Deuteronomy 33:13-23

13 And of Joseph he said: "Blessed of the Lord is his land, With the precious things of heaven, with the dew, And the deep lying beneath,
14 With the precious fruits of the sun, With the precious produce of the months,
15 With the best things of the ancient mountains, With the precious things of the everlasting hills,
16 With the precious things of the earth and its fullness, And the favor of Him who dwelt in the bush. Let the blessing come 'on the head of Joseph, And on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers.'
17 His glory is like a firstborn bull, And his horns like the horns of the wild ox; Together with them He shall push the peoples To the ends of the earth; They are the ten thousands of Ephraim, And they are the thousands of Manasseh."
18 And of Zebulun he said: "Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going out, And Issachar in your tents!
19 They shall call the peoples to the mountain; There they shall offer sacrifices of righteousness; For they shall partake of the abundance of the seas And of treasures hidden in the sand."
20 And of Gad he said: "Blessed is he who enlarges Gad; He dwells as a lion, And tears the arm and the crown of his head.
21 He provided the first part for himself, Because a lawgiver's portion was reserved there. He came with the heads of the people; He administered the justice of the Lord, And His judgments with Israel."
22 And of Dan he said: "Dan is a lion's whelp; He shall leap from Bashan."
23 And of Naphtali he said: "O Naphtali, satisfied with favor, And full of the blessing of the Lord, Possess the west and the south."

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 1

Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.