God labels the gates of the New Jerusalem, symbolic of both the church and of heaven, with “the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel” (Re 21.12).

Reuben

You’d expect Jacob’s firstborn to be a natural leader, and the most favored.  Reuben was not.  He raised frail objections to his brothers’ hateful plans to dispose of Joseph (Ge 37-21-22), and long before that, he “went and lay with Bilhah his father’s concubine.” (Ge 35.22).  On his deathbed, Jacob was still upset about this (Ge 49.4).  Reuben’s descendants settled on the east side of the Jordan.

Simeon

After his sister Dinah was raped, Simeon “came against the city while it felt secure and killed all the males” (Ge 34.25), including the rapist and his father.  Jacob was furious about this.  Simeon’s descendants settled in the south of Israel, and their land eventually was absorbed by the tribe of Judah—as Jacob predicted in Genesis 49.7.

Levi

Levi acted alongside Simeon in the events surrounding Dinah’s rape.  Practically nothing else is recorded about him, but among his descendants were Moses and Aaron, and therefore the priesthood.  The tribe inherited no cohesive territory, but had cities all over Israel, and the sole right and responsibility to serve at the tabernacle and temple.

Judah

The fourth son of Leah pushed to sell Joseph, rather than killing him.  Whether this came from brotherly affection or greed is not told (Ge 37.26-27).  He later treated his daughter-in-law so badly that she seduced him and humiliated him in order to get some relief.  Yet, over the course of the family’s dealings with Joseph in Egypt, he emerged as the de facto leader of his brothers.  He was ready to sacrifice his own freedom in order to save Benjamin from slavery, and spare Jacob the loss of another son, and his growth was rewarded.  Jesus descended from Judah.

Dan

Born to Rachel’s servant Bilhah on Rachel’s behalf, Dan is otherwise unknown.  Jacob said, “Dan shall be a serpent in the way, a viper by the path” (Ge 49.17), which was reflected in a mass murder perpetrated by Dan’s descendants in Judges 18, combined with the tribe’s general apostasy.

Naphtali

Bilhah’s other son receives even less attention in the Bible.  Even about Naphtali’s descendants very little is known except that they settled in the northern parts of Israel.

Gad

Once again, nearly nothing is known about Gad, except that he was born to Zilpah, on Leah’s behalf.  Gad’s descendants settled on the east side of the Jordan, and included some especially adept warriors (1Ch 12.14). 

Asher

Zilpah’s other son likewise receives almost no attention in the Bible.  His progeny settled on the northern coast, near the Phoenicians.  Jacob predicted, “Asher’s food shall be rich, and he shall yield royal delicacies” (Ge 49.20), which suggests they became entangled with these seafaring Canaanites and indulged in the material gains brought by commerce.

Issachar

The birth of Leah’s fifth son is an interesting, if odd, story in Genesis 30.  Continuing the pattern, almost nothing else is known of him, but his tribe settled in the south of the region later called Galilee.  A few leaders came from this tribe, but little is known about them, too.

Zebulun

The sixth and final son of Leah is another whose life story is unknown.  His descendants settled next to the tribe of Issachar.

Joseph

Finally, a son for Rachel!  Joseph’s brothers resented the favor Jacob showed him, and sold him as a slave, yet he ended up ruling Egypt, by God’s providence.  While the tribe of Judah was given hegemony, Joseph got the firstborn’s double portion in the inheritance.  The tribes descended from Manasseh and Ephraim, Joseph’s two sons, each got a generous allotment of land, in the center of Israel and east of the Jordan. 

Benjamin

As she lay dying, Rachel named Jacob’s final son Ben-oni—“son of my pain.”  Jacob vetoed his favorite wife’s last wish, and instead called the child Ben-jamin—“son of the right hand,” associated with strength and blessing.  Both names seem appropriate.  The boy was sheltered by his father, until he found himself at the center of the drama when his family went to Joseph for food.  His descendants settled just north of Judah’s territory, and were nearly exterminated by the other tribes in an overreaction to horrible sins committed by Benjaminites.  Among Benjamin’s descendants were Saul—the first king of Israel—as well as Saul—the last Apostle of Jesus.  They were known as formidable warriors, and had plenty of opportunity to prove it.

§

Many of our earthly expectations are subverted in the stories of the twelve sons of Jacob.  Those who rose to prominence are generally not the one’s we’d expect, and some of the most prominent are also guilty of the worst sins!  It all serves to illustrate God’s ways.  The Father told Moses,

“I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.”

(Exodus 33.19)

And his Son tells us,

“behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”

(Luke 13.30)

Jeremy Nettles

A commonly held ambition is to change the world.  It shows up everywhere, including the lyrics of the 1968 Beatles song, “Revolution”:

You say you want a revolution.

Well, you know

We all wanna change the world.

You tell me that it’s evolution.

Well, you know

We all wanna change the world.

Vaunted sage John Lennon took for granted that we all share this inclination, and while he was mistaken about many things, on this he had a point.  It grows, in part, from a desire for personal notoriety.  But for most of those trying to change the world, it goes without saying that they want to change it for the better, so there’s clearly another motivation.  After all, Hitler changed the world and gained notoriety, but that’s not the kind of legacy most pursue!  Everyone has opinions about the status quo, and whether the present arrangement is acceptable—it never is.  The next step is to formulate a plan for fixing the world’s problems; yet no two people give exactly the same prescription.  Each man’s ideas grow from his own experience and imagination.  In dreaming up a perfect world, he shows the other motivation—to create something in his own, unique image.

Both of these motivations imitate God!  Of his mercy toward Israel God said,

“For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.”

(Isaiah 48.11)

And of his creation of mankind he said,

“Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion…”

(Genesis 1.26)

Not only does God pursue his own glory, but in his potent imagination, he designed and created a race of men who resemble him in many respects.  As God has dominion over creation, so man has a lesser dominion.  As God imagines and creates, so man does the same, but at a much lower level again.

We all want to change the world.  Most of want to change it for the better.  But take a look at the history of mankind.  How have we fared?  We’ve multiplied and filled the earth, and managed to discover methods to feed eight billion people, and to drastically reduce infant and maternal death rates.  We have created amazing conveniences, including access to clean water, transportation, information, and a host of other blessings that just a few hundred years ago would  have seemed possible.  We’ve also come within a whisker of exterminating humanity a few times, and amplified war, murder, enslavement, and oppression to previously unimagined levels.  Win some, lose some.

The greatest world-changer is Jesus.  Within a century of his death, burial, and resurrection his church spread across the known world, and the transformation has continued for nearly two thousand years.  When Paul and his helpers preached the gospel of Christ, the inhabitants of one city said they had “turned the world upside down” (Ac 17.6).  God himself had described his plans thus:

“Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land. And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in…”

(Haggai 2.6-7)

How does this topsy-turvy, fundamentally changed world appear?  What sort of earth-shattering deeds did Jesus accomplish?

Jesus…rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

(John 13.3-5)

Radicalism!  What did he tell his followers?

“Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you…”

(Matthew 5.44)

What a horrifying thought!  Furthermore,

“it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay on you no greater burden than these requirements: that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality.”

(Acts 15.28-29)

It’s an extremist cult!  And it gets crazier.

But we urge you, brothers, …to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders…

(1 Thessalonians 4.11)

Can a society survive, if people behave like this?  But you won’t believe what comes next.

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

(1 Timothy 2.1-4)

What sort of deranged fanatic would engage in such irresponsible and reckless behavior?

These examples are, of course, cherry-picked; but while you might have thought it overt sarcasm to characterize them as dangerous, extreme ideas, it was really just a slight exaggeration.  These behaviors seem boring and inoffensive; but if you consistently engage in them, you’ll find that the world takes great offense!  In a word, they are revolutionary.  If you want to change the world, your best strategy is to follow Jesus’ example.  Instead of pursuing your own glory, proclaim God’s.  Instead of attempting to refashion the world after your own image and likeness, restore it to his.  Really, in the grand scheme of things, you don’t have it in you to change the world for the better.  The only way is to hand the reins over to Jesus.

Jeremy Nettles

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep.

(Genesis 1.1-2)

The first two sentences of the Bible testify to  the central truth of our lives.  There exists an all-powerful being, independent of the natural universe, and he is its designer and builder.  Just saying it doesn’t make it so, but the purpose of Genesis is not to prove anything.  Rather, it provides answers from that powerful, transcendent being—let’s call him God—that we can choose to to reject, or to accept on faith.  The Apostle Paul later observed that “what can be known about God is plain to” all mankind,

because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made.

(Romans 1.19-20)

The creation itself testifies to its creator; but what else does he tell us about the process?

And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

(Genesis 1.3-5)

God took the formless “void” of verse 2, and started not only making new things, but creating order, as well.  Light was new, but God didn’t completely banish the darkness that had existed already.  Instead, he gave boundaries to each, and arranged a pattern for later, as yet nonexistent intelligent minds to discover, analyze, and appreciate.

And God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” …And it was so. And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.

(Genesis 1.6-8)

This is another setting of boundaries, another layer of order imposed upon the primeval chaos.  This time the entities organized are more concrete, but still vast.  The result is another pair of distinct arenas, unpopulated for now, but with endless potential.

And God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so.

…And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so. …And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.

(Genesis 1.9-13)

God already organized the creation into vertical divisions, and now he does the same horizontally.  This is also the first appearance of life—plant, and not animal.  When we consider the arrangement of the story, it’s clear that God considers this to be part of the environment—the background, and not among the proper subjects of his creation, which will begin to appear, the next day.

And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night.” …And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.

(Genesis 1.14-19)

Now we have things that move.  They’re described in figurative terms, as if they had their own agency, to “rule” over day and night (v16)—the domains created on Day 1.

And God said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.” …And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.

(Genesis 1.20-23)

Animal life is made on Day 5, and the sheer multitude—“swarms”—highlights that the creation has gone from chaos, to order, to a level of complexity that appears, from a distance, to be more chaos!  These creatures populate the domains God created on Day 2.

And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so.

…Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

So God created man in his own image,

in the image of God he created him;

        male and female he created them.

…And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

(Genesis 1.24-31)

The final level of complexity comes with independent creatures inhabiting the domains created on Day 3.  This culminates in the most important of God’s creations, man, who sits atop the hierarchy of creatures, and is the only creation to bear the image of God.  The rest was all made in service to this greatest specimen of God’s handiwork.

And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done.

(Genesis 2.2)

The narrative does little, up to this point, to explain what is the purpose of all this; but God clearly considers it a job well done, and his cessation of activity on the seventh day constitutes, in a way, one final creation—the concept of satisfied rest.  If we appreciate his creation, we also ought to long for that same sense of completion and delight, as well as to share them with God, in God’s own presence.

So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.

Let us therefore strive to enter that rest…

(Hebrews 4.9-11)

Jeremy Nettles

In last week’s article, we examined Psalm 1, which says, “Blessed is the man who” shuns evil and dedicates himself to keeping God’s commandments (v1).  This is true, of course; but on this side of the cross, God has revealed more to us about his character, plans, and expectations.  The book of Psalms began with a short statement on being “blessed.”  As recorded in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus’ ministry began in the same way.

Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.

And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

(Matthew 5.1-3)

It’s almost unthinkable to call poverty a blessing, but Jesus isn’t talking about physical possessions.  He also doesn’t mean the sort of person we might call “morally bankrupt”—this spiritual poverty has to do with recognizing your own insufficiency and need for God.  We all share that circumstance, of course; but many don’t acknowledge it!  Happy is he, who knows he must rely on God!

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”

(Matthew 5.4)

We might think Jesus means the one who is mourning has nowhere to go, but up.  But, in the first place, that’s not true; and in the second place, his point is really spiritual.  The person who recognizes that sin and death are grievous evils, and longs for their abolition and the fixing of everything broken, sees that life is not about this earth, but about eternity.  To understand that is a great blessing.

“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”

(Matthew 5.5)

“Meek” does not mean weak, but it does mean humble or lowly.  It is the opposite of proud.  The meek person has deliberately chosen a lower status, rather than pursuing advancement and suffering humiliation.

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”

(Matthew 5.6)

Those who long to see righteousness also long to be righteous.  In Jesus, we can see the embodiment of righteousness, and by faith in him, we can become righteous, too (Ro 4.5)!

“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.”

(Matthew 5.7)

From an earthly perspective, it doesn’t make sense to show mercy.  The guilty are likely to reoffend, and so the merciful not only miss the opportunity to seek compensation, but also leave themselves open to being hurt again!  But without God’s mercy we’re all destined for eternal torment; and God expects us to learn his ways, and shoulder a tiny portion of the burden he carries.

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”

(Matthew 5.8)

Purity begins in the heart.  A person can appear pure on the outside, yet harbor all sorts of evil within.  Jesus said the Pharisees were “whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness” (Mt 23.27).  Another person might not look like much on the outside, “but the Lord looks on the heart” (1Sa 16.7).

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”

(Matthew 5.9)

God adopts peacemakers into his own family.  He is the ultimate peacemaker, destroying wickedness and reconciling its slaves to himself, through his own self-sacrifice.

“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

(Matthew 5.10)

No one enjoys being persecuted, of course—“For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant” (He 12.11a).  But nested within that verse is an important point—suffering persecution is a form of discipline from God!  It’s not that we’re persecuted to punish us for our sins—Jesus spoke of persecution “for righteousness’ sake,” which is to say, being singled out and harmed for good behavior, of which the persecutor nevertheless does not approve.  But discipline isn’t always punitive.  Training for a marathon is extremely uncomfortable, and yet the one who perseveres through that discomfort stands a much better chance of finishing the race!  This discipline “yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” (He 12.11b).

“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

(Matthew 5.11-12)

This last of the beatitudes is tied closely to the one that preceded it.  Both mention persecution by name, as well as a heavenly reward.  But this one includes more details, focused on the words people say about you.  No one likes to be slandered and torn down before the whole world, especially if it’s based on lies.  Jesus points out that most of the people we honor and regard from ages past, endured exactly this sort of treatment!

The central point, for all of these blessings, is that the way to be blessed, is not to focus your efforts on earthly rewards!  Those who are truly blessed are looking forward to heavenly rewards, which transcend and outlast this world.  If we only regarded Psalm 1, we might have pursued righteousness in the expectation of having a pleasant life on earth, as a result.  Jesus tells us, that’s not the point!  Whatever happens to us here, the one who is truly blessed, is the one who makes his home with Christ in heaven.

Jeremy Nettles

Blessed is the man

who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,

nor stands in the way of sinners,

nor sits in the seat of scoffers…

(Psalm 1.1)

Thus begins the book of Psalms.  To some degree, the first of 150 poems in this book serves as a prologue to the collection.  This Psalm is all-encompassing, and provides a framework upon which each individual has a lifetime to build.

It begins with the loaded word, “blessed.”  The Hebrew behind it is אֶשֶׁר-ĕshĕr, which strictly means happiness.  Similarly, the Septuagint—the Greek Old Testament—begins with μακάριος-makarios-“happy.”  But this is not to say all our bibles have the wrong translation.  It is understood in the context—cultural as well as textual—that happiness is more than the subjective feeling of contentment, satisfaction, or pleasure.  It ought to go without saying, that a truly “happy” person can only be so as a result of receiving favor from someone far more capable than he.  It could be rendered fortunate instead, but that leaves it too impersonal, refusing to answer the question, who has bestowed this good fortune?  No, this psalmist, along with the other authors of the Bible, took for granted that one person in particular ought to be credited with all good fortune.  The man who shuns sin and lays up God’s word in his heart is not just happy or lucky—rather, he is “blessed.”

The rest of verse 1 shows a progression from walking, to standing, to sitting.  From his active conduct—walking—to his less dynamic but still deliberate associations—standing—to where he comfortably rests—sitting—he always avoids the ungodly,

but his delight is in the law of the Lord,

and on his law he meditates day and night.

(Psalm 1.2)

He spends his time thinking about and pursuing the fulfillment of God’s instructions.  Does he do this out of a grudging sense of obligation, or purely out of fear that God will probably smite him, otherwise?  No—God’s commandments are a “delight” to him!

What will be the result of this approach, shunning unrighteousness and aiming to please God?

He is like a tree

planted by streams of water

that yields its fruit in its season,

and its leaf does not wither.

In all that he does, he prospers.

(Psalm 1.3)

For those living in areas of North America with relatively high population density, this metaphor may be confusing.  Trees growing on the banks of our rivers and streams are inherently unstable due to soil compromised by constant saturation, changing conditions due to water level fluctuations, erosion, and especially the simple fact that one side of the tree’s root system finds only water, and no soil to anchor it in place.  Most trees situated far from rivers get along just fine on rain.  But Israel gets much less rain, and has no rivers as vast as those we take for granted.  On top of that, the tree envisioned here is not a giant, heavy oak, tulip, or catalpa!  No, the image is one of a fruit tree in a well-watered area, that can be trusted year by year to produce lots of fruit.  The idea is that the person who plants himself, so to speak, in God’s word will find in it a reliable source of life and prosperity.  This will lead to obvious outward signs that he is thriving and vibrant—healthy leaves—and also to appropriate fruit of good works, which in turn are a life-sustaining blessing to those upon whom they are bestowed.

The righteous, who serve God, are blessed.

The wicked are not so,

but are like chaff that the wind drives away.

(Psalm 1.4)

Chaff is the dry, useless stalks and husks that are noticeable chiefly as an annoying impurity that must be sorted from the good fruit or grain.  Whereas the well-watered tree remains steadfast and reliable, the chaff is blown before the wind, with no way to decide for itself where it will next land, no benefit to anyone, and no purpose to fulfill.

Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,

nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;

for the Lord knows the way of the righteous,

but the way of the wicked will perish.

(Psalm 1.5-6)

Because the righteous man prospers while the wicked are ineffectual, the wicked are destined to fall.  The expected setting of their fall is “the judgement”—but what does that mean?  Clearly it’s not just a judgment, as in a particular court case or something of that sort.  In the context of the psalm, it most likely refers to an expected instance of divine retribution, such as a plague or an invasion.  At the same time, it of course contributes to a growing body of Old Testament hints and shadows of the final judgment to come, which the New Testament predicts clearly.

…it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment…

(Hebrews 9.27)

When that occurs, who will stand among the righteous assembly?  Of course, it it those who are righteous—but that’s not the only point worth noticing.  Verse 6 says, “the Lord knows the way of the righteous.”  Is he unaware of the wicked?  Clearly not, or how could he judge them?  But this knowledge is not about intellectual understanding or recognition.  The righteous man avoids the “way of sinners” in verse 1, not because he hasn’t noticed it, but because he sees it for what it is—and will not make it his way!  God “knows the way of the righteous,” because it is his own chosen path.  Walk it, with him.

Jeremy Nettles