No 24

(Asher, Naphtali)

Here are two more of Jacob’s sons who received blessings on their father’s deathbed as described in Genesis 49. For Asher we read: “Out of ASHER his bread shall be fat, and he shall yield royal dainties” (v20). His name means “happy” and he was the eighth son of Jacob born of Zilpah, Leah’s servant. His blessing is one of rich sustenance probably through agriculture; his territory is the farthest north and there is a reference in Deuteronomy that there could be oil in his land. The Bible says in Deut 33:24b “….and let him dip his foot in oil.” A while back, an attempt to drill for oil in Mount Carmel proved fruitless but had oil been found, it would’ve helped the Israeli economy. Unfortunately the oil referred to in Deuteronomy is not petroleum oil, but olive oil. In fact even today Asher’s territory has many olive trees; there is even a place called The Valley of the Olive”. I believe that this prophecy is that Asher will be blessed with an abundance which he will share with others. The lesson of the tribe of Asher is to be fruitful.

Naphtali is next and his blessing reads “Naphtali is a hind let loose: he giveth goodly words” (v21). Most interpreters attribute much bravery and fighting ability to this tribe; they were always ready to go to battle if needed; contrary to some of the other tribes. Jacob’s prophesy is that Naphtali will be characterized by swiftness and agility of a doe. In Judges 5:18, Naphtali and Zebulon were singled out for their bravery “Zebulon and Naphtali were a people that jeopardized their lives unto the death in the high places of the field”. As for the last part of his blessing “he givith goodly words”, it is interesting that most of Jesus’ disciples came from that region; could it be that the “goodly words” were the words of the Gospel spoken by men from that area? The lesson of the tribe of Naphtali is to “be ready”.