Deuteronomy 33: Moses’ Prophecies to the Twelve Tribes- Blessed Be He Who Enlarges Gad

Deuteronomy 33: Moses’ Prophecies to the Twelve Tribes- Blessed Be He Who Enlarges Gad

Introduction and Opening Prayer

Welcome to Bible Study with Jairus. Today we will continue our discussion of Moses’ blessing and prophecy regarding the future of Gad, one of the twelve sons of Jacob. We will also explore Jacob’s prophetic blessing over Gad, and examine what we can learn from Gad’s experience as it applies to New Testament Christian life.

As I have mentioned many times, each story of the twelve tribes of Israel is a story of transformation from sinner to saint. It does not matter how you have sinned or where you started; both Jews and Gentiles are sinners. The book of Romans tells the story of transforming sinners into the many sons of God who come to the glory of God. So, the story of the twelve tribes is a story of transformation, turning different kinds of sinners into the pearl gates of the New Jerusalem.

We have already examined many of Jacob’s sons. Today we enter into the prophecy regarding Gad, who was the son of Zilpah, Leah’s maid, with Jacob.

Let us ask the Holy Spirit to be with us and teach us. We will begin with prayer.

Heavenly Father, we come to You in the name of Your Son, Jesus Christ. We come boldly to the throne of grace through the blood of Jesus Christ. By His blood, we can come to Your throne of grace to receive mercy, grace, and timely help. We ask for timely help today. We ask for daily manna today. We ask for Your heavenly bread today, because Your Word is bread for us.

Illuminate the Word of God in the Old Testament, the word of prophecy through the mouth of Moses and Jacob. Illuminate the Word of God through the presence of the Holy Spirit within us and upon us. We give glory to the Father and to Jesus Christ the Son, who paved the way for us to ask boldly. The Father gave us the Holy Spirit.

We thank You for sending the Holy Spirit in the name of Jesus Christ, Your Son. We recognize and acknowledge Your continuous presence of the Holy Spirit within us. We ask for the cleansing of the precious blood of Jesus Christ upon our hearts, our mouths, our minds, our tongues, and our ears. Remove all veils by applying the blood of Christ. We further petition and request the anointing of the oil of the Holy Spirit in our ears and in our mouths.

I give all the members of my body as a living sacrifice, as weapons of righteousness, to utter the gracious Word and oracles of God in the name of Jesus Christ. We thank You, Holy Spirit, in advance for Your presence, for Your illumination, and for Your teaching to the people of God today. Amen.

The Story of Transformation

Each story of Jacob’s twelve sons is a story of transformation. Even if you are like Reuben, who committed sins of immorality and fornication, you will experience salvation and become one of the pearl gates in the New Jerusalem.

Or perhaps you are as twisted as Simeon, who thought the solution to his problems was to kill another person. Joseph was his target. So many people today are twisted into thinking that the way to solve their problems is to kill or eliminate others. Simeon was twisted to such a degree that he believed his problem in life was Joseph. He was probably the one who tried his hardest to kill Joseph. Otherwise, we cannot explain why Joseph later bound him up among all the other brothers who went to Egypt.

Growing up in a dysfunctional family like Jacob’s was difficult. Jacob favored Rachel and her sons Joseph and Benjamin. I mentioned that his favoritism toward Joseph did not begin when he made the colorful coat. No, it started when Rachel took away the mandrakes from Reuben. It probably started early, perhaps when Joseph was allowed to eat the only egg or chicken at the dinner table.  Simeon may not have been allowed to do that.

I read a sermon by Charles Spurgeon. Do not quote me on this because I am speaking from memory, and I may be wrong. He said that the persecution of Cain toward Abel did not begin the moment Cain killed Abel. It began at the dinner table. Every day, Cain made fun of Abel for raising sheep instead of providing the family with produce.

The persecution among God’s people always involves a relationship between God’s people and God’s tools. In Isaiah 19, God mentions that Israel is His inheritance, Egypt is His people (if I remember correctly), but Assyria his handiwork. The word “handiwork” was also translated as “tools” sometimes. Ishmael was His tool as well as Assyria. Ishmael was always a tool for God to chastise Israel. The dynamic relationship among God’s people, among those created by God, even within a single family or a church, always includes some people whom Satan uses to instigate persecution against the people of God.

But in His infinite wisdom, God uses all things to work together for the good of those who love Him. Joseph’s brothers meant to do evil. They were instigated by Satan to hurt him, but God meant it for good. God turned the evil into good, so Joseph could be trained and perfected through the persecution. Eventually, he became the ruler of nations.

That is always the dynamic among the people of God. Even in Revelation, you have the greater body of Christ called “the woman” in chapter 12. Then you have the man child, the stronger part of the overcomer, the victor. All the environment God created, all the people around you, are the woman. All believers in the church are the woman. But out of the woman will come a stronger part: those who are firstfruits, overcomers, resurrected members of excellence, as the apostle Paul mentioned.

This does not mean that other members of the body, other members of the woman, other members of humanity will not be saved. No, that is not what it is saying. It is saying that God always works through a remnant, a group of overcomers, to fulfill His purpose. Among God’s people, it is always that dynamic.

Jacob’s Dysfunctional Family

In Jacob’s dysfunctional family, there were twelve sons and one daughter. They hated each other. They showed partiality. They had different statuses: the sons of Leah, the sons of the two concubines or maids, and the sons of Rachel. This made for complicated relationships. But through the strife among different wives and children, God used difficulties to transform Jacob from a heel grabber into Israel, who wrestles with God, even becoming the prince of God.

In other words, without so many wives, so many children, and so many struggles in Jacob’s life, he would not have experienced the transformation of God. God works through the environment. God hides Himself in all the people and matters in our lives. The dynamic structure of the twelve sons of Jacob, or the Israelites, is a picture of how God deals with any individual today.

You may not have four wives. You may not have twelve sons and one daughter, but you have a complicated life with your own circumstances. God is using that complicated network of circumstances, people, and matters around you to work good in you. You are Jacob today.

Don’t look at your life as easier than Jacob’s. My life is not easier than Jacob’s. Even I, with one wife, find that God uses marriage to correct and humble me in ways I would never choose for myself.  I mean that God sometimes uses marriage, uses our spouses, to correct us.  We may not always be joyful when the correction comes through our spouses or the people around us, but that does not mean God is not working through it.

Our lives are as complicated as Jacob’s, even if we do not have four wives and twelve children. Perhaps you have four wives through divorces. Life can be complicated.

Through this complicated network of family matters, people, hatred, strife, and fighting against each other, dynamic relationships and characters are being formed. Watchman Nee, a Chinese Christian, mentioned in his writing that none of God’s people become saved without experiencing suffering. They either become soft toward God and are transformed like Jacob through the circumstances, or they become hardened. They become hard-hearted. They hate God because their prayers for healing, for their parents, for their mothers, or for other requests were not answered. Their hearts become hard.

There are trials and difficulties in life. Through these, you develop character. If God is sovereign, there will be difficult environments, and a difficult network of relationships in life. Your unique characteristics, your way of reacting to your surroundings, are being shaped.

The Character of Reuben

I said that Reuben was probably reacting to his father’s neglect toward his mother and toward Rachel’s maid. Both were neglected because Leah did not choose to sleep with another man when her husband neglected her. Instead, she tried to give him babies to woo him and gain back his love. That is why she tried to give him babies one after another. After this last baby, she said, “This time my husband will be united with me because I gave him six sons.”

Rachel probably had Jacob’s attention all the time. To the point that Leah had to rent Jacob for one night to produce Zebulun. That was probably not a pleasant experience when Reuben had to give up his mandrakes to Rachel, becoming the price for his mother to rent his father to sleep with her for one night. It is not a pleasant experience. If I were a child, I definitely would not be proud of this.

Of course, Rachel’s maid was neglected as well. In Chinese history, there is a story about a wealthy landlord who had many wives. He could not visit all of them. So, some wives, burning with desire, would find a young man to sleep with. Then the rich man would find out and kill the young man or the concubine. It is an everlasting story in Chinese literature because the Chinese have a long tradition of having many wives. It was the same in biblical accounts.

I think Rachel’s maid was neglected. Both of them were instigated by Satan to fall into fornication and defile Jacob’s bed. I have mentioned again and again why Reuben did not sleep with his mother’s maid. They were probably closer to him, like family members. But Rachel’s maid was more like a distant member of the bigger family. So, his way of reacting to the environment, the suffering, neglect, and difficulty in his life, was fornication.

That is on the surface. But the inward motive was revenge through sleeping with his father’s wife, a distant member of the family, to bring humiliation to his father. That was the hidden motive of revenge. “You neglected me, you neglected my mother, I will get back at you.”

But Reuben was not one hundred percent twisted into becoming a monster. Even though he fell into fornication, he was not as twisted as Simeon, who tried to kill Joseph, thinking Joseph was the problem. Or that Rachel was the problem. Getting rid of your enemy was the way to solve your own problem. No.

Why? Because Reuben was the firstborn, and firstborn sons in that culture received a special measure of love and attention, at least for a season. Every parent loves their firstborn with a particular tenderness. Jacob would have been no different. Reuben had his fair share of his father’s love in those early years, and that early experience of being loved, even partially, kept him from becoming fully hardened.

This is something I understand from my own family. My father was the firstborn son of my grandfather, and he was treasured as a baby. My father told me a story from his childhood in rural China, where in those days the kitchen and the area where horses were kept were sometimes in the same building. One day my father, still a very small child, wandered into that space and cried out, startling a horse. The horse did not actually kick him, but my grandfather, hearing the noise and seeing the horse rear up, assumed the worst and rushed in and beat the horse severely. That was old China, and I am not defending mistreating animals, but the story reveals how fiercely my grandfather loved his firstborn son. He would punish a horse on behalf of that child without a second thought.

But things change. As my father grew older and more siblings came along, that fierce favoritism shifted to a younger aunt and uncle. By the time I was old enough to observe my grandfather, I never once saw him treat my father with that same special tenderness my father had described. Yet my father’s account of those early years was vivid and certain. He had been treasured. He knew it. And that early experience of love, even though it faded, was enough to keep something in him from going fully dark. The same was true of Reuben. He sinned deeply, but he was not a monster. He still had enough of a father’s love embedded in him to try to protect Joseph when the others wanted to kill him.

Prophecy Based on Character

Many prophecies Jacob gave to his children were based on his observation of their character. Jacob did not give a lot of prophecies arbitrarily. He gave each one based on his observation of how they dealt with the environment in the complicated dynamic of Jacob’s family.

Reuben reacted with hatred and fornication toward his father, and he lost his firstborn right. When Simeon was pushed to a certain point, he wanted to kill Joseph. That is my own interpretation from the Bible. I think Simeon was the leader who plotted the scheme to kill Joseph because Joseph later only bound him. Levi was probably just a brother who followed suit, following Simeon and helping him kill. But later Levi changed direction. He became one who stood together with Moses and with God to kill those who worshiped idols. He experienced transformation.

I also talked about Judah. He experienced his fair share of falling, going down to the land of Moab, losing his wife, losing his two sons. This was judgment from God. Three people died in his family, all his loved ones. When he went out to find comfort, he got tricked by Tamar.

In the experience of Judah, and in Moses’ blessing to Judah and Jacob’s blessing for Judah, I quoted the words of Moses: “God hears the cries of Judah.” There must have been a place, a hidden, sacred place where Judah repented. In Judah’s life story, he became the mediator between his father Jacob and his son Benjamin. When Benjamin was requested by Joseph to visit Egypt in order to get more food, everyone was afraid. Jacob was afraid of losing Benjamin as he had lost Joseph.  Judah rose and said, “Let Benjamin go with me. If Benjamin is harmed, kill one of my sons.” He rose up and became a leader among his brothers.

Many of Jacob’s prophecies were based on his observation of the characteristics of each of his twelve sons. I mentioned that he prophesied over Issachar. He prophesied that Issachar was someone who loved being quiet, like a donkey, hardworking and willing to carry the load, willing to lie down in the sheepfold, never complaining.

Then I compared this with Moses’ prophecy to Issachar, calling Issachar blessed in the tent. I mentioned the characteristics of the prophetic gift. You have to dwell in the tent of God. You have to have a character that is able to remain quiet before the Lord so you can hear the voice of God. One of the greatest prophets in the Old Testament, Elijah, heard the word of the Lord not in the storm, not in the wind, but in the still small voice after the earthquake. You have to be quiet to be able to listen and hear the voice of the Lord. That is a prerequisite of the prophetic gift.

The prophets we read about in the Old Testament are still here among us. But they’re different from apostles, or evangelists. Evangelists are the outgoing ones, the life-of-the-party types. They’re always talking with people, connecting with everyone they meet, giving high-fives and handshakes all around.

But here’s the thing: they probably don’t spend the same kind of time in the tent that a prophet does. And when I say “the tent,” I’m talking about that sacred space, the presence of the Holy Spirit, the dwelling place of God, the tabernacle where we meet with Him face to face. That’s where prophets tend to linger.

To really be still before God—to take on that calling as an intercessor, staying up late while the world sleeps, praying and pleading for God’s purposes and for His people—you need to carry something of Issachar’s character within you.

Think of it like this: you’re willing to be the donkey in the sheepfold. You’re content to lie down in that quiet place, carrying heavy burdens that nobody else sees, asking for nothing in return, just giving all the glory to God. That’s the heart of it. It’s why Jacob spoke that prophecy over Issachar the way he did; he saw that character, that willingness to serve unseen and bear the weight without fanfare.

If you go back to Genesis 49 and read carefully about each prophecy regarding the sons of Jacob, you can trace this hint. Every prophecy regarding each son of Jacob started from the characteristic of that person that Jacob observed in the dynamic, complicated environment of these twelve sons, these four wives, this big family. It’s about how you react to things and how you develop your character.

Look at Judah, too. Jacob watched him transform, really saw who he was becoming, and blessed him for it. He called out what he saw: “You’re a lion, a lion’s cub, a lioness. You devour the enemy. You overcome.”

Here’s the beautiful thing; every single one of Jacob’s sons received a prophecy shaped by what Jacob observed in their character, right there in the midst of their circumstances. And it’s the same for you. Through your own character, through your own one-of-a-kind uniqueness, like a snowflake that God specially crafted, He has a calling that fits only you.

If you want to speak prophetically into someone’s life today, start by really seeing who they are, their character, the way God has shaped them. Now, I know prophecy flows from revelation, but here’s something I’ve found: when you can pinpoint what makes someone tick, when you recognize the character God has built in them, you can speak right into that place.

That’s the key, really understanding how God created them, how He’s been molding their character all along, and how He intends to use that unique shaping for His purposes.

A Personal Example

For example, let me use my own story. In 2015, I left the Local Church Movement, the Chinese evangelical church initiated by Watchman Nee, and moved toward the Pentecostal church and charismatic/prophetic movement. I was eager to pursue the gift of prophecy. I encountered many people who have prophetic gifts.

A couple of months ago, I ran into a lady who is very gifted in the prophetic. When she saw me, she immediately spoke the word of the Lord to me. She said, “I see the sun rising. God will open doors for you for your ministry and financial blessings.  Then, she said something that really resonated in my heart. She said, “One of the great characteristics God loves about you is your willingness to take risks when you know it is from the Lord.”

The reason this struck such a chord with me is that a few months earlier, God had planted this desire in my heart to reach out to someone, a key figure in the Chinese democratic movement. But the situation around me was pretty threatening; there was real danger, the potential for real harm if I went through with it. Still, it felt like the Lord was leading me, so I stepped out and did it.

Sure enough, the leader of the movement was furious with me, and it created some ripple effects among the people close to me. But I knew it was God, so I took that risk anyway. I genuinely believe God called me to share the gospel with these people, to minister to members of that movement. He gave me that burden, and I felt it clearly from the Holy Spirit, this prompting to speak to him about repentance, especially while he was going through such a hard time. But he wouldn’t hear it. He was angry.

I don’t know how it will all unfold, but God has shown me that eventually, this person will come to faith. Still, every promise has its conditions—and the condition is repentance. So, I took the chance. I took a great risk, facing a lot of criticism, even among people close to me. I took the chance. I paid the price. Her words really encouraged me.

I am not a smart person, but I am bold sometimes. I am fearful at times, but I am bold if I know it is from the Lord. So, if you want to prophesy over somebody, of course you need revelation. But the prophecy Jacob gave his sons started from his observation of the characteristics of each of his twelve sons.

I mentioned Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Benjamin, Joseph, Issachar, and Zebulun. Today I am talking about Gad. What characteristic do we see in Gad?

I give you this illustration to show you that even when we receive revelation regarding a person, it does not take away our observation of their characteristic, how they react in the environment God created for them, or in the difficult, complicated network of life God has put them in. Jesus told us that nothing is outside the control of God the Father. If there is no permission from the Father God, not even one sparrow will fall from heaven. Every one of your hairs is counted by God the Father. In Romans 8, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us so that all things work together for our good.

What is Gad’s most prominent characteristic? Understanding this is essential to grasping the prophecy spoken over him. Jacob’s prophecy about Gad, which addresses his future and calling, serves as the seed. Moses’ prophecy builds upon this foundation, developing it further. Gad is no longer merely one man but has become a tribe. Thus, Moses’ prophecy nurtures the seed planted by Jacob, cultivating it within Gad’s destiny and the calling of his descendants.

Jacob’s Prophecy Over Gad

Let us read Genesis 49, verse 19 first. It is a very short description, prophecy, or blessing to Gad through the mouth of Jacob. Very short. But in this very short prophecy, we can see the characteristic of Gad that Jacob observed in his time with him.

Genesis 49, verse 19 says: “Raiders shall raid Gad, but he shall raid at their heels.” Let me read that again. Genesis 49, verse 19: “Raiders shall raid Gad, but he shall raid at their heels.”

When I was a child, I was slight of frame and lacking in strength, yet I possessed a stubborn resilience. During a scuffle with a village boy, he pushed me to the ground and pinned me beneath him, but still I would not yield. Even with him sitting on my face, I fought back and bit him. Years later, when I told this tale to my daughter, she laughed at the picture it painted. But I want her to understand the heart of it: I never gave up. I never gave up.

I want you to use your imagination and look at the complicated situation Gad lived in. When he was born, he already had four older brothers: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah. After four sons were born to Leah and Jacob, Leah could not have any more babies. So, in her constant struggle and fight with Rachel, she came up with the idea: “Let me give my maid Zilpah to my husband Jacob, so he can have more sons through my maid.”

I do not know why Leah’s strategy was just to give him baby after baby. Maybe babies made Jacob happy because at that time Rachel could not have a baby. So probably Jacob had his fair share of joyful moments with his sons. His sons made him happy to a certain extent. He probably enjoyed the company of his sons and loved them. That is possibly why Leah was thinking, “Okay, give me more sons, make him happier, so I can win over my husband.”

She gave her maid Zilpah to Jacob, and Jacob went into Zilpah and had another son. This son was called Gad. Gad is the fifth son of Jacob, but not the fifth son of Leah. He was named Gad which means “lucky” because Leah claimed, oh, I am lucky. I have another son.

Then of course Jacob had another son with Zilpah, named Asher. We will talk about the blessings of Moses over Asher, and the prophecy to Asher by Jacob, next time. But today we are going to dwell on Gad.

Gad’s Difficult Position

Imagine the complicated situation and family dynamic that Gad lived in. When he was born, he was not Jacob or Rachel’s favorite. He was Leah’s maid’s son . His four older brothers formed their own tight-knit tribe, a proud and powerful kingdom like lions. Think of Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, especially given the fierce natures of Simeon and Levi. When those four brothers came together, they were like a pack of lions. They might have said, “You want to fight with us, Gad?  You are just the son of a maid. Even with your lowly status, we might let you join our group. But you have to submit to us and do whatever we tell you to do.”

While this takes some imagination, I hope it is a holy imagination. This is a very common situation in big families. When you are not the firstborn and you are not born of the same mother, you are more than likely going to be mistreated.

Some scholars suggest that David was born to a concubine or even a prostitute rather than Jesse’s wife. According to this view, that is why he was sent out to the wilderness to tend the sheep. He was not even invited to the family dinner when the prophet Samuel came to anoint one of Jesse’s sons. After Samuel had looked at all seven sons, he asked, “Do you have another son?” Jesse replied, “Oh, yes, we do, but he is hardly worth mentioning. It is David, and he is out tending the sheep.” Samuel firmly responded, “Call him. If you do not call him, I am not leaving. I am not going through with this.” Even Eliab, the firstborn of Jesse, showed a proud attitude when David finally arrived. This kind of exclusion is highly unusual when children share the same mother. Throughout human history, when siblings are born of the same mother, both the parents and older siblings are usually very caring and protective toward the youngest. As a younger brother in my own family, I know firsthand that we are almost always overprotected.

So, David was probably not the legitimate son, or not of the same mother as the other brothers. Not being born of the same mother, even as the maid of Leah, sometimes makes it hard for you to blend in.

Let me use American words because I am an immigrant. I am a Chinese American. I know many immigrants, second generation immigrants, who have a hard time blending into American culture. I have encountered so many second and third generation Chinese who do not consider themselves Chinese. They consider themselves Americans. But when they go out into society, they are told to go back to China. They are not blending in. They want to become Americans. That is why we give second and third generation Chinese Americans the nickname “banana.” We call them yellow on the outside but white on the inside. They want to become American. They want to be recognized as American. But when they grow up, they always have a hard time blending in and being accepted as other Americans.

Nowadays it is better, but that is a common experience not only of second and third generation Chinese Americans, but of many immigrant Americans and their children. They do not identify with their parents’ home country, whether China, Somalia, or other country. They identify as Americans. But when they grow up in American society, they are ostracized by some Americans. “Go back to China. Go back to Somalia. Go back to Africa. Go back to Vietnam. Go back to Korea.” They have a hard time blending in.

When we consider modern American society, which is a diverse melting pot, we can imagine how difficult it was for Gad to blend into his family. He was Jacob’s first son born to Leah’s maid Zilpah and she bore Asher next.  Later on Rachel gave birth to Joseph and Benjamin, while Leah had two more sons, Issachar and Zebulun. However, that all happened later.   He was the an outsider among the children, and he struggled to fit in. Even though Leah’s children sometimes felt abandoned and neglected by their father, they still stood together as four strong lions. They formed a tight-knit pride. Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah bound themselves together as one because they shared the same mother. When one said, “Let’s go,” all four went together because of that maternal bond. They loved each other, acting as a single tribe and a single pride.

When Gad entered this family, he unfortunately became the scapegoat for the other children like his half brother Dan. This is a common part of the human experience that we see everywhere. When I was a child, I noticed this dynamic in school, in our village. It is true now even across American society. Many children are born completely innocent and have no concept of race or prejudice. However, when they witness their parents or the culture around them mistreating certain groups, they learn to pick on those same people at school simply because they are vulnerable. It is a painful cycle. Sometimes, when you are picked on by your parents at home, you end up targeting other weaker individuals. You use them as a scapegoat to deal with your own pain. It is a deeply human, yet heartbreaking, reality.

When the intense hatred and neglect among Leah’s four children bound them together, they certainly were not saints. Was Levi a saint? Was Simeon a saint? No, they were flawed, destructive people. Hurt people hurt people, and sinners sin. Because they felt neglected and mistreated by their father, by Rachel, or by anyone they perceived as an enemy, they took their anger out on others. They were ready to mistreat, bully, and chase down anyone they could use as a target.

Remember, when Gad was born, Joseph had not even been born yet. Eventually, however, Joseph became the ultimate scapegoat for their deep-rooted family problems. At least two of the four brothers, Reuben and Judah, tried to protect Joseph because they were more mature and did not want to break their father’s heart. On the other hand, Simeon, likely alongside Levi, wanted to use Joseph as a scapegoat for his own life frustrations. He simply wanted to get rid of him.

He thought to himself, “If I can just get rid of Joseph, all my problems will vanish.” We see this same dangerous mindset throughout human history. It is like thinking that if a group of people eliminate another group of people, their problems will suddenly be solved. No, it does not work that way. When the Chinese people were humiliated and mistreated by Western imperialism, a deep hatred grew. Some thought, “If we get rid of all Westerners and European people to conquer the world, we will regain the glory of China.” No, it simply does not work that way. It is the same when Palestinians think that killing Jews, or Jews think that killing Palestinians, will solve their problems. The solution is not to eliminate the people you feel God is using to challenge you.

Sometimes, God allows external pressures, like Ishmael in biblical history, to refine and deal with your character. God is watching to see exactly how you will react. Will you respond with faith, love, and a tender heart, allowing your difficult environment to discipline you? Will you allow it to shape you into a Joseph, ultimately receiving the fruit of righteousness? Or will you become hardhearted like Pharaoh, entirely consumed by hatred? Ultimately, God is watching your heart.

I really can’t imagine when Gad came along, his four brothers were as joyful as Leah was.  No. They were going to pick on him, chase him and try to take him down through bullying him. They were going to make fun of him and use him as a scapegoat because Joseph was not born yet. When Joseph was born, he eventually became the ultimate scapegoat. For a season, Gad was the unfortunate one.

The Spirit of Gad: Fighting Back

That is why, in the prophecy of Jacob, which I have mentioned again and again, his prophecy is first and foremost based on his observation of the character of his son and how he reacted to the complicated environment surrounding him.

When Gad was chased by other people, he may have run away for a time, but he didn’t stop there. He fought back. That is the spirit of Gad.

When Simeon, using him as our example of the antagonist, tried to chase Gad, trip him, mock him, and bully him, Gad simply would not tolerate it. He would fight back fiercely. Throughout Gad’s childhood, Jacob spent a lot of time watching his sons, and he quickly noticed this defining trait. Gad would not accept being mistreated. He would stand up for himself and push back. That was the resilient, intrinsic characteristic of Gad that Jacob observed from the very beginning.

So, Jacob recorded his prophecy to his son Gad in just one sentence. He said in Genesis 49, verse 19: “Raiders shall raid Gad, but he shall raid at their heels.”

Perhaps Simeon tried to raid Gad, trip him up, or set him up for failure. Ultimately, however, Gad overcame by fighting back and raiding right back at his enemy’s heel. The biblical passage uses plurals here, speaking of raiders and how Gad shall raid at their heels. This phrasing reveals that it was not just one individual trying to bully him. Instead, it was likely a band of attackers or a collective group, perhaps even all four of his older brothers acting together. While Reuben and Judah were relatively better, they were still just kids at the time. They were four brothers banding together, thinking that they could conquer their world if they worked as a team. They viewed themselves as four powerful lions who would dominate the territory, demanding that everyone else submit to their leadership.

Gad completely rejected that demand and fought back every single time. This is exactly what Jacob observed in the character of his son. Jacob recorded this lifelong observation and, flowing from it, prophesied the ultimate destiny and calling of the tribe of Gad. He predicted that while enemies would pursue them, they would fiercely fight back and pursue those enemies to the very end.

We must learn from the powerful spirit of Gad. For too long, the modern church has allowed itself to be pursued and harassed by the enemy. Today, we need to lay hold of that same resilient spirit of Gad. We must fight back, raid at the enemy’s heels, and drive the enemy away completely. For the past fifty years or so, the body of Christ has played a purely defensive game rather than going on the offense. We simply cannot live that way any longer. A true revival is coming. The church of Jesus Christ and his body across the world must take offensive measures. We must pursue the enemy’s heels and overcome them entirely. That is the true spirit of Gad, and it is exactly the spirit we need today. The church must rise up to chase down its enemies, refusing to let the enemy continue to bully us and wear us out.

Moses’ Prophecy: The Development of the Seed

I have finished the first portion of the prophecy on Gad. I gave you a general understanding of how the characteristics of each of Jacob’s sons were reactions to the complicated situations they were in. Character is developed through the environment and your reaction to the environment you are surrounded by.

The second point I gave you is that Jacob’s prophecy toward his sons was first based on his observation of the characteristics of his different sons.

Now let us move into the third section. Moses’ prophecy regarding the tribe of Gad is a further development of the natural characteristics and the spiritual seed that Jacob first mentioned. By the time Moses pronounced his blessing, Gad was no longer just a single individual. They had matured into a full tribe, one of the twelve pillars of Israel, and a mighty army of God.

When Moses blessed Gad, he was no longer speaking over a tiny seed. He was addressing a fully grown tree with branches, charting the development of God’s calling on the tribe’s future. It reveals how God purposefully uses every harsh environment and difficult trial to mold Gad and his descendants. Ultimately, this refining process transforms the tribe so they can become a pearl gate in the New Jerusalem. God will use them to usher many souls, both Jews and Gentiles, into His eternal kingdom. You have to view the entire journey from this eternal perspective.

By the time Moses gives blessing to the tribe of Gad, it is no longer an acorn seed. It has become a tree already. You can see the leaves, the trunk, the branches, and all the details. The characteristic Jacob observed in his son Gad eventually developed into a tree, a calling of God for this entire tribe.

Moses continued to prophesy over Gad with words that help us connect all these pieces together. He declared, “Blessed is he who enlarges Gad.” It is a powerful truth. God is actively enlarging you, Gad, through your deepest difficulties. We see this pattern throughout scripture; God enlarged Joseph through profound suffering. Personally, God has expanded my own capacity to such a great extent through the trials I have faced. I do not think I could have developed this kind of endurance any other way. While my natural capacity may not be any greater than yours, my spiritual capacity has been greatly enlarged by navigating these difficult circumstances.

When I first married my wife, there were many other young couples in our church. I watched so many of them easily have one baby, then two, then three. They were completely caught up in the busy rush of family life. But I could not experience that. Instead, I spent ten years praying for at least two hours every single day, often spending my lunch breaks in prayer. Sometimes I prayed up to eight hours a day because I would seek God in the morning, at noon, and through the evening. For ten long years, I prayed and prayed and prayed. I consecrated my life, dedicated myself to His service, repented of all my sins, and made promises to the Lord about my future. I would say, “If You bless me with a child, oh, how wonderful that would be.”

During that season, my wife and I spent countless hours arguing, filled with tears and sleepless nights. Eventually, we finally experienced a spiritual breakthrough. Sometime later, I talked with my wife and asked her, “If we had not gone through those ten years of suffering, would we have the spiritual maturity we possess today?” I am certainly not comparing myself to you. You may be far more mature than I am, and perhaps you do not need to walk through that kind of suffering. But back then, I was not mature, either spiritually or psychologically. I was simply not ready to be used by God to fulfill the calling He had on my life. I had to go through that painful process, just like so many people in the biblical record who endured long periods of barrenness before experiencing God’s miraculous healing.

I went through this. Eventually my wife and I came to a conclusion. We would not trade it for another way, an easier life, an easier path. Otherwise, we would not have the enlargement of our hearts in terms of knowing the nature of God and loving others. Loving through suffering enlarges you.

Even in physical training, we know the rule: no pain, no gain. My trainer always tells me, “The exact moment you feel like you cannot lift the weight one more time, that is the moment you achieve a breakthrough. That is when you enlarge your muscle and build the muscle memory needed to gain more power.” When you want to give up completely, that is the exact time you need to push through a couple more repetitions, because that is where the growth happens.

It is the same when you go through difficult seasons in life. When you are caught in a constantly complicated situation, like being the child who does not share the same mother as the four older kids, facing constant exclusion, bullying, and pressure, God is using that environment to expand your capacity. Gad ultimately received that divine enlargement. He rose up, stood his ground, and fought back.

The Lion of Gad

Moses continued his prophecy over Gad in the next part of this verse, declaring, “Gad crouches like a lion.” He crouches to find the perfect opportunity to fight back. His older brothers, the four sons of Leah, may have acted like a proud pack of lions trying to tear him down, but Gad learned to crouch like a lion himself to strike back. Moses then used the vivid phrase, “He tears off arm and scalp.” This intense, pictorial language describes the fierce nature of Gad’s warfare against his enemies, or perhaps the early friction against his brothers. Because he has the nature of a lion, he crouches, fights back, and completely dismantles the strength of his adversaries.

The body of Christ today desperately needs to pick up this spirit of Gad. For the last half-century, believers all over the world have been pushed onto the defensive, living in a state of defeat rather than going on the offense. We cannot remain passive. We must lift the banner of God, carry the ark of His presence, and pursue the enemy until the victory is complete. We are standing on the edge of a highly victorious season right now. This powerful mandate is found right in Deuteronomy chapter 33, verse 20.

Choosing the Best Land

Moses continues to say in verse 21, “He chose the best of the land for himself.” He wasn’t being humble. He chose the best land for himself, for there a commander’s portion was reserved.

I am not sure if Moses was referring to the land on the east side of the Jordan River that he gave to the tribe of Reuben, the tribe of Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh.   Because Moses continued to say, “And he came with the heads of the people. With Israel he executed the justice of the Lord and His judgments for Israel.”

If this refers to Gad getting the land on the eastern side of the Jordan River, he promised to come with the heads of the people, or the leaders, or the fighters, with the other Israelites entering into the good land to execute the justice of the Lord, to kill all the Canaanites, and execute the judgment for Israel. It could be true.

We know in 1 Chronicles 5, verses 18 to 26, that all the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh were taken away by the kings of Assyria, instigated by God because they worshiped idols. They failed at one point, as many other Israelites did.

But do not underestimate the characteristics Gad and his tribe possessed. They eventually would fight back.

The Spirit of Gad Today

Today, many of the descendants of the tribes of Jacob remain in a state of defeat. Many of them are still in captivity. Even the small number of Jewish people currently living in the Promised Land have not yet reached the end-time harvest of God. As the apostle Paul wrote in Romans chapters 9 and 11, the ultimate fulfillment of the whole household of Israel being saved has not yet come. We have not reached that final consummation where all the descendants of Israel’s tribes are harvested to become the twelve pearl gates of the New Jerusalem. We are simply not there yet. Many remain in spiritual captivity. Because they have rejected Christ, they do not recognize that the Messiah has already come. They remain bound to a certain extent, because true freedom can only be found in Jesus Christ.

But eventually God will mark the twelve, twelve thousand in each tribe, who will not be harmed. And there will be 144,000 standing in the heavenly Zion singing worship to God. In the vision of God’s sea, there are also multitudes of people, both Jews and Gentiles, who will sing the song of Moses and the song of the Lamb together. We are not there yet. Jews are not saved yet. But eventually they will get there because the spirit of Gad is still alive today.

To the best of my ability, this is how I explain the prophecy of Gad. It begins with Jacob observing Gad’s unique characteristics and how he reacted to growing up in that incredibly complicated family dynamic. Through these intense circumstances and difficulties, God works to enlarge the capacity of everyone involved. Over time, Gad picked up the spirit of a true fighter. This warrior identity is explicitly highlighted in First Chronicles 5:18, which notes that the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh had forty-four thousand seven hundred and sixty valiant men who carried shields, swords, and bows into battle. They are true warriors who know how to fight. They might experience defeat at times, but they will always fight back.

Conclusion: Fight Back

Jacob’s final blessing to his son Gad was very simple, yet profound. Let me read this verse again as a conclusion. He said to his son Gad: “Raiders shall raid Gad, but he shall raid at their heels.”

In America, the church has experienced intense spiritual opposition, feeling pursued and targeted by modern cultural movements such as the LGBTQ movement. When faith-based business owners faced severe legal consequences and the threat of prison for upholding traditional marriage values, many believers felt deeply alarmed. In response, American patriots and people of faith channeled the resilient spirit of Gad, declaring that they would not let their religious freedom slip away. They chose to stand their ground, actively participated in the political process, and ultimately helped elect Donald Trump as president.

Through his leadership, significant efforts have been made to protect this nation, advocate for freedom in countries like Venezuela and Iran, and defend vulnerable Christians being martyred in Nigeria. None of this is a mere coincidence. This perspective transcends standard politics; it is about recognizing that God is stirring up that same courageous spirit of Gad for our modern times. Where believers have previously lost ground, it is time to recover it. The body of Christ must confidently carry this responsibility, rising up to push back as the enemy attempts to wear the church down.

Closing Remarks

Hopefully, this has been an encouraging hour together, and I truly appreciate you tuning in. Personally, I am also striving to lay hold of that resilient spirit of Gad. There are many times when I feel defeated. When I record a broadcast, I believe the presence of the Holy Spirit is near and that I have a genuine word from God to share, and I long for more people to listen.  I may not have a large platform, yet I truly believe this message is from the Lord, and I need your prayers. I would be so grateful for your help to repost, like, comment, and share this content with your friends. You can support this work by searching for Jairus Bible World Ministry on Google Maps or by looking up Bible Study with Jairus on Apple Podcasts.

I am currently collaborating with American editors to transform these spoken sermons into polished, well-written podcasts and blogs, and we have already completed a brand-new episode. My ultimate hope is to turn all of this revelation from the Holy Spirit into freely accessible podcasts, blog posts, and books.

This takes time and money to accomplish. I work as a translator to support myself and this ministry.  If you feel led to help get these messages out by donating I would be truly grateful.