Genesis 49

1 And Jacob called to his sons, and said, gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the latter days.

And Jacob called his sons, and said to them: Gather yourselves together that I may tell you the things that shall befall you in the last days.

2 Assemble yourselves, and hear, ye sons of Jacob, and hearken to Israel your father.

Gather yourselves together, and hear, O ye sons of Jacob, hearken to Israel your father:

3 Reuben, thou are my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the pre-eminence of dignity, and the pre-eminence of power.

Ruben, my firstborn, thou art my strength, and the beginning of my sorrow: excelling in gifts, greater in command.

4 Boiling over as water, thou shall not have the pre-eminence, because thou went up to thy father's bed, then thou defiled it; he went up to my couch.

Thou art poured out as water, grow thou not: because thou wentest up to thy father’s bed, and didst defile his couch.

5 Simeon and Levi are brothers, weapons of violence are their swords.

Simeon and Levi brethren: vessels of iniquity, waging war.

6 O my soul, come not thou into their council, to their assembly, my glory, be not thou united, for in their anger they slew a man, and in their self-will they hocked an ox.

Let not my soul go into their counsel, nor my glory be in their assembly: because in their fury they slew a man, and in their selfwill they undermined 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.

Cursed be their fury, because it was stubborn: and their wrath because it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, and will scatter them in Israel.

8 Judah, thy brothers shall praise thee. Thy hand shall be on the neck of thine enemies. Thy father's sons shall bow down before thee.

Juda, thee shall thy brethren praise: thy hands shall be on the necks of thy enemies: the sons of thy father shall bow down to thee.

9 Judah is a lion's whelp. From the prey, my son, thou have gone up. He stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as a lioness, who shall rouse him up?

Juda is a lion’s whelp: to the prey, my son, thou art gone up: resting thou hast couched as a lion, and as a lioness, who shall rouse him?

10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs, and to him shall the obedience of the peoples be.

The sceptre shall not be taken away from Juda, nor a ruler from his thigh, till he come that is to be sent, and he shall be the expectation of nations.

11 Binding his foal to the vine, and his donkey's colt to the choice vine, he has washed his garments in wine, and his vesture in the blood of grapes.

Tying his foal to the vineyard, and his ass, O my son, to the vine. He shall wash his robe in wine, and his garment in the blood of the grape.

12 His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk.

His eyes are more beautiful than wine, and his teeth whiter than milk.

13 Zebulun shall dwell at the haven of the sea, and he shall be for a haven of ships. And his border shall be upon Sidon.

Zabulon shall dwell on the sea shore, and in the road of ships, reaching as far as Sidon.

14 Issachar is a strong donkey, couching down between the sheepfolds.

Issachar shall be a strong ass lying down between the borders.

15 And he saw a resting place that it was good, and the land that it was pleasant. And he bowed his shoulder to bear, and became a servant under task work.

He saw rest that it was good: and the land that it was excellent: and he bowed his shoulder to carry, and became a servant under tribute.

16 Dan shall judge his people, as one of the tribes of Israel.

Dan shall judge his people like another tribe in Israel.

17 Dan shall be a serpent in the way, an adder in the path, that bites the horse's heels, so that his rider falls backward.

Let Dan be a snake in the way, a serpent in the path, that biteth the horse’s heels that his rider may fall backward.

18 I have waited for thy salvation, O Jehovah.

I will look for thy salvation, O Lord.

19 Gad, a troop shall press upon him, but he shall press upon their heel.

Gad, being girded, shall fight before him: and he himself shall be girded backward.

20 Out of the Asher his bread shall be fat, and he shall yield royal dainties.

Aser, his bread shall be fat, and he shall yield dainties to kings.

21 Naphtali is a hind let loose. He gives goodly words.

Nephtali, a hart let loose, and giving words of beauty.

22 Joseph is a fruitful bough, a fruitful bough by a fountain, his branches run over the wall.

Joseph is a growing son, a growing son and comely to behold; the daughters run to and fro upon the wall.

23 The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and persecute him,

But they that held darts provoked him, and quarrelled with him, and envied him.

24 but his bow abode in strength. And the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob (From there is the shepherd, the stone of Israel),

His bow rested upon the strong, and the bands of his arms and his hands were loosed, by the hands of the mighty one of Jacob: thence he came forth a pastor, the stone of Israel.

25 even by the God of thy father, who shall help thee, and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that couches beneath, blessings of the breasts, and of the womb.

The God of thy father shall be thy helper, and the Almighty shall bless thee with the blessings of heaven above, with the blessings of the deep that lieth beneath, with the blessings of the breasts and of the womb.

26 The blessings of thy father have prevailed above the blessings of my forefathers to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills. They shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers.

The blessings of thy father are strengthened with the blessings of his fathers: until the desire of the everlasting hills should come; may they be upon the head of Joseph, and upon the crown of the Nazarite among his brethren.

27 Benjamin is a wolf that ravens. In the morning he shall devour the prey, and at evening he shall divide the spoil.

Benjamin a ravenous wolf, in the morning shall eat the prey, and in the evening shall divide the spoil.

28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is it that their father spoke to them and blessed them; every man according to his blessing he blessed them.

All these are the twelve tribes of Israel: these things their father spoke to them, and he blessed every one, with their proper blessings.

29 And he ordered them, and said to them, I am to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite,

And he charged them, saying: I am now going to be gathered to my people: bury me with my fathers in the double cave, which is in the field of Ephron the Hethite,

30 in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite for a possession of a burying place.

Over against Mambre in the land of Chanaan, which Abraham bought together with the field of Ephron the Hethite for a possession to bury in.

31 There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife, there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah,

There they buried him, and Sara his wife: there was Isaac buried with Rebecca his wife: there also Lia doth lie buried.

32 the field and the cave that is in it, which was purchased from the sons of Heth.

33 And when Jacob made an end of charging his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the spirit, and was gathered to his people.

And when he had ended the commandments, wherewith he instructed his sons, he drew up his feet upon the bed, and died: and he was gathered to his people.