Read with Me
Genesis 35:21-29 (HCSB)
Israel set out again and pitched his tent beyond the Tower of Eder. While Israel was living in that region, Reuben went in and slept with his father’s concubine Bilhah, and Israel heard about it.
Jacob had 12 sons:
Leah’s sons were Reuben (Jacob’s firstborn),
Simeon, Levi, Judah,
Issachar, and Zebulun.
Rachel’s sons were
Joseph and Benjamin.
The sons of Rachel’s slave Bilhah
were Dan and Naphtali.
The sons of Leah’s slave Zilpah
were Gad and Asher.
These are the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Paddan-aram.
Jacob came to his father Isaac at Mamre in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed. Isaac lived 180 years. He took his last breath and died, and was gathered to his people, old and full of days. His sons Esau and Jacob buried him.
Listen with Me
Moses covered a lot of ground in these few verses, including three significant events. The first was that Ruben, Jacob’s oldest son, slept with Bilhah, Rachel’s slave (Genesis 29:29). The main reason he would have done this was that even though Joseph had been Jacob’s favorite since he was born to Rachel, Jacob’s favorite and long barren wife, Rachel’s death had only served to tie Jacob closer to him. And there was now a second son from Rachel, Benjamin, who had potential to further displace Reuben in his father’s heart.
This carried potential long-term ramifications for Ruben. He was worried that when Jacob was near death and bequeathed the family blessing of the Promised Land, and the birthright, the double portion of the inheritance, it would not go to him, the eldest, as tradition dictated, and would instead go to Joseph or Benjamin.
According to the custom of the region, after a man died, the son who “inherited” any concubines would become the de facto heir of the birthright and the blessing. Even though Jacob wasn’t dead yet, Ruben figured that if he could successfully sleep with Rachel’s slave, who was also one of Jacob’s concubines, it would cement his status as the first born and rightful heir. But sadly, it had had the exact opposite effect. When Jacob was blessing his sons at the time he was near death, he disowned Ruben as his eldest (Genesis 49:3-4) specifically because of this incident. He also skipped over Simeon and Levi because of their role in the destruction of Shechem. Judah, the fourth born, received the promise of kingship over the 12 tribes, and Joseph received the birthright.
The other two incidents Moses includes are Jacob’s return to his father and mother in Kiriath Arba/Hebron, and Isaac’s death at 180, which happened several years after Jacob’s return. The testimony that Isaac was buried by both Jacob and Esau, just as Abraham had been buried by both Isaac and Ishmael, speaks to the power of reconciliation that God enabled.
Pray with Me
Father, this is a valuable lesson for any who have eyes to see and ears to hear. When we try to force a blessing into our lives apart from You, we can easily cause the exact opposite of the results we want. How much better to simply live our lives in conformity with Your requirements, so that we live continually in the path of Your blessings. Help me to do that today. Amen.
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