Blessed be he who enlarges Gad! here God is the one referred to as blessed, and in this kind of statement the meaning is to “give thanks for God,” “give praise to God.” In most languages God cannot be the object of the verb “to bless,” as though a human being were blessing God. Enlarges Gad means that God will give them more land. A possible alternative model for these first two lines is:

• People of the tribe of Gad,
the LORD will be kind to you
and give you more land.
So you must praise him.

Gad is compared to a lion, who lies in wait for its prey. The verb couches here normally means to “live,” “dwell in,” so the meaning “Gad lives there like a lion” (New International Version) is also possible (in verse 13 a different Hebrew verb is used).

Tears the arm, and the crown of the head: that is, attacking and tearing off an arm or the scalp of the victim. On the people of Gad as fighters, see Gen 49.19.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Deuteronomy. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .