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As we have pointed out a number of times, the record of Jacob's blessing found in Gen. 49 begins with a sinner and ends with the universal blessing and the eternal dwelling. If we have a proper knowledge of the Bible, we shall see that the entire Bible issues in the universal blessing of God and in His eternal dwelling. For eternity, we shall be under the universal blessing to be God's eternal dwelling. This is the new heaven and the new earth with the New Jerusalem. The new heaven and new earth will be a realm of universal blessing. We shall be under this blessing in order that we may be the New Jerusalem. According to the picture in Revelation 21 and 22, in the environment of the new heaven and new earth there is nothing but blessing, blessing upon blessing. Everything in that environment will be a blessing to the New Jerusalem, God's eternal dwelling. We, God's chosen people, shall be that dwelling within and under the universal blessing. This is the ultimate consummation of the revelation of the Bible.
It is very interesting to see that the short record of Jacob's prophetic blessing issues in the same conclusion as does the entire Bible. Although there is no sin in the first two chapters of Genesis, sin enters the scene in chapter three. The sinner in Genesis chapter three was a real Reuben. However, in the last two chapters of the Bible, there will be the real Joseph and Benjamin. We may say that Joseph is the sign of the universal blessing. All the blessings are upon the head of the one who was separate from his brothers. Benjamin is the symbol of God's eternal dwelling. Hallelujah, the church in the Lord's recovery today is a miniature of the universal blessing and the eternal dwelling! In the churches we have blessing upon blessing. Under such a blessing, we are the dwelling of God.
These two matters, blessing and dwelling, are found in the New Testament Epistles. Probably not many Christians have paid attention to these matters in the Epistles. But these two words provide the outline of the Epistles, for all the Epistles are on God's blessing. Take Ephesians as a representative illustration. Ephesians 1:3 says, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ." Here we have the matter of the blessings. Eph. 1:23 speaks of the Body, and Eph. 2:22 speaks of the habitation, both of which are symbols of God's dwelling. In Eph. 3:16-17 the Apostle Paul prayed that the Father would strengthen us through His Spirit into the inner man that Christ may make His home in our hearts. Hence, in the short book of Ephesians, both the blessings and the dwelling are covered. God has blessed us with all the spiritual blessings in the heavenlies for the purpose that we might become His dwelling.
If you would ask me to say what the Epistles reveal, I would say that they reveal the matters of blessing and dwelling. To see this, however, we need light and vision. Without light and vision, we may read the Epistles again and again and see only things such as the charge for wives to submit to their husbands and for husbands to love their wives, to redeem the time, to be diligent, and to love our neighbors. If we view the Epistles with our natural sight, without the light and the vision, we shall mainly see these minor points and miss the blessing and the dwelling in the Epistles. The New Testament is concerned with the matters of blessing and dwelling.
So many excellent and wonderful points are covered in Genesis 49. How I thank the Lord that Jacob's first son was Reuben and that the last two were Joseph and Benjamin! If Joseph and Benjamin had been the first two and Reuben the last, everything would have been upside down. Praise the Lord that once we were Reubens, but today we are Josephs and Benjamins! I can testify that I am today's Joseph and Benjamin. Day and night, I am under God's blessing, and I am God's dwelling place. Even the young people, those in junior high and high school, must be Josephs and Benjamins. Before we came into the church, we never realized the significance of Joseph and Benjamin. But if we in the Lord's recovery are not Josephs and Benjamins, then who is? Are you not a Joseph and a Benjamin? Are you not under God's universal blessing, and are you not God's eternal dwelling? As today's Benjamin, God dwells in me, and not only in me, but between my shoulders.
In the previous message we covered the first eight aspects of the universal blessing. In his blessing of Joseph, Jacob used many poetic expressions, such as ancient mountains, eternal hills, and the utmost bound of the eternal hills. These particular expressions indicate time and space, all time from the ancient times to eternity and all space from heaven to under the earth. Hence, these poetic expressions refer to the universal blessing, for time plus space equals the universe. We have a blessing that fills the entire universe. Throughout time and space, we are under this blessing. God's blessing fills the universe, from eternity past to eternity future and from the heavens above to the depths underneath the earth. Everywhere and at every time there is nothing but blessing. Oh, we all must see this vision and have this realization! There is no need to wait for the coming of the new heaven and the new earth, for in the church life today we are in the foretaste of this universal blessing.
Although the first eight items of the blessing bestowed upon Joseph are universal, they are rather common. If you examine them, you will see that nothing of life is involved; neither is there anything of dwelling. Hence, we need to consider the last two items, one of which involves life and the other, dwelling. Remember, the record in Genesis 49 is poetic and poetry often uses symbols. One picture or symbol can take the place of a thousand words. Under the inspiration of God, in 49:25 Jacob spoke of "blessings of the breasts, and of the womb." In this poetic utterance, the womb signifies the producing of life, the begetting of life, and the breasts signify the nourishment of life. In His creation, God only blessed the living creatures and man (1:22, 28). He did not bless His work accomplished on the first four days. He did not bless the sun, the moon, the stars, or the vegetation on the earth. But on the fifth day God blessed the living creatures in the waters and the fowl in the air, and on the sixth day He blessed man. Thus, among all the works of His creation, God blessed only the living creatures and man. This impresses us with the fact that God is for life. God's intention is to have the producing life. The fact that Joseph was blessed with the blessings of the womb and of the breasts indicates that he was blessed with the begetting and nourishing life. These figures should not be applied to the animal life, nor even to the human life, but to the eternal life. The eternal life is the highest life, the most productive life. In the New Testament we see that the producing life is not the animal life nor the human life, but the eternal life. Today we in the church are experiencing the eternal life as the producing life. The many items of blessing in the church include the breasts and the womb, the producing and nourishing life.
Look at the picture given in Revelation 21 and 22. In these chapters we have the new heaven, the new earth, and the New Jerusalem. In the New Jerusalem there is the river of water of life. In this river of life grows the tree of life. In the entire new heaven and new earth with the New Jerusalem, the central item is the flowing life. No doubt, all the other aspects of the universal blessing are present, such as the blessing of the heavens, the blessing of the dew, the blessing of the earth, and the blessing of the things beneath the earth. But Revelation 21 and 22 do not mention the other things. These chapters mention only the flowing of life with the tree of life, something that provides nourishment. If you simply read Genesis 49 according to the black and white, you will not see the matter of the producing and nourishing life. You must get into the spiritual significance of the poetic expressions used in this chapter. Hallelujah, in the church life we have the blessing of life, the blessing of the breasts and of the womb, the blessing of the flowing river!
If we have every blessing except the blessing of the breasts and of the womb, this signifies that we are without the producing and nourishing life. If that is the case, we are a poor church. If the producing animals and human beings were taken away from the earth, the whole meaning of the universe would be lost. The meaning of the entire universe depends upon the animal life and especially upon the human life. Suppose in Southern California there were grass, flowers, and trees, but no animals or human beings. When the angels saw such a situation, they would say that it was full of blessing, yet short of life. But the angels are happy to see so many living creatures on earth. In the church life we enjoy the womb and the breasts, the producing and the nourishing. In the church life today we certainly have a flowing life. In the New Jerusalem, we shall have it even more.
Finally, Joseph was blessed with "the good will of him that dwelt in the bush" (Deut. 33:16). The last item of the universal blessing is God's dwelling. The One who dwelt in the bush has a good will, a good pleasure. Anyone who lived in a bush would expect to have a better home. If you were dwelling in a bush, your good will would be to have a better home. I would not like to live in the bush with you, but I would like to live with you in a better home. Suppose a young man who lives in a bush desires to marry a certain young lady. The good will of the one in the bush is to live with his wife in a nice house after they are married. Before the tabernacle was built, the Lord dwelt in the bush (Exo. 3:4). God delivered His people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt with the intention that they would build first the tabernacle and then a temple for Him. Moses saw a vision of God in the bush, and God spoke to Moses from the bush. But in Leviticus 1:1 God spoke to Moses out of the tabernacle. God blessed the children of Israel with this good will. This is God's best will, with which He has blessed His chosen people. God has blessed the children of Israel with the best blessing — to have His dwelling. What blessing could be greater than this? Eventually, Aaron, a sinner, is able to enter into the presence of God in the Holy of Holies. What blessing could be greater? The highest blessing is to enter into God's dwelling and stay in His presence. Even we ourselves become this dwelling.
At this point I wish to point out that we cannot understand the Bible according to our natural concept. Although you may read the Bible and be able to recite many verses, you cannot see anything until the vision comes. If you hear this word about God's dwelling, Exodus will be a new book to you. The book of Exodus begins with the vision of God in the bush speaking to Moses with the intention that one day Moses would lead the children of Israel out of Egypt into the wilderness to build a tabernacle for God. What a blessing! In the entire Old Testament, there is no blessing higher, greater, or sweeter than the blessing of God's dwelling place. Often the psalmists expressed their desire to be in God's temple. Psalm 84:10 says, "For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness." No blessing is as sweet or great as the blessing of God's dwelling. This is the ultimate blessing.
The New Jerusalem is called the tabernacle of God. When the Lord Jesus became flesh, He was a tabernacle of God (John 1:1, 14). He was also God's temple (John 2:19, 21). Following Him, the church was built up to be God's temple (1 Cor. 3:16). Eventually, the entire New Jerusalem will be an eternal tabernacle, the central blessing among God's blessings. The new heaven and new earth will be a blessing, but the center of that blessing will be the New Jerusalem, God's tabernacle. In the New Jerusalem God will dwell with us, and we shall dwell by Him.
Genesis 49:27 says that Benjamin is a tearing wolf (Heb.). But Deuteronomy 33:12 says of him, "The beloved of the Lord shall dwell in safety by him; and the Lord shall cover him all the day long, and he shall dwell between his shoulders." To the enemy, Benjamin is a tearing wolf. Nevertheless, according to Deuteronomy, Benjamin is the beloved of the Lord. How could a tearing wolf be the beloved of the Lord? The Lord loves Benjamin, the tearing wolf, because God's dwelling place was in the territory of Benjamin. Many Christians think that Jerusalem, where the temple was located, is in the territory of Judah. However, it is in the territory of Benjamin, very close to Judah. The kings came out of Judah, but the capital, Jerusalem, was in Benjamin. The capital was the site of God's dwelling place. According to geography, the territory of Benjamin is shaped like two shoulders, and Jerusalem is located between the two shoulders. Hence, the Lord dwelt between the shoulders of Benjamin.
It is the head, of course, that dwells between the two shoulders of our body. This indicates that the dweller in Deuteronomy 33:12 is the Head. The very God who dwells in the temple is the Head. This means that in God's dwelling there is the headship, the lordship. The language of Deuteronomy 33:12 is poetic. Years ago, this verse was altogether a puzzle to me. I did not know what it meant to say that God dwelt between the shoulders of Benjamin. But after years of studying the Bible and of experience with the Lord, I began to understand. If you consider your experience, you will realize how real it is that God dwells between our shoulders to be our Head. Whenever we have God's dwelling, we have the headship. Thus, there is the throne within the city of New Jerusalem.
Deuteronomy 33:12 also says that the Lord will cover Benjamin all the day long. How did the Lord cover Benjamin? The tabernacle was a covering, for Revelation 7:15 says, "He who sits upon the throne shall spread His tabernacle over them." God's building is a tabernacle, and a tabernacle is an overshadowing. This tabernacle is both Christ and the church. Today we are under the overshadowing of Christ and the overshadowing of the church, for both Christ and the church are the overshadowing dwelling place of God under which we are dwelling.
Deuteronomy 33:12 says that Benjamin will dwell in safety by the Lord. Benjamin will be a neighbor of the Lord. Because he lives next door to the Lord, he dwells in safety. Likewise, as long as we dwell by the Lord, we are safe. Although we may not have very much experience yet, we nonetheless can testify that we are today's Benjamin, that God has His dwelling place between our shoulders, and that all our being is under His overshadowing. He is the Lord, and His kingly throne is with us. We have the dwelling, He is here, and we are dwelling by Him. God and we are neighbors. What a blessing!
If you take this concept of God's dwelling found in the first book of the Bible and read the book of Psalms in the light of it, the Psalms will be new to you. The entire book of Psalms is concerned with this matter of God's dwelling. Many verses concern the city, the temple, the house, the dwelling place, or the tabernacle. If we put all these verses together, we see that the Psalms are absolutely concerned with God's dwelling. It was in one of the Psalms that Moses said, "Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations" (Psa. 90:1). If we would take the Lord as our habitation, we must firstly be His habitation. If God has no dwelling built up on earth, we could never have Him as our habitation. But when He has a dwelling on earth, He becomes our habitation and we become His habitation. This is what is called the mutual habitation, which is revealed in John 14 and 15, particularly in the words, "Abide in Me and I in you" (John 15:4). "Abide in Me" — this is our habitation; "and I in you" — this is His habitation. In John 14:23 the Lord Jesus said clearly, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word, and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make an abode with him." We shall be God's dwelling, and He will be our habitation. If we all praise the Lord for this, we shall be with Him in His dwelling place.
The last of the ten aspects of the universal blessing is the matter of dwelling. Thus, eventually all the blessings consummate in the dwelling. The reason God gives us so many items of blessing is that we may be His dwelling. Why did God save you? It was for His dwelling. Why does He give you grace upon grace? For His dwelling. Why is God doing everything for you today? It is all for His dwelling. All the blessings issue in God's dwelling. This is God's good will, the desire of God's heart. What God wants is a dwelling place.
This is revealed in Isaiah 66:1 and 2. In Isaiah 66:1 we see that heaven is God's throne and the earth is His footstool, but God does not yet have a place of rest. Many Christians think of going to heaven. To them, heaven is a lovely place. But God does not love heaven as much as these Christians do. He wants a place of rest. Isaiah 66:2 reveals that God's resting place is neither heaven nor earth, but man. God is looking to a man. This verse says, "To this man will I look, to the poor and contrite in spirit, who trembleth at my word" (Heb.). This verse corresponds to Matthew 5:3: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of the heavens." The kind of man who is God's rest is a man who is poor and contrite in spirit. God's good will is to have this kind of man. God's will is that we would be poor and contrite in our spirit, empty for Him. However, if our spirits are filled with things other than God, we are not poor in our spirit. If such is the case, God cannot have His dwelling with us. Many Christians today are full in their spirit. They are filled with so many things, even fundamental things, that there is no room in their spirit for the Lord. God needs a vacant spirit. His desire is that your spirit would be made vacant for Him. One who is poor in spirit is one whose spirit is vacant, unoccupied, ready for the Lord to come in.
According to Isaiah 66:1 and 2 those who are poor and contrite in spirit are the place of God's rest. No other place in the entire universe, in the heavens or on the earth, is God's rest. As those poor and contrite in spirit, we should be able to say, "Lord, come in. Lord, I'm vacant, unoccupied, ready for You. Come in, make Your dwelling in me, and settle Yourself in me." No matter how long you have been in the church life, you need to pray such a prayer, to ask the Lord to have His dwelling in you. In Ephesians 3:16 and 17 the Apostle Paul prayed that the Father would strengthen us with power through His Spirit into our inner man so that Christ may make His home in our hearts. Paul prayed that Christ would be able to dwell in us. It is not simply a matter of loving the Lord or of serving Him; it is a matter of His making His home in us. The service we render the Lord will not satisfy Him as much as our becoming His dwelling place. We all must be the Lord's dwelling. This is what He desires, and this is what He is seeking. This is God's good will. The uttermost blessing is to become God's dwelling place. His dwelling is also our dwelling. When our God is at rest, we also find rest in His dwelling.
This concept of God's dwelling and of our dwelling with Him is found throughout the Old Testament and the New. Throughout the centuries and the generations, God has been desiring a dwelling place. Sorry to say, most of God's people have not seen this. But today in His recovery He comes to us again and again regarding His dwelling. I am not speaking something that I have not experienced myself. Whenever I have opened up the Bible during the past twenty-five or thirty years, I have mainly seen one matter — God's dwelling. In many chapters of the Bible, God's desire for a dwelling place is covered. This is the desire of God's heart, His good will. If you are blessed with the good will of Him who dwelt in the bush, you are the most blessed person.
In a sense, even today the Lord is still in the bush. Look at the situation throughout the earth. What is there except bush? Where is the tabernacle? Many cannot even see the shadow, much less the reality. But how we must worship the Lord that in His recovery we not only see the shadow, but we are in the dwelling. We can say, "Lord, praise You! With us You are not in the bush. You are in Your dwelling."
We have seen that the Lord blessed Joseph with the good will of Him who dwelt in the bush. Who is this One who dwelt in the bush, and what is His good will? If we do not interpret this verse in the way we have, then how should we interpret it? By reading the entire Bible, we can discover who it is who dwelt in the bush and what His good will is. The One who dwelt in the bush is no doubt the One who called Moses to build the tabernacle for Him. He lived in a bush, but He expected to have a tabernacle built of precious materials. That was His good will. The children of Israel were blessed with this good will. Do you believe the Lord delivered the children of Israel out of Egypt simply that they might be saved? Their deliverance was not merely for their salvation, but for God's dwelling place. Everything God did to them and for them was for the purpose that the tabernacle might be erected among them. After the tabernacle was set up, the glory of God came down and filled it (Exo. 40:34). At that time, the children of Israel were the most blessed people on earth, blessed with the good will of the One who dwelt in the bush, the One who now dwelt in the tabernacle. Thus, the tabernacle became the greatest blessing to the children of Israel.
It is the same today. The Lord's good will is to have the church. Because we are in the church, we are the most blessed people. Before the church came into existence, the Lord certainly was in the bush. Practically speaking, before the church came to this locality, the Lord was in the bush. He surely was not in a tabernacle. But today the church is here, and we can say, "Praise the Lord! He is no longer in the bush. Now He is in the tabernacle, and we are here with Him. We and God are neighbors. We are today's Benjamin dwelling in safety by the Lord. Hallelujah!" What could be better than this? As long as I have the dwelling of the Lord and I am in it, that is sufficient. This is the experience of Benjamin, Joseph's younger brother.
Benjamin is a good match to Joseph. Likewise, the church is a good match to God's blessing. Throughout the years, God has blessed you. You simply cannot deny that you have been under His blessing. But the purpose of His blessing is for the good will of the One who dwelt in the bush, and this good will is to have the church life as His dwelling. Today, God can boast to the enemy, Satan, "Satan, look, today I have a place of rest. My resting place is the church. Once I said that heaven was My throne and the earth was My footstool, but I had to ask where My rest was. Satan, I tell you, the church today is My resting place. I am satisfied, and My chosen people are satisfied also."
Many of us can testify that since the day we were saved, we have never been as satisfied in our spirit as we are in the church life today. This is not to say that the church life is perfect. No, it is not perfect. But here in the church life we are satisfied. We passed through many places without being satisfied. We did not find satisfaction until we came into the church. On that day we said, "This is home. I am satisfied." The reason we sense that we are home and are satisfied is that the church is God's tabernacle, God's dwelling. The Lord is no longer in the bush, but in the tabernacle. How happy I am that we are under the universal blessing and that we are God's dwelling!
This blessing is universal, and this dwelling is eternal. The church life will last forever. The old heaven and the old earth, including the old environment, will be terminated, but the church life we are in today will last forever. This is the eternal dwelling. I assure you that when you enter into eternity, you will recall your experience in the church life. You may say, "Oh, I can never forget what I experienced in the church life." Wait, and you will discover that this is true. Deep within, we have the full assurance that the church life is eternal.
