Deuteronomy 33:24

24 About Asher he said: “Most blessed of sons is Asher; let him be favored by his brothers, and let him bathe his feet in oil.

Deuteronomy 33:24 in Other Translations

KJV
24 And of Asher he said, Let Asher be blessed with children; let him be acceptable to his brethren, and let him dip his foot in oil.
ESV
24 And of Asher he said, "Most blessed of sons be Asher; let him be the favorite of his brothers, and let him dip his foot in oil.
NLT
24 Moses said this about the tribe of Asher: “May Asher be blessed above other sons; may he be esteemed by his brothers; may he bathe his feet in olive oil.
MSG
24 Asher: "Asher, best blessed of the sons! May he be the favorite of his brothers, his feet massaged in oil.
CSB
24 He said about Asher: May Asher be the most blessed of the sons; may he be the most favored among his brothers and dip his foot in [olive] oil.

Deuteronomy 33:24 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 33:24

And of Asher he said
The tribe of Asher, as the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem:

[let] Asher [be] blessed with children;
with large numbers, as it appears this tribe was, having in it 53,400 men of war, ( Numbers 26:47 ) . It was esteemed a great blessing to have many children, ( Psalms 128:3 Psalms 128:4 ) ; or "above the children"; above or more than the rest of the children of Jacob; see ( Luke 2:36 Luke 2:38 ) ; Jarchi observes, that he had seen, in a book called Siphri, that there was none in all the tribes blessed with children as Asher, but not known how:

let him be acceptable to his brethren;
either for his excellent bread, and royal dainties, ( Genesis 49:20 ) ; or for the goodness of his olives and oil, and for the brass and iron found in this tribe, as follows; or, as some say, because of his children, his daughters being very beautiful:

and let him dip his foot in oil;
have such plenty of it, that if he would he might dip or wash his feet in it; and it was usual not only to anoint the head, but the feet F6 also, with oil, ( Luke 7:46 ) .


FOOTNOTES:

F6 "Vidimus etiam vestigia pedum tingi", Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 13. c. 3. Vid. Dalecamp. Not. in ib.

Deuteronomy 33:24 In-Context

22 About Dan he said: “Dan is a lion’s cub, springing out of Bashan.”
23 About Naphtali he said: “Naphtali is abounding with the favor of the LORDand is full of his blessing; he will inherit southward to the lake.”
24 About Asher he said: “Most blessed of sons is Asher; let him be favored by his brothers, and let him bathe his feet in oil.
25 The bolts of your gates will be iron and bronze, and your strength will equal your days.
26 “There is no one like the God of Jeshurun, who rides across the heavens to help you and on the clouds in his majesty.

Cross References 2

  • 1. S Genesis 30:13; Genesis 49:21
  • 2. S Genesis 49:20; S Deuteronomy 32:13; Job 29:6
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