Deuteronomy 33:24

24 Moses said this about the people of Asher: "Asher is the most blessed of the sons; let him be his brothers' favorite. Let him bathe his feet 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 Moses said this about the people of Dan: "Dan is like a lion's cub, who jumps out of Bashan."
23 Moses said this about the people of Naphtali: "Naphtali enjoys special kindnesses, and they are full of the Lord's blessings. Take as your own the west and south."
24 Moses said this about the people of Asher: "Asher is the most blessed of the sons; let him be his brothers' favorite. Let him bathe his feet in olive oil.
25 Your gates will have locks of iron and bronze, and you will be strong as long as you live.
26 "There is no one like the God of Israel, who rides through the skies to help you, who rides on the clouds in his majesty.
Scripture taken from the New Century Version. Copyright © 1987, 1988, 1991 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.