King James Version
Genesis 49
33 verses with commentary
Jacob Blesses His Sons
And Jacob called unto his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And Jacob called unto his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
XLIX.
THE BLESSING OF THE TWELVE TRIBES.
(1) **That which shall befall you.**—This dying song of Jacob has been regarded alike by Jews and Christians as a prophetic hymn spoken by the patriarch under the influence of the Holy Spirit. By many modern commentators, however, it has been placed in David’s time, and even ascribed to Nathan, partly on the ground that it is too spirited to have been the c...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**4. For to sojourn ... are we come--**The royal conversation took the course which Joseph had anticipated (Ge 46:33), and they answered according to previous instructions--manifesting, however, in their determination to return to Canaan, a faith and piety which affords a hopeful symptom of their having become all, or most of them, religious men.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →Gather yourselves together, and hear, ye sons of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father.
View commentary (2 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Gather yourselves together, and hear, ye sons of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father....</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments of salva...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(3) **The beginning of my strength.**—In Genesis 35:18, the word *oni *means “my sorrow,” and it is so translated here by the Vulg., Aquila, and Symmachus. But in this verse Jacob magnifies the prerogatives of the firstborn, and our version is undoubtedly right in deriving *oni *from a different and not uncommon word signifying strength. It occurs in Deuteronomy 21:17; Job 40:16; Psalm 78:51; Psal...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 3-7**
Reuben was the first-born; but by gross sin, he forfeited the birthright. The character of Reuben is, that he was unstable as water. Men do not thrive, because they do not fix. Reuben's sin left a lasting infamy upon his family. Let us never do evil, then we need not fear being told of it. Simeon and Levi were passionate and revengeful. The murder of the Shechemites is a proof o...
Read full commentary →Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel; because thou wentest up to thy father's bed; then defiledst thou it: he went up to my couch. thou shalt: Heb. do not thou excel he went: or, my couch is gone
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel; because thou wentest up to thy father's bed; then defiledst...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(4) **Unstable.**—This translation is shown to be right by the use of the word in Judges 9:4; Zephaniah 3:4, in both which places it is translated *light. *Out of this sense of lightness and frivolity naturally arose the meaning which the word has in Syriac of wantonness. In Arabic it means *boastful, *another side of feebleness. With this sense the comparison with water well agrees; for it is its...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**7. Joseph brought in Jacob his father--**There is a pathetic and most affecting interest attending this interview with royalty; and when, with all the simplicity and dignified solemnity of a man of God, Jacob signalized his entrance by imploring the divine blessing on the royal head, it may easily be imagined what a striking impression the scene would produce (compare He 7:7).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 3-7**
Reuben was the first-born; but by gross sin, he forfeited the birthright. The character of Reuben is, that he was unstable as water. Men do not thrive, because they do not fix. Reuben's sin left a lasting infamy upon his family. Let us never do evil, then we need not fear being told of it. Simeon and Levi were passionate and revengeful. The murder of the Shechemites is a proof o...
Read full commentary →Simeon and Levi are brethren; instruments of cruelty are in their habitations. instruments: or, their swords are weapons of violence
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Simeon and Levi are brethren; instruments of cruelty are in their habitations....</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments of salvation.<br><br>C...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(5) **Simeon and Levi are brethren.**—That is, they are alike in character and disposition. Despising the feeble Reuben, they seem to have been close friends and allies, and probably tried to exercise a tyrannical authority over their younger brethren, Judah being the only one near them in age.
**Their habitations.**—This translation is universally abandoned, but there is much difference of opinio...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8. Pharaoh said unto Jacob, How old art thou?--**The question was put from the deep and impressive interest which the appearance of the old patriarch had created in the minds of Pharaoh and his court. In the low-lying land of Egypt and from the artificial habits of its society, the age of man was far shorter among the inhabitants of that country than it had yet become in the pure bracing climate...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 3-7**
Reuben was the first-born; but by gross sin, he forfeited the birthright. The character of Reuben is, that he was unstable as water. Men do not thrive, because they do not fix. Reuben's sin left a lasting infamy upon his family. Let us never do evil, then we need not fear being told of it. Simeon and Levi were passionate and revengeful. The murder of the Shechemites is a proof o...
Read full commentary →O my soul, come not thou into their secret; unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou united: for in their anger they slew a man, and in their selfwill they digged down a wall. digged: or, houghed oxen
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>O my soul, come not thou into their secret; unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou united: fo...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(6) **Their secret.**—The word *sôd *used here is literally the little carpet, or cushion, upon which an Oriental sits. Consequently, for two persons to sit upon the same carpet marks a high degree of friendship and familiarity. It would therefore be more exactly translated *alliance, *or *intimacy.*
**Unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou united.**—For *assembly *(Heb. *congregation*)*, *...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**9. The days of the years of my pilgrimage, &c.--**Though a hundred thirty years, he reckons by days (compare Psa 90:12), which he calls few, as they appeared in retrospect, and evil, because his life had been one almost unbroken series of trouble. The answer is remarkable, considering the comparative darkness of the patriarchal age (compare 2Ti 1:10).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 3-7**
Reuben was the first-born; but by gross sin, he forfeited the birthright. The character of Reuben is, that he was unstable as water. Men do not thrive, because they do not fix. Reuben's sin left a lasting infamy upon his family. Let us never do evil, then we need not fear being told of it. Simeon and Levi were passionate and revengeful. The murder of the Shechemites is a proof o...
Read full commentary →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.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel: I will divide them in J...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(7) **Cursed . . . —**Jacob condemns Simeon and Levi not because they were angry, but because they vented their anger in a perfidious and violent manner. The next sentence literally is, *And their rage, for it was hard. *The indignation at Joseph’s dreams, told them by him innocently, led them to an act harsh and in human (see Genesis 42:21).
**I will divide them . . . —**This prediction was equal...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 3-7**
Reuben was the first-born; but by gross sin, he forfeited the birthright. The character of Reuben is, that he was unstable as water. Men do not thrive, because they do not fix. Reuben's sin left a lasting infamy upon his family. Let us never do evil, then we need not fear being told of it. Simeon and Levi were passionate and revengeful. The murder of the Shechemites is a proof o...
Read full commentary →Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy father's children shall bow down before thee.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies; t...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(8) **Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise.**—Judah had received his name, Praise, because at his birth Leah had praised Jehovah (Genesis 29:35). It is now to have another justification in the noble history of his race, which, taking the foremost place by reason of the disqualification of Reuben, Simeon, and Levi, finally was destined to win freedom and empire for Israel. We have seen...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**11. Joseph placed his father and his brethren ... in the best of the land--**best pasture land in lower Egypt. Goshen, "the land of verdure," lay along the Pelusiac or eastern branch of the Nile. It included a part of the district of Heliopolis, or "On," the capital, and on the east stretched out a considerable length into the desert. The ground included within these boundaries was a rich and fe...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →Judah is a lion's whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up?
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Judah is a lion's whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a l...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(9) **Judah is a lion’s whelp.**—We have seen that the sons of Jacob had each his signet, and that Judah’s was so large as to be worn by him attached to a cord fastened round his neck (Genesis 38:18). Probably his emblem was a lion; that of Zebulun a ship; that of Issachar an ass; that of Dan an adder, and so on. Using then his self-chosen emblem, Jacob compares him, first, to a “lion’s whelp,” fu...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; an...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(10) **The sceptre shall not depart from Judah.**—Heb., *a sceptre. *The staff, adorned with carvings, and handed down from father to son, soon became the emblem of authority (see Note on Genesis 38:18). It probably indicates here tribal rather than royal rank, and means that Judah would continue, until the time indicated, to be a self-governed and legally-constituted tribe.
**Nor a lawgiver from ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**13-15. there was no bread in all the land--**This probably refers to the second year of the famine (Ge 45:6) when any little stores of individuals or families were exhausted and when the people had become universally dependent on the government. At first they obtained supplies for payment. Before long money failed.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes:
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in w...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(11) **Binding his foal . . . —**Having declared the spiritual prerogative of Judah, the patriarch now foretells that his land would be so rich in vineyards that the traveller would tie his ass to the vine, as the tree abundant everywhere.
**Choice vine** is, literally, *the vine of Sorek, *a kind much valued, as bearing a purple berry, small but luscious, and destitute of stones. The abundance of...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**13-15. there was no bread in all the land--**This probably refers to the second year of the famine (Ge 45:6) when any little stores of individuals or families were exhausted and when the people had become universally dependent on the government. At first they obtained supplies for payment. Before long money failed.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk....</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments of salvation.<br><br>Central themes i...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(12) **His eyes shall be red with wine.**—The word rendered *red *occurs only here, and is rendered in the Versions, *bright, sparkling, *and in the Vulg., *beautiful. *They also give the word rendered in our Version *with *a comparative force, which seems to be right: “His eyes shall be brighter than wine, and his teeth whiter than milk.” The words do not refer to Judah’s person, but describe the...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**13-15. there was no bread in all the land--**This probably refers to the second year of the famine (Ge 45:6) when any little stores of individuals or families were exhausted and when the people had become universally dependent on the government. At first they obtained supplies for payment. Before long money failed.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →Zebulun shall dwell at the haven of the sea; and he shall be for an haven of ships; and his border shall be unto Zidon.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Zebulun shall dwell at the haven of the sea; and he shall be for an haven of ships; and his border s...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(13) **Zebulun . . . —“**Sea” is plural in the Heb., and is rightly so rendered in the Syriac. The territory of the tribe lay upon the inland sea of Gennesaret, but did not extend to the shore of the Mediterranean. We do not know of any literal fulfilment of the prediction, but Moses also speaks of Zebulun and Issachar as tribes that would “suck of the abundance of the seas.” It is very possible t...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**16. And Joseph said, Give your cattle--**"This was the wisest course that could be adopted for the preservation both of the people and the cattle, which, being bought by Joseph, was supported at the royal expense, and very likely returned to the people at the end of the famine, to enable them to resume their agricultural labors."
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →Issachar is a strong ass couching down between two burdens:
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Issachar is a strong ass couching down between two burdens:...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments of salvation.<br><br>Central themes inclu...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(14) **Issachar.**—The description of Issachar’s lot is derived partly from the cognizance he had chosen for his signet, and partly from his personal character, He had taken for his symbol the ass—a very noble, active, spirited, and enduring animal in the East. (See Genesis 16:12, where Ishmael is compared to the wild ass, which adds to these qualities the love of freedom.) His real character was ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →And he saw that rest was good, and the land that it was pleasant; and bowed his shoulder to bear, and became a servant unto tribute.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And he saw that rest was good, and the land that it was pleasant; and bowed his shoulder to bear, an...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(15) **A servant unto tribute.**—Heb., *task-work. *It means service paid in actual labour, such as was exacted by Solomon of the descendants of the Canaanites (1Kings 9:21, where the phrase used here is translated “a tribute of bondservice;” and 2Chronicles 8:8). In the Middle Ages this forced labour—called” service without wages in Jeremiah 22:13—was one of the wrongs most deeply felt by the pea...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →Dan shall judge his people, as one of the tribes of Israel.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Dan shall judge his people, as one of the tribes of Israel....</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments of salvation.<br><br>Central themes inclu...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(16, 17) **Dan.**—In passing on to the sons of the handmaids it was necessary to assure them of an independent rank among their brethren. The four tribes descended from them did always hold an inferior position, but Jacob by his words to Dan prevented their ever becoming subject states. Playing, then, upon the name Dan (a *judge*)*, *he says that he shall judge his people as a distinct and separat...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →Dan shall be a serpent by the way, an adder in the path, that biteth the horse heels, so that his rider shall fall backward. an adder: Heb. an arrow-snake
View commentary (2 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Dan shall be a serpent by the way, an adder in the path, that biteth the horse heels, so that his ri...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →I have waited for thy salvation, O LORD.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>I have waited for thy salvation, O LORD....</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments of salvation.<br><br>Central themes include divine providenc...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(18) **I have waited for thy salvation, O Lord** **(Jehovah).**—Among the many explanations hazarded of this ejaculation the most probable is that given in the *Speaker’s Commentary, *that the thought of the serpent wounding his prey in the heel carried the mind of the patriarch back to the fall of man, and the promise made to Eve. And thus it is a profession of faith, naturally called out by this...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**21. as for the people, he removed them to cities--**obviously for the convenience of the country people, who were doing nothing, to the cities where the corn stores were situated.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →Gad, a troop shall overcome him: but he shall overcome at the last.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Gad, a troop shall overcome him: but he shall overcome at the last....</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments of salvation.<br><br>Central them...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(19) **Gad.**—The word Gad, as we have seen (Genesis 30:11), means *good fortune, *but Jacob connects it with the root *gâdad, *“to gather in troops.” Thus, then, “A troop” or “throng of plunderers shall throng upon him, but he shall throng upon their heel.” Settling upon the east of the Jordan he shall be exposed to many a sudden incursion of plunderers, but, though ever unready, he shall gather ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**22. Only the land of the priests bought he not--**These lands were inalienable, being endowments by which the temples were supported. The priests for themselves received an annual allowance of provision from the state, and it would evidently have been the height of cruelty to withhold that allowance when their lands were incapable of being tilled.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →Out of Asher his bread shall be fat, and he shall yield royal dainties.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Out of Asher his bread shall be fat, and he shall yield royal dainties....</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments of salvation.<br><br>Central ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(20) **Asher.**—The territory of this tribe, extending along the coast from Mount Carmel to Lebanon, was very productive. Zebulun, the trading tribe, could reach the sea only through their possessions.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**23-28. Joseph said, Behold, &c.--**The lands being sold to the government (Ge 47:19, 20), seed would be distributed for the first crop after the famine; and the people would occupy them as tenants-at-will on the payment of a produce rent, almost the same rule as obtains in Egypt in the present day.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →Naphtali is a hind let loose: he giveth goodly words.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Naphtali is a hind let loose: he giveth goodly words....</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments of salvation.<br><br>Central themes include div...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(21) **Naphtali.**—Gad had been described as moving slowly in war, and allowing himself to be surprised by hordes of plunderers, whom, nevertheless, as soon as he has collected his forces, he repels and pursues with vigour. Naphtali, on the contrary, is light and active, moving rapidly like “a hind let loose;” or, literally, *sent forth, *like the scouts or van of an army. And thus he brings back ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**23-28. Joseph said, Behold, &c.--**The lands being sold to the government (Ge 47:19, 20), seed would be distributed for the first crop after the famine; and the people would occupy them as tenants-at-will on the payment of a produce rent, almost the same rule as obtains in Egypt in the present day.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall: branches: Heb. daughters
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall:...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments of sal...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(22-26) **Joseph.**—The blessing of Joseph is, in many particulars, the most remarkable of them all. Jacob throughout it seems struggling with himself, and anxious to bestow more than was in his power. Joseph was his dearest son, the child of his chief and most beloved wife; he was, too, the saviour of Israel’s family, and the actual ruler of Egypt; and his father had even bestowed upon him the po...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**23-28. Joseph said, Behold, &c.--**The lands being sold to the government (Ge 47:19, 20), seed would be distributed for the first crop after the famine; and the people would occupy them as tenants-at-will on the payment of a produce rent, almost the same rule as obtains in Egypt in the present day.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him:
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him:...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments of salvation.<br><br>Central the...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(23) **The archers.**—Naturally Jacob next describes the sorrows of Joseph’s youth, but in poetical terms, so as not to wound the feelings of his brethren, or rouse up thoughts of vengeance in Joseph’s own mind. Thus be compares him to a warrior, too mighty for his enemies to close with in open conflict, but whom they harass from a distance. “Hated him” would be better translated, *laid snares for...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**23-28. Joseph said, Behold, &c.--**The lands being sold to the government (Ge 47:19, 20), seed would be distributed for the first crop after the famine; and the people would occupy them as tenants-at-will on the payment of a produce rent, almost the same rule as obtains in Egypt in the present day.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob; (from thence is the shepherd, the stone of Israel:)
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(24) **His bow abode in strength.**—The word for strength is highly poetical. It means that which goes on for ever, like the flowing streams or the eternal hills. In spite of all the machinations of his enemies, the bow of Joseph remained constant and enduring in its might.
**Were made strong.**—The Hebrew word is difficult, but more probably means, *were pliant, supple, *such as the arms of an ar...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**23-28. Joseph said, Behold, &c.--**The lands being sold to the government (Ge 47:19, 20), seed would be distributed for the first crop after the famine; and the people would occupy them as tenants-at-will on the payment of a produce rent, almost the same rule as obtains in Egypt in the present day.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →Even by the God of thy father, who shall help thee; and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lieth under, blessings of the breasts, and of the womb:
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Even by the God of thy father, who shall help thee; and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee with b...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(25) **Even by the God of thy father.**—In the Hebrew this follows directly upon the preceding clause: “from the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel; from the God of thy father, who shall help thee; and from the Almighty,” &c.
**Blessings of heaven above **are the rains and dew; those of “the deep” beneath are lakes, rivers, and springs; and those of “the breasts and womb” mean an abundant offspring bot...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**23-28. Joseph said, Behold, &c.--**The lands being sold to the government (Ge 47:19, 20), seed would be distributed for the first crop after the famine; and the people would occupy them as tenants-at-will on the payment of a produce rent, almost the same rule as obtains in Egypt in the present day.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →The blessings of thy father have prevailed above the blessings of my progenitors unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills: they shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>The blessings of thy father have prevailed above the blessings of my progenitors unto the utmost bou...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(26) **The blessings of thy father.**—As the passage now stands, it means that the blessings which Jacob bestows upon Joseph are greater than those which he had himself received from his ancestors, Abraham and Isaac. This was scarcely the case, as the chief spiritual blessing was bestowed upon Judah, while for Joseph there was only earthly prosperity. For this reason most modern commentators adopt...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**29-31. the time drew nigh that Israel must die--**One only of his dying arrangements is recorded; but that one reveals his whole character. It was the disposal of his remains, which were to be carried to Canaan, not from a mere romantic attachment to his native soil, nor, like his modern descendants, from a superstitious feeling for the soil of the Holy Land, but from faith in the promises. His ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →Benjamin shall ravin as a wolf: in the morning he shall devour the prey, and at night he shall divide the spoil.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Benjamin shall ravin as a wolf: in the morning he shall devour the prey, and at night he shall divid...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(27) **Benjamin.**—With this description of their ancestor agrees the character of his race, which was the most spirited and warlike of all the tribes of Israel.
It would be interesting to compare the notices of the several tribes in the subsequent history with Jacob’s blessing of their progenitors, and with that also given by Moses. The fathers, moreover, found in the words of the patriarch faint...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**29-31. the time drew nigh that Israel must die--**One only of his dying arrangements is recorded; but that one reveals his whole character. It was the disposal of his remains, which were to be carried to Canaan, not from a mere romantic attachment to his native soil, nor, like his modern descendants, from a superstitious feeling for the soil of the Holy Land, but from faith in the promises. His ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →All these are the twelve tribes of Israel: and this is it that their father spake unto them, and blessed them; every one according to his blessing he blessed them.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>All these are the twelve tribes of Israel: and this is it that their father spake unto them, and ble...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(28) **These are the twelve tribes.**—As we have seen in the case of Dan, Jacob had the further object of forming his descendants into twelve separate communities, which were, like the States in America, each to be independent, and have its own tribal government. From this position Levi naturally was excluded, when selected for the priesthood, and room was thus made for the bestowal of two of thes...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**29-31. the time drew nigh that Israel must die--**One only of his dying arrangements is recorded; but that one reveals his whole character. It was the disposal of his remains, which were to be carried to Canaan, not from a mere romantic attachment to his native soil, nor, like his modern descendants, from a superstitious feeling for the soil of the Holy Land, but from faith in the promises. His ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →The Death of Jacob
And he charged them, and said unto them, I am to be gathered unto my people: bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite,
View commentary (2 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And he charged them, and said unto them, I am to be gathered unto my people: bury me with my fathers...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →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 of Ephron the Hittite for a possession of a buryingplace.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>In the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which A...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
CHAPTER 48 Ge 48:1-22. Joseph's Visit to His Sick Father.
**1. one told Joseph, Behold, thy father is sick--**Joseph was hastily sent for, and on this occasion he took with him his two sons.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife; there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife; and there I buried Leah.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife; there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife; and ther...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**2. Israel strengthened himself, and sat upon the bed--**In the chamber where a good man lies, edifying and spiritual discourse may be expected.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →The purchase of the field and of the cave that is therein was from the children of Heth.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>The purchase of the field and of the cave that is therein was from the children of Heth....</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments of salvation...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**3-4. God Almighty appeared unto me at Luz--**The object of Jacob, in thus reverting to the memorable vision at Beth-el [Ge 28:10-15]--one of the great landmarks in his history--was to point out the splendid promises in reserve for his posterity--to engage Joseph's interest and preserve his continued connection with the people of God, rather than with the Egyptians.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →And when Jacob had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the ghost, and was gathered unto his people.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And when Jacob had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yie...</strong> This passage is part of the Joseph narrative, a masterfully crafted account demonstrating God's sovereign providence working through human choices and circumstances to accomplish His redemptive purposes. The Joseph cycle shows how God transforms evil intentions into instruments ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(33) **He gathered up his feet into the bed.**—This seems to indicate that the events recorded in Genesis 48, 49 all took place at the same time. In Genesis 48:2 we read that Jacob strengthened himself for this great final effort, seating himself upon the bed and placing his feet upon the ground. (See Genesis 49:12.) And now that all was over, wearied with what must have sorely exercised both his ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**3-4. God Almighty appeared unto me at Luz--**The object of Jacob, in thus reverting to the memorable vision at Beth-el [Ge 28:10-15]--one of the great landmarks in his history--was to point out the splendid promises in reserve for his posterity--to engage Joseph's interest and preserve his continued connection with the people of God, rather than with the Egyptians.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 49
Chapter Outline
Jacob calls his sons to bless them.(1-2)
Reuben, Simeon, Levi.(3-7)
Judah.(8-12)
Zebulun, Issachar, Dn(13-18)
Gad, Asher, Naphtali.(19-21)
Joseph and Benjamin.(22-27)
Jacob's charge respecting his burial, His death.(28-33)
**Verses 1-2**
All Jacob's sons were living. His calling them together was a precept for them to unite in love, ...
Read full commentary →