Genesis 49:5-12 ▼

5 “Simeon and Levi are brothers [equally headstrong, deceitful, vindictive, and cruel]; Their swords are weapons of violence and revenge.

6 “O my soul, do not come into their secret council; Let not my glory (honor) be united with their assembly [for I knew nothing of their plot]; Because in their anger they killed men [an honored man, Shechem, and the Shechemites], And in their self-will they lamed oxen.

7 “Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; And their wrath, for it was cruel. I will divide and disperse them in Jacob, And scatter them in [the midst of the land of] Israel.

8 “Judah, you are the one whom your brothers shall praise; Your hand will be on the neck of your enemies; Your father’s sons shall bow down to you.

9 “Judah, a lion’s cub; With the prey, my son, you have gone high up [the mountain]. He stooped down, he crouched like a lion, And like a lion—who dares rouse him?

10 “The scepter [of royalty] shall not depart from Judah, Nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, Until Shiloh [the Messiah, the Peaceful One] comes, And to Him shall be the obedience of the peoples.

11 “Tying his foal to the [strong] vine And his donkey’s colt to the choice vine, He washes his clothing in wine [because the grapevine produces abundantly], And his robes in the blood of grapes.

12 “His eyes are darker and sparkle more than wine, And his teeth whiter than milk.