Genesis 49:1-28

Genesis 49:1-28

[1] And Jacob  called  unto his sons,  and said,  Gather yourselves together,  that I may tell  you that which shall befall  you in the last  days.  [2] Gather yourselves together,  and hear,  ye sons  of Jacob;  and hearken  unto Israel  your father.  [3] Reuben,  thou art my firstborn,  my might,  and the beginning  of my strength,  the excellency  of dignity,  and the excellency  of power:  [4] Unstable  as water,  thou shalt not excel;  because thou wentest up  to thy father's  bed;  then defiledst thou  it: he went up  to my couch.  [5] Simeon  and Levi  are brethren;  instruments  of cruelty  are in their habitations.  [6] O my soul,  come  not thou into their secret;  unto their assembly,  mine honour,  be not thou united:  for in their anger  they slew  a man,  and in their selfwill  they digged down  a wall.  [7] Cursed  be their anger,  for it was fierce;  and their wrath,  for it was cruel:  I will divide  them in Jacob,  and scatter  them in Israel.  [8] Judah,  thou art he whom thy brethren  shall praise:  thy hand  shall be in the neck  of thine enemies;  thy father's  children  shall bow down  before thee. [9] Judah  is a lion's  whelp:  from the prey,  my son,  thou art gone up:  he stooped down,  he couched  as a lion,  and as an old lion;  who shall rouse him up?  [10] The sceptre  shall not depart  from Judah,  nor a lawgiver  from between his feet,  until  Shiloh  come;  and unto him shall the gathering  of the people  be. [11] Binding  his foal  unto the vine,  and his ass's  colt  unto the choice vine;  he washed  his garments  in wine,  and his clothes  in the blood  of grapes:  [12] His eyes  shall be red  with wine,  and his teeth  white  with milk.  [13] Zebulun  shall dwell  at the haven  of the sea;  and he shall be for an haven  of ships;  and his border  shall be unto Zidon.  [14] Issachar  is a strong  ass  couching down  between two burdens:  [15] And he saw  that rest  was good,  and the land  that it was pleasant;  and bowed  his shoulder  to bear,  and became a servant  unto tribute.  [16] Dan  shall judge  his people,  as one  of the tribes  of Israel.  [17] Dan  shall be a serpent  by the way,  an adder  in the path,  that biteth  the horse  heels,  so that his rider  shall fall  backward.  [18] I have waited for  thy salvation,  O LORD.  [19] Gad,  a troop  shall overcome  at the last.  [20] Out of Asher  his bread  shall be fat,  and he shall yield  royal  dainties.  [21] Naphtali  is a hind  let loose:  he giveth  goodly  words.  [22] Joseph  is a fruitful  bough,  even a fruitful  bough  by a well;  whose branches  run  over the wall:  [23] The archers  have sorely grieved him,  and shot  at him, and hated him:  [24] But his bow  abode  in strength,  and the arms  of his hands  were made strong  by the hands  of the mighty  God of Jacob;  (from thence is the shepherd,  the stone  of Israel:)  [25] Even by the God  of thy father,  who shall help  the Almighty,  who shall bless  thee with blessings  of heaven  blessings  of the deep  that lieth  under, blessings  of the breasts,  and of the womb:  [26] The blessings  of thy father  have prevailed  above the blessings  of my progenitors  unto the utmost bound  of the everlasting  hills:  they shall be on the head  of Joseph,  and on the crown of the head  of him that was separate  from his brethren.  [27] Benjamin  shall ravin  as a wolf:  in the morning  he shall devour  the prey,  and at night  he shall divide  the spoil.  [28] All these are the twelve  tribes  of Israel:  and this is it that their father  spake  unto them, and blessed  them; every  according to his blessing  he blessed  them.

What does Genesis 49:1-28 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

Having blessed Pharaoh ( Genesis 47:7-10) and Ephraim and Manasseh ( Genesis 48:15-20), Jacob next blessed all12of his sons and foretold what would become of each of them and their descendants. He disqualified Reuben, Simeon, and Levi from leadership and gave that blessing to Judah. He granted the double portion to Joseph. This chapter is the last one in Genesis that gives the destinies of the family members of Abraham"s chosen line. It contains blessings, curses, judgments, and promises, all of which are prominent in Genesis.
"These chapters, then, take the story from the first mention of Abram in Genesis 11:26 to the first mention of Israel as a people, a people blessed by God with a special blessing." [1]
The writer of Genesis called this section Jacob"s blessing ( Genesis 49:28). Isaac had prophetically outlined the future of his two sons" families (ch27). Earlier Noah had prophesied the future of Canaan"s descendants ( Genesis 9:25-27). Likewise Jacob by divine inspiration foretold major characteristics of each of the twelve tribes that would issue from his twelve sons ( Genesis 49:1). Each blessing contains at least one of these elements: 1) a synopsis of the son"s personality, 2) a hint as to his potential, and3) a prophecy of his future.
"Jacob predicted how things would turn out for each of his sons and their descendants, should they continue to display the character they had displayed thus far." [2]
This is the first long poem in the Bible.
"This chapter, in that it is poetry, seems to be intended to be a high point of the toledot ya"aqob (i.e, chaps37-50), if not the whole book of Genesis." [3]
This blessing rested on God"s promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Each son learned how his branch of the family would benefit from and be a channel of blessing relative to the patriarchal promises. The natural character of each son and the consequences of that character would have their outcome in the future of the Israelites. The choices and consequently the characters of the patriarchs affected their descendants for generations to come, as is usually true.
"The Spirit of God revealed to the dying patriarch Israel the future history of his seed, so that he discovered in the character of his sons the future development of the tribes proceeding from them, and with prophetic clearness assigned to each of them its position and importance in the nation into which they were to expand in the promised inheritance." [4]
"It is fitting that the Book of Genesis , which opened with the creative power of the divine word, closes with the notion of the effective power of the inspired predictive word of the patriarch." [4]4
Jacob assumed in his blessing that his family would increase and possess the land of Canaan. This optimism reveals his faith.
"God gave His people this prophecy to bear them through the dismal barrenness of their experiences and to show them that He planned all the future. For Jacob"s family, the future lay beyond the bondage of Egypt in the land of promise. But the enjoyment of the blessings of that hope would depend on the participants" faithfulness. So from the solemnity of his deathbed Jacob evaluated his sons one by one, and carried his evaluation forward to the future tribes." [6]
The scope of his prophecy extends into the millennial age. God did not fulfill these prophecies completely during the lifetime of Jacob"s sons. He did not do so during Israel"s years in the land beginning with the conquest of Joshua and ending with the captivities either. Moreover, He has not done so since then.
"Jacob"s last words to his sons have become the occasion for a final statement of the book"s major theme: God"s plan to restore the lost blessing [7] through the offspring of Abraham.
"By framing Jacob"s last words between Genesis 49:1 and Genesis 49:28, the writer shows where his interests lie. Jacob"s words look to the future-"in days to come"-and draw on the past, viz, God"s blessing of mankind. It is within that context we are to read and understand Jacob"s words in this chapter." [8]