Deuteronomy 33:18

18 And of Zebulun he said, Be glad, Zebulun, in your going out; and, Issachar, in your tents.

Deuteronomy 33:18 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 33:18

And of Zebulun he said
The tribe of Zebulun, as the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem, with whom Issachar is joined, they being brethren, and of the same mother as well as father; though Zebulun the youngest is set before Issachar the older, as in Jacob's blessing, ( Genesis 49:13 Genesis 49:14 ) ;

rejoice, Zebulun, in thy going out;
in their going out to sea, to merchandise, to traffic in foreign parts, it being a maritime tribe, see ( Genesis 49:13 ) ; and so are called upon to rejoice and be thankful for their safe preservation on the seas, and success in trade; and to this sense are the paraphrases of Jonathan and Jerusalem: though Onkelos interprets it of their going out to war against their enemies, and certain it is that they were also a warlike as well as a seafaring tribe; see ( Judges 5:18 ) ;

and Issachar, in thy tents;
being a tribe that stayed at home, and attended to husbandry, and dwelt in tents, to take care of and feed their cattle; in doing which they should be prosperous, and have occasion to rejoice, and be thankful to the Lord: though the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem carry it to a different sense, to their schools, in which they dwelt: this tribe being, as supposed, a learned tribe, studious, in the law; which is gathered from ( 1 Chronicles 12:32 ) .

Deuteronomy 33:18 In-Context

16 The good things of the earth and all its wealth, the good pleasure of him who was seen in the burning tree: may they come on the head of Joseph, on the head of him who was prince among his brothers.

17 He is a young ox, glory is his; his horns are the horns of the mountain ox, with which all peoples will be wounded, even to the ends of the earth: they are the ten thousands of Ephraim and the thousands of Manasseh.

18 And of Zebulun he said, Be glad, Zebulun, in your going out; and, Issachar, in your tents.

19 They will send out the word for the people to come to the mountain, taking there the offerings of righteousness: for the store of the seas will be theirs, and the secret wealth of the sand.

20 Of Gad he said, A blessing be on him who makes wide the limits of Gad: he takes his rest like a she-lion, taking for himself the arm and the crown of the head.