Sermons
Vander Kam on Genesis 49:3-4 & Judges 5:15b-16
Sermons
Vander Kam on Genesis 49:3-4 & Judges 5:15b-16Genesis 49:3-4 – "'Reuben, you are my first-born;
My might and the beginning of my strength,
Preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power.
Uncontrolled as water, you shall not have preeminence,
Because you went up to your father's bed;
Then you defiled it – he went up to my couch.'"
Judges 5:15b-16 – "'Among the divisions of Reuben
There were great resolves of heart.
Why did you sit among the sheepfolds,
To hear the piping for the flocks?
Among the divisions of Reuben
There were great searchings of heart.'" (New American
Standard Bible)
Beloved in the Lord, Genesis 49 is usually looked upon as one of the key passages in all of the Old Testament, and it is a key passage because of the fact that therein is given the prophecy of Jacob the father of the twelve tribes to all of his sons as it is going to be revealed in time to come. And consequently beloved, we will also never be able to understand the rest of the Old Testament unless we have come to an understanding of what Genesis 49 means.
For here we see that a prophesy is given in connection with each one of the tribes, and those are the prophecies that have indeed been fulfilled and those are the things that come to pass, those things which Jacob has spoken. Admittedly, it is also one of the most difficult passages in all of Scripture but nevertheless also in the coming weeks we hope by the grace of God also to unravel these things and thus also to seek to make them known.
We are also to realize that here we are standing before something which is also of great significance in the very fact that here is a man who is on his deathbed and who is now speaking to his sons. And that is also the kind of a setting that we must also have clearly before us at all times when we come to an understanding of it and that is, that here is a man speaking who has now come to the very end of his life. Having come to the end of his life he now speaks to his sons under the guidance of the Spirit of God of course, but he is now speaking to his sons in a way in which he has never spoken to them before, although he should have spoken to them before. It is very late, he is about to leave the scene, but nevertheless, now the Spirit still gives him strength so that he is going to speak in such a way that it is indeed going to be cutting for ever so many, but that it is also the necessary word that has to be spoken in order that it may yet rescue them.
We speak to you tonight on the first one: "Reuben, A Disappointing Life." Noticing in the first place, the original hope; secondly, the development; and finally, the teaching.
Now beloved, there are ever so many passages of course, throughout the entire Old Testament, that speak concerning Reuben and the Reubenites, and it is something that would only seek to confuse if we would pull all these passages, bring them all together, and have a sermon on Reuben. And that it would also be of that nature that it would confuse them completely and therefore only passages given in Genesis 49, bearing in mind that we will also branch out into the other.
But here we are dealing with the very first son of Jacob, the eldest, that is the one who is the beginning of my strength, and that we may also see beloved, that as he is speaking here to his various sons, that these are the things that are going to be very practical indeed and that are going to be so practical many a time, that they are going to be almost rude, and that we will also realize that these are the things that are going to speak very much to our young people.
And that they will also be able to understand that the ways in which God has dealt in the past, that is the way in which He is still dealing with the people today. That's the way in which He has dealt with the twelve tribes, that is the way in which He is going to deal with the church, that is the way in which He is going to deal with His people throughout all the ages.
Now again, when he is speaking here concerning Reuben that he is the beginning of his strength, that is the first-born of Jacob, and those who have never had that joy of parenthood are not able to understand whereas the exuberance of this man Jacob. But as he is looking back, he looks back to it and says, "that was the day when Reuben was born, the beginning of my strength; that was my might. That was the one who was going to perpetuate the name, that was the one who was now going to show me fruitful, that was the one in whom I rejoice." Not only that, but that is also the one of course, to whom belonged the birthright. That is the one who would receive double of all the others, that is the one who would receive at least half of the whole inheritance, even though there are eleven others. That is the one who would receive the lion's share. That is the one in whom is all of my strength, my might, the beginning of my might, I rejoice in that child; when Reuben was born.
But at the same time here there are ever so many shadows that also come into this whole prophesy of the man Jacob as he is now on his deathbed. And there the thing that is now before him is this, that life with Leah and Rachel, that is also something which is so closely connected with the birth of Reuben that it is not to be broken away from it. And that is now the rivalry that he also sees before him as soon as he looks upon Reuben, and then is again that divisiveness, of that warfare that went on between Leah and Rachel. Leah was the one who was despised, Rachel was the one who was loved; both wives of Jacob.
Here is the kind of a family, beloved, that is doomed to destruction; here is the one in which no love can ever rest. And it is the kind of a family that has always seen the divisiveness that is within it and that is finally going to conquer it. And as you will also know or as you will remember that it was also that was used the kind of bargaining on the part of Leah "that now when I have a child, ah, then my husband will love me."
Sounds like today. If you can't get along, then there ought to be a child. That child will bring them together, that child is now going to be the instrument of love, instead of the fruit of love. And that is the kind of reasoning that Leah employs. The kind of reasoning that has never died, the kind of reasoning that is still with us to the present day, and those things of course, are not written, because children are very dangerous possessions. And that is the thing that Jacob has also experienced, what a dangerous possession that Reuben was. "That's the beginning of my strength, beginning of my might, in which I had all of my hopes." That, says the man who never got beyond childhood.
Here stands that overgrown child before him in this hour and he says, "Reuben, you're the beginning of my strength." Not only that, but here even though he is the one who by virtue of the fact that he is the firstborn and also has the birthright, nevertheless it is not going to be given to him. And it is not going to be given to him beloved, because of the fact that here is a man who has violated the concubines of his own father. Who has taken Bilhah, the concubine of David, and has now had relations with her, because, after all, that's only a concubine, only a slave. Besides that, this is a slave of Rachel.
"Thou art my firstborn, my might, but thou shalt not have the preeminence, because thou renderest up to thy father's bed, and defilest thou it." This man's heart breaks, that this son, the son in whom he had all of his hopes. That is the kind of a man who has no morality whatsoever, the kind of a morality that is not even mentioned among the heathen. And that is not the kind that is going to inherit. That is not the kind who is going to have the firstborn rights. That is not the kind who is going to receive the blessing of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Thou wast my strength, the beginning of it, my might, all the things that went with it; thou wast my joy, my crown, and look at it!
Now when you have to stand before a child, and say these things to him when you are on your deathbed, and say to him that by virtue of the fact that you are the firstborn, you will inherit the birthright, but nevertheless you will not have the preeminence. Your blessing is going to be taken away from you because of the way in which you dealt, because of the way in which you acted, because of the way in which you have lived. That you have lived not according to the Law of God; there are also laws in the kingdom of God that have to be observed. It is not merely this, that there is going to be an expression of love and that is all there is to it – but there are also the various laws that have to be observed in order that we may also be able to lay claim to the blessings that He has already promised.
And these were the things that were standing before Reuben. He had everything at his fingertips, all things were his, this was to be the blessing of the patriarch; "and thou shalt not have the preeminence. Not now!" It was a curse in Genesis 49, and that word stands, and those who practiced that kind of a morality, those are the ones who shall not have the preeminence, but they shall lie under the curse of the Law of God.
It begins with a hope, but Leah and Rachel spoiled it and the shadows deepen, and he sees this man as the one who has robbed himself, and all of his posterity. And no one lives to himself nor dies to himself, but he has also robbed all of his posterity of that great blessing of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, for he defiled a bed.
And secondly, notice also the development. Now the development, beloved, that we are able to see in the life of Reuben is something that is also well known, that is known to every grade school child that is here. And that we will also be able to understand the ways in which God has dealt with him, and that we may also learn to see that in that history He is still teaching us. And that we will also be able to understand that these are the things that have been given us as examples upon whom the end of the ages had come. And that we will also be able to be warned by this man, Reuben, also in the development of his life. This is the man who stands before Jacob, or that rather, is the man who stands there before his brethren at the time when Joseph is going to be sent to Egypt. The man of compromise, the man who has no principles upon which he is able to stand, or the man who is afraid of the majority, that is, his brothers. And yet at the same time the kind of an individual who is serving two masters, and realizing that he has a certain calling, and that he has a certain duty. He says, "Let us not slay him, but let us cast him into the pit." And that is a compromise of the Old Testament.
That compromise, this man who as the eldest should stand before them all and say, "Woe to you if you do any violence to this boy." Oh! This man who is always seeking himself, who is always living unto himself, this man who seeks only his own glory, and never the welfare of the kingdom. This is the one who by compromise has said, "Let us not slay him but let us cast him into the pit." And here is the call; Joseph is going into Egypt.
He is the one who can go around later on and "I, where shall I go when my father is not able to find him?" That is the kind of a remark that comes out of a soul that has no basis in fact. "Where shall I go?" Where was he before? That's the trouble! And the fact is the way in which you have compromised constantly. That kind of a compromise, beloved, is held up before us in Scripture even though it is very delicate. That kind of a compromise is held before us as being the one thing against which the people of God are warned again and again. That they are not able to say to men; "Why go ye any longer halting on two opinions? Why is it that you are able to offer sacrifices to Baal instead of to Jehovah? And here why is it that you are not able to sign a death warrant, but nevertheless cast him into this pit?"
And that is the way in which Reuben lives before us, as a violent brother, that goes wheresoever he pleases; the place of least resistance. That is characteristic of this man throughout his life. And again, as it develops that it is safe and as he is standing there before Jacob his father, and when Joseph has called them to take Benjamin to Egypt. Now they say he is posing as a hero, and that posing as a hero is thus, that he says to his father, "If I bring him not back then kill my two sons." That is to be the comfort of the grandfather, that he kills two of his grandchildren. Here stands before him this big man, Reuben, with a mind and with morals and with the heart of a child. That adds a lesson that he has never grown up.
What a statement, "I'll be a hero if I don't bring Benjamin back, then slay my two sons." Understand, before Joseph in Egypt and it is not Reuben from which you hear anything. And then Joseph says, "Ye are the ones who have taken my cup. And now I will take Benjamin, he has stolen." You see, it is not Reuben that comes to his defense, but his younger brother, Judah. Read that chapter sometime, and you will come to you eventually. One of the most moving pleas in all of Scripture. Then as Judah says, "Then let me be slave forever. Don't kill my brother."
Oh, in the passage that I read to you beloved, concerning the Song of Deborah; this is two centuries later, and two centuries later Deborah and Barak sing with the call throughout Israel that they are to come there to fight against Sisera. This is long after the death of Reuben, but nevertheless the things that Reuben has done, those are the things that are going to live after him, and that he is also going to determine for his posterity. And there as Barak and Deborah sing the call throughout all Israel that they may come together, that they may fight against Sisera. And then a great victory is achieved, as you know. And then comes the song of Deborah, and she says, "And where were you Reuben, you had many searchings of heart, and many resolves of heart. You talked it over good and proper as you were sitting there among the sheepfolds in your land, but you never came." You sat there together and there you talked about it and you had great resolves of heart and there were great musings of heart. And let's consider the matter now very closely. And to consider it in such a way and said, "It is better that I stay home."
I don't want to go to this battle, I'm against it; I'm against war, and besides, there must also still be food. And it is far better and I can also take a far more important place here among the sheepfolds than I can there in the front lines. Where were you, Reuben. Oh, it was again the same as before his brothers, when he said, "What shall we do with this Joseph?" There was that same characteristic that carries on, great resolves of heart, but he stays among the sheepfold. And when it is going to be a matter of sacrifice or comfort, then I take the comfort, says Reuben.
And that is the only way in which I am ever going to live. Let them depend on me; but they can't. I will not take my place among the twelve tribes of Israel. I will not take my place in the armies of Jehovah, but I will have great resolves of heart, and great musings of heart. And they talked about it in the villages of Reuben again every night of the terrible wars, from the fightings of such wars. So it is, the army of Jehovah that is fighting against the enemy. Nevertheless, it is better that we stay at home. Great resolves, great musings. But, said Deborah, you stayed with the sheepfold.
And that beloved, is the kind of a line that runs through the whole Old Testament. And that is the kind of a line that runs all the way through to the very end; there isn't a deed there – a deed is such as a priest or a prophet or anyone else that has come out of the tribe of Reuben. These are not the kind that are going to give leadership. This is not the kind that is ready to sacrifice. This is not the kind that is ready to take up the cudgels for any cause. This is the kind that is an Erasmus as he writes to Luther and says, "I am not made of the stuff of reformers and of those who suffer persecution." I'd rather sit in my study and muse on these things, and there also look at every side of the problem. And then perhaps I'll be able to solve some problems for you, but at the same time, I am not made of the stuff of martyrs. And Reuben says, "Amen, I'm not either."
And there isn't a place for him in Israel. And thou art my strength, the beginning of my strength. In thou was the beginning of my hope, that Reuben, that child of which Leah said, "Reuben, behold a son, and this one will now cement the relations to my husband." He has even torn apart his brothers. That is the way in which he lived, and when one lives to himself or dies to himself, that's the way, as the prophet says, the way the twig is bent. That's the way the tree is going to grow.
You take the way, young people, the direction in which they are taking already today, then you can also use the already prophesied, the way it is going to be like for the fifty years hence. That's awesome, and that is scaring, that you begin with the kind of a life of a Reuben, and you end up among those who are not counted among Israel, for they have no place, no place of leadership, a disappointing life. That was the one upon whom all of the blessings would have come, and he has destroyed it himself.
And finally, notice also, the teaching. The teachings beloved, that come to us out of the life of Reuben is this, that it is indeed not such that we are to seek our own life. For Christ has taught us that he who is going to save his life is going to lose it regardless. That may be paradoxical, and it may seem as though it is a contradiction to you, but that is the way in which it goes. And that he who is going to save his life at all costs, that is a Reuben. And he is going to save then finally "well, throw him in the pit, that isn't a nice place, but I will take him out of it and somehow or other I will rescue him." And when he was standing before his father, and doesn't know what to say, and it would have been much better if he had said nothing; he says, "Kill my two sons!" "For seek me and live," says Christ. If you seek anything else you will die. And that is the very clear teaching of Scripture.
For beloved, Reuben is the kind that points us in this direction that he despises the Christ of God. He is the one who points us in the direction that he is the one who despises the cross. He is the one who preaches to us eloquently that Jesus knows much more about death than He knows about life. And that's the way many people think today too.
Yah, when you are going to take a test, then you better be at the feet of Jesus Christ. He knows far more about death, but what does He know about life! And I want to live, says Reuben. And that goes hand in hand with Judas Iscariot. And when we may see these lines going on throughout Scripture, and then we may then also realize that this kind of a life, the kind of a life that overlooks Scripture, that looks today, how can I profit myself without any sacrifice, without any calling. That is the kind of a life that despises the cross of Jesus Christ. That is the one that despises the Man of sorrows. That is the man who preaches the new morality, and lives it. And that is the man who preaches the humanism of the day.
Now we are always talking about modernists; and there is no greater misnomer in the English language, that is as old as the hills. New morality, there is no such thing. It's as old as Reuben. Humanism, it is as old as this elder son of Jacob. Because here you find one who is walking in that way and walks it with giant steps. He ordains law unto himself; there are no norms, there are no standards. There are no standards given us in any word, in any law. I am a law unto myself, and then I do as I please. That was what Reuben said. "And you will not get the birthright."
There's a man who does not recognize that man is the image of God, but he is a law unto himself. And so he was, and so he lived, and so he acts, according to the exigency of the moment. And if it demands this, that he is going to violate the concubine of his father, well and good – he will do it. He is the lord in the house, she but a slave. And if it means this, that he is going to compromise with his brothers, for he is afraid of that, he is in the minority as soon as he begins to plead for Joseph. Then he will compromise, and that is the way in which he will go on. And then Deborah says, "Where were you when we needed you?" Then he sat there by the sheepfolds and had great resolves of heart, and was talking things over. And you can talk things over until you die, and you still won't do them.
That is the way in which we are taught beloved, that conundrum, that paradox of Jesus, that he that seeks to save his life is going to lose it. Reuben is the example. He sought to save it at all costs. Yet, these are the things that speak to us, and when I look upon Reuben, or Simeon, or Levi, or Issachar, or Zebulun or any of the others, I so often see myself. Is there no hope whatsoever? Reuben doesn't really count among the tribes. Then I say with Revelations 7, "And out of all Israel there were 144,000 sealed, and out of the tribe of Reuben just 12,000.
Where there's hope, hope even in the midst of so much disappointment and despair, for there's the kind of a life that it is indeed a sorry tale that comes forth out of that house of Jacob, out of that rivalry of these wives. Speak to us concerning our day, concerning our time, and speak to us in warning and also in possibly teaching. Amen.
We thank Thee Lord our God for Thy goodness. We thank Thee for Thy mercy. We thank Thee for the teaching of Thy Word. We pray, apply Thou it to our hearts. We pray, heavenly Father, that we may walk before Thee uprightly, early in life, giving ourselves to Thee and to Thy service. Lord, take our lives and make them Thine. Bless us in this week; keep us near to Thee. Forgive our sins, for Jesus' sake. Amen.
Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE, © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
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