English: It is written “And he said to teach the children of Yehudah the bow; behold it is written in the book of the upright.” What is the book of the upright? R’ Yochanan said: This is the book of Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov who were called upright \ldots And where is it alluded to? “Yehudah, thee shall thy brethren praise; thy hand shall be on the neck of thine enemies” — and which warfare requires the hand opposite the neck? One must say: this is the bow.
On the daf / in context: The verse in Shmuel that speaks of teaching Yehudah the bow is located in the “book of the upright,” which is identified with the Torah of the patriarchs; the allusion is found in the present blessing.
Type of Learning
Derash identifying the scriptural source of the martial skill of Yehudah.
What Is Learned
The skill of the bow among the sons of Yehudah is already hinted at in Yaakov’s blessing “thy hand shall be on the neck of thine enemies.”