Day 198: The Shepherd From God

Genesis 49:22-26

“Joseph is a fruitful vine,
a fruitful vine by a spring.
His branches run over the wall.
The archers have severely grieved him,
shot at him, and persecute him:
But his bow remained strong.
The arms of his hands were made strong,
by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob,
(from there is the shepherd, the stone of Israel),
even by the God of your father, who will help you;
by the Almighty, who will bless you,
with blessings of heaven above,
blessings of the deep that lies below,
blessings of the breasts, and of the womb.
The blessings of your father have prevailed above the blessings of your ancestors,
above the boundaries of the ancient hills.
They will be on the head of Joseph,
on the crown of the head of him who is separated from his brothers.

I don’t know what this part means but I do see some symbolism in what is said about Joseph here that compares to what we see in Israel. It says here that “Joseph is a fruitful vine” who’s branches have “run over the wall.” That’s what we see in Israel today. God has made Israel very prosperous. Their prosperity even crawls up over the boarders of their country and into the countries of others around them.

Unfortunately, Israel’s neighbors continue to fire rockets into their walls and it grieves them today, but God has continued to bless them and make them strong. In fact they have one of the strongest militaries in the world. I don’t believe that this is what this passage is talking about specifically, however. We know this because we know who the “Mighty One of Jacob” is and He has yet to return and save Israel. Notice that this Mighty One is referred to as a Shepherd and a Stone or Rock of Israel.

When Jesus, who is God, comes, He will be the one who saves and strengthens Israel. He will bring a good economy to the whole earth when He wears the crown in Jerusalem.