The Sons of Jacob Promised Return Series – The Tribe of Asher
I can recall, as a young man, learning about life through trial and error like most men. Typically, men do not like to be told what to do. We tend only to read the instructions for putting together a new toy for the children because we take pride in knowing how to work. For this same reason, we often do not want to look at a map for driving directions. Many men have been lost trying to follow their own way. I once drove a hundred miles in the wrong direction until my wife pointed out the road signs telling us where we were headed. God has given us His road map of His Word to follow so that we won’t be lost in finding our way on Earth and we can enjoy His blessings. We see the promised blessings of God typified in the tribe of Asher.
Moses has a positive blessing for Asher: and of Asher, he said, “Most blessed of sons be Asher; let him be the favorite of his brothers and ‘let him dip his foot in oil.’” Deuteronomy 33:24 (ESV).
Jacob declared, “Asher’s food shall be rich, and he shall yield royal delicacies. (Genesis 49:20 ESV).
This statement describing Asher infers that Asher was, and would continue to be, a wealthy man. Jacob’s reference to Asher’s food being “rich” indicated that Asher would possess fertile lands. In Joshua 19:24-31, we learn that Asher received fertile land along the Mediterranean coast. (See below for the territory of the tribe of Asher.)
How to dip one’s feet in oil!
The Scriptures teach us how to have “oily feet” or to walk in the blessings of God. The tribe of Asher stands as an example of how to walk in the blessings of God. When the children of Israel prepared to take the promised land, God (Hashem) gave them blessings and curses to announce from two mountains – blessings from Mt. Gerizim for those who would by faith obey the Commandments of God, and curses from Mt. Ebal for those who would disobey God and go after other gods. (Deut. 11:26-28)
What do feet look like that are blessed?
The blessings God commands for obedience to His commands are given in Deut. 28 and then were declared from Mt. Gerizim. If you walk behind a person with oily feet, you can see their footprints. Here are the promises God says they will walk in,
“The Lord your God will cause all these blessings to come upon you and overtake you, because you obey the voice of the Lord your God. Blessed you shall be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country. Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, the produce of your ground and the increase of your herds, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks. Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out.” (Deuteronomy 28:1-6) Other blessings are described more fully in this chapter.
What God (Hashem) is saying here is that those around you will see your oily footprints when you walk in His ways and obey His voice. They will see His blessings in your life. These promised blessings beg the question,
“What do your footprints look like as others observe your walk?”
There were times when Asher obeyed God, and times they failed to obey, which is true for most groups of people.
In the time of Deborah and Barak, Gilead stayed beyond the Jordan; and Dan, why did he stay with the ships? Asher sat still at the coast of the sea, standing by his landings. (JUDGES 5:17 ESV).
The Tribe of Asher’s failure to help their fellow tribes could indicate a lack of reliance on God, a lack of effort, a fear of the enemy, or a reluctance to upset those with whom they did business. Thus, the example set here is a negative one, although Asher was richly blessed, they did not behave admirably at all times, and when the time for action came, he failed to trust in God and honor His plan.
Later in Judges, Asher does respond to Gideon’s call to repel the Midianites, Amalekites, and others from the East.
Asher was inconsistent in their obedience and loyalty to God. They sometimes did what was right, and other times they did not. This is true of many believers today.
In the end, we find that Asher received many great blessings from God. Having received a blessing, they were expected to have faith in God and obey the Lord’s commands. In this effort to dip their feet in oil, they sometimes succeeded and sometimes failed. It is God’s mercy that causes us to triumph even when we fail when we turn to Him in faith.
King Jehoshaphat faced an overwhelming enemy army coming to attack Judah. He led the people in humbling themselves to seek the Lord (HaShem). God spoke to them through His prophet that the battle would belong to the Lord and He would fight for them. The king responded by making this declaration, “Put your trust in the Lord your God, and you will be established; Believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.” (2 Chronicles 20:20). The king then sent the army into battle by faith trusting in God’s mercy with the singers at the head of the army. They went forth singing, “Praise the Lord, for His mercy endures forever.” (2 Chron. 20:21). We, too, have been blessed by God and we have been shown His mercy. The Lord goes before us and asks us to put our trust in Him. Just as Asher received a prophetic blessing from Jacob, God’s children have received this promise:
Here is how God’s (HaShem’s) mercy is working for us, “For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11).
God, in His prophetic purpose and plans for His people Israel, will cause them to fulfill their destiny. This is the outworking of His mercy and faithfulness.
Israel has a prophetic destiny and purpose in the earth that will be fulfilled.
Praise the Lord for His wonderful plans He has for us. What a comfort to know the battle belongs to the Lord when we trust in Him! This confidence in Him causes us to be blessed, and like Asher, we, too, can dip our feet in the oil of His blessings!
The Voice of Aliyah is being heard in the Nations for Asher!
Declaration for the Tribe of Asher
Asher, happy is the one who obeys and has faith in the command of Adonai and can dwell at His banquet table. Come home to your inheritance. You have been blessed in times past with fertile lands in Israel. The Lord (HaShem) calls upon you to return from where you are in the nations to dip your foot in the oil of joy by receiving the land given by your forefathers. Haifa and Mt. Carmel shall rejoice in your return to the land of Asher on the Northern coast of Israel, and to the fertile lands promised to you. Return from the nations to Israel and rejoice. (Gen. 49:20; Deut. 33:24). HaShem is waiting for your return to know Him in the land of your Forefathers! Your footprints will again be seen in the land of Israel.
Location of the Tribe of Asher in Israel
Where is Asher in the nations today?
The tribe of Asher was also a tribe of the House of Israel that may have migrated into the Americas from Assyrian captivity. They are said to have populated a large portion of South America (Colombia, Brazil, Peru, Venezuela, Guyana, Paraguay, and Uruguay and are now more recently known as the Incas. They established a powerful kingdom throughout South America. As it says in the Scripture, Asher would be blessed with many children, and the Inca State spanned from Northern Ecuador into central Chile and consisted of more than twelve million inhabitants. In modern times, Brazil consists of more than twelve million inhabitants.
Large quantities of oil and gas can also be found within South America. Venezuela alone is one of the world’s largest producers and exporters of oil. South America contains about one fifth of the world’s iron ore reserves, the most important beds being in Brazil, Venezuela and Peru which is one of the top 5 copper producing mines in the world. It is for these reasons that Moses said their sandals would be iron and bronze and that Asher would dip his foot in oil (See Deut. 33:24-25). Overall South America is very rich in many mineral resources from the ground, even the Hebrew word for iron is “barazal,” which is very similar to Brazil. It was not lost on the European explorers when first meeting these natives that the natives were associated with the Hebrews according to their customs, language, and clothing. Peruvians were accustomed to take off their sandals whenever they trod upon holy ground. (Lord Kingsborough, Antiquities of Mexico, 1830)
The post The Sons of Jacob Promised Return Series – The Tribe of Asher appeared first on Israel365 News.
Israel in the News
