The Placement of Israel’s Tribes 2:3 On the east side … Judah. Judah occupied the place of honor to the E. Genesis 49:8–12 highlights the role and centrality Judah would have in the defeat of Israel’s enemies. Judah was the tribe through which the Messiah would be born. Nahshon. Nahshon appears in the later genealogies of the messianic line (cf. Ruth 4:20; Matt. 1:4). 2:14 Reuel. See marginal note. The letters R and D are similar in Heb. and were easily confused by the scribes who copied the text.