ASHER

10. What did Asher fail to do? (Genesis 49:20) (See also box.)

¹⁰ Read Genesis 49:20. Jacob foretold that the tribe of Asher would become prosperous, and this is exactly what happened. Asher’s tribal allotment included some of the most fertile land in all of Israel. (Deut. 33:24) It also bordered the Mediterranean Sea and included the wealthy Phoenician trading port of Sidon. However, Asher failed to drive out the Canaanites from the land. (Judg. 1:31, 32) The bad influence of the Canaanites coupled with Asher’s prosperity may have caused the tribe to become less zealous for pure worship. Asher did not respond when Judge Barak looked for volunteers to fight a Canaanite coalition. As a result, the tribe missed out on sharing in the miraculous victory “by the waters of Megiddo.” (Judg. 5:19-21) It must have shamed Asher to hear Barak and Deborah’s inspired victory song, which included the lyric: “Asher sat idle at the seashore.”​—Judg. 5:17.

11. Why do we need to maintain a balanced view of material things?

¹¹ What can we learn? We want to give Jehovah our best. To do so, we need to reject the world’s view of material comforts and possessions. (Prov. 18:11) We strive to maintain a balanced view of money. (Eccl. 7:12; Heb. 13:5) We do not allow the pursuit of unnecessary material things to hold us back in our service to God. Instead, we seek to give Jehovah the best of our time and energy now, knowing that a truly comfortable and secure life awaits us in the future.​—Ps. 4:8.