Judah Archives - A Bible A Day

Judah refers to a person, a tribe, and a nation.

Judah, the person, was one of Jacob’s twelve sons.

Jacob’s descendants grew in number and became the tribe of Judah, one of twelve tribes comprising the nation of Israel. Each tribe settled in an assigned geographic area, which would be similar to a state or province today.

Later, when the nation of Israel was divided, the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, split off, forming a new nation that was known as the nation of Judah.

Key verse about Judah: The sons of Leah: Reuben the firstborn of Jacob, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar and Zebulun (Genesis 35:23, NIV).

A lifelong student of the Bible, Peter DeHaan, PhD, wrote the 1,000-page website ABibleADay.com to encourage people to explore the Bible. His main blog and many books urge Christians to push past the status quo and reconsider how they practice their faith in every area of their lives.

So, we know that Jacob’s twelve sons had four mothers: Leah was the spurned wife; Rachel was the favorite wife; Bilhah was Rachel’s maid and Zilpah was Leah’s maid. Here is their birth order and how it all breaks down:

1. Reuben, his mom was Leah
2. Simeon, his mom was Leah
3. Levi, his mom was Leah
4. Judah, his mom was Leah

5. Dan, his mom was Bilhah, Rachel’s maid
6. Naphtali, his mom was Bilhah, Rachel’s maid

7. Gad, his mom was Zilpah, Leah’s maid
8. Asher, his mom was Zilpah, Leah’s maid

9. Issachar, his mom was Leah
10. Zebulun, his mom was Leah
(Then Leah also had a daughter, Dinah.)

11. Joseph, his mom was Rachel
12. Benjamin, his mom was Rachel

It was a tough way to have twelve sons. Just because that’s how it happened, does not mean that God approves of such an arrangement!

[See Genesis 29:1-35, Genesis 30:1-24, and Genesis 35:16-19.]