Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Adult Sunday School Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/bb/bb20060806.htm

1 AND 2 CHRONICLES: GAINING DIRECTION OUT OF THE AIMLESSNESS OF APOSTASY
Part I: Gaining Direction From God's Work In Our History From Furthest Antiquity, 1 Chronicles 1-9
B. Gaining Direction From Noting God's INTERACTION With Past Groups In The Faith, 1 Chronicles 4-8
10. Gaining Direction By Noting God's Work With The Tribe Of Manasseh
(1 Chronicles 7:14-19 et al.)
  1. Introduction
    1. Though our forefathers held that all men to be created equal in regard to human rights, people are born with varying abilities and come into varying degrees of social rank that supply varying degrees of benefits.
    2. For this reason, an under-endowed party may tend to be bitter at his relatively poorer station in life.
    3. Yet, for a believer who may be thus under-endowed, God has a great will and ability to bless him above his human limitations if he trusts and obeys God, a fact revealed in the history of the tribe of Manasseh:
  2. Gaining Direction By Noting God's Work With The Tribe Of Manasseh, 1 Chronicles 7:14-19 et al.
    1. The tribe of Manasseh came from the eldest son of Joseph who was Jacob's favorite son, Gen. 41:50-52.
    2. For this reason, when it was time for his sons to receive a prophetic blessing from Joseph's aged father, Jacob, Joseph brought his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim to Jacob, and placed them before the blind grandfather so arranged that he would place his right hand of favor on Manasseh's head, Gen esis 48:13.
    3. However, as in the case of Jacob himself who had been the younger son of Isaac who yet gained the blessing meant for Isaac's firstborn, Esau (Gen. 27:32-35), Jacob knowingly crossed his hands against Joseph's will to bless the younger son, Ephraim above the firstborn son, Manasseh, Genesis 48:14, 18-20!
    4. Yet, although Manasseh was dealt this cultural demotion by Jacob, God revealed in the history of the tribe that He would abundantly bless those in even this under-endowed tribe if they trusted and obeyed Him:
      1. God blessed Gideon, a culturally VERY under-endowed man of faith from the tribe of Manasseh:
        1. When the Midianites dominated Israel, God addressed (1) the youngest son of a man in (2) the least prominent family of (3) the lesser tribe of Manasseh who (4) was threshing wheat by his winepress to hide it from the dominating Midianites , a man named Gideon; God urged him as a "mighty man of valor" to defeat the Midianite hordes that plagued his nation, Judges 6:11-16.
        2. Gideon did not initially believe God could or would use him this powerfully, so the Lord repeatedly assured him He would indeed defeat the Midianite hordes, Judges 6:14-16, 17-23, 36-40; 7:9-15.
        3. Being led of God to send away most of those who came to fight with him as they were too many to give God the glory, the under-endowed Gideon was stripped of what endowment he had to be even less-endowed, and to defeat the Midianites with only 300 men by faith in God, Judges 7:1-8, 16-25.
        4. The dominant tribe of Ephraim was even angry at being upstaged by Gideon of Manasseh, 8:1-3!
      2. God blessed Jephthah, another culturally VERY under-endowed man of faith from Manasseh:
        1. Manasseh had a mistress, a Gentile Aramean, who produced a son named Makir by him, 1 Chr. 7:17b NIV, ESV; Num. 26:29; Bible Knowledge Commentary, Old Testament, p. 600.
        2. This culturally under-endowed descendant of Manasseh produced Gilead, the father of Jephthah who was in turn a culturally under-endowed illegitimate son of Gilead, Num. 26:29; Judges 11:1.
        3. Jephthah was initially rejected by his people as an illegitimate son, but God used him to deliver his nation from the Ammonites, and to make him head of his tribe Judges 11:1-10, 32.
        4. Indeed, when the dominant tribe of Ephraim arrogantly opposed him in battle for defeating Ammon without their help, God gave Jephthah from the lesser Manasseh victory over even Ephraim, 12:1-6!
        5. Jephthah ended up judging the whole nation of Israel for six years before his death, cf. Judges 12:7!
      3. God blessed the culturally under-endowed daughters of Zelophehad from Manasseh as they sought to honor their father who had no son by asking to inherit his land and carry on his name (1 Chr. 7:15; Num. 27:1-11; Ibid., p. 360)! This lifted the role of women when many viewed them as property, Ibid.
Lesson: Though the tribe of Manasseh had been culturally "demoted" in Jacob's blessing, God elevated those of this "lesser" tribe in His grace as they trusted and obeyed the Lord in their lives.

Application: (1) If we feel troubled by a humanly "under-endowed" lot we have in life, may we TRUST and HEED God and His Word to enjoy great BLESSING regardless of our lowly station. (2) May we function in God's power for His blessing to succeed in life, cf. 1 Cor. 2:1-5; 2 Cor. 10:1-4, 8-13.