Deuteronomy 33

Moses’ Final Blessing on Israel

1 This is the blessing with which Moses a the man of God blessed the people of Israel before his death. 2 He said,

b “The  Lord came from Sinai
and dawned from Seir upon us; ▼
▼ Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate; Hebrew them

he shone forth from Mount Paran;
he came d from the ten thousands of holy ones,
with flaming fire ▼
▼ The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain
 at his right hand.
 3 Yes f he loved his people ▼
▼ Septuagint; Hebrew peoples

h all his holy ones were in his ▼
▼ Hebrew your
 hand;
j so they followed ▼
▼ The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain
 in your steps,
receiving direction from you,
 4 when l Moses commanded us a law,
as a possession for the assembly of Jacob.
 5 Thus the  Lord ▼
▼ Hebrew  Thus he
 n became king in o Jeshurun,
when the heads of the people were gathered,
all the tribes of Israel together.
 6  p “Let Reuben live, and not die,
but let his men be few.”

7 And this he said of Judah:

“Hear, O  Lord, the voice of Judah,
and bring him in to his people.
With your hands contend ▼
▼ Probable reading; Hebrew  With his hands he contended
 for him,
and be a help against his adversaries.”

8 And r of Levi he said,

“Give to Levi ▼
▼ Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text lacks  Give to Levi
 t your Thummim,
and your Urim to your godly one,
u whom you tested at Massah,
with whom you quarreled at the waters of Meribah;
 9 who said of his father and mother,
‘I regard them not’;
v he disowned his brothers
and ignored his children.
For w they observed your word
and kept your covenant.
 10  x They shall teach Jacob your rules
and Israel your law;
y they shall put incense before you
and z whole burnt offerings on your altar.
 11 Bless, O  Lord, his substance,
and aa accept the work of his hands;
crush the loins of his adversaries,
of those who hate him, that they rise not again.”

12  ab Of Benjamin he said,

“The beloved of the  Lord dwells in safety.
The High God ▼
▼ Septuagint; Hebrew  dwells in safety by him. He
 surrounds him all day long,
and dwells between his shoulders.”

13 And ad of Joseph he said,

ae “Blessed by the  Lord be his land,
with the choicest gifts of heaven af above, ▼
▼ Two Hebrew manuscripts and Targum; Hebrew  with the dew

and of the deep that crouches beneath,
 14 with the choicest fruits of the sun
and the rich yield of the months,
 15 with the finest produce of the ancient mountains
and the abundance of ah the everlasting hills,
 16 with the best gifts of the earth and ai its fullness
and the favor of aj him who dwells in the bush.
May these rest on the head of Joseph,
on the pate of him who is prince among his brothers.
 17  ak A firstborn bull ▼
▼ Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint, Samaritan; Masoretic Text His firstborn bull
—he has majesty,
and his horns are the horns of a am wild ox;
with them an he shall gore the peoples,
all of them, to the ends of the earth;
ao they are the ten thousands of Ephraim,
and they are the thousands of Manasseh.”

18 And of Zebulun he said,

ap “Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going out,
and Issachar, in your tents.
 19 They shall call peoples aq to their mountain;
there they offer ar right sacrifices;
for they draw from the abundance of the seas
and the hidden treasures of the sand.”

20 And as of Gad he said,

“Blessed be he who enlarges Gad!
Gad crouches at like a lion;
he tears off arm and scalp.
 21  au He chose the best of the land for himself,
for there a commander’s portion was reserved;
and av he came with the heads of the people,
with Israel he executed the justice of the  Lord,
and his judgments for Israel.”

22 And aw of Dan he said,

ax “Dan is a lion’s cub
ay that leaps from Bashan.”

23 And az of Naphtali he said,

“O Naphtali, sated with favor,
and full of the blessing of the  Lord,
ba possess the lake ▼
▼ Or west
 and the south.”

24 And bc of Asher he said,

“Most blessed of sons be Asher;
let him be the favorite of his brothers,
and let him bd dip his foot in oil.
 25 Your bars shall be iron and bronze,
and as your days, so shall your strength be.
 26  be “There is none like God, O bf Jeshurun,
bg who rides through the heavens to your help,
through the skies in his majesty.
 27 The eternal God is your bh dwelling place ▼
▼ Or a dwelling place

and underneath are the everlasting arms. ▼
▼ Revocalization of verse 27 yields He subdues the ancient gods, and shatters the forces of old

And he thrust out the enemy before you
and said, ‘Destroy.’
 28 So Israel lived in safety,
bk Jacob lived bl alone ▼
▼ Hebrew the abode of Jacob was alone

in a land of grain and wine,
whose heavens drop down dew.
 29 Happy are you, O Israel! bn Who is like you,
a people bo saved by the  Lord,
bp the shield of your help,
and the sword of your triumph!
Your enemies shall come fawning to you,
and you shall tread upon their backs.”
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