Genesis 49

1 And Jacob called his sons, and said to them,

And Jacob called unto his sons, and said: 'Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the end of days.

2 Assemble yourselves, that I may tell you what shall happen to you in the last days. Gather yourselves together, and hear me, sons of Jacob; hear Israel, hear your father.

Assemble yourselves, and hear, ye sons of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father.

3 Ruben, you [are] my firstborn, you my strength, and the first of my children, hard to be endured, [hard and] self-willed.

Reuben, thou art my first-born, my might, and the first-fruits of my strength; the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power.

4 You were insolent like water, burst not forth with violence, for you went up to the bed of your father; then you defiled the couch, whereupon you went up.

Unstable as water, have not thou the excellency; because thou wentest up to thy father's bed; then defiledst thou it — he went up to my couch.

5 Symeon and Levi, brethren, accomplished the injustice of their cutting off.

Simeon and Levi are brethren; weapons of violence their kinship.

6 Let not my soul come into their counsel, and let not mine inward parts contend in their conspiracy, for in their wrath they killed men, and in their passion they houghed a bull.

Let my soul not come into their council; unto their assembly let my glory not be united; for in their anger they slew men, and in their self-will they houghed oxen.

7 Cursed be their wrath, for it was wilful, and their anger, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel.

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 Juda, your brethren have praised you, and your hands shall be on the back of your enemies; your father's sons shall do you reverence.

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

9 Juda is a lion's whelp: from the tender plant, my son, you are gone up, having couched you lie as a lion, and as a whelp; who shall stir him up?

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 a lioness; who shall rouse him up?

10 A ruler shall not fail from Juda, nor a prince from his loins, until there come the things stored up for him; and he is the expectation of nations.

The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, as long as men come to Shiloh; and unto him shall the obedience of the peoples be.

11 Binding his foal to the vine, and the foal of his ass to the branch [of it], he shall wash his robe in wine, and his garment in the blood of the grape.

Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto the choice vine; he washeth his garments in wine, and his vesture in the blood of grapes;

12 His eyes shall be more cheering than wine, and his teeth whiter than milk.

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

13 Zabulon shall dwell on the coast, and he [shall be] by a haven of ships, and shall extend to Sidon.

Zebulun shall dwell at the shore of the sea, and he shall be a shore for ships, and his flank shall be upon Zidon.

14 Issachar has desired that which is good; resting between the inheritances.

Issachar is a large-boned ass, couching down between the sheep-folds.

15 And having seen the resting place that it was good, and the land that it was fertile, he subjected his shoulder to labour, and became a husbandman.

For 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

16 Dan shall judge his people, as one tribe too in Israel.

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

17 And let Dan be a serpent in the way, besetting the path, biting the heel of the horse (and the rider shall fall backward),

Dan shall be a serpent in the way, a horned snake in the path, that biteth the horse's heels, so that his rider falleth backward.

18 waiting for the salvation of the Lord.

I wait for Thy salvation, O Lord.

19 Gad, a plundering troop shall plunder him; but he shall plunder him, [pursuing him] closely.

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

20 Aser, his bread [shall be] fat; and he shall yield dainties to princes.

As for Asher, his bread shall be fat, and he shall yield royal dainties.

21 Nephthalim is a spreading stem, bestowing beauty on its fruit.

Naphtali is a hind let loose: he giveth goodly words.

22 Joseph is a son increased; my dearly loved son is increased; my youngest son, turn to me.

Joseph is a fruitful vine, a fruitful vine by a fountain; its branches run over the wall.

23 Against whom men taking evil counsel reproached [him], and the archers pressed hard upon him.

The archers have dealt bitterly with him, and shot at him, and hated him;

24 But their bow and arrows were mightily consumed, and the sinews of their arms were slackened by the hand of the mighty one of Jacob; thence is he that strengthened Israel from the God of your father;

But his bow abode firm, and the arms of his hands were made supple, by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob, from thence, from the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel,

25 and my God helped you, and he blessed you with the blessing of heaven from above, and the blessing of the earth possessing all things, because of the blessing of the breasts and of the womb,

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 coucheth beneath, blessings of the breasts, and of the womb.

26 the blessings of your father and your mother—it has prevailed above the blessing of the lasting mountains, and beyond the blessings of the everlasting hills; they shall be upon the head of Joseph, and upon the head of the brothers of whom he took the lead.

The blessings of thy father are mighty beyond 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 the prince among his brethren.

27 Benjamin, as a ravening wolf, shall eat still in the morning, and at evening he gives food.

Benjamin is a wolf that raveneth; in the morning he devoureth the prey, and at even he divideth the spoil.'

28 All these [are] the twelve sons of Jacob; and their father spoke these words to them, and he blessed them; he blessed each of them according to his blessing.

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

29 And he said to them, I am added to my people; you shall bury me with my fathers in the cave, which is in the field of Ephron the Chettite,

And he charged them, and said unto them: 'I am to be gathered unto my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite,

30 in the double cave which is opposite Mambre, in the land of Chanaan, the cave which Abraam bought of Ephron the Chettite, for a possession of a sepulchre.

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.

31 There they buried Abraam and Sarrha his wife; there they buried Isaac, and Rebecca his wife; there they buried Lea;

There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife; there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife; and there I buried Leah.

32 in the portion of the field, and of the cave that was in it, [purchased] of the sons of Chet.

The field and the cave that is therein, which was purchased from the children of Heth.'

33 And Jacob ceased giving charges to his sons; and having lifted up his feet on the bed, he died, and was gathered to his people.

And when Jacob made an end of charging his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and expired, and was gathered unto his people.