And of Zebulun he said, Rejoice, Zebulun, in thy going out; and, Issachar, in thy tents.
Rejoice, Zebulun, In thy going out - namely, on commercial enterprises and voyages by sea. For 'the tribe of Zebulun's lot included the land which lay as far as the lake of Gennesareth, and that which belonged to Carmel and the sea (Josephus, 'Antiquities,' b. 5:, ch. 1:, sec. 22).
And, Issachar, in thy tents. This tribe would prefer a semi-nomad life, combining agricultural with pastoral occupations, and luxuriating in happy tranquillity and ease on the resources of their richly productive region (cf. Genesis 49:14-15). There is no parallelism in this verse: for the two clauses of which it consists refer to two distinct tribes; and the "going out" of the one is contrasted with the "tents" of the other. These two brothers are coupled in the prophetic blessings, because they were to be closely associated in their allotted territories. But it is observable that in this passage, as well as in Genesis 49:1-33, Zebulun, though the younger, is mentioned first, on account of the superior activity and prominence of his tribe.