¹ ヤコブはその子らを呼んで言った、「集まりなさい。後の日に、あなたがたの上に起ることを、告げましょう、

² ヤコブの子らよ、集まって聞け。父イスラエルのことばを聞け。

³ ルベンよ、あなたはわが長子、わが勢い、わが力のはじめ、威光のすぐれた者、権力のすぐれた者。

⁴ しかし、沸き立つ水のようだから、もはや、すぐれた者ではあり得ない。あなたは父の床に上って汚した。ああ、あなたはわが寝床に上った。

⁵ シメオンとレビとは兄弟。彼らのつるぎは暴虐の武器。

⁶ わが魂よ、彼らの会議に臨むな。わが栄えよ、彼らのつどいに連なるな。彼らは怒りに任せて人を殺し、ほしいままに雄牛の足の筋を切った。

⁷ 彼らの怒りは、激しいゆえにのろわれ、彼らの憤りは、はなはだしいゆえにのろわれる。わたしは彼らをヤコブのうちに分け、イスラエルのうちに散らそう。

⁸ ユダよ、兄弟たちはあなたをほめる。あなたの手は敵のくびを押え、父の子らはあなたの前に身をかがめるであろう。

⁹ ユダは、ししの子。わが子よ、あなたは獲物をもって上って来る。彼は雄じしのようにうずくまり、雌じしのように身を伏せる。だれがこれを起すことができよう。

¹⁰ つえはユダを離れず、立法者のつえはその足の間を離れることなく、シロの来る時までに及ぶであろう。もろもろの民は彼に従う。

¹¹ 彼はそのろばの子をぶどうの木につなぎ、その雌ろばの子を良きぶどうの木につなぐ。彼はその衣服をぶどう酒で洗い、その着物をぶどうの汁で洗うであろう。

¹² その目はぶどう酒によって赤く、その歯は乳によって白い。

¹³ ゼブルンは海べに住み、舟の泊まる港となって、その境はシドンに及ぶであろう。

¹⁴ イッサカルはたくましいろば、彼は羊のおりの間に伏している。

¹⁵ 彼は定住の地を見て良しとし、その国を見て楽しとした。彼はその肩を下げてにない、奴隷となって追い使われる。

¹⁶ ダンはおのれの民をさばくであろう、イスラエルのほかの部族のように。

¹⁷ ダンは道のかたわらのへび、道のほとりのまむし。馬のかかとをかんで、乗る者をうしろに落すであろう。

¹⁸ 主よ、わたしはあなたの救を待ち望む。

¹⁹ ガドには略奪者が迫る。しかし彼はかえって敵のかかとに迫るであろう。

²⁰ アセルはその食物がゆたかで、王の美味をいだすであろう。

²¹ ナフタリは放たれた雌じか、彼は美しい子じかを生むであろう。

²² ヨセフは実を結ぶ若木、泉のほとりの実を結ぶ若木。その枝は、かきねを越えるであろう。

²³ 射る者は彼を激しく攻め、彼を射、彼をいたく悩ました。

²⁴ しかし彼の弓はなお強く、彼の腕は素早い。これはヤコブの全能者の手により、イスラエルの岩なる牧者の名により、

²⁵ あなたを助ける父の神により、また上なる天の祝福、下に横たわる淵の祝福、乳ぶさと胎の祝福をもって、あなたを恵まれる全能者による。

²⁶ あなたの父の祝福は永遠の山の祝福にまさり、永久の丘の賜物にまさる。これらの祝福はヨセフのかしらに帰し、その兄弟たちの君たる者の頭の頂に帰する。

²⁷ ベニヤミンはかき裂くおおかみ、朝にその獲物を食らい、夕にその分捕物を分けるであろう」。

²⁸ すべてこれらはイスラエルの十二の部族である。そしてこれは彼らの父が彼らに語り、彼らを祝福したもので、彼は祝福すべきところに従って、彼らおのおのを祝福した。

²⁹ 彼はまた彼らに命じて言った、「わたしはわが民に加えられようとしている。あなたがたはヘテびとエフロンの畑にあるほら穴に、わたしの先祖たちと共にわたしを葬ってください。

³⁰ そのほら穴はカナンの地のマムレの東にあるマクペラの畑にあり、アブラハムがヘテびとエフロンから畑と共に買い取り、所有の墓地としたもので、

³¹ そこにアブラハムと妻サラとが葬られ、イサクと妻リベカもそこに葬られたが、わたしはまたそこにレアを葬った。

³² あの畑とその中にあるほら穴とはヘテの人々から買ったものです」。

³³ こうしてヤコブは子らに命じ終って、足を床におさめ、息絶えて、その民に加えられた。

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 as 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. To him will the obedience of the peoples be.

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 in the way, 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 yield 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 persecute 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 spoil."

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 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 made an end of charging his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the spirit, and was gathered to his people.