33:1 This is the blessing Moses the man of God pronounced upon the Israelites before his death. 33:2 He said:
The Lord came from Sinai
and revealed himself 1 to Israel 2 from Seir.
He appeared in splendor 3 from Mount Paran,
and came forth with ten thousand holy ones. 4
With his right hand he gave a fiery law 5 to them.
33:3 Surely he loves the people; 6
all your holy ones 7 are in your power. 8
And they sit 9 at your feet,
each receiving 10 your words.
33:4 Moses delivered to us a law, 11
an inheritance for the assembly of Jacob.
33:5 The Lord 12 was king over Jeshurun, 13
when the leaders of the people assembled,
the tribes of Israel together. 14
33:6 May Reuben live and not die,
and may his people multiply. 15
33:7 And this is the blessing 16 to Judah. He said,
Listen, O Lord, to Judah’s voice,
and bring him to his people.
May his power be great,
and may you help him against his foes.
33:8 Of Levi he said:
Your Thummim and Urim 17 belong to your godly one, 18
whose authority you challenged at Massah, 19
and with whom you argued at the waters of Meribah. 20
33:9 He said to his father and mother, “I have not seen him,” 21
and he did not acknowledge his own brothers
or know his own children,
for they kept your word,
and guarded your covenant.
33:10 They will teach Jacob your ordinances
and Israel your law;
they will offer incense as a pleasant odor,
and a whole offering on your altar.
33:11 Bless, O Lord, his goods,
and be pleased with his efforts;
undercut the legs 22 of any who attack him,
and of those who hate him, so that they cannot stand.
33:12 Of Benjamin he said:
The beloved of the Lord will live safely by him;
he protects him all the time,
and the Lord 23 places him on his chest. 24
33:13 Of Joseph he said:
May the Lord bless his land
with the harvest produced by the sky, 25 by the dew,
and by the depths crouching beneath;
33:14 with the harvest produced by the daylight 26
and by 27 the moonlight; 28
33:15 with the best 29 of the ancient mountains
and the harvest produced by the age-old hills;
33:16 with the harvest of the earth and its fullness
and the pleasure of him who resided in the burning bush. 30
May blessing rest on Joseph’s head,
and on the top of the head of the one set apart 31 from his brothers.
33:17 May the firstborn of his bull bring him honor,
and may his horns be those of a wild ox;
with them may he gore all peoples,
all the far reaches of the earth.
They are the ten thousands of Ephraim, 32
and they are the thousands of Manasseh.
33:18 Of Zebulun he said:
Rejoice, Zebulun, when you go outside,
and Issachar, when you are in your tents.
33:19 They will summon peoples to the mountain,
there they will sacrifice proper 33 sacrifices;
for they will enjoy 34 the abundance of the seas,
and the hidden treasures of the shores. 35
33:20 Of Gad he said:
Blessed be the one who enlarges Gad.
Like a lioness he will dwell;
he will tear at an arm – indeed, a scalp. 36
33:21 He has selected the best part for himself,
for the portion of the ruler 37 is set aside 38 there;
he came with the leaders 39 of the people,
he obeyed the righteous laws of the Lord
and his ordinances with Israel.
33:22 Of Dan he said:
Dan is a lion’s cub;
he will leap forth from Bashan. 40
33:23 Of Naphtali he said:
O Naphtali, overflowing with favor,
and full of the Lord’s blessing,
possess the west and south.
33:24 Of Asher he said:
Asher is blessed with children,
may he be favored by his brothers
and may he dip his foot in olive oil. 41
33:25 The bars of your gates 42 will be made of iron and bronze,
and may you have lifelong strength.
33:26 There is no one like God, O Jeshurun, 43
who rides through the sky 44 to help you,
on the clouds in majesty.