Genesis 49:1-12

Then Jacob called for his sons and said, “Assemble yourselves [around me] that I may tell you what will happen to you and your descendants in the days to come. “Gather together and hear, O sons of Jacob; And listen to Israel (Jacob) your father. ¶“Reuben, you are my firstborn; My might, the beginning of my strength and vigor, Preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power [that should have been your birthright]. “But unstable and reckless and boiling over like water [in sinful lust], you shall not excel or have the preeminence [of the firstborn], Because you went up to your father’s bed [with Bilhah]; You defiled it—he went up to my couch. [Gen 35:22] ¶“Simeon and Levi are brothers [equally headstrong, deceitful, vindictive, and cruel]; Their swords are weapons of violence and revenge. [Gen 34:25-30] “O my soul, do not come into their secret council; Let not my glory (honor) be united with their assembly [for I knew nothing of their plot]; Because in their anger they killed men [an honored man, Shechem, and the Shechemites], And in their self-will they lamed oxen. “Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; And their wrath, for it was cruel. I will divide and disperse them in Jacob, And scatter them in [the midst of the land of] Israel. ¶“Judah, you are the one whom your brothers shall praise; Your hand will be on the neck of your enemies; Your father’s sons shall bow down to you. “Judah, a lion’s cub; With the prey, my son, you have gone high up [the mountain]. He stooped down, he crouched like a lion, And like a lion—who dares rouse him? [Rev 5:5] “The scepter [of royalty] shall not depart from Judah, Nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, Until Shiloh [the Messiah, the Peaceful One] comes, And to Him shall be the obedience of the peoples. [Num 24:17; Ps 60:7; Ezek 21:27] “Tying his foal to the [strong] vine And his donkey’s colt to the choice vine, He washes his clothing in wine [because the grapevine produces abundantly], And his robes in the blood of grapes. [Is 63:1-3; Zech 9:9; Rev 19:11-16] “His eyes are darker and sparkle more than wine, And his teeth whiter than milk.