Joseph, the Fruitful Vine
As I was praying this morning for my children, the Lord spoke to me
through the story of Jacob and his sons. As I read the account, God
really impressed me about the power that is behind my spoken word as a
parent. As parents, we are the agents God has called to speak into our
children’s lives, and to speak life over them.
In Genesis 49:1 Jacob said to his sons: “Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days.” When he got to his son Joseph, he said, “Joseph is a fruitful vine…near a spring, whose branches climb over a wall… ” (Gen. 49:22)
Jacob ended his blessing over Joseph by saying, “The blessings of your father are greater than the blessings of my fore-fathers (Abraham and Isaac), and are as lasting as the bounties of the eternal hill…” He then went on to say that Joseph “was the consecrated one and the one separated from his brethren, and the one who is prince among them.”
Jacob blessed and affirmed his son Joseph and called him a Prince. I was so impressed by this story, and I understood how important it was for me to speak prophetically over my own children.
Written by Denise Boggs
In Genesis 49:1 Jacob said to his sons: “Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days.” When he got to his son Joseph, he said, “Joseph is a fruitful vine…near a spring, whose branches climb over a wall… ” (Gen. 49:22)
1. “Joseph is a fruitful vine…” His life was very fruitful and
productive. His life was fruitful because he had learned to listen to
God, and be obedient to His instructions. God told him to prepare for
the seven years of famine, and because of that, an entire nation was
fed.
2. “Near a spring….” Because Joseph listened to the voice of God, he was like a tree that is planted by a spring of water. In Psalms 1:1-3 it says, “A man who is planted like a tree by the streams of water, is a man who delights in the words he receives from God; and he meditates on those words day and night.”
3. “Whose branches climb over a wall….” Joseph’s branches did climb over a wall. A wall had been built between Joseph and his brothers when they sold him into slavery. However, over the years while he was in Egypt, through hardship and suffering, Joseph continued to listen to God and grew strong. He was strengthened to the point that when he was tall in spirit, he reached over that wall, and his branches reached out to his brothers in kindness.
2. “Near a spring….” Because Joseph listened to the voice of God, he was like a tree that is planted by a spring of water. In Psalms 1:1-3 it says, “A man who is planted like a tree by the streams of water, is a man who delights in the words he receives from God; and he meditates on those words day and night.”
3. “Whose branches climb over a wall….” Joseph’s branches did climb over a wall. A wall had been built between Joseph and his brothers when they sold him into slavery. However, over the years while he was in Egypt, through hardship and suffering, Joseph continued to listen to God and grew strong. He was strengthened to the point that when he was tall in spirit, he reached over that wall, and his branches reached out to his brothers in kindness.
Jacob ended his blessing over Joseph by saying, “The blessings of your father are greater than the blessings of my fore-fathers (Abraham and Isaac), and are as lasting as the bounties of the eternal hill…” He then went on to say that Joseph “was the consecrated one and the one separated from his brethren, and the one who is prince among them.”
Jacob blessed and affirmed his son Joseph and called him a Prince. I was so impressed by this story, and I understood how important it was for me to speak prophetically over my own children.
Written by Denise Boggs
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