As to Reuben, let his tribe be perpetuated and not become extinct; for some fear on this point might have sprung from the scenes of Num. 16; the fearful deathof Dathan, Abiram, and On, all sons of Reuben (Num. 16: 1, 27).
7. And this is the blessing of Judah: and he said, Hear, Lord, the voice of Judah, and bring him unto his people: let his hands be sufficient for him; and be thou a help to him from his enemies.
Judah is thought of as leading the tribes in battle, going forth in advance of all others to war. Hence the prayer—Bring him back safely to his people from the scenes of battle. Let his hand [military power] be equal to any emergency.
8. And of Levi he said, Let thy Thummim and thy Urim be with thy holy one, whom thou didst prove at Massah, and with whom thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah;
9. Who said unto his father and to his mother, I have not seen him; neither did he acknowledge his brethren, nor knew his own children: for they have observed thy word, and kept thy covenant.
10. They shall teach Jacob thy judgments, and Israel thy law; they shall put incense before thee, and whole burnt sacrifice upon thine altar.
11. Bless, Lord, his substance, and accept the work of his hands: smite through the loins of them that rise against him, and of them that hate him, that they rise not again.
The blessing on Levi suggested the insignia on Aaron’s breast-plate, known as the “Urim and Thummim” [described somewhat in Ex. 28: 29, 30]—the words signifying Light and Right. These breast-plate insignia were used in some way, not altogether clear at this day, in obtaining special directions from the Lord.——The tribe of Levi as a whole became in a sense God’s “Holy One,” bearing in the person of Aaron these insignia. God had proved them at Massah and Meribah where the people murmured against Moses and Aaron. It was especially in the scenes of the calf-worship (Ex. 32) and of the Midianites (Num. 25) that the tribe of Levi, and particularly Phineas, proved themselves true to God, with higher regard for him and his honor than for father, mother, brethren, or children; for they remembered and honored God’s word and covenant. Let them therefore have the functions of the priesthood, to teach Jacob thy law and to minister at the national altar.
12. And of Benjamin he said, The beloved of the Lord shall dwell in safety by him; and the Lord shall cover him all the day long, and he shall dwell between his shoulders.
Let Benjamin, the beloved of the Lord, dwell safely by the side of the Lord, his protector, abiding between his shoulders—i. e. upon his back where fathers are wont to place their children to bear them long distances. This tribe is thought of as God’s child, to be borne upon his shoulder.