Genesis 49

Jacob Blesses His Sons

Dt 33:1–29

1#Nu 24:14; Jer 23:20Jacob called to his sons and said, “Gather yourselves together, so that I may tell you what will befall you in the last days.

2#Ps 34:11 Gather yourselves together and hear, sons of Jacob,

and listen to your father Israel.

3#Dt 21:17; Ge 29:32 Reuben, you are my firstborn,

my might and the beginning of my strength,

the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power.

4#Ge 35:22; Dt 27:20 Unstable as water, you shall not excel,

because you went up to your father’s bed;

then you defiled it—he went up to my couch.

5#Ge 29:33–34; 34:25–31 Simeon and Levi are brothers;

weapons of violence are their swords.

6#Ps 26:9; Ge 34:30 Let my soul not enter into their council;

let my glory not be united with their assembly;

for in their anger they killed men

and in their self-will they hamstrung oxen.

7#Jos 19:1–9; 1Ch 4:24–31 Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce;

and their wrath, for it is cruel!

I will divide them in Jacob

and scatter them in Israel.

8#1Ch 5:2; Ge 27:29 Judah, your brothers shall praise you;

your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;

your father’s sons will bow down before you.

9#Nu 24:9; Rev 5:5 Judah is a lion’s cub;

from the prey, my son, you have goneup.

He crouches and lies down like a lion;

and as a lion, who dares rouse him?

10#Nu 24:17; Ps 60:7 The scepter shall not depart from Judah,

nor a lawgiver from between his feet,

until Shiloh comes;

and to him will be the obedience of the people.

11#2Ki 18:32 He tethers his foal to the vine,

and his colt to the choicest vine;

he washes his garments in wine,

his clothes in the blood of grapes.

12#Pr 23:29 His eyes are darker than wine,

and his teeth whiter than milk.

13#Dt 33:18–19; Ge 30:20 Zebulun shall dwell at the haven of the sea;

and he shall be a haven of ships.

His border shall be at Sidon.

14#Ge 30:18; 1Ch 12:32 Issachar is a strong donkey,

lying down between two burdens;

15he saw that a resting place was good,

and that the land was pleasant;

so he bowed his shoulder to bear the burden

and became a slave to forced labor.

16#Ge 30:6; Dt 33:22 Dan shall judge his people

as one of the tribes of Israel.

17Dan shall be a serpent by the road,

a viper on the path,

that bites the horse’s heels

so that its rider will fall backward.

18#Ps 119:166; 119:174 I wait for Your salvation, O Lord!

19#Ge 30:11 Gad shall be attacked by raiding bands,

but he shall raid at their heels.

20#Ge 30:13; Dt 33:24–25 Asher’s food shall be rich,

and he shall yield royal delicacies.

21#Dt 33:23; Ge 30:8 Naphtali is a doe set loose;

he gives beautiful words.

22#Ge 41:52 Joseph is a fruitful bough,

a fruitful bough by a spring,

whose branches run over the wall.

23#Ge 37:24; 37:28 The archers bitterly attacked him,

they shot at him and hated him.

24#Ps 132:2; 132:5 But his bow remained firm.

His arms were agile

because of the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob,

because of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel,

25#Ge 28:13; 17:1 because of the God of your father who will help you,

and by the Almighty who will bless you

with blessings from heaven above,

blessings from the deep that lies beneath,

the blessings of the breasts and the womb.

26#Dt 33:15–16; Hab 3:6 The blessings of your father have surpassed

the blessings of my fathers,

up to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills.

They will be on the head of Joseph,

and on the crown of the head of him who was set apart from his brothers.

27#Ge 35:18; Jdg 20:21 Benjamin is a ravenous wolf;

in the morning he devours the prey,

and at night he divides the spoil.”

28These are all the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father said to them when he blessed them. He blessed them, each with the blessing appropriate to him.

The Death of Jacob

29#Ge 47:30; 50:13Then he charged them and said to them, “I am about to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 30in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought along with the field from Ephron the Hittite as a burial place. 31#Ge 25:9; 35:29They buried Abraham and Sarah his wife there. They buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife there, and I buried Leah there. 32The field and the cave that is there were purchased from the children of Heth.”

33#Ge 49:29; 25:8When Jacob finished instructing his sons, he drew his feet into the bed, breathed his last, and was gathered to his people.

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Genesis 49

Jacob’s Prophecy concerning His Sons

1Then Jacob summoned his sons and said, “Assemble yourselves, so that I may tell you what will happen to you in the #49:1 Lit end of the daysdays to come.

2“Gather together and listen, sons of Jacob;

Yes, listen to Israel your father.

3¶“Reuben, you are my firstborn,

My might and the beginning of my strength,

Preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power.

4“#49:4 Or Gushing overUncontrollable as water, you shall not have preeminence,

Because you went up to your father’s bed;

Then you defiled it—he went up to my couch.

5¶“Simeon and Levi are brothers;

Their #49:5 Or plans; meaning uncertainswords are implements of violence.

6“May my soul not enter into their council;

May my glory not be united with their assembly;

For in their anger they killed #49:6 Lit a manmen,

And in their self-will they lamed #49:6 Lit an oxoxen.

7“Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce;

And their wrath, for it is cruel.

I will scatter them in Jacob,

And disperse them among Israel.

8¶“As for you, Judah, your brothers shall praise you;

Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;

Your father’s sons shall bow down to you.

9“Judah is a lion’s cub;

From the prey, my son, you have gone up.

He #49:9 Lit bows downcrouches, he lies down as a lion,

And as a #49:9 Lit lionesslion, who #49:9 Lit shalldares to stir him up?

10“The scepter will not depart from Judah,

Nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,

# 49:10 Or Until he comes to Shiloh; or Until he comes to whom it belongs Until Shiloh comes,

And to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.

11“He ties his foal to the vine,

And his donkey’s colt to the choice vine;

He washes his garments in wine,

And his robes in the blood of grapes.

12“His eyes are #49:12 Or darker thandull from wine,

And his teeth #49:12 Or whiter thanwhite from milk.

13¶“Zebulun will reside at the seashore;

And he shall be #49:13 Lit a shore of shipsa harbor for ships,

And his flank shall be toward Sidon.

14¶“Issachar is a #49:14 Lit donkey of bonestrong donkey,

Lying down between the sheepfolds.

15“When he saw that a resting place was good

And that the land was pleasant,

He bowed his shoulder to carry burdens,

And became a slave at forced labor.

16¶“Dan shall judge his people,

As one of the tribes of Israel.

17“Dan shall be a serpent in the way,

A horned viper in the path,

That bites the horse’s heels,

So that its rider falls backward.

18“For Your salvation I wait, Lord.

19¶“As for Gad, a band of raiders shall attack him,

But he will attack at their #49:19 Lit heelheels.

20¶“#49:20 Lit FromAs for Asher, his #49:20 Or breadfood shall be #49:20 Lit fatrich,

And he will yield royal delicacies.

21¶“Naphtali is a doe let loose;

He utters beautiful words.

22¶“Joseph is a fruitful #49:22 Lit sonbranch,

A fruitful #49:22 Lit sonbranch by a spring;

Its #49:22 Lit daughtersbranches hang over a wall.

23“The archers provoked him,

And shot at him and were hostile toward him;

24But his bow remained #49:24 I.e., in an unyielding positionfirm,

And #49:24 Lit the arms of his handshis arms were agile,

From the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob

(From there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel),

25From the God of your father who helps you,

And #49:25 Or withby the #49:25 Heb ShaddaiAlmighty who blesses you

With blessings of heaven above,

Blessings of the deep that lies beneath,

Blessings of the breasts and of the womb.

26“The blessings of your father

Have surpassed the blessings of my ancestors

Up to the #49:26 Lit limit; or desirefurthest boundary of the everlasting hills;

May they be on the head of Joseph,

And on the top of the head of the one distinguished among his brothers.

27¶“Benjamin is a #49:27 Lit a wolf that tearsravenous wolf;

In the morning he devours the prey,

And in the evening he divides the spoils.”

28All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father said to them #49:28 Lit andwhen he blessed them. He blessed them, every one #49:28 Lit according to his blessingwith the blessing appropriate to him.

Jacob Dies

29Then he commanded them and said to them, “I am about to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 30in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is opposite Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought along with the field from Ephron the Hittite as a #49:30 Lit possession of a burial placeburial site. 31There they buried Abraham and his wife Sarah, there they buried Isaac and his wife Rebekah, and there I buried Leah— 32the field and the cave that is in it, purchased from the sons of Heth.” 33When Jacob finished commanding his sons, he drew his feet into the bed and breathed his last, and was gathered to his people.

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