Genesis 49
Living Bible
49 Then Jacob called together all his sons and said, “Gather around me and I will tell you what is going to happen to you in the days to come. 2 Listen to me, O sons of Jacob; listen to Israel your father.
3 “Reuben, you are my oldest son, the child of my vigorous youth. You are the head of the list in rank and in honor. 4 But you are unruly as the wild waves of the sea, and you shall be first no longer. I am demoting you, for you slept with one of my wives and thus dishonored me.
5 “Simeon and Levi are two of a kind. They are men of violence and injustice. 6 O my soul, stay away from them. May I never be a party to their wicked plans. For in their anger they murdered a man, and maimed oxen just for fun. 7 Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce and cruel. Therefore, I will scatter their descendants throughout Israel.[a]
8 “Judah, your brothers shall praise you. You shall destroy your enemies. Your father’s sons shall bow before you. 9 Judah is a young lion that has finished eating its prey. He has settled down as a lion—who will dare to rouse him? 10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah until Shiloh comes,[b] whom all people shall obey. 11 He has chained his steed to the choicest vine and washed his clothes in wine.[c] 12 His eyes are darker than wine and his teeth are whiter than milk.
13 “Zebulun shall dwell on the shores of the sea and shall be a harbor for ships, with his borders extending to Sidon.
14 “Issachar is a strong beast of burden resting among the saddlebags. 15 When he saw how good the countryside was, how pleasant the land, he willingly bent his shoulder to the task and served his masters with vigor.
16 “Dan shall govern his people like any other tribe in Israel. 17 He shall be a serpent in the path that bites the horses’ heels, so that the rider falls off. 18 I trust in your salvation, Lord.
19 “A marauding band shall stamp upon Gad, but he shall rob and pursue them!
20 “Asher shall produce rich foods, fit for kings!
21 “Naphtali is a deer let loose, producing lovely fawns.
22 “Joseph is a fruitful tree beside a fountain. His branches shade the wall. 23 He has been severely injured by those who shot at him and persecuted him, 24 but their weapons were shattered by the Mighty One of Jacob, the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel. 25 May the God of your fathers, the Almighty, bless you with blessings of heaven above and of the earth beneath—blessings of the breasts and of the womb, 26 blessings of the grain and flowers, blessings reaching to the utmost bounds of the everlasting hills. These shall be the blessings upon the head of Joseph who was exiled from his brothers.
27 “Benjamin is a wolf that prowls. He devours his enemies in the morning, and in the evening divides the loot.”
28 So these are the blessings that Israel, their father, blessed his twelve sons with.
29-30 Then he told them, “Soon I will die. You must bury me with my fathers in the land of Canaan, in the cave in the field of Mach-pelah, facing Mamre—the field Abraham bought from Ephron the Hethite for a burial ground. 31 There they buried Abraham and Sarah, his wife; there they buried Isaac and Rebekah, his wife; and there I buried Leah. 32 It is the cave which my grandfather Abraham purchased from the sons of Heth.” 33 Then, when Jacob had finished his prophecies to his sons, he lay back in the bed, breathed his last, and died.
Footnotes
- Genesis 49:7 I will scatter their descendants throughout Israel. That is, the tribes of Simeon and Levi were not given land holdings, as were their brother tribes.
- Genesis 49:10 until Shiloh comes means also “until he comes to whom it belongs.”
- Genesis 49:11 washed his clothes in wine, showing wealth and extravagance.
Genesis 49
Young's Literal Translation
49 And Jacob calleth unto his sons and saith, `Be gathered together, and I declare to you that which doth happen with you in the latter end of the days.
2 `Be assembled, and hear, sons of Jacob, And hearken unto Israel your father.
3 Reuben! my first-born thou, My power, and beginning of my strength, The abundance of exaltation, And the abundance of strength;
4 Unstable as water, thou art not abundant; For thou hast gone up thy father's bed; Then thou hast polluted: My couch he went up!
5 Simeon and Levi [are] brethren! Instruments of violence -- their espousals!
6 Into their secret, come not, O my soul! Unto their assembly be not united, O mine honour; For in their anger they slew a man, And in their self-will eradicated a prince.
7 Cursed [is] their anger, for [it is] fierce, And their wrath, for [it is] sharp; I divide them in Jacob, And I scatter them in Israel.
8 Judah! thou -- thy brethren praise thee! Thy hand [is] on the neck of thine enemies, Sons of thy father bow themselves to thee.
9 A lion's whelp [is] Judah, For prey, my son, thou hast gone up; He hath bent, he hath crouched as a lion, And as a lioness; who causeth him to arise?
10 The sceptre turneth not aside from Judah, And a lawgiver from between his feet, Till his Seed come; And his [is] the obedience of peoples.
11 Binding to the vine his ass, And to the choice vine the colt of his ass, He hath washed in wine his clothing, And in the blood of grapes his covering;
12 Red [are] eyes with wine, And white [are] teeth with milk!
13 Zebulun at a haven of the seas doth dwell, And he [is] for a haven of ships; And his side [is] unto Zidon.
14 Issacher [is] a strong ass, Crouching between the two folds;
15 And he seeth rest that [it is] good, And the land that [it is] pleasant, And he inclineth his shoulder to bear, And is to tribute a servant.
16 Dan doth judge his people, As one of the tribes of Israel;
17 Dan is a serpent by the way, An adder by the path, Which is biting the horse's heels, And its rider falleth backward.
18 For Thy salvation I have waited, Jehovah!
19 Gad! a troop assaulteth him, But he assaulteth last.
20 Out of Asher his bread [is] fat; And he giveth dainties of a king.
21 Naphtali [is] a hind sent away, Who is giving beauteous young ones.
22 Joseph [is] a fruitful son; A fruitful son by a fountain, Daughters step over the wall;
23 And embitter him -- yea, they have striven, Yea, hate him do archers;
24 And his bow abideth in strength, And strengthened are the arms of his hands By the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob, Whence is a shepherd, a son of Israel.
25 By the God of thy father who helpeth thee, And the Mighty One who blesseth thee, Blessings of the heavens from above, Blessings of the deep lying under, Blessings of breasts and womb; --
26 Thy father's blessings have been mighty Above the blessings of my progenitors, Unto the limit of the heights age-during They are for the head of Joseph, And for the crown of the one Separate [from] his brethren.
27 Benjamin! a wolf teareth; In the morning he eateth prey, And at evening he apportioneth spoil.'
28 All these [are] the twelve tribes of Israel, and this [is] that which their father hath spoken unto them, and he blesseth them; each according to his blessing he hath blessed them.
29 And he commandeth them, and saith unto them, `I am being gathered unto my people; bury me by my fathers, at the cave which [is] in the field of Ephron the Hittite;
30 in the cave which [is] in the field of Machpelah, which [is] on the front of Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite for a possession of a burying-place;
31 (there they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife; there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife; and there I buried Leah);
32 the purchase of the field and of the cave which [is] in it, [is] from Sons of Heth.'
33 And Jacob finisheth commanding his sons, and gathereth up his feet unto the bed, and expireth, and is gathered unto his people.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.