Judah was the fourth son of Jacob and Leah, and one of the twelve sons of Jacob, his name in Hebrew is Yehudah, meaning praise. Judah is one of the more significant figures in the Bible. The important tribe of Judah is named after the patriarch Judah, since King David, and ultimately Jesus the Messiah, came from this tribe.
In the well-known study relating to the selling of Joseph into slavery because of the anger of the brothers against Joseph and their decision to kill him. Judah intercedes and convinces them to sell Joseph to some traders who were passing through, which enabled him to become a leader in Egypt.
In addition to this event regarding Joseph, Judah is also known because of his involvement regarding Tamar. According to custom, when a man died, the woman was to be married to a brother of the brother who died (later known as the levirate law). After two of Judah's sons died, it was custom for the third son then to marry Tamar and bear a child for the deceased son. Tamar attempted to avoid this custom and dressed as a prostitute and tricked Judah to have sex with her, which resulted in her giving birth to two sons, Perez and Zerah, which then continued the line of Judah, from which the Messiah came.
Biography
| Hershel Wayne House
The fourth son of Jacob and Leah was Judah. Afterward, his name was used for the tribe of Israel, which became the prominent tribe of the Jewish people. Judah, through Shuah, was the father of Er, Onan, and Shelah. The oldest of these sons married Tamar (married to several sons of Judah). Two of his sons (Er and Onan) married Tamar (consistent with Israel's levirate law), and each died. Judah, then, refused to allow Tamar to marry his remaining son. After this Tamar disguised herself as a prostitute and Judah had sexual relations with her, and through Tamar became the father of Perez and Zerah. Later Judah was instrumental in preserving the life of his youngest brother Joseph, when the other brothers, being jealous of Joseph, plotted to kill him. He offered the alternative of selling Joseph to men on the way to Egypt. When Jacob was dying, he gave Judah a special blessing that his tribe would be over the other tribes of Israel (see Gen 29:35; 35:23; 37:26, 27; 38:1-30; 43:3-10; 44:14-34; 46:12, 28; 49:8-12; Exod 1:2; Num 1:7, 26, 27; 26:19-22; 1 Chr 2:1, 3, 4; 4:1; Matt 1:2; Luke 3:33; Heb 7:14).
1After the death of Joshua, the children of Israel asked of Yahweh, saying, “Who should go up for us first against the Canaanites, to fight against them?”
2Yahweh said, “Judah shall go up. Behold, I have delivered the land into his hand.”
3Judah said to Simeon his brother, “Come up with me into my lot, that we may fight against the Canaanites; and I likewise will go with you into your lot.” So Simeon went with him. 4Judah went up, and Yahweh delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand. They struck ten thousand men in Bezek. 5They found Adoni-Bezek in Bezek, and they fought against him. They struck the Canaanites and the Perizzites. 6But Adoni-Bezek fled. They pursued him, caught him, and cut off his thumbs and his big toes. 7Adoni-Bezek said, “Seventy kings, having their thumbs and their big toes cut off, scavenged under my table. As I have done, so God has done to me.” They brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there. 8The children of Judah fought against Jerusalem, took it, struck it with the edge of the sword, and set the city on fire.
9After that, the children of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites who lived in the hill country, and in the South, and in the lowland. 10Judah went against the Canaanites who lived in Hebron. (The name of Hebron before that was Kiriath Arba.) They struck Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai.
11From there he went against the inhabitants of Debir. (The name of Debir before that was Kiriath Sepher.) 12Caleb said, “I will give Achsah my daughter as wife to the man who strikes Kiriath Sepher, and takes it.” 13Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, took it, so he gave him Achsah his daughter as his wife.
14When she came, she got him to ask her father for a field. She got off her donkey; and Caleb said to her, “What would you like?”
15She said to him, “Give me a blessing; because you have set me in the land of the South, give me also springs of water.” Then Caleb gave her the upper springs and the lower springs. 16The children of the Kenite, Moses’ brother-in-law, went up out of the city of palm trees with the children of Judah into the wilderness of Judah, which is in the south of Arad; and they went and lived with the people. 17Judah went with Simeon his brother, and they struck the Canaanites who inhabited Zephath, and utterly destroyed it. The name of the city was called Hormah. 18Also Judah took Gaza with its border, and Ashkelon with its border, and Ekron with its border. 19Yahweh was with Judah, and drove out the inhabitants of the hill country; for he could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had chariots of iron. 20They gave Hebron to Caleb, as Moses had said, and he drove the three sons of Anak out of there. 21The children of Benjamin didn’t drive out the Jebusites who inhabited Jerusalem, but the Jebusites dwell with the children of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day.
22The house of Joseph also went up against Bethel, and Yahweh was with them. 23The house of Joseph sent to spy out Bethel. (The name of the city before that was Luz.) 24The watchers saw a man come out of the city, and they said to him, “Please show us the entrance into the city, and we will deal kindly with you.” 25He showed them the entrance into the city, and they struck the city with the edge of the sword; but they let the man and all his family go. 26The man went into the land of the Hittites, built a city, and called its name Luz, which is its name to this day.
27Manasseh didn’t drive out the inhabitants of Beth Shean and its towns, nor Taanach and its towns, nor the inhabitants of Dor and its towns, nor the inhabitants of Ibleam and its towns, nor the inhabitants of Megiddo and its towns; but the Canaanites would dwell in that land. 28When Israel had grown strong, they put the Canaanites to forced labor, and didn’t utterly drive them out. 29Ephraim didn’t drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer, but the Canaanites lived in Gezer among them. 30Zebulun didn’t drive out the inhabitants of Kitron, nor the inhabitants of Nahalol; but the Canaanites lived among them, and became subject to forced labor. 31Asher didn’t drive out the inhabitants of Acco, nor the inhabitants of Sidon, nor of Ahlab, nor of Achzib, nor of Helbah, nor of Aphik, nor of Rehob; 32but the Asherites lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land, for they didn’t drive them out. 33Naphtali didn’t drive out the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh, nor the inhabitants of Beth Anath; but he lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land. Nevertheless the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh and of Beth Anath became subject to forced labor. 34The Amorites forced the children of Dan into the hill country, for they would not allow them to come down to the valley; 35but the Amorites would dwell in Mount Heres, in Aijalon, and in Shaalbim. Yet the hand of the house of Joseph prevailed, so that they became subject to forced labor. 36The border of the Amorites was from the ascent of Akrabbim, from the rock, and upward.