Depending on God’s mercy (Genesis 48)

When I ponder my life and the opportunities I have been given compared to my parents’ generation, I feel humbled. They spent most of their lives under a Communist system that restricted travel and isolated people from the outside world, barred some from certain (intellectual) professions and the training required for them, and cut off many of the ‘frills’ in material terms that make life pleasant and enjoyable. Many lived with fear and faced difficult moral choices between conformity to the system (which could involve causing harm to others) or refusal to co-operate (and bring suffering and disadvantages to oneself and one’s family). Thinking theologically about these different life paths, I sometimes wonder why some really get the sharp end of the stick in terms of disasters, illnesses, family breakdowns and other tragedies. And why does someone like me have the privileged life that I have?

Jacob on his deathbed

This question that may be summarised under the term election or God’s choice in the Bible is prominent throughout Genesis and I have already addressed the unfairness question elsewhere (see Chosen and Unchosen: Is God Unfair?). Responding with jealousy as Joseph’s brothers (and Cain had done) is not the answer. But what of the privileged? How should they behave? Jacob, one of the ‘chosen’ and blessed, testifies to God’s promises and actions on his deathbed (Gen 48:3-4, 15-16). He does not dwell on his earlier efforts to secure the blessing or on his hard work with Laban when he built up his wealth. Rather, he has come to depend on the grace of God and he experiences it as His unexpected generosity (Gen 48:11). Although material blessing was part of what Jacob received from God, his focus here is on God’s will as it is expressed in the promise that one day his descendants will settle in Canaan (v.4). In other words, he is not seduced by wealth and prosperity as the be-all and end-all of his existence (otherwise he would have settled into life in Egypt) but looks to what God intends for him and his family, even though this will involve the discomfort of relocation in the future.

Joseph’s anger

Paradoxically, it is Joseph, who was likewise singled out and privileged, who misses the point somewhat. By adopting Joseph’s two sons as his own, Jacob effectively affirms Joseph’s status as the firstborn (who, through his sons, receives a double portion of the inheritance; Gen 48:5; 1 Chron 5:1-2).[1] While Joseph lines up the sons according to birth order (Manasseh on Jacob’s right as the first born), privilege comes in unexpected ways when Jacob crosses his hands to give priority to Joseph’s younger son, Ephraim (Gen 48:13). It is ironic that Joseph, who was elevated out of the birth order, wants to stick to that order here when presenting his sons. Perhaps he assumes that Jacob blundered because of his blindness (Gen 48:10) and he grabs the old man’s hand impatiently to rectify the mistake (Gen 48:17).[2] Yet despite his failing eyesight, Jacob acts prophetically in singling out Ephraim, who will indeed have prominence over his brother in Israel’s later history (Gen 48:19). Once again, God gives favour and grace without merit in surprising ways.

Depending on God’s mercy

The lesson that this episode highlights for us is that God’s grace and blessings are not earned and should not make us conceited as if we deserved His goodness. Rather, being grateful and recognising that our lives depend on Him is our best response to His generosity. Like Jacob, we also need to keep God’s will in focus and not let His benefits and blessings obscure what matters most: living for Him in the good times and the bad. For those who compare their lives unfavourably with others, it is worth remembering that such comparison tends to single out one aspect that the comparer is missing and longs for. In reality, we all live through a mixture of circumstances. We never fully know the depth of sorrow people may carry even if their lives look together, nor the inner joy that can come from a relationship with God even when circumstances are hard. All we can do is to entrust our lives to God and seek to have eyes that recognise His presence with us.

[1] Adopting grandsons as one’s sons and thereby making them heirs was a recognised practice in the ancient Near East (see Gordon Wenham, Genesis 16-50 [Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1994], 463]. When the land is distributed among the twelve tribes of Israel later, Joseph virtually disappears from the lists and it is his two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, who receive a portion each of the land. Commentators are unsure what the one portion taken from the Amorites refer to at the end of the chapter (Gen 48:22). The Hebrew for ‘portion’ here can also mean ‘ridge’ or ‘shoulder’, or the proper name ‘Shechem’. If the latter is in view, then it indicates the capture of the city and the slaughter of the Shechemites by Jacob’s sons (Gen 34), though Jacob condemned them for their act.

[2] The Hebrew translated in NASB as ‘displeased’ is a strong expression of disapproval and means that the person thinks that something is wrong, bad, evil. Likewise, to grasp or grab the hand is a forceful verb in Hebrew indicating Joseph’s impatience, even anger.

If you enjoyed this post, please share it with others.