Deuteronomy 33:1
in Deuteronomy 33This is the blessing that Moses the man of God pronounced upon the Israelites before his death.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And this is the blessing, wherewith Moses the man of God blessed the children of Israel before his death.
KJV
And this is the blessing, wherewith Moses the man of God blessed the children of Israel before his death.
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This verse in Deuteronomy 33
Commentary
6 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
The title “the man of God” in the Old Testament is one who is favored with direct revelations, but not necessarily an official prophet. The occurrence of the title here is no doubt a token that the Blessing was not, as was the Song, transcribed by Moses himself. Compare Deu 31:27.
This site's exposition
This is the blessing that Moses the man of God pronounced upon the Israelites
on Deuteronomy 33:1-2
Moses ends as Jacob ended, blessing the tribes by name before death, as nowhere else in Scripture. Verse 2 has God come from Sinai, Seir and Mount Paran, the picture Judges 5:4-5 and Habakkuk 3:3 draw of the same event.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Moses blessed Israel - He is said to bless them, by praying to God with faith for his blessing upon them; and by foretelling the blessings which God would confer upon them. And Moses calls himself here the man of God, that is, the servant or prophet of God, to acquaint them that the following prophecies were not his own inventions, but divine inspirations.
And this is the blessing wherewith Moses the man of God blessed the children of Israel before his death.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Moses the man of God--This was a common designation of a prophet (1Sa 2:27; 9:6), and it is here applied to Moses, when, like Jacob, he was about to deliver ministerially before his death, a prophetic benediction to Israel.
And this is the blessing wherewith Moses - blessed, etc. - The general nature of this solemn introduction, says Dr. Kennicott, is to show the foundation which Moses had for blessing his brethren, viz., because God had frequently manifested his glory in their behalf; and the several parts of this introduction are disposed in the following order: - 1. The manifestation of the Divine glory on Sinai, as it was prior in time and more magnificent in splendor, is mentioned first. 2. That God manifested his glory at Seir is evident from Jdg 5:4: Lord, when thou wentest out of Seir, when thou marchedst out of the fields of Edom, the earth trembled and the heavens dropped, etc. 3. The next place is Paran, where the glory of the Lord appeared before all the children of Israel, Num 14:10. Instead of he came with ten thousand saints, by which our translators have rendered מרבבת קדש meribeboth kodesh, Dr. Kennicott reads Meribah-Kadesh, the name of a place: for we find that, towards the end of forty years, the Israelites came to Kadesh, Num 20:1, which was also called Meribah, on account of their contentious opposition to the determinations of God in their favor, Num 20:13; and there the glory of the Lord again appeared, as we are informed Num 20:6. These four places, Sinai, Seir, Paran, and Meribah-Kadesh, mentioned by Moses in the text, are the identical places where God manifested his glory in a fiery appearance, the more illustriously to proclaim his special providence over and care of Israel. 33:1And this is the blessing wherewith Moses, the man of God, blessed the children of Israel before his death - And he said Deu 33:2. Jehovah came from Sinai, And he arose upon them from Seir; He shone forth from Mount Paran, And he came from Meribah-kadesh: From his right hand a fire shone forth upon them. Deu 33:3. […]
The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְזֹ֣את | vezot | and this | H2063 → | 603 times |
| הַבְּרָכָ֗ה | haberakhah | [is] the blessing | H1293 → | 69 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֨ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| בֵּרַ֥ךְ | berakh | he blessed | H1288 → | 330 times |
| מֹשֶׁ֛ה | mosheh | Moses | H4872 → | 765 times |
| אִ֥ישׁ | ʾish | [the] man of | H376 → | 1663 times |
| הָאֱלֹהִ֖ים | haelohim | <the> God | H430 → | 2601 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| בְּנֵ֣י | benei | [the] people of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| לִפְנֵ֖י | lifnei | <to> before | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| מוֹתֽוֹ׃ | moto | death his | H4194 → | 156 times |
וְזֹ֣אתand this
vezotH2063 →603 times
הַבְּרָכָ֗ה[is] the blessing
haberakhahH1293 →69 times
אֲשֶׁ֨רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
בֵּרַ֥ךְhe blessed
berakhH1288 →330 times
מֹשֶׁ֛הMoses
moshehH4872 →765 times
אִ֥ישׁ[the] man of
ʾishH376 →1663 times
הָאֱלֹהִ֖ים<the> God
haelohimH430 →2601 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
בְּנֵ֣י[the] people of
beneiH1121 →4930 times
יִשְׂרָאֵ֑לIsrael
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
לִפְנֵ֖י<to> before
lifneiH6440 →2123 times
מוֹתֽוֹ׃death his
motoH4194 →156 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Genesis 27:4Then prepare a tasty dish that I love and bring it to me to eat, so that I may bless you before I die.”
it leads to
- Hebrews 11:20
By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning the future.
- Genesis 48:9
Joseph said to his father, “They are the sons God has given me in this place.” So Jacob said, “Please bring them to me, that I may bless them.”
- Genesis 27:25
“Serve me,” said Isaac, “and let me eat some of my son’s game, so that I may bless you.” Jacob brought it to him, and he ate; then he brought him wine, and he…
- Genesis 49:28
These are the tribes of Israel, twelve in all, and this was what their father said to them. He blessed them, and he blessed each one with a suitable blessing.
- Hebrews 11:20
Through
Joshua 14:6Then the sons of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what the LORD said to Moses the man of God at Kadesh-barnea about…
it leads to
- Numbers 14:30
Surely none of you will enter the land in which I swore to settle you, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.
- Numbers 14:24
But because My servant Caleb has a different spirit and has followed Me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he has entered, and his descendants will inherit it.
- Numbers 13:6
from the tribe of Judah, Caleb son of Jephunneh;
- Numbers 14:30
Through
1 Kings 13:6Then the king responded to the man of God, “Intercede with the LORD your God and pray that my hand may be restored.” So the man of God interceded with the LORD, and the…
it leads to
- Exodus 8:8
Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray to the LORD to take the frogs away from me and my people. Then I will let your people go, that they may sacrifice to the…
- Exodus 8:8
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Deuteronomy
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch.