Tag Archives: Messiah

The Scepter, the Donkey, the Vine, the Bloody Grapes and the Messiah

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Sounds like the title of a C.S. Lewis Christian fiction novel, doesn’t it? Well, when unpacked, these three little verses contain a lot prophetically pertaining to the Messiah. They’re like a  riddle. Let’s use the Bible itself to unlock the code. 

Genesis 49:10–12, The scepter. Below is my commentary on these verses.

The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes: His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk.

This passage is a clear reference to the Messiah and the Messianic Age (the time when Messiah would come to rule the earth) and has been so recognized by the Jewish sages from time immemorial (The ArtScroll Stone Edition Chumash, p. 279). “The general consensus (with few exceptions) of Rabbinic interpretation is that this phrase [Until Shiloh arrives] refers to the coming of the Messiah …” (The ArtScroll Bereishis/Genesis Torah commentary, p. 2152). In fact, Onkelos [a second-century scholar who translated the Torah (Pentateuch) into Aramaic] in his Aramaic version of the Torah translates this version as follows: “Until the Messiah comes, to whom the kingdom belongs” (ibid.). Rashi (b. 1040 and recognized by Jewish scholars as probably the preeminent Torah commentator of the modern era) “concurs and similarly comments: Until the King Messiah will come…, to whom the kingdom belongs. According to the Midrash, vkha [shiloh] is a composite of ha and uk, [meaning] “a gift to him”—a reference to King Messiah to whom all peoples will bring gifts. See Isaiah 18:7; Psalms 76:12” (ibid., p. 2153). It should not be difficult to see the fulfillment of this rabbinic understanding in the magis’ giving of gifts to the young child Yeshua (Matt 2:11).

Are there any illusions here to the incarnation or virgin birth of the Messiah? Of the incarnation we read the following in The ArtScroll Bereishis/Genesis Torah commentary:

Midrash Tanchuma preserves an opinion that vkha [shiloh] is derived from vhka [shil-yah] meaning “little child, (lit. the amniotic sac in which the fetus is formed: comp. Deut 28:57).” Thus, the passage means: “Until his scion (i.e. Messiah) comes” (ibid., p. 2153).

Of course the same commentators in the same passage, while readily admitting that Continue reading →

 

Was Yeshua of both Davidic (Jewish) and priestly lineage?

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Luke 1:36, Elizabeth your relative. While Mary was of the royal lineage of David through her father, she also was a relative on her mother’s side of Elizabeth, the priest-wife of Zacharias, who was a daughter of Aaron (Luke 1:5).  In Matthew one and Luke three two different genealogies are given for Yeshua, both of which  go back to King David. One is presumed to be that of Joseph and the other is that of Mary. In this way, Yeshua was a direct descendant of David legally through Joseph, his step-father, and genetically through Mary, his mother. Does this mean that Mary was of priestly as well as Davidic lineage. Yes, but not patrilineally, only matrilineally. In the Scriptures, tribal lineage was determined through the father’s family line and not the mother’s.

In the case of Mary and Elizabeth, they would have shared common grandparents making them cousins. Their grandfather would have been a priest. In the case of Elizabeth, her father—the son of her priestly grandfather—would have carried the priestly line making her a daughter of Aaron (Luke 1:5). In the case of Mary, her mother would have been her priestly grandfather’s daughter meaning that she was of priestly lineage, but not her children, unless she married a priest.

It seems that Yeshua would have carried priestly blood in his genes, but he was legally a priest through patrilineal descent. To be sure, Yeshua was a priest, but not one of Aaronic lineage, but after the order of Melchizedek, which was the priesthood of the firstborn son passed on generationally. Yeshua was the first born son of Elohim eternally, which is why he is presently at the right hand of Elohim acting as our Great High Priest (Heb 1:3 cp. 3:1; 4:4; 8:1).

Therefore, Mary laid claim to a Davidic as well as a priestly lineage (Jesus the Messiah, by Edersheim, p. 105). This means that Yeshua was not only of direct Davidic lineage, but was of priestly lineage as well.

 

Questions and Answers About Who the Descendants of Joseph and Judah Became

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Genesis 44:18, And Judah came near. What is the spiritual prophetic significance of Judah initiating the approaching of Joseph? Remember who the descendants of Judah became? The Jews became the Southern Kingdom of Israel, and Joseph’s sons Ephraim and Manasseh became the Northern Kingdom or house of Israel and eventually the “lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

Prophetically-speaking, who is the most notable descendant of the tribe of Judah? (See Rev 5:5.). Did Yeshua, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, seek you or did you seek him when you were lost? (See Rom 5:8; Luke 19:10; Matt 18:11.)

Why is Judah coming near to Joseph (who he does not yet recognize as Joseph)? What were Judah’s heart motives in coming near? (See Gen 44:18–34). Was Yeshua motivated to come near to us out of love for his Father as well? (See John 8:28; chapter 17.)

Did Judah offer to lay down his life as a ransom for his youngest brother? (See Gen 44:33.) Who does this point to prophetically? Who else freely gave his life as a substitute for his brothers? (See Mark 10:45; Matt 20:28; 1 Tim 2:5; John 10:11, 15, 17–18; 1 John 3:16.)

  • Please note that Judah is an antetype (prophetic forerunner) of Yeshua the Messiah.
  • Both sought to please their fathers.
  • Both acted out of unconditional love for their younger brother.
  • Both stood to gain nothing personally, but rather stood to lose much, if their plan did not work. Judah, a prince, would become a slave in Egypt; Yeshua would become a slave to death and hell, if he sinned.

It is interesting to note that classic Christian commentator Matthew Henry draws a similar analogy between Judah’s actions here and Messiah Yeshua, as well (A Commentary On the Whole Bible, vol. 1, p. 243, by Matthew Henry).

Judah’s love for his father and Benjamin and his willingness to lay down his life as a ransom to become a slave in Egypt to Joseph is analogous to Messiah Yeshua’s love for the lost sheep of the house of Israel to whom he came to reach out and to ransom in order to bring them back into the fold of Israel (John 10:15–16; Matt 10:6; 15:24).

What was the burden on the Apostle Paul’s heart in this regard? (Read Romans 9:1–5.) Who does Paul later go on to talk about and extend his heart burden to in Romans 9:23–24? Remember that the term Gentile simply means “ethnic or people groups, or the people of the nations.” Who is Paul specifically referring to here? Paul had the same intense love for his Jewish brethren as he did for those “people groups of the nations” whom he equates with the lost, adulterous and apostate house of Israel (the Northern Kingdom of the ten tribes of Israel). Compare Romans 9:25 with Hosea 2:23 (the former being a direct quote from the latter) in context with the whole book of Hosea, which is addressed particularly to the apostate house of Israel and who had become “lost” among the nations, of which Joseph in Egypt is a prophetic antetype.

 

More Prophetic Pictures in the Story of Judah, Joseph and Benjamin

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Genesis 44:32–34, Became surety for the lad. Christian commentator Matthew Henry on this passage states, “Judah’s faithful cleaving to Benjamin, now, in his distress, was recompensed long afterwards by the tribe of Benjamin keeping with the tribe of Judah, when the other tribes deserted it” (Matthew Henry Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible, p. 56).

It is amazing that some 800 years later this fraternal love between the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin continued to work in the collective psyches of these tribes such that the heart of the younger was still knit in loyalty with that of older brother. What does this say about generational blessings (and curses) or attitudes that are passed on down to one’s descendants? If curses can be passed on down to the third or fourth generation (Exod 20:5), how about blessings? The Book of Proverbs states that, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit,” (Prov 18:21) and that, “ A wholesome tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit,” (Prov 15:4).  ­

Generations of our descendants can be affected positively or negatively by the inclination of our hearts and the words of our mouth. It had been Judah’s idea to sell Joseph to slave traders. In the meantime, Judah’s heart had changed so that he was willing to lay down his life for his brother, Benjamin, Joseph’s only full brother. This change of heart on Judah’s part and the resulting outpouring of love for his youngest brother had lasting positive results. What are the prophetic implications of this relationship between Joseph (Ephraim and Manasseh) and Judah?

Did Judah recognize Joseph, or did Joseph have to reveal himself? (Read Gen 45:1–4.) Was Judah “blinded” to whom Joseph was? Why? What is this a prophetic picture of? (See Rom 11:25.) As we have seen in the previous studies, Joseph was a type of the Messiah as well as the father of Ephraim and Manasseh, the dominate tribes of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, who went apostate and become “lost sheep” among the nations of the world (Hos 7:8; 8:8; Ezek 34:16 and numerous other Scriptures). Therefore, who does Joseph prophetically represent? This is a prophetic picture of the “lost sheep of the house of Israel” and the Messiah who would come to seek out those lost sheep (Matt 15:24; 10:6). And whom does Judah represent? Is Judah a prophetic shadow of the Lion of the Tribe of Judah who would later come as the Messiah to redeem his “brother” who would be lost in spiritual Egypt? Or does he represent the Southern Kingdom of the house of Judah who is “blind” to his Messiah? Perhaps he is a prophetic picture of both. These are potentially difficult questions to answer. One could easily force these scriptures in Genesis to fit into a false prophetic scenario.

This has been a head scratcher for the Jewish sages as well. They have seen in the story of Joseph, the Suffering Servant, a Messiah Son of Joseph figure who they felt would be a descendant of Ephraim and who would come to redeem the lost sheep or exiles of the house of Israel in preparation for a second Messiah to come whom they refer to as the Conquering King or Messiah the Son of David, (Mesorah Publications ArtScroll Bereishis, vol. 1(b), pp. 2121–2122). They see these Messiahs as two separate individuals. Yet in our story of Joseph and Judah can we see the antetypes of these two Messiahs acting out their roles at the same time? Could Judah and Joseph point to both comings of Messiah Yeshua? At his first coming, did not Yeshua, the Suffering Servant, come to redeem a remnant of lost Judah in addition to a much larger portion of “the lost sheep of the house of Israel”? Yet at his second coming, will this same Messiah Son of Joseph come back as the Lion of Judah to be revealed to his Jewish brothers who had previously rejected him?

 

The Story of Joseph Is a Prophetic Antitype of End Time Events

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Joseph and Judah (the Two Houses of Israel)

In what follows, we will see types and shadows that point to the end-time reunification of the two houses of Israel (Joseph/Ephraim and Judah/the Jews), and to Yeshua the Messiah whose role it would be to regather and reunite the two houses of Israel by laying his life down as a ransom or substitute for his brothers. In this study, we will discuss the following themes:

  • reuniting lost family members
  • reconciliation and healing of wounds and offenses between families
  • forgiveness of past wrongs, offenses and misunderstandings
  • prophetic shadows of Yeshua the Messiah

Let’s now analyze the events in the life of Joseph (and to a lesser degree, Judah) as they occurred chronologically to see how they pointed forward to events that would occur in the future including the end times.

Joseph Taken as Captive to a Gentile Nation (Gen 37)

Joseph was sold into slavery and taken as a captive to Egypt. Similarly and prophetically, Joseph’s descendants (Ephraim and Manasseh), along with their fellow tribesmen of the northern kingdom of Israel (or house of Israel), were taken as captives into Assyria (ca. 723 B.C.). From there they were scattered around the world (into spiritual “Egypt,” ) where the biblical prophets predicted they would remain until the final regathering at the end of the age (just prior to and at the coming of Messiah). We will understand this more as we proceed.

Joseph: From Slave to Ruler (Gen 37, 41)

At first, Joseph was a slave and a prisoner in Egypt, but then he prospered and was elevated to a position of leadership there. Likewise, in the future, Joseph’s descendants (Ephraim, Manasseh, and the rest of the house of Israel) would start out as slaves and captives in Assyria (in the eighth century b.c.), but would later become leaders and rulers Continue reading →

 

Yeshua the Messiah in the Every Book of the Bible

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In Genesis, Yeshua is the eternal Torah-light of the world, the breath of life and the seed of the woman.

In Exodus, he is the Passover lamb, the Torah-Word of Elohim, and the way to the Father in the tabernacle.

In Leviticus, he is our atoning sacrifice and our high priest.

In Numbers, he is the pillar of cloud by day and pillar of fire by night.

In Deuteronomy, he is the prophet like unto Moses.

In Joshua, he is the captain of our salvation who leads us into the kingdom of Elohim.

In Judges, he is our judge and lawgiver.

In Ruth, he is our kinsman redeemer.

In 1 and 2 Samuel, he is our trusted prophet.

In Kings and Chronicles, he is our reigning king.

In Ezra, he is the builder of our temple, which houses the Spirit of Elohim.

In Nehemiah, he is the rebuilder of the broken down walls of human life.

In Esther, he is our Mordechai who saves us from those who would kill, steal and destroy us.

In Job, he is our ever-living Redeemer.

In Psalms, he is our shepherd to lead us in the ways of Torah-life.

In Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, he is our wisdom.

In Song of Solomon, he is our Loving Bridegroom.

In Isaiah, he is the Suffering Servant who bears our sins, the Repairer of the Breach between the two houses of Israel, and the Prince of Peace.

In Jeremiah, he is our Righteous Branch.

In Lamentations, he is the weeping prophet.

In Ezekiel, he is the one who rejoins the two sticks of Israel bringing them to worship Elohim together his temple.

In Daniel, he is the fourth man in life’s fiery furnace and our Ancient of Day.

In Hosea, he is the faithful husband forever married to the backslider.

In Joel, he is the baptize of the Holy Spirit.

In Amos, he is our burden bearer.

In Obadiah, he is mighty to save.

In Jonah, he is our great foreign missionary.

In Micah, he is the messenger of beautiful feet.

In Nahum, he is our strength and shield, and the avenger of Elohim’s elect.

In Habakkuk, he is Elohim’s evangelist crying, “Revive thy works in the midsts of the years.”

In Zephaniah, he is our Savior.

In Haggai, he is the restorer of Elohim’s lost heritage.

In Zechariah, he is a fountain opened up in the house of David for sin and uncleanliness.

In Malachi, he is the Sun of Righteousness arising with healing in his wings.

In Matthew, Yeshua the Messiah is the King of the Jews.

In Mark, he is the servant.

In Luke, he is the Son of Man, feeling what you feel.

In John, he is the Son of Elohim.

In Acts, he is the Savior of the world.

In Romans, he is the righteousness of Elohim.

In 1 Corinthians, he is the Rock, the Father of Israel.

In 2 Corinthians, he is the triumphant one giving victory.

In Galatians, he is your liberty. He set you free.

In Ephesians, he is the head of his spiritual body.

In Philippians, he is your joy.

In Colossians, he is your completeness.

In 1 and 2 Thessalonians, he is your hope.

In 1 Timothy, he is your faith.

In 2 Timothy, he is your stability.

In Titus, he is truth.

In Philemon, he is your benefactor.

In Hebrews, he is your perfection.

In James, he is the power behind your faith.

In 1 Peter, he is your example.

In 2 Peter, he is your purity.

In 1 John, he is your life.

In 2 John, he is your pattern.

In 3 John, he is your motivation.

In Jude, he is the foundation of your faith.

In Revelation, he is the Righteous Judge of the world, the Avenger of the saints, your coming King, your First and Last, the Beginning and the End, the Keeper of creation, the Creator of all, the Architect of the universe and the Manager of all times. He always was, he always is and always will be. He’s unmoved, unchanged, undefeated, and never undone. He was bruised and brought healing. He was pierced to heal our pain. He was persecuted and brought freedom. He was dead and brought life. He is risen and brings power. He reigns and brings peace. The world can’t understand him, the armies can’t defeat him, the public schools can’t kick him out and the leaders can’t ignore him. Herod couldn’t kill him, the Pharisees couldn’t confuse him, the people couldn’t hold him, Nero couldn’t crush him, Hitler couldn’t silence him, the communists can’t destroy him, the atheists can’t explain him away, and the New Age can’t replace him. He is life, love, longevity and Lord. He is goodness, kindness, gentleness and Elohim. He is holy, righteous, mighty, powerful and pure. His ways are right, his word is eternal, his will is unchanging, and his eyes are on me. He is my Redeemer, he is my Savior, he is my Guide, he is my peace, he is my joy, he is my comfort, he is my Lord, and HE RULES MY LIFE!