Deuteronomy 33:20

20 ¹Of Gad he said, "Blessed is the one who enlarges Gad; He lies down ²as a lion, And tears the arm, also the crown of the head.

Deuteronomy 33:20 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 33:20

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

blessed [be] he that enlargeth Gad;
that is, the Lord, to whom the praise and glory were to be given, who had appointed to Gad a large inheritance on the other side Jordan, and had settled him in it, and which became larger by the conquest of the Hagarites, and others, ( 1 Chronicles 5:18-22 ) ;

he dwelleth as a lion;
bold and courageous, secure, and without fear of any of his enemies, though near him, on his borders, as the Moabites and Ammonites were; of the same spirit and temper were the men of the tribe of Gad in the times of David, ( 1 Chronicles 12:8 ) ;

and teareth the arm with the crown of the head,
at once, just as a lion tears its prey; which figurative phrases are expressive of this tribe conquering and destroying strong and mighty men, signified by the "arm", in which the strength of a man lies, and of kings and governors, pointed at by the "crown of the head"; as the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan; which was done in the times of Joshua, when with and under him they subdued and destroyed the kings and princes of the land of Canaan.

Deuteronomy 33:20 In-Context

18 Of Zebulun he said, "Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going forth, And, Issachar, in your tents.

19 "They will call peoples to the mountain; There they will offer righteous sacrifices; For they will draw out the abundance of the seas, And the hidden treasures of the sand."

20 Of Gad he said, "Blessed is the one who enlarges Gad; He lies down as a lion, And tears the arm, also the crown of the head.

21 "Then he provided the first part for himself, For there the ruler's portion was reserved; And he came with the leaders of the people; He executed the justice of the LORD , And His ordinances with Israel."

22 Of Dan he said, "Dan is a lion's whelp, That leaps forth from Bashan."

Cross References

• 1. Genesis 49:19
• 2. Genesis 49:9

Footnotes

• [a] Or "lioness"