Deuteronomy 33 (cont):
12 [And] of Benjamin he said, The beloved of the LORD shall dwell in safety by him; [and the LORD] shall cover him all the day long, and he shall dwell between his shoulders. 13 And of Joseph he said, Blessed of the LORD [be] his land, for the precious things of heaven, for the dew, and for the deep that coucheth beneath, 14 And for the precious fruits [brought forth] by the sun, and for the precious things put forth by the moon, 15 And for the chief things of the ancient mountains, and for the precious things of the lasting hills, 16 And for the precious things of the earth and fulness thereof, and [for] the good will of him that dwelt in the bush: let [the blessing] come upon the head of Joseph, and upon the top of the head of him [that was] separated from his brethren
Next comes Joseph and Benjamin again completely out of the original birth order. Joseph and Benjamin were the children of Rachel. Benjamin was the son that consoled Jacob over the loss of Joseph. Joseph is a type of Jesus and Benjamin being the little brother represents you and I. Benjamin was an affront to the cruelty of his half brothers born of Leah thereby they would have been ashamed of him and ashamed to call him their brother. This is what Hebrews 2:11 refers to:
[Heb 2:11 KJV] 11 For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified [are] all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren
We are not merely legally adopted into the family of God or mere half brothers or brothers in name only. We are the genuine and valid siblings of Jesus through His death burial and resurrection. The implication is that because of the New Birth His connection to us is deeper than His Jewish roots. This is an interesting question – was Jesus a Jew? Throughout Hebrew history up until two hundred years before Jesus the lineage was determined by the Father. Then two hundred years before Jesus in a Mishnah claiming to originate from Ezra’s time states that one’s “Jewish-ness” originates with the mother or is in fact matrilineal. So a Jewish person is Jewish through the bloodline of the mother. Our place in the promises of God to Abraham is established through our Father God in the new birth in the shed blood of Jesus.
17 His glory [is like] the firstling of his bullock, and his horns [are like] the horns of unicorns: with them he shall push the people together to the ends of the earth: and they [are] the ten thousands of Ephraim, and they [are] the thousands of Manasseh. 18 And of Zebulun he said, Rejoice, Zebulun, in thy going out; and, Issachar, in thy tents. 19 They shall call the people unto the mountain; there they shall offer sacrifices of righteousness: for they shall suck [of] the abundance of the seas, and [of] treasures hid in the sand. 20 And of Gad he said, Blessed [be] he that enlargeth Gad: he dwelleth as a lion, and teareth the arm with the crown of the head. 21 And he provided the first part for himself, because there, [in] a portion of the lawgiver, [was he] seated; and he came with the heads of the people, he executed the justice of the LORD, and his judgments with Israel.
In this passage regarding Benjamin there is mentioned the connection between the visible glory of God and the appearance of horns. The light that came out of Moses face did not look like an omnidirectional light bulb shining in all directions. The descriptions of the glory in Moses face was more like beams or horns of light coming out of his temples. This is interesting since the devil choose to see to it that he is depicted with horns of flesh instead of light. In his letters to the Corinthians Paul refers to this (2 Cor. 11:18) that many want to glory after the flesh but that (1 Cor. 1:29) no flesh should glory in God’s presence.
22 And of Dan he said, Dan [is] a lion’s whelp: he shall leap from Bashan. 23 And of Naphtali he said, O Naphtali, satisfied with favour, and full with the blessing of the LORD: possess thou the west and the south. 24 And of Asher he said, [Let] Asher [be] blessed with children; let him be acceptable to his brethren, and let him dip his foot in oil. 25 Thy shoes [shall be] iron and brass; and as thy days, [so shall] thy strength [be]. 26 [There is] none like unto the God of Jeshurun, [who] rideth upon the heaven in thy help, and in his excellency on the sky. 27 The eternal God [is thy] refuge, and underneath [are] the everlasting arms: and he shall thrust out the enemy from before thee; and shall say, Destroy [them]. 28 Israel then shall dwell in safety alone: the fountain of Jacob [shall be] upon a land of corn and wine; also his heavens shall drop down dew. 29 Happy [art] thou, O Israel: who [is] like unto thee, O people saved by the LORD, the shield of thy help, and who [is] the sword of thy excellency! and thine enemies shall be found liars unto thee; and thou shalt tread upon their high places.
The name of Dan means judgment. Dan is described here as coming from Bashan. There is a Messianic reference to the “strong bulls of Bashan” gaping on Jesus with their mouth. In the last chapter the enemies of Israel are described as judges. When we “mouth” on one another in judgment we are like the “bulls of Bashan” gaping upon Christ. This speaks of the brutality that God sees in judgmentalism. The reference to Asher dipping his foot in oil has fueled much oil speculation in the territory given to this tribe in the Promised Land. In the 90’s however another speculator financed by a Texas oil firm with no Arab ties discovered vast and profitable natural gas reserves that have put Israel on target to become a net exporter of oil as opposed to having to import it for their needs. God’s promise in verse 28 is that Israel shall dwell in safety. That applies to natural Israel and also to the church. No matter what is happening on the world scene we are not to be alarmed. The sky isn’t falling the kingdom is coming and in the end the Government of God is our hope and trust and mainstay.
