-
†. Gen 49:8 . .You, O Judah, your brothers shall praise; your hand
shall be on the nape of your foes; your father's sons shall bow low to
you.
Reuben was the original ranking brother, then the position passed to Joseph,
and finally to the family of Judah's grandson David; and that's where it
remains to this day. (Ps 89:20-27)
†. Gen 49:10a . .The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the
scepter from between his feet
Refer to: 2Sam 7:16, 2Sam 23:5, Ps 85:35-38, Ps 89:4 , and Ps 89:30
†. Gen 49:10b . . And the homage of peoples be his.
The "peoples" of that verse are non Jews; viz: Gentiles. The jurisdiction of
Davidic monarchs is normally limited to their own country, among their
fellow Jews; but one is coming in Judah's family who will one day rule the
entire world. (Dan 7:13-14 and Ps 2:7-9)
This next prediction is the scariest one of all.
†. Gen 49:11 . . He washes his garment in wine, his robe in blood of
grapes.
See: Isa 63:1-6, and Rev 19:15-16
†. Gen 49:13 . . Zebulun shall dwell by the seashore; he shall be a
haven for ships, and his flank shall rest on Sidon.
Zebulun never did actually occupy a Mediterranean shore (Josh 19:10-16)
but their proximity to the coast, via the territory of Ashur, gave them
opportunity to earn their livings in sea related trades like stevedoring, ship
building, and possibly crews on fishing vessels and cargo ships owned and
operated by the Philistines and Phoenicians.
Zebulun's flank didn't extend to the coastal city named Sidon, but to a
region generally known as Sidonia-- which included the city of Trye --a
territory often labeled Sidon for short.
†. Gen 49:14-15 . . Issachar is a strong-boned burro, crouching
among the sheepfolds. When he saw how good was security, and
how pleasant was the country, he bent his shoulder to the burden,
and became a toiling serf.
Men like Zebulun, and Issachar are the invisible people. They don't want
much out of life; and they're never really in the news as movers and
shakers; the paparazzi don't follow them around, nor are they among the
rich, famous, and powerful. Zebulun, and Issachar represent the blue collar
labor force, the non-professional working men and women who make a
country productive in goods and services.
Unfortunately, the two tribes, on the whole, believed in peace at any price,
and were wont to trade their independence for corvee labor in order to avoid
conflict with overlords and invaders-- the two notable exceptions being
Zebulun's response when mustered for duty with Gideon (Judg 6:35) and
the two tribes responses when mustered by Barak (Judg 5:14-15) but they
rarely took the initiative to go on the offensive.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
†. Gen 49:8 . .You, O Judah, your brothers shall praise; your hand
shall be on the nape of your foes; your father's sons shall bow low to
you.
Reuben was the original ranking brother, then the position passed to Joseph,
and finally to the family of Judah's grandson David; and that's where it
remains to this day. (Ps 89:20-27)
†. Gen 49:10a . .The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the
scepter from between his feet
Refer to: 2Sam 7:16, 2Sam 23:5, Ps 85:35-38, Ps 89:4 , and Ps 89:30
†. Gen 49:10b . . And the homage of peoples be his.
The "peoples" of that verse are non Jews; viz: Gentiles. The jurisdiction of
Davidic monarchs is normally limited to their own country, among their
fellow Jews; but one is coming in Judah's family who will one day rule the
entire world. (Dan 7:13-14 and Ps 2:7-9)
This next prediction is the scariest one of all.
†. Gen 49:11 . . He washes his garment in wine, his robe in blood of
grapes.
See: Isa 63:1-6, and Rev 19:15-16
†. Gen 49:13 . . Zebulun shall dwell by the seashore; he shall be a
haven for ships, and his flank shall rest on Sidon.
Zebulun never did actually occupy a Mediterranean shore (Josh 19:10-16)
but their proximity to the coast, via the territory of Ashur, gave them
opportunity to earn their livings in sea related trades like stevedoring, ship
building, and possibly crews on fishing vessels and cargo ships owned and
operated by the Philistines and Phoenicians.
Zebulun's flank didn't extend to the coastal city named Sidon, but to a
region generally known as Sidonia-- which included the city of Trye --a
territory often labeled Sidon for short.
†. Gen 49:14-15 . . Issachar is a strong-boned burro, crouching
among the sheepfolds. When he saw how good was security, and
how pleasant was the country, he bent his shoulder to the burden,
and became a toiling serf.
Men like Zebulun, and Issachar are the invisible people. They don't want
much out of life; and they're never really in the news as movers and
shakers; the paparazzi don't follow them around, nor are they among the
rich, famous, and powerful. Zebulun, and Issachar represent the blue collar
labor force, the non-professional working men and women who make a
country productive in goods and services.
Unfortunately, the two tribes, on the whole, believed in peace at any price,
and were wont to trade their independence for corvee labor in order to avoid
conflict with overlords and invaders-- the two notable exceptions being
Zebulun's response when mustered for duty with Gideon (Judg 6:35) and
the two tribes responses when mustered by Barak (Judg 5:14-15) but they
rarely took the initiative to go on the offensive.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=