1 Jacob called to his sons, and said: "Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which will happen to you in the days to come.
2 Assemble yourselves, and hear, you sons of Jacob.
Listen to Israel, your father.
3 "Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength,
excelling in dignity, and excelling in power.
4 Boiling over like water, you shall not excel,
because you went up to your father’s bed,
then defiled it. He went up to my couch.
5 "Simeon and Levi are brothers.
Their swords are weapons of violence.
6 My soul, don’t come into their council.
My glory, don’t be united to their assembly;
for in their anger they killed men.
In their self-will they hamstrung cattle.
7 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.
8 "Judah, your brothers will praise you.
Your hand will be on the neck of your enemies.
Your father’s sons will bow down before you.
9 Judah is a lion’s cub.
From the prey, my son, you have gone up.
He stooped down, he crouched as a lion,
as a lioness.
Who will rouse him up?
10 The scepter will not depart from Judah,
nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,
until he comes to whom it belongs.
The obedience of the peoples will be to him.
11 Binding his foal to the vine,
his donkey’s colt to the choice vine,
he has washed his garments in wine,
his robes in the blood of grapes.
12 His eyes will be red with wine,
his teeth white with milk.
13 "Zebulun will dwell at the haven of the sea.
He will be for a haven of ships.
His border will be on Sidon.
14 "Issachar is a strong donkey,
lying down between the saddlebags.
15 He saw a resting place, that it was good,
the land, that it was pleasant.
He bows his shoulder to the burden,
and becomes a servant doing forced labor.
16 "Dan will judge his people,
as one of the tribes of Israel.
17 Dan will be a serpent on the trail,
an adder in the path,
that bites the horse’s heels,
so that his rider falls backward.
18 I have waited for your salvation, Yahweh.
19 "A troop will press on Gad,
but he will press on their heel.
20 "Asher’s food will be rich.
He will produce royal dainties.
21 "Naphtali is a doe set free,
who bears beautiful fawns.
22 "Joseph is a fruitful vine,
a fruitful vine by a spring.
His branches run over the wall.
23 The archers have severely grieved him,
shot at him, and persecuted him:
24 But his bow remained strong.
The arms of his hands were made strong,
by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob,
(from there is the shepherd, the stone of Israel),
25 even by the God of your father, who will help you,
by the Almighty, who will bless you,
with blessings of heaven above,
blessings of the deep that lies below,
blessings of the breasts, and of the womb.
26 The blessings of your father have prevailed above the blessings of your ancestors,
above the boundaries of the ancient hills.
They will be on the head of Joseph,
on the crown of the head of him who is separated from his brothers.
27 "Benjamin is a ravenous wolf.
In the morning he will devour the prey.
At evening he will divide the plunder."
28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father spoke to them, and blessed them. He blessed everyone according to his own blessing. 29 He instructed them, and said to them, "I am to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 30 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 from Ephron the Hittite as a burial place. 31 There they buried Abraham and Sarah, his wife. There they buried Isaac and Rebekah, his wife, and there I buried Leah: 32 the field and the cave that is therein, which was purchased from the children of Heth." 33 When Jacob finished charging his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, breathed his last breath, and was gathered to his people.
1 Daarna het Jakob sy seuns geroep en gesê: Kom bymekaar, dat ek julle kan verkondig wat julle aan die einde van die dae sal wedervaar.
2 Versamel en hoor, seuns van Jakob, en luister na Israel, julle vader!
3 Ruben, jy is my eersgeborene, my krag en die eersteling van my sterkte; die vernaamste in hoogheid en die vernaamste in mag!
4 Opbruising soos van waters -- jy sal die vernaamste nie wees nie, want jy het die bed van jou vader beklim; toe het jy dit ontheilig. Hy het my bed beklim.
5 S¡meon en Levi is broers. Hulle wapens is werktuie van geweld.
6 Laat my siel nie kom in hulle raad nie, laat my eer nie eens wees met hulle vergadering nie. Want in hul toorn het hulle manne doodgeslaan, en in hulle moedswilligheid het hulle beeste vermink.
7 Vervloek is hulle toorn, want dit is heftig; en hulle grimmigheid, want dit is hard. Ek sal hulle verdeel in Jakob en hulle verstrooi in Israel.
8 Juda, jy is dit! Jou sal jou broers loof. Jou hand sal op die nek van jou vyande wees; voor jou sal die seuns van jou vader hulle neerbuig.
9 Juda is 'n jong leeu; van die roof af het jy opgeklim, my seun. Hy buig hom, hy gaan lê soos 'n leeu en soos 'n leeuin; wie sal hom opjaag?
10 Die septer sal van Juda nie wyk nie, nog die veldheerstaf tussen sy voete uit totdat Silo kom; en aan Hom sal die volke gehoorsaam wees.
11 Hy maak sy jong esel vas aan die wingerdstok en die vul van sy eselin aan die edelste wynstok; Hy was sy kleed in wyn en sy gewaad in druiwebloed.
12 Hy is donkerder van oë as wyn en witter van tande as melk.
13 S,bulon sal woon by die strand van die see; en hy sal by die strand van die skepe wees, met die sykant na Sidon toe.
14 Issaskar is 'n sterkgebeende esel wat tussen die veekrale lê.
15 Toe hy sien dat die rus goed en die land lieflik is, het hy sy skouer gebuig om te dra, en hy moes dwangarbeid verrig.
16 Dan sal aan sy volk reg verskaf net soos enigeen van die stamme van Israel.
17 Laat Dan 'n slang wees op die weg, 'n horingslang op die pad, wat die perd aan die hakskene byt, sodat sy ruiter agteroorval.
18 Op u verlossing wag ek, HERE!
19 Gad -- 'n bende sal hom aanval, maar hy sal hulle aan die hakskeen gryp.
20 Aser, sy spys is vet, en hy lewer koninklike lekkernye.
21 N ftali is soos 'n wildsbok so vry, hy wat mooi woorde laat hoor.
22 Josef is 'n jong vrugteboom, 'n jong vrugteboom by 'n fontein; sy takke klim oor die muur.
23 Die boogskutters het hom wel geprikkel en hom beskiet en hom bestry,
24 maar sy boog het sterk gebly, en die arms van sy hande was buigsaam, deur die hande van die Magtige van Jakob -- daarvandaan waar die Herder, die Steen van Israel, is,
25 van die God van jou vader, wat jou help, en met die hulp van die Almagtige wat jou seën met seëninge van die hemel daarbo, met seëninge van die watervloed wat daaronder lê, met seëninge van borste en moederskoot.
26 Die seëninge wat jou vader ontvang het, oortref die seëninge van die ewige berge, die kostelike gawes van die ewige heuwels. Dit sal wees op die hoof van Josef en op die hoofskedel van die uitverkorene onder sy broers.
27 Benjamin is 'n wolf wat verskeur; in die môre eet hy sy prooi, en in die aand deel hy buit uit.
28 Hulle almal is die twaalf stamme van Israel; en dit is wat hulle vader aan hulle gesê het, en hy het hulle geseën; hy het hulle geseën, elkeen volgens sy besondere seën.
29 Daarna het hy hulle bevel gegee en aan hulle gesê: Ek word versamel by my volk. Begrawe my by my vaders in die spelonk wat op die stuk grond van Efron, die Hetiet, is;
30 in die spelonk wat op die stuk grond van Magp,la is, wat oos van Mamre lê, in die land Kanaän; die stuk grond wat Abraham van Efron, die Hetiet, as eiendomsgraf gekoop het.
31 Daar het hulle Abraham begrawe en Sara, sy vrou; daar het hulle Isak begrawe en Rebekka, sy vrou; en daar het ek Lea begrawe --
32 die stuk grond en die spelonk wat daarin is, wat gekoop is van die seuns van Het.
33 Toe Jakob klaar sy bevele aan sy seuns gegee het, trek hy sy voete terug op die bed en blaas die asem uit; en hy is by sy volksgenote versamel.