Jacob’s prophesying with blessing in Genesis 49 applies both to the twelve tribes of Israel (his twelve sons) and to our Christian experience today in the church.
In his blessing of the first three sons we don’t see many positive things – Reuben lost the birthright and didn’t receive the blessing because he indulged in his fleshly lust, and Simeon and Levi were not blessed but rather scattered in Israel because of their disposition.
These utterances by Jacob, though they may not contain a blessing, are a warning to us all regarding indulging in lust, fornication, our disposition, and our anger.
In the case of Simeon and Levi, because of their cruelty according to their disposition, they didn’t receive any blessing from Jacob (see Gen. 49:5-6; 34:25-30; Deut. 22:6-7). Rather, Jacob exercised his judgement over them to scatter them among the children of Israel (Gen. 49:7) so that they would not be able to behave cruelly according to their disposition (Josh. 19:1, 9; 21:1-3, 41).
Genesis doesn’t say much about Simeon and Levi before Jacob and his family got to Shechem, but at Shechem their disposition was exposed.
Their sister Dinah was defiled by the son of the ruler of the city, and they devised a plan to force the men of the city to be defenseless: get them to be circumcised (if they want to get married to people from Israel). On the third day, while the men were still suffering, Simeon and Levi entered the city and killed all the men and hamstrung the oxen.
They were fierce in their anger, and in their wrath they were cruel. Jacob himself was appalled and scared of their disposition, and he had to take his family and leave Shechem because he was made odious to the people around there.
We may not be as cruel as Simeon and Levi were, but our disposition is a great hindrance to the Lord’s purpose being fulfilled in us, and there are some elements in our natural makeup that hinder us from being built up with others in the church as the Body of Christ.
We need to be open to the Lord and cooperate with Him to have a change in our disposition. In God’s sovereignty and with the tribe of Levi’s cooperation, their disposition was used by God for His purpose in a transformed and renewed way. Praise the Lord, there is a way!
Jacob’s Prophesying with Blessing concerning Simeon and Levi: Beware your Disposition!
Because Simeon and Levi were so cruel according to their disposition – especially in the incident at Shechem, see Gen. 34:25-30 – they didn’t receive any blessing from Jacob but rather their father exercised his judgement to scatter them among the children of Israel.
Because their dear sister was defiled, Simeon and Levi acted according to their disposition and killed all the males in the city of Shechem, plundered the city, and even hamstrung their cattle.
They were cruel in their anger, and Jacob didn’t forget this. Because they were so cruel, Jacob scattered them among Israel so that Simeon and Levi would not act according to their cruelty.
We need to beware our disposition: whether cruel, nice, angry, or good, we need to reject our disposition and live by the divine life in our spirit.
Our disposition is what we are by birth, our natural makeup. Some people are by disposition very kind and gentle, while others are quick, ready to burst into anger.
Some have a “hero disposition”: they want to do everything in a perfect and complete way; they are strong and quick in doing things. Others are “non-heroes”, doing nothing in a perfect way but halfway.
What damages our usefulness in our Christian life and church life is living according to our disposition. Some brothers and sisters have a strong element in their disposition that hinders them from coordinating and fellowshipping with others. Others love to fellowship, but they do it in a natural way according to their “social disposition” and not with the exercise of their spirit.
Living according to our disposition hinders us from coordinating and fellowshipping with others. We need to reject our disposition and stand with the divine life in us. The Lord’s work is in the Body and for the Body, and our Christian life is in the church life for the Body; we need the Lord to deal with our disposition.
On His side, the Lord is faithful to sovereignly arrange and allow trials, sufferings, and failures to sift our disposition. On our side, we need to enjoy the Lord one day at a time, taking Him as our strength and supply for the day and not worry about tomorrow.
The failures we go through help break our strong and “absolute disposition”. Peter strongly believed that he will NEVER betray Jesus, even if everyone else will; if he lived and behaved according to his strong disposition, he could never shepherd anyone.
The Lord allowed Peter to fail and deny Him, and this broke his strong self; without this failure he couldn’t shepherd others.
Lord Jesus, we take You as the strength and supply for today. Keep us under Your divine light to see what our disposition really is like. Lord, deliver us from our disposition! Work Yourself into us and constitute us more with Your element. Keep us open to Your sovereign arrangement and deal with what we are by birth. We don’t want to hinder You from fulfilling Your purpose. Lord, we choose to live by the divine life and reject what we are by disposition. We choose not to live according to our disposition but be through the cross, by the Spirit, seeking to minister Christ to others!
Our Natural Disposition can be Useful to the Lord in a Renewed and Transformed Way
Your natural disposition is not something you build up or choose to be: it is something you are by birth, your natural make-up.
Simeon and Levi were quick to be angry, and they were cruel in their wrath – this is what they were by birth. Because of what they were and did, Simeon and Levi didn’t receive blessing from their father.
Later, however, Levi used his disposition in a renewed and transformed way to slay the worshipers of the golden calf (see Exo. 32:26-28).
When Moses came down from the mountain of God with the tablets of the law of God, the people of Israel were worshipping the golden calf. Moses called to himself all those who are for God and the whole tribe of Levi came to him.
Then, he commanded them to take their sword and kill their neighbor and their brother who were in sin. Naturally, the Levites were quick to kill and ready to burst in anger, so God used their disposition for His purpose in a renewed way.
In order for our disposition to be useful to the Lord there are three conditions that need to be met:
- Consecration: the tribe of Levi had to consecrate themselves to the Lord by separating themselves from their sinning and idol-worshipping brothers. For our disposition to be useful to the Lord we need to consecrate ourselves to the Lord, separating ourselves from anything sinful or of the idols.
- Using our natural disposition against our natural desire: Levi was ready to use his disposition against people outside of his family that defiled his sister, but later the tribe of Levi was commanded to use their disposition against their own natural desire. “The relatives of the Levites” signify ourselves, that part of our being that participates in the worship of idols, our religious being, and our natural desires and pleasures. For our disposition to be useful to the Lord, we need to be consecrated to Him and use our natural disposition against our natural desire.
- Using our natural disposition in a renewed and transformed way: the Levites were by disposition inclined toward anger and killing, and after God chose them to be His priests, they had to kill all the sacrifices and bring them to God on behalf of the people. We need to use our natural disposition in a renewed and transformed way, that is, in a way that is for God and with God.
Eventually, because of his absoluteness, desperation, and faithfulness toward God, Levi received the blessing of the priesthood with the Urim and the Thummim (see Deut. 33:8-9; Exo. 32:26-28).
The double portion of the land given to the firstborn was rich, but the priesthood given to the Levites was so sweet – they had the privilege of entering into God’s presence in an intimate way.
The Levites were not given any particular area or portion of the good land – as the other tribes of Israel were given – but they were scattered among the tribes, having a few cities here and there (according to Jacob’s speaking and Moses’ arrangement, see Num. 35:2).
However, the scattering of Levi according to the curse actually became a blessing: the Levites brought people to God and God to people, and their presence sanctified the people of God.
May we be those who, no matter of our disposition, are absolute toward God, desperate for God, and faithful to God, so that even our disposition may be useful to Him! May we be those consecrated to the Lord for His purpose, those using our natural disposition against our natural desire and using it in a renewed and transformed way!
Lord Jesus, we consecrate ourselves to You for Your purpose. Lord, we choose to be absolute for You and Your heart’s desire today. We open to You concerning our disposition: may we use our natural disposition against our natural desire! Lord, we choose to use our natural disposition in a renewed and transformed way for God and with God! We want to be useful to You in fulfilling of Your purpose. Lord, make us desperate for this and keep us faithful to You!
References and Hymns on this Topic
- Inspiration: the Word of God, my Christian experience, bro. Ed Marks’ sharing in the message for this week, and portions from, Life-study of Genesis (msg. 98), as quoted in, the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallization-Study of Genesis (3), week 10 / msg 10, Jacob’s Prophesying with Blessing (1).
- Hymns on this topic:
# Freed from self and Adam’s nature, / Lord, I would be built by Thee / With the saints into Thy temple, / Where Thy glory we shall see. / From peculiar traits deliver, / From my independent ways, / That a dwelling place for Thee, Lord, / We will be thru all our days. (Hymns #840)
# Consecrated is Thy temple, / Purged from every stain and sin; / May Thy flame of glory now be / Manifested from within. / Let the earth in solemn wonder / See my body willingly / Offered as Thy slave obedient, / Energized alone by Thee. (Hymns #867)
# Built up in love together, / Not one would criticize; / To perfect one another, / We all would exercise. / Each one from self delivered, / The natural life forsakes; / In grace each trained in spirit / The Body-life partakes. (Hymns #403)
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