Deuteronomy 33:8
 Deuteronomy 33:8 
New International Version (©2011)
About Levi he said: "Your Thummim and Urim belong to your faithful servant. You tested him at Massah; you contended with him at the waters of Meribah.

New Living Translation (©2007)
Moses said this about the tribe of Levi: "O LORD, you have given your Thummim and Urim--the sacred lots--to your faithful servants the Levites. You put them to the test at Massah and struggled with them at the waters of Meribah.

English Standard Version (©2001)
And of Levi he said, “Give to Levi your Thummim, and your Urim to your godly one, whom you tested at Massah, with whom you quarreled at the waters of Meribah;

New American Standard Bible (©1995)
Of Levi he said, "Let Your Thummim and Your Urim belong to Your godly man, Whom You proved at Massah, With whom You contended at the waters of Meribah;

King James Bible (Cambridge Ed.)
And of Levi he said, Let thy Thummim and thy Urim be with thy holy one, whom thou didst prove at Massah, and with whom thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah;

Holman Christian Standard Bible (©2009)
He said about Levi: Your Thummim and Urim belong to Your faithful one; You tested him at Massah and contended with him at the waters of Meribah.

International Standard Version (©2012)
About Levi he said: "Let your Thummim and Urim be with the man to whom you showed gracious love, whom you tested at Massah and with whom you struggled at the waters of Meribah,

NET Bible (©2006)
Of Levi he said: Your Thummim and Urim belong to your godly one, whose authority you challenged at Massah, and with whom you argued at the waters of Meribah.

GOD'S WORD® Translation (©1995)
About the tribe of [Levi]he said, "Your Thummim and Urim belong to your faithful people. You tested your people at Massah. You quarreled with them at the oasis of Meribah.

King James 2000 Bible (©2003)
And of Levi he said, Let your Thummim and your Urim be with your holy one, whom you did test at Massah, and with whom you did strive at the waters of Meribah;

American King James Version
And of Levi he said, Let your Thummim and your Urim be with your holy one, whom you did prove at Massah, and with whom you did strive at the waters of Meribah;

American Standard Version
And of Levi he said, Thy Thummim and thy Urim are with thy godly one, Whom thou didst prove at Massah, With whom thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah;

Douay-Rheims Bible
To Levi also he said: Thy perfection, and thy doctrine be to thy holy man, whom thou hast proved in the temptation, and judged at the waters of contradiction :

Darby Bible Translation
And of Levi he said, Thy Thummim and thy Urim are for thy godly one, Whom thou didst prove at Massah, With whom thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah;

English Revised Version
And of Levi he said, Thy Thummim and thy Urim are with thy godly one, Whom thou didst prove at Massah, With whom thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah;

Webster's Bible Translation
And of Levi he said, Let thy Thummim and thy Urim be with thy holy one, whom thou didst prove at Massah, and with whom thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah;

World English Bible
Of Levi he said, "Your Thummim and your Urim are with your godly one, whom you proved at Massah, with whom you strove at the waters of Meribah;

Young's Literal Translation
And of Levi he said: -- Thy Thummim and thy Urim are for thy pious one, Whom Thou hast tried in Massah, Thou dost strive with Him at the waters of Meribah;

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

33:6-23 The order in which the tribes are here blessed, is not the same as is observed elsewhere. The blessing of Judah may refer to the whole tribe in general, or to David as a type of Christ. Moses largely blesses the tribe of Levi. Acceptance with God is what we should all aim at, and desire, in all our devotions, whether men accept us or not, 2Co 5:9. This prayer is a prophecy, that God will keep up a ministry in his church to the end of time. The tribe of Benjamin had their inheritance close to mount Zion. To be situated near the ordinances, is a precious gift from the Lord, a privilege not to be exchanged for any worldly advantage, or indulgence. We should thankfully receive the earthly blessings sent to us, through the successive seasons. But those good gifts which come down from the Father of lights, through the rising of the Sun of righteousness, and the pouring out of his Spirit like the rain which makes fruitful, are infinitely more precious, as the tokens of his special love. The precious things here prayed for, are figures of spiritual blessing in heavenly things by Christ, the gifts, graces, and comforts of the Spirit. When Moses prays for the good will of Him that dwelt in the bush, he refers to the covenant, on which all our hopes of God's favour must be founded. The providence of God appoints men's habitations, and wisely disposes men to different employments for the public good. Whatever our place and business are, it is our wisdom and duty to apply thereto; and it is happiness to be well pleased therewith. We should not only invite others to the service of God, but abound in it. The blessing of Naphtali. The favour of God is the only favour satisfying to the soul. Those are happy indeed, who have the favour of God; and those shall have it, who reckon that in having it they have enough, and desire no more.


Pulpit Commentary

Verses 8-11. - The blessing on Levi is also in the form of a prayer. In Jacob's blessing, Simeon is joined with Levi, but Moses passes him over altogether, probably because, as Jacob foretold, he was to be scattered among his brethren (Genesis 49:7), and so lose his tribal individuality. Simeon, however, is included in the general blessing pronounced on Israel; and as this tribe received a number of towns within the territory of Judah (Joshua 19:2-9), it was probably regarded as included in the blessing on that tribe. Thy Thummim and thy Urim; thy Right and thy Light (cf. Exodus 28:30). The high priest wore the breast-plate on which these were placed when he went in before the Lord; and this is here represented as the prerogative of the whole tribe. Thy holy one; i.e. Levi, the tribe-father, representing the whole tribe to which the blessing applies; hence in the following verses the verb passes into the plural. For "holy one," it would be better to read "pious" or "godly one;" literally, the man thy pious one. Some would render "the man thy favored one," or "the man of thy friendship;" but this is wholly arbitrary, the word (חָסִיד) has no such meaning. To explain this more particularly, reference is made to the trials at Massah and the waters of Meribah (strife), when the people rebelled and murmured against Moses and Aaron, whereby the piety of these men was put to the test, and in them, the heads of the tribe of Levi, the whole tribe was proved. (On Massah, see Exodus 17:1-7; and on the waters of strife, see Numbers 20:1-13.) In these trials, Levi had proved himself faithful and godly, having risen up in defense of the honor of Jehovah, and in support of his covenant, though in the latter case both Moses and Aaron stumbled. Who said unto his father and to his mother, etc. This refers to what is narrated in Exodus 32:26-29, when the Levites drew their swords against their brethren at the command of Moses, to execute judgment without respect of person, because of the sin of the people in the matter of the golden calf (cf. also Numbers 25:8, and, for the principle here implicitly commended, see Matthew 10:37; Matthew 19:29; Luke 14:26). Because of their zealous devotion to the claims and service of the Lord, the dignity of the priesthood had been conferred on this tribe; and to them belonged the high office of being instructors of the people in Divine things, and of presenting the sacrifices of the people to the Lord. For those entrusted with such an office, nothing was more to be desired than that they should be blessed with power rightly to discharge the duties of their office, that their service should be accepted with favor, and that their enemies and haters should be foiled and rendered impotent; and for this Moses prays on their behalf.


Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And of Levi he said,.... That is, Moses said of the tribe of Levi, as both the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem:

let thy Thummim and thy Urim be with thy Holy One; with Aaron, as the same Targums interpret it, who was of the tribe of Levi, and was a holy good man, a saint of the Lord, as he is called, Psalm 106:16; of the Urim and Thummim, which were with him and with every high priest; see Gill on Exodus 28:30; and though they were not in use under the second temple, yet had their fulfilment in Christ the antitype of Aaron, who may be chiefly here intended; who is after called the Lord's Holy One, as he is, both as God and man, holy in both his natures, divine and human, and in his life and actions; and with him are the true Urim and Thummim, lights and perfections, the light of nature, grace and glory, and all perfections, both divine and human; See Gill on Exodus 28:30 (i):

whom thou didst prove at Massah, and with whom thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah; which, as it may respect Aaron, may be understood either of the Lord's proving him and contending with him, by suffering the children of Israel to murmur against him and Moses, at the said places; when, according to the three Targums, he stood in the temptation, and was perfect and found faithful; or of Levi, who, with the rest of the tribes, tried him, and strove with him at the same places; though Jarchi says they did not murmur with the rest that murmured: as it may refer to Christ the antitype of Levi, the sense is, that the Urim and Thummim should be with the Holy One, the Messiah, whom thou, O Levi, with the rest of the tribes, tempted and strove with at the places mentioned; for it is expressly said, they tempted the Lord, Exodus 17:7; and which is interpreted of Christ, 1 Corinthians 10:9.

(i) See a Sermon of mine on this text, called "Levi's Urim and Thummim Found with Christ".


Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

8-10. of Levi he said—The burden of this blessing is the appointment of the Levites to the dignified and sacred office of the priesthood (Le 10:11; De 22:8; 17:8-11), a reward for their zeal in supporting the cause of God, and their unsparing severity in chastising even their nearest and dearest relatives who had participated in the idolatry of the molten calf (Ex 32:25-28; compare Mal 2:4-6).


Deuteronomy 33:8 Parallel Commentaries

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The Blessings of the Twelve Tribes
6Let Reuben live, and not die; and let not his men be few. 7And this is the blessing of Judah: and he said, Hear, LORD, the voice of Judah, and bring him to his people: let his hands be sufficient for him; and be you an help to him from his enemies. 8And of Levi he said, Let your Thummim and your Urim be with your holy one, whom you did prove at Massah, and with whom you did strive at the waters of Meribah;

Exodus 17:7 And he called the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites quarreled and because they tested the LORD saying, "Is the LORD among us or not?"
Exodus 28:30 Also put the Urim and the Thummim in the breastpiece, so they may be over Aaron's heart whenever he enters the presence of the LORD. Thus Aaron will always bear the means of making decisions for the Israelites over his heart before the LORD.
Leviticus 8:8 He placed the breastpiece on him and put the Urim and Thummim in the breastpiece.
Numbers 20:13 These were the waters of Meribah, where the Israelites quarreled with the LORD and where he was proved holy among them.
Numbers 20:24 "Aaron will be gathered to his people. He will not enter the land I give the Israelites, because both of you rebelled against my command at the waters of Meribah.
Deuteronomy 6:16 Do not put the LORD your God to the test as you did at Massah.
Nehemiah 7:65 The governor, therefore, ordered them not to eat any of the most sacred food until there should be a priest ministering with the Urim and Thummim.
Psalm 106:16 In the camp they grew envious of Moses and of Aaron, who was consecrated to the LORD.
Malachi 2:6 True instruction was in his mouth and nothing false was found on his lips. He walked with me in peace and uprightness, and turned many from sin.