“Judah shall go up,” answered the LORD. “Indeed, I have delivered the land into their hands.”
Parallel translations
- WEB Yahweh said, “Judah shall go up. Behold, I have delivered the land into his hand.”
- KJV And the LORD said, Judah shall go up: behold, I have delivered the land into his hand.
- NKJV And the Lord said, “Judah shall go up. Indeed I have delivered the land into his hand.”
- NASB The Lord said, “Judah shall go up; behold, I have handed the land over to him.”
- NLT The Lord answered, “Judah, for I have given them victory over the land.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God answers that Judah should go first, promising the land is already given into his hand. It matters because victory is grounded in God's prior pledge, not Israel's strength.
Overview
Yahweh designates the tribe of Judah to lead, and declares the land already delivered, so that obedience flows from a settled promise. Judah's primacy anticipates the later kingship and Messianic line, for from Judah comes David and ultimately Jesus, the Lion of the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49:10; Revelation 5:5).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Rev 5:5Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed to open the scroll and its seven seals.”
- Heb 7:14For it is clear that our Lord descended from Judah, a tribe as to which Moses said nothing about priests.
- Num 2:3On the east side, toward the sunrise, the divisions of Judah are to camp under their standard: The leader of the descendants of Judah is Nahshon son of Amminadab,
- Gen 49:8–10Judah, your brothers shall praise you. Your hand shall be on the necks of your enemies; your father’s sons shall bow down to you.
- Num 7:12On the first day Nahshon son of Amminadab from the tribe of Judah drew near with his offering.
- Ps 78:68–70But He chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion, which He loved.
- Rev 19:11–16Then I saw heaven standing open, and there before me was a white horse. And its rider is called Faithful and True. With righteousness He judges and wages war.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Israel's cycle of sin and rescue through flawed deliverers cries out for a Savior who never fails — the true and final Judge and Deliverer who saves his people not for a season but forever.
How Judges 1:2 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.