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"22 Joseph is a fruitful bough, a fruitful bough by a well; his branches run over the wall. 23 The archers have bitterly grieved him, shot at him and hated him. 24 But his bow remained in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the Mighty God of Jacob (From there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel), 25 By the God of your father who will help you, and by the Almighty who will bless you with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lies beneath, blessings of the breasts and of the womb. 26 The blessings of your father have excelled the blessings of my ancestors, up to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills. They shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers." ~ Genesis 49:22-26
Today, we return to our study of Genesis 49 where Jacob has pronounced his blessing upon 10 of his 12 sons. Today we’ll look into Jacob's blessing of Joseph. In this blessing, we will again see that every word pronounced points us to the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Without the Lord Jesus Christ as the fulfillment of every Old Testament type, picture, story, and sacrifice, the Bible truly makes no sense. It appears disjointed, hard to follow, and without any ultimate purpose. It appears to be a convoluted book of meandering stories that often seem bizarre or irrelevant. But when see that all of the Bible has one main character, the entire book not only begins to make sense, it becomes a cohesive whole that makes absolute sense.
In v.22-24 of today's passage we read, "22 Joseph is a fruitful bough, a fruitful bough by a well; his branches run over the wall. 23 The archers have bitterly grieved him, shot at him and hated him. 24 But his bow remained in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the Mighty God of Jacob (From there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel.)"
As we have seen before, the name Joseph is based on two words. The duality in his name prompts us to look backward and also forward. The first is "subtract" and the second is "add." In Joseph's name is pictured what the Lord Jesus has done for us on His cross. As we read in 2 Corinthians 5:21, "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." For all who are humble and honest enough to admit that we need a Savior, the Lord Jesus has taken the judgement of God for our sin and He has given to us His righteous acceptance before God.
Jacob said first to Joseph, "Joseph is a fruitful bough, a fruitful bough by a well; his branches run over the wall." The fruitfulness of Joseph in the sons which descended from him points us to the secret behind their success. It is the God of the Bible through the faithfulness of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, who makes all who trust in Him acceptable before His holy and perfect presence. The faithfulness of God means God is unchanging in His nature, true to His Word, and can be trusted to keep His promises forever. Nothing in heaven or on earth can prevent God from accomplishing all that He has promised us.
In v.23 of today's passage, Jacob guides us to look into Joseph's past. Joseph’s brothers stripped him of his special robe, shoved him into a pit and sold him into slavery. The genius of Joseph is that he recognized immediately that his trials aided his growth in the Lord. He was able to do this because he was connected to the vine, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. Despite the attacks by the archers, meaning his brothers of the past, the bow of each remained in "strength." This word used in v.24 reveals that Joseph's past factored into a prophecy of the future. The word "strength" means to go on forever without cessation, such as a flowing stream. Such is the strength of Christ in the yielded life of the believer.
In v.25-26 of today's passage we read, "25 By the God of your father who will help you, and by the Almighty who will bless you with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lies beneath, blessings of the breasts and of the womb. 26 The blessings of your father have excelled the blessings of my ancestors, up to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills. They shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers."
It is the Shaddai, "the Almighty" who is the One who provides fruitfulness and protection to His people. This name of God is used six times in the Bible and all of the references paint a picture of a God who is mighty to faithfully do as He has promised. The blessings of which Jacob spoke ultimately point to God's greatest blessing which is a personal relationship with Himself through the Lord Jesus Christ.
It was the separation of Joseph from his family that set him on a journey that landed him in the second most powerful position in the world at that time. Necessary were the pains of those many uncertain years for Joseph for they separated him into the very presence and favor of the Pharaoh. The word for "separate" in v.26 is the same as the word Nazarite. There is a two-fold meaning in this word, as well. It points not only to the fact that Joseph had been separated from his family by a long period when he was persecuted and humiliated, but also his elevation to such preeminence.
A careful study of God's name, El Shaddai throughout the Bible makes clear that He is the God who overcomes. So often in life we feel that we are being overcome. We all get weary battling the many temptations which come with living in this world. It is truly a constant struggle to remain faithful to the God who loves us more than we do ourselves! The Lord Jesus said, "Take heart because I have overcome the world." The cross, for all its scorn and shame was the very place of victory for God. It may have looked like the world had overcome Him but actually it was God’s sovereign and invincible plan that the Lord Jesus would go to the cross to die in our place for our sins and to be raised to life again. When things looked at their worst, God overcame on our behalf. And now that we belong to the Overcomer, it means we will never be overcome.
