Genesis 49:1-28
New American Standard Bible
Jacob’s Prophecy concerning His Sons
49 Then Jacob summoned his sons and said, “Assemble yourselves, so that I may tell you what will happen to you (A)in the [a]days to come.
2 Gather together and listen, sons of Jacob;
Yes, (B)listen to Israel your father.
3 “Reuben, you are my firstborn,
My might and (C)the beginning of my strength,
Preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power.
4 [b]Uncontrollable as water, you shall not have preeminence,
(D)Because you went up to your father’s bed;
Then you defiled it—he went up to my couch.
5 “(E)Simeon and Levi are brothers;
Their [c]swords are implements of violence.
6 (F)May my soul not enter into their council;
May my glory not be united with their assembly;
For in their anger they killed [d]men,
And in their self-will they lamed [e]oxen.
7 Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce;
And their wrath, for it is cruel.
(G)I will scatter them in Jacob,
And disperse them among Israel.
8 “As for you, Judah, your brothers shall praise you;
Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;
(H)Your father’s sons shall bow down to you.
9 Judah is a (I)lion’s cub;
From the prey, my son, you have gone up.
(J)He [f]crouches, he lies down as a lion,
And as a [g]lion, who [h]dares to stir him up?
10 (K)The scepter will not depart from Judah,
Nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,
[i]Until Shiloh comes,
And (L)to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.
11 (M)He ties his foal to the vine,
And his donkey’s colt to the choice vine;
(N)He washes his garments in wine,
And his robes in the blood of grapes.
12 His eyes are [j]dull from wine,
And his teeth [k]white from milk.
13 “(O)Zebulun will reside at the seashore;
And he shall be [l]a harbor for ships,
And his flank shall be toward Sidon.
14 “Issachar is a [m]strong donkey,
(P)Lying down between the sheepfolds.
15 When he saw that a resting place was good
And that the land was pleasant,
He bowed his shoulder to carry burdens,
And became a slave at forced labor.
16 “(Q)Dan shall (R)judge his people,
As one of the tribes of Israel.
17 Dan shall be a serpent in the way,
A horned viper in the path,
That bites the horse’s heels,
So that its rider falls backward.
18 (S)For Your salvation I wait, Lord.
21 “(W)Naphtali is a doe let loose;
He utters beautiful words.
22 “(X)Joseph is a fruitful [r]branch,
A fruitful [s]branch by a spring;
Its [t]branches hang over a wall.
23 The archers provoked him,
And shot at him and were hostile toward him;
24 But his (Y)bow remained [u]firm,
And [v](Z)his arms were agile,
From the hands of the (AA)Mighty One of Jacob
(From there is (AB)the Shepherd, (AC)the Stone of Israel),
25 From (AD)the God of your father who helps you,
And [w](AE)by the [x]Almighty who blesses you
With (AF)blessings of heaven above,
Blessings of the deep that lies beneath,
Blessings of the breasts and of the womb.
26 The blessings of your father
Have surpassed the blessings of my ancestors
Up to the [y]furthest boundary of (AG)the everlasting hills;
May they be on the head of Joseph,
And on the top of the head of the one distinguished among his brothers.
27 “Benjamin is a [z]ravenous wolf;
In the morning he devours the prey,
And in the evening he divides the spoils.”
28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father said to them [aa]when he blessed them. He blessed them, every one [ab]with the blessing appropriate to him.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Genesis 49:1 Lit end of the days
- Genesis 49:4 Or Gushing over
- Genesis 49:5 Or plans; meaning uncertain
- Genesis 49:6 Lit a man
- Genesis 49:6 Lit an ox
- Genesis 49:9 Lit bows down
- Genesis 49:9 Lit lioness
- Genesis 49:9 Lit shall
- Genesis 49:10 Or Until he comes to Shiloh; or Until he comes to whom it belongs
- Genesis 49:12 Or darker than
- Genesis 49:12 Or whiter than
- Genesis 49:13 Lit a shore of ships
- Genesis 49:14 Lit donkey of bone
- Genesis 49:19 Lit heel
- Genesis 49:20 Lit From
- Genesis 49:20 Or bread
- Genesis 49:20 Lit fat
- Genesis 49:22 Lit son
- Genesis 49:22 Lit son
- Genesis 49:22 Lit daughters
- Genesis 49:24 I.e., in an unyielding position
- Genesis 49:24 Lit the arms of his hands
- Genesis 49:25 Or with
- Genesis 49:25 Heb Shaddai
- Genesis 49:26 Lit limit; or desire
- Genesis 49:27 Lit a wolf that tears
- Genesis 49:28 Lit and
- Genesis 49:28 Lit according to his blessing
Genesis 49:1-28
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.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 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.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.