NOVEMBER 10, 2024

Bible verse “GENESIS 35:16~29”

Sermon title "The Jacob’s life 13’

Israel’s wife Rachel died while giving birth to Benjamin. Yet, as if nothing had happened, Israel did not purchase a burial site or conduct a proper funeral for Rachel. Instead, he buried her by the roadside at Ephrath, erected a simple tombstone, and then moved on to pitch his tent past the watchtower of Bethel. What’s striking is that Israel’s faith in and devotion to God remained unwavering and unshaken despite Rachel’s death.

Even before Israel could grieve or collect himself, another calamity awaited him. Genesis 35:22 states, “While Israel lived in that land, Reuben went and lay with Bilhah, his father’s concubine, and Israel heard of it.” Reuben, the firstborn son of Leah, committed a grievous act by sleeping with Bilhah, Rachel’s maidservant and Israel’s fourth wife, who had borne him Dan and Naphtali. This incident was not just a family scandal; it was an unimaginable, heinous event, even among unbelievers.

How could something like this happen in a household that believed in God? Was it because Israel didn’t pray enough? Was it because he lacked blessings or faith, or perhaps because he believed in God incorrectly? Just prior to this, God had appeared to Israel, blessed him, and renamed him Israel, meaning “one who has wrestled with God and prevailed.” Yet such an atrocity occurred.

Some might wonder why such a grotesque and shocking story is even included in the Bible. Leviticus 20:11 later declares, “If a man has sexual relations with his father’s wife, he has dishonored his father. Both the man and the woman are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.” According to the law, anyone who committed such an act was to be executed. However, at the time of Reuben’s transgression, the Law had not yet been given. This means that such incidents may not have been entirely uncommon, even if they were considered reprehensible.

Without the Law, sins were often not recognized as sins because there was no legal framework to define or condemn them. Nevertheless, even in the absence of the Law, it’s difficult to fathom how a son could commit such an act with his father’s concubine. While this may not have been a typical or widespread occurrence, it reveals the depth of human depravity.

The text says that Israel “heard of it.” Of course, Israel heard it—he had ears. But the Scripture specifically says “Israel heard it,” not “Jacob.” Had it referred to “Jacob,” one might argue, “Well, Jacob was a deceiver by nature, so like father, like son.” But the text emphasizes Israel, the man renamed by God and blessed, heard this atrocity and seemingly let it go.

At this point, doesn’t Israel appear almost like a sociopath, someone devoid of feelings? His daughter Dinah was defiled, his two sons became murderers, his nurse Deborah died, his beloved wife Rachel died in childbirth, and now his firstborn son

committed this grievous act—and Israel simply “heard it” and moved on.

At first, I also thought Israel might be a cold-blooded man incapable of emotions. But later, I discovered this was not the case. Israel was capable of immense love and emotion, as seen when he learned of Joseph’s supposed death. Genesis 37:34-35 says, “Then Jacob tore his clothes, put on sackcloth, and mourned for his son many days. All his sons and daughters came to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. ‘No,’ he said, ‘I will continue to mourn until I join my son in the grave.’ So his father wept for him.”

When Israel heard that Joseph had been devoured by wild animals (a lie told by Joseph’s brothers after selling him to Midianite traders), he was utterly devastated. He tore his clothes, wore sackcloth, and mourned for a very long time. Israel was far from a heartless man. He had endured all these trials, suppressing his emotions, enduring in silence, and holding himself together through sheer resilience.

Among the nine fruits of the Spirit, the inclusion of long-suffering and self-control is particularly significant. Israel demonstrated both long-suffering and self-control. If there had been fellow believers around Israel at that time, could they have offered him comfort and strength? Likely not. On the contrary, their presence might have caused Israel to falter and stumble. The fact that Israel had no one to compare himself to was a blessing in itself. Moreover, the absence of the Law was also a blessing. Had the Law been given, it would have demanded that both Reuben and Bilhah be put to death for their sin of incest, as prescribed in Leviticus 20:11. Even for Israel, it would have been unbearable to endure such consequences. How fortunate it was that this event occurred before the Law was given, allowing Israel to bear and overcome the hardships, trials, and tribulations he faced.

Eventually, Israel reached Mamre in Kiriath Arba and reunited with his father Isaac. By then, Isaac was 180 years old, and it was at this time that Israel finally met his father again. Tragically, as soon as they were reunited, Isaac passed away (Genesis 35:29). Throughout his life, Israel had caused his father much grief and failed to show him proper filial respect, and now Isaac was gone.

Israel’s life, even after meeting God at the Jabbok River and reconciling with Esau, was filled with relentless hardships. His favored son Joseph was thought to be dead. Later, he learned that Judah’s two sons—his grandsons—had died, and he also received the shocking news that Judah had fathered children with Tamar, his daughter-in-law. Despite enduring such a tumultuous life, Israel did not spend his later years in peace. During his old age, a severe famine struck Canaan, leaving him and his family on the brink of starvation, barely surviving on whatever scraps they could find.

The story of Israel encompasses not only Joseph’s story but also the stories of Judah and Tamar—and even Paul’s story. Without Israel’s life, there would be no Joseph, no Judah and Tamar, no Perez, no Boaz, no Jesse, no David, and no Jesus Christ, who came as a descendant of David. Without Israel, there would be no Paul. Tamar, remarkably, is the first of three women mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus in

Matthew 1, while even Sarah, the wife of Abraham, is not listed. Matthew 1:2 states, “Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers.”

Originally, Israel’s firstborn son was Reuben. However, Reuben lost his birthright due to his sin of sleeping with Bilhah, his father’s concubine. According to the Law, both Reuben and Bilhah should have been put to death, but since this occurred before the Law was given, they were spared, though Reuben’s birthright was taken away. The birthright should have passed to Simeon, the second son, but because he and Levi used God’s holy rite of circumcision to commit murder, neither received the birthright. It was instead given to Judah, the fourth son.

Interestingly, the Israelites regarded Joseph as Israel’s de facto firstborn, as he was the one who practically saved the family. Due to Joseph, the family of Israel survived. Although Israel’s twelve sons became the twelve tribes, Joseph did not directly take part as a tribe himself. Instead, he chose for his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, to represent him as tribes, making them part of the twelve tribes. This arrangement would technically make thirteen tribes, but they were counted as twelve by dividing Manasseh and Ephraim into half-tribes. Later, when the Levites were set apart for God, they were excluded from the twelve tribes, allowing Manasseh and Ephraim to each become a full tribe, completing the twelve.

Why is this story significant? It lays the foundation for Paul’s legitimacy as an apostle. Paul was not one of the original twelve disciples chosen by Jesus. When Jesus selected His twelve disciples, Paul was not even present. If Paul were to be considered an apostle, that would make thirteen apostles instead of twelve. Yet, all Christians acknowledge Paul as an apostle, drawing a parallel to the arrangement of the twelve tribes through Joseph’s sons.

In 1 Corinthians 9:1–2, Paul says, “Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord?” In verse 2, he adds, “Even if I am not an apostle to others, surely I am to you! For you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord.” Paul’s declaration of his apostleship is not merely an assertion.

Among the twelve sons of Israel, Joseph worked the hardest to preserve the family. For that reason, he should have been the firstborn, given the responsibility he bore for Jacob’s household. Yet Joseph neither received the birthright nor became part of the twelve tribes in name. The fourth son, Judah, received the right of the firstborn, not because Reuben, Simeon, and Levi sinned and lost it, but because Judah took responsibility for his brothers when they went down to Egypt. Judah offered to stay in Egypt as a hostage on behalf of his brothers, while his older brothers had all shirked this duty. Thus, the birthright passed to Judah. While Judah's name was inscribed in the genealogy, Joseph is recognized as the true savior of Jacob’s household.

This is further clarified in 1 Chronicles 5:1–2, “The sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel (he was indeed the firstborn, but because he defiled his father’s bed, his

birthright was given to the sons of Joseph, the son of Israel, so that the genealogy is not listed according to the birthright); yet Judah prevailed over his brothers, and from him came a ruler, although the birthright was Joseph’s.” Because Reuben defiled his father’s bed, the birthright was transferred to Joseph, the one who bore responsibility. Yet the genealogy did not record Joseph as the firstborn; it recorded Judah. Paul understood this nuance.

Jesus originally called twelve disciples as apostles, and Acts 1:21–22 defines the qualifications of an apostle: “Therefore, it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from John’s baptism to the time when Jesus was taken up from us. For one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection.” Thus, no one outside of the twelve could be an apostle. Therefore, movements today claiming new apostles are heretical.

When Judas Iscariot, one of the original twelve, betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver and subsequently took his own life, the number of apostles was reduced to eleven. The remaining apostles then cast lots to fill this vacancy, and Matthias was chosen, taking his place as the twelfth apostle. However, the apostle who truly labored the most for the gospel was Paul. Reuben corresponds to Judas Iscariot, Judah to Matthias, and Joseph foreshadows Paul. For this reason, Paul could rightly say, “Am I not free? Am I not an apostle?” He understood that, while others might not recognize his apostleship, the Corinthian believers bore testimony to it.

This concept is echoed in Romans 2:28–29, which states, “A person is not a Jew who is one only outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code.” Paul emphasizes that merely appearing to be a Jew or an apostle does not make one so; what matters is inward faith and true dedication. Reuben might have been the firstborn outwardly, but he was not in reality. Judas Iscariot may have been one of the twelve apostles, but he was not truly an apostle in spirit.

Similarly, we are not to be Christians only outwardly, appearing to believe in Jesus, but we must truly believe in our hearts. This teaching illuminates the story of Israel, in which Judah, Tamar, and Joseph appear. The basis for Paul’s apostleship lies within Israel’s story, connecting the lives of these figures.

Therefore, who could say that Israel’s life was a failure? Through Israel, Jesus Christ came to this world, and countless souls have been saved through Him. With the eyes of faith, one can see the abundant blessings in Israel’s life given by God. Without faith, one might view Jacob’s life only as a sad, failed existence. But through Israel’s life story, our eyes of faith are opened. May we, too, become believers who endure hardships, suffering, and challenges through faith, overcoming in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.