Genesis 49

Jacob's Prophecy concerning His Sons

1And Jacob called unto his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days.

2Gather yourselves together, and hear, ye sons of Jacob;

and hearken unto Israel your father.

3Reuben, thou art my firstborn,

my might, and the beginning of my strength,

the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:

4unstable as water, thou shalt not excel;

because thou wentest up to thy father's bed;

then defiledst thou it: he went up to my couch.

5Simeon and Levi are brethren;

instruments of cruelty are in their habitations.

6O my soul, come not thou into their secret;

unto their assembly, mine honor, be not thou united:

for in their anger they slew a man,

and in their self-will they digged down a wall.

7Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce;

and their wrath, for it was cruel:

I will divide them in Jacob,

and scatter them in Israel.

8Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise:

thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies;

thy father's children shall bow down before thee.

9 # Num 24.9. Judah is a lion's whelp:

from the prey, my son, thou art gone up:

he stooped down, he couched as a lion,

and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up?

10The sceptre shall not depart from Judah,

nor a lawgiver from between his feet,

until Shiloh come;

and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.

11Binding his foal unto the vine,

and his ass's colt unto the choice vine;

he washed his garments in wine,

and his clothes in the blood of grapes:

12his eyes shall be red with wine,

and his teeth white with milk.

13Zeb´ulun shall dwell at the haven of the sea;

and he shall be for a haven of ships;

and his border shall be unto Zidon.

14Is´sachar is a strong ass

couching down between two burdens:

15and he saw that rest was good,

and the land that it was pleasant;

and bowed his shoulder to bear,

and became a servant unto tribute.

16Dan shall judge his people,

as one of the tribes of Israel.

17Dan shall be a serpent by the way,

an adder in the path,

that biteth the horse heels,

so that his rider shall fall backward.

18I have waited for thy salvation, O Lord.

19Gad, a troop shall overcome him:

but he shall overcome at the last.

20Out of Asher his bread shall be fat,

and he shall yield royal dainties.

21Naph´tali is a hind let loose:

he giveth goodly words.

22Joseph is a fruitful bough,

even a fruitful bough by a well;

whose branches run over the wall:

23the archers have sorely grieved him,

and shot at him, and hated him:

24but his bow abode in strength,

and the arms of his hands were made strong

by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob;

(from thence is the shepherd, the stone of Israel;)

25 even by the God of thy father, who shall help thee;

and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee

with blessings of heaven above,

blessings of the deep that lieth under,

blessings of the breasts, and of the womb:

26the blessings of thy father have prevailed

above the blessings of my progenitors

unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills:

they shall be on the head of Joseph,

and on the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren.

27Benjamin shall raven as a wolf:

in the morning he shall devour the prey,

and at night he shall divide the spoil.

The Death and Burial of Jacob

28All these are the twelve tribes of Israel: and this is it that their father spake unto them, and blessed them; every one according to his blessing he blessed them. 29And he charged them, and said unto them, I am to be gathered unto my people: bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 30#Gen 23.3-20. in the cave that is in the field of Machpe´lah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of Ephron the Hittite for a possession of a buryingplace. 31#Gen 25.9,10; Gen 35.29. There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife; there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife; and there I buried Le´ah. 32The purchase of the field and of the cave that is therein was from the children of Heth. 33#Acts 7.15. And when Jacob had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the ghost, and was gathered unto his people.

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Genesis 49

1Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather around. I want to tell you what you can expect in the days to come.”

2Come together, listen sons of Jacob,

listen to Israel your father.

3-4Reuben, you’re my firstborn,

my strength, first proof of my manhood,

at the top in honor and at the top in power,

But like a bucket of water spilled,

you’ll be at the top no more,

Because you climbed into your father’s marriage bed,

mounting that couch, and you defiled it.

5-6Simeon and Levi are two of a kind,

ready to fight at the drop of a hat.

I don’t want anything to do with their vendettas,

want no part in their bitter feuds;

They kill men in fits of temper,

slash oxen on a whim.

7A curse on their uncontrolled anger,

on their indiscriminate wrath.

I’ll throw them out with the trash;

I’ll shred and scatter them like confetti throughout Israel.

8-12You, Judah, your brothers will praise you:

Your fingers on your enemies’ throat,

while your brothers honor you.

You’re a lion’s cub, Judah,

home fresh from the kill, my son.

Look at him, crouched like a lion, king of beasts;

who dares mess with him?

The scepter shall not leave Judah;

he’ll keep a firm grip on the command staff

Until the ultimate ruler comes

and the nations obey him.

He’ll tie up his donkey to the grapevine,

his purebred prize to a sturdy branch.

He will wash his shirt in wine

and his cloak in the blood of grapes,

His eyes will be darker than wine,

his teeth whiter than milk.

13Zebulun settles down on the seashore;

he’s a safe harbor for ships,

right alongside Sidon.

14-15Issachar is one tough donkey

crouching between the corrals;

When he saw how good the place was,

how pleasant the country,

He gave up his freedom

and went to work as a slave.

16-17Dan will handle matters of justice for his people;

he will hold his own just fine among the tribes of Israel.

Dan is only a small snake in the grass,

a lethal serpent in ambush by the road

When he strikes a horse in the heel,

and brings its huge rider crashing down.

18I wait in hope

for your salvation, God.

19Gad will be attacked by bandits,

but he will trip them up.

20Asher will become famous for rich foods,

candies and sweets fit for kings.

21-26Naphtali is a deer running free

that gives birth to lovely fawns.

Joseph is a wild donkey,

a wild donkey by a spring,

spirited donkeys on a hill.

The archers with malice attacked,

shooting their hate-tipped arrows;

But he held steady under fire,

his bow firm, his arms limber,

With the backing of the Champion of Jacob,

the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel.

The God of your father—may he help you!

And may The Strong God—may he give you his blessings,

Blessings tumbling out of the skies,

blessings bursting up from the Earth—

blessings of breasts and womb.

May the blessings of your father

exceed the blessings of the ancient mountains,

surpass the delights of the eternal hills;

May they rest on the head of Joseph,

on the brow of the one consecrated among his brothers.

27Benjamin is a ravenous wolf;

all morning he gorges on his kill,

at evening divides up what’s left over.

28All these are the tribes of Israel, the twelve tribes. And this is what their father said to them as he blessed them, blessing each one with his own special farewell blessing.

* * *

29-32Then he instructed them: “I am about to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave which is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, the cave in the field of Machpelah facing Mamre in the land of Canaan, the field Abraham bought from Ephron the Hittite for a burial plot. Abraham and his wife Sarah were buried there; Isaac and his wife Rebekah were buried there; I also buried Leah there. The field and the cave were bought from the Hittites.”

33Jacob finished instructing his sons, pulled his feet into bed, breathed his last, and was gathered to his people.

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