Genesis49
New King James Version
1And Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days:
2“Gather together and hear, you sons of Jacob, And listen to Israel your father.
3“Reuben, you are my firstborn, My might and the beginning of my strength, The excellency of dignity and the excellency of power.
4Unstable as water, you shall not excel, Because you went up to your father’s bed; Then you defiled it— He went up to my couch.
5“Simeon and Levi are brothers; Instruments of cruelty are in their dwelling place.
6Let not my soul enter their council; Let not my honor be united to their assembly; For in their anger they slew a man, And in their self-will they hamstrung an ox.
7Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce; And their wrath, for it is cruel! I will divide them in Jacob And scatter them in Israel.
8“Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise; Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; Your father’s children shall bow down before you.
9Judah is a lion’s whelp; From the prey, my son, you have gone up. He bows down, he lies down as a lion; And as a lion, who shall rouse him?
10The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people.
11Binding his donkey to the vine, And his donkey’s colt to the choice vine, He washed his garments in wine, And his clothes in the blood of grapes.
12His eyes are darker than wine, And his teeth whiter than milk.
13“Zebulun shall dwell by the haven of the sea; He shall become a haven for ships, And his border shall adjoin Sidon.
14“Issachar is a strong donkey, Lying down between two burdens;
15He saw that rest was good, And that the land was pleasant; He bowed his shoulder to bear a burden, And became a band of slaves.
16“Dan shall judge his people As one of the tribes of Israel.
17Dan shall be a serpent by the way, A viper by the path, That bites the horse’s heels So that its rider shall fall backward.
18I have waited for your salvation, O Lord!
19“Gad, a troop shall tramp upon him, But he shall triumph at last.
20“Bread from Asher shall be rich, And he shall yield royal dainties.
21“Naphtali is a deer let loose; He uses beautiful words.
22“Joseph is a fruitful bough, A fruitful bough by a well; His branches run over the wall.
23The archers have bitterly grieved him, Shot at him and hated him.
24But his bow remained in strength, And the arms of his hands were made strong By the hands of the Mighty God of Jacob (From there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel),
25By the God of your father who will help you, And by the Almighty who will bless you With blessings of heaven above, Blessings of the deep that lies beneath, Blessings of the breasts and of the womb.
26The blessings of your father Have excelled the blessings of my ancestors, Up to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills. They shall be on the head of Joseph, And on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers.
27“Benjamin is a ravenous wolf; In the morning he shall devour the prey, And at night he shall divide the spoil.”
28All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father spoke to them. And he blessed them; he blessed each one according to his own blessing.
29Then he charged them and said to them: “I am to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite,
30in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of Ephron the Hittite as a possession for a burial place.
31There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife, there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah.
32The field and the cave that is there were purchased from the sons of Heth.”
33And when Jacob had finished commanding his sons, he drew his feet up into the bed and breathed his last, and was gathered to his people.
Study Guide
Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for Genesis 49.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: Jacob calls his sons to bless them. (1, 2). Reuben, Simeon, Levi. (3–7). Judah. (8–12). Zebulun, Issachar, Dan. (13–18). Gad, Asher, Naphtali. (19–21). Joseph and Benjamin. (22–27). Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death. (28–33).
vv1-2
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, not to mingle with the Egyptians; and foretold that they should not be separated, as Abraham's sons and Isaac's were, but should all make one people. We are not to consider this address as the expression of private feelings of affection, resentment, or partiality; but as the language of the Holy Ghost, declaring the purpose of God respecting the character, circumstances, and situation of the tribes which descended from the sons of Jacob, and which may be traced in their histories.
vv3-7
Reuben was the first-born; but by gross sin, he forfeited the birthright. The character of Reuben is, that he was unstable as water. Men do not thrive, because they do not fix. Reuben's sin left a lasting infamy upon his family. Let us never do evil, then we need not fear being told of it. Simeon and Levi were passionate and revengeful. The murder of the Shechemites is a proof of this. Jacob protested against that barbarous act. Our soul is our honour; by its powers we are distinguished from, and raised above, the beasts that perish. We ought, from our hearts, to abhor all bloody and mischievous men. Cursed be their anger. Jacob does not curse their persons, but their lusts. I will divide them. The sentence as it respects Levi was turned into a blessing. This tribe performed an acceptable service in their zeal against the worshippers of the golden calf, Ex 32. Being set apart to God as priests, they were in that character scattered through the nation of Israel.
vv8-12
Judah's name signifies praise. God was praised for him, chap. 29:35, praised by him, and praised in him; therefore his brethren shall praise him. Judah should be a strong and courageous tribe. Judah is compared, not to a lion raging and ranging, but to a lion enjoying the satisfaction of his power and success, without creating vexation to others; this is to be truly great. Judah should be the royal tribe, the tribe from which Messiah the Prince should come. Shiloh, that promised Seed in whom the earth should be blessed, “that peaceable and prosperous One,” or “Saviour,” he shall come of Judah. Thus dying Jacob at a great distance saw Christ's day, and it was his comfort and support on his death-bed. Till Christ's coming, Judah possessed authority, but after his crucifixion this was shortened, and according to what Christ foretold, Jerusalem was destroyed, and all the poor harassed remnant of Jews were confounded together. Much which is here said concerning Judah, is to be applied to our Lord Jesus. In him there is plenty of all which is nourishing and refreshing to the soul, and which maintains and cheers the Divine life in it. He is the true Vine; wine is the appointed symbol of his blood, which is drink indeed, as shed for sinners, and applied in faith; and all the blessings of his gospel are wine and milk, without money and without price, to which every thirsty soul is welcome. Isa 55:1.
Key Words
יַעֲקֹב: Jaakob, the Israelitish patriarch
קָרָא: to call out to (i.e. properly, address by name, but used in a wide variety of applications)
בֵּן: a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship, including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition, etc., (like father or brother), etc.)
אָמַר: to say (used with great latitude)
אָסַף: to gather for any purpose; hence, to receive, take away, i.e. remove (destroy, leave behind, put up, restore, etc.)
אֲשֶׁר: who, which, what, that; also (as an adverb and a conjunction) when, where, how, because, in order that, etc.
נָגַד: properly, to front, i.e. stand boldly out opposite; by implication (causatively), to manifest; figuratively, to announce (always by word of mouth to one present); specifically, to expose, predict, explain, praise
קָרָא: to encounter, whether accidentally or in a hostile manner
יוֹם: a day (as the warm hours), whether literal (from sunrise to sunset, or from one sunset to the next), or figurative (a space of time defined by an associated term), (often used adverb)
אַחֲרִית: the last or end, hence, the future; also posterity
Cross References
Genesis 49Reuben lost his birthright due to defiling his father's bed; his double portion was given to Joseph.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
Jesus Christ, descending from Judah, is explicitly crowned as the 'Lion of the tribe of Judah.'
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Moses' blessing on Joseph directly echoes Jacob's language of deep, womb, and heaven blessings.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Repeats blessing on the head of Joseph, "him that was separate from his brethren."
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
The historical account of Reuben's sin with Bilhah, which prompted Jacob's dying rebuke.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
The violent assault on Shechem by Simeon and Levi, which Jacob severely condemns here.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
Jacob's prior solemn oath requested of Joseph to bury him in the family buryingplace.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Detailed historical record of the purchase of Machpelah from Ephron the Hittite.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole, JFB
Fulfilment of Jacob's dying command; his sons carry him to the cave of Machpelah.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole, JFB
Simeon's inheritance was scattered within Judah's territory, fulfilling Jacob's prophecy of dispersion.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
The Levites were scattered throughout Israel in forty-eight designated cities, turning judgment into blessing.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
New Testament confirmation that our Lord Jesus Christ sprang physically from the tribe of Judah.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Moses' later prophetic blessing of Dan, paralleling Jacob's description of Dan's sudden, martial power.
Supported by JFB
Jacob's dying expectation of salvation reflects the patriarchs living and dying in active faith.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Moses also blesses Asher with exceptional material prosperity, dipping his foot in rich oil.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Moses' blessing of Naphtali, echoing the theme of a satisfied and blessed inheritance.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Parallel tribal blessing detailing the massive numbers and strength of Joseph's sons.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
The historical reality of Joseph being sold by his envious brethren (the archers).
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Though imprisoned and sorely grieved, Jehovah was with Joseph in Egypt.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Identifies God as the Shepherd of Israel who leads Joseph like a flock.
Supported by Matthew Henry
The legal definition of the firstborn son as the 'beginning of strength' in Israel's law.
Supported by Matthew Poole
The poetic idiom of the firstborn being called 'the chief of all their strength.'
Supported by Matthew Poole
Leah names Judah 'praise,' directly matching Jacob's play on words: 'thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise.'
Supported by Matthew Henry
Balaam employs identical poetic imagery comparing Israel to a couching lion whom none dare rouse.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Poetically declares Ephraim as strength and Judah as the lawgiver or sceptre-bearer.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Moses links Zebulun's maritime outgoing and Issachar's domestic tents in a shared blessing.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Samson of Dan judged Israel twenty years, proving Dan would judge his people.
Supported by JFB
Samson's final act demonstrates Dan's subtle, devastating victory over superior Philsitine force.
Supported by JFB
Moses describes Gad as a lion dwelling securely, ready to tear the arm and crown.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Stephen's speech recalling the patriarchs, moved with envy, selling Joseph into Egypt.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Moses' blessing on Benjamin, complementing Jacob's depiction of Benjamin's tribal destiny.
Supported by Matthew Henry
These all died in faith, embracing the promises from afar as strangers on earth.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Matches the formulaic patriarchal language of being "gathered unto my people."
Supported by Matthew Henry
Isaac's gathering to his people and burial in the family tomb.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Jacob's immediate, fearful protest after Simeon and Levi's slaughter of the Shechemites.
Supported by John Calvin
Isaac's original blessing that brethren would bow down, now legally concentrated on Judah.
Supported by John Calvin