Read Jacob's farewell to his children. (Genesis 49)
My dad always promoted his belief of "Family first and always". All through my life, from my youth - the eldest of his and my mom's six children - until his death in October 2013 at the age of 79, I never heard this message change. Perhaps it was a result of growing up in a broken home, with a single mother and a father who did not exist for him. My dad stressed to us, his children, constantly the fact that "we could choose our friends and ultimately our spouses, but we could not choose blood". I can recall many instances through the years that one or more of us may have been at odds with each other and he never tried to force us to agree and get along all the time but, when an "outsider" antagonized one of us, we were expected to stand by the offended sibling.
Yes, dad loved us ferociously, but that love did not blind him to our faults and weaknesses. Nor did it stop him from speaking out about these deficits. Believe me he didn't sugarcoat or soft-soap any criticism when it came to ensuring that his kids knew that they had some work to do on themselves. And it may have set our teeth on edge to have to listen to these critiques. But I am pretty sure that were it not for these often (let's face it, ALWAYS) unsolicited assessments, I would be a vastly different person. Still far from perfect, I strive each day to live up to the very high standard that he set.
As I studied the story of Jacob and his children in the closing chapters of Genesis I reflected on just how good I had it with my father. Yes, he chided, exhorted, criticized and plain old "busted my chops" until he went to live with God in Paradise last year, but he never played favorites, never set us one against the other, never showed more love to one over the others, never showered one with more gifts than the others.
Our old buddy Jacob is guilty of all that. In fact, it is his unvarnished love for and doting on Joseph that serves as the impetus for all that happens with this dysfunctional family. He makes it very plain that little Joey is his favorite, gives him a magnificent gift of a beautiful outer garment containing a plethora of beauteous pigments (I really did not want you to starting singing the soundtrack of a certain well-known musical so I will refrain from using the more famous words to describe it). Some brothers want to kill him. They end up selling him into slavery and eventually come groveling to him for forgiveness.
One might think, might even hope, that after Joseph's unconditional forgiveness and the heartwarming reunion of this clan that we might read a happy ending. After all, doesn't the film version of that trite, but enjoyable musical (Okay! Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Didn't want to have to type that, but I couldn't help myself.) have a happy ending complete with an emotionally power-packed finale sung by the ageless Donnie Osmond? Well, let us remember that, while he may now named Israel, this is the same guy who duped his old man into making him heir numero uno over his brother Esau. Family never seemed to matter all that much to him and Ol' Jake seems to not have changed so much even in his dotage and declining health. His final words to his children and progeny are caustic at best and offer some praise along with some varying levels of condemnation and admonition.
He calls Ruben his strength then accuses him of defiling his bed (Gen. 49:4), accuses Simeon and Levi of being hot-headed, violent brutes (Gen. 49:5-7).
And the diatribe continues in that vein, until he dies. It must have seemed like a never-ending rant against his own flesh and blood. He does have some nice things to say about some of the others but it seems that he spends his final breaths sowing just more of the same seeds of discontent among his offspring. How can this be a family undivided, a nation united, if it's founder and head teaches discord and distrust right up until his final breath?
Imagine how these children felt?
All things considered, I much prefer my old man to Joseph's and his family's geezer.
My dad always promoted his belief of "Family first and always". All through my life, from my youth - the eldest of his and my mom's six children - until his death in October 2013 at the age of 79, I never heard this message change. Perhaps it was a result of growing up in a broken home, with a single mother and a father who did not exist for him. My dad stressed to us, his children, constantly the fact that "we could choose our friends and ultimately our spouses, but we could not choose blood". I can recall many instances through the years that one or more of us may have been at odds with each other and he never tried to force us to agree and get along all the time but, when an "outsider" antagonized one of us, we were expected to stand by the offended sibling.
Yes, dad loved us ferociously, but that love did not blind him to our faults and weaknesses. Nor did it stop him from speaking out about these deficits. Believe me he didn't sugarcoat or soft-soap any criticism when it came to ensuring that his kids knew that they had some work to do on themselves. And it may have set our teeth on edge to have to listen to these critiques. But I am pretty sure that were it not for these often (let's face it, ALWAYS) unsolicited assessments, I would be a vastly different person. Still far from perfect, I strive each day to live up to the very high standard that he set.
As I studied the story of Jacob and his children in the closing chapters of Genesis I reflected on just how good I had it with my father. Yes, he chided, exhorted, criticized and plain old "busted my chops" until he went to live with God in Paradise last year, but he never played favorites, never set us one against the other, never showed more love to one over the others, never showered one with more gifts than the others.
Our old buddy Jacob is guilty of all that. In fact, it is his unvarnished love for and doting on Joseph that serves as the impetus for all that happens with this dysfunctional family. He makes it very plain that little Joey is his favorite, gives him a magnificent gift of a beautiful outer garment containing a plethora of beauteous pigments (I really did not want you to starting singing the soundtrack of a certain well-known musical so I will refrain from using the more famous words to describe it). Some brothers want to kill him. They end up selling him into slavery and eventually come groveling to him for forgiveness.
One might think, might even hope, that after Joseph's unconditional forgiveness and the heartwarming reunion of this clan that we might read a happy ending. After all, doesn't the film version of that trite, but enjoyable musical (Okay! Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Didn't want to have to type that, but I couldn't help myself.) have a happy ending complete with an emotionally power-packed finale sung by the ageless Donnie Osmond? Well, let us remember that, while he may now named Israel, this is the same guy who duped his old man into making him heir numero uno over his brother Esau. Family never seemed to matter all that much to him and Ol' Jake seems to not have changed so much even in his dotage and declining health. His final words to his children and progeny are caustic at best and offer some praise along with some varying levels of condemnation and admonition.
He calls Ruben his strength then accuses him of defiling his bed (Gen. 49:4), accuses Simeon and Levi of being hot-headed, violent brutes (Gen. 49:5-7).
And the diatribe continues in that vein, until he dies. It must have seemed like a never-ending rant against his own flesh and blood. He does have some nice things to say about some of the others but it seems that he spends his final breaths sowing just more of the same seeds of discontent among his offspring. How can this be a family undivided, a nation united, if it's founder and head teaches discord and distrust right up until his final breath?
Imagine how these children felt?
All things considered, I much prefer my old man to Joseph's and his family's geezer.
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Reminder: if you have a prayer need, please click on the Share a Prayer? tab and send it my way. I will respond.
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