Gad

Illustration of Gad

The tribe of Gad, one of the twelve tribes descended from Jacobโ€™s son Gad, received permission from Moses to settle in the fertile region of Gilead east of the Jordan River because of its suitability for their large herds of livestock. Their warriors fulfilled a solemn pledge to cross the Jordan and fight alongside the other tribes until Canaan was subdued under Joshua, after which they returned to their allotted territory while maintaining ties with the western tribes. Scripture portrays the Gadites as fierce and skilled fighters whose military contributions helped secure the Promised Land, as recorded in passages such as Numbers 32 and Joshua 22. This episode illustrates both the unity required among the tribes to claim their inheritance and the enduring significance of covenant faithfulness in Israelโ€™s early history.

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Details

Meaning
Fortune
Patriarch
Gad
Mother
Zilpah
Territory
East of the Jordan, between Reuben and Manasseh
Blessing
Gad, a troop shall overcome him: but he shall overcome at the last.
Key Figures
Jephthah

Key Passages

Jacob's Blessing

Genesis 49:19

G19ad, a troop shall overcome him: but he shall overcome at the last.

Moses' Blessing

Deuteronomy 33:20-21

A20nd of Gad he said, Blessed be he that enlargeth Gad: he dwelleth as a lion, and teareth the arm with the crown of the head.

21 And he provided the first part for himself, because there, in a portion of the lawgiver, was he seated; and he came with the heads of the people, he executed the justice of the LORD, and his judgments with Israel.

Gad's Warriors

1 Chronicles 12:8-15

A8nd of the Gadites there separated themselves unto David into the hold to the wilderness men of might, and men of war fit for the battle, that could handle shield and buckler, whose faces were like the faces of lions, and were as swift as the roes upon the mountains;

9 Ezer the first, Obadiah the second, Eliab the third, 10 Mishmannah the fourth, Jeremiah the fifth, 11 Attai the sixth, Eliel the seventh, 12 Johanan the eighth, Elzabad the ninth, 13 Jeremiah the tenth, Machbanai the eleventh. 14 These were of the sons of Gad, captains of the host: one of the least was over an hundred, and the greatest over a thousand. 15 These are they that went over Jordan in the first month, when it had overflown all his banks; and they put to flight all them of the valleys, both toward the east, and toward the west.

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Did You Know?

1

Gad's warriors were described as having 'faces like lions' and being swift as gazelles.

2

The tribe settled east of the Jordan and became expert raiders. Fulfilling Jacob's prophecy.

3

Elijah the prophet is traditionally believed to have come from Gad's territory in Gilead.