Verse

Genesis 49:19

ESV "Raiders shall raid Gad, but he shall raid at their heels.
NIV "Gad will be attacked by a band of raiders, but he will attack them at their heels.
NASB 'As for Gad, a band of raiders shall attack him, But he will attack at their heels.
CSB Gad will be attacked by raiders, but he will attack their heels.
NLT 'Gad will be attacked by marauding bands, but he will attack them when they retreat.
KJV Gad, a troop shall overcome him: but he shall overcome at the last.
NKJV “Gad, a troop shall tramp upon him, But he shall triumph at last.

What does Genesis 49:19 mean?

After a lifetime of struggle (Genesis 47:9), Jacob is very near to the end of his life (Genesis 48:1). He has called his sons to gather around him, pronouncing a series of predictions about the tribes to come from them (Genesis 49:1–2).

This brief remark about Gad (Genesis 30:10–11) is an overt play on words. The Hebrew term geduwd, sometimes transliterated as gadud, refers to raiding or attacking. It can be either a noun, meaning "raiders," or a verb, meaning "to raid." That word sounds very much like the name Gad, which primarily refers to a blessing, but which can also refer to troops. Jacob's phrase uses repeating sounds, literally, "Gād gedūd' yeguden ū w hū' yāgud āqēb'." To English-speaking ears, this would be something like "[Gad-ers] will [gad] Gad, but he will [gad] them back."

As a tribe, Gad would eventually settle (1 Chronicles 5:11–17) in an area prone to border raids by foreign invaders. Gadites became famous for their fighting fierceness and strength (1 Chronicles 5:18–19).
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