Then Jacob summoned
his sons
and said
, "Assemble
yourselves that I may tell
you what
will befall
you ain the 1days
to come
.
"Gather together and hear
, O sons
of Jacob
; And alisten
to Israel
your father
.
"Reuben, you are my firstborn
; My might
and athe beginning
of my strength
, 1Preeminent
in dignity
and 1preeminent
in power
.
" 1Uncontrolled as water
, you shall not have
preeminence
, aBecause
you went
up to your father's
bed
; Then
you defiled
it --he went
up to my couch
.
" aSimeon and Levi
are brothers
; Their swords
are implements
of violence
.
" aLet my soul not enter
into their council
; Let not my glory
be united
with their assembly
; Because
in their anger
they slew
1men
, And in their self-will
they lamed
2oxen
.
"Cursed be their anger
, for it is fierce
; And their wrath
, for it is cruel
. aI will 1disperse
them in Jacob
, And scatter
them in Israel
.
"Judah, your brothers
shall praise
you; Your hand
shall be on the neck
of your enemies
; aYour father's
sons
shall bow
down
to you.
"Judah is a alion's
whelp
; From the prey
, my son
, you have gone
up. bHe 1couches
, he lies
down
as a lion
, And as a 2lion
, who
3dares rouse
him up?
" aThe scepter shall not depart
from Judah
, Nor
the ruler's
staff
from between
his feet
, 1Until
Shiloh
comes
, And bto him shall be the obedience
of the peoples
.
" 1 aHe ties his foal
to the vine
, And his donkey's
colt
to the choice
vine
; bHe washes
his garments
in wine
, And his robes
in the blood
of grapes
.
"His eyes are 1dull
from wine
, And his teeth
2white
from milk
.
" aZebulun will dwell
at the seashore
; And he shall be 1a haven
for ships
, And his flank
shall be toward
Sidon
.
"Issachar is 1a strong
donkey
, aLying
down
between
the 2sheepfolds
.
"When he saw that a resting
place
was good
And that the land
was pleasant
, He bowed
his shoulder
to bear
burdens, And became
a slave
at forced
labor
.
" aDan shall bjudge
his people
, As one
of the tribes
of Israel
.
"Dan shall be a serpent
in the way
, A horned
snake
in the path
, That bites
the horse's
heels
, So that his rider
falls
backward
.
" aFor Your salvation I wait
, O LORD
.
" aAs for Gad, 1raiders
shall raid
him, But he will raid
at their 2heels
.
" 1 aAs for bAsher, his 2food
shall be 3rich
, And he will yield
royal
dainties
.
" aNaphtali is a doe
let
loose
, He gives
beautiful
words
.
" aJoseph is a fruitful
1bough
, A fruitful
1bough
by a spring
; Its 2branches
run
over
a wall
.
"The archers bitterly
attacked him, And shot
at him and harassed
him;
But his abow remained
1firm
, And 2 bhis arms
were agile
, From the hands
of the cMighty
One
of Jacob
(From there
is dthe Shepherd
, ethe Stone
of Israel
),
From athe God of your father
who helps
you, And 1 bby the 2Almighty
who blesses
you With cblessings
of heaven
above
, Blessings
of the deep
that lies
beneath
, Blessings
of the breasts
and of the womb
.
"The blessings of your father
Have surpassed
the blessings
of my ancestors
Up to the 1utmost
bound
of athe everlasting
hills
; May they be on the head
of Joseph
, And on the crown
of the head
of the one
distinguished
among his brothers
.
"Benjamin is a 1ravenous
wolf
; In the morning
he devours
the prey
, And in the evening
he divides
the spoil
."
All these
are the twelve
tribes
of Israel
, and this
is what
their father
said
to them 1when he blessed
them. He blessed
them, every
one
2with the blessing
appropriate to him.
Then he charged them and said
to them, "I am about to be agathered
to my people
; bbury
me with my fathers
in the cave
that is in cthe field
of Ephron
the Hittite
,
in the acave that is in the field
of Machpelah
, which
is before
Mamre
, in the land
of Canaan
, which
Abraham
bought
along with the field
from Ephron
the Hittite
for a 1burial
site
.
"There they buried
aAbraham
and his wife
bSarah
, there
they buried
cIsaac
and his wife
Rebekah
, and there
I buried
Leah
--
the field and the cave
that is in it, purchased
from the sons
of Heth
."
When Jacob finished
charging
his sons
, he drew
his feet
into the bed
and abreathed
his last
, and was bgathered
to his people
.