Chapters 7-9
Chapter 7
How refreshing it is to next read of Issachar and his descendants! (1).
His mother viewed him as a reward from Jehovah; his name means 'He is Wages'.
It reflects the way Leah came to conceive him, buying the conjugal right for that night from Rachel in return for some mandrakes.
He was Jacob's ninth son, and Issachar is named as ninth in the list of Spiritual Israel.
Issachar and his descendants displayed some wonderful qualities.
We don't know much about his life other than from the recorded events that he mutually participated in with his brothers. For example, in 1728 BCE, when he was around 41 years old, he and his sons went to Egypt, among the "seventy souls" who comprised Jacob's household.
On his father's deathbed, Issachar received his blessing.
We see his family line was prophesied to be willing workers for the common good, at times benefitting the whole nation.
They were praised by Barak and Deborah for their contribution to Israel's victory.
Commendably, the research notes say "The men of Issachar watched God's indications of what he wanted done at a certain time. So they gave David a military escort" when he became king over all Israel.
These were men of faith, and men of action, who had "a knowledge of how to discern the times".
Moses also spoke well of this tribe. He said "Issachar would rejoice in their tents". Deut 33:18.
They would have reason to rejoice:
Issachar was the fourth tribe to receive its land, in the fertile valley of Jezreel. The Insight book says this was a "choice " and "pleasant" land, and the people of Issachar were evidently well content with what Jehovah had given them.
Tola, one of Issachar's descendants, was a judge in Israel for 23 years ( not to be confused with with Issachar's son in vs 1).
The men of Issachar are called mighty warriors in vs 5.
Benjamin is listed next, in vs 6-12.
He was born in Canaan, the 12th and final son of Jacob. The birth caused the death of Jacob's dearly loved wife Rachel, giving him much grief. Like his brother Joseph, Benjamin was much loved by his father.
Although not a large tribe, it did produce names that are famous:
Saul, Esther, Mordecai, and Paul are all descendants of Benjamin.
The Benjaminites were noted for their fighting abilities, and apart from a disgraceful incident of a fatal mass rape in Judges 19, their record generally is one of faithfulness, since they loyally stuck with Judah when the nation was divided, in recognition of Jehovah's decree at 1 Ki 11:31&32.
Ezra records that Benjamin and Judah were the most prominent of those who returned after the exile. Ez 10:9.
And Benjamin is listed in Revelation in the roll for Spiritual Israel.
In vs 13 we have Naphtali.
He was the second son of Rachel's maid servant, Bilhah. His name reflects Rachel's feelings at the time of his birth; " My Wrestlings".
Jacob spoke favorably of Naphtali in his final blessing at Gen 49:21, and the tribe descending from him was among those who responded courageously to Barak's call to battle against Sisera. Barak himself was of the tribe of Naphtali. They also supported judge Gideon against the Midianites.
Moses blessed this tribe in Deuteronomy 33:23 : "Naphtali is satisfied with the approval and full of the blessing of Jehovah ", and their assigned territory was was fruitful.
Manasseh is next in vs 14.
A name well known to us from the tribe of Manasseh is that of Zelophehad, whose daughters were granted the inheritance of their father by Jehovah because he had no sons.
Judge Gideon was also of the tribe of Manasseh.
They received territory both east and west of the Jordan.
Manasseh is also represented as one of the tribes of Spiritual Israel
In vs 20 we have Ephraim.
Ephraim was prophesied to become the greater of the two tribes descending from Joseph.
Of his sons, Ezer and Elead were slain by the men of Gath.
Ezra records that after this calamity, he fathered Beriah.
But of all the names recorded here, that of Joshua the son of Nun, the attendant and later successor of Moses, must surely be the most famous.
His name means "Jehovah is Salvation ", a worthy name for the faithful, bold, and fearless leader who led Israel into the promised land. (20-27).
Asher is next listed.
He was the eighth son of Jacob through Leah's maid servant Zilpah. His four sons and one daughter are listed in vs 30.
Although not a prominent tribe, in Gen 49:20 Asher's descendants were promised a life blessed with an abundance of food.
The Insight book says "the history of his descendants demonstrates the fulfillment of this prediction ".
Moses too said that the tribe of Asher would have a prosperous portion of land. (Deut 33:24&25).
Their land included some of the most fertile in all Israel.
Chapter 8.
Looking at ch 8, our eyes light upon both place names, and the names of people we know well.
The city of Gibeon (vs 29) sent a delegation (and representing 3 other cities) to Joshua when they realized after the fall of Jericho and Ai that Jehovah was fighting for Israel.
Jehovah blessed them for this, they were granted their lives, and Gibeon came to be one of the cities in the territory of Benjamin, with its people under Israel's protection.
In vs 33 we see Kish the father of Saul, and Jonathan, the faithful friend of David. As the son of Saul, Jonathan could have expected to be the next king, but was submissive to Jehovah's choice.
Another name we recognize from the ft.nt. is Mephibosheth, or Meribbaal in vs 34.
This was the crippled son of Jonathan who David sought out because of his friendship with Jonathan and the covenant they made at 1 Sam 20:42.
Mephibosheth displayed a character and humility that's an example for us when suffering injustice.
Chapter 9.
"And Judah was taken into exile to Babylon for their unfaithfulness ".
Of those returning after the exile, we are told "The first inhabitants to return were some Israelites, the priests, the Levites, and the temple servants ".
Among the general population were descendants from Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh. (1-3).
Who were the temple servants mentioned here?
Many were descendants of the Gibeonites who Joshua had made "gatherers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God ". (Jos 9:23&27).
Others were descendants of captives, and some may have been descendants of Ishmael.
Representatives from 35 of these families returned with Zerubbabel in 537 BCE and in 468 BCE with Ezra.
They were men of faith, sharing in the rebuilding of Jerusalem's walls, and joining with the Israelites in keeping free from foreign marriage alliances, promising to "walk in the law of the true God ". (Neh 10:28-30).
After the exile, king Artaxerxes exempted them from paying "tax, tribute, or toll" along with the priests and Levites as "workers of this house of God ". (Ez 7:24).
In vs 4 onwards, we see the names of some of those who settled in Jerusalem, their numbers, and included are the heads of the paternal houses.
And again, we see names we recognize and have considered from previous chapters such as:
Perez, Hilkiah, zadok, Phinehas, and Eleazar.
In 17-19 we see descendants of Korah, Shallum being listed as a head gatekeeper.
Because of their outstanding loyalty in not aligning themselves with their rebellious father, Korah, in Moses day, Korah's sons and their descendants lived. (Nu 26:10&11).
They were blessed for their faithfulness and honoured with service at the Tabernacle, and later at the temple as gatekeepers and singers, and were among David's men who were with him at Ziklag.
David specifically mentions the sons of Korah in the superscriptions of 7 of the Psalms.
Of those who served as gatekeepers, vs 22 says David and Samuel "appointed these to their office of trust ".
That they were dependable is clear in vs 27;
"they would spend the night in their stations all around the house of the true God ".
There were four chief gatekeepers in that office of trust, in charge of opening the gates in the morning.
Various other responsibilities are listed in vs 28-32.
The antecedents of Saul, the first king of Israel, are shown in vs 35-44, along with his descendants through Jonathan, Mephibosheth, and Micah, down to Azel and his sons.
Lesson for us.
When Jehovah told Adam and Eve to have children and fill the earth with righteous descendants, he intended a wonderful blessing.
In a more limited way since the fall, but still a blessing, this is surely what Issachar was for Leah.
And not only because she viewed him as a reward, but also because Issachar seems to have been a son to take pleasure in.
While some of his brothers and their descendants have adverse comments in the bible's accounts, we read of none for Issachar.
He and his tribe are portrayed as willing workers, they worked for the common good not only of the tribe, but for the nation as a whole, and without complaint.
They watched for indications of Jehovah's will, and acted accordingly. They were able to "discern the times".
And they were utterly content with the land Jehovah gave them.
In a zone talk some years ago, bro Loesch said "if you don't want to work, the new world is not for you ".
In the future, we will do well to emulate the people of Issachar in caring for the land Jehovah gves us, in viewing it as the blessing from Jehovah it will truly be.
They also gave their whole hearted support to Barak and Deborah at a critical time in Israel's history, just as we need to support Christ's brothers in this critical time.
And they watched for indications of Jehovah's will, and discerned the significance of the times they lived in.
In contrast, Jesus said to the Jews of his day that they could read the weather indicators, " but the signs of the times you cannot interpret ". (Matt 16:3).
We meet people today who are exactly the same, the signs are right in front of them, but they don't see.
We also see those who are among us who begin to lose their spiritual vision.
May we be like Issachar and his descendants, recognize Jehovah's will, clearly keep in focus the signs of the last days, and earn a record of faithfulness in Jehovah's book.
Benjamin's history is a bit more checkered, but overall one of faithfulness, much like many of us.
The fact that this tribe produced people of courage and loyalty speaks for itself.
They recovered from the shame of the appalling sex crime and later displayed true loyalty to Jehovah, just as we can recover from a sin and endeavor to be faithful for the rest of our lives.
Of all the descendants of Ephraim, Joshua stands out as the man who courageously stepped into the shoes of Moses and led the nation into the promised land.
He had real faith, and he truly relied upon Jehovah.
When Jericho's walls fell, it was because Joshua obeyed Jehovah's instructions to the letter.
When he died,the bible refers to him as "the servant of Jehovah". (Jo's 24:29).
Could we wish for anything more?
But Ephraim became unfaithful, worshipping the golden calves of Jeroboam.
The descendants of Ephraim eventually discovered that Jehovah's patience, forbearance, and mercy has limits. He removed them from their land, and it was not restored to them, becoming Samaria.
We need to be faithful so as not to lose out on our future inheritance in the paradise earth ahead.
Judah had to learn the same lesson, but was restored to their land after the exile. There were those who had remained faithful, and the temple, the city, and the walls were rebuilt, preserving the line to the Messiah.
Have we had to learn a hard lesson? Have we learned from Jehovah's discipline?
There was much rejoicing when Jerusalem was rebuilt.
If we have ever been disfellowshiped and later restored, we can take heart from the people of Judah who experienced something similar, but became recipients of Jehovah's mercy and were greatly blessed.
The Gibeonites and others who became the temple servants started off as slaves. But Jehovah blessed them and later elevated their status.
They were accorded a place of dignity among Jehovah's people.
So much so that they are mentioned with the priests and Levites rather than the general population.
The W 73 2/15 said "persons who are lowly ones are often the most blessed if they respond willingly to their...opportunities in Jehovah's service, doing in faith what they can ".
This is what these temple servants did. We can too.
And finally, the sons of Korah deserve our attention and respect as men who chose Jehovah's side, rather than that of their own father.
They didn't hesitate to take to take their stand for Jehovah, and for his appointed representative Moses.
We can come under similar pressure, some of us have family members who have turned apostate.
Having read through 9 chapters of lists of names, it's like reading a review! We've been reminded of famous men and women, of thrilling exploits, tales of faith, and endurance,
and warning accounts of bad decisions and wicked acts.
If there's one thing we can take away from reading Chronicles, it's perhaps to echo the words of the descendants of the sons of Korah in Psm 84:10&11 :
"I choose to stand at the threshold of the house of my God
Rather than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.....
Jehovah will not hold back anything good
From those walking in integrity ".
From jwt
Compiled by Ludwika
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