“Reuben, you are my firstborn,
my might, and the firstfruits of my strength,
preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power.
Unstable as water, you shall not have preeminence,
because you went up to your father's bed;
then you defiled it—he went up to my couch!
We reap what we sow ... but, sometimes, not until years later. Perhaps one of the misconceptions of people is that when they do wrong and have no immediate consequences, they soon forget and move on. That is the point of the above passage. In his death, Israel is blessing his children. That was a large tradition in the ancient world. Reuben, the first born, comes forward and expects a blessing, typically something good and pleasant and rejoicing. Instead Reuben is meet with a history lesson. Earlier in Reuben’s life he went into one of Israel’s concubines for sexual pleasure. This was probably forgotten by Reuben. But was not forgotten by Israel. This is the case with most of us. Even believers get confused about this. We can find relief and forgiveness for sins, but we have to remember the consequences can still linger and cause impact years later. A teen pregnancy can be forgive by God, but you still have a baby to raise. A wayward spouse can be forgiven by God, but the divorce and alienation from their family stands for years. Often the past can impact the present in ways we don’t wish, but still does. Israel is not saying he does not forgive his son. However, the consequences of Reuben’s sin was still apparent in this blessing. That is where we find relief from God, as well, however. We might still have the baby, but we have the God of the universe to guide us and give us strength to raise the child. We might have failed in our marriage, but God is there to lead us and strengthen us and give us power to live. Consequences continue, but God is there to repair and to love beyond on that. Perhaps the best example of this is the story in the book of Philemon in the New Testament. Philemon had a runaway slave (Onesimus). He was captured is placed in prison, next to Paul. Paul led him to Christ and then sends him back to Philemon. There is payment to be made. He is forgiven for his sins, but he still owes Philemon a debt. What does Paul do? He pays Onesimus’ debt. That is how consequences in God’s world works. Onesimus was forgiven but the debt of his behavior still had to be paid. But, God provided the payment via the Body of Christ.
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