The Majesty of God

1And this [is] the blessing [with] which Moses the man of God blessed the sons of Israel before his death,

2and he saith: — ‘Jehovah from Sinai hath come, And hath risen from Seir for them; He hath shone from mount Paran, And hath come [with] myriads of holy ones; At His right hand [are] springs for them.

3Also He [is] loving the peoples; All His holy ones [are] in thy hand, And they — they sat down at thy foot, [Each] He lifteth up at thy words.

4A law hath Moses commanded us, A possession of the assembly of Jacob.

5And he is in Jeshurun king, In the heads of the people gathering together, The tribes of Israel!

The Blessings of the Twelve Tribes

6Let Reuben live, and not die, And let his men be a number.

7And this [is] for Judah; and he saith: — Hear, O Jehovah, the voice of Judah, And unto his people do Thou bring him in; His hand hath striven for him, And an help from his adversaries art Thou.

8And of Levi he said: — Thy Thummim and thy Urim [are] for thy pious one, Whom Thou hast tried in Massah, Thou dost strive with Him at the waters of Meribah;

9Who is saying of his father and his mother, I have not seen him; And his brethren he hath not discerned, And his sons he hath not known; For they have observed Thy saying, And Thy covenant they keep.

10They teach Thy judgments to Jacob, And Thy law to Israel; They put perfume in Thy nose, And whole burnt-offering on Thine altar.

11Bless, O Jehovah, his strength, And the work of his hands Thou acceptest, Smite the loins of his withstanders, And of those hating him — that they rise not!

12Of Benjamin he said: — The beloved of Jehovah doth tabernacle confidently by him, Covering him over all the day; Yea, between his shoulders He doth tabernacle.

13And of Joseph he said: — Blessed of Jehovah [is] his land, By precious things of the heavens, By dew, and by the deep crouching beneath,

14And by precious things — fruits of the sun, And by precious things — cast forth by the moons,

15And by chief things — of the ancient mountains, And by precious things — of the age-during heights,

16And by precious things — of earth and its fulness, And the good pleasure Of Him who is dwelling in the bush, — Let it come for the head of Joseph, And for the crown of him Who is separate from his brethren.

17His honour [is] a firstling of his ox, And his horns [are] horns of a reem; By them peoples he doth push together To the ends of earth; And they [are] the myriads of Ephraim, And they [are] the thousands of Manasseh.

18And of Zebulun he said: — Rejoice, O Zebulun, in thy going out, And, O Issachar, in thy tents;

19Peoples [to] the mountain they call, There they sacrifice righteous sacrifices; For the abundance of the seas they suck, And hidden things hidden in the sand.

20And of Gad he said: — Blessed of the Enlarger [is] Gad, As a lioness he doth tabernacle, And hath torn the arm — also the crown!

21And he provideth the first part for himself, For there the portion of the lawgiver is covered, And he cometh [with] the heads of the people; The righteousness of Jehovah he hath done, And His judgments with Israel.

22And of Dan he said: — Dan [is] a lion’s whelp; he doth leap from Bashan.

23And of Naphtali he said: — O Naphtali, satisfied with pleasure, And full of the blessing of Jehovah, West and south possess thou.

24And of Asher he said: — Blessed with sons [is] Asher, Let him be accepted by his brethren, And dipping in oil his foot.

25Iron and brass [are] thy shoes, And as thy days — thy strength.

The Excellence of Israel

26There is none like the God of Jeshurun, Riding the heavens in thy help, And in His excellency the skies.

27A habitation [is] the eternal God, And beneath [are] arms age-during. And He casteth out from thy presence the enemy, and saith, ‘Destroy!’

28And Israel doth tabernacle [in] confidence alone; The eye of Jacob [is] unto a land of corn and wine; Also His heavens drop down dew.

29O thy happiness, O Israel! who is like thee? A people saved by Jehovah, The shield of thy help, And He who [is] the sword of thine excellency: And thine enemies are subdued for thee, And thou on their high places dost tread.’