Genesis 49:3-24
New International Version
3 “Reuben, you are my firstborn,(A)
my might, the first sign of my strength,(B)
excelling in honor,(C) excelling in power.
4 Turbulent as the waters,(D) you will no longer excel,
for you went up onto your father’s bed,
onto my couch and defiled it.(E)
5 “Simeon(F) and Levi(G) are brothers—
their swords[a] are weapons of violence.(H)
6 Let me not enter their council,
let me not join their assembly,(I)
for they have killed men in their anger(J)
and hamstrung(K) oxen as they pleased.
7 Cursed be their anger, so fierce,
and their fury,(L) so cruel!(M)
I will scatter them in Jacob
and disperse them in Israel.(N)
8 “Judah,[b](O) your brothers will praise you;
your hand will be on the neck(P) of your enemies;
your father’s sons will bow down to you.(Q)
9 You are a lion’s(R) cub,(S) Judah;(T)
you return from the prey,(U) my son.
Like a lion he crouches and lies down,
like a lioness—who dares to rouse him?
10 The scepter will not depart from Judah,(V)
nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,[c]
until he to whom it belongs[d] shall come(W)
and the obedience of the nations shall be his.(X)
11 He will tether his donkey(Y) to a vine,
his colt to the choicest branch;(Z)
he will wash his garments in wine,
his robes in the blood of grapes.(AA)
12 His eyes will be darker than wine,
his teeth whiter than milk.[e](AB)
13 “Zebulun(AC) will live by the seashore
and become a haven for ships;
his border will extend toward Sidon.(AD)
14 “Issachar(AE) is a rawboned[f] donkey
lying down among the sheep pens.[g](AF)
15 When he sees how good is his resting place
and how pleasant is his land,(AG)
he will bend his shoulder to the burden(AH)
and submit to forced labor.(AI)
16 “Dan[h](AJ) will provide justice for his people
as one of the tribes of Israel.(AK)
17 Dan(AL) will be a snake by the roadside,
a viper along the path,(AM)
that bites the horse’s heels(AN)
so that its rider tumbles backward.
22 “Joseph(AX) is a fruitful vine,(AY)
a fruitful vine near a spring,
whose branches(AZ) climb over a wall.[k]
23 With bitterness archers attacked him;(BA)
they shot at him with hostility.(BB)
24 But his bow remained steady,(BC)
his strong arms(BD) stayed[l] limber,
because of the hand of the Mighty One of Jacob,(BE)
because of the Shepherd,(BF) the Rock of Israel,(BG)
Footnotes
- Genesis 49:5 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
- Genesis 49:8 Judah sounds like and may be derived from the Hebrew for praise.
- Genesis 49:10 Or from his descendants
- Genesis 49:10 Or to whom tribute belongs; the meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.
- Genesis 49:12 Or will be dull from wine, / his teeth white from milk
- Genesis 49:14 Or strong
- Genesis 49:14 Or the campfires; or the saddlebags
- Genesis 49:16 Dan here means he provides justice.
- Genesis 49:19 Gad sounds like the Hebrew for attack and also for band of raiders.
- Genesis 49:21 Or free; / he utters beautiful words
- Genesis 49:22 Or Joseph is a wild colt, / a wild colt near a spring, / a wild donkey on a terraced hill
- Genesis 49:24 Or archers will attack … will shoot … will remain … will stay
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