This graph illustrates the 63,779 instances (in the King James Bible) in which the biblical text references itself.
This astonishing fact demonstrates that the Bible, despite being written over many generations, genres, and authors, is an incredibly consistent document with a unified message.
And, yesterday, as ICF wrapped up its study through Genesis, I wanted to take the opportunity to emphasize how the book’s ending connects to Scripture’s larger story.
In doing so, not only do we gain a deeper appreciation for the Bible, but also, I believe, we see more of God’s grandeur in how He wove together such a tale.
If all roads lead to Rome, all Scripture leads to Jesus.
So, I hope you enjoy and learn something new. And, as always, the recording is avaliable for those who prefer:
The Blessing of Judah
“The reason for our confusion over the Bible is that we usually read the Bible as a series of disconnected stories, each with a ‘moral’ for how we should live our lives. It is not. Rather it comprises a single story telling us how the human race got into its present condition and how God through Jesus Christ has come and will come to put things right.” -Tim Keller
The church tradition I came from consistently preached through the Bible, Genesis to Revelation, almost every Sunday. Once they got to the end they simply started from the beginning and repeated.
Funnily enough, little (in my memory) was ever said about this “single story” Tim Keller spoke of.
As a result, there were many passages that didn’t make sense until I began to see Scripture through that lens.
And, today, we’re going to finish our study of Genesis with a passage that helps us see through that lens - the lens of story.
First, some context.
Last week, Fred spoke about the grace-filled ending to the story of Joseph.
Joseph, now second in command of Egypt, reconciles with his brothers who once beat and sold him into slavery. Instead of seeking revenge he seeks love, and their relationships are restored.
Well, since then, Joseph moved the whole family to Egypt where he reunites with his father Jacob. Jacob, now an old man, is overjoyed and they’re able to spend the last 17 years of his life together.
And it’s here, on Jacob’s deathbed, that we find ourselves today.
Knowing the end is near, Jacob gathers his sons and shares his final words with them. And it’s his words to one son in particular, Judah, that I want us to pay attention to:
Genesis 49v8-12
8 “Judah, your brothers will praise you;
your hand will be on the neck of your enemies;
your father’s sons will bow down to you.
9 You are a lion’s cub, Judah;
you return from the prey, my son.
Like a lion he crouches and lies down,
like a lioness—who dares to rouse him?
10 The scepter will not depart from Judah,
nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,
until he to whom it belongs shall come
and the obedience of the nations shall be his.
11 He will tether his donkey to a vine,
his colt to the choicest branch;
he will wash his garments in wine,
his robes in the blood of grapes.
12 His eyes will be darker than wine,
his teeth whiter than milk
Today’s painting is Christ the Vine by Victor, a 17th century Cretan (Greek) painter.
Done in the icon style so common in the Orthodox tradition, this painting depicts Jesus at the center of a large vine whose branches contain apostles and Gospel writers.
The Holy Trinity runs down the center - God the Father at the top, Holy Spirit underneath, and, in the center of the whole thing, Jesus.
I chose this painting for a specific reason. Here you have Jesus connected to all these important biblical figures, many of whom, Christ included, are holding the Scriptures wide open.
Jesus, we see here, is the one to which these Scriptures lead, emphasizing Tim Keller’s point - that the Bible is one story about Jesus.
The blessing of Judah makes this point, too.
Judah was the fourth of Jacob’s sons and was born to his first wife, Leah. His name means “praise” and from what we read here, it’s quite fitting.
According to Jacob, Judah is destined for the praise of his brothers - it’s somewhat similar to these dreams of Joseph… but not entirely…
Jacob then compares Judah to a lion - a symbol of power, victory, and royalty, further elevating Judah’s praiseworthy nature.
This theme of royalty is further elaborated on in verse 10 with the mention of a scepter, a ruling staff, being held in Judah’s possession. This scepter is awaiting the arrival of a powerful Ruler who will come from Judah and hold authority over all the nations.
This Ruler will inherit an abundance - livestock, produce, milk, wine… In other words, He will lack nothing.
It’s an incredible blessing. One of power, riches, and future hope.
But in the next chapter, Genesis ends and, by Exodus 1, Judah’s generation has passed away… with no mention of Judah himself inheriting any of this.
Why is that? Well, it’s because the story isn’t about Judah the individual but about one of his descendants… Jesus of Nazareth.
Allow me to explain.
As the Bible continues, these words about Judah are expanded on.
In Numbers 24, the Israelites are wandering through the wilderness and find themselves in the land of Moab. The Moabite king, Balak, doesn’t like that and enlists the pagan prophet Balaam to curse them.
But each time Balaam tries to deliver a curse, God prevents it. Instead, a blessing comes out. This happens four times, and it’s the fourth time that’s the most interesting. Here’s part of it…
Numbers 24v17:
“I see him, but not now;
I behold him, but not near.
A star will come out of Jacob;
a scepter will rise out of Israel.
He will crush the foreheads of Moab,
the skulls of all the people of Sheth.
Any of that sound familiar? Once more, we get a reference to this “scepter” and the power of the one who holds it… only here we learn that this Person, whoever they are, is far off.
This same imagery is brought up again in Psalm 60v7 and, here, the scepter is directly related to Judah - just like in Genesis 49. This further supports that Someone important is coming from Judah’s tribe.
A few generations later, who should come from Judah but King David himself? David, after all, was an incredibly popular king, famously called “a man after God’s own heart.” On the surface, it seems like all these prophecies point to him… only they don’t.
David has a mostly good reign but makes some big mistakes and, like Judah, dies without these prophecies being completely fulfilled.
But all hope is not lost. Why?
Because in the years after David’s death, Prophets came along and reassured the people that this Leader from Judah is still coming (see Isaiah 11 for more). David might not have been Him but He is going to come from David’s family.
And, of course, that leads us to Jesus.
In Luke 1v32-33, the Angel Gabriel tells Mary, in no uncertain terms, that her son will be the fulfillment of this long-awaited prophecy. A prophecy that finds fulfillment in the Kingdom of God, a process that began with Jesus’ ministry and will be completed with His second coming.
From Jacob’s blessing in Genesis to Balaam in Numbers to King David in the Psalms to the Prophet Isaiah to Luke and the Gospels… one thread, woven together, pointing to Jesus.
As our community continues to explore the Bible, one of my hopes is that you will come to see this book as more than a bunch of old morality tales.
Now, there is some truth to that. The book of Genesis specifically contains many moral tales such as: Joseph and his brothers, Jacob wrestling with God, the faith of Abraham, and more. But we shouldn’t forget that these stories are smaller parts of a larger whole.
It’s a story that begins with a beautiful world created out of chaos. Where humans are made to live from and for the love of God.
A story where the beauty of this world is broken and creation unravels as a result. In this story, God turns one man into a nation that would, slowly but surely, reintroduce the beauty that was lost.
This nation, Israel, would struggle to live up to its calling - proving that we cannot solve the problem on our own. The Prophets affirmed this and spoke of a coming hope from the tribe of Judah that found fulfillment in Jesus Himself.
Jesus, fully God and fully man, showed what true life with God was like and did what no human could - conquer sin with self-sacrificial love.
The path forward, through Jesus and His Church, is then made known to us. Preparing His people for the day when He will return and finish the job.
That’s the story.
Sixty-six books. Creation, Fall, Redemption, and New Creation. Written over thousands of years by several authors. All working together to tell one story.
And it’s a story that’s gripped the human imagination and experience ever since.
When we see the Bible like that, we gain a deeper awe for God and His presence. After all, how else could such a magnificent story be achieved without divine intervention?
When we see the Bible like this, a random blessing from Jacob becomes a blessing of hope across generations. Seemingly pointless temple sacrifices become a foretaste of the sacrificial love of God. The anticlimactic failure of Israel shows our human inability to save ourselves, emphasizing our need for the Cross.
The Bible is not a self-help book. It’s not always about finding a little message or theme to apply to your specific situation. Sometimes that’s there, and that’s great. But the Bible, first and foremost, is about the deepest need of our species - Christ crucified, risen, and coming again.
Of course, not every single page of the Bible is filled with hidden symbolism about Jesus. For example, if you take the second letter of the cities alloted to the Israelites Joshua 13-21, they’re not going to spell out “Jesus Saves” (or any variation thereof).
What those chapters do, however, is help us better understand the context and culture that God used to prepare the world for Jesus.
Like Victor’s painting, the branches, in one way or another, lead to Him.
As we close, I’d like to leave you with some helpful resources and tips that make the Bible’s grand story clearer.
The non-profit BibleProject is great for this. They have a YouTube channel, website, and other resources (in multiple languages) that addresses this very topic. It’s a great place to start.
For the last year and a half I’ve been using their ReadScripture app which takes readers right through the Bible’s story. I cannot recommend it enough. (It’s designed to get you through in a year but, personally, I recommend taking it slower.)
This app is helpful because it takes you through every book of the Bible. Leviticus might be boring but it’s in there for a reason. They all have a part to play.
Reading in community is also important as hearing the perspectives of others helps us catch things we’d normally miss. This is part of why we have Missional Communities so, if you’re not in one, now’s a good time.
And remember, engaging with Scripture is a spiritual practice. God’s Word is living, so is His story - seek Him in it.
In the years following Judah’s blessing, Israel would be enslaved by Egypt. They’d eventually be freed, only to wander through the wilderness for forty years. After finally settling in their own land, they rejected God and were exiled. In the end, they returned only to fall under Greek then Roman rule.
Through all this, Jacob’s words were passed down generation to generation. And the people waited.
They waited until finally, their story, their long, difficult, and hopeful story, took a significant step forward when an angel appeared to a young woman and said:
Luke 1v30v-33
“Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”
For more information about ICF Rotterdam Noord: https://www.icfrotterdamnoord.nl/en/
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