‘And of Zebulun he said, “Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going out, and Issachar, in your tents. They shall call peoples to their mountain; there they offer right sacrifices; for they draw from the abundance of the seas and the hidden treasures of the sand.” And of Gad he said, Blessed be he who enlarges Gad! Gad crouches like a lion; he tears off arm and scalp. He chose the best of the land for himself, for there a commander’s portion was reserved; and he came with the heads of the people, with Israel he executed the justice of the Lord, and his judgements for Israel” (Deuteronomy 33:18-21).

The next tribes Moses asks for blessing for are the tribes of Zebulun and Issachar (vs18-19).  Although some of the imagery in this part of the text is hard to discern (by whatever it means and by which tribe it refers to) it is overwhelmingly clear that this blessing is a wish for peace and security for both these tribes.

After years of wilderness wandering Zebulun would be successful: ‘in your going out’ quite possibly because they would become successful traders and Issachar would experience success: ‘in your tents’ which possibly means they would develop as successful farmers. Whether verse 19 refers to both these tribes is open to debate.  However, some have seen it as a reference to Mount Tabor which was in territory which later belonged to the tribe of Zebulun.  Although the site was later condemned by the prophet Hosea, very likely because idolatry was being practised there, it could have been a legitimate place of worship when the land was first occupied.  The reference to: ‘the seas’ and: ‘the hidden treasures of the sand’ is quite possibly because part of Zebulun’s territory was along the sea coast near the modern coastal town of Haifa and the tribe may of the developed some form of maritime trade, although whether this is so is not clear from the rest of the Old Testament.

The tribe of Gad like the tribe of Reuben and the half tribe of Manasseh had already acquired their inheritance (3:16).  The verses of Moses’ blessing concerning them pays attention to this fact and calls for the Lord to give further blessing by enlarging their territory  (v20).  The text draws attention to the quality of their land.  It was particularly good, the tribe had seen this and, undoubtedly, this was a major factor in them approaching Moses and asking for it (Numbers 32:1-5).

But the text also draws our attention to their bravery and formidable fighting skills by comparing them to the way a lion acts.  In Deuteronomy 3:18-20 we saw that Moses commanded these tribes to go up and fight alongside their: ‘brother’ Israelites and Gad had done this.  They were not selfish in their acquisition of land east of the Jordan, but were willing to leave their families and all that they possessed to carry out the Lord’s will for Israel (v21) by partaking in the invasion of the land, which we have evidence of in Joshua 22:1-6.

There is an important lesson for Christians today in the way Gad behaved.  The experience of becoming a Christian varies for each person.  Some will find it a struggle with opposition from family and friends.  But for those who become Christians and belong to a Christian family or have the support of the good church there can be a real sense of enjoying good fellowship, having a fairly comfortable and blessed life already and never having to engage in the battle of Christian witness on the home front.  The tribe of Gad are an example of those who did not just put their feet up once they got their inheritance and enjoy the benefits the Lord had given them; they were ready to do His work first and foremost and go to war with their brothers!  We, like them, should be prepared to do battle by doing the Lord’s will and witnessing to His great love!