Genesis 49 Study Notes

49:1-2 As he spoke his dying words, Jacob was essentially blind (48:10), but he retained a clear prophetic insight of the days to come (lit “in the last days”; cp. Nm 24:14; Dt 31:2; Is 2:2).

49:3-27 Jacob’s prophetic words to his twelve sons were delivered in three units: those delivered to (1) the sons of Leah (vv. 3-15); (2) the sons of the concubines Bilhah and Zilpah (vv. 16-21); and (3) the sons of Rachel (vv. 22-27).

49:3-4 As the oldest son in a Semitic family Reuben was poised to lead the clan when his father died. However, Reuben lost his rights as firstborn because he had intimate relations with Jacob’s wife Bilhah (35:22). Ephraim would take his place.

49:5-7 Simeon and Levi are grouped together because in their anger they conspired together to kill the men of Shechem, even hamstringing the oxen after seizing them (34:25-29). Their out-of-control anger at Dinah’s rape (34:2) cost them the full measure of their inheritance. Historically, Simeon’s land allotment was shared with Judah (Jos 19:9), and the Levites were never given a region to call their own; they had to live in specified cities within the territories of the other tribes (Jos 14:3-4).

49:8-12 Judah, Jacob’s fourth-born son, received the second-longest of the blessings, behind Joseph’s (55 vs. 61 Hebrew words). The scepter and staff—symbols of kingship in ancient Israel—foretold the establishment of the Davidic dynasty as Israel’s kings (2Sm 7:8-16). The he and him of v. 10b have been understood for thousands of years as messianic references (Ezk 21:27) and, for Christians, a prophecy of Jesus’s coming.

49:13 Though the territorial allotment of Zebulun, Jacob’s tenth-born son, was landlocked (Jos 19:10-16), Jacob’s mention of a harbor for ships may refer to the prosperity of the sea trade associated with the Mediterranean coastal city of Sidon. Alternatively, Jacob may have referred to Zebulun’s territorial division that was later mentioned in Ezk 48:26.

49:14-15 Jacob’s ninth-born son Issachar was prophetically compared to a strong donkey situated between two saddlebags. Though the descendants of Issachar would live in a land that was pleasant (Jos 19:17-22), they would be compelled to do the work of a forced laborer—probably a reference to the oppression this tribe suffered at the hands of their own leaders and foreign invaders.

49:16-18 Jacob used a wordplay to describe the key positive action associated with his fifth-born son: Dan will judge (Hb dan yadin; “the judging one will judge”)—a possible prophetic reference to Samson’s work (Jdg 15:20). Dan was compared to a snake, the enemy of humanity in the garden of Eden. The comparison is to an animal with venom so poisonous that it could kill horses. This contrast between images foreshadows the checkered history of the tribe of Dan. On the one hand, it was the second most populous tribe (Nm 2:26); on the other hand, it could not defeat the Canaanite inhabitants in its territory and so abandoned its allotment (Jos 19:47). Though Samson led Israel for twenty years, the Danites also played a leading role in encouraging idolatry in Israel (Jdg 18:14-27; 1Kg 12:28-30).

49:19 Gad, Jacob’s seventh-born son, was once associated with good fortune (30:11). However, in an involved wordplay (Hb gad gedud yegudennu) Jacob prophesied that Gad would be attacked by raiders, a reference to the tribe’s vulnerability based on the location of its land allotment east of the Jordan River. But Jacob praised the tenacity of the Gadites because they would not give up but rather attack the heels of their oppressors.

49:20 Asher, Jacob’s eighth-born, was prophetically foreseen to enjoy prosperity that, associated with its coastal land allotment, would produce royal delicacies supporting Israel’s prosperity.

49:21 Jacob’s sixth-born son, Naphtali, whose descendants would live just west of the Sea of Galilee, was foreseen to produce a people who would be free and populous, like a doe that bears beautiful fawns. Naphtali’s freedom may have been realized historically by the fact that its tribal territory had no northern boundary—the tribe was free to expand its holdings to whatever extent it was able to do so.

49:22-26 Jacob’s longest blessing (sixty-one Hebrew words) was associated with Joseph, Rachel’s firstborn son (his eleventh son). This section contains the largest number and variety of references to God (five: Mighty One of Jacob . . . Shepherd . . . Rock of Israel . . . God of your father . . . Almighty) and the greatest number of references to “blessing” (six: one verb, five nouns). Joseph alone is termed the prince of his brothers and is the one who uniquely receives from God both blessings of the heavens above, blessings of the deep, and blessings of numerous offspring.

49:27 Jacob’s final prophetic blessing was reserved for his last-born son Benjamin. Metaphorically compared to a wolf, Jacob identified him as one who tears and devours prey and divides the plunder. Benjamin’s descendants were thus characterized as dangerous fighters, but also as ones who would provide benefits for others. Benjamin’s fighting skills were most clearly seen in the sordid events of Jdg 20:14-25, but more positively in the capable military leadership of Saul and Jonathan (1Sm 11:4-11; 14:1-23,47-48). Benjamin was the fifth of the sons to be prophetically compared to an animal (also Judah: lion; Issachar: donkey; Dan: snake; Naphtali: deer).

49:28 Jacob’s twelve prophetic blessings were for the tribes of Israel founded by his sons/grandsons. Each blessing would prove suitable to later historical realities.

49:29-33 The dying patriarch emphasized two matters in his final words: where he was to be buried, and with whom he was to be buried. The burial site was in Canaan, two miles north of Hebron and some seventeen miles west of the Dead Sea. Wishing to reestablish family solidarity in death, Jacob asked to be buried with his grandparents Abraham and his wife Sarah, his parents Isaac and his wife Rebekah, and his first wife Leah.

His last request made and his strength now spent, Jacob drew his feet into the bed, lay down, and died. At death Jacob was spiritually gathered to his people; as his sons fulfilled his request, his physical remains would soon be gathered to those of his ancestors. Jacob, who had spent seventeen years in Egypt (47:28), outlived the famine by approximately twelve years.