NIV, Faithlife Study Bible | Page 142

92 | Genesis 49:8
8
“ Judah , a your brothers will praise you ; your hand will be on the neck of your enemies ; your father ’ s sons will bow down to you .
9
You are a lion ’ s cub , Judah ; you return from the prey , my son . Like a lion he crouches and lies down , like a lioness — ​who dares to rouse him ?
10
The scepter will not depart from Judah , nor the ruler ’ s staff from between his feet , b until he to whom it belongs c shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his .
11
He will tether his donkey to a vine , his colt to the choicest branch ; he will wash his garments in wine , his robes in the blood of grapes .
12
His eyes will be darker than wine , his teeth whiter than milk . d
13
“ Zebulun will live by the seashore and become a haven for ships ; his border will extend toward Sidon .
14
“ Issachar is a rawboned e donkey lying down among the sheep pens . f
15
When he sees how good is his resting place and how pleasant is his land , he will bend his shoulder to the burden and submit to forced labor .
16 “ Dan g will provide justice for his people as one of the tribes of Israel .
17
Dan will be a snake by the roadside , a viper along the path , that bites the horse ’ s heels so that its rider tumbles backward .
18
“ I look for your deliverance , Lord .
19
“ Gad h will be attacked by a band of raiders , but he will attack them at their heels .
20
“ Asher ’ s food will be rich ; he will provide delicacies fit for a king .
21
“ Naphtali is a doe set free that bears beautiful fawns . i
22
“ Joseph is a fruitful vine , a fruitful vine near a spring , whose branches climb over a wall . j a
8 Judah sounds like and may be derived from the Hebrew for praise . b
10 Or from his descendants c
10 Or to whom tribute belongs ; the meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain . d
12 Or will be dull from wine , / his teeth white from milk e
14 Or strong f
14 Or the campfires ; or the saddlebags g
16 Dan here means he provides justice . h
19 Gad sounds like the Hebrew for attack and also for band of raiders . i
21 Or free ; / he utters beautiful words j
22 Or Joseph is a wild colt , / a wild colt near a spring , / a wild donkey on a terraced hill
49:8 your brothers will praise you Judah takes preeminence since Jacob ’ s first three sons — ​Reuben , Simeon , and Levi — ​were dismissed from the blessing normally given to the firstborn . Jacob seems to indicate that this is because Reuben had intercourse with Jacob ’ s concubine ( compare note on 49:4 ) and because Simeon and Levi murdered the men at Shechem , putting the whole family in danger from other people in the region ( compare 34:30 and note ; note on 49:5 ). Judah ’ s leadership following the exodus is hinted at elsewhere in the Pentateuch : The tribe of Judah has the largest tribal population in the census ( Nu 1:26 ; 26:22 ), camps in front of the tent of meeting , and leads the nation in the marching order to the promised land ( Nu 2:3,9 ; 10:14 ). See the infographic “ The Israelite Encampment ” on p . 215 . 49:9 lion The epithet “ lion of Judah ” ( Rev 5:5 ) derives from this blessing . Since Mic 5:2 associated Judah with the coming of the ruler of Israel , the lion of Judah became a Messianic motif as well . 49:11 to a vine The animals listed in this verse here would trample any vine to which they were tied . The image suggests that the land of Judah will be so lush and productive that losing vines in this manner will be no cause for concern . he will wash his garments in wine This image is intentionally absurd : Only incredibly wealthy people would have so much wine that they could even wash garments in them if they desired . See the infographic “ A Winepress in Ancient Israel ” on p . 1157 . 49:13 the seashore It is difficult to know why Zebulun is connected to the sea here , since none of the territory of Zebulun touched the Mediterranean . ( Jos 19:10 – 16 ). This could mean that the reference to the sea here is to the Sea of Galilee , which the tribe of Zebulun was near . Sidon Zebulun ’ s territory did not border the Phoenician city Sidon . However , here Sidon may refer to the nation of
Phoenicia as a whole , as Zebulun ’ s territorial boundaries were adjacent to Phoenicia . 49:14 a rawboned donkey The Hebrew expression used here seems to refer to physical strength . The descriptions that follow in the remainder of this verse and Ge 49:15 likely mean that , despite being known for strength , Issachar would be more content not working . 49:16 will provide justice The Hebrew verb used here , dayan , is a wordplay on Dan ’ s name . Compare note on 30:6 . 49:17 a snake The Hebrew word used here , nachash , is the same term used in ch . 3 for the primeval enemy of Adam and Eve . This means that Jacob is re-characterizing what Dan ’ s name means — ​he will act as accuser , not one who delivers proper judgment or justice . This is reflected in the later reputation of the tribe of Dan ( see note on 30:6 ). 49:19 Gad will be attacked by a band of raiders With its tribal inheritance located east of the Jordan River , Gad regularly had problems with Ammonites , Moabites , Arameans and an assortment of other seminomadic groups . 49:20 Asher ’ s food will be rich The Hebrew expression used here probably refers to a reputation for fine food ; however , it could be unflattering . In Jdg 1:32 , the tribe of Asher is living among enemy Canaanites , indicating that they could be providing fine food for enemy people groups .
49:21 English translations of this verse vary considerably , since some of the words are homographs ( words that are spelled like other words , but have different meanings ); this allows for substantially different interpretations of the Hebrew text . While the first part of the verse seems to refer to flourishing , it is unclear whether Jacob ’ s words to Naphtali are ultimately positive or negative .