Deuteronomy 33:16
in Deuteronomy 33with the choice gifts of the land and everything in it, and with the favor of Him who dwelt in the burning bush. May these rest on the head of Joseph and crown the brow of the prince of his brothers.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And for the precious things of the earth and the fulness thereof, And the good will of him that dwelt in the bush. Let the blessing come upon the head of Joseph, And upon the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren.
KJV
And for the precious things of the earth and fulness thereof, and for the good will of him that dwelt in the bush: let the blessing come upon the head of Joseph, and upon the top of the head of him that was separated from his brethren.
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This verse in Deuteronomy 33
Commentary
11 notes on this verseThe good will of him that dwelt in the bush - The favor of him who appeared in the burning bush on Mount Sinai, who there, in his good will - mere love and compassion, took Israel to be his people; and who has preserved and will preserve, in tribulation and distress, all those who trust in him, so that they shall as surely escape unhurt, as the bush, though enveloped with fire, was unburnt. The top of the head, etc. - The same words are used by Jacob in blessing this tribe, Gen 49:
This site's exposition
with the choice gifts of the land and everything in it
on Deuteronomy 33:16-17
God is named as “Him who dwelt in the burning bush”, a title found nowhere else in the Old Testament. Jesus points to the same passage at Mark 12:26.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening5 voices
Many a time had God appeared to Moses; but now he is just dying, he seems to have the most pleasing remembrance, of the first time that he saw the visions of the Almighty. It was here God declared himself the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and so confirmed the promise made to the father, that promise which our Lord shews, reaches as far as the resurrection and eternal life.
He prays, [1.] For seasonable rains and dews, the precious things of heaven; and so precious they are, though but pure water, that without them the fruits of the earth would all fail and be cut off. [2.] For plentiful springs, which help to make the earth fruitful, called here the deep that coucheth beneath; both are the rivers of God ( Ps. lxv.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
), that he was separated from his brethren, or, as it might be read, a Nazarite among them, both in regard of his piety, wherein it appears, by many instances, he excelled them all, and of his dignity in Egypt, where he was both their ruler and benefactor.
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And for the precious things of the earth, and fulness thereof,....
It is foretold, [2.] That these tribes, being thus enriched, should consecrate their gain unto the Lord, and their substance unto the Lord of the whole earth, Mic. iv. The merchandise of Zebulun, and the hire of Issachar, shall be holiness to the Lord ( Isa. xxiii. 18 ), for thereof they shall offer sacrifices of righteousness, that is, sacrifices according to the law.
4 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
But what are the precious things of the earth to a soul that came from God and must return to him? Or what is its fulness to the fulness that is in Christ, whence we receive grace for grace? Some make these precious things here prayed for to be figures of spiritual blessings in heavenly things by Christ, the gifts, graces, and comforts of the Spirit.
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
"The firstling of the bullock and the horns of the unicorn" (rhinoceros), indicate glory and strength, and it is supposed that under these emblems were shadowed forth the triumphs of Joshua and the new kingdom of Jeroboam, both of whom were of Ephraim (compare Ge 48:20).
A commentator
Charles Spurgeon1834–1892
The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 3540: “A Remarkable Benediction” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition) · Written before 1892.
proposed
MOSES died blessing the people. This showed his meekness, for they had been his plague all his life, and yet his last word with them is full of blessing. He has a blessing for all the tribes, though all the tribes had in turn grieved his spirit. It is a graceful thing to die scattering benedictions—for the old man to feel that life is just about over, and that before he dies he will distribute his legacies—legacies of benediction.
A commentator
Charles Spurgeon1834–1892
The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 3540: “A Remarkable Benediction” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition) · Written before 1892.
proposed
MOSES died blessing the people. This showed his meekness, for they had been his plague all his life, and yet his last word with them is full of blessing. He has a blessing for all the tribes, though all the tribes had in turn grieved his spirit. It is a graceful thing to die scattering benedictions—for the old man to feel that life is just about over, and that before he dies he will distribute his legacies—legacies of benediction. It is the most graceful way of departing out of this life to another, leaving a blessing behind, while we, ourselves, are going into the fullness of the blessing to come. But the blessing of Moses was graceful at the close of his life because it was constant with all of his life that went before. Had he lived cursing, it would have been absurd, if not impious, to die blessing. I would not wish to have that man's benediction in words on his deathbed who never gave a benediction in actions while he was in his life. But the whole course of Moses' life was that of blessing the people. He had been a nursing father to them. He carried them in his bosom. Often he stood in the gap between them and an angry God. He had spared them by acting as a Mediator when the sword of vengeance was drawn against them. Countless blessings had been bestowed upon them through him.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וּמִמֶּ֗גֶד | umimeged | and from [the] excellent gift of | H4022 → | 8 times |
| אֶ֚רֶץ | ʾeretz | [the] earth | H776 → | 2504 times |
| וּמְלֹאָ֔הּ | umeloah | and what fills it | H4393 → | |
| וּרְצ֥וֹן | uretzon | and [the] favor of | H7522 → | |
| שֹׁכְנִ֖י | shokheni | [the one who] dwelt | H7931 → | 129 times |
| סְנֶ֑ה | seneh | <of> [the] bush | H5572 → | |
| תָּב֙וֹאתָה֙ | tavotah | may it come ! | H935 → | 2568 times |
| לְרֹ֣אשׁ | lerosh | to [the] head of | H7218 → | 599 times |
| יוֹסֵ֔ף | yosef | Joseph | H3130 → | 213 times |
| וּלְקָדְקֹ֖ד | ulekadekod | and to [the] scalp of | H6936 → | 11 times |
| נְזִ֥יר | nezir | [the] consecrated one of | H5139 → | |
| אֶחָֽיו׃ | ʾechav | brothers his | H251 → | 630 times |
וּמִמֶּ֗גֶדand from [the] excellent gift of
umimegedH4022 →8 times
אֶ֚רֶץ[the] earth
ʾeretzH776 →2504 times
וּמְלֹאָ֔הּand what fills it
umeloahH4393 →
וּרְצ֥וֹןand [the] favor of
uretzonH7522 →
שֹׁכְנִ֖י[the one who] dwelt
shokheniH7931 →129 times
סְנֶ֑ה<of> [the] bush
senehH5572 →
תָּב֙וֹאתָה֙may it come !
tavotahH935 →2568 times
לְרֹ֣אשׁto [the] head of
leroshH7218 →599 times
יוֹסֵ֔ףJoseph
yosefH3130 →213 times
וּלְקָדְקֹ֖דand to [the] scalp of
ulekadekodH6936 →11 times
נְזִ֥יר[the] consecrated one of
nezirH5139 →
אֶחָֽיו׃brothers his
ʾechavH251 →630 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
Psalms 24:1The earth is the LORD’s, and the fullness thereof, the world and all who dwell therein.
it leads to
- Psalms 89:11
The heavens are Yours, and also the earth. The earth and its fullness You founded.
- 1 Corinthians 10:26
for, “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.”
- 1 Chronicles 29:11
Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the splendor and the majesty, for everything in heaven and on earth belongs to You. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom,…
- Job 41:11
Who has given to Me that I should repay him? Everything under heaven is Mine.
- Deuteronomy 10:14
Behold, to the LORD your God belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, and the earth and everything in it.
- Psalms 89:11
Through
Genesis 37:28So when the Midianite traders passed by, his brothers pulled Joseph out of the pit and sold him for twenty shekels of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt.
it leads to
- Acts 7:9
Because the patriarchs were jealous of Joseph, they sold him as a slave into Egypt. But God was with him
- Psalms 105:17
He sent a man before them— Joseph, sold as a slave.
- Acts 7:9
Through
Acts 7:35This Moses, whom they had rejected with the words, ‘Who made you ruler and judge?’ is the one whom God sent to be their ruler and redeemer through the angel who appeared to him…
it leads to
- Psalms 118:22–23
The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.
- Psalms 118:22–23
Where this verse is studied
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; Charles Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 3540: “A Remarkable Benediction” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition); 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; Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.