聖祖雅各伯臨終前對十二位兒子的遺言通常被視為「雅各伯的祝福」（參創四九1-28）,然而,當讀者仔細推敲閱讀該文本時,就會發現長子勒烏本以及西默盎和肋未並未受到父親的「祝福」（參創四九3-7）,甚至可以將之稱為「詛咒」。事實上,文本批判的研究為我們留下不同古文本對於「祝福」與「詛咒」這個問題「猶豫不決」的痕跡。涉及到長子勒烏本的問題,創四九3b中兩次重複的一詞意義模糊不清：一方面,這個詞可以被消極地翻譯為「過於、過度」之意; 另一方面,也可被積極地理解為「非凡、傑出、出色」之意。《古阿貴拉版本》（Aquila）將這個名詞翻譯為形容詞「過分的、過度的、極端的」則帶有消極意義。至於有關西默盎與肋未的遺訓,創四九7 句首之詞起到至關重要的作用：《瑪索拉版本》（）和《七十賢士譯本》（ἐπικατάρατος）都同時見證了「詛咒」之意; 而《撒瑪黎雅五書》中所採用的一詞卻有「崇高」之意,即他們的憤怒得到讚賞,獲得雅各伯的「祝福」。除此之外,有關四子猶大的預言中涉及到的關鍵詞 （參創四九10）至今飽受爭議：《七十賢士譯本》將其翻譯為「被保留的那位」（τὰ ἀποκείμενα αὐτῷ）; 而《拉丁通行本》則將其解讀「被派遣的那位」（qui mittendus est）; 《撒瑪黎雅五書》則採用這個詞型。有關將要來「那一位」的解讀對整個文本起到決定性作用。此外,關於雅各伯所愛之子若瑟的命運則被「祝福」（）一詞概括,甚至被視為「兄弟中的被選者」（參創四九26）,繼而被稱為「兄弟中為首者」（參申卅三16b）。倘若勒烏本、西默盎與肋未確實得到父親的「詛咒」,那麼,雅各伯特別「祝福」的猶大（參創四九8-12）和若瑟（參創四九22-26）究竟誰最終繼承長子的名分?本文旨在藉由不同版本之間的對比與批判澄清雅各伯「祝福」與「詛咒」的關鍵性問題。它不僅涉及到對整個「若瑟故事」（參創卅七-五十）的解讀,也涉及到對於《梅瑟五書》成書的理解：「雅各伯的祝福」（參創四九）與「梅瑟的祝福」（參申卅三）構成首尾呼應的關係。

The final words of the patriarch Jacob to his twelve sons are generally considered as “Jacob's Blessings” (cf. Genesis 49:1-28). However, upon careful examination of the text, readers will notice that the eldest son Reu-ben, along with Simeon and Levi, did not receive their father's ‘blessing’ (cf. Genesis 49:3-7). These utterances could even be characterized as “curses.” In fact, textual criticism reveals traces of “hesitation” in different ancient manuscripts regarding the distinction between ‘blessing’ and “curse.” Con-cerning the eldest son Reuben, the word  , repeated twice in Genesis 49:3b, carries ambiguous meaning: on one hand, it can be negatively trans-lated as “excessively, too much” on the other hand, it could be interpreted positively as “extraordinary, outstanding, excellent.” The ancient Aquila ver-sion translates this noun as the adjective “excessive, extreme,” carrying a negative connotation. Regarding the instructions concerning Simeon and Levi, the opening word of Genesis 49:7 plays a crucial role: both the Maso-retic Text () and the Septuagint (ἐπικατάρατος) attest to the meaning “cursed” while the Samaritan Pentateuch employs , meaning “exalted”—suggesting their anger was commended and received Jacob's “blessing.” Be-yond this, the key term  (cf. Gen 49:10) in the prophecy concerning the fourth son Judah remains controversial: the Septuagint translates it as “the one who is reserved” (τὰ ἀποκείμενα αὐτῷ); the Vulgate interprets it as “the one who is sent” (qui mittendus est); while the Samaritan Pentateuch em-ploys the form  . The interpretation of “the one who is to come” plays a decisive role in the entire text. Furthermore, the fate of Joseph, Jacob's be-loved son, is summarized by the term ‘blessing’ (), even being regarded as “the chosen one among his brothers” (cf. Gen 49:26) and subsequently called “the foremost among his brothers” (cf. Deut 33:16b). If Reuben, Sim-eon, and Levi truly received their father’s “curse,” then which of Jacob’s specially “blessed” sons—Judah (cf. Gen 49:8-12) or Joseph (cf. Gen 49:22-26)—ultimately inherited the birthright? This article aims to clarify the critical issue of Jacob’s “blessings” and ‘curses’ through comparative and critical analysis of different textual versions. It involves not only the in-terpretation of the entire “Joseph narrative” (cf. Gen 37-50) but also the un-derstanding of the composition of the Pentateuch: “Jacob’s blessings” (Gen 49) and “Moses’ blessing” (Deut 33) form a relationship of beginning and end echoing each other.