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so that from all these things it is established, that the oracle which says "a ruler shall not fail from Judah, nor a leader from his loins," does not refer to that first man Judah, nor to his successors. But the matters concerning this passage would only stand, if we should understand these things to be said about the whole tribe, in accordance with what we have demonstrated before; 8.1.33 For this tribe indeed, from the very beginning, from the very times of Moses, has led the whole nation. Accordingly, due to its preeminence, as having been appointed from the beginning by God to lead, both the country is still called Judaea after the tribe and their whole system is called that of the Jews. Thus, therefore, we should understand what is said, as if it said more clearly: "The tribe of Judah, leading the whole nation, shall not fail." 8.1.34 Indeed, Symmachus says, "authority shall not be taken away from Judah," representing surely the authoritative and ruling dignity of the tribe of Judah which came into being after these things. It prophesies that neither its "scepter," as Aquila says (and this was a symbol of royal rule), nor its "authority," according to Symmachus, shall be taken away, "until he comes," it says, "for whom it is reserved," and that he himself will be the expectation of the nations. 8.1.35 What expectation is this other than the one prophesied of old to Abraham and the forefathers after him? First, then, it is worthy of wonder how, though there are twelve tribes among the Hebrews, the name of the nation is proclaimed even until now from no other tribe than Judah alone; for no other reason than because of the prophetic oracle which attached the ruling dignity to the tribe of Judah. 8.1.36 But it also happens that their ancestral land is called Judaea for the same reason. For why was their nation not named after the first of the twelve, I mean, from Reuben, even though the first-born are honored in the divine law? And why not from that of Levi, who surpassed Judah both in time and in the honor of the priesthood? And why did the whole nation and the land not rather happen to be named from Joseph, since he long ago assumed power not only over all of Egypt but also over his own people, and since those who came from him, long ages later, for a very long time led all nine tribes of the nation, on whose account it was more likely that the whole nation and the land would bear the name of their forefather? And who would not agree that, beyond all these, they might have reasonably taken their name from Benjamin, since their famous royal metropolis and on it the most holy temple of God were allotted to his tribe? But nevertheless, not from these nor from any other than from the tribe of Judah alone has the name of the land and of the whole nation been distinguished, in accordance with the prophecy. 8.1.37 Thus indeed the "a ruler shall not fail from Judah" has been referred by us to the tribe, and only thus has the prediction been truly fulfilled. At any rate, from the times of Moses onward, particular rulers from different tribes, as I said, did not cease to lead, but the tribe of Judah was presiding over the whole nation. 8.1.38 But you might accept what has been said by an example. For just as in the Roman empire, the procurators and governors over nations, the prefects and generals, and the kings highest of all, do not all come from the city of Rome, nor from the seed of Romus and Romulus, but from countless other nations, one from here, another from there, yet all the kings and the rulers and governors after them bear the Roman name, and the power is named that of the Romans, and the universal rule of all is attached to this name; in the same way one must also understand the affairs of the Hebrews, while the one tribe of Judah was universally celebrated over the whole nation, the particular governors and kings were established from different tribes, but were honored with the universal name of Judah. Let it be said, therefore, as to the whole

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ὥστε ἐξ ἁπάντων τούτων παρίστασθαι, μὴ ἐπὶ τὸν πρῶτον ἐκεῖνον ἄνδρα τὸν Ἰούδαν μηδὲ ἐπὶ τοὺς διαδόχους αὐτοῦ ἀναφέρεσθαι τὸ φάσκον λόγιον «οὐκ ἐκλείψει ἄρχων ἐξ Ἰούδα, οὐδὲ ἡγούμενος ἐκ τῶν μηρῶν αὐτοῦ». μόνως δ' ἂν συσταίη τὰ κατὰ τὸν τόπον, εἰ κατὰ τὰ πρόσθεν ἡμῖν ἀποδεδομένα περὶ τῆς φυλῆς ἁπάσης λέγεσθαι ταῦτα νοήσαιμεν· 8.1.33 αὕτη γοῦν ἐξ ἀρχῆθεν, ἐξ αὐτῶν τῶν κατὰ Μωσέα χρόνων, τοῦ παντὸς ἔθνους ἡγήσατο. κατὰ γοῦν τὴν ταύτης ἐπικράτειαν, ὡς ἂν ἀρχῆθεν ἡγεῖσθαι προκεχειρισμένης ὑπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ, Ἰουδαία τε εἰσέτι νῦν ἀπὸ τῆς φυλῆς ἥ τε χώρα ἐπικέκληται καὶ τὸ πᾶν αὐτῶν σύστημα Ἰουδαίων προσαγορεύεται. οὕτω τοίνυν νοήσαιμεν τὸ λεγόμενον, ὡς εἰ σαφέστερον ἔλεγεν· «οὐκ ἐκλείψει» τοῦ παντὸς ἔθνους ἡγουμένη ἡ τοῦ Ἰούδα φυλή. 8.1.34 ὁ γοῦν Σύμμαχος, «οὐ περιαιρεθήσεται», φησίν, «ἐξουσία ἀπὸ Ἰούδα», τὸ ἐξουσιαστικὸν δήπου καὶ ἀρχικὸν ἀξίωμα τῆς μετὰ ταῦτα ὑποστάσης τοῦ Ἰούδα φυλῆς παριστάς. ταύτης γοῦν οὔτε τὸ «σκῆπτρον», ὡς ὁ Ἀκύλας φησίν βασιλικῆς δὲ τοῦτο σύμβολον ἦν ἀρχῆς, οὔτε τὴν «ἐξουσίαν», κατὰ τὸν Σύμμαχον, περιαιρεθήσεσθαι θεσπίζει, «ἕως ἂν ἔλθῃ», φησίν, «ᾧ ἀπόκειται», καὶ αὐτὸν ἔσεσθαι τῶν ἐθνῶν προσδοκίαν. 8.1.35 ποίαν ταύτην προσδοκίαν ἢ τὴν πάλαι τῷ Ἀβραὰμ καὶ τοῖς μετ' αὐτὸν προπάτορσι κεχρηματισμένην; Πρῶτον μὲν οὖν θαυμάζειν ἄξιον ὅπως δώδεκα οὐσῶν τῶν παρ' Ἑβραίοις φυλῶν ἐξ οὐδεμιᾶς ἄλλης ἢ ἀπὸ μόνης τῆς Ἰούδα ἡ τοῦ ἔθνους εἰσέτι νῦν ἀνηγόρευται προσηγορία· οὐ δι' ἕτερον ἢ διὰ τὸ τῆς προφητείας λόγιον τῇ τοῦ Ἰούδα φυλῇ τὸ ἀρχικὸν περιάψαν ἀξίωμα. 8.1.36 ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν πάτριον αὐτῶν χώραν Ἰουδαίαν διὰ τὴν αὐτὴν ἀποκαλεῖσθαι συμβαίνει αἰτίαν, ἐπεὶ διὰ τί μὴ ἀπὸ τοῦ πρώτου τῶν δώδεκα, λέγω δὲ ἀπὸ τοῦ Ῥουβείμ, τὸ ἔθνος αὐτῶν ἐχρημάτισεν, καίτοι παρὰ τῷ θείῳ νόμῳ τῶν πρωτοτόκων τετιμημένων; διὰ τί δὲ μὴ ἀπὸ τῆς τοῦ Λευί, ὁμοῦ καὶ τῷ χρόνῳ καὶ τῷ τῆς ἱερωσύνης τιμήματι τὸν Ἰούδαν παρεξάγοντος; τί δὲ οὐχὶ μᾶλλον ἀπὸ τοῦ Ἰωσὴφ χρηματίσαι συνέβη τὸ πᾶν ἔθνος καὶ τὴν χώραν, διὰ τὸ καὶ πάλαι πάσης οὐ μόνον Αἰγύπτου ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν οἰκείων τὸ κράτος ἀνάψασθαι τοῦτον, τούς τε ἐξ αὐτοῦ γενομένους μακροῖς ὕστερον χρόνοις ἐπὶ πλεῖστον ὅσον ὅλων ἐννέα φυλῶν τοῦ ἔθνους ἡγήσασθαι, δι' οὓς καὶ μᾶλλον εἰκὸς ἦν τὴν τοῦ προπάτορος ἐπωνυμίαν τὸ πᾶν ἔθνος καὶ τὴν χώραν ἐπιγράψασθαι; τίς δ' οὐκ ἂν ὁμολογήσαι παρὰ τούτους ἅπαντας εὐλόγως ἂν ἐκ τοῦ Βενιαμὶν τὴν ἐπωνυμίαν αὐτοὺς λαβεῖν, ἐπειδήπερ τῇ τούτου φυλῇ ἡ περιβόητος αὐτῶν βασιλικὴ μητρόπολις ὅ τε ἐπὶ ταύτης ἁγιώτατος τοῦ θεοῦ νεὼς κεκλήρωτο; ἀλλ' ὅμως οὐδ' ἐκ τούτων οὐδ' ἐξ ἑτέρας ἢ μόνης ἐκ τῆς Ἰούδα φυλῆς ἡ τῆς χώρας καὶ τοῦ παντὸς ἔθνους προσηγορία διέπρεψεν, τῇ προφητείᾳ ἀκολούθως. 8.1.37 οὕτω γέ τοι τὸ «οὐκ ἐκλείψει ἄρχων ἐξ Ἰούδα» ἐπὶ τὴν φυλὴν ἡμῖν ἀνενήνεκται, καὶ μόνως οὕτως ἀληθῶς ἡ πρόρρησις ἀποδέδοται. ἀπὸ γοῦν τῶν Μωσέως χρόνων καθεξῆς οὐ διέλιπον μερικοὶ μὲν αὐτῶν ἄρχοντες ἐκ διαφόρων, ὡς ἔφην, φυλῶν ἡγησάμενοι, καθόλου δὲ ἡ τοῦ Ἰούδα φυλὴ παντὸς προεστῶσα τοῦ ἔθνους. 8.1.38 παραδείγματι δὲ καταδέξῃ τὸ εἰρημένον. ὡς γὰρ ἐπὶ τῆς Ῥωμαίων ἀρχῆς οἱ μὲν κατ' ἔθνος ἐπίτροποί τε καὶ ἡγούμενοι, ἔπαρχοί τε καὶ στρατοπεδάρχαι, οἵ τε πάντων ἀνωτάτω βασιλεῖς, οὐ πάντες ἐκ τῆς Ῥωμαίων ὁρμῶνται πόλεως, οὐδ' ἀπὸ τῆς Ῥώμου καὶ Ῥωμύλλου σπορᾶς, ἀλλ' ἐκ μυρίων ἄλλος ἄλλοθεν ἐθνῶν, ὅμως δὲ οἱ πάντες βασιλεῖς τε καὶ οἱ μετ' αὐτοὺς ἄρχοντες καὶ ἡγούμενοι τὴν Ῥωμαίων ἐπιγράφονται προσηγορίαν, Ῥωμαίων τε τὸ κράτος ἐπωνόμασται, καὶ ταύτης ἐξῆπται τῆς ἐπωνυμίας ἡ καθόλου πάντων ἀρχή· τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν καθ' Ἑβραίους χρὴ νοεῖν πραγμάτων, μιᾶς μὲν καθόλου τῆς τοῦ Ἰούδα φυλῆς κατὰ τοῦ παντὸς ἔθνους ἐπιπεφημισμένης, τῶν δὲ κατὰ μέρος ἡγουμένων τε καὶ βασιλέων ἐκ διαφόρων καθισταμένων φυλῶν καθόλου δὲ τῇ τοῦ Ἰούδα τιμωμένων προσηγορίᾳ. λεγέσθω τοίνυν ὡς πρὸς τὴν ὅλην