“About Benjamin he said:
“Let the beloved of the Lord
rest secure in him,
for he shields him all day long,
and the one the Lord loves
rests between his shoulders.”
-Deuteronomy 33:12
The next tribe up on the list of Moses’ blessings is Benjamin.
The tribe of Benjamin would serve as a buffer state since they were sandwiched in an area between the two most powerful tribes in all of Israel: Ephraim and Judah.
Interestingly, the city of Jerusalem and the Holy Temple would be constructed at the southern border of the territory that Benjamin occupied.
Now for all you messianics out there, who was the most famous Benjamite of them all?
If you said Rabbi Shaul or the Apostle Paul, you hit the nail on the head.
The geographical location of the Tribe of Benjamin is actually prophetic of what Paul’s spiritual mission would be all about.
So I just told you that Benjamin served as a connecting region or buffer state between Judah and Ephraim right?
Well, in the same way, God used Paul as a “connector” or “buffer” between the Jews living in Judah and the gentiles.
Onward.
Next, we’re told in verse 12 that Benjamin was to be the “beloved of the Lord”.
This means that Benjamin held a special place in the Lord’s heart and was looked upon with great favor.
But how did the Lord’s special favor for Benjamin specifically play out in history?
FIRST, the Wilderness Tabernacle, which was the holiest object on earth in its time, would be placed for a long time in Benjamin territory.
SECOND, the Holy Temple itself, which replaced the Tabernacle as the holiest object ever built was erected in the Benjamite territory of Jerusalem.
CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT
“If someone else thinks they have reasons
to put confidence in the flesh, I have more:
circumcised on the eighth day,
of the people of Israel,
of the tribe of Benjamin,
a Hebrew of Hebrews;
in regard to the law, a Pharisee;
as for zeal, persecuting the church;
as for righteousness based
on the law, faultless.”
-Philippians 3:4-6
Leave a Reply