Deuteronomy/Davarim 33: "who is like you, a people delivered by YHVH"

[And so the great prophet of Israel concludes his final discourse to 2nd generation Israel with blessings upon each of the 12 tribes descended from Jacob’s 12 sons.

 

They have kept their tribal lines in tact for the four centuries of slavery in Egypt; each tribe is identifiable and recognizable through the census taken at the beginning of their journey and again before they fight their battles to conquer the land promised to their Patriarchs.  

 

What a day this must have been for this generation: their leader Moshe will be ‘no more’ and the leadership mantle passes on to the next anointed, this time a warrior.  For now, in this chapter, the blessing for each tribe provides insights regarding the character of the tribe. Interesting is the territory given to Benjamin, the future site of the Temple built by Solomon.

 

Commentary here is from the best of Jewish minds as collected in one resource book by Dr. J.H. Hertz, Pentateuch and Haftorahs; our translation of choice is EF/Everett Fox, The Five Books of Moses.—Admin1.]

Deuteronomy/Davarim 33

THE BLESSING OF MOSES

The Song opens the final day of Deuteronomy, and in the course of that day the long-expected summons comes.  ‘The whole people understand the mysterious doom, and line the route by which Moses sets out on the journey from which there will be no return.  Like a father laying his hands from a death-bed on the heads of the children, the departing Leader blesses the several tribes, as he passes along; then turning to behold the whole multitude for the last time, Moses lifts his hands in general blessing:

“There is none like unto God, O Jeshurun,

Who rideth upon the heaven as thy help,

And in His excellency on the skies.  

The eternal God is a dwelling place,

And underneath are the everlasting arms.”

 

Simple, bare prose tells the rest: the solitary ascent into the mount the long gaze over the Land of Promise, the death.  But no wealth of poetic imagination could have made a close for Deuteronomy more harmonious with the body of the book.  The life of the lonely Leader has passed out into solitude: and “no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day”‘ (Moulton).

 

1 Now this is the blessing 

with which Moshe the man of God blessed the Children of Israel 

before his death.

and this is the blessing.  This blessing is a complement as well as a counterpart to the Song in the preceding chapter. Whereas the Song is an admonition, depicting the calamities that were to befall a wayward and disloyal Israel, here is all blessing, foreshadowing a bright and happy destiny.  As to form and contents, it is modelled on the Blessing of Jacob; Gen. XLIX.

the man of God. Moses is given this title in Josh. XIV,6, and in the heading of Psalm XC, ‘A Prayer of Moses the Man of God.’ The title is sometimes applied to the Prophets; e.g. I Sam. IX,6.

before his death.  Just prior to his death, probably the very day on which he died; Gen. XXVII,7.

2-5.  INTRODUCTION

God, revealing Himself majestically unto His people in the desert, gave them a Law through Moses, and united the tribes with God as their king.  A similar opening is found in Judges V, Habakkuk III, and Psalm LXVIII.

The happiness and felicity of the tribes of Israel is all traced back to the Divine Revelation which God bestowed upon His people, as He came with them through the wilderness.

2 He said: 

YHVH from Sinai came, 

he shone forth from Se’ir for them, 

radiating from Mount Paran, 

approaching from Rivevot Kodesh, 

at his right-hand, a fiery stream for them.

the LORD came from Sinai. The mountain of Revelation, to make His abode in Israel’s midst. Sinai was the starting-point in the manifestation of the Divine glory to Israel.

and rose.  A metaphor of sunrise.  God had ‘dawned’ on them; had ‘risen’ for them, and had shed forth the light of His Law upon Israel, so that henceforth they walked in His light.

from Seir.  The hill-country of Edom, to the east of Sinai.

mount Paran.  Perhaps the mountain-range forming the southern boundary of Canaan.  The Divine Presence journeyed, as it were, with Israel from Sinai, through Seir, through Paran, and then finally through the desert; aiding and guarding them even until they became established in the good inheritance Divinely promised to the Fathers.

holy.  Better, of holy ones. As in Psalm LXVIII,18, God is here poetically depicted as coming forth from the angelic hosts that surround His throne.

a fiery law.  A Law given out of the midst of the fire (Deut. V,19-23, Targum); ‘a Law of fire’ (Mendelssohn, Hirsch).  This translation takes the Heb. with the Massoretes, as two words. The second of three words, ‘Law’, however, occurs only in the latest books of Scripture.  Many translators, therefore, follow the Kethib and translate the phrase ‘at His right hand were streams for them.’

3  Though he has-affection-for the peoples, 

all his holy-ones (are) in your hand,

they place themselves at your feet, 

bearing your words.

He loveth the peoples, i.e. the tribes of Israel; Gen. XXVIII,3.  If the word ‘peoples’ is taken literally, the meaning is that, although the Divine Law was given to Israel alone, God’s love embraces all peoples.  ‘The LORD is good to all; and his tender mercies are over all His works’ (Ps. CXLV,9).

His holy ones.  Either of the ‘tribes’, or of the peoples.  If the latter, then the good and pious of all nations are meant, as well as of Israel.  RV has ‘his saints’; i.e.  Israel’s Saints.

are in Thy hand. Under Thy protection and guardianship.

they sit down at Thy feet.  Like pupils in the presence of the master, ready to receive instruction.

receiving of Thy words. The next v. defines ‘Thy words’, i.e. ‘the Law which Moses commanded us, as an inheritance of the congregation of Jacob.’

4  Instruction did Moshe command us, 

a possession the assembly of Yaakov.

inheritance.  ‘Better, heritage. The latter may be spent by the heir at his discretion.  An inheritance, however, is an entailed estate, inalienable, and must remain in the family, to be handed on from father to son undiminished.  Such is the Torah unto Israel.  It is transmitted from age to age and generation to generation, so that it is never forgotten.

the congregation of Jacob.  The words of this verse have deservedly become a national motto in Israel.  They form part of the little child’s Morning Prayer.

5  Now he became king in Yeshurun 

when there gathered the heads of the people, 

together, the tribes of Israel!

and there was a king in Jeshurun.  Thus began God’s Kingdom over Israel.

all the tribes of Israel together.  In the presence of the whole People gathered together to enter into the covenant at Sinai.

The above section, especially v. 1-3 is among the most difficult passages in Scripture.  The different translations are, therefore, both numerous and uncertain.  In a popular commentary it is not possible to take note of them all.

6-25.  the blessings of the tribes

6.  Reuben

6  May Re’uven live and not die, 

but let his menfolk be few-in-number.

let Reuben live.  The Heb. idiom is equivalent to ‘long live Reuben’, or, ‘God save Reuben’ (as in I Kings I,25).

and not die. Living in Transjordania, he was exposed to constant attacks from numerous enemies.

n that his men become few.  Let not the death of Reuben take place through a diminution in his numbers.  At the first census taken in the time of Moses, the number of Reubenites capable of bearing arms was 46,500 men (Num. I,21). At the second, it had dwindled to 43,730 men (Num. XXVI,7).  In David’s time much of their territory was conquered by the Moabites.  Mesha, in the 9th century, B.C.E., when describing his victories against the Eastern tribes, does not even mention the tribe of Reuben.

7.  JUDAH

7 And this to Yehuda, he said: 

Hearken, O YHVH, to the voice of Yehuda, 

to his kinspeoplebring him, 

his hands’-strength great for him. 

A help against his foes may you be!

hear, LORD, thew voice of Judah. ‘Hear, O LORD, the prayer of Judah when he goeth forth to battle; and bring him back to his people in peace’ (Onkelos).  Judah was the first to undertake the conquest of the unconquered portion of Palestine; and for some time, his posessions were an enclave, surrounded by the Canaanites.  Hence this prayer that he be united to the other tribes.

his hands shall contend for him.  He needs and deserves Divine help, as he will be fighting the fight of all Israel.

8-11. LEVI

We note the omission of Simeon, who is joined with Levi in Jacob’s Blessing, Gen. XLIX,5.  The probable explanation is that Jacob had foretold that both Simeon and Levi should have their territories divided up among the other tribes.  As Simeon’s possessions consisted of only 19 unconnected cities within the territory of Judah (Josh. XIX,2-9), the tribe of Simeon was regarded as included in Judah.

In blessing Levi, Moses prays that the privilege of guarding the Urim and the Thummim may remain with Levi, who had proved his fidelity to the Divine cause in the Wilderness.

8 To Levi he said: 

Your Tummim and your Urim for your loyal man,

 whom you tested at Massa/Testing, 

you quarreled with him by the waters of Meriva/Quarreling.

thy Thummim and thy Urim.  Objects connected with the breast-plate of the High Priest.

holy one. i.e. the tribe of Levi, personified as an individual.

didst prove.  At Massah (Exod. XVII,1-7) and at Meribah (Num. ,1-13), when the piety of Moses and Aaron, the two great sons of Levi, was put to a severe test.

9  Who says of his father and of his mother: I have not seen them, 

his brother he does not recognize, 

and his children he does not acknowledge- 

for they have guarded your sayings, 

your covenant they have watched over.

who said of his father . . . children. This describes in emphatic language the disinterested spirit in which the tribe of Levi discharges its office: the disregard of even the closest family ties when they interfere with the performance of religious duties.  Thus, the Levites slew every man his companion and every man his neighbour, as a punishment for their worship of the Golden Calf; Exod. XXXII,27.

and keep Thy covenant. See Mal. II,5-7 (‘My covenant was with him of life and peace . . . The law of truth was in his mouth, and unrighteousness was not found in his lips; he walked with Me in peace and uprightness, and did turn away many from iniquity.  For the priest’s lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at his mouth’).

10 Let them instruct your regulations to Yaakov, 

your Instruction to Israel, 

putting smoking-incense in your nostrils, 

and complete-offerings on your slaughter-site.

Thine ordinances. Such being the Levites’ record, they are worthy of having the prerogative of teaching Israel the precepts of God as laid down in the Torah, and designed for the maintenance of justice between man and man.  The God of Israel ‘is distinguished from the gods of Israel’s neighbours, and towers above them as the God in Whose name justice was administered, and of Whom it could be said that He was not known where the laws of honour and good faith were violated.  The priest, His interpreter, is the bearer and appointed upholder of right’ (Kuenen).

they shall put . . . upon Thine altar. In addition to being the guardians and teachers of right in Israel, theirs is the charge of the Altar.

11  Bless, O YHVH, his wherewithal, 

and the works of his hands, accept-with-favor; 

smash the loins of those rising up against him, 

those hating him, from rising up!

his substance. Better, his might (Driver); i.e. his ability for the efficient performance of his duties.

the loins.  The seat of bodily strength.

them that hate him. Those whoa re opposed to the priestly prerogative, like Korah (Num. XVI).

12.  BENJAMIN

12  To Binyamin he said 

The beloved of YHVH! He dwells securely upon him,

 he surrounds him every day, 

as between his shoulders he dwells.

the beloved of the LORD.  Even as Benjamin was the favourite of Jacob, Moses sees in that parental love for Benjamin a reflection of God’s love for that tribe.

shall dwell in safety by Him.  God shall ever be at the side of Benjamin to aid and shield him. Rashi explains this ‘nearness’ of Benjamin to God to mean that the Temple would be situated in his territory. The Temple itself was just within the rocky border of Benjamin, whilst its courts were in Judah.

He covereth him. As with a canopy.

all the day.  For ever.  Once Jerusalem—which was in Benjamin’s territory—had been chosen as the spot for the Sanctuary, the Shechinah never left it for another spot.

between his shoulders. Josh. XV,8 uses the same Hebrew word for ‘shoulder’ to denote the side of the hill on which Jerusalem and the Temple were to stand.

13-17. JOSEPH

The twin tribe, Ephraim and Manasseh, receives the temporal blessings of fertility of soil and military prowess, accompanied by uninterrupted enjoyment of the Divine favour.

13 To Yosef he said :

Blessed by YHVH be his land, 

from the excellence of the heavens, from dew,

from Ocean crouching below,

the precious things of heaven. The gifts of nature—rain, sunshine, warmth—that are indispensable for fertility.

for the dew. Isaac’s blessing of Jacob (Gen. XXVII,28). ‘God gave thee of the dew of heaven.;

for the deep. The fountains and floods which spring up from the depths of the earth.

coucheth. Old English for ‘croucheth’.

14 from excellence of the sun’s produce

from excellence of the moon’s crop.

fruits of the sun. Every form of yearly produce matured by the light and warmth of the sun.

yield of the moons. ‘The produce of the months’; i.e. the fruit and vegetation of successive seasons.

15  And from the tops of the ancient hills, 

from the excellence of the age-old mountains,

tops of the ancient mountains. The vegetation which so luxuriantly adorns the peaks and slopes of the mountain-ranges of Palestine.

16  from the excellence of the land and its fullness, 

the favor of the Seneh-bush Dweller; 

may it come on the head of Yosef, 

on the brow of the consecrated-one among his brothers.

precious things of the earth. After speaking of the fertility of the hills and mountains, the Seer turns to the precious products of the plains and valleys.

that dwelt in the bush. See Exod. III,2-10, where God after making Himself known to Moses ‘in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush’, promises to become the Redeemer of Israel.

prince among his brethren. Eminent among his brethren; the last two lines (in the English) are a quotation from Gen. XLIX,26.

17  His firstling bull-it has splendor, 

the horns of the wild-ox, his horns;

 with them he shall gore the peoples together, the ends of the earth. 

They are the myriads of Efrayim, they are the thousands of Menashe.

firstling bullock. i.e. Ephraim, to whom Jacob had given the precedence over the elder brother Manasseh; Gen. XLVIII,19.

and his horns. The figure of the bull is here employed as the emblem of strength.

wild-ox. See on Num. XXIII,22.

he shall gore.  Ephraim shall extend his conquests over remote peoples.

and they are. Better, and these be; i.e. the reference to the myriads of the men of Ephraim, and the thousands of the men of Manasseh.

18a.  ZEBULUN

18 To Zevulun he said :

Rejoice, O Zevulun, in your going-out, 

and Yissakhar, in your tents.

going out. i.e. general activity; here probably a reference to the maritime enterprises of the tribe.  The territory of Zebulun stretched from what is now known as Lake Tiberias to the Mediterranean, which fact gave it an active share in the sea-traffic.  Jacob’s blessing is: ‘Zebulun shall dwell at the shore of the sea, and he shall be a shore for ships.’

18b. ISSACHAR

in thy tents.  In the enjoyment of rest; in the quiet pursuit of a peaceful life, possibly an agricultural one.  While Zebulun chose adventure and enterprise, Issachar preferred a ‘stay-at-home’ existence.  The Talmud interprets ‘tents’ as homes for the study of the Law.  In I Chron.XII,32, the men of Issachar are said to have been the religious teachers in Israel. Scripture here links Zebulun, the merchant and man of action, with Issachar, the student, the man of spirit; as if to show how necessary it is that these two types should always work in cooperation.

19  Peoples they will call to the hills, 

there they will slaughter slaughter-offerings of victory,

 for the abundance of the seas they will suck, 

the hidden treasures of the sand.

call peoples.  They shall invite the tribes to join them in thanksgiving to God.

the mountain. Zion, the place which God shall choose as His sanctuary.  This is nowhere expressly named in Deuteronomy, and is here likewise left undefined.

sacrifices of righteousness.  Due, fitting, legal sacrifices; Ps. IV,6.

for. Gives the reasons why the two tribes invite ‘the peoples’ to worship; it is because of the rich blessings which Zebulun and Issachar enjoy.

suck . . . the seas. A reference to Zebulun’s fishing and sea-carrying trade.

hidden treasures of the sand. Probably a reference to Issachar’s manufacture of glass which, according to Josephus, Targum Jonathan and Talmud, took place on the sands of Acre.

20-21. GAD

20 To Gad he said:

Blessed be he that expands Gad, 

like a king-of-beasts he dwells, 

tearing arm, yes, (and) brow.

that enlargeth God. Gad’s territory was east of Jordan—the territory of Sihon, king of the Amorites, and was larger than the territory of any of the Western tribes. Gad’s ‘enlarger’ is God.

as a lioness. Gad was famed for courage and success in war; I Chron. II,9.

arm . . . crown.  The hosts of his enemies . . . and their leaders.

21  He selected a premier-part for himself, 

for there a portion for a ruler was reserved; 

he approached (with) the heads of the people,

the justice of YHVH did he do, his regulations along with Israel.

and he chose a first part. Gad is praised for his foresight in being the first of all the tribes to choose his territory; Num. XXXII,1.

portion of a ruler. Or, ‘commander’s portion,’ a district worthy of a martial leader.  The meaning of this and the following line is very uncertain.

there came the heads. He took his part in the conquest of Western Palestine.

he executed the righteousness of the LORD. He (Gad) fulfilled that which he had promised; viz.  to cross the Jordan and assist the other tribes to dispossess their enemies (Num. XXXII,31).  This is probably a case of the Perfect of certainty–the future action being viewed as past.  In this way he did his duty in carrying out the righteous will and ordinances of God, who had decreed that Israel should inherit the land of Canaan.

22.  DAN

22  To Dan he said: 

Dan is a whelp of lions leaping forth from Bashan.

lion’s whelp.  In the Blessing of Jacob (Gen. XLIX,17), Dan is compared to a serpent for mischievous subtlety. Here he is spoken of as a lion for agility, as a young lion leaping forth from the crevices and caves of the rocks of Bashan, a land celebrated for the size and strength of its cattle (Deut. XXXII,14).  Both similes refer to the nimbleness and adventurous spirit for which the tribe of Dan was celebrated.  Samson was a Danite.

23.  NAPHTALI

23  To Naftali he said: 

Naftali is sated with favor, 

full with the blessing of YHVH; 

(of) sea and southland taking-possession!

satisfied with favour. Satiated with good will. ‘Ancient and modern writers vie with one another in praising the soil and climate of the territory owned by Naphtali’ (Driver).

possess thou the sea. The sea of Kinnereth; i.e. Lake Tiberias.

the south. On the west side of the sea of Kinnereth, Naphtali’s territory was ‘so styled in contrast to the main possessions of the tribe which were further north’ (Driver).  Its soil was specially fruitful in the region of Hulch and on the shore of the sea.  The ‘fruits of Kinnereth’ are celebrated in the Talmud.

24-25. ASHER

24  To Asher he said: 

Most blessed of sons, Asher! 

May he be the favored-one of his brothers, 

dipping his foot in oil.

blessed be Asher above sons. An exposition of the meaning of the name Asher (‘happy’).  He was to be blessed ‘above sons’; i.e. to enjoy exceptional prosperity.

the favoured. Favoured of his brethren, so that they delight in his good fortune.

dip his foot in oil. A metaphor for great abundance.  The olive tree was specially fruitful in the territory of Asher.

25  Iron and bronze your bolts, 

and as your days, your strength

iron and brass shall be thy bars. Asher’s dwelling shall be impregnable. His territory being in the far north and also on the sea-coast, it needed to be strongly fortified.

as thy days, so shall thy strength be.  ‘May your strength last like your days’ (Moffatt); or, ‘as thy younger days, so shall thy old age be’ (Leeser).

26-29. EPILOGUE: GOD, THE ABIDING SOURCE OF ISRAEL’S SECURITY, PROSPERITY AND VICTORY

Like the introductory section, v.2-6, the epilogue celebrates the felicity, material and spiritual of the nation as a whole, through the goodness and protecting care of God.

26  There is none like God, O Yeshurun, 

riding (through) the heavens to your help, 

in his majesty in the skies.

there is none like unto God, O Jeshurun. ‘There is no God but the God of Israel’ (Onkelos).

rideth upon the heaven as thy help. The Seer compares God to a king in his chariot, and he sees God ride upon the heavens to bring victory to Israel.

in His excellency.  In His loftiness and surpassing grandeur.

27  A shelter is the Ancient God, 

beneath, the arms of the Ageless-one. 

He drove out from before you the enemy, 

saying, “Destroy!”

the eternal God is a dwelling-place. He is Israel’s home and refuge; even, as Moses himself declares, ‘Lord, Thou has been our dwelling place in all generations’ (Ps. XC,1).

the everlasting arms. i.e. arms whose strength shall never be exhausted.  He who is enthroned in heaven above is also the God who is with His people below. ‘When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee, and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee; when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be urned, neither shall the flame kindle upon thee ‘ (Isa. XI, III,2).  Not only is God a dwelling-place for His people, He is their unfailing support.  His everlasting arms, which do not grow weary, are ever bearing them up and sustaining them.

He thrust out the enemy from before thee.  God proved that He is His people’s everlasting Friend and Helper by the fact that He dislodged their enemies.

28 So Israel will dwell in security,

 alone, the fountain of Yaakov,

in a land of grain and new-wine;

 yes, his heavens drop down dew.

dwelleth in safety  . . alone. ‘Every individual Israelite would dwell in isolated security each one singly under his vine and under his fig-tree.  There would be no need to mass themselves together for self-protection against any external enemy’ (Rashi)

the fountain of Jacob.  ‘The succession of generations in Israel figured as a stream ever welling forth freshly from its source’ (Driver).

who is like unto thee?  What nation on earth is like unto Israel! A unique people, in the are of a unique God.

saved. Victorious, and not by the weapons of war, but by the protecting love of God.

that is the sword of thy excellency. God’s protection of Israel is Israel’s excellent and triumphant sword.

shall dwindle away. Or, ‘shall yield feigned obedience’ (RV); the insincere homage rendered by the vanquished to the conqueror.

tread upon their high places. See on XXXII,13.

‘With such golden words Moses takes leave of his people.  Israel should have been a brave mountaineer people, if Moses’ will had been fulfilled.  The land lies apart, surrounded by mountains, seas and deserts—a Divinely blessed corner of the earth that, with industrious cultivation and the security that comes from unity, could have flourished wonderfully. To the north and south of Judea were the trade routes of the ancient world.  By its very position alone, it could have become the happiest people of the world, if it had made use of its position and remained faithful to the spirit of its Laws’ (Herder).