Genesis 49: 1 - 28
Much of the Hebrew text is difficult and many
of the images are obscure: Jacob's 12 sons
represent the later Israelite tribes that
bear their names. from CEB Study Bible:
Common English Bible translation, 2013
Jacob summoned his sons and said,
"Gather around so that I can tell you
what will happen to you in the coming
days. Assemble yourselves and listen,
sons of Jacob; listen to Israel your father.
Reuben, you are my oldest son, my
strength and my first contender [ first of my
power ] superior in status and superior
in might. As wild as the waters, you won't
endure, for you went up and your father's
bed and violated my couch.
Simeon and Levi are brothers,
weapons of violence their stock in trade.
May I myself never enter their council.
May my honor never be linked to their
group; for when they were angry, they
killed men, and whenever they wished,
they maimed oxen. Cursed be their
anger; it is violent, their rage; it is
restless. I'll divide them up within
Jacob and disperse them within Israel.
Judah, you are the one your brothers
will honor; your hand will be on the neck
of your enemies; your father's sons will
bow down to you.
Judah is a lion's cub;
from the prey, my son, you rise up.
He lies down and crouches like a lion;
like a lioness -- who dares disturb him?
The scepter won't depart from Judah,
nor the ruler's staff from among his
banners. Gifts will be brought to him;
people will obey him.
He ties his male donkey to the vine,
the colt of his female donkey to the
vine's branches. He washes his clothes
in wine, his garments in the blood of
grapes. His eyes are darker than wine,
and his teeth whiter than milk.
Zebulun will live at the seashore;
he'll live at the harbor of ships,
his border will be at Sidon.
Issachar is a sturdy donkey,
bedding down beside the village
hearths / stubbornly lying beneath
its saddlebags. He saw that a resting
place was good and that the land was
pleasant.
He lowered his shoulder to haul loads
and joined the work gangs.
Dan will settle disputes for his people,
as one of Israel's tribes.
Dan will be a snake on the road,
a serpent on the path,
biting a horse's heels,
so its rider falls backward.
I long for your victory, Lord.
Gad will be attacked by attackers,
but he'll attack their back.
Asher grows fine foods,
and he will supply the king's delicacies.
Naphtali is a wild doe that
gives birth to beautiful fawns.
Joseph is a young bull,
a young bull by a spring,
who strides with oxen.
They attacked him fiercely and fired
arrows; the archers attacked him furiously.
But his bow stayed strong,
and his forearms were nimble [ flexible ],
by the hands of the strong one of Jacob,
by the name of the shepherd, the rock
of Israel, by God, your father, who supports
you, by the Almighty [ Hebrew, Shaddai or
Mountain One ] who blesses you
with blessings from the skies above
and blessings from the deep sea below,
blessings from breasts and womb. The
blessings of your Father exceed the blessings
of the eternal mountains, the wealth of the
everlasting hills. May they all rest on Joseph's
head, on the forehead of the one set apart
from his brothers.
Benjamin is a wolf who hunts:
in the morning he devours the prey;
in the evening he divides the plunder."
These are the Twelve tribes of Israel,
and this is what their father said to them.
He blessed them by giving each man his
own particular blessing.
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