Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Genesis 49:3
Reuben, thou [art] my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:
3. Reuben ] Reuben’s early pre-eminence is forfeited. The tribe’s loss of power is here ascribed to the curse of Jacob for an act of incest (see Gen 35:22; 1Ch 5:1). The territory of the tribe of Reuben lay on the east side of the Dead Sea. In Biblical history, the Reubenites are practically unknown, except for one successful campaign against the Hagarenes (1Ch 5:8-10). In the Song of Deborah (Jdg 5:16), Reuben is denounced for apathy.
beginning ] Better, as R.V. marg., firstfruits. The firstborn was expected to inherit the full strength of the parent. Cf. Deu 21:17; Psa 78:51; Psa 105:36. The versions follow a different text. LXX ; Lat. principium doloris mei; Aquila ; Symmachus .
The excellency ] This word in Early English had the meaning of “superiority,” owing to its derivation from “excel.” But this has now been lost sight of.
Vulg. major in donis, major in imperio; Targ. Onk. paraphrases “for thee it was provided to receive three portions, the right of firstborn, the priesthood, and the kingdom.”
LXX must here follow a different text, .
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
3. Reuben, my first-born art thou!
My might, and the prime of my strength,
Excelling in eminence, and excelling in power:
4. Pouring out like the waters:-thou shalt not excel,
For thou wentest up to the bed of thy father, –
Then thou didst defile: to my couch he went up!
Verse 3. Reuben as the first-born had a right to a double portion of all that the father had; see De 21:17.
The eminence or dignity mentioned here may refer to the priesthood; the power, to the regal government or kingdom. In this sense it has been understood by all the ancient Targumists. The Targum of Onkelos paraphrases it thus: “Thou shouldst have received three portions, the birthright, the priesthood, and the kingdom:” and to this the Targums of Jonathan ben Uzziel and Jerusalem add: “But because thou hast sinned, the birthright is given to Joseph, the kingdom to Judah, and the priesthood to Levi.” That the birthright was given to the sons of Joseph we have the fullest proof from 1Ch 5:1.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
The beginning of my strength; the first instance or evidence of my might or strength, or of that masculine rigour whereby God enabled me to beget a child. Compare Deu 21:17; Psa 105:36. Or the first of my children, which are the strength, the stays, and supports of a father, and of his family; thence called his arrows, as Psa 127:4, and by other authors, the pillars of the house.
The excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power. As first-born thou hadst the right of precedency before all thy brethren in point of dignity and power or privilege; the double portion, the priesthood, the dominion over thy brethren were thine.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
Reuben, thou art my firstborn,…. Jacob addressed himself to Reuben first, in the presence of his brethren, owned him as his firstborn, as he was, Ge 29:31 did not cashier him from his family, nor disinherit him, though he had greatly disobliged him, for which the birthright, and the privileges of it, were taken from him, 1Ch 5:1
my might, and the beginning of my strength; begotten by him when in his full strength z, as well as the first of his family, in which his strength and glory lay; so the Septuagint, “the beginning of my children”; and because he was so, of right the double portion belonged to him, had he not forfeited it, De 21:17. Some versions render the words, “the beginning of my grief”, or “sorrow” a, the word “Oni” sometimes so signifying, as Rachel called her youngest son “Benoni”, the son of my sorrow; but this is not true of Reuben, he was not the beginning of Jacob’s sorrow, for the ravishing of Dinah, and the slaughter and spoil of the Shechemites, by his sons, which gave him great sorrow and grief, were before the affair of Reuben’s lying with Bilhah:
the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power; that is, to him of right belonged excellent dignity, power, and authority in the family, a preeminence over his brethren, a double portion of goods, succession in government, and, as is commonly understood, the exercise of the priesthood; and so the Targums interpret it, that he should, had he not sinned, took three parts or portions above his brethren, the birthright, priesthood, and kingdom. Jacob observes this to him, that he might know what he had lost by sinning, and from what excellency and dignity, grandeur and power, he was fallen.
z “Nate. meae vires. ——–” Virgil. a , Aquila; , Symmachus apud Drusium; “principium doloris mei”, V. L. Tigurine version.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Reuben, my first-born thou, my might and first-fruit of my strength; pre-eminence in dignity and pre-eminence in power. – As the first-born, the first sprout of the full virile power of Jacob, Reuben, according to natural right, was entitled to the first rank among his brethren, the leadership of the tribes, and a double share of the inheritance (Gen 27:29; Deu 21:17). ( : elevation, the dignity of the chieftainship; , the earlier mode of pronouncing , the authority of the first-born.) But Reuben had forfeited this prerogative. “ Effervescence like water – thou shalt have no preference; for thou didst ascend thy father’s marriage-bed: then hast thou desecrated; my couch has he ascended.” : lit., the boiling over of water, figuratively, the excitement of lust; hence the verb is used in Jdg 9:4; Zep 3:4, for frivolity and insolent pride. With this predicate Jacob describes the moral character of Reuben; and the noun is stronger than the verb of the Samaritan, and or efferbuisti, aestuasti of the Sam. Vers., of the lxx, and of Symm. is to be explained by : have no pre-eminence. His crime was, lying with Bilhah, his father’s concubine (Gen 35:22). is used absolutely: desecrated hast thou, sc., what should have been sacred to thee (cf. Lev 18:8). From this wickedness the injured father turns away with indignation, and passes to the third person as he repeats the words, “my couch he has ascended.” By the withdrawal of the rank belonging to the first-born, Reuben lost the leadership in Israel; so that his tribe attained to no position of influence in the nation (compare the blessing of Moses in Deu 33:6). The leadership was transferred to Judah, the double portion to Joseph (1Ch 5:1-2), by which, so far as the inheritance was concerned, the first-born of the beloved Rachel took the place of the first-born of the slighted Leah; not, however, according to the subjective will of the father, which is condemned in Deu 21:15., but according to the leading of God, by which Joseph had been raised above his brethren, but without the chieftainship being accorded to him.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
3. Reuben, thou art my first-born He begins with the first-born, not for the sake of honor, to confirm him in his rank; but that he may the more completely cover him with shame, and humble him by just reproaches. For Reuben is here cast down from his primogeniture; because he had polluted his father’s bed by incestuous intercourse with his mother-in-law. The meaning of his words is this: Thou, indeed, by nature the first-born, oughtest to have excelled, seeing thou art my strength, and the beginning of my manly vigor; but since thou best flowed away like water, there is no more any ground for arrogating anything to thyself. For, from the day of thy incest, that dignity which thou receivedst on thy birth-day, from thy mother’s womb, is gone and vanished away. The noun ( און,) some translate seed, others grief; and turn the passage thus: “Thou my strength, and the beginning of my grief or seed.” They who prefer the word grief, assign as a reason, that children bring care and anxiety to their parents. But if this were the true meaning, there would rather have been an antithesis between strength and sorrow. Since, however, Jacob is reciting, in continuity, the declaration of the dignity which belongs to the first-born, I doubt not that he here mentions the beginning of his manhood. For as men, in a certain sense, live again in their children, the first-born is properly called the “beginning of strength.” To the same point belongs what immediately follows, that he had been the excellency of dignity and of strength, until he had deservedly deprived himself of both. For Jacob places before the eyes of his son Reuben his former honor, because it was for his profit to be made thoroughly conscious whence he had fallen. So Paul says, that he set before the Corinthians the sins by which they were defiled, in order to make them ashamed. (1Co 6:5.) For whereas we are disposed to flatter ourselves in our vices, scarcely any one of us is brought back to a sane mind, after he has fallen, unless he is touched with a sense of his vileness. Moreover, nothing is better adapted to wound us, than when a comparison is made between those favors which God bestows upon us, and the punishments we bring upon ourselves by our own fault. After Adam had been stripped of all good things, God reproaches him sharply, and not without ridicule, “Behold Adam is as one of us.” What end is this designed to answer, except that Adam, reflecting with himself how far he is changed from that man, who had lately been created according to the image of God, and had been endowed with so many excellent gifts, might be confounded and fall prostrate, deploring his present misery? We see, then, that reproofs are necessary for us, in order that we may be touched to the quick by the anger of the Lord. For so it happens, not only that we become displeased with the sins of which we are now bearing the punishment, but also, that we take greater care diligently to guard those gifts of God which dwell within us, lest they perish through our negligence. They who refer the “excellency of dignity” to the priesthood, and the “excellency of power” to the kingly office, are, in my judgment, too subtle interpreters. I take the more simple meaning of the passage to be; that if Reuben had stood firmly in his own rank, the chief place of all excellency would have belonged to him.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.Gen. 49:3-4
THE BLESSING OF REUBEN
We seem to have in this, as in other instances, words of cursing rather than of blessing. But in Gen. 49:28, Jacobs speeches concerning his sons are called blessings. He utters words of blame, he rebukes sharply, but does not curse the persons though he denounces the sin. He does not cast off his sons: they still continue among the tribes of Israel. As to Reuben, consider:
I. His privileges. He was the first-born, the first-fruits of his fathers manly strength, The excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power. This entitled him,
1. To the first rank among his brethren.
2. To the leadership of the tribes.
3. To a double share of the inheritance. (Gen. 27:29; Deu. 21:17). Such were his high privileges.
II. His forfeiture of his privileges. Jacob reminds him of his privileges, only to contrast them with his present state. He will cause him to see what he might have been. Great expectations had been formed of him and he had not answered them. For it is not privileges that make us good or great, but the use to which we put them. Reuben forfeited his privileges,
1. By a foul sin. Jacob dwells upon it with all those aggravations that made it to be the most heinous and abhorred. He turns away from Reuben (and addressing his other sons as if by way of pathetic appeal), says, He went up to my couch.
2. By his instability of character. He was unstable as water, which is sometimes fierce and tempestuous, and always yielding and treacherous. He was that double-minded man described by St. James, whose true image in nature is the restless sea which is the sport of the inconstant winds. (Jas. 1:6; Jas. 1:8.)
3. By a life of sensuality. This resulted in that inveterate fault of his character, instability. His passions were heated and furious, like water boiling over. (See Critical Notes.) They were ungovernable. He could not rule himself, and therefore could have no influence over others. He was unfitted for power and place. The single sin which made him infamous grew out of his character, confirming and establishing it in evil more and more. And thus the thoughts, feelings, and deeds of a manthe whole of his character in the presentare made and determined by his past. Sin is not merely done and done with. The injury done to our soul remains in its effects.
SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS ON THE VERSES
Gen. 49:3-4. The term is well adapted both to express the unbridled lawlessness of Reubens conduct in the indulgence of his passions, and the effect of it in suddenly and irretrievably casting him down from his birthright. The force of a great current of water, when the barriers that restrained it are removed, is irresistible. Such is the force of corruption in men destitute of religious principle; yet nothing is weaker than water in small quantitiesit has no principle of coherence or stability. Such is the weakness of men who walk after their own lusts.(Bush.)
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
(3) The beginning of my strength.In Gen. 35:18, the word oni means my sorrow, and it is so translated here by the Vulg., Aquila, and Symmachus. But in this verse Jacob magnifies the prerogatives of the firstborn, and our version is undoubtedly right in deriving oni from a different and not uncommon word signifying strength. It occurs in Deu. 21:17; Job. 40:16; Psa. 78:51; Psa. 105:36, &c.
The excellency . . . We must here supply, And therefore to thee as the firstborn belonged, first, the excellency of dignity, that is, the priesthood; and secondly, the excellency of power, that is, the kingly office. As a matter of history no king, judge, or prophet is recorded as having sprung from the tribe of Reuben.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
3. My firstborn, thou By this form of expression poetic emphasis is given to the direct address .
Beginning of my strength Allusion to the supposed superior vigour of the firstborn, as inheriting the full virile power of the father . Comp . Deu 21:17; Psa 78:51; Psa 105:36.
Excellence of dignity power His excellence is his natural pre-eminence as firstborn; his dignity, (Hebrews, , from , to lift up,) is his elevation, or the rank to which he was thus entitled. The distinction between might, strength, and power in this verse, each representing a different Hebrew word, is this: Might and strength here denote physical energy and manly vigour, while power ( ) is used in the sense of authority, a right and prerogative of the firstborn . The powers and prerogatives naturally adhering to the firstborn, were, because of Reuben’s sins, transferred to Judah and Joseph .
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
“Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might and the beginning of my power,
Pre-eminent in dignity, and pre-eminent in strength,
Uncontrolled as water you will not be pre-eminent,
Because you went up to your father’s bed,
Then you defiled it. You went up to my couch.”
Jacob first describes Reuben in terms of being his firstborn. As such he had been his father’s strength and the beginning of Jacob’s power base as found in his sons.
But Reuben has little future for he has revealed his weakness in his sexual behaviour. Such weakness has destroyed many men and Reuben is no exception. Because of it he is a nonentity. He was a dignified man with a certain strength of character, but he was also not of leadership material, lacking the necessary ability to control and direct. And he had revealed his weakness in the affair with his father’s wife.
“My firstborn, my might and the beginning of my generative power.” As the firstborn son, the first product of Jacob’s strength, he was the one of whom much was expected. He was set to be Jacob’s right hand. But he failed.
“Pre-eminent in dignity, pre-eminent in strength.” He was more contained than his brothers, and bore himself well and as the eldest was strongest.
“Uncontrolled as water, you will not be pre-eminent.” But he had a fatal flaw, he was unreliable, uncontrolled like a flow of surging water. Thus he could not safely take the pre-eminence, and, as we have seen, his place as leader has been taken by Judah. (The verb means ‘unstable, uncontrolled, frothing over’).
“Because you went up to your father” s bed, then you defiled it —’. This refers, of course, to when he went in to his father’s concubine (Gen 35:22). This too was a sign of his unreliability. He who should have watched over his father’s bed defiled it. Thus he cannot be trusted.
He had his good points. He had tried to save Joseph and at least saved him from death, although he was not strong enough to stand up to his brothers. He was the one who was concerned about Simeon and wanted to go back for him, but he failed to persuade Jacob to let him take Benjamin. It was Judah who was firm and later succeeded. Perhaps even then his failure was because his father saw him as unreliable and untrustworthy.
Interestingly the tribe of Reuben also failed early. It is depicted by Moses as dying (Deu 33:6) and is mentioned with censure in Jdg 5:15 where their inability to make a strong decision is emphasised. These ideas may have partly arisen from this original perception of Reuben.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Gen 49:3. Reuben, &c. Dr. Durell observes on this prophecy, that in the former part “Jacob dwells on the circumstance of Reuben’s primogeniture, and, by the affectionate manner in which he expresses himself, seems to be concerned that his eldest son was to reap no advantage from it; he then, by opposing his great insolence to his great dignity, insinuates that the one proceeded from the other; and after having touched upon his crime in general, in the conclusion he declares that he should in no wise be eminent among his brethren; and that because he had incestuously defiled his father’s bed. This is the reason that is given (and it is indeed a very satisfactory one) for Reuben’s loss of those privileges which his birth would otherwise have entitled him to.”
My might, and the beginning of my strength These expressions imply one and the same thing, and are sufficiently explained by the word first-born, which immediately precedes. See Deu 21:17. Psa 78:51.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Gen 49:3 Reuben, thou [art] my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:
Ver. 3. My might, and beginning of my strength. ] Nate meae vires The word here used signifieth the straining of the body forcibly to effect a thing much desired: such as was that of St Paul, , Php 3:14 and that of Elijah, 1Ki 18:42 when he prayed and prayed, as St James hath it, that is, with utmost intention of affection ( , Jam 5:17 ).
The excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Gen 49:3-4
3″Reuben, you are my firstborn;
My might and the beginning of my strength,
Preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power.
4Uncontrolled as water, you shall not have preeminence,
Because you went up to your father’s bed;
Then you defiled it-he went up to my couch.
Gen 49:3 “Reuben” Gen 49:3 is written in such glowing terms (no VERBS) of the potential of Jacob’s firstborn son, but Gen 49:4 is the drastic consequence of potential being flaunted. Reuben did a shameful deed of going in to his father’s concubine, Bilhah (cf. Gen 35:22). It shows an excess of passion. While some see it as an attempt to inherit Jacob’s possession early, it seems to apply more to sexual passion than to greed.
Gen 49:4
NASB, NJBuncontrolled”
NKJV, NRSVunstable”
LXX”insolvent,” “wanton”
Peshitta”went astray”
This term (BDB 808) can mean
1. reckless (Arabic, cf. Jdg 9:4; Jer 23:32)
2. arrogant (Akkadian)
3. unstable
4. wanton (cf. Zep 3:4)
BDB characterizes the term as “boiling water” spilling over a container. It is a total rejection of expected norms of behavior. It characterizes personal desires over any normal restraints.
NASByou shall not have preeminence”
NKJV, Peshitta”you shall not excel”
NRSV, JPSOA”you shall no longer excel”
TEVyou will not be the most important”
NJByou will not be foremost”
LXX”burst not forth with violence”
The VERB (BDB 451, KB 451, Hiphil JUSSIVE) in the Hiphil stem means
1. leave over, leave, Exo 10:15; Rth 2:14; Rth 2:18; 2Ki 4:43; 2Ch 31:10
2. leave a remnant, Eze 6:8
3. save over, Psa 79:11 (only)
4. excel, Gen 49:4 (only)
5. have more than enough, Exo 36:7; 2Ki 4:43; 2Ch 31:10
6. make abundant, Deu 28:11; Deu 30:9
The NOUN is used in Gen 49:3 twice! This shows Reuben’s potential, but because of lines 2 and 3, all this potential was lost. Sin has consequences and leaves lasting scars!
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
Reuben. See Gen 49:28, Compare Gen 46:8-25, and App-45.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
my firstborn: Gen 29:32, Gen 46:8, Gen 48:18, Num 1:20, Num 26:5, 1Ch 2:1, 1Ch 5:1, 1Ch 5:3
my might: Deu 21:17, Psa 78:51, Psa 105:36
Reciprocal: Gen 46:15 – Leah Exo 1:1 – General Exo 6:14 – The sons Num 2:10 – camp of Reuben Num 16:1 – sons of Reuben Deu 27:13 – Reuben Deu 33:6 – General 2Sa 3:2 – Amnon 2Sa 16:21 – thy father 1Ch 2:42 – his firstborn Job 18:13 – the firstborn Eze 48:6 – Reuben
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Gen 49:3-4. Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might Begotten in the prime and vigour of my days; the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power Such were the prerogatives of the birthright, which he would have enjoyed had he not forfeited and fallen from them by his sin; dignity above his brethren, and considerable power over them. Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel As water is prone to flow, and still tends downward to an inferior situation, so Reuben should fall from the pre-eminence he had by birth. In the Chaldee paraphrase it is, Thou wast to have had three parts, the birthright, the priesthood, and the kingdom; but thou hast followed thy own will; as water spilled, thou shalt not prosper. Two shares of the inheritance, which are supposed to have belonged to the birthright, were given to Joseph, the priesthood to Levi, and the kingdom to Judah. And nothing great or excellent is recorded of the tribe of Reuben throughout the Scriptures. From it arose no judge, prophet, prince, nor any person of renown, only Dathan and Abiram, who were noted for their impious rebellion. This tribe, not aiming to excel, chose a settlement on the other side Jordan. Jacob here charges him with the sin for which he was disgraced. It was forty years ago that he had been guilty of this sin; yet now it is remembered against him. It left an indelible mark of infamy upon his family; a wound not to be healed without a scar.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
49:3 Reuben, thou [art] my firstborn, my {b} might, and the beginning of my strength, {c} the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:
(b) Begotten in my youth.
(c) If you have not left your birthright by your offence.