The First Book of Moses: Genesis

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- Kapitel 49 -

Jacob summoned all his sons and said to them,

“Gather around close to me in order that I can tell you what will happen in the future. My sons, come and listen to me. I am your father, Jacob.

Reuben, you are my oldest son. You were born when I was young and energetic. When I became a grown man, you were my first child. You are prouder and stronger than all the rest of my sons.

But you were as unstable as ocean waves. So now you will not be my most important son, because you climbed up onto my bed and slept with my concubine. That caused me, your father, to have great shame.

Simeon and Levi, you two brothers have both acted like criminals. You use your swords to act violently.

I do not want to be with you when you make evil plans. I am too honorable to join you in your meetings, because you killed people when you became very angry, and you hamstrung oxen just to have fun.

God says, ‘I will curse them for being very angry, for acting very cruelly when they were very furious. I will scatter their descendants throughout Israel land.’

Judah, your older and younger brothers will praise you. They will bow down before you, because you will thoroughly defeat your enemies.

Judah is like a young lion that has returned to its den satisfied after eating the animals that it has killed. He is like a lion that lies down and stretches out after eating; no one would dare to disturb it.

There will always be a ruler from the descendants of Judah. Each one will hold a scepter to show that he has authority as a king. He will do that until nations bring tribute to him and show that they will obey him.

The grapevines of his descendants will produce grapes very abundantly. As a result, they will not object to tying their young donkeys to the grapevines in order that they can eat the leaves of the grapevines. Wine will be very plentiful, with the result that they will wash their clothes in wine; they will wash their cloaks in wine that is as red as blood.

Their eyes will be red because of drinking too much wine, but their teeth will be very white because of drinking much milk from the cows.

Zebulun, your descendants will live by the seashore where there will be a safe harbor for ships. Their land will extend north as far as the city of Sidon.

Issachar, your descendants will be like strong donkeys that are lying down between two groups of sheep. so tired that they cannot get up!

They will see that their resting place is good and that the land pleases them very much. But they will bend their backs to carry heavy loads and be forced to work for others.

Dan, although your tribe will be small, your leaders will rule their people just as the leaders of other tribes of Israel will rule their people.

Your descendants will be like snakes at the side of a road, like poisonous snakes lying beside a path. They will strike the heels of horses that pass by, causing the riders to fall backwards as the horses rear up on their hind legs.”

Then Jacob prayed, “Yahweh, I am waiting for you to rescue me from my enemies.”

Then Jacob continued telling his sons what would happen in the future. He said, “Gad, your tribe will be attacked by a group of bandits, but your tribe will pursue and attack them.

Asher, your descendants will eat good tasting food; they will produce food that is delicious enough for kings to eat.

Naphtali, your descendants will be like deer that run free, deer that have beautiful fawns.

Joseph, you will have many descendants. Their children will be as many as the fruit on a vine near a spring of water, whose branches extend over a wall.

Their enemies will attack them fiercely, and shoot at them with bows and arrows and pursue them.

But they will hold their bows steady and their arms will remain strong, because of the power of my mighty God, because of Yahweh, who guides and provides for me, as a shepherd guides and provides for his sheep. The people of Israel will ask Yahweh to protect them, as people take refuge on top of a high rock.

God, the one whom I worship, will help your descendants. God Almighty will bless them by sending them rain from the sky and by giving them water from deep below the ground. He will give them many children and will nourish them.

The blessings that I want God to give you are great ones. They are greater than the blessings that come from the eternal mountains, than the ones that come from the everlasting hills. Joseph, I pray that these blessings will be given to you, because you are the leader of your brothers.

Benjamin, your descendants will be like vicious wolves. In the morning they will kill their enemies like a wolf devours its prey, and in the evening they will divide among their warriors the spoils that they seized from their enemies.”

Those twelve sons are the ancestors of the twelve tribes of Israel. That is what their father said to them as he blessed them, telling to each one words that were right for him.

The Death of Jacob

Then Jacob said to his sons, “I will soon die and join my ancestors who have already died. Bury my body where some of my ancestors are buried, in the cave that is in the field that was bought from Ephron, who belonged to the Heth people group.

The field of Machpelah, was east of Mamre, in the land of Canaan. Abraham bought it from Ephron to use as a burial place.

That is where they buried him and his wife Sarah. That is where they buried my father Isaac and his wife Rebekah. And that is where I buried my wife Leah.

That field and the cave in it were bought from the Heth people group; so that is where I want you to bury me.”

When Jacob finished giving those instructions to his sons, he lay down on his bed again. Then he stopped breathing and died.

Jacob called to his sons, and said: “Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which will happen to you in the days to come.

Assemble yourselves, and hear, you sons of Jacob. Listen to Israel, your father.

“Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, excelling in dignity, and excelling in power.

Boiling over like water, you shall not excel, because you went up to your father’s bed, then defiled it. He went up to my couch.

“Simeon and Levi are brothers. Their swords are weapons of violence.

My soul, don’t come into their council. My glory, don’t be united to their assembly; for in their anger they killed men. In their self-will they hamstrung cattle.

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.

“Judah, your brothers will praise you. Your hand will be on the neck of your enemies. Your father’s sons will bow down before you.

Judah is a lion’s cub. From the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down, he crouched as a lion, as a lioness. Who will rouse him up?

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

Binding his foal to the vine, his donkey’s colt to the choice vine, he has washed his garments in wine, his robes in the blood of grapes.

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

“Zebulun will dwell at the haven of the sea. He will be for a haven of ships. His border will be on Sidon.

“Issachar is a strong donkey, lying down between the saddlebags.

He saw a resting place, that it was good, the land, that it was pleasant. He bows his shoulder to the burden, and becomes a servant doing forced labor.

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

Dan will be a serpent on the trail, an adder in the path, that bites the horse’s heels, so that his rider falls backward.

I have waited for your salvation, LORD.

“A troop will press on Gad, but he will press on their heel.

“Asher’s food will be rich. He will produce royal dainties.

“Naphtali is a doe set free, who bears beautiful fawns.

“Joseph is a fruitful vine, a fruitful vine by a spring. His branches run over the wall.

The archers have severely grieved him, shot at him, and persecuted him:

But his bow remained strong. 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),

even by the God of your father, who will help you, by the Almighty, who will bless you, with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lies below, blessings of the breasts, and of the womb.

The blessings of your father have prevailed above the blessings of my ancestors, above the boundaries of the ancient hills. They will be on the head of Joseph, on the crown of the head of him who is separated from his brothers.

“Benjamin is a ravenous wolf. In the morning he will devour the prey. At evening he will divide the plunder.”

All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father spoke to them, and blessed them. He blessed everyone according to his own blessing.

The Death of Jacob

He instructed 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,

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 as a burial place.

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

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

When Jacob finished charging his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, breathed his last breath, and was gathered to his people.