"The sixth lot came out for Naphtali according to its clans: Their boundary went from Heleph and the large tree in Zaanannim, passing Adami Nekeb and Jabneel to Lakuum and ending at the Jordan. The boundary ran west through Aznoth Tabor and came out at Hukkok. It touched Zebulun on the south, Asher on the west and the Jordan on the east. The fortified towns were Ziddim, Zer, Hammath, Rakkath, Kinnereth, Adamah, Ramah, Hazor, Kedesh, Edrei, En Hazor, Iron, Migdal El, Horem, Beth Anath and Beth Shemesh. There were nineteen towns and their villages. These towns and their villages were the inheritance of the tribe of Naphtali, according to its clans." (Joshua 19:32-39)
Jacob's prophecy regarding the tribe of Naphtali was: "Naphtali is a doe set free that bears beautiful fawns." (Genesis 49:21) This verse has proven difficult to translate from the original language; an alternate translation is "he utters beautiful words" or "he bears goodly words". Jesus performed much of His ministry and teaching within the borders of Naphtali, uttering beautiful words and preaching the good news of the gospel, so it may be that Jacob's prophecy regarding Naphtali was fulfilled in the New Testament. Also the prophet Isaiah, when speaking of the land of Zebulun and Naphtali combined because their territories included Galilee and the surrounding region, foretold that these people would be blessed in the future by seeing a great light. (Isaiah 9:1-2)The gospel writer Matthew states that Isaiah's prophecy was fulfilled by the ministry of Jesus in the region of Galilee. (Matthew 4:12-17)
When Moses blessed the twelve tribes of Israel he said of Naphtali: "Naphtali is abounding with the favor of the Lord and is full of His blessing; he will inherit southward to the lake." (Deuteronomy 33:23) Moses never set foot in the promised land but he prophetically saw "the lake" that bordered the southern tip of Naphtali: this lake is the Sea of Galilee, otherwise known as the Sea of Kinnereth. You'll note in verse 35 of our study today that Naphtali inherited a fortified city at Kinnereth. The Sea of Galilee features prominently in the gospel accounts; therefore Moses was correct in saying Naphtali would be favored by the Lord and would be full of His blessing, not only because the land was rich but because the Son of God would walk there, talk there, and sail on the Sea of Galilee.
Naphtali, like the other tribes, did not fully rid their land of the heathen tribes of Canaan. The book of Judges will tell us that Canaanites remained in Beth Anath and Beth Shemesh and that in time the Naphtalites were able to subject these pagans to forced labor. If they had enough military might to subject them to forced labor, it stands to reason that the tribe of Naphtali possessed the military might to rid themselves of these Canaanites altogether, but subjugating them made the living even easier in the land of milk and honey. We all have a tendency to want to take the easy route, don't we? It appears that human beings have a natural inclination to save themselves from making extra efforts. We know that being physically lazy has a detrimental effect on our physical health. Being mentally lazy is not good for us either; there's a great deal of evidence that we're more likely to experience cognitive decline as we age if we do not exercise our minds. And as we've discussed many times before, being spiritually lazy is extremely dangerous. Leaving the Canaanites within their borders caused the Naphtalites to become spiritually lazy, to be comfortable with leaving some of the Lord's instructions unfulfilled, and to compromise their values. Allowing the heathens of Canaan to remain within the tribes of Israel eventually led to many of Israel's citizens falling into the idolatry of the Canaanites, just as the Lord warned them it would.
Yet the Lord blessed the region of Naphtali with the presence of His Son! You and I are sinners, just like every other person who has ever lived on the face of the earth, and yet the Lord blesses us with the offer of salvation through His Son. A lot of the Bible characters made big mistakes and we are going to see the Lord bestowing much mercy and compassion on them in spite of their failings. We too have made big mistakes but the Lord has bestowed much mercy and compassion on us as well. Wherever we find mankind failing to live up to the Lord's standards, we also find the Lord urging man to repent so He can extend forgiveness. The Lord's mercy is so great toward us because His love is so great toward us.
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