“We are yours, O David!
We support 8 you, O son of Jesse!
May you greatly prosper! 9
May those who help you prosper! 10
Indeed 11 your God helps you!”
So David accepted them and made them leaders of raiding bands.
49:8 Judah, 12 your brothers will praise you.
Your hand will be on the neck of your enemies,
your father’s sons will bow down before you.
49:9 You are a lion’s cub, Judah,
from the prey, my son, you have gone up.
He crouches and lies down like a lion;
like a lioness – who will rouse him?
49:10 The scepter will not depart from Judah,
nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, 13
until he comes to whom it belongs; 14
the nations will obey him. 15
49:2 “Assemble and listen, you sons of Jacob;
listen to Israel, your father.
30:12 Then Leah’s servant Zilpah gave Jacob another son. 16
110:3 Your people willingly follow you 17 when you go into battle. 18
On the holy hills 19 at sunrise 20 the dew of your youth 21 belongs to you. 22
1 tn Heb “and David went out before them and answered and said to them.”
2 tn Heb “there will be to me concerning you a heart for unity.”
3 tn Heb “with no violence in my hands.”
4 tn Heb “fathers.”
5 tn Perhaps “the Spirit,” but the text has simply רוּחַ (ruakh) with no article (suggesting an indefinite reference).
6 tn Heb “clothed.”
7 tn The words “and he said” are supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.
8 tn Heb “are with.”
9 tn Heb “Peace, peace to you.” The Hebrew term שָׁלוֹם (shalom, “peace”) is repeated to emphasize degree.
10 tn Heb “and peace to the one who helps you.”
11 tn Or “for.”
12 sn There is a wordplay here; the name Judah (יְהוּדָה, yÿhudah) sounds in Hebrew like the verb translated praise (יוֹדוּךָ, yodukha). The wordplay serves to draw attention to the statement as having special significance.
13 tn Or perhaps “from his descendants,” taking the expression “from between his feet” as a euphemism referring to the genitals. In this case the phrase refers by metonymy to those who come forth from his genitals, i.e., his descendants.
14 tn The Hebrew form שִׁילֹה (shiloh) is a major interpretive problem. There are at least four major options (with many variations and less likely alternatives): (1) Some prefer to leave the text as it is, reading “Shiloh” and understanding it as the place where the ark rested for a while in the time of the Judges. (2) By repointing the text others arrive at the translation “until the [or “his”] ruler comes,” a reference to a Davidic ruler or the Messiah. (3) Another possibility that does not require emendation of the consonantal text, but only repointing, is “until tribute is brought to him” (so NEB, JPS, NRSV), which has the advantage of providing good parallelism with the following line, “the nations will obey him.” (4) The interpretation followed in the present translation, “to whom it [belongs]” (so RSV, NIV, REB), is based on the ancient versions. Again, this would refer to the Davidic dynasty or, ultimately, to the Messiah.
15 tn “and to him [will be] the obedience of the nations.” For discussion of this verse see J. Blenkinsopp, “The Oracle of Judah and the Messianic Entry,” JBL 80 (1961): 55-64; and E. M. Good, “The ‘Blessing’ on Judah,” JBL 82 (1963): 427-32.
16 tn Heb “and Zilpah, the servant of Leah, bore a second son for Jacob.”
17 tn Heb “your people, free will offerings.” Perhaps the people, in their willingness to volunteer, are compared metaphorically to freewill offerings. Following the LXX, some revocalize the text and read “with you is nobility.”
18 tn Heb “in the day of your power.”
19 tc Heb “in splendor of holiness.” The plural construct form הַדְרֵי (hadrey, from הָדַר, hadar, “splendor”) occurs only here; it may indicate degree or perhaps refer by metonymy to garments (see Pss 29:2 and 96:9, where the phrase הַדְרַת קֹדֶשׁ [hadrat qodesh] refers to “holy attire”). If one retains the reading of the MT, this phrase should probably be taken with the preceding line. However, because of the subsequent references to “dawn” and to “dew,” it is better to emend the text to הַרְרֵי קֹדֶשׁ (harrey qodesh, “mountains of holiness”), a reading found in many medieval Hebrew
20 tn Heb “from the womb of dawn.” The Hebrew noun רֶחֶם (rekhem, “womb”) is probably used here metonymically for “birth.” The form מִשְׁחָר (mishkhar) occurs only here and should be emended to שַׁחַר (shakhar, “dawn”) with the mem (מ) being understood as dittographic (note the final mem [ם] on the preceding word). The phrase “womb [i.e., “birth”] of dawn” refers to sunrise.
21 sn The point of the metaphor is not entirely clear. The dew may symbolize the king’s youthful vitality or, more likely (note the parallelism), may refer to his army of strong, youthful warriors.
22 tn Heb “to you [is].”
23 tc The MT reads “you”; many Hebrew
24 tn Heb “their flesh.”
25 tn Heb “heart of flesh.”