Deuteronomy 33
Darby Translation
33 And this is the blessing, wherewith Moses the man of God blessed the children of Israel before his death.
2 And he said, Jehovah came from Sinai, And rose up from Seir unto them; He shone forth from mount Paran, And he came from the myriads of the sanctuary; From his right hand [went forth] a law of fire for them.
3 Yea, he loveth the peoples, All his saints are in thy hand, And they sit down at thy feet; Each receiveth of thy words.
4 Moses commanded us a law, The inheritance of the congregation of Jacob.
5 And he was king in Jeshurun, When the heads of the people And the tribes of Israel were gathered together.
6 Let Reuben live, and not die; And let his men be few.
7 And this of Judah; and he said, Hear, Jehovah, the voice of Judah, And bring him unto his people; May his hands strive for them; And be thou a help to him against his oppressors.
8 And of Levi he said, Thy Thummim and thy Urim are for thy godly one, Whom thou didst prove at Massah, With whom thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah;
9 Who said to his father and to his mother, I see him not, And he acknowledged not his brethren, And knew not his own children; For they have observed thy word, And kept thy covenant.
10 They shall teach Jacob thine ordinances, And Israel thy law: They shall put incense before thy nostrils, And whole burnt-offering upon thine altar.
11 Bless, Jehovah, his substance! And let the work of his hands please thee; Crush the loins of his adversaries, And of them that hate him, that they may never rise again!
12 Of Benjamin he said, The beloved of Jehovah,—he shall dwell in safety by him; He will cover him all the day long, And dwell between his shoulders.
13 And of Joseph he said, Blessed of Jehovah be his land! By the precious things of the heavens, By the dew, and by the deep that lieth beneath,
14 And by the precious fruits of the sun, And by the precious things put forth by the months,
15 And by the best things of the ancient mountains, And by the precious things of the everlasting hills,
16 And by the precious things of the earth and the fulness thereof. And let the good will of him that dwelt in the bush Come upon the head of Joseph, Upon the top of the head of him that was separated from his brethren.
17 His majesty is as the firstling of his ox; And his horns are as the horns of a buffalo. With them shall he push the peoples Together to the ends of the earth. These are the myriads of Ephraim, And these are the thousands of Manasseh.
18 And of Zebulun he said, Rejoice, Zebulun, in thy going out; And thou, Issachar, in thy tents!
19 They shall invite [the] peoples to the mountain; There they shall offer sacrifices of righteousness; For they will suck the abundance of the seas, And the hidden treasures of the sand.
20 And of Gad he said, Blessed be he that enlargeth Gad! As a lion doth he dwell, and teareth the arm, even the top of the head.
21 And he provided the first part for himself, For there was reserved the portion of the lawgiver; And he came with the heads of the people; The justice of Jehovah and his judgments Hath he executed with Israel.
22 And of Dan he said, Dan is a young lion; He shall spring forth from Bashan.
23 And of Naphtali he said, Naphtali, satisfied with favour, And full of the blessing of Jehovah, Possess thou the west and the south.
24 And of Asher he said, Asher shall be blessed with sons; Let him be acceptable to his brethren, And let him dip his foot in oil.
25 Iron and brass shall be thy bolts; And thy rest as thy days.
26 There is none like unto the God of Jeshurun, Who rideth upon the heavens to thy help, And in his majesty, upon the clouds.
27 [Thy] refuge is the God of old, And underneath are the eternal arms; And he shall drive out the enemy from before thee, And shall say, Destroy [them]!
28 And Israel shall dwell in safety alone, The fountain of Jacob, in a land of corn and new wine; Also his heavens shall drop down dew.
29 Happy art thou, Israel! Who is like unto thee, a people saved by Jehovah, The shield of thy help, And the sword of thine excellency? And thine enemies shall come cringing to thee; And thou shalt tread upon their high places.
Deuteronomy 33
English Standard Version
Moses' Final Blessing on Israel
33 This is the blessing with which Moses (A)the man of God blessed the people of Israel before his death. 2 He said,
(B)“The Lord came from Sinai
and dawned from Seir upon us;[a]
he shone forth from Mount Paran;
he came (C)from the ten thousands of holy ones,
with flaming fire[b] at his right hand.
3 Yes, (D)he loved his people,[c]
(E)all his holy ones were in his[d] hand;
(F)so they followed[e] in your steps,
receiving direction from you,
4 when (G)Moses commanded us a law,
as a possession for the assembly of Jacob.
5 Thus the Lord[f] (H)became king in (I)Jeshurun,
when the heads of the people were gathered,
all the tribes of Israel together.
6 (J)“Let Reuben live, and not die,
but let his men be few.”
7 And this he said of Judah:
“Hear, O Lord, the voice of Judah,
and bring him in to his people.
With your hands contend[g] for him,
and be a help against his adversaries.”
8 And (K)of Levi he said,
“Give to Levi[h] (L)your Thummim,
and your Urim to your godly one,
(M)whom you tested at Massah,
with whom you quarreled at the waters of Meribah;
9 who said of his father and mother,
‘I regard them not’;
(N)he disowned his brothers
and ignored his children.
For (O)they observed your word
and kept your covenant.
10 (P)They shall teach Jacob your rules
and Israel your law;
(Q)they shall put incense before you
and (R)whole burnt offerings on your altar.
11 Bless, O Lord, his substance,
and (S)accept the work of his hands;
crush the loins of his adversaries,
of those who hate him, that they rise not again.”
12 (T)Of Benjamin he said,
“The beloved of the Lord dwells in safety.
The High God[i] surrounds him all day long,
and dwells between his shoulders.”
13 And (U)of Joseph he said,
(V)“Blessed by the Lord be his land,
with the choicest gifts of heaven (W)above,[j]
and of the deep that crouches beneath,
14 with the choicest fruits of the sun
and the rich yield of the months,
15 with the finest produce of the ancient mountains
and the abundance of (X)the everlasting hills,
16 with the best gifts of the earth and (Y)its fullness
and the favor of (Z)him who dwells in the bush.
May these rest on the head of Joseph,
on the pate of him who is prince among his brothers.
17 (AA)A firstborn bull[k]—he has majesty,
and his horns are the horns of a (AB)wild ox;
with them (AC)he shall gore the peoples,
all of them, to the ends of the earth;
(AD)they are the ten thousands of Ephraim,
and they are the thousands of Manasseh.”
18 And of Zebulun he said,
(AE)“Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going out,
and Issachar, in your tents.
19 They shall call peoples (AF)to their mountain;
there they offer (AG)right sacrifices;
for they draw from the abundance of the seas
and the hidden treasures of the sand.”
20 And (AH)of Gad he said,
“Blessed be he who enlarges Gad!
Gad crouches (AI)like a lion;
he tears off arm and scalp.
21 (AJ)He chose the best of the land for himself,
for there a commander's portion was reserved;
and (AK)he came with the heads of the people,
with Israel he executed the justice of the Lord,
and his judgments for Israel.”
22 And (AL)of Dan he said,
23 And (AO)of Naphtali he said,
“O Naphtali, sated with favor,
and full of the blessing of the Lord,
(AP)possess the lake[l] and the south.”
24 And (AQ)of Asher he said,
“Most blessed of sons be Asher;
let him be the favorite of his brothers,
and let him (AR)dip his foot in oil.
25 Your bars shall be iron and bronze,
and as your days, so shall your strength be.
26 (AS)“There is none like God, O (AT)Jeshurun,
(AU)who rides through the heavens to your help,
through the skies in his majesty.
27 The eternal God is your (AV)dwelling place,[m]
and underneath are the everlasting arms.[n]
And he thrust out the enemy before you
and said, ‘Destroy.’
28 So Israel lived in safety,
(AW)Jacob lived (AX)alone,[o]
in a land of grain and wine,
whose heavens drop down dew.
29 Happy are you, O Israel! (AY)Who is like you,
a people (AZ)saved by the Lord,
(BA)the shield of your help,
and the sword of your triumph!
Your enemies shall come fawning to you,
and you shall tread upon their backs.”
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 33:2 Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate; Hebrew them
- Deuteronomy 33:2 The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain
- Deuteronomy 33:3 Septuagint; Hebrew peoples
- Deuteronomy 33:3 Hebrew your
- Deuteronomy 33:3 The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain
- Deuteronomy 33:5 Hebrew Thus he
- Deuteronomy 33:7 Probable reading; Hebrew With his hands he contended
- Deuteronomy 33:8 Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text lacks Give to Levi
- Deuteronomy 33:12 Septuagint; Hebrew dwells in safety by him. He
- Deuteronomy 33:13 Two Hebrew manuscripts and Targum; Hebrew with the dew
- Deuteronomy 33:17 Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint, Samaritan; Masoretic Text His firstborn bull
- Deuteronomy 33:23 Or west
- Deuteronomy 33:27 Or a dwelling place
- Deuteronomy 33:27 Revocalization of verse 27 yields He subdues the ancient gods, and shatters the forces of old
- Deuteronomy 33:28 Hebrew the abode of Jacob was alone
Public Domain (Why are modern Bible translations copyrighted?)
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
