It's been an absolute joy to study this topic throughout 2025. The series concludes with a look at Jacob's youngest son, Benjamin. I pray it blesses you today, love Lucy x
The Tribe Of Benjamin
Key Facts
Order of birth- Twelfth.
Order of blessing- Twelfth.
Mother- Rachel.
Meaning of name- Son of my right hand.
Character details- Last to be born of his brothers. His mother Rachel died giving birth to him.
Tribe details- Known for their skilled warriors who were fierce in battle. The tribe provided Israel with their first king, Saul. Mordecai, Esther’s uncle, and the apostle Paul also descended from this tribe.
Symbol of tribe- A Wolf.
Land allocation- Assigned a central region, west of the Jordan River, north of the Dead Sea, situated between the tribes of Judah and Ephraim. The territory included cities like Jericho and Jerusalem, although Jerusalem eventually became the capital of the Kingdom of Judah.
Relevant Scriptures
Genesis 35:16-20
“Then they journeyed from Bethel. And when there was but a little distance to go to Ephrath, Rachel labored in childbirth, and she had hard labor. Now it came to pass, when she was in hard labor, that the midwife said to her, “Do not fear; you will have this son also.”
And so it was, as her soul was departing (for she died), that she called his name Ben-Oni; but his father called him Benjamin. So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). And Jacob set a pillar on her grave, which is the pillar of Rachel’s grave to this day.”
Genesis 49:1 & 27-28
“And Jacob called his sons and said, ‘Gather together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days:
“Benjamin is a ravenous wolf; In the morning he shall devour the prey, And at night he shall divide the spoil.”
All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father spoke to them. And he blessed them; he blessed each one according to his own blessing.”
BenjaminThe Tribe Of Benjamin
Key Facts
Order of birth- Twelfth.
Order of blessing- Twelfth.
Mother- Rachel.
Meaning of name- Son of my right hand.
Character details- Last to be born of his brothers. His mother Rachel died giving birth to him.
Tribe details- Known for their skilled warriors who were fierce in battle. The tribe provided Israel with their first king, Saul. Mordecai, Esther’s uncle, and the apostle Paul also descended from this tribe.
Symbol of tribe- A Wolf.
Land allocation- Assigned a central region, west of the Jordan River, north of the Dead Sea, situated between the tribes of Judah and Ephraim. The territory included cities like Jericho and Jerusalem, although Jerusalem eventually became the capital of the Kingdom of Judah.
Relevant Scriptures
Genesis 35:16-20
“Then they journeyed from Bethel. And when there was but a little distance to go to Ephrath, Rachel labored in childbirth, and she had hard labor. Now it came to pass, when she was in hard labor, that the midwife said to her, “Do not fear; you will have this son also.”
And so it was, as her soul was departing (for she died), that she called his name Ben-Oni; but his father called him Benjamin. So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). And Jacob set a pillar on her grave, which is the pillar of Rachel’s grave to this day.”
Genesis 49:1 & 27-28
“And Jacob called his sons and said, ‘Gather together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days:
“Benjamin is a ravenous wolf; In the morning he shall devour the prey, And at night he shall divide the spoil.”
All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father spoke to them. And he blessed them; he blessed each one according to his own blessing.”
Twelve tribes of Israel from twelve different brothers,
All the sons of Jacob, but from four different mothers.
Leah bore him six of them, while two came from Zilpah.
Rachel bore another two, and two more came from Bilhah.
Benjamin was twelfth, the final baby to be born.
The story of his birth does leave the spirit quite forlorn.
His mother’s quest for children at last had come to pass,
But as he took his first few breaths, poor Rachel breathed her last.
She called him “Son of Sorrow”, and while clear to understand,
His father named him Benjamin, “Son of my right hand”.
Jacob’s words then later gave a blessing to this son.
His deathbed prophecy would speak of people yet to come.
For through the tribe of Benjamin there came the king called Saul.
Another Saul would then appear: the great Apostle Paul.
These prominent and mighty men descended from this brother.
Saul, the king, wreaked havoc for his people like no other.
This king was early on the scene, causing strife and toil.
Paul’s ministry came later on, dividing up the spoil.
Jacob also looked ahead and spoke about ‘last days’.
His prophecy to Benjamin gives cause to offer praise!
It’s here we see God’s plan for great redemption still to come.
The picture is completed with this twelfth and final son.
For in his father’s words we see a message is displayed;
After the return of Christ, a remnant will be saved!
One third of Israel will claim that Christ is their Messiah!
These prophecies reveal God’s plan; His ways are always higher.
He will not break His covenant or promise for this nation.
Sing to El Shaddai, who’ll bring the Jews their restoration!
Twelve tribes of Israel from twelve different brothers.
It really blows the mind to think of all this study covers!
Let’s turn our hearts to Jesus, for this act will serve us well.
Awaiting the return of Christ! The God of Israel!
Joshua 21:45
“Not a word failed of any good thing which the Lord had spoken to the house of Israel. All came to pass.”
Numbers 23:19
“God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?”
Hebrews 10:23
“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.”
Insight to Benjamin
Mother-Rachel
Last month, I took a look at the birth of Jacob’s eleventh son, Joseph, whose birth is recorded in Genesis 30. Joseph’s name means “He will add”, which was a statement of faith from his mother, Rachel, as she trusted that God would add another son, after Joseph, to the family through her. God did indeed add another son through Rachel, and we have to skip forward to Genesis 35 to read about his birth.
At this point, several years have passed since the arrival of Joseph; Jacob and his family have travelled to Bethel at the Lord’s direction and are now heading towards Ephrath, that is, Bethlehem. Genesis 35:16 tells us that there was still a little distance to go to Ephrath when the pregnant Rachel went into a difficult labour.
There’s no mention of the contention and strife between Rachel and Leah in this passage, and so there doesn’t seem to be the same air of competitiveness surrounding the birth of Benjamin. So far, the birth of each of the previous eleven sons of Jacob has been viewed as a personal victory for the sisters over the other one. Their rivalry has been never-ending in the contest to be Jacob’s most valuable and beloved wife.
Here, at the birth of Benjamin, however, there’s a very different tone indeed. Hopefully, the friction between Leah and Rachel had dissipated by this point, or at least had become less important, but the main issue is that the birth of Benjamin didn’t go well for Rachel. There was no gloating, no parading this baby as another personal achievement over Leah. Heartbreakingly, this final “victory” of Rachel’s brought the ultimate sorrow her way, as she lost her life giving life to Benjamin. Instead of rejoicing and happiness at the arrival of Jacob’s last son, Rachel seemingly finds nothing but pain and sorrow.
The text tells us that in her dying breath, she named this baby “Ben-Oni”, which translates as “Son of my sorrow”. This is a heavy label for a boy to carry throughout his life. Wisely, Jacob changed his baby’s name from “Ben-Oni” to “Benjamin”, meaning “Son of my right hand”. The significance behind this is that the right side was associated with greater strength and honour because most people are right-handed. This idea is expressed several times throughout Scripture, and we can find it in places such as Exodus 15:6, Psalm 16:8, Psalm 138:7 and Colossians 3:1. Psalm 138:7 reads,
“Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me; You will stretch out Your hand Against the wrath of my enemies, And Your right hand will save me.”
Colossians 3:1 also tells us,
“If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God.”
This preference for the position of the right hand communicates the idea that Jacob was saying, “This is the son of my strength” or “the son of my honour.” Perhaps Jacob sensed God had a special place for this twelfth child, or perhaps he simply treasured Benjamin deeply because he was the final connection between him and his precious wife Rachel.
Either way, what a tragic and heartrending conclusion to Rachel’s life. All the strife between her and Leah, all the years of sorrow, bickering, backbiting and rivalry as they tried to outdo one another appear even more futile than ever in the face of her death. I think, however, there is some comfort in knowing that Rachel’s memory and legacy will forever live on through the Scriptures and the descendants of the children she bore and loved.
Jacob’s Prophetic Blessing
Jacob’s final words of blessing, directed to his twelfth son, Benjamin, declare,
“Benjamin is a ravenous wolf; In the morning he shall devour the prey, And at night he shall divide the spoil.”
The image of a ravenous wolf here speaks about how the tribe of Benjamin would become well known for their fierce warriors and mighty fighters in battle. Despite being the smallest of the tribes numerically speaking, they had a reputation for producing skilled archers and a long line of effective men of war. Benjamin’s tribe would also produce Israel’s first king, Saul, who came on the scene in the early years of Israel’s history. When Jacob says, “In the morning he shall devour the prey,” he is giving a prophetic nod to the early appearance of the powerful king Saul, who ‘devoured’ and wreaked havoc on the people of God.
The next line reads, “And at night he shall divide the spoil.” This reference to “night” is speaking of the later days for the tribe of Benjamin and the appearance of another powerful man called Saul. This time, it was Saul of Tarsus who came on the scene, who we know went on to become the great Apostle Paul. This man would “divide the spoil”, highlighting that Paul would take the Gospel to the Gentiles and divide the riches of God’s goodness to others.
These words from Jacob are a prophetic picture that the tribe of Benjamin would start out like “a ravenous wolf”, powerfully devouring and destroying at the hands of many warriors and a powerful king. In the later days, however, the tribe would produce the Apostle Paul, who did begin as one who devoured and destroyed, but, after his conversion, went on to divide and share the positive things possessed through Jesus Christ.
Last days study
Genesis 49 is one of the most prophetic chapters in the Bible. The phrase “the last days” is used 14 times in the Old Testament, and every time it’s used, it’s always dealing with prophecy. Rabbinical writers note that every time this particular phrase appears, it’s referencing the last days on this earth.
Jacob’s words to his sons have had deep significance and meaning on many levels, and what we’ve been seeing through this study is Israel’s history from its beginning right through to the final days. These Scriptures have revealed not only the chronological order of what has happened to God’s people in the past but also what’s going to happen to them as a nation in the future, right through to the Kingdom Age.
As Jacob blesses each one of his sons, he doesn’t go from the oldest to the youngest, which was the custom of that time and culture. This indicates there is way more going on than we might first expect, and I’ve found it fascinating to discover the story that’s being unfolded through Jacob’s words. We see Jacob prophesy the journey from the Messiah’s first coming to the rejection of Christ, the dispersing of the Jews into the world, and finally, the restoration of God’s people at the Kingdom age.
As I’ve mentioned throughout this series, this topic is huge and involves a really in-depth study! Too deep for me to delve into fully for this series. I’ve been summarising the key points with each tribe as the year has gone on, however, and so for our conclusion this month, I’ll recap the details!
Reuben was the firstborn who therefore had great potential and privileges as the eldest but was a disappointing first son who fell into immorality and adultery. This speaks of Israel as a nation in its earliest days. They were God’s firstborn, but from the outset they became a disappointing ‘son’.
As soon as they were birthed as a nation, coming out of the Red Sea, they committed fornication, like Reuben, and fell into idolatry with the golden calf. They turned their praise towards false gods, falling into spiritual adultery. Instead of representing the one true living God to the people, the nation betrayed their God and fell into spiritual idolatry. Just like Reuben, Israel was “unstable as water” and a disappointing “firstborn people”.
Secondly, we see Jacob address Simeon and Levi together. He goes on to condemn their wickedness and remove their inheritance from them. Neither son inherited any land, and they were scattered as a people. So too, Israel was removed from their land as a nation, and they became a scattered, or a dispersed people. This was the second phase of Israel’s history.
Judah represents the third phase of Israel as a nation, as after 70 years of being scattered in Babylon, Israel returned to their land. Part of Jacob’s blessing to his fourth son, Judah, talks about how the sceptre will not depart from the tribe of Judah “until Shiloh comes”. The word “shiloh” is rooted in the Hebrew word “shalom”, which means “peace”. Jacob is saying here that from the tribe of Judah will come a Man of peace, that Man being the Messiah, Jesus Christ.
Zebulun signifies the fourth phase of Israel as a nation, as the coastal region belonging to his tribe was conquered and the people were exiled. So too, the nation of Israel became an exiled people as they rejected their Messiah and crucified Him on the Roman Cross. By AD 70, Israel no longer existed as a nation, and they were exiled into the whole world.
The fifth stage in Israel’s history is represented through Issachar as they become an exploited people. During their time of exile, when they were dispersed into all the land, Israel became exploited and abused wherever they went. The nation of Israel comes up against the heavy burden of prejudice and persecution, and this is a devastating consequence of their rejection of Jesus Christ as the Messiah.
So we’ve seen the nation of Israel go from being a disappointing people to a dispersed people, a delivered people, an exiled people, and then an exploited people. These are all things that we can see have already happened in Israel’s history.
Dan goes on to represent what’s going to take place for the nation of Israel in the future, the things still to come in our current time. Dan’s tribe takes us to the tribulation period, and what we see through Jacob’s words is that Dan represents Israel becoming a poisoned people, as many scholars believe the Antichrist will come through the tribe of Dan.
The tribe of Gad then continues the story and shows how the nation of Israel will then become a persecuted people under the wicked hand of the Antichrist. With the tribe of Asher, we see Israel become a protected people through a specific stage of the tribulation, which is the eighth stage of Israel’s journey.
Naphtali then represents a time when the nation of Israel will become a preaching people. This tribe lets us see that after the Jewish people have accepted Jesus Christ as their Messiah, Israel will be let loose like a deer, preaching the Good News of the Gospel and taking the beautiful words of salvation into the whole world. The tribe of Joseph then speaks of the virtuous ruler (Jesus Christ), who will come on the scene towards the end of the Tribulation, which brings us, finally, to Benjamin.
After the return of Christ at His second coming, there will be a victorious remnant left from the nation of Israel. As I mentioned earlier, Benjamin’s tribe was the smallest numerically, and so too in the last days, there will be just a small remnant of Jews saved. Zechariah 13:8 tells us that during this time in the earth’s history, two-thirds of the population of God’s people shall be cut off and die, but one-third shall be left in it. Verse 9 goes on to declare,
“I will bring the one-third through the fire, Will refine them as silver is refined, And test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, And I will answer them. I will say, ‘This is My people’; And each one will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’ ”
What we see through this whole journey of Jacob’s prophetic words to his sons is God’s incredible plan of redemption and restoration for the Jewish people. There will be a remnant of Israel who will profess Jesus Christ as Lord, acknowledge Him as their Messiah and go into the Kingdom Age. Benjamin’s tribe represents the Jews who will go into the Millennial Kingdom, showing us clearly that Israel will be restored.
God will not forsake His people, and He will fulfil the promise He made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. God made a covenant with them which He will not break, and it’s worth considering: if God could break His covenant with the Jews, then He could break His covenant with us. The God of Israel, our Saviour Jesus Christ, is faithful. He does not break His promises.
Closing Thoughts
As I’ve been studying the twelve tribes of Israel, I’ve found it to be one of the most eye-opening topics in the Bible, with so many levels and depths to it! Not only does the order of Jacob’s prophetic blessings give us Israel’s history from the start, right up to the Kingdom age, but the order of birth and naming of each son also creates a picture of the journey of salvation!
We’ve seen, as I’ve gone through the Scriptures this year, that the names given to each son by Rachel and Leah have been significant and revealing for the issues going on within the hearts of these women. When we look at the meaning of each name in the order in which they were born, amazingly, we also see that they reveal the work of salvation.
First we have Reuben, which means, “Behold, a son.” This is the Gospel message God gives to us through His Holy Word. We are invited to see, look, and behold the Son of God!
Second is Simeon, which means “Hearing”. This points us to the fact that we need to hear the Gospel, as faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. The message is hear, and your soul shall live. Behold, a Son; listen to what He has to say.
Next we have Levi, which means “Attached”. Here we have the instruction to be attached to and joined to God’s Son. We are to be united to Christ and have union with Him. Behold, a Son; listen to what He has to say and attach yourself to Him.
Fourth is Judah, meaning “Praise”. Praise is what comes from the heart of the person who has been born again. The natural reaction of someone who has looked upon the Son of God, heard the soul-saving truth of His Gospel and united themself with Him is to praise Him.
Fifth in line is Dan, which means “Judgement”. When we become a Christian, we judge ourselves according to the Word of God to determine what is right and what is wrong. It’s not condemnation; it’s our sanctification as we walk according to God’s Word and God’s ways.
Next we have Naphtali, meaning “Wrestle”. I think every Christian could testify to the spiritual warfare we enter into once we give our lives to God. As Scripture declares, it’s not against the flesh and blood that we wrestle, but with principalities and powers, against rulers of darkness and wickedness in high places.
Seventh in line is Gad, whose name translates to mean “Troop”. This gives a veiled nod to the encouraging truth that as believers, we are no longer alone in this world but now belong to the company of God’s people and the spiritual family of God.
The next name on the list is Asher, which means “Happy”. This gives us the picture of what Christian fellowship should look like. When the people of God are functioning together as intended, there should be joyful, happy communion as we unite together in Christ.
Next up we have Issachar, meaning “Hire” or “Service”. The result of our salvation through Christ should inspire our hearts to want to serve our fellow man and use our gifts to bless others.
Zebulun follows on from this, and his name means “Dwelling”. In the Bible, the words of Jesus, recorded in John 14:2-4, tell us that in His Father’s house there are many rooms, and that He goes there to prepare a place for us to dwell together with Him. It’s so comforting to know that thanks to Christ, we will dwell eternally with the Lord.
This takes us onto the heavenly scene now, as we have the name Joseph. This translates as “Add”, and what we see here is the promise of eternal rewards which will be added to those who used their life to be about their Father’s business. They will have the stored-up treasures in Heaven (spoken of in Matthew 6:20), added to their account, according to their service on earth.
Lastly, we have Benjamin, which means “Son of my right hand”. This name speaks directly of Jesus Christ, as did the first son on the list. The first and the last speak of Jesus because He is the First and the Last. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.
…………………………
Studying the twelve sons of Jacob and the twelve tribes of Israel this year has been a mammoth task but it’s shown me that these Scriptures certainly have some interesting stories to tell! It fills my heart with awe and wonder for the perfect, prophetic, infallible Word of God. Every fulfilled prophecy is another affirmation that the Bible is true and that the Lord’s plans will come to fruition and completion in His perfect time.
I pray you’ve enjoyed this series and that you’ve found it to be edifying and insightful. If anything, I think this topic has really highlighted the importance of making sure we’re on the right track with our Saviour and that we need to be about our Father’s business in these last days.
At this point in history, we’re in the time of Issachar, when the Jews are an exploited people. The Great Tribulation is yet to come, although for those of us who are part of the Bride of Christ, we will not have to face these hardships. Nowhere in Scripture do you find God punishing the righteous with the wicked, and a loving bridegroom will never beat his bride.
There is much yet to unfold, but the wonderful thing is, we can see God’s plan of redemption and salvation for Israel and all those who would turn to Him is already set in place. The blueprint is written, the journey is already mapped out; the victory is already won. So let’s redeem the time and fix our eyes on our Saviour Jesus Christ, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of Israel, as we await the next phase of His divine and exciting plan of redemption!
