Focus: The Blessing Of Joseph

Text: Dt.33:13-16

"And of Joseph he said, Blessed of the LORD be his land, for the precious things of heaven, for the dew, and for the deep that coucheth beneath, And for the precious fruits brought forth by the sun, and for the precious things put forth by the moon, And for the chief things of the ancient mountains, and for the precious things of the lasting hills, And for the precious things of the earth and fulness thereof, and for the good will of him that dwelt in the bush: let the blessing come upon the head of Joseph, and upon the top of the head of him that was separated from his brethren. HIS GLORY is like the firstling of his bullock, and HIS HORNS are like the horns of unicorns: with them he shall push the people together to the ends of the earth: and they are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and they are the thousands of Manasseh."

One great lesson from this chapter of Deuteronomy is that we all need God's blessing to survive troubles and succeed in our different fields of endeavor, and all true blessings come from God. In this chapter God is imparting the blessings upon the tribes through Moses. God will always use someone to bless another. The blessings of heaven flow through one man to another. We certainly need a humble heart to receive all the divine blessings that flow through human channels. God alone is the source of all blessings, and men are His channels or outlets. In the blessing of Joseph, Moses begins by saying, "Blessed of the LORD…," and then in verse 16, he talks of "the good will of him that dwelt in the bush." The 'good will' is 'ratson' in Hebrew, referring to the favor of God. "Him that dwelt in the bush" takes us back to the Burning Bush where Moses encountered the Lord and received the mandate to redeem Israel from the bondage of Egypt. Moses is saying that Joseph will enjoy the wealth of divine favor, which indeed is the wealth that comes from the God of the Burning Bush. He is the source of Joseph's blessings. In Eph.1:3, we read that God has blessed the believer with all spiritual blessings in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, and in Jam.1:17, we read that every good and perfect gift comes from God.

The next thing we need to see is that Joseph's blessing has to do with his land. Moses says, "Blessed of the Lord be his LAND." Moses concludes the blessing by mentioning Ephraim and Manasseh, who are Joseph's seeds. So Joseph is blessed with land and seed. He is blessed with property and posterity. Joseph's land is blessed by God. His soil will yield precious crops. In the blessing, Moses describes Joseph's GLORY as "the firstling of the bullock," and his HORNS as "the horns of the unicorns." 'Horns' speak of power, and interestingly, Ephraim and Manasseh are Joseph's strengths. They are powerful enough to flush out the Canaanites from the land, and they take charge of the territory.

Joseph is blessed with glory and power.

Another point is that Moses describes Joseph as "him that was separated from his brethren." In the original, the word separated means 'set apart as a nazarite.' God calls Joseph out of the rest and sets him apart. He is a unique vessel in the hands of God. In Egypt Joseph was separated from his brothers, and right there God distinguished him. He was consecrated and commissioned to preserve the seed of Jacob. God turned his adversity into a lesson and a blessing. He was separated from his brothers and consecrated to God for a divine goal. Paul says, "Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, SEPARATED unto the gospel of God" (Rom.1:1). In Gal.1:15, he says, "…God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by his grace." The word 'separated' is 'aphorizo' in the Greek, and it literally means, 'off-horizon-ed.' It's like one being fenced off and excluded from the rest. 

It is no light matter to be separated by God for His purposes. There's always a huge price to pay and a unique life to lead. I pray God grants you the grace for a separated and consecrated life.

Finally, it is interesting to see how all of nature is favorably disposed to Joseph's land. Moses mentions the heaven, the dew, the deep, the sun, the moon, the mountains, the hills, and the earth. 'Deep' here means surging water from under the earth, a mass of water, or what we know as the fountains of the deep. The forces of nature are functioning as a team of facilitators, ensuring that Joseph gets all the blessings coming to him from God. All of nature collaborates in enriching the land of Joseph. His blessing is coming from everywhere. All of nature favors him. He enjoys nature's blessings in abundance. All of nature smiles on him. His land is blessed.

The blessings are laid upon his head. His head carries the blessings. He is blessed with a healthy heart and a wealthy mind. God gives him a large heart and a clean and clear mind. A blessed head cannot afford not to think. God will do much more than we ask or think. We must use our blessed brains to think creatively and our blessed hands to labor productively. Joseph is a man of dreams and an interpreter of the dreams of others. He is a gift from God that opens the door for other gifts.

His name means addition. For him to be born, God had to remember Rachel and grant her the answer to her prayers. Remembrance, for God, means time to act. Every time it is said that God remembers, He takes action. Joseph is the result of God's action and of answered prayer. Every time you look at Joseph, you see the answer to Rachel's prayer. On the day he was born, Rachel said, "God hath taken away my reproach." Through Joseph God removes Rachel's years of marital reproach. God is the yoke-breaker and the burden-remover. He is the bestower of honor and power. Joseph embodies divine blessing, glory and power.

I pray: May your life be filled with God's blessings! May you lead a life of separation from the world and manifest a life of consecration to God! The God of Joseph is your God, and He has commanded all of nature to bless you, and in Christ you are abundantly and eternally blessed. Amen.

by Bishop Moses E. Peter