Genesis 49:10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come… It seems to me the old man was sad. One, and another, and another of his sons passed before him, and from their posterity there came no Saviour, no Messiah. Judah came, and as his eyes rested upon him, and the visions of the future opened up, he beheld the tribe growing, becoming conspicuous, becoming the leader of the other tribes, and enduring; kings sat upon his throne, and princes were among his posterity; and then he saw Judah, becoming feeble, carried away; the tribeship crumbling; desolation is about to come, and just then he saw the star appear — a light shining on Judah — and he said: "Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise"; and then cried out, as if his soul were enraptured with a vision: "The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come, and unto Him shall the gathering of the people be." He saw the day of Christ. It was just as Judah was crumbling to decay; it was just as prince and lawgiver were for ever passing from among his posterity; but he had not quite gone until the light and joy of Israel appeared, and the Prince of Peace, whose right it was to take the kingdom, took possession, and then, instead of Israel being carried captive into strange lands — instead of his hosts being wasted on the plains of Babylon and Persia, instead of being fugitives and strangers among all nations — he saw a new Israel, a new nation, under a new covenant of promise; and he cried out: "And unto Him shall the gathering" — not of Judah, nor of Ephraim, nor of Manasseh, nor of Benjamin, merely, but, "unto Him shall the gathering of the people be" — all tribes, all nations, all kindreds. The sons of humanity everywhere shall gather around Him; for He takes in both Jew and Gentile, Greek and barbarian, bond and free. All shall receive the blessings of peace. Such was the vision that came to Jacob's peaceful departing hours. That we may the better understand this subject, we may refer to the expressions here used: "The sceptre shall not depart from Judah." But there is another part of this prophecy. When that Shiloh should come, to Him should the gathering of the people be. Now, how beautifully was this contrasted with what Jacob saw in his vision t He had seen the scattering of the ten tribes — their being lost, merged into other nationalities, and he said: "Are these gone for ever?" He saw Jacob about to pass away, and that he was to be scattered, but as the compensation for all this, around the Shiloh, the promised Seed, the One who was to be sent, the Prince of Peace, should the gathering of the people be. In some particulars, this seemed to be an enlargement of the promises given to the Jews, and we may trace an apparent connection between their power and that under the reign of Shiloh. For instance, the gathering of the people was at Jerusalem. They came up three times in the year to worship before God on Mount Zion. Scattered, there is no longer the worship. The temple services have been long since closed. The people no longer come gathering around Mount Moriah. There is no temple standing, around which humanity gathers; but there was a cross erected. Shiloh hung on that cross, and He said: "And I, if I be lifted up, will draw all men unto Me." And now, as the result, do we not see the gathering of humanity around the Lord Jesus Christ? But while men, here and there, may remember the name of a Homer, or an Alexander, or a Plato — while their prowess and intellect may be admired in the schools — how few of the human race know anything of them 1 But the name of Jesus I At that name every knee shall bow; to R every tongue shall confess. It is being sung east and west, north and south. Men divide on everything else, but they are rallying around Jesus. He is reigning, King of kings, and Lord of lords. He has established a kingdom which is growing wider and wider every day. Civilization attends the preaching of the gospel; inventions and arts, and refinement and culture, go hand in hand with the proclamation of the name of Jesus; and in this respect humanity is gathering around Him. But the word here interpreted" gathering "means not merely assembling. Some translate it obedience. "To Him shall the obedience of the people be." The idea, as I take it, embraces both. The people assemble for instruction and to obey. It is like the gathering of scholars in a school. They assemble, but it is for instruction, and it is to obey. (M. Simpson, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. |
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