Commentary for Genesis 49:19

גד גדוד יגודנו GAD, AN ASSAILING TROOP SHALL ASSAIL HIM — all the words in this verse which have, the letters גד are connected in meaning with the word גדוד and so also did Menachem ben Seruk classify them. Should you say, however, that גדוד has always two ד’s and these words have only one, the answer is: The word גדוד is a noun and therefore requires two ד’s, for it is the way of a biliteral root to have the second letter doubled when used as a noun; the root proper, however, consists only of two letters. Thus it says, (Proverbs 26:2) כצפור לנוד “the wandering sparrow”, (לנוד a verb, infinitive) of the same derivation as נדודים in (Job 7:4) “I am full of גדודים wanderings” (a noun); (Judges 5:27) ‘‘there he fell down (שדוד) dead”, a noun in meaning, which is of the same derivation as the verb in (Psalms 41:6) “that wasteth (ישוד) at moon-day”. So, also, יגודנו ,יגוד and גדוד have the same derivation. When, also, one uses such biliteral roots in the future tense Kal, it (the second letter) is not doubled. For example: יגוד he will troop, ינוד he will wander, ירום he will be high, ישוד he will devastate, ישוב he will come back. When, however, such a root is used in a reflexive sense (Hithpael) or in a causative-transitive sense the second letter is doubled Examples are: יתעודד ,יתרומם ,יתבולל ,יתגודד. Examples of the causative-transitive sense are: (Psalms 146:9) “He strengtheneth (יעודד) the fatherless and the widow”; (Isaiah 49:5) “To bring Jacob back (לשובב) to Him”; (Isaiah 48:12) “The restorer (משובב) of paths”. The form יגודנו which is used here has not the force that others will make him do something (i.e. it has not this causative-transitive sense with the direct accusative suffix נוּ) but it means “a troop will troop out from him”, exactly the same as (Jeremiah 10:20) בני יצאוני which means “my children have gone forth from me”, (as we might say “have left me”). (Cf. Rashi on Genesis דברו לשלום 37:4, and on תמלאמו Exodus 15:9.). גד גדוד יגודנו accordingly means, “troops will troop out of him” signifying that they (the Gadites) will cross the Jordan with their brethren, all armed, and remain with them until the land will have been conquered.

‘GAD G’DUD Y’GUDENU.’ Rashi, in accordance with Onkelos, explained it as follows: A troop will troop out of him, and that troop will troop back upon its footsteps, meaning it will return in its own track back to its territory in peace [and not one of them will be missing].²⁰¹Reference here, according to Rashi and Onkelos, is to the time when the armed Gadites will cross the Jordan with their brethren, and they will remain with them until the land will have been conquered. When they will return to their land on the east side of the Jordan not one of them will be missing.
The correct interpretation [appears to be that the word y’gudenu here] is as in the verse: When he cometh up against the people that he invadeth (‘y’gudenu’).²⁰²Habakkuk 3:16. Thus, “the troop” mentioned in the prophecy of Jacob is not a friendly troop, as Rashi and Onkelos would have it, but the enemy, as explained further. The verse is thus stating that a troop will always assail Gad, that he will have many wars, with enemy troops spreading out over his land, and that he will follow the enemy in his track and be victorious over him and pursue him, returning on the heel of those who shame them. Jacob thus praised the Gadites for their valor and for their victory over all those who enter into battle against them. This is similar to the blessing which Moses our teacher gave them, as it is said, Blessed be He that enlargeth Gad; he dwelleth as a lioness.²⁰³Deuteronomy 33:20. Since Gad inherited a very wide and large land which was across the Jordan, bands from Ammon and Moab, his evil neighbors, would always descend upon him, claiming the land and invading it. Yet Gad lurked like a lioness over its prey, fearing not their noise, nor showing any dismay at their shouting.
This fitting interpretation I learned from the Jerusalem Talmud, where in Tractate Sotah²⁰⁴8:10. they say: “Gad g’dud y’gudenu, a troop will come trooping upon him, but he shall troop upon it;” that is to say, bands will come to gather wealth and assail him, but he shall troop upon them and bring his troops into their land.
Perhaps the prophet Jacob was alluding to the war of Jephthah the Gileadite against the children of Ammon, as the children of Gad inherited all the cities of Gilead, and half of the land of the children of Ammon. The children of Ammon were always warring against the men of Gilead, and Jephthah scarcely passed over them and he smote them and their cities [with] a very great slaughter.²⁰⁵Judges 11:33. This event was indeed a great miracle, and so the prophet Jacob mentioned it, even as he mentioned the matter of Samson.

גד גדוד, the troops of the entire nation of Israel will follow Gad who is the vanguard in the wars of conquest as we know from Deuteronomy 3,18 where Moses charged them with this task. On the return from battle, this tribe, instead of being in the vanguard, will be the rearguard, again the most exposed to enemy action. They will thus form a buffer for the Jewish armies at all times.

גד גדוד יגודנו, after having said that Dan fights like a snake felling horse and rider, Yaakov now contrasts Gad’s mode of operation with that of Dan by saying that the Gadites act in groups. Moses also repeats this theme in Deut. 33,20 when he said וטרף זרועו קדקוד, “he tore off arm and scalp.”

גד גדוד יגודנו, "Gad, a troop shall troop upon him, etc." Jacob links his blessing to his name, interpreting his name as meaning "a troop, a camp," as well as גדיה. The author refers the reader to the Sefer Ha-aruch which describes the word גד also as meaning "to draw," "to lead," and "to surround." Accordingly, the meaning is that Gad will surround his enemies. When Jacob continued: והוא יגוד עקב, this means that he will utterly destroy them to the heel, i.e. the lowest extremity. Gad will surround the entire camp of Israel and fight on their behalf. עקב may also refer to the fact that he would help them to receive their reward, their inheritance, [all this is a reference to when the two and a half tribes led by Gad undertook to form the vanguard in the conquest of the land of Canaan in Numbers 32,32. Ed.]

גד גדוד יגודנו, if a troop, battalion attacks him he will overpower that troop. This is the meaning of the last words in the verse והוא יגד עקב, in the end (עקב) he will prevail. This is a specific reference by Yaakov to what we have been told in Chronicles I 5,18-22 in which this tribe (together with Reuven and half the tribe of Menashe) is described as waging a successful war against the Hagrites. Their victory, -apparently they had been attacked,- is credited to the fact that they implored G’d to help them, and had faith that He would help them. Their trust was justified as is evident from the amount of loot they captured after that battle, Subsequent to that battle they remained undisturbed until their exile, about 150 years before the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem.

גד גדוד יגודנו, “Gad will experience having to face troops from time to time;” seeing that the territory of this tribe will be on the east bank of the river Jordan, and hence more exposed to hostile forces, military exercises will be a common experience in this tribe’s history.

Dan bildet die Grenzhut gegen die Philister im Westen, und die Weisen sehen in Simson den vollendeten Typus des im vorigen Verse geschilderten Kampfes der vereinzelten Klugheit einer immensen feindlichen Ubermacht gegenüber. גדר: einschneiden, plötzlich in etwas einfahren. גדור: ein detachierter Truppenkörper, der wie ein Keil plötzlich in ein Gebiet einfährt. Gad sitzt ruhig an seiner Grenze, beunruhigt die Nachbaren nicht, allein, wenn angegriffen, schlägt er sie mutig zurück und verfolgt sie über die Grenze, עקב. Er bewahrt somit den frischen, kecken Mut, der, wenn gereizt, voll das Seinige thut. Das Entgegengesetzte von Dan.

גד גדוד יגודנו, “Troops will be called up from Gad;” if you were to question how this tribe would secure its livelihood, seeing its men of military age will be conscripted as soldiers? The tribe would obviously have to be blessed with independent wealth in order to succeed. This is why in the next verse we hear about the fertile fields of the tribe of Asher which would supply also the needs of the neighbouring tribe of Gad. The soldiers’ physical needs would be supplied by that tribe, i.e. he would supply the King’s needs, the King having to pay the soldiers.There is an interesting story related in the Talmud, tractate Menachot folio 85, about the people of Laodicea being in need of oil. They appointed an agent and instructed him: “go and purchase for us one hundred measures of oil.” The agent first came to Jerusalem and was told “go to Tyre.” He came to Tyre, and was told: “go to Gush halab.” When he came to Gush Halab, he was told to go to a certain farmer on a certain field. He went there and found the farmer breaking up the earth around his olive trees. When he asked the farmer if he had a hundred measures of oil, he was told that the farmer did have it. He was asked, however, to wait until the farmer had completed the work he was engaged in. After the farmer had finished his work, he threw down his tools and went on his way, removing any stones that were in his way. The agent thought to himself: “has this man really the quantity of oil that I wish to purchase?” He thought that the Jews had tried to make a fool of him. As soon as he reached his hometown, that man’s maidservant brought out a bowl of hot water and he washed his hands and feet. She then brought out to him a golden bowl of oil, and he dipped in it his hands and feet, thus fulfilling the verse “and let him dip his feet in oil.” (Deuteronomy 33,24, Moses’ blessing of Asher) After they had eaten and drunk, the man measured out to the agent a hundred measures of oil, and he asked the agent, if per chance he could use more than that. The agent replied in the affirmative, but added that he had not brought enough money with him for the extra amount. The man said that he would give it to him and would accompany him to his home where he could pay him. He proceeded to measure out for the agent another eighteen thousand measures of oil. It is reported that he hired every horse, mule, camel and ass in the land of Israel. When he reached his hometown, all the people came out and applauded him.” Do not applaud me,” he said; applaud this man, my companion, who measured out for me a hundred measures worth of oil, and to whom I still owe for eighteen thousand measures of oil. This illustrates the meaning of the verse in Proverbs 13,7: “some make themselves rich, yet have nought; another impoverishes himself, but has great wealth.”

גד גדוד יגודנו, “Gad’s soldiers will troop after the armies of Israel when they go out to war (to conquer their ancestral heritage) during the battles under Joshua; they will be in the forefront as we know from Deuteronomy 3,18, where Moses commanded them to march as the vanguard of the Israelite army.

Gad will be an assailing troop. They were the advanced force in the conquest of the land.

והוא יגד עקב means all his troops will return in their own tracks back to their territory which they will receive on the other side of the Jordan and not one of them will be missing.

והוא יגוד עקב, when he fells horse and rider he will cut off their heels.. This is because they will try to flee from his pursuit. Compare Exodus 23,27 ונתתי את כל אויביך אליך עורף, “I will make all your enemies flee from before you.”

והוא יגד עקב, “and he will troop back in their tracks.” Another way of saying that the Gadites will cut down their enemies while the latter are retreating. The Talmud uses this expression for cutting down trees. Alternately, Yaakov referred to the military courage of the members of this tribe who would wage battle both at the head of the army as well as at its rear.

והוא יגד, “he shall raid at the heels of their enemies.” (When returning from battle) (They will not only be the vanguard at the beginning of the battle, but also the mopping up operation at the tail end of the battle.) Another exegesis for the line: והוא יגוד עקב: this tribe will always be in pursuit of enemies remaining, thus finding himself at the heel of their enemies. Compare: 49,8: ידך בעורף אויביך, “your hand will be around the neck of your enemies (Yehudah)”

עקב This means: By the same roads and paths upon which they had traveled shall they return. The word עקב has the same meaning as in (Psalms 128:20) “And thy foot-steps (עקבותיך) were not known”; (Song of Songs 1:8) “by the footsteps (עקבות) of the flock”. In old French traces; English, tracks.