Numbers 2:3-4

The Tribes on the East

2:3 “Now those who will be camping ¹  on the east, toward the sunrise, ²  are the divisions ³  of the camp of Judah under their standard. The leader of the people of Judah is ⁴  Nahshon son of Amminadab. 2:4 Those numbered in his division ⁵  are 74,600.

Numbers 26:19-22

Judah

26:19 The descendants of Judah were Er and Onan, but Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan. 26:20 And the Judahites by their families were: from Shelah, the family of the Shelahites; from Perez, the family of the Perezites; and from Zerah, the family of the Zerahites. 26:21 And the Perezites were: from Hezron, the family of the Hezronites; from Hamul, ⁶  the family of the Hamulites. 26:22 These were the families of Judah according to those numbered of them, 76,500. ⁷ 

Genesis 29:35

29:35 She became pregnant again and had another son. She said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” That is why she named him Judah. ⁸  Then she stopped having children.

Genesis 46:12

46:12 The sons of Judah:

Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez, and Zerah

(but Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan).

The sons of Perez were Hezron and Hamul.

Genesis 49:8-12

49:8 Judah, ⁹  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, ¹⁰ 

until he comes to whom it belongs; ¹¹ 

the nations will obey him. ¹² 

49:11 Binding his foal to the vine,

and his colt to the choicest vine,

he will wash ¹³  his garments in wine,

his robes in the blood of grapes.

49:12 His eyes will be dark from wine,

and his teeth white from milk. ¹⁴ 

Genesis 49:2

49:2 “Assemble and listen, you sons of Jacob;

listen to Israel, your father.

Genesis 24:9

24:9 So the servant placed his hand under the thigh of his master Abraham and gave his solemn promise he would carry out his wishes. ¹⁵ 

Genesis 24:1

The Wife for Isaac

24:1 Now Abraham was old, well advanced in years, ¹⁶  and the Lord had blessed him ¹⁷  in everything.

Genesis 5:2

5:2 He created them male and female; when they were created, he blessed them and named them “humankind.” ¹⁸ 

Genesis 5:2

5:2 He created them male and female; when they were created, he blessed them and named them “humankind.” ¹⁹ 

Genesis 17:14-16

17:14 Any uncircumcised male ²⁰  who has not been circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin will be cut off ²¹  from his people – he has failed to carry out my requirement.” ²² 

17:15 Then God said to Abraham, “As for your wife, you must no longer call her Sarai; ²³  Sarah ²⁴  will be her name. 17:16 I will bless her and will give you a son through her. I will bless her and she will become a mother of nations. ²⁵  Kings of countries ²⁶  will come from her!”

[2:3]  ¹ tn The sentence begins with a vav (ו) on a word that is not a finite verb, indicating a new section begins here. The verbal form is a participle with the article used substantivally, with the meaning “and/now those camping.” Many English versions employ a finite verb; cf. KJV “on the east side…shall they of the standard of the camp of Judah pitch.”

[2:3]  ² tc The two synonyms might seem to be tautological, but this is fairly common and therefore acceptable in Hebrew prose (cf. Exod 26:18; 38:13; etc.).

[2:3]  ³ tn The sentence actually has “[those camping…are] the standard of the camp of Judah according to their divisions.”

[2:3]  ⁴ tn Or “will be.”

[2:4]  ⁵ tc The expression “and his divisions and those numbered of them” is somewhat tautological. The words are synonyms used for statistical purposes, and so neither should be simply deleted.

[26:21]  ⁶ tc Smr and the Greek version have “Hamuel.”

[26:22]  ⁷ sn The Judahites increased from 74,600 to 76,500.

[29:35]  ⁸ sn The name Judah (יְהוּדָה, yÿhudah) means “he will be praised” and reflects the sentiment Leah expresses in the statement recorded earlier in the verse. For further discussion see W. F. Albright, “The Names ‘Israel’ and ‘Judah’ with an Excursus on the Etymology of Todah and Torah,” JBL 46 (1927): 151-85; and A. R. Millard, “The Meaning of the Name Judah,” ZAW 86 (1974): 216-18.

[49:8]  ⁹ 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.

[49:10]  ¹⁰ 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.

[49:10]  ¹¹ 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.

[49:10]  ¹² 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.

[49:11]  ¹³ tn The perfect verbal form is used rhetorically, describing coming events as though they have already taken place.

[49:12]  ¹⁴ tn Some translate these as comparatives, “darker than wine…whiter than milk,” and so a reference to his appearance (so NEB, NIV, NRSV). But if it is in the age of abundance, symbolized by wine and milk, then the dark (i.e., red or perhaps dull) eyes would be from drinking wine, and the white teeth from drinking milk.

[24:9]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and he swore to him concerning this matter.”

[24:1]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “days.”

[24:1]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “Abraham.” The proper name has been replaced in the translation by the pronoun (“he”) for stylistic reasons.

[5:2]  ¹⁸ tn The Hebrew word used here is אָדָם (’adam).

[5:2]  ¹⁹ tn The Hebrew word used here is אָדָם (’adam).

[17:14]  ²⁰ tn The disjunctive clause calls attention to the “uncircumcised male” and what will happen to him.

[17:14]  ²¹ tn Heb “that person will be cut off.” The words “that person” have not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[17:14]  ²² tn Heb “he has broken my covenant.” The noun בְּרִית (bÿrit) here refers to the obligation required by God in conjunction with the covenantal agreement. For the range of meaning of the term, see the note on the word “requirement” in v. 9.

[17:15]  ²³ tn Heb “[As for] Sarai your wife, you must not call her name Sarai, for Sarah [will be] her name.”

[17:15]  ²⁴ sn Sarah. The name change seems to be a dialectical variation, both spellings meaning “princess” or “queen.” Like the name Abram, the name Sarai symbolized the past. The new name Sarah, like the name Abraham, would be a reminder of what God intended to do for Sarah in the future.

[17:16]  ²⁵ tn Heb “she will become nations.”

[17:16]  ²⁶ tn Heb “peoples.”