CHAPTER 49

49:1 And Jacob called his sons, and said to them, 2 Assemble yourselves, that I may tell you what shall happen to you in the last days. Gather yourselves together, and hear me, sons of Jacob; hear Israel, hear your father. 3 Ruben, thou art my first-born, thou my strength, and the first of my children, hard to be endured, hard and self-willed. 4 Thou wast insolent like water, burst not forth with violence, for thou wentest up to the bed of thy father; then thou defiledst the couch, whereupon thou wentest up. 5 Symeon and Levi, brethren, accomplished the injustice of their cutting off. 6 Let not my soul come into their counsel, and let not mine inward parts contend in their conspiracy, for in their wrath they slew men, and in their passion they houghed a bull. 7 Cursed be their wrath, for it was willful, and their anger, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel. 8 Juda, thy brethren have praised thee, and thy hands shall be on the back of thine enemies; thy father’s sons shall do thee reverence. 9 Juda is a lion’s whelp: from the tender plant, my son, thou art gone up, having couched thou liest as a lion, and as a whelp; who shall stir him up? 10 A ruler shall not fail from Juda, nor a prince from his loins, until there come the things stored up for him; and he is the expectation of nations. 11 Binding his foal to the vine, and the foal of his ass to the branch of it, he shall wash his robe in wine, and his garment in the blood of the grape. 12 His eyes shall be more cheering than wine, and his teeth whiter than milk. 13 Zabulon shall dwell on the coast, and he shall be by a haven of ships, and shall extend to Sidon. 14 Issachar has desired that which is good; resting between the inheritances. 15 And having seen the resting place that it was good, and the land that it was fertile, he subjected his shoulder to labour, and became a husbandman. 16 Dan shall judge his people, as one tribe too in Israel. 17 And let Dan be a serpent in the way, besetting the path, biting the heel of the horse (and the rider shall fall backward), 18 waiting for the salvation of the Lord. 19 Gad, a plundering troop shall plunder him; but he shall plunder him, pursuing him closely. 20 Aser, his bread shall be fat; and he shall yield dainties to princes. 21 Nephthalim is a spreading stem, bestowing beauty on its fruit. 22 Joseph is a son increased; my dearly loved son is increased; my youngest son, turn to me. 23 Against whom men taking evil counsel reproached him, and the archers pressed hard upon him. 24 But their bow and arrows were mightily consumed, and the sinews of their arms were slackened by the hand of the mighty one of Jacob; thence is he that strengthened Israel from the God of thy father; 25 and my God helped thee, and he blessed thee with the blessing of heaven from above, and the blessing of the earth possessing all things, because of the blessing of the breasts and of the womb, 26 the blessings of thy father and thy mother—it has prevailed above the blessing of the lasting mountains, and beyond the blessings of the everlasting hills; they shall be upon the head of Joseph, and upon the head of the brothers of whom he took the lead. 27 Benjamin, as a ravening wolf, shall eat still in the morning, and at evening he gives food. 28 All these are the twelve sons of Jacob; and their father spoke these words to them, and he blessed them; he blessed each of them according to his blessing. 29 And he said to them, I am added to my people; ye shall bury me with my fathers in the cave, which is in the field of Ephron the Chettite, 30 in the double cave which is opposite Mambre, in the land of Chanaan, the cave which Abraam bought of Ephron the Chettite, for a possession of a sepulchre. 31 There they buried Abraam and Sarrha his wife; there they buried Isaac, and Rebecca his wife; there they buried Lea; 32 in the portion of the field, and of the cave that was in it, purchased of the sons of Chet. 33 And Jacob ceased giving charges to his sons; and having lifted up his feet on the bed, he died, and was gathered to his people.

AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO. (Gen. 49:33). WHAT DOES IT MEAN: "HE WAS GATHERED TO THE PEOPLE? — We must see in what sense Scripture says so frequently: "And he gathered it unto his fathers," or: "He was gathered unto his people. This is the language it holds of Jacob, as soon as he is dead, and even before he is buried; but to what people was he assembled? For from him is born the first people who were called the people of Israel. But among those who preceded him are so few just, that we hesitate to give him the name of a people. For if the text said, "It was placed with his parents," there would be no problem. Is it perhaps the people, not only of holy men, but of the people of the angels of that city, according to what is said in the epistle to the Hebrews: But you came near to Mount Zion and to the city of God Jerusalem and the myriads of exulting angels” (Heb. 12:12)? Those who end this life pleasing God are added to this people. It is said that they are added when there is no longer any concern for temptations and no danger of sins. The Scripture, contemplating this, says: Before death you do not praise anyone (Sir. 11:28).” [Question 168]

AMBROSIASTER. (Gen. 49). WHAT IS THE BLESSING THAT JACOB GAVE TO HIS CHILDREN? — Jacob predicted what was to happen to each tribe in the midst of the Jewish people, not only from current and present causes, but from non-existent causes, of which the seed itself did not yet appear. He predicted what each tribe should be; their manners, their faithfulness, their obedience, their disorders, their excesses, their contempt for the faith, and how those who had left the same father would be far from following the same path. Indeed, some have made progress in good, others in evil, others have remained what they were. There was therefore no need for them to glorify the privilege of their birth since Jacob predicted that some of them who had the same origin would be reprobate, that many would perish and be replaced by others who for their shame and condemnation would be grazed from the tree of which they were detached. The predictions of this holy patriarch thus embrace all the people composed of all the tribes, the small number of the good as well as the multitude of the wicked. Though he gave authority to Joseph for a time, it was Judah, however, which he placed at the head of all the tribes; no, not that all who are of the tribe of Judah should be worthy of this preeminence, but because the Savior who is the true king was to come out of the tribe of Judah according to the flesh. [Questions On The Old And New Testaments, PL 35, Question 6, 2nd part]

JEROME OF STRIDON. 49:27 BENJAMIN, A RAVAGING WOLF, WILL DEVOUR AGAIN IN THE MORNING, AND IN THE EVENING, ON THE CONTRARY, WILL GIVE FOOD. — This prophecy clearly indicates the Apostle St. Paul, and no one doubts it, since in his youth he persecuted the Church while he preached the Gospel in his old age. The Hebrew text says, "Benjamin, a ravishing wolf, in the morning, shall devour the prey, and in the evening shall divide the spoil.”  This is the interpretation of the Hebrews. The altar, on which the victims were sacrificed and whose base was flooded with their blood, was situated in the tribe of Benjamin. This passage would mean, therefore, that the priests, who in the morning immolate the victims, share among themselves the evening offerings of the people, which the law assigns to them. The brutal wolf, the voracious wolf, appears on the altar, and the division of the vestiges is shown by the priests, who, serving the altar, live on the altar. [Hebrew Questions on Genesis]

JOHN CHRYSOSTOM OF CONSTANTINOPLE. Jacob sent for his sons and said to them, "Meet together, that I may tell you what will happen to you in the last days. (49:1) Assemble, and listen to your father Israel. "Come here," said he, "and learn from my mouth, not the things of the present, nor those which are to come shortly, but those which will be fulfilled in the last days. And it is not me, to tell you the truth, who will reveal them to you, it will be the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. It is thanks to her that I can now predict what will take place after a long succession of generations. Indeed, on the point of finishing my days, I want in each of you, as on a brass table, to engrave my memory. See now how this righteous, in the presence of his children together, observing the order of later generations, accompanies each name with the blessing or curse that suits him, and shows in this very excellence of his virtue. It starts with the first. Ruben, he says, my firstborn, my strength and the leader of my children, hard to bear, hard and stubborn. (Ibid. 3) Consider the wisdom of the righteous. In order to reinforce the accusation made against Ruben, he first speaks of his prerogatives of nature, of the precedence he enjoyed as chief of children, and of having the rank of elder; then, on a brazen table, he inscribes, so to speak, the sins into which he has fallen, voluntarily, thus showing that the natural advantages are of no use, if good works and virtue are not added to them; for that is what gives praise or attracts blame. Hard to bear, hard and stubborn. You are fallen, "said he," by your temerity, into the rank which nature had given you. Then he records to the species of sin, so that the descendants find a great lesson to divert them from any such action in the sentence pronounced against Ruben. You have rebelled, as the water does not overflow. Because you went up on your father's bed: then you defiled the layer where you went up. (Ibid. 4) He refers to Ruben's trade with Balla.

Do you see how, speaking of the virtue of the intelligence which the Spirit had given him, he takes the lead on this law of Moses which the father and the son must not approach to the same woman? The reproach he addresses to his son implies, in effect, this prohibition: You have defiled the diaper, while climbing on the bed of your father you have committed an action forbidden. As a result, since in this way you have rebelled, as the water does not overflow. You will not have to congratulate yourself, he says, on this criminal enterprise, for having dared, without any regard for your father, to dishonor his bed. The Holy Spirit wanted generations to follow. they did not follow such an example; that is why he provided that this accusation should be recorded in writing. By this, everyone can learn and convince themselves that a precedence conferred by nature is useless, if the acts of the will contradict. Then, when he has sufficiently stigmatized this abominable action, he passes to Simeon and Levi. Simeon and Levi have consumed the injustice of their will. (Ibid. 5) Their zeal to avenge their sweat drove them to. this injustice. Then, showing that it is his. Unaware that they have executed their design, he adds: Let not my soul come in their counsels, and let not my heart rest on their meeting. (Ibid. 6) God forbid that I have been associated with their design, that I have adhered to their unjust enterprise! Because in their wrath they killed men. Reason has not directed their wrath. Had Shechem been guilty, it was not necessary for that to commit a general massacre. And in their fury they crippled the bull. He is referring here to the son of Hémor whom he calls bull because of his age, so in his flower. Then, having recalled their conduct, he adds a curse and says: Cursed be their wrath, because it is inexorable, and their resentment because it was implacable. He wants to speak of the trick they have used against their enemies, of the stratagem they used to attack them .. Their wrath, he says, is inexorable, impetuous, unthinking. And their resentment, because he was implacable. Indeed, it was when the Sichemites believed them best disposed of them, that by bursting their violent anger, they made this people their prey and their booty. Then, when he has told the story of their sin, he predicts the vengeance that must punish them. I will divide them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel. They will be scattered everywhere, he means, so that it becomes clear to everyone that they are thus punished for their guilty enterprise. Judah, may your brothers praise you. (Ibid. 8) The blessing given to Judah is a mystical blessing that reveals to us in advance all that needs to be done in Christ. Judah, may your brothers praise you! In fact, it is because Christ was to be born of this family, according to the calculations of Providence, that Jacob, inspired by the Holy Spirit, prophesies from then on by what he says concerning Judah, not only the descent of the Lord among men, but also the mystery, the cross, the burial, the resurrection, finally everything absolutely. Judah, may your brothers praise you. Your trains are on the backs of your enemies, and your father's sons will adore you. It indicates the submission where they are destined to live. It's a lion cub that Judo. You came out, said germ, my son. (Heb. 9) He predicts his kingship. For it is the constant custom of Scripture to designate royal power by the figure of the lion. Fallen you fell asleep like a lion. Who will wake him up? Here he has in view the cross and the sepulcher. Who will wake him up? No one dares to draw a lion from his sleep, hence these words: You have fallen asleep like a lion. Who will wake him up? It is he himself who says: I have the power to plunder my soul and the power to take it back. (Jn. 10:18) Then he clearly indicates the time when Christ must appear along the streets of Providence. There will not be wanting kings from Judah or leaders from his Panes until the coming of the One to whom the deposit is reserved. And he himself will be the expectation of the nations. (Ibid. 10)

That is to say, Judaism and the princes of the Jews will subsist until it comes. And he says very well until the coming of Him to whom the deposit is reserved; He speaks of Him to whom kingship is prepared. So is there waiting for rations. See how he is already talking about the future salvation of the nations themselves. He himself will be the expectation of the nations. Nations are waiting for His coming. Attaching his foal to a vine, and to the branches his donkey. (Ibid. 11) By this young donkey he designates the nations to be converted. The donkey being an unclean animal, he says for this reason: These impure nations will be brought with the same facility as a donkey attached to the branches of a vine; by this he indicates the extent of this worsening, the perfect obedience of these nations. Indeed, it is the mark of great sweetness in a donkey to be attached to the branches of a vine. As for the vine, it is an image to which Jesus compares his doctrine: I am the true vine, he says, and my father is the vine grower. (Jn. 15:1) The branches of the vine represent what is affectionate, easy in the articles of the legislation; it suggests that nations will be more docile than Jews. He will wash his robe in the wine, and in the blood of the bunch his garment.

See how complete here is the allusion to the mystery. The initiates know what the word is about: He will wash his robe in the wine; by this word, dress, it is necessary, if I am not mistaken, to hear the body of which Jesus, in his Incarnation, has deigned to put on himself. Then, to make you understand what he calls wine, he adds: and his garment in the blood of grapes. Consider how, by this word, blood, it makes us think of the torture, the cross, and the whole series of mysteries. His eyes are more beautiful than wine, and his teeth whiter than milk. (Ibid. 12) Here is the glory he wants to represent by this metaphor of wine and eyes. And his teeth are whiter than milk; it is justice and the majesty of the judge. By the teeth and by the milk, it denotes nothing but the purity and brilliance of the judgment, which will recall the teeth and the milk. He adds: Zebulun shall dwell on the shore of the sea, and near the harbor of ships, and shall extend to Sidon. (Ibid. 13) See how this one likewise, he predicts where he will have his stay, and that he will dominate as far as Sidon. Issachar has desired the good, and he stands in the sofa posts sharing. (Ibid. 14) And seeing that the rest is good, and that the earth is fertile, he lowered his shoulder to work, and he became a farmer. (Ibid. 15) He praises him for having chosen agriculture, and preferred to all the work of the land. Dan will judge his people as one tribe in Israel. (Ibid. 16) And let Dan become like a serpent in the way, like a ceremonial in the way, that bites the foot of the horse; and the rider will fall backward, waiting for the salvation of the Lord. (Ibid. 17) It can not be too much admired how this righteous, foreseeing everything with the eyes of the Spirit, predicted the future for his children, and announced to each one what was to happen to him; He prophesies therefore what should not be realized until much later. Temptation will tempt Gad; but he will try his own enemy closely. (Ibid. 19) The bread of Azer will be excellent, and the kings will feed on it. (Ibid. 20) Nephthali will be like a shrub that rises, and beautifies itself by swarming. Then, after speaking about them briefly, he returns to Joseph, and says: My son Joseph has grown up, he is worthy of envy; Joseph is my big son, my young son. (Ibid. 22) He wants to say to him: You have become an object of envy from the beginning. (Ibid. 23) One conspired against him, one insulted him; allusion to the conspiracy of his brothers against him. Then he recalls what the Scripture said earlier, that they had perfidiously accused Joseph to his father: They conspired against him, and insulted him; and those with arrows attacked him; it is their homicidal project. And their bows were broken with force. (Ibid. 24)

After saying their business, he says the result. Their bows were broken; and the nerves of their arms relaxed. They tried to kill him, and executed their project as much as he was in them. But their bows were broken and their nerves relaxed: was not this indeed what they had to feel when they heard Joseph say to them, "I am your brother Joseph, whom you sold to make sure to Egypt? It was then especially then that their nerves were relaxed by the King of Jacob. You came out of there to be the strength of Israel, thanks to God of your father, and my God helped you. (Ibid. 25) It was the King who relaxed these nerves, for it was my God himself who rescued you.  See the deep love of the righteous for the Lord; from the Master of the universe he makes his God, not to limit his empire, nor to deprive him of his power over the world, but to manifest his own fervor. And he blessed you from heaven. He did not limit himself to helping you, He blessed you with the blessing of the earth that contains all things, at the box of the blessing of the breasts and entrails of the blessing of your father and your mother. He surpassed the blessings of the stable mountains, and the desires of the eternal hills. This is his glory, his elevation, his sovereignty over Egypt which he has in view in this passage; if he speaks of mountains and hills, it is to characterize his greatness and his power, and to show that he has been carried to the highest summit. These blessings will be on Joseph's head and on the heads of the brothers of whom he has been head. These blessings will be on your head. Benjamin, ravishing wolf. will eat the prey in the morning, and in the evening he will share the food. (Ibid. 27) Here again, he predicts to Benjamin of the coming events; how, like a wolf, he will go devastating, killing, exerting a thousand ravages. Then, after having predicted to all his sons the blessings of each one, he blesses each of them, according to the blessing he had given him. (Ibid. 28) It is as if he were saying: He made to each one the prediction that was to be made to him, and prophesied the destinies reserved for each tribe; finally, when he had distributed the revelations he had of the Spirit, he said to them, "I will join my people, and you will bury me with my fathers." (Ibid. 29) [Homilies on Genesis]