The tribe of Issachar was one of the elitist tribe (even though certain people may not agree because they went into extinction) in Israel. And there was nothing that made them elitist other than the fact that the Bible recorded that they understood times and seasons, and they knew what Israel (their nation, not their tribe) ought to do. 1 Chronicles 12:32 (NLT) says: “From the tribe of Issachar, there were 200 leaders of the tribe with their relatives. All these men understood the signs of the times and knew the best course for Israel to take.”
God had spoken to Jacob through an angel: “Your name will no longer be Jacob,” the man told him. “From now on you will be called Israel, because you have fought with God and with men and have won” (Genesis 32:28). It appeared that Jacob had wrestled with an angel all through the night because he wanted a blessing. Jacob had been running away from his brothers for several years simply because he believed he had tricked his brother Esau into selling his birthright through a plate of meal. The Lord had instructed him to return back to his country and he was on that trip when he met this angel of the Lord and they both wrestled all night.
When the fight was coming to an end, the angel said to Jacob:
“Let Me go, for the day breaks.”
But he said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!”
So He said to him, “What is your name?”
He said, “Jacob.”
And He said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.”
Genesis 32:26-28
That was how the name, “Israel” came to be! Issachar happened to be the ninth son of Jacob, the progenitor of the nation of Israel. At the time when their father, Jacob was pronouncing the blessing on each of his sons (this was the time Jacob was nearing his departure), which later became the prophetic destiny and characteristics of his children; Jacob’s blessing on Issachar could be seen as follows:
Issachar is a strong donkey,
Lying down between two burdens;
He saw that the rest was good,
And that the land was pleasant;
He bowed his shoulder to bear a burden,
And became a band of slaves.
Genesis 49:14-15
Even though the prophetic blessing of Jacob on Issachar appeared somewhat condescending, however, the central role of this tribe within the army of David as reported in 1 Chronicles 12:32 cannot be undermined or neglected. The first thing you would notice is that the tribe of Issachar on their own, was a coordinated tribe and their brethren were at their command. Benson’s commentary opined that the phrase “That had understanding of the times” to mean:“They understood public affairs, the temper of the nation, and the tendencies of the present events.”
So, because of this (being one of the elitist tribes), they could bring their ideas, their skills and knowledge to bear in the running of their nation as a whole. Their level of coordination, knowledge of public affairs and their ability to know times and season, skills they had put to work within their own tribe; and which has produced for them enormous results, is now required in the administration of the entire nation of Israel.
There is a spiritual lesson in this story of Issachar that I want to relate with what is happening in Nigeria today, especially among its elitist group. Before now, many nations in Africa have looked up to Nigeria in many respect. As a matter of fact, this assertion was further buttressed when former United States President, Barack Obama said “Nigeria is critical to the rest of the continent and if Nigeria does not get it right, Africa will really not make more progress.” It would have been possible many years ago for Nigeria to dictate the pace of development in the continent of Africa as a whole, but no thanks to Nigeria’s political elite who lacked the vision to place Nigeria at the forefront of Africa’s development.
It was possible at a time for Nigeria to have become the Issachar of Africa, determining what the continent ought to do and setting the pace for other African nations. Elementary social studies textbook once asserted that Nigeria is the Giant of Africa while in reality, this is not the case. But the truth is that there is absolutely nothing that stops Nigeria from becoming and asserting itself as the giant of Africa in every respect. A cursory look at the following statistics can rightly position Nigeria right at the very top when it comes to the affairs of the continent of Africa.
By the end of 2019, Nigeria was deemed to be the richest country in Africa, with her Gross Domestic Product (GDP) estimated at $600B US Dollars. Although this figure is still small when compared with what some states in the United States commands on yearly basis. But most African nations would not mind to seat where Nigeria currently is and remain there, if possible.
In terms of consumer market, Nigeria is estimated to be about 200 million people, and this figure is expected to double by 2050 (estimated 402 million people), according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Nigeria’s crude oil still makes for the highest percentage of its foreign exchange and which is what drives the Nigerian economy. The current administration and its predecessors have struggled to diversify the economy, which is why Nigeria struggles to meet her ends meet each time there is a problem with crude oil prices on global stage. There is no respite yet for the 2020 budget with the current realities as crude prices keep fluctuating.
Let us even imagine that the whole of Africa is too big for Nigeria to remain the economic powerhouse. How far is Nigeria currently doing even in West Africa sub region? Can Nigeria even boast currently as a regional Superpower? The strides Ghana have recorded lately is even enough for Nigeria to hide somewhere and ruminate. A cursory look at how Nigeria and Ghana have fared so far in tackling Covid-19 is even enough to clear anyone’s doubt. The many failures of Nigeria today is no doubt traceable to the Political Elites who have refused to position Nigeria rightly, despite the huge potentials and the resources God has bestowed on the nation.
The main responsibility of political elite to the nation as a whole is to restructure the social order by attempting to rally and tap accessible resources and political energies. What Nigerian elites have done is completely opposite of this assertion. Nigeria Political Elites have not been useful even within the confines of Nigeria by trying to mitigate poverty, solve unemployment crisis, build more infrastructure, establish world-class health care system, rejuvenate its failing educational system. I believe the least of their worries would even be to place Nigeria in her rightful place within the continent of Africa.
The tribe of Issachar was a small group in the nation of Israel, but they possess such power to influence the entire cause of their nation. If Nigeria Political Elites will put aside their differences, in terms of ethnicity, region, religion, state of origin, and all those vices that have worked against the development of the nation since her independence in 1960, I believe Nigeria will make tremendous progress. Nigeria can no doubt, become the Giant of Africa again. However, this cannot be possible if there is no unity and faith among one another.
Thank you!
[Centre for New Dimension Leadership]
