Because of the Rock

Joseph is a fruitful vine, a fruitful vine near a spring,
    whose branches climb over a wall.

With bitterness archers attacked him;
    they shot at him with hostility.

But his bow remained steady,
    his strong arms stayed limber,
because of the hand of the Mighty One of Jacob,
    because of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel,

because of your father’s God, who helps you,
    because of the Almighty, who blesses you
with blessings of the skies above,
    blessings of the deep springs below,
    blessings of the breast and womb.

Genesis 49:22-25

An old, wisened Jacob gathers his sons near. He still limps, and the memory of the night in his youth spent wrestling with God has informed his faith ever since. Today, it infuses his fatherly blessing with power and certainty. He blesses not because of his name but because of the name of God the mighty One, the Shepherd, the Helper, the Almighty, the One from whom all blessings come.

He knows it is because of the Rock his family stands.

So he turns to his sons and speaks power over them.

Jacob can do this because something critical happened in him between his young days and his final days. Standing on the threshold of life and death, he understands now what he did not grasp on the long-ago day he placed a colored robe on Joseph’s favored shoulders. Jacob now knows that all is because of the Rock. Not because of his love. Not because of his honor, wealth, power, or well-planned strategies. 

But because of the Rock.

Old man Jacob, eyes weakened by age, sees more clearly now than he ever has. Because of the Rock, he stands. And so will his children. #parenting Click To Tweet

Because of the Rock, past sins have been forgiven. 

The past has not defeated his family.

The past cannot destroy God’s promises for their future.

So Jacob stretches out his hand and blesses his children with the fatherly blessing of one who knows.

Not because of me, but because of the Rock.

Lord, I don’t want to have to limp to learn. But if limp I must, I will. Because You alone are the Rock, and it is only because of You my family’s present and future are secure. Amen.

@audreycfrank

Image by Christo Anestev from Pixabay