Deuteronomy 33:20
in Deuteronomy 33Concerning Gad he said: “Blessed is he who enlarges the domain of Gad! He lies down like a lion and tears off an arm or a head.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And of Gad he said, Blessed be he that enlargeth Gad: He dwelleth as a lioness, And teareth the arm, yea, the crown of the head.
KJV
And of Gad he said, Blessed be he that enlargeth Gad: he dwelleth as a lion, and teareth the arm with the crown of the head.
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This verse in Deuteronomy 33
Commentary
7 notes on this verseBlessed be he that enlargeth Gad - As deliverance out of distress is termed enlarging, (see Psa 4:1), this may refer to God’s deliverance of the tribe of Gad out of that distress mentioned Gen 49:19, and to the enlargement obtained through means of Jephthah, Jdg 11:33, and probably also to the victories obtained by Gad and Reuben over the Hagarites, 1Ch 5:18-20. He dwelleth as a lion - Probably the epithet of lion or lion-like was applied to this tribe from their fierce and warlike disposition.
This site's exposition
Blessed is he who enlarges the domain of Gad
on Deuteronomy 33:20-21
Gad asked for land east of the Jordan at Numbers 32:1-5, and choosing “the best land for himself” is commonly read of that request. What follows can be checked, since Joshua 4:12 has the eastern tribes cross armed ahead of the rest and Joshua 22 sends them home afterward.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening4 voices
Enlargeth - That bringeth him out of his straits amid troubles, which he was often engaged in, because he was encompassed with potent enemies. As a lion - Safe and secure from his enemies, and terrible to them when they rouse and molest him.
And of Gad he said,....
This was one of the tribes that was already seated on that side Jordan where Moses now was.
We find how this tribe was enlarged by their success in a war which it seems they carried on very religiously against the Hagarites, 1 Chron. v. 19, 20, 22 . Note, God is to have the glory of all our enlargements.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
i. e., Blessed be God who shall grant to Gad a spacious territory. Compare the blessing of Shem Gen 9:26. With the crown - Rather, yea, the crown. The warlike character of this tribe is shown by their leading the van in the long campaigns of Joshua (compare Jos 4:12-13; Jos 22:1-4). Compare also 1Ch 5:18-22; 1Ch 12:8 ff, and the acts of Jehu, the Gadite, in 2 Kings 9; 10.
The words behind it
11 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וּלְגָ֣ד | ulegad | and of Gad | H1410 → | 72 times |
| אָמַ֔ר | ʾamar | he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| בָּר֖וּךְ | barukh | [be] blessed | H1288 → | 330 times |
| מַרְחִ֣יב | marchiv | [one who] enlarges | H7337 → | 25 times |
| גָּ֑ד | gad | Gad | H1410 → | 72 times |
| כְּלָבִ֣יא | kelavi' | like a lion | H3833 → | |
| שָׁכֵ֔ן | shakhen | he dwells | H7931 → | 129 times |
| וְטָרַ֥ף | vetaraf | and he tears | H2963 → | |
| זְר֖וֹעַ | zeroa' | an arm | H2220 → | 91 times |
| אַף־ | ʾaf- | also | H637 → | 134 times |
| קָדְקֹֽד׃ | kadekod | a scalp | H6936 → | 11 times |
וּלְגָ֣דand of Gad
ulegadH1410 →72 times
אָמַ֔רhe said
ʾamarH559 →5305 times
בָּר֖וּךְ[be] blessed
barukhH1288 →330 times
מַרְחִ֣יב[one who] enlarges
marchivH7337 →25 times
גָּ֑דGad
gadH1410 →72 times
כְּלָבִ֣יאlike a lion
kelavi'H3833 →
שָׁכֵ֔ןhe dwells
shakhenH7931 →129 times
וְטָרַ֥ףand he tears
vetarafH2963 →
זְר֖וֹעַan arm
zeroa'H2220 →91 times
אַף־also
ʾaf-H637 →134 times
קָדְקֹֽד׃a scalp
kadekodH6936 →11 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 49:19Gad will be attacked by raiders, but he will attack their heels.
it leads to
- 1 Chronicles 5:11–22
The descendants of Gad lived next to the Reubenites in the land of Bashan, as far as Salecah:
- Deuteronomy 33:20–21
Concerning Gad he said: “Blessed is he who enlarges the domain of Gad! He lies down like a lion and tears off an arm or a head.
- Genesis 30:11
Then Leah said, “How fortunate!” So she named him Gad.
- 1 Chronicles 5:11–22
Through
Micah 5:8Then the remnant of Jacob will be among the nations, in the midst of many peoples, like a lion among the beasts of the forest, like a young lion among flocks of sheep, which…
it leads to
- Zechariah 10:5
They will be like mighty men in battle, trampling the enemy in the mire of the streets. They will fight because the LORD is with them, and they will put the horsemen to shame.
- Micah 4:13
Rise and thresh, O Daughter of Zion, for I will give you horns of iron and hooves of bronze to break to pieces many peoples. Then you will devote their gain to the LORD,…
- Hosea 5:14
For I am like a lion to Ephraim and like a young lion to the house of Judah. I, even I, will tear them to pieces and then go away. I will carry them…
- Isaiah 41:15–16
Behold, I will make you into a threshing sledge, new and sharp, with many teeth. You will thresh the mountains and crush them, and reduce the hills to chaff.
- Psalms 2:8–12
Ask Me, and I will make the nations Your inheritance, the ends of the earth Your possession.
- Zechariah 10:5
Where this verse is studied
About Deuteronomy
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); 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.