Blessings for the 12 Tribes of Israel

[Ezequiel]

Hey guys!

I'm still in my study of Genesis, and I'm finally making it to the end! I just finished reading and studying a litle bit of chapter 49 of Genesis, where the 12 Sons of Israel are blessed by the Patriach himself. Its a litle hard for me understand the blessings being professed to them, concidering they are all poetic and written in hebrew 'parallelism'. I was wondering if anyone could explain the blessings to me, or if there was a site or index online where I could check it out myself. Please and thank you!~

[puf_the_majic_dragon]

Well the Old Testament Institute manual is a good place to start:
http://www.ldsces.org/inst_manuals/f..._32489_eng.pdf

A quick web search returns this website: God’s Dealings With Joseph (Genesis 37.2b-50.26) - The Book of Genesis - A Commentary which has some interesting insights, but is not LDS.

And you can always go to byu.tv, select "Scripture Discussions" and browse to the Old Testament. And of course, you can always (if it's available near you) go to Institute

[volgadon]

Jacob weaved the past, present and near and distant futures together....

He expresses disappointment in Reuben, his first born for bedding Jacob's wife. The tribe of Reuben were probably worst off of all the tribes when it came to the lands of their inheritance, as they were on the desert frontier and were the first to suffer from nomads as well as from the terrain itself.

Jacob intensely dislikes the company of his sons Levi and Simeon, who, it seems, were always engaged in some secret combination or another.
He curses them for their castration of the nobles of Shechem, which caused their death. They are quite treacherous. As a result, their descendants will have no land of their own. Levi was spread among the various tribes and Simeon was swallowed up in Judah.

Judah's greatness stands out against the background of those three brothers. He is made the chief of the tribes, and the mightiest. The lion is a symbol of royal might. Most of these blessings have to do with Christ, but Judah is promised that they will always have a king, until the Savior (Shiloh) comes.
Herod's son Archelaus was the last semi-independent ruler of Judah. He reigned when Joseph brought his family out of Egypt.
Judah's land will be fertile and the amount of grapes will be so great that they could afford to wash their clothes in wine. A poetic exaggeration, naturaly, but Judah was pretty fertile until the devastation caused by the failed Bar Kochba revolt in 138 AD.
The wine made there was very rich, shown by its deep, dark colour, which is what Jacob means by verse 11.

Zebulon's territory bordered on the coastal plain of Akko (Acre). Jacob doesn't have much to say to him.

The tribe of Issachar will be as complacent as the donkeys bred for carrying heavy loads, who are satisfied with being kept in a pen, as long as they are fed. Issachar as a tribe was very servile and not inclined to fight for their freedom from the Canaanites.
Though not stated here, this is contrast to the onager (a wild ass) which was a symbol of fierce stubborness.

Dan will judge the whole people, as if they were members of his own tribe. To judge in the oldest sense of the word was to save someone from injustice, be it legal or military.
Samson was from Dan.
Dan would be a very dangerous tribe, like a snake lying in wait by the roadside, attacking targets much larger than him.
The caravans of the kingdom of Jerusalem (in the days before David) were regularly ambushed by Dan.
The adder is the shfifon, a snake known for its swift attack. In fact, in Akkadian records, it is a synonym for swift military action.

Asher's food and produce would be rich (oil was a synonym for that). They would also produce remarkeably fine oil, of the kind that kings would use at their table.

Naphthali's blessing is hard to interpret, because the language in Hebrew isn't very clear. The most likely meaning is that the tribe is like a swift deer, when bringing fine offerings to the temple. The offerings were lambs, of course. Naphtali's territory is very good for herding. I live there.

Joseph is like a fertile branch (it is interesting that son originally meant a branch) of a tree planted by a fountain of water.
This is especially interesting when we consider what part his tribes play in the gospel. Christ is the fountain of living waters. Compare this to the allegory of the vine during the last supper.
His branches run over the wall hides a wordplay in Hebrew, which refers to Joseph's running Egypt.
Joseph's enemies will attack him and make his life miserable, but the Lord will strengthen him. I'm sure that this has a lot to do with Joseph Smith, but also with the exodus of the priesthood to Utah. It is interesting that the word translated as mighty meant an ox.
The shepherd and the stone are both terms refering to Christ.
We know that the everlasting hills and the eternal mountains mean the rockies, but there is also a meaning of endless boundaries, which is interesting considering the growth of the priesthood and the church. They are compared to a crown which shall be on the head of Joseph.

Benjamin is the most warlike of the tribes. He is like a wolf who kills enough prey to have much of it left over from breakfast.
The tribe of Benjamin were famed as warriors and archers in the ancient world. The Assyrians even had battalions of Benjamites.

I hope this helps.

[Ezequiel]

thank you both so much for your help! Unfortunetly the institue manual didn't really have the info I was looking for.

Volgadon: Thank you very much for taking the time to write all that! I feel so thrilled to be able to read from someone who is living in Israel. Are you a Latter-day Saint yourself? I'm enjoying my study of the OT so much its making me want to visit Israel.

I have another question! Why was Judah blessed so well, when he wasn't any more righteous than some of his brothers? Concidering the whole incident with his daughter-in-law....

How about Levi? I mean, if God was so displeased with Levi, why did He eventually bless Levi with the opportunity to bare the priesthood exclusively? Was it because of a righteous descendant (like Aaron?)

[volgadon]

I'm LDS.

Good questions.

I think it is that their posterity was blessed, the Lord knew their potential.

Perhaps Judah, despite his sins, had regal qualities.

[bytebear]

I thought the Joseph being a fertile branch running over the wall, was a prophecy of Lehi traveling to America.

[volgadon]

In part.