Deuteronomy 33:13-23

13 About the tribe of Joseph he said: "May the Lord bless their land with rain And with water from under the earth.

14 May their land be blessed with sun-ripened fruit, Rich with the best fruits of each season.

15 May their ancient hills be covered with choice fruit.

16 May their land be filled with all that is good, Blessed by the goodness of the Lord, Who spoke from the burning bush. May these blessings come to the tribe of Joseph, Because he was the leader among his brothers.

17 Joseph has the strength of a bull, The horns of a wild ox. His horns are Manasseh's thousands And Ephraim's ten thousands. With them he gores the nations And pushes them to the ends of the earth."

18 About the tribes of Zebulun and Issachar he said: "May Zebulun be prosperous in their trade on the sea, And may Issachar's wealth increase at home.

19 They invite foreigners to their mountain And offer the right sacrifices there. They get their wealth from the sea And from the sand along the shore."

20 About the tribe of Gad he said: "Praise God, who made their territory large. Gad waits like a lion To tear off an arm or a scalp.

21 They took the best of the land for themselves; A leader's share was assigned to them. They obeyed the Lord's commands and laws When the leaders of Israel were gathered together."

22 About the tribe of Dan he said: "Dan is a young lion; He leaps out from Bashan."

23 About the tribe of Naphtali he said: "Naphtali is richly blessed by the Lord's good favor; Their land reaches to the south from Lake Galilee."

Deuteronomy 33:13-23 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO DEUTERONOMY 33

This chapter relates the blessings Moses pronounced upon the people of Israel a little before his death; first, in general, on account of their having a law given them in so glorious a manner, De 33:1-5; then, in particular, each of the tribes distinctly is blessed, Reuben, De 33:6; Judah, De 33:7; Levi, De 33:8-11; Benjamin, De 33:12; Joseph, De 33:13-17; Zebulun and Issachar, De 33:18,19; Gad, De 33:20,21; Dan, De 33:22; Naphtali, De 33:23; Asher, De 33:24,25; and the chapter is concluded with some strong intimations of what God was unto the people of Israel in general, and of what he had done and would do for them; all which are expressive of their great happiness, De 33:26-29.

Footnotes

• [a]. [One ancient translation] When the leaders . . . together; [Hebrew unclear.]