"20 By faith Isaac invoked future blessings on Jacob and Esau.21 By faith Jacob, when dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, bowing in worship over the head of his staff. 22 By faith Joseph, at the end of his life, made mention of the exodus of the Israelites and gave directions concerning his bones."
Hebrews 11:20-22
Isaac, Jacob and Joseph are covered each in a single verse. This does not mean they are of little importance, for doubtless the Apostle could have made much apt comment on these lives so different from each other. His concern, however, is not to elaborate, but to select what is particularly relevant to his purpose. And we learn two things: first, that the supremely important fact in these patriarchal lives was that they fulfilled God's purpose and destiny for them, playing the part, so to speak, that God cast for them in the great drama of redemption - each in turn passed on the living hope to the next generation; and, second, they died in faith, having continued to the end, in spite of all the vicissitudes of their experience and the turbulence of their days. Jesus once said, "He that endureth to the end shall be saved", and it is this that the Apostle is wishing to underline, in view of the tendency in his readers to lose hope in face of the pressures around them and give up the fight. The patriarchs had the forward look and this, the Apostle would maintain, is what steadied them and kept them faithful. The question that this poses to us is: Is our belief in the unseen world-to-come strong enough, real enough, to anchor us in a life of faithfulness down the years, to the very end? In fact, nothing else will do this.