Genesis 49 · Verse 7

Genesis 49:7

Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel.
Genesis 49:7, King James Version

Genesis 49:7 in other translations

BSBCursed be their anger, for it is strong, and their wrath, for it is cruel! I will disperse them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel.
WEBCursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel. I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel.
ASVCursed be their anger, for it was fierce; And their wrath, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, And scatter them in Israel.
YLTCursed is their anger, for it is fierce, And their wrath, for it is sharp; I divide them in Jacob, And I scatter them in Israel.
DARBYCursed be their anger, for it was violent; And their rage, for it was cruel! I will divide them in Jacob, And scatter them in Israel.
BBEA curse on their passion for it was bitter; and on their wrath for it was cruel. I will let their heritage in Jacob be broken up, driving them from their places in Israel.
WebsterCursed be their anger, for it was fierce: and their wrath, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel.

What does Genesis 49:7 mean?

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 7 Cursed was their anger - The first motions of their violence were savage; and their excessive or overflowing wrath, עברה ebrah, for it was inflexible - neither the supplications of the males, nor the entreaties, tears, cries, and shrieks of the helpless females, could deter them from their murderous purpose; for this, Gen 49:5, they are said to have accomplished. I will divide them out, אחלקם achallekem, I will make them into lots, giving a portion of them to one tribe, and a portion to another; but they shall never attain to any political consequence. This appears to have been literally fulfilled. Levi had no inheritance except forty-eight cities, scattered through different parts of the land of Canaan: and as to the tribe of Simeon, it is generally believed among the Jews that they became schoolmasters to the other tribes; and when they entered Canaan they had only a small portion, a few towns and villages in the worst part of Judah's lot, Jos 19:1, which afterwards finding too little, they formed different colonies in districts which they conquered from the Idumeans and Amalekites, 1Chr 4:39, etc. Thus these two tribes were not only separated from each other, but even divided from themselves, according to this prediction of Jacob. 8. Judah! thou! Thy brethren shall praise thee. Thy hand, in the neck of thine enemies: The sons of thy father shall bow themselves to thee. 9. A lion's whelp is Judah: From the prey, my son, thou hast ascended, He couched, lying down like a strong lion And like a lioness; who shall arouse him? 10. From Judah the scepter shall not depart, Nor a teacher from his offspring, Until that Shiloh shall come, And to him shall be assembled the peoples. 11. Binding his colt to the vine, And to the choice vine the foals of his ass, He washed his garments in wine, His clothes in the blood of the grape. 12. With wine shall his eyes be red, And his teeth shall be white with milk.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Genesis 49:3-7

Reuben was the first-born; but by gross sin, he forfeited the birthright. The character of Reuben is, that he was unstable as water. Men do not thrive, because they do not fix. Reuben's sin left a lasting infamy upon his family. Let us never do evil, then we need not fear being told of it. Simeon and Levi were passionate and revengeful. The murder of the Shechemites is a proof of this. Jacob protested against that…

Read the full comment on Genesis 49:3-7 →

Genesis 49:7 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

אָר֤וּר'a.Rur[be] cursedH779
אַפָּם֙'a.Pamanger theirH639
כִּ֣יkiforH3588
עָ֔ז'AzfierceH5794
וְעֶבְרָתָ֖םve.'ev.ra.Tamand wrath theirH5678
כִּ֣יkiforH3588
קָשָׁ֑תָהka.Sha.tahit is hardH7185
אֲחַלְּקֵ֣ם'a.cha.le.KemI will divide themH2505
בְּיַעֲקֹ֔בbe.ya.'a.Koin JacobH3290
וַאֲפִיצֵ֖םva.'a.fi.Tzemand I will scatter themH6327
בְּיִשְׂרָאֵֽל\׃\ \סbe.Yis.ra.'Elin IsraelH3478

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Genesis 49:7

  • 1 Chronicles 4:24-31

    The sons of Simeon were, Nemuel, and Jamin, Jarib, Zerah, and Shaul: Shallum his son, Mibsam his son, Mishma his son. And the sons of Mishma; Hamuel his son, Zacchur his son, Shimei his son. And Shimei had sixteen sons and six daughters; but his brethren had not many children, neither did all their family multiply, like to the children of Judah. …

  • Joshua 19:1-9

    And the second lot came forth to Simeon, even for the tribe of the children of Simeon according to their families: and their inheritance was within the inheritance of the children of Judah. And they had in their inheritance Beer–sheba, Sheba, and Moladah, And Hazar–shual, and Balah, and Azem, And Eltolad, and Bethul, and Hormah, …

  • 1 Chronicles 6:65

    And they gave by lot out of the tribe of the children of Judah, and out of the tribe of the children of Simeon, and out of the tribe of the children of Benjamin, these cities, which are called by their names.

  • 2 Samuel 13:15

    Then Amnon hated her exceedingly; so that the hatred wherewith he hated her was greater than the love wherewith he had loved her. And Amnon said unto her, Arise, be gone.

  • Proverbs 26:24-25

    He that hateth dissembleth with his lips, and layeth up deceit within him; When he speaketh fair, believe him not: for there are seven abominations in his heart.

  • 1 Chronicles 4:39-40

    And they went to the entrance of Gedor, even unto the east side of the valley, to seek pasture for their flocks. And they found fat pasture and good, and the land was wide, and quiet, and peaceable; for they of Ham had dwelt there of old.

  • Joshua 21:1-45

    Then came near the heads of the fathers of the Levites unto Eleazar the priest, and unto Joshua the son of Nun, and unto the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel; And they spake unto them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, saying, The Lord commanded by the hand of Moses to give us cities to dwell in, with the suburbs thereof for our cattle. And the children of Israel gave unto the Levites out of their inheritance, at the commandment of the Lord, these cities and their suburbs. And the lot came out for the families of the Kohathites: and the children of Aaron the priest, which were of the Levites, had by lot out of the tribe of Judah, and out of the tribe of Simeon, and out of the tribe of Benjamin, thirteen cities. …

  • 2 Samuel 13:22-28

    And Absalom spake unto his brother Amnon neither good nor bad: for Absalom hated Amnon, because he had forced his sister Tamar. And it came to pass after two full years, that Absalom had sheepshearers in Baal–hazor, which is beside Ephraim: and Absalom invited all the king’s sons. And Absalom came to the king, and said, Behold now, thy servant hath sheepshearers; let the king, I beseech thee, and his servants go with thy servant. And the king said to Absalom, Nay, my son, let us not all now go, lest we be chargeable unto thee. And he pressed him: howbeit he would not go, but blessed him. …

  • Proverbs 27:3

    A stone is heavy, and the sand weighty; but a fool’s wrath is heavier than them both.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Cursed.
2Sa 13:15,22-28; Pr 26:24,25; 27:3
I will divide.
Jos 19:1-9; 21:1-45; 1Ch 4:24-31,39,40; 6:65

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Genesis 49:6

    O my soul, come not thou into their secret; unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou united: for in their anger they slew a man, and in their selfwill they digged down a wall.

  • Genesis 49:7

    Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel.

  • Genesis 49:8

    Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy father’s children shall bow down before thee.

Read all of Genesis 49

Genesis 49:7 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Maldito su furor, que fué fiero; y su ira, que fué dura: yo los apartaré en Jacob, y los esparciré en Israel.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Maudite soit leur colère, car elle a été violente; et leur furie, car elle a été cruelle! Je les diviserai en Jacob, et les disperserai en Israël.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Verflucht sei ihr Zorn, denn er war gewalttätig, und ihr Grimm, denn er war grausam! Ich werde sie verteilen in Jakob und sie zerstreuen in Israel.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Maledictus furor eorum, quia pertinax: et indignatio eorum, quia dura: dividam eos in Jacob, et dispergam eos in Israël.