Genesis 49:14
in Genesis 49Issachar is a strong donkey, lying down between the sheepfolds.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Issachar is a strong ass, Couching down between the sheepfolds:
KJV
Issachar is a strong ass couching down between two burdens:
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This verse in Genesis 49
Commentary
7 notes on this verseIssachar is a strong ass - חמר גרם chamor garem is properly a strong-limbed ass; couching between two burdens - bearing patiently, as most understand it, the fatigues of agriculture, and submitting to exorbitant taxes rather that exert themselves to drive out the old inhabitants. The two burdens literally mean the two sacks or panniers, one on each side of the animal’s body; and couching down between these refers to the well-known propensity of the ass, whenever wearied or overloaded, to lie down even with its burden on its back.
This site's exposition
Zebulun shall dwell by the seashore
on Genesis 49:13-15
Zebulun gets the sea, a border reaching to Sidon and a harbor for ships. Issachar is a strong donkey lying between the sheepfolds, who finds his resting place good and bends his shoulder to the burden. Joshua's division of the land answers to both.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
Above we have taken into consideration that one who erred because of the threefold impulse of the soul (as a weakness of the entire soul), which is divided into carnal passion symbolized by Reuben, into anger symbolized by Simeon and into ill-directed prudence symbolized by Levi. But then we have shown this person when he repents in the figure of Judah and is largely converted in the figure of Zebulun.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Issachar is a strong ass, couching down between two burdens - The men of that tribe shall be strong and industrious, fit for and inclined to labour, particularly the toil of husbandry, like the ass that patiently carries his burden.
Issachar is a strong ass,....
It was a tribe that took pains, and, thriving thereby, was called upon for rents and taxes. That they should be encouraged in their labour by the goodness of the land that should fall to their lot. (1.) He saw that rest at home was good.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
a strong ass couching down between two burdens--that is, it was to be active, patient, given to agricultural labors. It was established in lower Galilee--a "good land," settling down in the midst of the Canaanites, where, for the sake of quiet, they "bowed their shoulder to bear, and became a servant unto tribute." Ge 49:16-18.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
The words behind it
6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| יִשָּׂשכָ֖ר | yisoshkhar | Issachar | H3485 → | 43 times |
| חֲמֹ֣ר | chamor | [is] a donkey of | H2543 → | 96 times |
| גָּ֑רֶם | garem | bone | H1634 → | |
| רֹבֵ֖ץ | rovetz | lying down | H7257 → | 30 times |
| בֵּ֥ין | bein | between | H996 → | 407 times |
| הַֽמִּשְׁפְּתָֽיִם׃ | hamishpetayim | the two campfires | H4942 → |
יִשָּׂשכָ֖רIssachar
yisoshkharH3485 →43 times
חֲמֹ֣ר[is] a donkey of
chamorH2543 →96 times
גָּ֑רֶםbone
garemH1634 →
רֹבֵ֖ץlying down
rovetzH7257 →30 times
בֵּ֥יןbetween
beinH996 →407 times
הַֽמִּשְׁפְּתָֽיִם׃the two campfires
hamishpetayimH4942 →
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
1 Chronicles 12:32From Issachar, men who understood the times and knew what Israel should do: 200 chiefs with all their kinsmen at their command.
it leads to
- Ephesians 5:17
Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.
- Esther 1:13
Then the king consulted the wise men who knew the times, for it was customary for him to confer with the experts in law and justice.
- Luke 12:56–57
You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and sky. Why don’t you know how to interpret the present time?
- Proverbs 14:8
The wisdom of the prudent is to discern his way, but the folly of fools deceives them.
- Isaiah 33:6
He will be the sure foundation for your times, a storehouse of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge. The fear of the LORD is Zion’s treasure.
- Ephesians 5:17
Through
Judges 10:1After the time of Abimelech, a man of Issachar, Tola son of Puah, the son of Dodo, rose up to save Israel. He lived in Shamir, in the hill country of Ephraim.
it leads to
- Judges 2:16
Then the LORD raised up judges, who saved them from the hands of those who plundered them.
- Judges 2:16
Through
Deuteronomy 33:18Concerning Zebulun he said: “Rejoice, Zebulun, in your journeys, and Issachar, in your tents.
it leads to
- Genesis 49:13–15
Zebulun shall dwell by the seashore and become a harbor for ships; his border shall extend to Sidon.
- Genesis 49:13–15
Through
Genesis 30:18Then Leah said, “God has rewarded me for giving my maidservant to my husband.” So she named him Issachar.
it leads to
- Genesis 46:13
The sons of Issachar: Tola, Puvah, Job, and Shimron.
- Genesis 46:13
Where this verse is studied
About Genesis
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Tyrannius Rufinus, THE BLESSINGS OF THE PATRIARCHS 2.14.