Lent - Pt 6

Judah, your brothers shall praise you; your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; your father's sons shall bow down before you. Judah is a lion's cub; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down; he crouched as a lion and as a lioness; who dares rouse him? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples. Binding his foal to the vine and his donkey's colt to the choice vine, he has washed his garments in wine and his vesture in the blood of grapes. His eyes are darker than wine, and his teeth whiter than milk. (Genesis 49:8-12 ESV).

Today we will look at a relatively obscure passage from the life of Jacob. On his deathbed Jacob prophesied the future of each of his twelve children, foreseeing their future ascendancy or demise, prosperity or impoverishment. For some, the future would be full of violence and heartache. But for others, theirs would be a future of prominence and victory. For Judah, the fourth among Jacob’s sons, his was a future of distinction. He would be held in esteem by his brothers (v. 8) and receive tribute from all nations (v. 10a). His reign would be enduring and unchallenged (v. 10b) and a time of overwhelming abundance. Because grapevines require attention and care, wine was a luxury for nomadic people in the ancient world. Yet under the reign of Judah, there would be such an abundance of vines that one could tie his donkey to one without fear that it would be damaged, wash his garments in wine without depleting the supply, and even drink until his eyes took on the color of wine itself (vv. 11-12). Judah’s reign would be a glorious one indeed and it is no wonder that Judah himself would be called a lion (v. 9). However, this strength and power would not stand the test of time. Only Jesus, the final Lion of Judah, could do that. That simple truth brings us to the conundrum of the Gospel: weakness brings strength; death brings life. This is not easily accepted by our logically influenced mindset. Our culture demands a quid pro quo kind of thought process. We believe that the more you do, the better you are. That simply is not the way of Jesus. John has a vision of the eternally enthroned Lion of Judah; and yet, this vision is juxtaposed with a Lamb who was slain (cf. Revelation 5). The answer to this puzzle is in this truth that Jesus demonstrates his greatest power through weakness, his lordship through service, and his sovereign reign through self-sacrifice. In other words, Jesus was slain because he was the Lion and enthroned because he is the Lamb. In your moments of brokenness, heartache and hardship, do you see that Jesus Christ experienced brokenness for you so that you might experience the abundance of his reign over your life? Meditate on this thought today. It will being you comfort and encouragement.