Genesis 49:5-33

5“1Simeon and Levi are brothers; Their swords are implements of violence.62Let my soul not enter into their council; Let not my glory be united with their assembly; Because in their anger they slew 3men, And in their self-will they lamed 4oxen.7Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce; And their wrath, for it is cruel. 5I will 6disperse them in Jacob, And scatter them in Israel.

8“Judah, your brothers shall praise you; Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; 7Your father’s sons shall bow down to you.9Judah is a 8lion’s whelp; From the prey, my son, you have gone up. 9He 10couches, he lies down as a lion, And as a 11lion, who 12dares rouse him up?1013The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, 14Until Shiloh comes, And 15to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.111617He ties his foal to the vine, And his donkey’s colt to the choice vine; 18He washes his garments in wine, And his robes in the blood of grapes.12His eyes are 19dull from wine, And his teeth 20white from milk.

13“21Zebulun will dwell at the seashore; And he shall be 22a haven for ships, And his flank shall be toward Sidon.

14“Issachar is 23a strong donkey, 24Lying down between the 25sheepfolds.15When he saw that a resting place was good And that the land was pleasant, He bowed his shoulder to bear burdens, And became a slave at forced labor.

16“26Dan shall 27judge his people, As one of the tribes of Israel.17Dan shall be a serpent in the way, A horned snake in the path, That bites the horse’s heels, So that his rider falls backward.1828For Your salvation I wait, O Lord.

19“29As for Gad, 30raiders shall raid him, But he will raid at their 31heels.

20“3233As for 34Asher, his 35food shall be 36rich, And he will yield royal dainties.

21“37Naphtali is a doe let loose, He gives beautiful words.

22“38Joseph is a fruitful 39bough, A fruitful 40bough by a spring; Its 41branches run over a wall.23The archers bitterly attacked him, And shot at him and harassed him;24But his 42bow remained 43firm, And 4445his arms were agile, From the hands of the 46Mighty One of Jacob (From there is 47the Shepherd, 48the Stone of Israel),25From 49the God of your father who helps you, And 5051by the 52Almighty who blesses you With 53blessings of heaven above, Blessings of the deep that lies beneath, Blessings of the breasts and of the womb.26The blessings of your father Have surpassed the blessings of my ancestors Up to the 54utmost bound of 55the everlasting hills; May they be on the head of Joseph, And on the crown of the head of the one distinguished among his brothers.

27“Benjamin is a 56ravenous wolf; In the morning he devours the prey, And in the evening he divides the spoil.”

28All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father said to them 57when he blessed them. He blessed them, every one 58with the blessing appropriate to him. 29Then he charged them and said to them, “I am about to be 59gathered to my people; 60bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in 61the field of Ephron the Hittite, 30in the 62cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought along with the field from Ephron the Hittite for a 63burial site. 31There they buried 64Abraham and his wife 65Sarah, there they buried 66Isaac and his wife Rebekah, and there I buried Leah-- 32the field and the cave that is in it, purchased from the sons of Heth.” 33When Jacob finished charging his sons, he drew his feet into the bed and 67breathed his last, and was 68gathered to his people.