Genesis 49:23-24 (NKJV)
“The archers have bitterly grieved him, Shot at him and hated him.
But his bow remained in strength,
And the arms of his hands were made strong
By the hands of the Mighty God of Jacob
(From there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel),”
At 147 years old, Jacob is now individually blessing his sons before his passing. In speaking with Joseph, Jacob summarizes Joseph’s life with an insight that could have only come from above. The archers in these verses were master archers who fired their arrows not from behind trees, but from out in the open, striking their targets with precision and intent. Joseph was the recipient of many arrows in the form of attacks from his brothers who envied and hated him. He experienced arrows of temptation at the hands of Potiphar’s wife, who daily attempted to seduce him. Joseph was abandoned by his family and even forgotten about during his prison days by those he had helped.
His father now tells us that Joseph was not empty-handed. He too possessed a bow from which he could have fired arrows, even arrows of revenge. “Yet his bow remained unmoved” (ESV). His arms were made strong by the Mighty God of Jacob who is the Shepherd, the Stone! Joseph’s arms were made strong, not to shoot, but to hold back from reaching for his own arrows, affixing to the bow, taking aim, and firing!
How wonderful it must have been to have the hands of God holding Joseph back from doing something that would have compromised his character, or saying something he would later regret! Joseph had to consciously place each situation into the hands of God. He could have opened his mouth and fought back but he never spoke against or negatively against those who wronged him. His bow remained in strength. How about you? Where is your strength? Where are your arrows? Are they locked and loaded, ready to shoot? Or have you returned them to the Mighty God of Jacob, your Shepherd, your Rock? The same hands that strengthened Joseph’s arms are available to all who would place themselves in His strength. Seek the Lord, trusting Him at each release of the archer’s arrows and you will find it is the Mighty hand of God that will strengthen you too!