Genesis 49:3 BSB — MannaFest

Genesis 49:3

Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, excelling in honor, excelling in power.

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

Reuben, thou art my first-born, my might, and the beginning of my strength; The pre-eminence of dignity, and the pre-eminence of power.

KJV

Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:

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Commentary

4 voices

Jerome

Hebrew Questions on Genesis (420)

(Chapter 49, verse 3) Reuben, my firstborn, you are my strength and the first of my sons, tough in bearing and tough in insolence and injury, like water that does not boil. You went up on your father's bed, then you defiled it when you went up. In Hebrew it is written: Reuben, my firstborn, you are my strength, and the first in power among my sons. Greater in carrying, and greater in strength. You are poured out like water, do not exceed. For you have ascended the bed of your father and defiled the couch in his ascent.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

John Wesley

1703–1791

Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)

Reuben thou art my first-born - Jacob here puts upon him the ornaments of the birth-right, that he and all his brethren might see what he had forfeited and in that might see the evil of his sin. As the first-born he was his father's joy, being the beginning of his strength.

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

How welcome he was to his parents his name bespeaks, Reuben, See a son. To him belonged the excellency of dignity above his brethren, and some power over them. Christ Jesus is the firstborn among many brethren, and to him, of right, belong the most excellent power and dignity: his church also, through him, is a church of firstborn.

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible (1832)

Reuben as the first-born had a right to a double portion of all that the father had; see Deu 21:17 The eminence or dignity mentioned here may refer to the priesthood; the power, to the regal government or kingdom - In this sense it has been understood by all the ancient Targumists.

Voices on this verse

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Original language & word study

10 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
רְאוּבֵן֙	re.'u.Ven	O Reuben	H7205 →
בְּכֹ֣רִי	be.Kho.ri	[are] firstborn my	H1060 →
אַ֔תָּה	'A.tah	you	H859 →
כֹּחִ֖י	ko.Chi	strength my	H3581 →
וְרֵאשִׁ֣ית	ve.re.Shit	and [the] beginning of	H7225 →
אוֹנִ֑י	'o.Ni	manly vigor my	H202 →
יֶ֥תֶר	Ye.ter	excellence of	H3499 →
שְׂאֵ֖ת	se.'Et	dignity	H7613 →
וְיֶ֥תֶר	ve.Ye.ter	and excellence of	H3499 →
עָֽז׃	'Az	power	H5794 →

Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread: the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.

The walk

The walk8

Where the connections lead

Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.

Through
Psalms 78:51
He struck all the firstborn of Egypt, the virility in the tents of Ham.
leads to
- Psalms 105:36
  Then He struck all the firstborn in their land, the firstfruits of all their vigor.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- Psalms 136:10
  He struck down the firstborn of Egypt His loving devotion endures forever.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- Psalms 105:23
  Then Israel entered Egypt; Jacob dwelt in the land of Ham.
- Psalms 135:8
  He struck down the firstborn of Egypt, of both man and beast.
- Psalms 106:22
  wondrous works in the land of Ham, and awesome deeds by the Red Sea.
Through
Genesis 29:32
And Leah conceived and gave birth to a son, and she named him Reuben, for she said, “The LORD has seen my affliction. Surely my husband will love me now.”
leads to
- Deuteronomy 26:7
  So we called out to the LORD, the God of our fathers; and the LORD heard our voice and saw our affliction, toil, and oppression.
- Exodus 3:7
  The LORD said, “I have indeed seen the affliction of My people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their oppressors, and I am aware of their sufferings.
- Exodus 4:31
  and they believed. And when they heard that the LORD had attended to the Israelites and had seen their affliction, they bowed down and worshiped.

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About Genesis

The Creation of Light — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain

Genesis: the study guide →Read chapter 49 →The featured study →

Continue: Genesis 49 →

01Commentary

The record, by era

Voices on this verse

02Original language & word study

03The walk

Where the connections lead

04Related verses

05Featured studies on this passage

06About Genesis

The record, by era

Where the connections lead

Commentary

Original language & word study

The walk

Related verses

Featured studies on this passage

About Genesis