Where in the world did we get Judah for a baby name, you ask? Here is the background for Judah Patrick Metcalf.
You all know I like names that are different. I'm sure I don't have to explain the Patrick part, but so many people have asked me about Judah. I heard the name a while back and it stuck with me big time. I couldn't shake it, get it out of my head or even consider another name (never did). I felt like the name chose me, I didn't really choose it. Patrick hated it at first and I was really upset because I felt very strongly that this was supposed to be our baby's name. When he finally changed his mind I was overjoyed! I looked on the baby name finder and found that Judah means "to praise". I thought it was fitting after losing our sweet baby Tate four days after he was born and having another chance to have a baby boy...we will be praising God. That was all I really knew other than it was very Old Testament, sounded so neat, and fit us and the situation. But it gets even better. Here are some of the things I found out when searching the biblical history that make me even more convinced that God gave us this name for this child. Our son will not only have a fitting name, but one that speaks of character, strength and the favor of the Lord. For all of you who are interested, read on:
Judah was the 4th son of Jacob and Leah
While Judah will not be our 4th son, he will be our 4th child...and a son
When Judah was born, Leah was so excited at her good fortune in conceiving 4 children that she said, "and now I will praise God"
From the Bible Dictionary...the fourth son of Jacob by Leah. The name originated in Leah's words of praise to the Lord on account of his birth: "Now will I praise [Heb. odeh] Jehovah, and she called his name Yehudah (or Judah)" (Genesis 29:35).
The ancestry of Joseph, the adoptive father of Jesus, is traced back to Judah . So is the ancestry of King David. In Jacob's blessing of his 12 sons (in Genesis 49) he described Judah as a lion cub, saying that he would have his hand on the necks of his enemies and that he would be praised by his brothers.
The kingdom of Judah possessed many advantages which secured for it a longer continuance than that of Israel . A frontier less exposed to powerful enemies, a soil less fertile, a population hardier and more united, a fixed and venerated centre of administration and religion, a hereditary aristocracy in the sacerdotal caste, an army always subordinate, a succession of kings which no revolution interrupted; so that Judah survived her more populous and more powerful sister kingdom by 135 years, and lasted from B.C. 975 to B.C. 536.
When the disruption took place at Shechem, at first only the tribe of Judah followed the house of David. But very soon after the tribe of Benjamin joined the tribe of Judah , and Jerusalem became the capital of the new kingdom (Joshua 18:28), which was called the kingdom of Judah .
Jacob's blessing of Judah , in Genesis 49:8-12, includes a passage that is traditionally understood by Christians to mean that Judah 's descendants would rule over the land of Israel , culminating with Jesus.
In Revelation 7:7, Judah is at the top of the list of the tribes receiving the Seal of God for 12,000 of its members. The name Judah means "to praise."
It was Judah that interposed in behalf of Joseph, so that his life was spared (Genesis 37:26,27). It was he who took a lead in the affairs of the family, and "prevailed above his brethren" (Genesis 43:3-10; 44:14,16-34; 46:28; 1 Chronicles 5:2).
Of Judah ’s personal character more traits are preserved than of any other of the patriarchs, with the exception of Joseph, whose life he in conjunction with Reuben saved. (Genesis 37:26-28) During the second visit to Egypt for corn it was Judah who understood to be responsible for the safety of Benjamin, ch. (Genesis 43:3-10) and when, through Joseph’s artifice, the brothers were brought back to the palace, he is again the leader and spokesman of the band. So too it is Judah who is sent before Jacob to smooth the way for him in the land of Goshen . ch. (Genesis 46:28) This ascendancy over his brethren is reflected in the last words addressed to him by his father.
