The head of his staff
By faith Jacob, when dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, bowing in worship over the head of his staff (Hebrews 11:21, ESV).
We have a shepherd’s crook, which has pride of place against the wall in our front room. It records, in a series of small metal badges, the history of places we have visited over the years and brings to mind so many happy memories. Many remarkable men of faith in the Old Testament were shepherds. They also owned and used the staffs they carried with them everywhere. Abel, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and his sons were all shepherds. So were Moses and David. The Children of Israel were known as shepherds. And when they ate the first Passover on the night they left Egypt, it was with their staffs in their hands.
This ordinary length of wood had lots of practical uses. It steadied the shepherds as they traversed the rocky countryside. It guided, protected and rescued their sheep. The staff was an integral part of a shepherd’s life; it was carried everywhere, and it would be commonplace to see a shepherd resting on his staff. Moses was called as he was shepherding his father-in-law’s flock in the wilderness. He felt too weak to do the work God called him to do and said to Him, “But suppose they will not believe me or listen to my voice; suppose they say, ‘The Lord has not appeared to you.’“ God said to him, “What is that in your hand?” And Moses said, “A rod” (Exodus 4:1-2). That rod became the symbol of God’s power.
In Genesis 32 Jacob recalls how he had left his father’s house in fear of Esau, his twin brother. He left almost empty-handed. Twenty years later, as a wealthy man with a large family, many servants, and great flocks, he returned home and prepared to meet Esau. His brother was coming to meet him with four hundred men. Fear filled Jacob’s heart, and he prayed to God. He remembers the Lord who told him to return to his country and to his family and promised to bless him. He also recognised he was unworthy of all the mercy and truth God had shown him. Then he adds, “For I crossed over this Jordan with my staff, and now I have become two companies.” He recalled his meeting with God at Bethel when God promised Jacob and his descendants the land he had slept on. He promised to make him a great nation, and through that nation the world would be blessed in Christ. In remarkable grace, God promised, “I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.”
At Penuel, Jacob wrestled with God, and God blessed him again, giving him the new name “Israel”. But before blessing Jacob, God touched his hip, and he was crippled for the rest of his life. From that day, each step Jacob took leaning on his staff was a reminder of the day he met and was blessed by God. As a result, Jacob became a blessing to others. At the end of his life, he was very conscious of his failings and weaknesses. But he was also overcome by the goodness of God. He teaches much about humility. He speaks to Joseph of God’s care for him in Genesis 48:15 (ESV):
“The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked,
the God who has been my shepherd all my life long to this day.”
The Epistle to the Hebrews sheds further light on that meeting when we read, “By faith Jacob, when dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, bowing in worship over the head of his staff.”
Jacob’s staff identified that he was a shepherd. It also identified him as a sheep. It spoke of his dependence upon God. At the same time it spoke of God’s presence, power and promise to be with Jacob all the days of his life. Jacob knew, as David did, the God who was with him:
For you are with me;
Your rod and your staff, they comfort me” (Psalm 23:4).
It is Jacob alone in Hebrews 11 who is called a worshipper. Like him, we need to pause to trace God’s goodness and mercy in our lives and, in the words of Joseph Hart’s hymn, to
… praise Him for all that is past,
And trust Him for all that’s to come.
