Chapter Forty-Nine

Jacob foretells the fate of his descendants

Genesis 49:1–2. And Jacob called his sons and said: Gather together, and I will tell you what will happen to you in the coming days; come together and listen, sons of Jacob, listen to Israel, your father. In a lofty poetic, divinely inspired speech, Jacob, bypassing the life in Egypt that lay before his descendants, prophetically paints a picture of the future life of each tribe in Canaan, and in each case proceeds from the individual qualities of one or another of his sons and the circumstances of his life, and then moves to the future—sometimes more near, sometimes more distant—of his generation—to the “last days” (acharith hajamim, ἐπ ἐσχάτων τῶν ἡμερῶν; Vulg. in diebus novissimis), which in relation to the most important point of Jacob’s prophecy—the prophecy concerning Judah—means “not merely future, but the final future, precisely the messianic time of the completion of all things” (Keil). Of course, the first period after Israel’s settlement in Canaan and the period of the judges form the nearest points of Jacob’s prophetic vision, but his prophetic perspective is far from limited to these bounds, and the historical features of that period are full of symbolic significance in relation to the distant future of the history of salvation. A messianic meaning belongs to the expression “in the last days” in other biblical prophecies as well (Isa 2:2; Jer 30:24; Ezek 38:16; Dan 10:14; Hos 3:5; Mic 4:1; cf. Heb 1:1-2). In general, in both its entirety and many of its particulars, Jacob’s prophecy appears as a type of patriarchal blessings clothed in inspired and poetic form. Blessed Theodoret, answering the question (Question on Gen 112): why is it said that Jacob blesses his children, when he curses some?—responds: “the last words of the patriarch are not curses or blessings, but predictions.”

Genesis 49:3–4. Reuben, my firstborn! You are my strength and the beginning of my power, the highest in dignity and the highest in might; but you were turbulent as water, you shall not excel, because you went up to your father’s bed—you defiled my couch, which you ascended. In verse 3, mention is made of the advantages, both natural and recognized by ancient Hebrew custom, which belonged to Reuben by birth—mentioned with the aim of showing “that there is no benefit from natural advantages if they are not accompanied by perfections of the will” (John Chrysostom, Discourse 47:7–16); as Jacob’s firstborn, he is the embodiment of complete, undiminished by years, paternal strength (koach, LXX and Aquila: ἰσχυς μοῦ; Vulg.: fortitudo mea), virginal strength (like the inexhaustible strength of the earth, Gen 4:12). This idea is supplemented by the synonymous “beginning of my power” (reschit oni), as expressed quite precisely in the Russian Bible and as this expression is used more than once in the Bible (Deut 21:17; Ps 77:51). The LXX convey the same thought, but more concretely: ἀρχὴ τέκνων (Slavic: “beginning of my children”). Aquila (κεφάλαιον λύπης), Symmachus (ἀρχὴ ὀδύνης) and the Vulgate (principium doloris) in the sense of grief, suffering (as in Gen 35:18), express the thought that Reuben, by defiling his father’s bed, was the first of his brothers to cause bitter shame and sorrow to his father. But Simeon and Levi first caused sorrow to the father—by the bloody massacre at Shechem (Gen 34:25-30); here, according to the context of the speech by analogy with Deut 21:17; Ps 77:51, the matter is about the advantages of primogeniture. Continuing his speech on this, Jacob then calls Reuben “the highest in dignity and the highest in might” (Vulg.: prior in donis, major in imperiis; Aquila: praestans dignitate, praestans fortitudine; the LXX, apparently, read the original text differently than now, rendering it: σκληρὸς φέρεσθαι καὶ σκληρὸς αὐθάδης); according to the explanation of the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan, the Midrashim and blessed Jerome (cf. 1 Chr 5:1-2), this designates the rights belonging to Reuben by the law of primogeniture: • a double inheritance; • the authority of the priesthood or the dignity of the high priesthood; • royal authority; the first went to Joseph instead, the second to Levi, the third to Judah. In verse 4, the reason for Reuben’s deprivation of primogeniture and its privileges is indicated: the general thoughtlessness, recklessness and presumption (LXX: ἐξύβρισας) of Reuben (for the meaning of the Hebrew pachaz, cf. Judg 9:4; Jer 23:32), in which Reuben is compared to turbulent water (cf. Job 24:13-18), and in particular—the grave insult to his father’s honor by defiling his bed (Gen 35:22); so deeply did the vile fact of Reuben’s incontinence wound Jacob, which in later times was matched by the equally reckless Absalom (2 Sam 16:22). “You shall not excel”—this deprivation of the rights of primogeniture made itself known throughout the subsequent history of the tribe of Reuben, which never played any significant role in the history of the people of Israel. Already Moses in his blessing to the tribe of Reuben (Deut 33:6) prayerfully desires only that it not die out. Deborah condemns the Reubenites for their indifference to the common national calamity of enslavement and the war of liberation (Judg 5:15-16). In later times the tribe of Reuben was one of the first to disappear from history.

Genesis 49:5–6. Simeon and Levi are brothers, weapons of cruelty are their swords; let my soul not enter into their counsel, and let my glory not be joined to their assembly, for in their anger they killed a man and at their pleasure they hamstrung an ox; Jacob purposely calls Simeon and Levi brothers and foretells them a common, equally unfavorable fate—as a result of the similarity of their moral character and manner of action, due to their equally active participation in the bloodshed at Shechem (Gen 34:25-27) and (according to tradition) in the sale of Joseph (Gen 37:27-28). Arbitrarily and without foundation, Bolen and others saw in this a personification of the historical cruelty of both tribes in the time of the judges: history knows no such facts; rather, this would have been true of the tribe of Benjamin (Judg 20-21), but about Benjamin (verse 27) a different prediction is given. From this, and equally from the historical fate of the tribe of Levi (verse 7), it is clear how unsuccessful is the attempt of certain modern biblical scholars to understand the entire prophecy of Jacob as vaticinium ex eventu, as an artificial attribution of the historical fortunes of the tribes of Israel to their ancestors, and to push the editing of the prophecy back to the times of David and Solomon. The Hebrew mecherotheihem is rendered in the Russian Bible as “their swords.” The word mecherah is of unknown meaning, rendered very differently by translations. The accepted Russian rendering is one of the more probable: here the Hebrew word is brought close to the Greek μάχαιρα. In verse 6, concerning the bloodthirsty cruelty of Simeon and Levi, Jacob speaks with the same repugnance as about the incest of Reuben (verse 4): Jacob’s soul (called his “glory” as in Ps 7:6 and other places) had no part in the bloodthirsty actions of Simeon and Levi, who in their proceedings at Shechem not only destroyed the male population of the city, but either destroyed or maimed (by hamstringing) the livestock of the Shechemites (cf. 2 Sam 8:4; Josh 11:6); Vulg. in the figurative sense, suffoderunt murum.

Genesis 49:7. Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce, and their wrath, for it is severe; I will divide them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel. “But [the patriarch] curses not Simeon and Levi themselves, but their evil passions, their anger, their wrath.... And their punishment was only a prediction (blessed Theodoret, Answer to Question 112).” The division of the tribes of Simeon and Levi and their scattering among the other tribes was a specific means against the criminal unanimity of their ancestors. The prophecy upon both tribes was fulfilled with precision, though in different ways—in every unfavorable sense only upon the tribe of Simeon. It quickly decreased in number during the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness; shortly after the departure from Egypt, it had 59,300 men capable of war (Num 1:23), and at the end of that period only 22,000 (Num 26:14). In Canaan it received its allotment not independently but within the territory of the tribe of Judah (Josh 19:1). Its insignificance in national life is evident from the fact that in Moses’ blessing (Deut 33) it is not mentioned at all. According to Jewish tradition, the greatest number of the poor was in the tribe of Simeon (Berech. r. P. 98, 485). Upon the tribe of Levi, the threatening word of the patriarch also was fulfilled at first: it received no allotment of its own when Canaan was divided, but only 48 cities—in the allotments of various tribes (Josh 21:41). But then the sincere and zealous service to God of the representatives of this tribe, for example, Exod 32:26, made it a chosen and holy tribe of the servants of Jehovah at His sanctuary (Num 18:20-24 and others): then the curse of scattering was transformed into a blessing of sacred service—teaching, worship, and the like among Israel (Deut 32:9-11). In this latter sense, “the tribe of Levi was scattered because of its high honor, so that in each tribe there might live Levites and priests, and all might derive benefit from them” (blessed Theodoret). Is it now possible that Jacob’s prophecy concerning Levi, so unfavorable to him and his tribe, could have occurred in the times of David and Solomon, when the sacred significance and high service, as well as the divine choice of the tribe of Levi, were commonly acknowledged in Israel? The appearance at these times, and in general after Moses, of the supposed satire on the tribe of Levi and on others was absolutely unthinkable.

Genesis 49:8–12. Judah! Your brothers will praise you. Your hand will be on the neck of your enemies; your father’s sons will bow down to you. Young lion, Judah, with plunder, my son, you arise. He crouches, he lies down like a lion and like a lioness: who will rouse him? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the lawgiver from between his feet, until the Reconciler comes, and to Him shall be the obedience of the peoples. He ties his foal to the vine and his donkey’s colt to the choice vine; he washes his garment in wine and his robe in the blood of grapes; his eyes are bright from wine, and his teeth are white from milk. Reuben is deprived of primogeniture, Simeon and Levi—of primogeniture and independence, the fourth son Judah in his descendants receives both the first and the last, his tribe in general is “regal and of all the other tribes the most mighty” (blessed Theodoret). In its entirety, “the blessing given to Judah is mysterious: it foreshadowed everything that relates to Christ” (John Chrysostom). Strictly speaking, the blessing of Judah has a messianic sense, by general agreement of commentators, in the middle part—verse 10; in the two preceding verses (8 and 9) and the two following (11 and 12) are revealed the historical features of the earthly power and well-being of the tribe of Judah, in which, however, one can discern also a reflection or prefigurement of messianic moments. Verses 8–9: Judah (Jehudah), from Hebrew—praised (cf. the words of Leah at his birth, Gen 29:35): “now I will praise the Lord”), will become the object of praise and glory to his brothers. According to the Midrash, this means that all the tribes of Israel will subsequently bear the name of Judah—will be called Jews. To the glorious name of Judah will correspond his valor, courage, might: strength in struggle with enemies and victory over them, dominion over the tribes of Israel (the sons of the father, not the mother, as in Gen 27:29: all the ancestors of the tribes of Israel, of all 4 wives of Jacob). And not in war alone will the tribe of Judah be fearsome to its enemies: it will inspire all with fear and reverence even in a state of deep peace: as a young lion, a lion, and especially a lioness even sleeping inspire fear in a human, so, like the king of beasts, the tribe of Judah in various epochs of history after its settlement in Canaan was fearsome to the predatory peoples surrounding Israel in Palestine. If the full development of this might of the tribe of Judah occurred under David, it was already in the wilderness that it was at the head of all the tribes (Num 2:3), and it was the first to begin the conquest of Canaan (Judg 1:1-8). On its military standard the tribe of Judah bore the image of a lion. The comparison of the patriarch was realized in all its force in the death of the Lord: “as a lion and sleeping is fearsome, so the sovereign death became fearsome both to death and to the devil.... And the words: who will rouse him? show his unspeakable might. For He Himself rose Himself...” (blessed Theodoret, cf. John Chrysostom, 718). In the first half of verse 10, the tribe or descendants of Judah is promised supreme power in Israel in two synonymous expressions—governmental (schebet; LXX: ἄρχων, Russian: “scepter,” cf. Num 24:17; Isa 14:5; Zech 10:11) and legislative, as well as military (mechoqeq; LXX: ἡγούμενος; Vulg.: dux; Slavic: “leader”). Then a limit to this dominion is indicated—in the sense of its cessation or ideal completion—in the words: ad ki jabo Schiloh, understood very differently by commentators of all times and schools. The predominant interpretation—both by antiquity and by the authority of its representatives, and by the context of the ideas and events of the history of salvation—is messianic. All differences in the understanding of the cited expression reduce to different interpretations of the word Schiloh. Among non-messianic interpretations, one can mention that which sees in the latter the name of a city of the tribe of Ephraim—Shiloh (Hebrew Schiloh, e.g., Josh 16:6 and others, or schilo—Judg 21:21 and others), where after the conquest of Canaan the tabernacle was placed, and renders the entire phrase as: “until they come to Shiloh”—a meaning very restrictive: the hegemony of Judah would have been very short-lived, and the significance of the coming of the Hebrews to Shiloh is questionable. The prophetically messianic interpretation, which prevailed in the Jewish synagogue, in the ancient Christian Church, and in learned Christian theology of the medieval and modern periods, presents several variations according to the different understandings of Schiloh, but in any case the idea of a new messianic order of life is retained. Schiloh is understood precisely as an abstract instead of concrete—a reconciler, a prince of peace (LXX: ἀποκείμενα αυτω; Aquila: ῶ ἀπόχειται) or—directly as a concrete: “his son” (Rabbi Kimchi); qui mittendus est (Vulg.) and the like. In the Talmud and Midrashim, Shiloh is one of the names of the Messiah. The end of the verse, “and to Him shall be the obedience of the peoples,” all commentators refer to the Messiah, as then the entire verse 10, and finally the entire prophecy concerning Judah. “This is the clearest sign of the coming of the Lord,” says blessed Theodoret of the words of verse 10,—among the Jews there ceased not only kings, but also priests and prophets, in proof of the fulfillment of this prediction. When our Savior was to be born, foreign kings became rulers over the Jews, and by this is indicated the Eternal King—“the expectation of the nations” (Answer to Question 112). “So long as Judean and princes from Judah shall continue, until He comes” (John Chrysostom, 718). Verses 11–12 paint a picture of the wealth of the territory of the tribe of Judah with the products of agriculture and animal husbandry: an extraordinary abundance of grapes (including the best variety, the so-called soreg) and abundance of herds and milk. The Midrashim, Targums, holy John Chrysostom, blessed Theodoret give even these features a messianic sense, for which the prophetic images, for example, Joel 2:22, of messianic times give some foundation.

Genesis 49:13–15. Zebulun will dwell by the seashore and at a haven for ships, with his border extending to Sidon. Issachar is a strong donkey, lying between two burdens; and he saw that rest was good and that the land was pleasant; and he bent his shoulders to bear a burden and became a servant for taxes. Regarding the fate of the two tribes of the last sons of Jacob from Leah: Zebulun and Issachar (the younger brother is mentioned for some reason first). To the tribe of Zebulun is promised a coastal position (between the Galilean and Mediterranean Seas), as a source of its riches (Deut 33:19); its border is designated on the west to Sidon (Tyre is not mentioned: it arose much later, around 1200 B.C.—evidence of the antiquity of the prophecy). Never reaching the indicated border (Josh 19:10-16), the tribe of Zebulun lived mainly through participation in international trade. To the tribe of Issachar is promised a fertile region, suitable for agriculture and animal husbandry: its emblem is a strong donkey, lying among enclosures (such is the more precise meaning of the Hebrew mischpetaim, Russian: “between two burdens,” Slavic: “boundaries”)—a comparison that contains nothing offensive (the eastern donkey is more beautiful than the European one), but still characterizes the excessive attachment of the tribe of Issachar to agriculture and animal husbandry, its apathy toward military and political activity, its preference of slavery to war. A detailed description of the territory of both tribes is given by Josephus (Jewish War, Book 3, Chapter 3, 1–2).

Genesis 49:16–18. Dan will judge his people, like one of the tribes of Israel; Dan will be a serpent on the road, a viper on the path, that bites the horse’s heel so that his rider falls backward. For your deliverance I hope, O Lord! To the tribe of Dan, the son of Jacob from a concubine, is given an equal right with the tribes of the sons of Leah and Rachel (the same holds for the tribes of Gad, Asher, and Naphtali): it will judge (jaden—a play on the meaning of Dan), that is, be ruled independently and even influence the life of other tribes, like any other tribe. Targum Onkelos, Midrash, and many ancient and modern commentators see here a reference to the Danite Samson. The enemies of the tribe of Dan will be defeated not so much in open battle (like Judah, personified in the image of a lion), but by secret ambushes and in general by cunning—the properties that distinguish serpents in the animal kingdom: “Dan will be a serpent... and an asp” (verse 17). These unattractive features of the tribe of Dan, the historical data for explaining which cannot be indicated with precision (the Targums and Midr. attributed these qualities to Samson, other commentators to the Danites who seized Laish, Judg 18:1-29), and the non-mention of the tribe of Dan in the Apocalypse in the passage about those sealed in each tribe of Israel (Rev 7:4-8) gave grounds for the supposition of many holy Fathers and teachers of the Church that the antichrist will come from the tribe of Dan. According to the opinion of blessed Theodoret, “the Spirit of God, who foresaw through the patriarch our Savior, in this prediction speaks also of the antichrist” (Answer to Question 112). The prayerful cry of Jacob in verse 18 has either a particular relation to the prophecy concerning Dan—grieving over the future falling away of the Danites from faith and piety, Jacob entrusts them to God’s protection—or to all the tribes in general—with the thought of bringing down upon them God’s blessing. This exclamation forms a transition from the first group, in which the chief and central figure is Judah and his tribe, to the second, where the main significance belongs to the descendants of Joseph, and contains in itself a prayer for mutual peace between the tribes of Judah and Joseph. Perhaps this cry is simply a prayerful sigh of the dying patriarch.

Genesis 49:19. Gad—a troop will press upon him, but he will press upon their heels. Verses 19, 20, and 21, containing prophecies about Gad, Asher, and Naphtali, form an introduction to the prophecy concerning Joseph. Gad, the depiction of whose military position is here connected with the etymology of his name (different from what is compared in Gen 30:11), living in Gilead, suffered constant raids by Arab nomadic tribes (Judg 10:7-8; 1 Chr 5:18-19 and others), but their savage hordes always found ready resistance on his part, even if only in the form of partisan pursuits (“upon their heels”). Jephthah was a Gadite (Judg 11:1).

Genesis 49:20. For Asher—his bread will be very rich, and he will provide royal delicacies. To Asher is promised extraordinary fertility of soil, abundance of grain and spices, which will be used for the royal table (cf. Deut 33:24-25). Indeed, the territory of Asher between Carmel and Lebanon on the border with Phoenicia was the most fertile region in Palestine, and its products were supplied to the courts of the kings of Israel and Phoenicia.

Genesis 49:21. Naphtali is a swift doe, releasing beautiful fawns. ******** The usual reading of the Hebrew Masoretic text and translations: “Naphtali is a swift hind; he utters beautiful sayings” (Aquila: Ελαφος ἀπεσταλμένος ὁ διδους χαλλονήν), in which commentators discern a hint at Barak of the tribe of Naphtali and the song of Deborah prompted by his deeds (Judg 4-5), in the further sense—the beginning of the gospel preaching in the land of Naphtali (Isa 9:1; Matt 4:15)—Galilee, from which all the apostles came forth. According to the reading of the LXX (accepted in Slavic and Russian): στέλεχος ἀνειμένον, ἐπιδιδοὺς ἐν τῶ γενήματι κάλλος, “a lofty terebinth, spreading forth in its offspring beauty”; the meaning is less clear, and (according to blessed Theodoret, “increase of descendants”) the comparison can then be regarded as a transition to the blessing of Joseph.

Genesis 49:22–26. Joseph is a fruitful bough, a fruitful bough over a spring, its branches run over a wall; they grieved him, and shot arrows and enmity pursued him, but his bow remained steadfast, and the arms of his hands grew strong, from the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob, thence comes the Shepherd and the Stone of Israel, from the God of your father, Who indeed helps you, and by the Almighty, Who indeed will bless you with blessings from heaven above, blessings from the deep that lies below, blessings of the breasts and of the womb, the blessings of your father exceed the blessings of the ancient mountains and the bounty of the eternal hills; may they rest upon the head of Joseph and upon the brow of the one separated from his brothers. If in the magnificent blessing to Judah the divine voice spoke, God’s inspiration came to Jacob, then now, in the blessing of his beloved Joseph, already once blessed him in the persons of his sons, there is revealed the attachment of Jacob’s heart to Joseph. Especially elegant is the form in which this blessing is expressed, by which, however, Jacob does not exalt Joseph above Judah and does not allot to the former the high spiritual gifts promised to the latter, but mainly material blessings, explained by Joseph’s exceptional position among his brothers, as their benefactor and prince (verse 26). Joseph appears here as: • a fruitful tree (Hebrew porat—a play on the name Ephraim: the repetition indicates the 2 tribes from Joseph), spreading its branches both over its own and others’ walls—over Hebrews and Egyptians (verse 22), • despite all misfortunes (both personally experienced by Joseph and foreseen for his tribes, especially the Manassite, from which, for instance, came Gideon) an unbreakable bastion, strengthened by the same shepherd-God who was with Jacob (Gen 48:15); according to some, here is a prophecy of the Ephraimite Jesus son of Nun; • the father’s beloved, to whom he grants blessings: a) heavenly from above, that is, dew and rain (cf. Gen 27:28); b) blessings of the deep—of the soil watered by waters; c) blessings of the breasts and wombs—abundance of milk and livestock (verse 25); • a prince (nazir “crowned”) among his brothers—personally and in his descendants (the gift of the Ephraim tribe, verse 26).

Genesis 49:27. Benjamin, a ravenous wolf, devouring prey in the morning and dividing spoils in the evening. To the tribe of Benjamin is foretold warlike character and a certain wildness of nature (evidence—the well-known incident with the Levite in Gibeah, Judg 20:4-10). From it came Ehud (Judg 3:15), Saul, and later the Apostle Paul (Rom 11:1; Phil 3:5).

Genesis 49:28. Behold, all these are the twelve tribes of Israel; and this is what their father said to them. And he blessed them, every one with his own blessing. It is pointedly noted that the promises apply to the descendants as well. Verses 29–30, which constitute a repetition (Gen 47:29-31) of the testament to Joseph, relate Jacob’s final disposition and his death. * * * According to another reading: “Naphtali is a swift hind; she speaks beautiful things.”