Jacob's blessing over Judah in Genesis 49:10 associates Judah with enduring rule and anticipates a future figure to whom the peoples will give obedience. The verse has a difficult textual history, and interpretations of the term traditionally rendered "Shiloh" vary. Nevertheless, the passage clearly gives Judah a special royal significance and became important in Jewish and Christian expectations concerning a ruler from Judah.

Luke 2:1-7 places Jesus' birth within a definite historical moment under Roman rule, while Galatians 4:4 says that God sent His Son "when the fullness of time had come." These passages support the Christian conviction that the Messiah appeared at God's appointed time. Genesis 49:10 should not be used to calculate an exact date for Christ's birth, but it contributes to the expectation that a ruler associated with Judah would arise within history. The New Testament identifies Jesus, born from Judah's line, as that promised royal Messiah.