“Therefore I will give thanks to you, O LORD, among the nations; I will sing praises to your name.” – 2 Samuel 22:50
Leah’s pivot – “This time I will thank the LORD” (Gen 29:35) – names a son Judah (from yādāh: thank/praise). Years later Jacob speaks that root-word over him: “Your brothers shall praise/thank you” (Gen 49:8). Gratitude moves from one mother’s vow to a tribe’s identity.
From Judah to David is eleven generations (ten from Perez to David; Ruth 4:18–22), and when David arrives, thanksgiving doesn’t stay private – it scales.
David, a son of Judah, makes thanks the nation’s language. Personally, he vows, “I will give thanks… among the nations” (2 Sam 22:50 // Ps 18:49).
Publicly, he institutes thanksgiving – appointing Levites “to give thanks and to praise” (1 Chr 16:4, 7; 23:30; 25:3).
Liturgically, he hands Israel a refrain: “Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His steadfast love endures forever” (1 Chr 16:34; cf. Ps 106; 107; 118; 136).
What began as Leah’s “this time” becomes David’s at all times – from tent to temple, from Israel to the nations.
Thanksgiving is not garnish in David’s kingdom; it is governance.
It gathers tribes, steadies leaders (Judah’s scepter, Gen 49:10), and turns victories into worship rather than self-promotion. Under Judah’s banner, gratitude goes first – and everything else falls in line.
What if we said – “Let thanksgiving lead.”
Let’s pray:
Father, thank You for Leah’s this time, Jacob’s blessing, and David’s songs. Let thanksgiving lead my life – shaping my words, ordering my work, and witnessing to Your steadfast love. Let Judah go first – let thanksgiving lead. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
