God, the Source of Blessings [Genesis 49]

22"Joseph is a fruitful bough,
         A fruitful bough by a spring;
         Its branches run over a wall.
    23"The archers bitterly attacked him,
         And shot at him and harassed him;
    24But his bow remained firm,
         And his arms were agile,
         From the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob
         (From there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel),
    25From the God of your father who helps you,
         And by the Almighty who blesses you
         With blessings of heaven above,
         Blessings of the deep that lies beneath,
         Blessings of the breasts and of the womb.
    26"The blessings of your father
         Have surpassed the blessings of my ancestors
         Up to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills;
         May they be on the head of Joseph,
         And on the crown of the head of the one distinguished among his brothers.

Like the fathers before him, Jacob spoke blessings over his sons before he died. There were two blessings that caught my attention. First, was Judah because I know that Jesus is born into the line of Judah and that Jesus is foreshadowed in this blessing on Judah. However, because at this point we have been engaged in the story of Joseph and how God worked in His life, I have chosen to focus on Joseph's blessing. In the blessing, Jacob described Joseph as a fruitful bough who was attacked, but remained firm and agile. And then Jacob explained why Joseph prevailed through it all. It was because of who God is and the blessings that He provided to Joseph as Joseph kept His eyes on the Lord and relied on God's strength and provision all along the way.

God

The Mighty One of Jacob
The Shepherd
The Stone of Israel
The God of your father who helps you,
The Almighty who blesses you with:
         Blessings of heaven above,
         Blessings of the deep that lies beneath,
         Blessings of the breasts and of the womb

We praise You that You are the only source of strength to overcome adversity and that You are the source of all our blessings. Cause us to look to You today for all we need to stand firm and be capable in our trials.

Beth Warlick, 1/12/2010