband used her maid to bear more sons to Jacob & the maid was given in wedlock to Jacob as well & she bore him 2 more sons
-----------------------
- In a touch of irony we see the loved one, Rachel, bear no children & yet the unloved one, Leah had an abundance
- Rachel was so frustrated by this humiliation that she scolded & blamed Jacob for her not having children – its not as if he didn’t spend any time with her – he was there all the time!
1 Now when Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, she became jealous of her sister; and she said to Jacob, “Give me children, or else I die.”
- It’s all your fault Jacob – with which he scolded her for denigrating God who is the One who gives or withholds children
- So Rachel decided to give to Jacob her maid Bilhah as a wife & she ended up bearing 2 sons to Jacob but sons who are claimed as Rachel’s
- Bit sad for those maids but they would have spent most of the time with the children anyway – in doing the job of raising them
- We see, then, there is a real competition between the sisters as to who can give the most sons to Jacob
-----------------------
- But poor Leah desperately wants Jacob to love her but he – notice how the Hebrew frames it – lit. “hated her” because, often, there is no middle ground in the Hebrew understanding
- NASB translation has, with many others, “unloved” because the translators think it is overkill to say that Jacob hated her - & they would be right
- In fact, it would be hard for him to hate her with all the sons she bore to him
- But it is interesting how there is no middle ground in the Hebrew culture
-----------------------
- What Leah achieved was the most treasured of gifts a woman, in that day, could give to her husband
- That’s why she kept saying after each son she bore to him, “now my husband will love me”
- After those 3 didn’t change Jacob’s mind, she bore Judah which means “praise the Lord”
- In the end, she came full circle & decreed that the Lord was the One who is truly her all in all
- So she named him Judah - Judah is composed with the senses of Yahweh & praise – pronounced in Hebrew, Yehudah (praise the Lord)
-----------------------
- Each of the maids bore 2 sons each
- There are 4 sons from Leah, 4 from the maids & 2 from Rachel
- Here are the heads of the 12 tribes of Israel
- Sadly, Rachel died while giving birth to the youngest of the lot, Benjamin (found in Gen. 35)
- But she did end up having an incredibly impressive firstborn son by the name of Joseph & he became father’s favourite, no doubt because Jacob loved Rachel so much – so much that 7 yrs labour was like a few days
- Someone seriously needed to knock the stars out of his eyes
----------------------
- Benjamin was the only son who was born in the Promised Land
- At this point in time - in Paddan-aram - Joseph is the last son to be born
- Jacob completes his 7 years & decides that it is time to go back to the Promised Land
- He must continue in the Promise of God & return
------------------
- But something not so unique is happening
- Remember how the Philistine kings recognise that God was with Abraham & Isaac & they wanted to make a Covenant to protect them against the greatness & power of this people whom God is raising up?
- Well, here, Laban is recognising it too & pleads, begs, demands that Jacob stay with him
26 “Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, and let me depart; for you yourself know my service which I have rendered you.” 27 But Laban said to him, “If now it pleases you, stay with me; I have divined that the Lord has blessed me on your account.”
- Temptation for Jacob to stay – what should he do?
- Of course, Satan, the devil is subtle in the temptations he puts before us
- Temptations to ignore the truth, or live in a way that is contrary to way God would have us go
- He would encourage you to put off faith in Jesus Christ so you can enjoy your life while you can
- It is a deception that makes the deceptions of Jacob & Laban pail into insignificance
-------------------
- The path for Jacob could be none other than to get back to the Promised Land as quick as he can, for that is the path of blessing & the way to continue in the promise of God
- Likewise, for the people of today, the pathway to blessing with God is in Jesus Christ
- There were hurdles for Jacob in the pursuit of his path of faithfulness to God, as there will be hurdles for those who pursue a path of faithfulness to Jesus Christ
Q. The question is, will you start on this path & be prepared to continue to pursue that path?
- Only you can answer that question
- Only you can walk your walk with Christ