"Reuben, Simeon - all the tribes were named after their redemption. Reuben after the verse, 'I have seen the affliction of my people' (Exodus 3:7); Simeon after the verse, 'And God heard their groaning' (Exodus 2:24); Levi after the verse, 'And many nations will be joined to the Lord' (Zechariah 2:15); Judah after the verse, 'And you shall say on that day, I will give thanks to you, Lord' (Isaiah 12:1); Issachar after the verse, 'Because there was a reward for your work' (Jeremiah 31:16); Zebulun after the verse, 'And built a city called Zebulun' (1 Chronicles 8:13); Dan after the verse, 'And also the nation that they will serve will judge' (Genesis 15:14); Naphtali after the verse, 'And your speech is sweet' (Song of Songs 4:11); Gad after the verse, 'And the manna was like coriander seed' (Numbers 11:7); Asher after the verse, 'And all the nations will call you blessed' (Malachi 3:12); Joseph after the verse, 'And it shall come to pass on that day that God will again stretch forth His hand to acquire the remnant of His people' (Isaiah 11:11); Benjamin after the verse, 'The Lord has sworn by His right hand and by the arm of His strength' (Isaiah 62:8).

This teaches us that all the tribes were named after their redemption. And why aren't their names equal in every place? Because one is placed before the other so that the children of the noble families do not say that they come first and the children of the servant families come last, and so that they do not boast to themselves. Therefore, they are arranged in a certain order to teach you that all the sons of Jacob are equal, that none of them are greater than the others."