Scepter Shall Not Depart Judah | Created Date: 20-Jul-2020 |
The Legend that never happened and |
Last updated: 4-Apr-2021 |
The Correct Interpretation of Genesis 49:10 | |
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1 | The Prophecy of the Scepter | 2 | Unfortunate Christian Legend |
3 | Did Israel Always have the Ability? | 4 | Was the loss of Capital Punishment Regained? |
5 | What Did Jacob's Prophecy Mean? |
One part of the prophetic verse, in Genesis 49:10, there is a Messianic prophecy:
"scepter shall not depart from Judah" until "Shiloh comes".
Shiloh according to Biblical Hebrew Scholars, the verse based on the usage in Genesis 49:10, is messianic that points to the Messiah. It was meant in the context of the verse to mean "the One who will be sent" and "the Bearer of Rest" who will replace the scepter of the tribe Judah. It is confirmed in the same verse "to Him shall be the obedience of the people". There is also more on verse 11 discussed at the end of this topic, that is fascinating.
Genesis 49:8-13 | 8 Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise; Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; Your father s children shall bow down before you. 9 Judah is a lion s whelp; From the prey, my son, you have gone up. He bows down, he lies down as a lion; And as a lion, who shall rouse him? 10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people. 11 Binding his donkey to the vine, And his donkey s colt to the choice vine, He washed his garments in wine, And his clothes in the blood of grapes. 12 His eyes are darker than wine, And his teeth whiter than milk. |
We know that the first king of the nation of Israel was Saul who was from the Tribe of Benjamin. After Saul came the most famous and well-known of the Israel, King David, who was from the Tribe of Judah. King David had much to write in the Psalms about the future Messiah. Additionally, King David was part of the Royal Blood-Line of Jesus Christ.
The correct understanding of the prophecy by Jacob is: The nation of Israel will be ruled by Kings from the tribe of Judah until the final King of Kings comes to rule. This is discussed more later in this topic. |
"Woe unto us for the scepter has departed from Judah and the Messiah has not come!".
This quote is attributed to a writing in a Talmudic source such as the Babylonian Talmud (PDF searchable) that:
The explanation of the legend states that at the time after the birth of Jesus Christ, the Roman authorities took away the authority of the Sanhedrin to administer capital punishment, namely execution away from them.
When the Romans had taken away the ability, the legend goes on to state that the Sanhedrin went about the city of Jerusalem dressed in sack cloth, ashes on their faces and chanting this statement listed above. The implication of this legend states that those who participated in this march around the City of Jerusalem thought that the Word of God had been supposedly been broken because the Messiah had not come. The unfortunate false information about this legend, goes on further to state:
"They didn't know that there was a small Jewish boy in a carpenter's shop that was the Messiah, so the Word of God was not broken."
While the taking away of the authority to administer capital punishment by the Romans is true and confirmed in the scriptures, this was not the only time that Israel did not have the right to administer capital punishment amongst their own people. In fact, there are four other points to consider:
Other historical documentation of the authority of Sanhedrin to administer capital punishment during the period of time when the Romans ruled over Israel is recorded in: Josephus, "Wars of the Jews", Book 2, Chapter 8 (Click here for excerpt screen capture)
When this author first heard this legend, it did not make sense:
Note that Israel, as a nation, failed to recognize their Messiah on Palm Sunday which was prophesied in the Book of Daniel as the exact day which the Messiah would present Himself. Jesus Christ held them accountable as discussed in the Coming Prince, where Israel as a nation, will finally recognize their Messiah in the Tribulation Period. There were many people in Israel who did recognize Jesus Christ as the Messiah and they are part of the formation of the Church.
Regarding the Legend, did the Sanhedrin or the King of Israel always have the ability to administer capital punishment? Was there always a king from the tribe of Judah ruling? The quick and obvious answer is no to both questions.
During the history of Israel as a Nation, the Sanhedrin, did have authority to administer capital punishment, but other times they did not. There are some Biblical Scholars that point out that they did not have the right to administer capital punishment during some of the periods when Israel was ruled by other nations. During these periods, there may have been a King of Israel of the tribe of Judah, albeit not ruling.
When the Sanhedrin lost their right to administer capital punishment to Rome, around 6 to 7 AD, as also noted in a Josephus references, then the Sanhedrin did not have the ability to have Jesus Christ stoned to death as confirmed in John 18:31. God knew the history in advance and the loss was by His Design because Jesus Christ had to be executed by another method to fulfill many prophecies such as the model given in the Bronze Serpent event.
John 18:31 | Then said Pilate unto them, Take ye him, and judge him according to your law. The Jews therefore said unto him, It is not lawful for us to put any man to death. |
No explanation needed why this is wrong to believe and hold on to something in faith that is not true. The non-believing world is too often subjected to false information that turns them away from the Truth of Jesus Christ!
A quick Internet Search will show a few Jewish based sites that ridicule articles on the Legend with the summation that Christians are always using false information and interpreting scriptures wrong. This author finds this embarrassing for the Christian Faith.
It was:
Notice in the scriptural verse:
Genesis 49:10 | 10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people. 11 Binding his donkey to the vine, And his donkey s colt to the choice vine, He washed his garments in wine, And his clothes in the blood of grapes. |
Zechariah 9:9 | Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, Humble, and mounted on a donkey, Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey. |
John 12:15 | Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your King is coming, seated on a donkey s colt. |
What to read next?
The Scepter Shall Not Depart Judah. What is Salvation? Is it possible to lose Salvation? We have eternal life. Evolution is not real. When a Christian suffers is there benefits from it. Rewards in heaven. Do we Tithe? What does the 3rd Commandment tell us? What is Grace and Mercy? Is there an Age of Accountability? Is there a place of unending punishment and exile form God?