Charles Ellicott Commentary Genesis 49:8

"Judah, thee shall thy brethren praise: Thy hand shall be on the neck of thine enemies; Thy father`s sons shall bow down before thee." — Genesis 49:8 (ASV)

Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise. —Judah had received his name, Praise, because at his birth Leah had praised Jehovah (Genesis 29:35). It is now to have another justification in the noble history of his lineage, which, taking the foremost place because of the disqualification of Reuben, Simeon, and Levi, was finally destined to win freedom and empire for Israel. We have seen that “the excellency of power” ought to have belonged to Reuben; it now falls to Judah’s lot, is to be attained by exploits that shall deserve the praise of all the tribes, and is to be exercised over not only the descendants of Leah, but all Jacob’s children.