Deuteronomy 33
1 This is the blessing that Moses the man of God pronounced upon the Israelites before his death.
Before God’s prophet Moses died, he [asked God to] bless the Israeli people.
2 He said: “The LORD came from Sinai and dawned upon us from Seir; He shone forth from Mount Paran and came with myriads of holy ones, with flaming fire at His right hand.
This is what he said: “Yahweh came [and spoke] to us at Sinai [Mountain]; he [came like] [MET] the sun rises in the Edom [region] and like his light shone on us when we were [in the desert] near Paran Mountain [after we left Sinai Mountain]. He came with 10,000 angels, and there was a flaming fire at his right side.
3 Surely You love the people; all the holy ones are in Your hand, and they sit down at Your feet; each receives Your words—
Yahweh truly loves his people, and protects [MTY] all those who belong to him. So they prostrate themselves in front of him, and they listen to his instructions.
4 the law that Moses gave us, the possession of the assembly of Jacob.
I gave them laws to obey, laws that would be the most precious thing that [the descendants of] Jacob owned.
5 So the LORD became King in Jeshurun when the leaders of the people gathered, when the tribes of Israel came together.
So Yahweh became the king of his Israeli people when all the tribes and their leaders were gathered together.
6 Let Reuben live and not die, nor his men be few.”
[I say this about the tribe of] Reuben: I desire/hope that their tribe will never disappear, but they will never become numerous.
7 And concerning Judah he said: “O LORD, hear the cry of Judah and bring him to his people. With his own hands he defends his cause, but may You be a help against his foes.”
“say this about [the tribe of] Judah: Yahweh, listen to them when they call out [for help]; and unite them with the other tribes again. Fight for them, and help them to fight against their enemies.
8 Concerning Levi he said: “Give Your Thummim to Levi and Your Urim to Your godly one, whom You tested at Massah and contested at the waters of Meribah.
I say this about [the tribe of] Levi: Yahweh, give to those who are dedicated to you the sacred stones [that they will use to find out what you want to be done]; You tested them at a spring in the desert, a spring that they named Massah and also named Meribah [to find out if they would (remain loyal to/continue to obey) you].
9 He said of his father and mother, ‘I do not consider them.’ He disregarded his brothers and did not know his own sons, for he kept Your word and maintained Your covenant.
The tribe of Levi did what you told them to do and obeyed the agreement that you [made with the Israeli people]; those laws were more important to them [HYP] than their siblings and parents and children.
10 He will teach Your ordinances to Jacob and Your law to Israel; he will set incense before You and whole burnt offerings on Your altar.
The tribe of Levi will teach the Israeli people [DOU] your rules and regulations, and they are the ones who will burn incense and who will completely burn on the altar the offerings [that the people bring].
11 Bless his substance, O LORD, and accept the work of his hands. Smash the loins of those who rise against him, and of his foes so they can rise no more.”
Yahweh, bless their work and (accept/be pleased with) all that they do. Crush/Destroy all their enemies; do not enable their enemies to be able to fight against them again.
12 Concerning Benjamin he said: “May the beloved of the LORD rest secure in Him; God shields him all day long, and upon His shoulders he rests.”
I say this about [the tribe of] Benjamin: They are the tribe that Yahweh loves; he keeps them safe. He protects them continually, and he lives among their hills [MET].
13 Concerning Joseph he said: “May his land be blessed by the LORD with the precious dew from heaven above and the deep waters that lie beneath,
“say this about [the tribes of] Joseph: I desire/hope that Yahweh will bless their land by giving them rain/dew from the sky and water from deep [in the ground],
14 with the bountiful harvest from the sun and the abundant yield of the seasons,
by giving them good fruit [ripened] by the sun and good crops at harvest time.
15 with the best of the ancient mountains and the bounty of the everlasting hills,
I desire/hope that very nice fruit will grow on trees in their ancient mountains/hills [DOU],
16 with the choice gifts of the land and everything in it, and with the favor of Him who dwelt in the burning bush. May these rest on the head of Joseph and crown the brow of the prince of his brothers.
and that their land will be have many good crops, blessed by [Yahweh], the one who appeared to me in a burning bush. I desire/hope that Yahweh will bless the tribes of Joseph in all those ways, because he was the leaders of his [older] brothers [when they were in Egypt].
17 His majesty is like a firstborn bull, and his horns are like those of a wild ox. With them he will gore the nations, even to the ends of the earth. Such are the myriads of Ephraim, and such are the thousands of Manasseh.”
The descendants of Joseph will be as strong as [SIM] a bull; [with their weapons they will wound their enemies, like] [MET] a wild ox [gores other animals] with its horns. They will force other people-groups, all of them, to be exiled to the most distant places on the earth. That is what [the descendants of the two sons of Joseph] will do, the ten thousands [of the tribe] of Ephraim and the thousands [of the tribe] of Manasseh.
18 Concerning Zebulun he said: “Rejoice, Zebulun, in your journeys, and Issachar, in your tents.
“say this about [the tribes of] Zebulun [and Issachar]: I desire/hope that the people of Zebulun will prosper in their travels [across the seas], and that the people of Issachar will prosper while they stay at home [and take care of their cattle and crops].
19 They will call the peoples to a mountain; there they will offer sacrifices of righteousness. For they will feast on the abundance of the seas and the hidden treasures of the sand.”
They will invite people [from the other Israeli tribes] to the mountain [where they worship Yahweh], and they will offer the correct/proper sacrifices to him. They will become rich from [the work that they do on] the seas and from [the things that they make from] (OR, [find in]) the sand [on the beaches].
20 Concerning Gad he said: “Blessed is he who enlarges the domain of Gad! He lies down like a lion and tears off an arm or a head.
“say this about [the tribe of] Gad: Praise [Yahweh], the one who made their [territory] large. The people of their tribe [will attack their enemies fiercely] [SIM] like a lion that crouches, waiting to tear off the arm or the scalp [of some animal].
21 He chose the best land for himself, because a ruler’s portion was reserved for him there. He came with the leaders of the people; he administered the LORD’s justice and His ordinances for Israel.”
They chose the best part of the land for themselves; [a large share of the land], a share that should be given to a leader was allotted to them. When the leaders of the tribes of Israel [gathered together], they decided that the tribe of Gad should have a large share of the land. The tribe of Gad obeyed the commands of Yahweh and the things that he decided that they should do.
22 Concerning Dan he said: “Dan is a lion’s cub, leaping out of Bashan.”
“say this about [the tribe] of Dan: The people of the tribe of Dan are like [SIM] a young lion; they leap from [their caves in the] Bashan [region to attack their enemies].
23 Concerning Naphtali he said: “Naphtali is abounding with favor, full of the blessing of the LORD; he shall take possession of the sea and the south.”
“say this about [the tribe of] Naphtali: [The people of the tribe of] Naphtali have been blessed by Yahweh, who has been very kind to them; their land extends far south from Lake [Galilee].
24 And concerning Asher he said: “May Asher be the most blessed of sons; may he be the most favored among his brothers and dip his foot in oil.
“say this about [the tribe of] Asher: May Yahweh bless the descendants of Asher more than he will bless the other tribes. May he favor Asher’s descendants most of all. I desire/hope that their land will [be filled with olive trees that will] produce a lot of [IDM] [olives to make olive] oil.
25 May the bolts of your gate be iron and bronze, and may your strength match your days.”
Their [towns will be protected by high walls with gates that have] bronze and iron bars; I desire/hope that they will be strong and secure/protected all the time that they are alive.
26 “There is none like the God of Jeshurun, who rides the heavens to your aid, and the clouds in His majesty.
“You people of Israel, there is no god like your God, who rides majestically across the sky to help you.
27 The eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms. He drives out the enemy before you, giving the command, ‘Destroy him!’
God, who lives forever, is the one who (gives you refuge/protects you); [it is as though] he puts his everlasting arms under you [to support you]. He will expel your enemies while you advance; he has told you to destroy all of them.
28 So Israel dwells securely; the fountain of Jacob lives untroubled in a land of grain and new wine, where even the heavens drip with dew.
So, you Israeli people will live safely; you descendants of Jacob will not be disturbed by others; in the land where [you will live], there will be plenty of grain and wine, and there will be plenty of rain.
29 Blessed are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD? He is the shield that protects you, the sword in which you boast. Your enemies will cower before you, and you shall trample their high places.”
You people of Israel, Yahweh (has blessed/is pleased with) you. There is certainly [RHQ] no nation like your nation, whom Yahweh has rescued [from being slaves in Egypt]. [He will be like] [MET] a shield to protect you and like [MET] a sword to enable you to defeat [your enemies]. Your enemies will come to you begging for you [to act mercifully toward them], but you will trample on their backs/necks.”
