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11 Bless, O Lord, his goods,
and be pleased with his efforts;
undercut the legs[a] of any who attack him,
and of those who hate him, so that they cannot stand.”

Blessing on Benjamin

12 Of Benjamin he said:
“The beloved of the Lord will live safely by him;
he protects him all the time,
and the Lord[b] places him on his chest.”[c]

Blessing on Joseph

13 Of Joseph he said:
“May the Lord bless his land
with the harvest produced by the sky,[d] by the dew,
and by the depths crouching beneath;

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 33:11 tn Heb “smash the sinews [or “loins,” so many English versions].” This part of the body was considered to be center of one’s strength (cf. Job 40:16; Ps 69:24; Prov 31:17; Nah 2:2, 11). See J. H. Tigay, Deuteronomy (JPSTC), 325.
  2. Deuteronomy 33:12 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  3. Deuteronomy 33:12 tn Heb “between his shoulders.” This suggests the scene in John 13:23 with Jesus and the Beloved Disciple.
  4. Deuteronomy 33:13 tn Heb “from the harvest of the heavens.” The referent appears to be good crops produced by the rain that falls from the sky.