Jacob's blessing, Genesis 49

"You, O Judah,
your brother shall praise;
Your hand shall be on the nape of your foes
Your father's sons shall bow low to you.

Judah is a young lion;
On prey, my son, have you grown.

He crouches, lies down like a lion,
Like the King of Beasts - who dare rouse him?

The scepter shall not depart from Judah,
Nor the ruler's staff from between his feet;

So that tribute shall come to him
And the homage of peoples be his.

He tethers his donkey to a vine,
his ass-foal to a choicest vine;

He washes his garments in wine,
His robe in the blood of grapes.

His eyes are darker than wine
And his teeth are whiter than milk.

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Mose's blessing, Deuteronomy 33,

And this He said of Judah:
Hear O LORD, the voice of Judah,
And restore him to his people.
Though his own hands strive for him,
Help him against his foes.

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Midrash Rabbah Bamidbar 2

His gem was red garnet (NOFEKH),
his flag was sky-blue,
with a lion on it.

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Judah
Judah is the fourth son of Leah. The episode of the "Selling of Joseph" is the first time Judah reveals his leadership, by preventing the killing of the brother by brothers. This leadership is opposed to the impotence of Reuben the firstborn, and the "Leader by birth". We see Judah's fitness for kingship during the quest to Egypt. It becomes clear to Jacob, that In the future, Judah will father the Kingdom of David.

The tribe of Judah (together with the remnant of Simeon, dissolved among them) gained a southern part of the Land of Israel. This area was disconnected of the rest of the tribes by a strip of an unconquerred territory inhabited by hostile peoples. The City of Jerusalem lied at the heart of that territory. The Blessing of Moses means: Let Judah be reunited with the rest of the tribes, when Jerusalem is liberated and made Israeli for ever.

This tribe produced many prominent leaders, kings and prophets. Kaleb, Joshua's companion during the Conquest period, was Judean. King David and his dynasty are Judeans.

The red background of the window refers undoubtly to the wine image in the Jacob's blessing. But it also may be connected to the Royal purple garment. The significance of the Crown in the top is obvious. So is the Lion at the bottom. The Hands remind us of the verse "Though his own hands strive for him", and "Your hand shall be on the nape of your foes" . Simultaneously, the two hands are raised in the manner of the priestly blessing.

Behind the Lion there is the city of Jerusalem.

Chagall signed this Window in Hebrew.