Deuteronomy 33:22 – Plan for spiritual growth

In Deuteronomy 33:22 Moses saw the tribe of Dan as a young, agile, and resourceful lion. But in Genesis 49:7 Jacob said of them as “… a serpent in the way, a viper by the path, that bites the horse's heels so that his rider falls backward.” In calling them “a lion’s whelp,” Moses was talking about their agility and resourcefulness, much like that of a young lion. And with agility, they could pounce upon their enemies and confound them much like a young lion which would leap upon its prey and stun it.

Jacob’s reference of the tribe of Dan was “a serpent and a viper.” We often don’t have a very good impression of a serpent and viper because a bite from either of them can be lethal. So why did Jacob refer to them as serpent and viper in his blessing of Dan? He was likely referring to their wisdom in strategy. The best part of the horse to attack and topple its rider would be the heel. The wisdom of the serpent and viper was in knowing to attack the right part of the horse to bring down its rider. In that sense the serpent or the viper is wise. They were resourceful in strategy. Jesus was probably referring to the resourcefulness in strategy in Matthew 10:16, when He told his disciples saying, “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.

Both Moses and Jacob were referring to the resourcefulness, swiftness, and agility of the tribe of Dan. So what lessons can we learn from what had been said of the Danites? Here is a call for us believers to be spiritually agile and resourceful. To be resourceful one needs to stay connected to God and let His words dwell richly in one’s heart. So that we will be able to ensure proper spiritual growth. We need to have a disciplined and well-strategized plan to ensure our progress in our walk with Christ. Our growth will not be as progressive if we don’t have a well-strategized plan for it. If we fail to plan, we are planning to fail. So let’s be wise and have a good growth plan for our spiritual life!