The Sons of Rachel (49:22-27)
Jacob didn’t hesitate to make it known that Rachel was his favorite wife and that her two sons were his favorite children. This kind of favoritism caused a great deal of trouble in the family, and yet God overruled it to accomplish His own purposes. Jacob said more about Joseph than about any of the other sons, but he didn’t have much to say about Benjamin.
Joseph (vv. 22-26). Jacob used the word “bless” at least six times in his speech to and about Joseph. He compared Joseph to a fruitful vine (or bough of a fruit tree), drawing water from a spring (Ps. 1:3) and growing over the wall. It was Joseph who was taken from home and lived in Egypt, and the word “fruitful” points to his son Ephraim (Gen. 41:52), founder of a tribe that grew greatly and expanded its territory (Josh. 17:14-18). Neither Joseph nor his sons could be hemmed in!
Jacob used the image of “archers” to describe the suffering that Joseph experienced at the hands of his brothers and his master in Egypt. In Scripture, shooting arrows is sometimes an image of telling lies and speaking hateful words (Ps. 57:4; 64:3-4; Prov. 25:18; 26:18-19; Jer. 9:8). Joseph’s brothers couldn’t speak to him in a civil manner (Gen. 37:4), and they lied about him to their father, and Potiphar’s wife falsely accused Joseph and helped put him into prison. Indeed, the archers shot mercilessly at the innocent young man.
But Joseph didn’t shoot back! God strengthened him so that his words were always true, and it was this integrity that eventually led to his release from prison and his elevation to being second ruler of the land. But the reference to bows and arrows goes beyond the image of lies; it also reminds us of the military skill of the men of Ephraim (Judg. 8:1ff.; 12:1ff.; Josh. 17:17-18).
Jacob used three more special names of the Lord: the Mighty [One] of Jacob, the Shepherd, and the Stone [Rock]. Jehovah deigns to be called “the God of Jacob,” and as “the mighty God,” He cared for Jacob’s needs, helping him with his difficult work (Gen. 31:36-42) and delivering him from danger (v. 24).
Jacob had already referred to the Lord as the God who shepherded me looked after me (48:15). Since Jacob himself was a shepherd, he knew what was involved in caring for sheep. The concept of God as the Shepherd is found often in Scripture (Ps. 23:1ff., 80:1; 100:3; Isa. 40:11; Ezek. 34) and culminates in Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd who gave His life for the sheep (John 10).
The Stone [Rock] is another familiar image of the God of Israel (Deut. 32:4, 15, 18, 31; 1 Sam. 2:2; 2 Sam. 22:32) and also points to Christ (Ps. 118:22; Matt. 21:42; Acts 4:11; 1 Cor. 10:4; 1 Peter 2:7). When you think of a stone, you think of strength, stability, and security, and God provided all of that and more to Jacob during his difficult earthly pilgrimage.
Jacob promised Joseph that God would give his descendants blessings on the soil that they farmed by sending the rains from heaven above and providing the streams in the earth beneath (Deut. 33:13-16). He also promised fertility to the people so that the tribe would increase to God’s glory (Hos. 12:8). Ephraim and Manasseh were important tribes in Israel. In fact, the northern kingdom was frequently called “Ephraim” (Isa. 7:1-2; Hos. 13:1).
God had blessed Abraham richly (Gen. 13:6), and Abraham had shared his wealth with Isaac (25:5), who in turn gave it to Jacob. But Jacob’s hard work had generated even more wealth.
Thus, from generation to generation, the wealth increased because of the blessing of the Lord, like filling the land up to the very mountains. But the number of heirs had also increased, and now there were twelve sons. But Joseph was the firstborn, and his two sons would share the inheritance of their father.
Benjamin (v. 27). You would expect Jacob to say more to and about his youngest son, Benjamin, the “son of his right hand,” but his words were few and puzzling. Why compare Benjamin to a “ravenous wolf”? The men of Benjamin were brave and helped defeat Sisera (Judg. 5:14), but when you read Benjamin’s tribal history in Judges 19 and 20, you see the ravenous wolf in action. Saul, the first king of Israel, was from Benjamin. During his career, he more than once tried to kill David (1 Sam. 19:10), and he ruthlessly murdered everybody in the priestly city of Nob (22:6ff.). Other Benjamites known for their ferocity were Abner (2 Sam. 2:23), Sheba (chap. 20), and Shimei (16:5-14). Saul of Tarsus, a Benjamite (Rom. 11:1; Phil. 3:5) was like a wild animal when he persecuted the church and tracked down Christians to imprison them.
It’s remarkable that Moses’ words about Benjamin say nothing about the ferocious behavior of an animal (Deut. 33:12). Instead, Moses called him “the beloved of the Lord” and promised him constant protection from God. In fact, Benjamin shall “dwell between His shoulders” (nkjv), which suggests either being carried on his back or over his heart. When the nation divided after Solomon’s death, the tribe of Benjamin remained faithful to the Davidic line and stayed with Judah. Together they formed the southern kingdom of Judah.