Deuteronomy 33:18

18 And he said to Zebulun, Zebulun, be thou glad in thy going out, and Issachar, in thy tabernacles. (And he said of the tribes of Zebulun, and of Issachar, Zebulun, be thou prosperous abroad, and Issachar, be thou prosperous in thy tents, or at home.)

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 and of the fruits of the land, and of the fullness thereof. The blessing of him that appeared in the bush come upon the head of Joseph, and upon the foretop, that is, the crown of the head, of the Nazarite, or (the) holy (one), among his brethren. (with the fruits, and other crops, of the land, in all its fullness. May these blessings of him who appeared in the bush come upon Joseph's head, yea, upon the tribe of him who was separated from his brothers/who was the leader of his brothers.)

17 As the first engendered of a bull is the fairness of him; the horns of an unicorn be the horns of him; in those he shall winnow folks, till to the terms of [the] earth. These be the multitudes of Ephraim, and these be the thousands of Manasseh. (His fairness is like the first-born of a bull; his horns be like the horns of a wild ox; and with them he shall winnow the nations, unto the ends of the earth. Such shall be the multitudes of Ephraim, and the thousands of Manasseh.)

18 And he said to Zebulun, Zebulun, be thou glad in thy going out, and Issachar, in thy tabernacles. (And he said of the tribes of Zebulun, and of Issachar, Zebulun, be thou prosperous abroad, and Issachar, be thou prosperous in thy tents, or at home.)

19 They shall call peoples to the hill, [and] there they shall offer sacrifices of rightfulness; which shall suck the flowing(s) of the sea as milk, and hid treasures of gravel. (They shall call the peoples to the mountain, and there they shall offer the right sacrifices; they shall suck up the wealth of the sea like milk, and they shall dig up hidden treasures out of the gravel.)

20 And he said to Gad, Gad is blessed in broadness; he rested as a lion, and he took from his adversary the arm and the noll. (And he said of the tribe of Gad, Gad is blessed in their broad places; they rest like a lion, but they tear off the arms and the tops of the heads of their adversaries.)