Genesis 49:8

Summary

Genesis 49:8 is part of Jacob's blessing addressed directly to Judah. It states that Judah's brothers will praise him, that his hand will be over the neck of his enemies, and that his father's sons will bow down before him.

Key words

• Ye.hu.Dah ("Judah", H3063G) — vocative proper name opening the blessing, addressed directly to the person.
• yo.Du.kha ("they will praise you", H3034) — hiphil (causative) imperfect verb with pronominal suffix; the imperfect aspect marks this as an ongoing or future action, not a completed one.
• ya.de.kha ("your hand", H3027G) — singular noun in construct form with a pronominal suffix, referring to one hand, not multiple.
• 'o.ye.Vei.kha ("your enemies", H0341) — qal active participle used substantively ("the ones being hostile"), plural construct with suffix.
• yish.ta.cha.Vu ("they will bow down", H7812) — hithpael (reflexive/reciprocal) imperfect, denoting the ongoing or future act of prostration.

What the text says

The verse opens with the vocative Ye.hu.Dah ("Judah", H3063G) followed by the independent pronoun 'a.Tah ("you", H0859A), which in Hebrew adds emphasis since the pronoun is not grammatically required with a finite verb — the subject is already marked by the verb ending. This construction highlights Judah as the addressee before the main clauses begin.

The sentence structure moves through three parallel statements, each governed by an imperfect verb (marking future or ongoing action): yo.Du.kha ("they will praise you"), an implicit statement about the hand's position (no finite verb — a nominal clause: "your hand [will be] on the neck of your enemies"), and yish.ta.cha.Vu ("they will bow down"). The second clause lacks a verb in Hebrew; the preposition be. ("on", H9003) links ya.de.kha ("your hand") directly to 'O.ref ("neck of", H6203), producing a nominal sentence rather than a verbal one — a structure not always visible in translation, where verbs like "shall be" are added to complete the English or Spanish clause.

The repeated pronominal suffix -kha ("your", H9021) throughout the verse — attached to "brothers," "hand," "enemies," and later "father" — creates a chain of second-person references, binding every noun back to Judah as the central figure of the blessing.

Differences between versions

The Hebrew ya.de.kha ("your hand", H3027G) is singular, but the LXX renders it as plural, χεῖρές σου ("your hands"). Additionally, where the Hebrew has 'O.ref ("neck", H6203), the LXX uses νώτου ("back"), while the Vulgate's cervicibus ("necks," plural) matches the Hebrew concept of the neck but shifts to plural number, unlike the Hebrew singular construct form.