Genesis 49:10

Genesis 49:10 . The sceptre — The dominion or government, which is expressed by this word, because it was an ensign of government. It is true, the word שׁבשׂ , shebet, here used, also signifies a rod, or staff of any kind, and particularly the rod or staff which belonged to each tribe, as an ensign of its authority, whence it is transferred to signify tribe, as being united under one rod or staff of government. It seems evident, however, from what has been observed on Genesis 49:8 , that dominion, or authority, is also and especially here intended. But it is asked, How could it be said with propriety, the dominion, or authority, shall not depart from Judah, when Judah had none? To this it must be answered, that Jacob had just foretold that his father’s children should bow down to Judah, and that he, therefore, should have this authority or dominion. After which, it is predicted that it should not depart till Shiloh came.

Nor a lawgiver from between his feet — The word מחקק , mechokek, here rendered lawgiver, means also ruler, or judge, and the prophecy certainly implies, not only that, while the other tribes should be captivated, dispersed, and confounded with each other, the tribe of Judah should be kept entire until Christ came; but that rulers and magistrates, descended from Judah, or called by his name, should succeed each other at least for a time, and that both the civil and ecclesiastical power should continue till Shiloh should come, and then should be taken away, or rather should devolve on him. Now, as it will readily be acknowledged that the authority remained with Judah till the captivity, so it must be observed, that even in Babylon, the Jews appear to have been under a kind of internal government, exercised by the family of David. “And after their return from Babylon, Zerubbabel, of David’s race, was their leader; and the tribe of Judah, and those who were incorporated with them, had regular magistrates and rulers from among themselves, under the kings of Persia and Syria, and afterward under the Romans.” The great council of the Jews, termed “the Sanhedrim, constituted chiefly of the tribe of Judah, and the other courts dependant on it, possessed great authority till the coming of Christ, according to the concurrent testimony of ancient writers.

(10) The sceptre shall not depart from Judah. —Heb., a sceptre. The staff, adorned with carvings, and handed down from father to son, soon became the emblem of authority (see Note on Genesis 38:18 ). It probably indicates here tribal rather than royal rank, and means that Judah would continue, until the time indicated, to be a self-governed and legally-constituted tribe. Nor a lawgiver from between his feet.—Most modern critics translate ruler’s staff, but “lawgiver” has the support of all the ancient versions, the Targums paraphrasing it by scribe, and the Syriac in a similar way by expounder—i.e., of the law. Ruler’s, staffs has the parallelism in its favour, but the ancient versions must not be lightly disregarded, and, besides, everywhere else the word means law-giver (see Deuteronomy 33:21; Judges 5:14; Isaiah 33:22). “From between his feet” means, “from among his descendants.” The Targum of Onkelos renders, “from his children’s children.” Until Shiloh come.—Many modern critics translate, “until he come to Shiloh,” but this is to be rejected, first, as being contrary to all the ancient versions; and, secondly, as turning sense into nonsense. The town of Shiloh was in the tribe of Ephraim, and we know of no way in which Judah ever went thither. The ark was for a time at Shiloh, but the place lost all importance and sank into utter obscurity after its destruction by the Philistines, long before Judah took the leading part in the commonwealth of Israel.

Shiloh.—There are several interpretations of this word, depending upon different ways of spelling it. First, Jerome, in the Vulg., translates it, “He who shall be sent.” He read, therefore, Shalu’ch. which differs from the reading in the Hebrew text by omitting the yod, and putting the guttural π for h (Heb., π) as the final letter. We have, secondly, Shiloh, the reading of the present Hebrew text. This would mean, Peaceful, or Peace-maker, and agrees with the title given to the Messiah by Isaiah (Genesis 9:6). But, thirdly, all the versions excepting the Vulg. read Sheloh. Thus, the LXX. has, “He for whom it is laid up” (or, according to other MSS., “the things laid up for him.”). With the former reading, Aquila and Symmachus agree; with the latter, Theodotion, Epiphanius, and others, showing that Sheloh was the reading in the centuries immediately after the Nativity of our Lord. The Samaritan transcript of the Hebrew text into Samaritan letters reads Sheloh, and the translation into Aramaic treats the word as a proper name, and renders, “Until Sheloh come.” Onkelos boldly paraphrases, “Until Messiah come, whose is the kingdom;” and, finally, the Syriac has, “Until he come, whose it is.” There is thus overwhelming evidence in favour of the reading Sheloh, and to this we must add that Sheloh is the reading even of several Hebrew MSS.

10 . The sceptre ] Lit. “rod.” Either a king’s sceptre, or a general’s baton. LXX ἄρχων = “ruler”; Lat. sceptrum . The rendering of the LXX, which gives a personal explanation, is unsupported by any evidence. the ruler’s staff ] R.V. marg., as A.V., a lawgiver . The same word is found in Numbers 21:18 (“the sceptre,” marg. “the lawgiver”) and Psalm 60:7 , “Judah is my sceptre” (marg. “lawgiver”). LXX ἡγούμενος = “leader”; Lat. dux ; Syr. Pesh. “an interpreter”; Targ. Jerus. “scribe.” The parallelism of the clauses makes it almost certain, that we have in this clause “the lawgiver’s staff” corresponding to “the ruler’s sceptre” in the previous clause. Whether the “sceptre” and the “staff” are the insignia of national monarchy or tribal government, has been much debated. The picture of a person bearing these emblems is most suitable to the Oriental conception of a king. from between his feet ] The literal explanation is the simplest and the most picturesque. The lawgiver seated on his throne holds the wand emblematical of his office between his feet. Another explanation, illustrated by Deuteronomy 28:57 , makes the expression refer to the descendants of Judah. So LXX ἐκ τῶν μηρῶν αὐτοῦ ; Lat. de femore ejus . Until Shiloh come ] These are among the most difficult and controverted words in the book.

The alternative renderings in the R.V. text and marg. represent the different lines of interpretation which have been followed. (1) “Until Shiloh come.” This rendering was not known until a.d. 1534, when it was first suggested by Sebastian Münster, possibly on the strength of a Talmudic tradition. There is no allusion elsewhere in the O.T. to “Shiloh” either as a personal name, or as a Messianic title. Except for this passage, the use of “Shiloh” as indicating a person would be devoid of meaning to the Hebrew reader. True, the song is full of obscurities. But the improbability of this late interpretation is so great, that it may be dismissed from consideration. (2) “Till he come to Shiloh,” i.e. “till he, Judah, comes to Shiloh.” Shiloh was the resting-place of the Ark, in the centre of the tribe of Ephraim, e.g. 1 Samuel 1:24 . It was destroyed by the Philistines, and its sanctuary desolated; see Jeremiah 7:12-15 . The theory, that the prediction in this verse received its fulfilment in Joshua 18:1 ; Joshua 18:8-10 , is difficult to comprehend. The Davidic monarchy began after the days of Shiloh. The reference to a place in the tribe of Ephraim is quite unsuitable in this context. (3) LXX ἕως ἂν ἔλθῃ τὰ ἀποκείμενα αὐτῷ , until that which is his shall come , and Old Latin donec veniant quae reposita sunt ei . This rendering gets rid of the difficulty of a proper name.