Deuteronomy 33

1 And this [is] the blessing [with] which Moses the man of God blessed the sons of Israel before his death,

Now this is the blessing which Moses, the man of God, gave to the children of Israel before his death.

2 and he says: “YHWH has come from Sinai, And has risen from Seir for them; He has shone from Mount Paran, And has come [with] myriads of holy ones; At His right hand [came] a fiery law [[or a flaming fire]] for them.

He said, The Lord came from Sinai, dawning on them from Seir; shining out from Mount Paran, coming from Meribath Kadesh: from his right hand went flames of fire: his wrath made waste the peoples.

3 Indeed, He [is] loving the peoples; All His holy ones [are] in Your hand, And they sat down at Your foot, [Each] lifts up Your words.

All his holy ones are at his hand; they go at his feet; they are lifted up on his wings.

4 Moses has commanded a law for us, A possession of the assembly of Jacob.

Moses gave us a law, a heritage for the people of Jacob.

5 And He is King in Yeshurun, In the heads of the people gathering together, The tribes of Israel!

And there was a king in Jeshurun, when the heads of the people and the tribes of Israel came together.

6 Let Reuben live, and not die, And let his men be an [incalculable] number.

Let life not death be Reuben's, let not the number of his men be small.

7 And this [is] for Judah, and he says: Hear, O YHWH, the voice of Judah, And You bring him in to his people; His hand has striven for him, And You are a help from his adversaries.

And this is the blessing of Judah: he said, Give ear, O Lord, to the voice of Judah and make him one with his people: let your hands take up his cause, and be his help against his attackers.

8 And of Levi he said: Your Perfections and your Lights [are] for your pious one, Whom You have tried in Massah, You strive with him at the waters of Meribah;

And of Levi he said, Give your Thummim to Levi and let the Urim be with your loved one, whom you put to the test at Massah, with whom you were angry at the waters of Meribah;

9 Who is saying of his father and his mother, I have not seen him; And he has not discerned his brothers, And he has not known his sons; For they have observed Your saying, And they keep Your covenant.

Who said of his father, Who is he? and of his mother, I have not seen her; he kept himself separate from his brothers and had no knowledge of his children: for they have given ear to your word and kept your agreement.

10 They teach Your judgments to Jacob, And Your law to Israel; They put incense in Your nose, And whole burnt-offering on Your altar.

They will be the teachers of your decisions to Jacob and of your law to Israel: the burning of perfumes before you will be their right, and the ordering of burned offerings on your altar.

11 Bless, O YHWH, his strength, And accept the work of his hands, Strike the loins of his withstanders, And of those hating him—that they do not rise!

Let your blessing, O Lord, be on his substance, may the work of his hands be pleasing to you: may those who take up arms against him and all who have hate for him, be wounded through the heart, never to be lifted up again.

12 Of Benjamin he said: The beloved of YHWH dwells confidently by Him, Covering him over every day; Indeed, he dwells between His shoulders.

And of Benjamin he said, Benjamin is the loved one of the Lord, he will be kept safe at all times; he will be covered by the Most High, resting between his arms.

13 And of Joseph he said: His land [is] blessed [by] YHWH, By a precious thing of the heavens, By dew, and by the deep crouching beneath,

And of Joseph he said, Let the blessing of the Lord be on his land; for the good things of heaven on high, and the deep waters flowing under the earth,

14 And by a precious thing—fruits of the sun, And by a precious thing—cast forth by the months,

And the good things of the fruits of the sun, and the good things of the growth of the moons,

15 And by a chief thing—of the ancient mountains, And by a precious thing—of the continuous heights,

And the chief things of the oldest mountains, and the good things of the eternal hills,

16 And by a precious thing—of earth and its fullness, And the good pleasure of Him who is dwelling in the bush; Let it come for the head of Joseph, And for the crown of him [who is] separate from his brothers.

The good things of the earth and all its wealth, the good pleasure of him who was seen in the burning tree: may they come on the head of Joseph, on the head of him who was prince among his brothers.

17 His splendor [is] a firstling of his ox, And his horns [are] horns of a wild ox; With them he pushes the peoples Altogether to the ends of the earth; And they [are] the myriads of Ephraim, And they [are] the thousands of Manasseh.

He is a young ox, glory is his; his horns are the horns of the mountain ox, with which all peoples will be wounded, even to the ends of the earth: they are the ten thousands of Ephraim and the thousands of Manasseh.

18 And of Zebulun he said: Rejoice, O Zebulun, in your going out, And, O Issachar, in your tents;

And of Zebulun he said, Be glad, Zebulun, in your going out; and, Issachar, in your tents.

19 They call peoples [to] the mountain, There they sacrifice righteous sacrifices; For they suck up the abundance of the seas, And hidden things hidden in the sand.

They will send out the word for the people to come to the mountain, taking there the offerings of righteousness: for the store of the seas will be theirs, and the secret wealth of the sand.

20 And of Gad he said: Blessed is he who is enlarging Gad, He dwells as a lioness, And has torn the arm—also the crown!

Of Gad he said, A blessing be on him who makes wide the limits of Gad: he takes his rest like a she-lion, taking for himself the arm and the crown of the head.

21 And he provides the first part for himself, For there the portion of the lawgiver is covered, And he comes [with] the heads of the people; He has done the righteousness of YHWH, And His judgments with Israel.

He kept for himself the first part, for his was the ruler's right: he put in force the righteousness of the Lord, and his decisions for Israel.

22 And of Dan he said: Dan [is] a lion’s whelp; He leaps from Bashan.

And of Dan he said, Dan is a young lion, springing out from Bashan.

23 And of Naphtali he said: O Naphtali, satisfied with pleasure, And full of the blessing of YHWH, Possess [the] west and [the] south.

And of Naphtali he said, O Naphtali, made glad with grace and full of the blessing of the Lord: the sea and its fishes will be his.

24 And of Asher he said: Asher [is] blessed with sons, Let him be accepted by his brothers, And dipping his foot in oil.

And of Asher he said, Let Asher have the blessing of children; may he be pleasing to his brothers, and let his foot be wet with oil.

25 Iron and bronze [are] your shoes, And as your days—your strength.

Your shoes will be iron and brass; and as your days, so may your work be.

26 [There is] none like the God of Yeshurun, Riding the heavens to your help, And in His excellence the skies.

No other is like the God of Jeshurun, coming on the heavens to your help, and letting his glory be seen in the skies.

27 The eternal God [is] a habitation, And beneath [are] continuous arms. And He casts out the enemy from your presence and says, Destroy!

The God of your fathers is your safe resting-place, and under you are his eternal arms: driving out the forces of your haters from before you, he said, Let destruction overtake them.

28 And Israel dwells [in] confidence alone; The eye of Jacob [is] to a land of grain and wine; Also His heavens drop down dew.

And Israel is living in peace, the fountain of Jacob by himself, in a land of grain and wine, with dew dropping from the heavens.

29 O your blessedness, O Israel! Who is like you? A people saved by YHWH, The shield of your help, And He who [is] the sword of your excellence! And your enemies are subdued for you, And you tread on their high places.”

Happy are you, O Israel: who is like you, a people whose saviour is the Lord, whose help is your cover, whose sword is your strength! All those who are against you will put themselves under your rule, and your feet will be planted on their high places.