The Twelve Tribes · IX of XII
דן
Dan
He leads the north and guards the rear of the camp on the march. Samson the judge was of Dan.
- Mother
- Bilhah
- Born
- The fifth son of Jacob
- Stone
- לֶשֶׁם · jacinth
- Banner
- Like sapphire
- Emblem
- A serpent Genesis 49:17
- In the camp
- The north, at its head
Rachel said: God judged me [dananni] and also heard my voice, and gave me a son; therefore she called his name Dan.
וַתֹּאמֶר רָחֵל דָּנַנִּי אֱלֹהִים וְגַם שָׁמַע בְּקֹלִי וַיִּתֶּן־לִי בֵּן עַל־כֵּן קָרְאָה שְׁמוֹ דָּן׃
Dan shall avenge his people as one of the tribes of Israel.
Dan shall be a serpent on the road, a viper on the path, that bites a horse’s heels and his rider falls backward.
For your salvation I await, Lord.
דָּן יָדִין עַמּוֹ כְּאַחַד שִׁבְטֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל׃
יְהִי־דָן נָחָשׁ עֲלֵי־דֶרֶךְ שְׁפִיפֹן עֲלֵי־אֹרַח הַנֹּשֵׁךְ עִקְּבֵי־סוּס וַיִּפֹּל רֹכְבוֹ אָחוֹר׃
לִישׁוּעָתְךָ קִוִּיתִי יְהֹוָה׃
And of Dan he said: Dan is a lion cub that leaps from the Bashan.
וּלְדָן אָמַר דָּן גּוּר אַרְיֵה יְזַנֵּק מִן־הַבָּשָׁן׃
The English is the Steinsaltz Tanakh, the words of the verse only; the Hebrew is the Masoretic text. The banner, the stone and the emblem follow Bamidbar Rabbah 2:7.