Judah Shall go in first.

18And the children of Israel arose, and went up to the house of God, and asked counsel of God, and said, Which of us shall go up first to the battle against the children of Benjamin? And the LORD said, Judah shall go up first. 19And the children of Israel rose up in the morning, and encamped against Gibeah.

 

Contempory version.

Zac 12: 7 But I will first give victory to Judah, so the kingdom of David and the city of Jerusalem in all of their glory won’t be thought of more highly than Judah itself. 8 I, the Lord God, will protect Jerusalem. Even the weakest person there will be as strong as David, and David’s kingdom will rule as though my very own angel were its leader. 9 I am determined to wipe out every nation that attacks Jerusalem.

 

7The LORD also shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem do not magnify themselves against Judah. 8In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them.

 

 

Now will I praise the LORD:

 

Gen 29:15And Laban said unto Jacob, Because thou art my brother, shouldest thou therefore serve me for nought? tell me, what shall thy wages be? 16And Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17Leah was tender eyed; but Rachel was beautiful and well favoured. 18And Jacob loved Rachel; and said, I will serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter. 19And Laban said, It is better that I give her to thee, than that I should give her to another man: abide with me. 20And Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her. 21And Jacob said unto Laban, Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in unto her. 22And Laban gathered together all the men of the place, and made a feast. 23And it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his daughter, and brought her to him; and he went in unto her. 24And Laban gave unto his daughter Leah Zilpah his maid for an handmaid. 25And it came to pass, that in the morning, behold, it was Leah: and he said to Laban, What is this thou hast done unto me? did not I serve with thee for Rachel? wherefore then hast thou beguiled me? 26And Laban said, It must not be so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn.  27Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years. 28And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week: and he gave him Rachel his daughter to wife also. 29And Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah his handmaid to be her maid. 30And he went in also unto Rachel, and he loved also Rachel more than Leah, and served with him yet seven other years.

*** 31And when the LORD saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb: but Rachel was barren. 32And Leah conceived, and bare a son, and she called his name Reuben: for she said, Surely the LORD hath looked upon my affliction; now therefore my husband will love me.  33And she conceived again, and bare a son; and said, Because the LORD hath heard that I was hated, he hath therefore given me this son also: and she called his name Simeon.  34And she conceived again, and bare a son; and said, Now this time will my husband be joined unto me, because I have born him three sons: therefore was his name called Levi.  35And she conceived again, and bare a son: and she said, Now will I praise the LORD: therefore she called his name Judah; and left bearing.

    

Intro:  1. Lining up four young men and sending the forth one instead of the

               first.

           2. How do you feel when you are next in line and the attendant

               chooses someone else.  That’s exactly what God did to Israel in

               choosing Judah.

Proposition:   Why Did God Choose Judah

 

God is always on the side of the oppressed.

Everything went wrong for Leah

1.     She ugly – Tender eyed.  No one loved her, her father had to force her on to someone that was upset

2.     Her husband marry someone else on their honeymoon.

3.     She was hated by the only person in the world that she wanted to please.

4.     She did her very best to please her husband, but he completely ignore her.

5.     she was completely helpless.  There nothing she could do about her situation.

 

 

After 4 sons, a lot of pain and rejection, she finally realized something.  Stop trying to please man.  Start trying to please God.  God was all that she had.

 

REUBEN [ROO ben] (behold a son) — the firstborn son of Jacob, born to Leah in Padan Aram (Gen. 29:31–32; 35:23)    Reuben’s early childhood is his gathering of mandrakes for his mother (Gen. 30:14).  Reuben who advised his brothers not to kill their younger brother.  Gen 37: 22And Reuben said unto them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again. Reuben offered his own two sons as a guarantee that he would personally tend to the safety of Benjamin

 

SIMEON [SIM ih un] ([God] hears)

1. The second son of Jacob and Leah (Gen. 29:33). He and his brother Levi tricked the Hivites of Shechem and massacred all the males because one of them had raped Dinah, their sister (Gen. 34:2, 25, 30). Simeon was the brother whom Joseph kept as security when he allowed his brothers to leave Egypt and return to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan (Gen. 42:24).

LEVI [LEE vigh] (joined) — the name of four men and one tribe in the Bible:

1. The third son of Jacob and Leah (Gen. 29:34). His three sons were ancestors of the three main divisions of the Levitical priesthood:

 

JUDAH [JOO duh] (praise)

1. The fourth son of Jacob and Leah and the founder of the family out of which the messianic line came (Gen. 29:35; Num. 26:19–21; Matt. 1:2).

Judah was one of the most prominent of the 12 sons of Jacob. He saved Joseph’s life by suggesting that his brothers sell Joseph to Ishmaelite merchants rather than kill him (Gen. 37:26–28). In Egypt it was Judah who begged Joseph to detain him rather than Benjamin, Jacob’s beloved son. In an eloquent speech Judah confessed what he and his brothers had done to Joseph; shortly thereafter, Joseph identified himself to his brothers (Gen. 44:14–45:1).

It appears that Judah was the leader of Jacob’s sons who remained at home. Even though he was not the oldest son, Judah was sent by Jacob to precede him to Egypt (Gen.

 

Gen 37:26 And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood? 27Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmeelites, and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother and our flesh. And his brethren were content.

 

 

What is our purpose for being here.

Ecc. 12: 13Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.  14For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.

 

How can I please God. 

1.  Not by good works of righteounesses.    Isa. 64: 6But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

 

Pr. 16: 7When a man’s ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.

 

BY PRAISING HIM.

Our praise toward God is the means by which we express our joy to the Lord. We are to praise God both for who He is and for what He does (Ps. 150:2). Praising God for who He is is called adoration; praising Him for what He does is known as thanksgiving. Praise of God may be in song or prayer, individually or collectively, spontaneous or prearranged, originating from the emotions or from the will.

The godly person will echo David’s words, “My praise shall be continually of You . . . And [I] will praise You yet more and more” (Ps. 71:6, 14).

A. Objects of:

God Himself         Ps. 139:14

God’s:

Name 1 Chr. 29:13;

Ps. 99:3 Let them praise thy great and terrible name; for it is holy.

 

Power  Ps. 21:13

13Be thou exalted, LORD, in thine own strength: so will we sing and praise thy power.

 

Wonders     Ps. 89:5

 

Loving-kindness   Ps. 138:2

1 I will praise thee with my whole heart: before the gods will I sing praise unto thee. 2I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.

 

Works         Ps. 145:4

B. Times of:

Daily Ps. 72:15

 

Continually Ps. 71:6

6By thee have I been holden up from the womb: thou art he that took me out of my mother’s bowels: my praise shall be continually of thee. 7I am as a wonder unto many; but thou art my strong refuge. 8Let my mouth be filled with thy praise and with thy honour all the day.

 

Seven times daily                                     Ps. 119:164

164Seven times a day do I praise thee because of thy righteous judgments.

 

All the day                                               Ps. 35:28

28And my tongue shall speak of thy righteousness and of thy praise all the day long.

 

At midnight                                              Ps. 119:62; Acts 16:25

25And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. 26And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed.

 

While I live                                               Ps. 146:2

1Praise ye the LORD. Praise the LORD, O my soul.  2While I live will I praise the LORD: I will sing praises unto my God while I have any being. 3Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help.

 

Ps 34: Psalm 34

A Psalm of David, when he changed his behaviour before Abimelech; who drove him away, and he departed.

1 I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.  2My soul shall make her boast in the LORD: the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad. 3O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together. 4I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. 5They looked unto him, and were lightened: and their faces were not ashamed.  6This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. 7The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them. 8O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.

 

Judah Shall go in first.

Judges 20:18And the children of Israel arose, and went up to the house of God, and asked counsel of God, and said, Which of us shall go up first to the battle against the children of Benjamin? And the LORD said, Judah shall go up first. 19And the children of Israel rose up in the morning, and encamped against Gibeah.

 

Contempory version.

Zac 12: 7 But I will first give victory to Judah, so the kingdom of David and the city of Jerusalem in all of their glory won’t be thought of more highly than Judah itself. 8 I, the Lord God, will protect Jerusalem. Even the weakest person there will be as strong as David, and David’s kingdom will rule as though my very own angel were its leader. 9 I am determined to wipe out every nation that attacks Jerusalem.

 

7The LORD also shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem do not magnify themselves against Judah. 8In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them.

 

conclusion:   Why Did God Choose Judah.   -    Because of praises.

                       This is the same reason why God will choose you first.