my might, and the beginning of my strength
The phrase "my might, and the beginning of my strength" reflects the cultural view of the firstborn as the initial expression of a father's vigor and virility. In the patriarchal society of the time, the firstborn son was seen as the embodiment of the father's strength and the continuation of his lineage. This expression underscores the potential and expectations that Jacob had for Reuben, which were ultimately unfulfilled due to Reuben's actions.

excelling in honor
Reuben was expected to excel in honor, a quality highly valued in the ancient world. Honor was associated with reputation, respect, and moral integrity. Despite his potential, Reuben's actions, particularly his indiscretion with Bilhah, brought dishonor upon himself and his family. This failure to live up to the standard of honor expected of him is a recurring theme in the narrative of Jacob's sons, highlighting the consequences of personal failings.

excelling in power
The expectation for Reuben to excel in power reflects the leadership role anticipated for the firstborn. Power in this context refers to authority, influence, and the ability to lead and protect the family. Reuben's inability to assert his leadership effectively is evident in various instances, such as his failure to prevent Joseph's sale into slavery (Genesis 37:21-22) and his unsuccessful attempt to persuade Jacob to send Benjamin to Egypt (Genesis 42:37). This lack of effective leadership further illustrates the gap between Reuben's potential and his actual achievements.

Jacob begins by naming the son who stands before him. Calling Reuben by name does more than get his attention; it recalls a lifetime of relationship. Reuben was the child Leah exclaimed over, “Because the LORD has looked upon my affliction” (Genesis 29:32). That history sets the stage for Jacob’s words of destiny and evaluation. Similar naming moments appear when God summons people (Exodus 3:4), reminding us that identity and calling are intertwined.

The firstborn son occupied a place of privilege:

• He held the right of succession and leadership (Deuteronomy 21:17).

• He received a double portion of the inheritance (1 Chronicles 5:1).

• He represented the strength of the family, much as Israel is called God’s “firstborn” nation (Exodus 4:22).

Jacob affirms that Reuben truly is first in birth order, even though later verses reveal that Reuben forfeited the full rights of that position.

Jacob’s phrase communicates personal pride and paternal investment. Reuben embodied the vigor of Jacob’s younger years, just as children are repeatedly described as “arrows” in a warrior’s hand (Psalm 127:4-5). By affirming Reuben as his “might,” Jacob acknowledges that his own vitality found tangible expression in this son.

The birth of a first child, especially a son in patriarchal culture, signaled the onset of a man’s established house. “Beginning of my strength” means:

• The start of Jacob’s expansion from individual to clan (Genesis 46:8-9).

• Proof of God’s promise to multiply his descendants (Genesis 35:11).

Reuben was the cornerstone of Jacob’s growing family—a living sign that God’s covenant was taking root.

Jacob credits Reuben with an excellence that implies high dignity, the kind tied to leadership and respect within the tribe (Numbers 7:10-12). Tragically, verse 4 will show that this anticipated excellence was squandered. Yet the phrase reveals what might have been: a life of premier influence, similar to Joseph’s later standing among the brothers (Genesis 45:9-11).

Honor naturally leads to power—capacity to act, rule, and protect. Compare Moses’ blessing over the tribe of Reuben, “May Reuben live and not die, and may his men be few” (Deuteronomy 33:6), which suggests latent strength that nevertheless declined over time. Reuben was poised to be a powerhouse within Israel, paralleling the strong firstborn theme seen when God struck Egypt’s firstborn to deliver His people (Psalm 105:36).

Genesis 49:3 captures the glowing potential wrapped up in Jacob’s eldest son: rightful firstborn, embodiment of paternal strength, destined for unparalleled honor and influence. The verse glistens with promise—promise later dimmed by Reuben’s moral failure (Genesis 49:4; 1 Chronicles 5:1-2). Still, Jacob’s words show God’s orderly design for family and leadership, underscoring how privilege carries responsibility. Reuben’s initial status calls us to value the roles God assigns and to steward them faithfully, lest squandered privilege turn anticipated excellence into lost opportunity.

The excellency . . . --We must here supply, "And therefore to thee as the firstborn belonged," first, the excellency of dignity, that is, the priesthood; and secondly, the excellency of power, that is, the kingly office. As a matter of history no king, judge, or prophet is recorded as having sprung from the tribe of Reuben. . . .

(1) by his position in the family, as Jacob's firstborn;

(2) by his relation to Jacob, as the patriarch's "might," כּחַ, or robur virile, and "the beginning" of his "strength," not "of his sorrow" (Vulgate, Aquila, Symmachus), though און might be so translated (cf. Genesis 35:18), and the sense would sufficiently accord with the allusion of ver. 4, but, as required by the parallelism, "of his vigor," און being here equivalent to כּחַ (Rosenmuller, Kalisch, Keil, 'Speaker's Commentary,' et alii); and

(3) by the natural prominence which as Jacob's eldest son belonged to him, "the excellency of dignity" or "elevation," i.e. the dignity of the chieftainship, and "the excellency of power," or authority, which the first born claimed and received as his prerogative. Yet the natural advantages enjoyed by Reuben as Jacob's firstborn were to be taken from him, as the patriarch proceeded to announce - Unstable as water, - literally, boiling over like water, the import of which is not effusus es sicut aqua (Vulgate), but either ἐξύβρισας ὡς ὑδωρ (LXX.), or lasciviousness (sc. was to thee) as the boiling of water (Gesenius, Rosenmüller, Keil, Kalisch, etc.), the same root in Arabic conveying the notion of pride, and in Syriac that of wantonness - thou shalt not excel; - literally, thou shalt not have the ישׂנךללךשׂצך רו יֶרֶת (ver. 3), i.e. the pre-eminence belonging to the firstborn, a sense which the versions have more or less successfully expressed: μὴ περισσεύσης (Aquila), οὐκ ἔση περισσότερος (Symmachus), μὴ ἐκζέσης (LXX.), non crescas (Vulgate) - because thou wentest up to thy father's bed (vide Genesis 35:22; 1 Chronicles 5:1); then defiledst thou it: - the verb is used absolutely, as meaning that Reuben had desecrated what ought to have been regarded by him as sacred (cf. Deuteronomy 27:20) - he went up to my couch - literally, my couch he ascends; the order of the words and the change from the second to the third person helping to give expression to the horror and indignation with which, even at that distance of time, the venerable patriarch contemplated the shameful deed.

Parallel Commentaries ...