Deuteronomy 33
New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised
Moses’ Final Blessing on Israel
33 This is the blessing with which Moses, the man of God, blessed the Israelites before his death. 2 He said:
The Lord came from Sinai,
and dawned from Seir upon us;[a]
he shone forth from Mount Paran.
With him were myriads of holy ones;[b]
at his right, a host of his own.[c]
3 Indeed, O favourite among[d] peoples,
all his holy ones were in your charge;
they marched at your heels,
accepted direction from you.
4 Moses charged us with the law,
as a possession for the assembly of Jacob.
5 There arose a king in Jeshurun,
when the leaders of the people assembled—
the united tribes of Israel.
6 May Reuben live, and not die out,
even though his numbers are few.
7 And this he said of Judah:
O Lord, give heed to Judah,
and bring him to his people;
strengthen his hands for him,[e]
and be a help against his adversaries.
8 And of Levi he said:
Give to Levi[f] your Thummim,
and your Urim to your loyal one,
whom you tested at Massah,
with whom you contended at the waters of Meribah;
9 who said of his father and mother,
‘I regard them not’;
he ignored his kin,
and did not acknowledge his children.
For they observed your word,
and kept your covenant.
10 They teach Jacob your ordinances,
and Israel your law;
they place incense before you,
and whole burnt-offerings on your altar.
11 Bless, O Lord, his substance,
and accept the work of his hands;
crush the loins of his adversaries,
of those that hate him, so that they do not rise again.
12 Of Benjamin he said:
The beloved of the Lord rests in safety—
the High God[g] surrounds him all day long—
the beloved[h] rests between his shoulders.
13 And of Joseph he said:
Blessed by the Lord be his land,
with the choice gifts of heaven above,
and of the deep that lies beneath;
14 with the choice fruits of the sun,
and the rich yield of the months;
15 with the finest produce of the ancient mountains,
and the abundance of the everlasting hills;
16 with the choice gifts of the earth and its fullness,
and the favour of the one who dwells on Sinai.[i]
Let these come on the head of Joseph,
on the brow of the prince among his brothers.
17 A firstborn[j] bull—majesty is his!
His horns are the horns of a wild ox;
with them he gores the peoples,
driving them to[k] the ends of the earth;
such are the myriads of Ephraim,
such the thousands of Manasseh.
18 And of Zebulun he said:
Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going out;
and Issachar, in your tents.
19 They call peoples to the mountain;
there they offer the right sacrifices;
for they suck the affluence of the seas
and the hidden treasures of the sand.
20 And of Gad he said:
Blessed be the enlargement of Gad!
Gad lives like a lion;
he tears at arm and scalp.
21 He chose the best for himself,
for there a commander’s allotment was reserved;
he came at the head of the people,
he executed the justice of the Lord,
and his ordinances for Israel.
22 And of Dan he said:
Dan is a lion’s whelp
that leaps forth from Bashan.
23 And of Naphtali he said:
O Naphtali, sated with favour,
full of the blessing of the Lord,
possess the west and the south.
24 And of Asher he said:
Most blessed of sons be Asher;
may he be the favourite of his brothers,
and may he dip his foot in oil.
25 Your bars are iron and bronze;
and as your days, so is your strength.
26 There is none like God, O Jeshurun,
who rides through the heavens to your help,
majestic through the skies.
27 He subdues the ancient gods,[l]
shatters[m] the forces of old;[n]
he drove out the enemy before you,
and said, ‘Destroy!’
28 So Israel lives in safety,
untroubled is Jacob’s abode[o]
in a land of grain and wine,
where the heavens drop down dew.
29 Happy are you, O Israel! Who is like you,
a people saved by the Lord,
the shield of your help,
and the sword of your triumph!
Your enemies shall come fawning to you,
and you shall tread on their backs.
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 33:2 Gk Syr Vg Compare Tg: Heb upon them
- Deuteronomy 33:2 Cn Compare Gk Sam Syr Vg: MT He came from Ribeboth-kodesh,
- Deuteronomy 33:2 Cn Compare Gk: meaning of Heb uncertain
- Deuteronomy 33:3 Or O lover of the
- Deuteronomy 33:7 Cn: Heb with his hands he contended
- Deuteronomy 33:8 Q Ms Gk: MT lacks Give to Levi
- Deuteronomy 33:12 Heb above him
- Deuteronomy 33:12 Heb he
- Deuteronomy 33:16 Cn: Heb in the bush
- Deuteronomy 33:17 Q Ms Gk Syr Vg: MT His firstborn
- Deuteronomy 33:17 Cn: Heb the peoples, together
- Deuteronomy 33:27 Or The eternal God is a dwelling-place
- Deuteronomy 33:27 Cn: Heb from underneath
- Deuteronomy 33:27 Or the everlasting arms
- Deuteronomy 33:28 Or fountain
Deuteronomy 33
Contemporary English Version
Moses Blesses the Tribes of Israel
33 Moses was a prophet, and before he died, he blessed the tribes of Israel by saying:
2 The Lord came from Mount Sinai.
From Edom, he gave light
to his people,
and his glory was shining
from Mount Paran.
Thousands of his warriors
were with him, and fire
was at his right hand.[a]
3 (A) The Lord loves the tribes
of Israel,[b]
and he protects his people.
They listen to his words
and worship at his feet.
* 4 I called a meeting
of the tribes of Israel[c]
and gave you God's Law.
5 Then you and your leaders
made the Lord your king.
6 Tribe of Reuben, you will live,
even though your tribe
will always be small.[d]
7 The Lord will listen to you,
tribe of Judah, as you beg
to come safely home.
You fought your enemies alone;[e]
now the Lord will help you.
8 (B) At Massah and Meribah Spring,[f]
the Lord tested you,
tribe of Levi.
You were faithful,[g]
and so the priesthood[h] belongs
to the Levi tribe.
9 Protecting Israel's agreement
with the Lord
was more important to you
than the life of your father
or mother,
or brothers or sisters,
or your own children.[i]
10 You teach God's laws to Israel,[j]
and at the place of worship
you offer sacrifices
and burn incense.
11 I pray that the Lord will bless
everything you do,
and make you strong enough
to crush your enemies.
12 The Lord Most High[k] loves you,
tribe of Benjamin.
He will live among your hills
and protect you.
13 Descendants of Joseph,
the Lord will bless you
with precious water
from deep wells
and with dew from the sky.
14 Month by month, your fruit
will ripen in the sunshine.
15 You will have a rich harvest
from the slopes
of the ancient hills.
16 The Lord who appeared
in the burning bush
wants to give you the best
the land can produce,
and it will be a princely crown
on Joseph's head.
17 The armies of Ephraim
and Manasseh
are majestic and fierce
like a bull or a wild ox.
They will run their spears
through faraway nations.
18 Be happy, Zebulun,
as your boats set sail;
be happy, Issachar,
in your tents.
19 The sea will make you wealthy,
and from the sandy beach
you will get treasure.[l]
So invite the other tribes[m]
to celebrate with you
and offer sacrifices to God.
20 Tribe of Gad,
the Lord will bless you
with more land.
So shout his praises!
Your tribe is like a lion
ripping up its victim.
21 Your leaders met together
and chose the best land
for your tribe,
but you obeyed the Lord
and helped the other tribes.[n]
22 Tribe of Dan,
you are like a lion cub,
startled by a snake.[o]
23 The Lord is pleased with you,
people of Naphtali.
He will bless you
and give you the land
to the west and the south.[p]
24 The Lord's greatest blessing
is for you, tribe of Asher.
You will be the favorite
of all the other tribes.
You will be rich with olive oil
25 and have strong town gates
with bronze and iron bolts.
Your people will be powerful
for as long as they live.
26 Israel,[q] no other god
is like ours—
the clouds are his chariot
as he rides across the skies
to come and help us.
27 The eternal God
is our hiding place;
he carries us in his arms.
When God tells you
to destroy your enemies,
he will make them run.
28 Israel, you will live in safety;
your enemies will be gone.[r]
The dew will fall from the sky,
and you will have plenty
of grain and wine.
29 The Lord has rescued you
and given you more blessings
than any other nation.
He protects you like a shield
and is your majestic sword.
Your enemies will bow in fear,
and you will trample
on their backs.
Footnotes
- 33.2 Thousands … right hand: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 33.3 the tribes of Israel: Or “the nations.”
- 33.4 Israel: The Hebrew text also uses the name “Jeshurun,” a rare name for “Israel.”
- 33.6 even though … small: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 33.7 beg … alone: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 33.8 Massah and Meribah Spring: See Exodus 17.1-7; Numbers 20.1-13.
- 33.8 the Lord tested you, tribe of Levi. You were faithful: Or “the Lord tested me. I was faithful” or “the Lord tested Aaron and me. We were faithful.”
- 33.8 priesthood: The Hebrew text has “your thummim and your urim,” objects that were used by priests to get answers from God.
- 33.9 Protecting Israel's agreement … your own children: See Exodus 32.25-29.
- 33.10 Israel: See the note at 32.9.
- 33.12 Most High: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 33.19 sandy beach … treasure: Possibly a reference to glass made from sand; glass was rare and very valuable.
- 33.19 other tribes: Or “nations.”
- 33.21 tribes: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 21. The Gad tribe asked for some of the land east of the Jordan River, but promised that their warriors would cross the Jordan and help the other tribes take over the land west of the Jordan (see Numbers 32.1-33; Joshua 4.10-13).
- 33.22 startled by a snake: Or “jumping out from the forest of Bashan.”
- 33.23 land to the west and the south: Or “land south as far as Lake Galilee.”
- 33.26 Israel: See the note at 33.4.
- 33.28 your enemies will be gone: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition, copyright © 1989, 1995 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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