The Lord answered, “Judah, for I have given them victory over the land.”
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.
- BSB “Judah shall go up,” answered the LORD. “Indeed, I have delivered the land into their hands.”
- 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.”
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 5:5One of the elders said to me, “Don’t weep. Behold, the Lion who is of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome; he who opens the book and its seven seals.”
- Heb 7:14For it is evident that our Lord has sprung out of Judah, about which tribe Moses spoke nothing concerning priesthood.
- Num 2:3Those who encamp on the east side toward the sunrise shall be of the standard of the camp of Judah, according to their divisions: and the prince of the children of Judah shall be Nahshon the son of Amminadab.
- Gen 49:8–10“Judah, your brothers will praise you. Your hand will be on the neck of your enemies. Your father’s sons will bow down before you.
- Num 7:12He who offered his offering the first day was Nahshon the son of Amminadab, of the tribe of Judah,
- Ps 78:68–70But chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion which he loved.
- Rev 19:11–16I saw the heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it is called Faithful and True. In righteousness he judges and makes 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.