Biblical Hebrew Forum

[jimstinehart AT aol.com]

Joseph’s Blessing in the Masoretic Text

Most leading Genesis scholars (Alter, Wenham, etc.) do not accept the 
Masoretic Text’s version of Genesis 49: 26, which is the essence of Jacob’s 
final blessing of Joseph.  By contrast, I myself see the Masoretic Text’s 
version of Genesis 49: 26 as being perfect in all regards, not needing any 
emending whatsoever.

The background for Joseph’s blessing is that Jacob has already given the 
grandest possible blessing to Judah at Genesis 49: 8-10, naming Judah (not 
Joseph) as the leader of the next generation of the Hebrews.  Accordingly, by 
the time we get to Genesis 49: 26 in Joseph’s blessing, what’s needed is an 
explanation of why, although Joseph is Jacob’s favorite son and only heroic 
son, Jacob has nevertheless made the key decision not to give Joseph the 
grandest blessing, which instead Jacob has already given to Judah.

Here is my proposed translation of Genesis 49: 26, which does not utilize any 
emendation of the Masoretic Text:

“The blessings of your father                                                 
                                                                              
            Surpass the blessings of my ancestors,                            
                                                                              
                        As marked out by the eternal hills.”

I see the first two lines as being straightforward prose. “The blessings of 
your father”, that is, the fact that you are your father’s favorite son, 
“Surpass the blessings of my ancestors”, are, somewhat unfortunately, greater 
than the blessings that flow to you from my ancestors Isaac and Abraham, who 
have laid down the rules of proper Patriarchal succession.  40 chapters of 
text have been largely devoted to showing that each Patriarch’s successor 
must be a younger son who is not his father’s favorite son, whose birth 
mother is a firstborn daughter who is the original main wife #1 of the 
Patriarch.

Although the third line is poetic and requires interpretation, its presence 
is critical in asserting that Jacob views the rules of proper Patriarchal 
succession as laid down by Isaac and Abraham to be eternal, just as the hills 
themselves are eternal.  As such, what has been “marked out” by Abraham and 
Isaac as to the rules of proper Patriarchal succession must now in turn be 
followed by Jacob.  Although Joseph is Jacob’s favorite and only heroic son, 
Joseph cannot be Jacob’s proper successor, because Joseph is a favorite son, 
and his birth mother Rachel is neither a firstborn daughter nor the original 
main wife #1 of Joseph’s father, Patriarch Jacob/“Israel”.  By sharp 
contrast, winning son Judah shares the same key characteristics as winning 
sons Isaac and Jacob before him:  Judah is a younger son who is not his 
father’s favorite son, whose birth mother [Leah] is a firstborn daughter who 
is the original main wife #1 of his father [Jacob] the Patriarch.

In the third line, I see T)WT as a noun as coming from the verb T)H.  As 
such, per Numbers 34: 7-8 this controversial word means [in my opinion] “to 
mark out” or “to point out” [and has nothing to do with “that which is 
desired”, “bounty”, etc.].

I myself see every letter in the received Masoretic Text of Genesis 49: 26 as 
being perfect, as is, needing no emendation whatsoever, and as having a 
perfectly intelligible meaning, namely the meaning I have set forth above.

I would be interested in finding out whether people on the b-hebrew list (i) 
think that the Masoretic Text’s version of Genesis 49: 26 needs to be 
emended, and (ii) agree or disagree with my proposed translation and 
understanding of that verse as it appears in the Masoretic Text.

Jim Stinehart
Evanston, Illinois