Wat We Can Learn From Jacob’s Las Words To His Four Boys

1-2. Wat Jacob wen do right befoa he mahke, an how come? (Go look da cova picha.)

JACOB wen dig out from Canaan wit da whole family an go Egypt, an wuz dea fo 17 years. (Start 47:28) He wuz so happy fo be wit Joseph again, an da whole family. But cuz he knew he wuz goin mahke pretty soon, he wen call one family meeting fo tell erybody someting supa importan.​—Start 49:28.

² In dat time, wuz normal fo da head of da family fo get erybody togedda fo tell dem wat he wanted dem fo do afta he mahke. (Isa 38:1) One of da tings he might tell dem wuz who wuz goin take charge of da family afta he die.

3. Wat we learn from Da Start 49:1, 2?

³ Read um Da Start 49:1, 2. But dis wuzn’t one normal family meeting cuz Jacob wuzn’t jus one normal guy. He wen talk fo God. So at dis meeting, Jehovah wen use Jacob fo tell his boys wat wuz goin happen to dem an dea families layta on.

4. Wat we goin talk about in dis lesson, an wat we can learn from um? (Go look da box “Jacob’s Ohana.”)

⁴ In dis lesson we goin check out wat Jacob wen tell his four boys Reuben, Simeon, Levi, an Judah. In da nex lesson we go check out wat Jacob wen tell his eight odda boys. Wen we look at da history of da Israel peopo an how dey wen come one nation, we goin see dat wat Jacob wen tell about his boys an dea families all had come tru. An wen we look at his words, dat goin help us fo see wat we can do fo make Jehovah happy.

REUBEN

5. Wat Reuben wen expeck fo get from his faddah?

⁵ Da firs one Jacob wen talk to wuz Reuben. He wen tell um, “You my numba one boy.” (Start 49:3) Cuz Reuben wuz da numba one boy, he wen expeck fo get moa den all his odda braddahs. He mighta even thought dat he wuz goin be da one fo take charge of da ohana an den somebody from his family line wuz always goin get dat kuleana.

6. How come Reuben wen lose out on da rights da numba one boy suppose to get? (Da Start 49:3, 4)

⁶ But, Reuben wen lose out on da rights da numba one boy suppose to get. (1 Rec 5:1) How come? Cuz afta Jacob’s wife Rachel wen mahke, Reuben wen go fool aroun wit her slave wahine, Bilhah. (Start 35:19, 22) Reuben wuz Leah’s boy, Jacob’s odda wife. So maybe he wen do dat so his faddah would hate Bilhah an love Leah, his maddah, moa. Or maybe Reuben wen jus have da hots fo Bilhah an he no could control himself. No matta wat, Jacob an Jehovah neva like wat he wen do.​—Read um Da Start 49:3, 4.

7. Wat wen happen to Reuben an his ohana? (Go look da box “Jacob’s Las Words.”)

⁷ Jacob wen tell Reuben, “You not goin get da rights dat da firs boy suppose to get!” An dat wen come tru. No moa anyplace in da Bible dat tell somebody in Reuben’s ohana wen come one king, pries, or prophet. But Reuben still wen get one blessing. His family wen come one of da tribes in Israel. (Josh 12:6) Had odda times too dat Reuben wen show he wuz one good guy, an da Bible no say dat he eva wen fool aroun again.​—Start 37:20-22; 42:37.

8. Wat we can learn from Reuben’s exampo?

⁸ Wat us can learn? We gotta work hahd fo control ouaselfs an no do pilau kine sex. If we get da presha fo do someting bad, iz good fo stop an tink how goin hurt Jehovah, oua ohana, an odda peopo. An good fo rememba, “Jalike da farma get back da same kine crop he wen plant, erybody goin get back da same kine ting dey wen do.” (Gal 6:7) But wat wen happen to Reuben also teach us how Jehovah let us go. We still might suffa cuz of da wrong tings we wen do, but if we tell Jehovah we sorry an try do da right ting, Jehovah goin let us go an bless us.

SIMEON AN LEVI

9. Why Jacob no wuz happy wit Simeon an Levi? (Da Start 49:5-7)

⁹ Read um Da Start 49:5-7. Da nex guys Jacob wen talk to wuz Simeon an Levi. An wat he wen tell show he no wuz happy wit dem. Jacob’s daughtah Dinah wen get rape by one Canaan guy named Shekem. So of course all Jacob’s boys wuz supa mad about wat wen happen to dea sistah. But ony Simeon an Levi wen get all nutz an no could control demselfs. Dey wen lie to Shekem an his guys an told um if dey cut skin den eryting goin be good between dem. So dey wen do um. Wen dey wuz still hurting Simeon an Levi wen “take dea swords an go inside da town, an . . . kill all da guys.”​—Start 34:25-29.

10. How wat Jacob wen say about Simeon an Levi wen come tru? (Go look da box “Jacob’s Las Words.”)

¹⁰ Jacob wuz supa mad cuz his two boys had kill plenny guys. Dass how come he wen tell dat dea ohanas wuz goin live all ova da place in Israel. Dis wen come tru wen 200 years layta da Israel peopo wen go inside da Promise Land. Simeon’s ohana wen get some land inside da Judah ohana land. (Josh 19:1) An da Levi ohana wen get 48 towns all ova Israel.​—Josh 21:41.

11. Wat good kine tings da Simeon an Levi ohanas wen do?

¹¹ Da guys dat wen come from Simeon an Levi neva mess up like dem. Da Levi ohana wen stick to Jehovah an worship him da right way. Like wen Moses wen get da rules from Jehovah, plenny of da Israel peopo wuz worshipping one bebe cow. But da Levi guys neva do dat, dey wen come togedda by Moses an wen help him wipe out da guys dat wuz worshipping da bebe cow. (Egypt 32:26-29) Jehovah wen choose guys from da Levi ohana fo be prieses in Israel. (Egypt 40:12-15; Cens 3:11, 12) An layta on da Simeon ohana wen help da Judah ohana fight agains da Canaan guys fo get dea place in da Promise Land jus like Jehovah wanted.​—Pries 1:3, 17.

12. Wat we can learn from Simeon an Levi?

¹² Wat us can learn? Ony natural fo come mad if somebody treat us or oua family bad. (Songs 4:4) But we no can let dat control how we ack. Rememba Jehovah no like wen we say or do someting fo get back at somebody dat wen hurt us. (Jam 1:20) Wedda dat person stay in da hui or not, we like follow wat da Bible tell an ack in one way dat make Jehovah happy. (Rome 12:17, 19; 1 Pet 3:9) Even if yoa parents no stay doin tings Jehovah’s way, you no need copy dem. You can make Jehovah happy. He goin help you fo do wat stay right an bless you.

JUDAH

13. Why Judah probly wen worry about wat his faddah wuz goin tell him?

¹³ Da nex boy Jacob wen talk to wuz Judah. Afta he wen hea wat his faddah wen tell his olda braddahs, Judah wuz probly worried wat wuz goin happen to him cuz he wen mess up plenny too. Like wen Judah wen go along wit his braddahs an steal all da tings dat wen belong to da peopo of Shekem. (Start 34:27) An he wen hui up wit his braddahs fo sell Joseph az one slave an wen trick dea faddah about him. (Start 37:31-33) Layta on, he wen fool aroun wit his daughtah in law Tamar.​—Start 38:15-18.

14. Wat good tings Judah wen do? (Da Start 49:8, 9)

¹⁴ But Jacob wen bless Judah an tell him dat good tings wuz goin happen to him an his ohana. (Read um Da Start 49:8, 9.) Judah wen show dat he kea plenny about how his faddah feel. An he wen show dat he had love his youngest braddah, Benjamin.​—Start 44:18, 30-34.

15. How Judah wen get blessed?

¹⁵ Jacob wen tell dat Judah wuz goin be in charge of his braddahs. But no wuz goin happen right away. About 200 years layta afta da Israel peopo wen leave Egypt, da tribe of Judah wen go firs an all da odda tribes wen follow dem tru da boonies to da Promise Land. (Cens 10:14) Plenny years afta dat, da tribe of Judah wuz da firs fo go fo fight da Canaan peopo fo take ova da Promise Land. (Leadas 1:1, 2) An David wuz da firs of plenny kings fo come from da Judah ohana. But get some moa.

16. How Da Start 49:10 wen come tru? (Go look da box “Jacob’s Las Words.”)

¹⁶ Jacob wen tell dat da rula ova erybody wuz goin come from da Judah family line an he wuz goin rule foeva. (Read um Da Start 49:10) Dat rula iz Jesus Christ. One angel wen tell about Jesus, “[Jehovah] goin make him one king jalike King David, his ancesta guy.” (Luk 1:32, 33) Jesus even stay called, “One Lion . . . da King dat come from da Judah ohana.”​—Jesus Show 5:5.

17. How we can copy Jehovah in da way we look at oddas?

¹⁷ Wat us can learn? Jehovah wen bless Judah even if he wen make some mayjah mistakes. An maybe his braddahs wen wonda wat good tings Jehovah had see in him. Neva matta wat dey wuz tinking, cuz Jehovah saw good kine tings in Judah an wen bless him fo dat. So how we can copy Jehovah? Wen one braddah or sistah get one spesho kuleana, maybe at firs we tink why dem, cuz we ony tinking about da tings dey do wrong. But we gotta rememba dat Jehovah iz happy wit da good tings dey do. Jehovah look fo da good in all da guys dat worship him. Us should do da same.

18. Why we gotta be patient?

¹⁸ Anodda ting we can learn from Judah iz dat we gotta be patient. Eryting Jehovah promise goin come tru. But plenny times iz not how or wen we tink goin happen. Like at firs, da leadas of God’s peopo neva come from da Judah ohana. But da Judah ohana wen support da guys Jehovah wen pick from da odda ohanas. Like Moses from da Levi ohana, Joshua from da Efraim ohana, an King Saul from da Benjamin ohana. Us too gotta back up whoeva Jehovah pick fo lead us today.​—Heb 6:12.

19. Wat we wen learn about Jehovah from Jacob’s las words?

¹⁹ Wat we learn so far from Jacob’s las words to his firs four boys? Iz clear fo see dat “peopo ony look wat stay da outside a peopo. But [Jehovah] . . . look wat stay inside da peopo.” (1 Sam 16:7) Jehovah let us go an he patient. Jehovah no like um wen we do bad stuff, but he also no expeck us fo be perfeck. He even bless da guys dat make mayjah kine mistakes if dey stay sorry an do wass right. In da nex lesson, we goin go ova wat Jacob wen tell his eight odda boys.