Ruben/ thou art myne eldest sonne/ my myghte and the begynnynge of my strength/ chefe in receauynge and chefe in power. As vnstable as water wast thou: thou shalt therfore not be the chefest/ for thou wenst vp vpÕ thy fathers bedd/ and than defyledest thou my couche with goynge vppe.

The brethern Simeon and Leui/ weked instrumentes are their wepÕs. In to their secrettes come not my soule/ and vnto their congregation be my honoure not coupled: for in their wrath they slewe a man/ and in their selfewill they houghed an oxe. Cursed be their wrath for it was stronge/ and their fearsnes for it was cruell. I will therfore deuyde them in Iacob/ & scater them in Israel.

Iuda/ thy brethern shall prayse the/ & thine hande shalbe in the necke of thyne enimies/ & thy fathers childern shall stoupe vnto the. Iuda is a lions whelpe. FrÕ spoyle my sonne thou art come an hye: he layde him downe and couched himselfe as a lion/ and as a lionesse. Who dare stere him vp? The sceptre shall not departe from Iuda/ nor a ruelar from betwene his legges/ vntill Silo come/ vnto whome the people shall herken. He shall bynde his fole vnto the vine/ and his asses colt vnto the vyne braunche/ Ãd shall wash his garment in wyne and his mantell in the bloud of grapes/ his eyes are roudier than wyne/ Ãd his teeth whitter then mylke.

Zabulon shall dwell in the hauen of the see and in the port of shippes/ & shall reache vnto Sidon.

Isachar is a stronge asse/ he couched him doune betwene .ij. borders/ and sawe that rest was good and the lande that it was pleasant/ and bowed his shulder to beare/ and became a servaunte vnto trybute.

Dan shall iudge his people/ as one of the trybes of Israel. Dan shalbe a serpent in the waye/ and an edder in the path/ and byte the horse heles/ so y^t his ryder shall fall backwarde. After thy sauynge loke I LORde.

Gad/ men of warre shall invade him. And he shall turne them to flyght.

Off Asser cometh fatt breed/ and he shall geue pleasures for a kynge.

Nepthali is a swyft hynde/ Ãd geueth goodly wordes.

That floryshynge childe Ioseph/ that florishing childe and goodly vn to the eye: the doughters come forth to bere ruele. The shoters haue envyed him and chyde with him Ãd hated him/ and yet his bowe bode fast/ & his armes and his handes were stronge/ by the handes of the myghtye God of Iacob: out of him shall come an herde mà a stone in Israel. Thi fathers God shall helpe the/ & the almightie shall blesse the with blessinges from heaven aboue/ and with blessinges of the water that lieth vnder/ & with blessinges of the brestes & of the wombe. The blessinges of thy father were stronge: euen as the blessinges of my elders/ after the desyre of the hiest in the worlde/ and these blessinges shall fall on the head of Ioseph/ and on the toppe of the head of him y^t was separat from his brethern.

Ben Iamin is a raueshynge wolfe. In the mornynge he shall deuoure his praye/ Ãd at nyghte he shall deuyde his spoyle.

All these are the .xij. tribes of Israel/ & this is that which their father spake vnto them wh? he blessed them/ euery man with a severall blessinge. And he charged them and sayde vnto them. I shall be put vnto my people: se that ye burye me with my fathers/ in the caue that is in the felde of Ephron the Hethyte/ in the double caue that is in the felde before Mamre in the lande of Canaan. Which felde Abraham boughte of Ephron the Hethite for a possessiÕ to burye in. There they buryed Abrahà and Sara his wyfe/ there they buryed Isaac & Rebecca his wyfe. And there I buried Lea: which felde & the caue that is therin/ was bought of the childern of Heth.

When Iacob had commaunded all that he wold vnto his sonnes/ he plucked vp his fete apon the bedd and dyed/ and was put vnto his people. And Ioseph fell apon his fathers face/ and wepte apon him/ and kyssed him.