Testament of Judah 1

1The Testament of Judah, the fourth son of Jacob and Leah. A copy of the words of Judah, which he spoke to his sons before he died.

2So they gathered and came to him, and he said to them:

3“Hear, my children, Judah your father. I was born the fourth son to my father Jacob, and Leah my mother named me Judah, saying, ‘I give praise to the Lord, because he has given me also a fourth son.’

4I was keen in my youth, and I obeyed my father in every matter.

5And I honored my mother and my mother’s sister.

6And when I had grown up, my father prayed for me, saying, ‘You shall be a king, prospering in all things.’