Moses’ blessing in Deut. 33:12 says that Benjamin will dwell securely beside Jehovah and that Jehovah will dwell between Benjamin’s shoulders. Jerusalem with God’s temple, God’s dwelling place, was located in the territory of Benjamin (Judg. 1:21). Thus, the blessing of Jacob’s twelve sons ends with God’s dwelling place, which ultimately consummates in the New Jerusalem as the mutual dwelling of God and His redeemed for eternity (Rev. 21, Rev. 22). This is the greatest blessing to God’s people.
Gen. 49:1-28 is an abstract of the entire Bible and a summary of the history of God’s people, as seen in the twelve sons of Jacob, the nation of Israel, and the church. It is also a portrait of the personal history of every believer. Jacob’s first four sons — Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah — were sinners, indicating that the history of God’s people begins with sinners. However, two of these sinners, Levi and Judah, were transformed to become priests and kings. Out of the kingship with Judah a kingly salvation was produced, which was preached as the gospel in the Gentile world by Zebulun and which issued in the church life with Issachar. But the apostasy came in through Dan, followed by the recovery with Gad, which issued in the sufficiency of the riches of Christ with Asher and in the resurrection with Naphtali. Finally, the history of God’s people concludes with Joseph and Benjamin, who typify Christ as the One who is altogether victorious and perfect, without defect. According to Jacob’s prophecy and Moses’ word, Joseph brought in God’s boundless, universal blessing (vv. 22-26; Deut. 33:13-16), and Benjamin, God’s eternal dwelling place (Deut. 33:12). Thus, the conclusion of Gen. 49 corresponds with the conclusion of the entire Bible — the universal blessing in the new heaven and the new earth, in which is God’s eternal dwelling, the New Jerusalem, as the issue and goal of God’s universal blessing (cf. Eph. 1:3; 2:22).