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The Descendants of Issachar
1The sons of Issachar:
Tola, Puah,a Jashub, and Shimron—four in all.
2The sons of Tola:
Uzzi, Rephaiah, Jeriel, Jahmai, Ibsam, and Shemuel, the heads of their families. In the days of David, 22,600 descendants of Tola were numbered in their genealogies as mighty men of valor.
Izrahiah.
The sons of Izrahiah:
Michael, Obadiah, Joel, and Isshiah. All five of them were chiefs. 4In addition to them, according to their genealogy, they had 36,000 troops for battle, for they had many wives and children.
5Their kinsmen belonging to all the families of Issachar who were mighty men of valor totaled 87,000, as listed in their genealogies.
The Descendants of Benjamin
6The three sons of Benjamin:
Bela, Becher, and Jediael.
7The sons of Bela:
Ezbon, Uzzi, Uzziel, Jerimoth, and Iri, heads of their families—five in all. There were 22,034 mighty men of valor listed in their genealogies.
8The sons of Becher:
Zemirah, Joash, Eliezer, Elioenai, Omri, Jeremoth, Abijah, Anathoth, and Alemeth; all these were Becher’s sons. 9Their genealogies were recorded according to the heads of their families—20,200 mighty men of valor.
10The son of Jediael:
Bilhan.
The sons of Bilhan:
Jeush, Benjamin, Ehud, Chenaanah, Zethan, Tarshish, and Ahishahar. 11All these sons of Jediael were heads of their families, mighty men of valor; there were 17,200 fit for battle. 12The Shuppites and Huppites were descendants of Ir, and the Hushites were descendants of Aher.
The Descendants of Naphtali
13The sons of Naphtali:
Jahziel,c Guni, Jezer, and Shallumd —the descendants of Bilhah.
The Descendants of Manasseh
14The descendants of Manasseh:
Through his Aramean concubine, Asriel, as well as Machir the father of Gilead.
15Machir took a wife from among the Huppites and Shuppites. The name of his sister was Maacah.
Another descendant was named Zelophehad, who had only daughters.
16Machir’s wife Maacah gave birth to a son, and she named him Peresh. His brother was named Sheresh, and his sons were Ulam and Rekem.
17The son of Ulam:
Bedan.
These were the sons of Gilead son of Machir, the son of Manasseh. 18His sister Hammolecheth gave birth to Ishhod, Abiezer, and Mahlah.
19And these were the sons of Shemida:
Ahian, Shechem, Likhi, and Aniam.
The Descendants of Ephraim
20The descendants of Ephraim:
Shuthelah, Bered his son, Tahath his son, Eleadah his son, Tahath his son, 21Zabad his son, and Shuthelah his son.
Ezer and Elead were killed by the natives of Gath, because they went down to steal their livestock.
22Their father Ephraim mourned for many days, and his relatives came to comfort him. 23And again he slept with his wife, and she conceived and gave birth to a son. So he named him Beriah,e because tragedy had come upon his house. 24His daughter was Sheerah, who built Lower and Upper Beth-horon, as well as Uzzen-sheerah.
25Additionally, Rephah was his son, Resheph his son,f Telah his son, Tahan his son, 26Ladan his son, Ammihud his son, Elishama his son, 27Nung his son, and Joshua his son.
28Their holdings and settlements included Bethel and its villages, Naaran to the east, Gezer and its villages to the west, and Shechem and its villages as far as Ayyahh and its villages. 29And along the borders of Manasseh were Beth-shean,i Taanach, Megiddo, and Dor, together with their villages. The descendants of Joseph son of Israel lived in these towns.
The Descendants of Asher
30The children of Asher:
Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, Beriah, and their sister Serah.
31The sons of Beriah:
Heber, as well as Malchiel, who was the father of Birzaith.
32Heber was the father of Japhlet, Shomer, and Hotham, and of their sister Shua.
33The sons of Japhlet:
Pasach, Bimhal, and Ashvath. These were Japhlet’s sons.
34The sons of Shemer:
Ahi, Rohgah,j Hubbah, and Aram.
35The sons of his brother Helem:k
Zophah, Imna, Shelesh, and Amal.
36The sons of Zophah:
Suah, Harnepher, Shual, Beri, Imrah, 37Bezer, Hod, Shamma, Shilshah, Ithran,l and Beera.
38The sons of Jether:
Jephunneh, Pispa, and Ara.
39The sons of Ulla:
Arah, Hanniel, and Rizia.
40All these were the descendants of Asher—heads of their families, choice and mighty men of valor, and chiefs among the leaders. The number of men fit for battle, recorded in their genealogies, was 26,000.
Footnotes:
1 aPuah is a variant of Puvah; see Genesis 46:13 and Numbers 26:23.
3 bHebrew sons; also in verses 10 and 17
13 cJahziel is a variant of Jahzeel; see Genesis 46:24.
13 dMost Hebrew manuscripts; some Hebrew and LXX manuscripts Shillem; see Genesis 46:24 and Numbers 26:49.
23 eBeriah sounds like the Hebrew for tragedy or disaster.
25 fSome LXX manuscripts; Hebrew does not include his son.
27 gOr Non
28 hAyyah is another name for Gaza; see also LXX.
29 iBeth-shean is a variant of Beth-shan; see 1 Samuel 31:10 and 2 Samuel 21:12.
34 jOr The sons of his brother Shemer: Rohgah; note that Shemer is a variant of Shomer; see verse 32.
35 kHelem is possibly another name for Hotham; see verse 32.
37 lIthran is possibly a variant of Jether; see verse 38.
- Adam Clarke
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
- John Gill
- Keil-Delitzsch
- Matthew Henry
- Tyndale
Introduction
The genealogy of Issachar, Ch1 7:1-5. Of Benjamin, Ch1 7:6-12. Of Naphtali, Ch1 7:13. Of Manasseh, Ch1 7:14-19. Of Ephraim, Ch1 7:20-29. And of Asher, Ch1 7:30-40.
Verse 2
Whose number was in the days of David - Whether this was the number returned by Joab and his assistants, when they made that census of the people with which God was so much displeased, we know not. It is worthy of remark that we read here the sum of three tribes, Benjamin, Issachar, and Asher, under the reign of David, which is mentioned nowhere else; and yet we have no account here of the other tribes, probably because the author found no public registers in which such enumeration was recorded.
Verse 3
The sons of Izrahiah - five - There are, however, only four names in the text. Instead of five, the Syriac and Arabic read four. If five be the true reading, then Izrahiah must be reckoned with his four sons.
Verse 6
The sons of Benjamin; Bela, and Becher and Jediael - In Gen 46:21, ten sons of Benjamin are reckoned; viz., Bela, Becher, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, Eri, Rosh, Muppim, Huppim, and Ard. In Num 26:38, etc., five sons only of Benjamin are mentioned, Bela, Ashbel, Ahiram, Shupham, and Hupham: and Ard and Naaman are there said to be the sons of Bela; consequently grandsons of Benjamin. In the beginning of the following chapter, five sons of Benjamin are mentioned, viz., Bela, Ashbel, Aharah, Nohah, and Rapha; where also Addar, Gera, Abihud, Abishua, Naaman, Ahoah, a second Gera, Shephuphan, and Huram, are all represented as grandsons, not sons, of Benjamin: hence we see that in many cases grandsons are called sons, and both are often confounded in the genealogical tables. To attempt to reconcile such discrepancies would be a task as endless as it would be useless. The rabbins say that Ezra, who wrote this book, did not know whether some of these were sons or grandsons; and they intimate also that the tables from which he copied were often defective, and here we must leave all such matters.
Verse 21
Whom the men of Gath - slew - We know nothing of this circumstance but what is related here. The Targum paraphrases the whole thus: "These were the leaders of the house of Ephraim; and they computed their period [or boundary, כיצא kitsa] from the time in which the Word of the Lord of the universe spake with Abraham between the divisions, [i.e., the separated parts of the covenant sacrifice; see Gen 15:9-21], but they erred, for they should have counted from the time in which Isaac was born; they went out of Egypt therefore thirty years before the period: for, thirty years before the birth of Isaac the Word of the Lord of the universe spake with Abraham between the divisions. And when they went out of Egypt, there were with them two hundred thousand warriors of the tribe of Ephraim, whom the men of Gath, the natives of the land of the Philistines, slew, because they came down that they might carry away their cattle. 22. - And Ephraim their father mourned for them many days, and all his brethren came to comfort him. 23. - And he went in to his wife, and she conceived and bare a son, and called his name Beriah, (בריעה in evil), because he was born in the time in which this evil happened to his house.
Verse 24
His daughter was Sherah - That is, remnant; "called so," says the Targum, "because she was the remnant that escaped from the slaughter mentioned above."
Verse 32
And Shua their sister - It is very rarely that women are found in the Jewish genealogies, and they are never inserted but for especial reasons.
Verse 40
The children of Asher - The rabbins say that the daughters of Asher were very beautiful, and were all matched with kings or priests. Several things relative to the subjects in this chapter may be found explained in the parallel places marked in the margin.
Introduction
SONS OF ISSACHAR. (Ch1 7:1-5) Jashub--or Job (Gen 46:13).
Verse 2
whose number was in the days of David two and twenty thousand and six hundred--Although a census was taken in the reign of David by order of that monarch, it is not certain that the sacred historian had it in mind, since we find here the tribe of Benjamin enumerated [Ch1 7:6-12], which was not taken in David's time; and there are other points of dissimilarity.
Verse 3
five: all of them chief men--Four only are mentioned; so that as they are stated to be five, in this number the father, Izrahiah, must be considered as included; otherwise one of the names must have dropped out of the text. They were each at the head of a numerous and influential division of their tribe.
Verse 5
fourscore and seven thousand--exclusive of the 58,600 men which the Tola branch had produced (Ch1 7:24), so that in the days of David the tribe would have contained a population of 45,600. This large increase was owing to the practice of polygamy, as well as the fruitfulness of the women. A plurality of wives, though tolerated among the Hebrews, was confined chiefly to the great and wealthy; but it seems to have been generally esteemed a privilege by the tribe of Issachar, "for they had many wives and sons" [Ch1 7:4].
Verse 6
OF BENJAMIN. (Ch1 7:6-12) The sons of Benjamin--Ten are named in Gen 46:21, but only five later (Ch1 8:1; Num 26:38). Perhaps five of them were distinguished as chiefs of illustrious families, but two having fallen in the bloody wars waged against Benjamin (Jdg 20:46), there remained only three branches of this tribe, and these only are enumerated. Jediael--Or Asbel (Genesis 46. 21).
Verse 7
the sons of Bela--Each of them was chief or leader of the family to which he belonged. In an earlier period seven great families of Benjamin are mentioned (Num 26:38), five of them being headed by these five sons of Benjamin, and two descended from Bela. Here five families of Bela are specified, whence we are led to conclude that time or the ravages of war had greatly changed the condition of Benjamin, or that the five families of Bela were subordinate to the other great divisions that sprang directly from the five sons of the patriarch.
Verse 12
Shuppim also, and Huppim--They are called Muppim and Huppim (Gen 46:21) and Hupham and Shupham (Num 26:39). They were the children of Ir, or Iri (Ch1 7:7). and Hushim, the sons--"son." of Aher--"Aher" signifies "another," and some eminent critics, taking "Aher" as a common noun, render the passage thus, "and Hushim, another son." Shuppim, Muppim, and Hushim are plural words, and therefore denote not individuals, but the heads of their respective families; and as they were not comprised in the above enumeration (Ch1 7:7, Ch1 7:9) they are inserted here in the form of an appendix. Some render the passage, "Hushim, the son of another," that is, tribe or family. The name occurs among the sons of Dan (Gen 46:23), and it is a presumption in favor of this being the true rendering, that after having recorded the genealogy of Naphtali (Ch1 7:13) the sacred historian adds, "the sons of Bilhah, the handmaid, who was the mother of Dan and Naphtali." We naturally expect, therefore, that these two will be noticed together, but Dan is not mentioned at all, if not in this passage.
Verse 13
OF NAPHTALI. (Ch1 7:13) Shallum--or Shillem (Gen 46:24). sons of Bilhah--As Dan and Naphtali were her sons, Hushim, as well as these enumerated in Ch1 7:13, were her grandsons.
Verse 14
OF MANASSEH. (1Ch. 7:14-40) The sons of Manasseh--or descendants; for Ashriel was a grandson, and Zelophehad was a generation farther removed in descent (Num 26:33). The text, as it stands, is so confused and complicated that it is exceedingly difficult to trace the genealogical thread, and a great variety of conjectures have been made with a view to clear away the obscurity. The passage [Ch1 7:14-15] should probably be rendered thus: "The sons of Manasseh were Ashriel, whom his Syrian concubine bare to him, and Machir, the father of Gilead (whom his wife bare to him). Machir took for a wife Maachah, sister to Huppim and Shuppim."
Verse 21
whom the men of Gath . . . slew, &c.--This interesting little episode gives us a glimpse of the state of Hebrew society in Egypt; for the occurrence narrated seems to have taken place before the Israelites left that country. The patriarch Ephraim was then alive, though he must have arrived at a very advanced age; and the Hebrew people, at all events those of them who were his descendants, still retained their pastoral character. It was in perfect consistency with the ideas and habits of Oriental shepherds that they should have made a raid on the neighboring tribe of the Philistines for the purpose of plundering their flocks. For nothing is more common among them than hostile incursions on the inhabitants of towns, or on other nomad tribes with whom they have no league of amity. But a different view of the incident is brought out, if, instead of "because," we render the Hebrew particle "when" they came down to take their cattle, for the tenor of the context leads rather to the conclusion that "the men of Gath" were the aggressors, who, making a sudden foray on the Ephraimite flocks, killed the shepherds including several of the sons of Ephraim. The calamity spread a deep gloom around the tent of their aged father, and was the occasion of his receiving visits of condolence from his distant relatives, according to the custom of the East, which is remarkably exemplified in the history of Job (Job 2:11; compare Joh 11:19). Next: 1 Chronicles Chapter 8
Introduction
INTRODUCTION TO 1 CHRONICLES 7 In this chapter are given the genealogies of the tribes of Issachar, Ch1 7:1 of Benjamin, Ch1 7:6 Naphtali, Ch1 7:13, of Manasseh, Ch1 7:14 of Ephraim, Ch1 7:20 and of Asher, Ch1 7:30, even of the chief men of them; and their numbers are reckoned as in the times of David. The tribes of Dan and Zebulun are omitted.
Verse 1
Now the sons of Issachar were Tola, Puah, Jashub, and Shimron, four. The same number is given, Gen 46:13 with a small variation of two of their names, there called Phuvah and Job, from whence so many families sprang, mentioned Num 26:23, where the names are the same as here. , where the names are the same as here. 1 Chronicles 7:2 ch1 7:2 ch1 7:2 ch1 7:2And the sons of Tola,.... The eldest son of Issachar, whose posterity are only reckoned by name: Uzzi, and Rephaiah, and Jeriel, and Jahmai, and Jibsam, and Shemuel, heads of their father's house, to wit, of Tola; the principal man of his family: they were valiant men of might in their generations, famous for their courage and military exploits, though they sprang from Tola, whose name signifies "a worm"; and which name Bochart (k) conjectures was given him by his parents, because he was so weakly that they had no hopes of raising him; and yet from him sprung such mighty men, and from them such a numerous race, as follows: whose number was, in the days of David, two and twenty thousand and six hundred; besides those of the posterity of Uzzi, after mentioned. This was at the time Joab took the number of Israel, by the order of David, Ch1 21:5. (k) Hierozoic. par. 2. l. 4. c. 21. col. 630.
Verse 2
And the sons of Uzzi; Izrahiah,.... Including his posterity: and the sons of Izrahiah; Michael, and Obadiah, and Joel, Ishiah, five; together with their father, all reckoned the sons of Uzzi: all of them chief men; in their father's house, heads of families.
Verse 3
And with them, by their generations, after the house of their fathers, were bands of soldiers for war,.... Companies of men of military courage and skill, who could and did go out to war upon occasion: six and thirty thousand men; besides the 22,600 Tolaites, Ch1 7:2, for they had many wives and sons; having many wives, they had many sons; polygamy was the cause of their large numbers; and that they gave into for the sake of the multiplication of Abraham's seed, according to the divine promise.
Verse 4
And their brethren among all the families of Issachar,.... As those of Puah, Jashub, and Shimron, Ch1 7:1. were men of might; valiant and courageous: reckoned in all, by their genealogies, fourscore and seven thousand; that is, including with these those of Tola and Uzzi before given.
Verse 5
The sons of Benjamin; Bela, and Becher, and Jediael, three. Benjamin had ten sons, but three only are mentioned first; the latter of these seems to be the same with Ashbel, Gen 46:21. . 1 Chronicles 7:7 ch1 7:7 ch1 7:7 ch1 7:7And the sons of Bela; Ezbon, and Uzzi, and Uzziel, and Jerimoth, and Iri, five,.... These are thought by some to be the grandsons of Bela, because of the different names in Ch1 8:3, heads of the house of their fathers, mighty men of valour; principal men in their tribe and families, and of great courage: and were reckoned by their genealogies twenty and two thousand and thirty and four; who sprung from these men.
Verse 6
And the sons of Becher,.... Another son of Benjamin, Ch1 7:6, Zemira, and Joash, and Eliezer and Elioenai, and Omri, and Jerimoth, and Abiah, and Anathoth, and Alameth; the two last of these, according to Kimchi, gave names to two cities in Benjamin, built by them; Anathoth, the native place of Jeremiah the prophet, and Alameth, the same with Bahurim, Sa2 16:5. all these are the sons of Becher; before named.
Verse 7
And the number of them,.... Of the posterity of the sons of Becher: after their genealogy by their generations, heads of the house of their fathers, mighty men of valour; as they increased in succeeding ages, and at the time of David: was twenty thousand and two hundred.
Verse 8
The sons also of Jediael,.... The third son of Benjamin before mentioned, Ch1 7:6. Bilhan, including his posterity, as follows: and the sons of Bilhan; Jeush, and Benjamin; called so after his great grandfather: and Ehud; who was the second judge in Israel, Jdg 3:15. and Chenaanah, and Zethan, and Tharshish, and Ahishahar; of whom we nowhere else read.
Verse 9
All these the sons of Jediael, by the heads of their fathers, mighty men of valour, were seventeen thousand and two hundred soldiers, fit to go out for war and battle. Which, with the above sums put together, make of the tribe of Benjamin, besides what follow, 59,430; who, if numbered by Joab, the account was not given in by him, Ch1 21:6. . 1 Chronicles 7:12 ch1 7:12 ch1 7:12 ch1 7:12Shuppim also, and Huppim, the children of Ir,.... The same with Iri, Ch1 7:7 so that these were not sons of Benjamin, as they seem to be, if they are the same with Muppim and Huppim in Gen 46:21 but his great-grandchildren, and are the same with Shupham and Hupham, from whom families of the tribe of Benjamin sprung, Num 26:39 the Targum calls them the inhabitants of a city, but of what is not said, unless Geba should be meant, Ch1 8:6 and Hushim, the sons of Aher: either the same with Aharah, the third son of Benjamin, Ch1 8:1 or Ahiram, Num 26:38, though some read the words, "the sons of another"; whom they suppose to be Dan, who otherwise is omitted; and Hushim is the only son of Dan, Gen 46:23, where the same plural word is used as here; who, they think, is called another, by way of detestation, that tribe being guilty of gross idolatry; but he rather seems to belong to Benjamin.
Verse 10
The sons of Naphtali: Jahziel, and Guni, and Jezer, and Shallum,.... Called Shillem, Gen 46:24, the sons of Bilhah; Jacob's concubine; her grandsons; for Naphtali, the father of them, was her son; from these sprung so many families, after their names, Num 26:48.
Verse 11
The sons of Manasseh; Ashriel, whom she bare,.... The wife of Manasseh, as distinguished from his concubine in the next clause; though the Targum reads, in connection with that,"whom his Aramitess (or Syrian) concubine bare;'' and then adds: who also bare Machir the father of Gilead; so that Ashriel and Machir were brethren; from which Ashriel sprung the family of the Ashrielites, Num 26:29 as from Machir the Machirites, Num 26:29.
Verse 12
And Machir took to wife the sister of Huppim and Shuppim, whose sister's name was Maachah,.... He married into the tribe of Benjamin, a sister of the persons mentioned, Ch1 7:12 whose name was Maachah: and the name of the second was Zelophehad; the second son of Manasseh, or of his posterity mentioned; for he was not his immediate son; for he was the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, Num 27:1. and Zelophehad had daughters; but no sons, the names of his daughters are given, Num 26:33.
Verse 13
And Maachah the wife of Machir bare a son, and she called his name Peresh; and the name of his brother was Sheresh,.... He had both these sons by her: and his sons were Ulam and Rakem, that is, either the sons of Peresh or Sheresh, the nearest, as Kimchi observes.
Verse 14
And the sons of Ulam: Bedan,.... See Sa1 12:11. these were the sons of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh; that is, were of his posterity, or belonged to his family; for Ulam and Rakem were sons of a brother of Gilead, Ch1 7:16.
Verse 15
And his sister Hammoleketh,.... The sister of Gilead so named; though the Targum renders it "that reigned"; and so Kimchi, that reigned in some part of Gilead; and the Vulgate Latin version translates it, "a queen bare Ishod, and Abiezer, and Mahalah"; Abiezer is the same with Jeezer, from whom a family sprung of that name, Num 26:30, of which Gideon was, Jdg 6:11. . 1 Chronicles 7:19 ch1 7:19 ch1 7:19 ch1 7:19And the sons of Shemida,.... Another son of Gilead's sister, unless the same with Ishod; from him sprung the family of the Shemidaites, Num 26:30. were, Ahian, and Shechem, and Likhi, and Aniam; from Shechem came the family of the Shethemites, as from Likhi, if he is the same with Helek, as probably he may be, was the family of the Helekites, Num 26:30.
Verse 16
And the sons of Ephraim,.... A son of Joseph, and father of a tribe of this name, whose genealogy through five generations follows: Shuthelah, Bered, Tahath, Eladah, Tahath; the second. And the sons of Ephraim,.... A son of Joseph, and father of a tribe of this name, whose genealogy through five generations follows: Shuthelah, Bered, Tahath, Eladah, Tahath; the second. 1 Chronicles 7:21 ch1 7:21 ch1 7:21 ch1 7:21And Zabad his son,.... Not the son of Tahath the second last mentioned, but the son of Ephraim, a second son of his: and Shuthelah; his son, the son of Zabad, called after his uncle's name, Ch1 7:20. and Ezer, and Elead; two other sons of Zabad: whom the men of Gath that were born in that land slew: that is, Zabad and his three sons; these the men of Gath slew, who were Philistines that dwelt there, and were originally of Egypt, and were born in that land, but had removed into Palestine, which had its name from them, of which Gath was one of its cities; and this bordering upon the land of Goshen, or being near it, where the Israelites dwelt, they made inroads upon them, and plundered them: because they came down to take away their cattle; and the sons, the grandsons of Ephraim, resisted them, and so were slain: and that the aggressors were not the Ephraimites, who went out of Egypt before their time, and fell upon the men of Gath, born in the land of the Philistines, in order to dispossess them of their land and substance, and were slain by them, which is the sense of the Targum and other writers, both Jewish and Christian; but the men of Gath, as is clear from this circumstance, that they came down, as men did when they went from Palestine to Egypt, not when they went from Egypt to Palestine, then they "went up"; which would have been the phrase used, if this had been an expedition of the Ephraimites into Palestine; besides, it is not reasonable to think, that the Ephraimites, addicted to husbandry and cattle, and not used to war, should engage in such an enterprise; but rather the men of Gath, or the Philistines, who were a warlike people, and given to spoil and plunder; this, according to a learned chronologer (l), was seventy four years after Jacob went down to Egypt, and one hundred and forty years before the children of Israel came from thence. (l) Nic. Abrami Pharus, l. 9. c. 21. p. 242.
Verse 17
And Ephraim their father mourned many days,.... For the loss of his son and grandchildren for the above fact was done while the Israelites were in Egypt, and Ephraim the patriarch yet alive; nor is there any need to suppose another Ephraim, different from him: and his brethren came to comfort him; some of the heads of the other tribes of Israel, particularly Manasseh, with some of his family.
Verse 18
And when he went in to his wife,.... After his grief and sorrow in part at least had subsided: she conceived and bare a son; which in some measure made up for the loss he had sustained: and he called his name Beriah; which signifies being "in evil" or calamity, he being born in an evil time: because it went evil with his house; or evil was in his house, as Noldius (m), in his family; a great calamity had befallen it. (m) Ebr. Concord. Part. No. 750. p. 165.
Verse 19
And his daughter was Sherah,.... That is, the daughter of Beriah; not an immediate daughter, but a descendant of his, otherwise she could not have reached the times of Joshua, as she did by what follows: who built Bethhoron the nether, and the upper; which were cities on the border of the tribe of Ephraim; which the Israelites having taken from the Canaanites, and destroyed, she rebuilt, see Jos 16:3. and Uzzensherah; which was called after her own name, and to distinguish it from another place called Uzzen; though of neither of them do we read elsewhere.
Verse 20
And Rephah was his son,.... The son of Beriah, whose genealogy from him is traced down to Joshua in this and the two following verses, and stands thus: after Rephah, Resheph, Telah, Tahan, Laadan, Ammihud, Elishama, who was prince of the tribe of Ephraim in the wilderness, Num 1:10, then Non or Nun, whose son was Jehoshua or Joshua. , then Non or Nun, whose son was Jehoshua or Joshua. 1 Chronicles 7:28 ch1 7:28 ch1 7:28 ch1 7:28And their possessions and habitations,.... That is, of the sons of Ephraim, when come into the land of Canaan: were Bethel, and the towns thereof; the villages belonging to it, which was formerly called Luz, and was the border of Ephraim, Jos 16:7. and eastward Naaran: the same with Naarath, Jos 16:7. and westward Gezer, with the towns thereof; of which see Jos 16:3, and Shechem also, and the towns thereof; which was a city of refuge in Mount Ephraim, Jos 20:7 unto Gaza, and the towns thereof; not Gaza, a city of the Philistines, for the tribe of Ephraim did not reach so far; the Targum calls it Aiah; it may be read Adaza, as in the margin of our Bibles.
Verse 21
And by the borders of the children of Manasseh,.... Of the half tribe of Manasseh on this side Jordan: near to them the Ephraimites dwelt, even near to Bethshean and her towns, Taanach and her towns, Megiddo and her towns, Dor and her towns; of all which places see Jos 17:11, in these dwelt the children of Joseph the son of Israel; the Ephraimites, in those mentioned in Ch1 7:28, and the Manassites, in those that are here mentioned; who were both the children or posterity of Joseph, the beloved son of Israel.
Verse 22
The son of Asher,.... Which, and his two grandsons born before Jacob went down to Egypt, are here reckoned as in Gen 46:17 only it is here added Malchiel his second grandson: who is the father of Birzavith; which Jarchi interprets, prince of a city of this name, which signifies pure oil; which it might have from the abundance of olives about it, Asher being a tribe which abounded with them, see Deu 33:24 though some of the Rabbins take it to be the name of a man, whose daughters, they say, as Jarchi observes, were very beautiful, having much oil to anoint with, and were married to kings and priests anointed with oil.
Verse 23
And Heber,.... The other grandson of Asher; and son of Beriah: begat Japhlet, and Shomer, and Hotham, and Shuah their sister; a place on the borders of Ephraim is called the coast of Japhleti; but whether from this Japhlet is uncertain.
Verse 24
And the sons of Japhlet; Pasach, and Bimhal, and Ashvath; these are the children of Japhlet. Of whom we read not elsewhere, And the sons of Japhlet; Pasach, and Bimhal, and Ashvath; these are the children of Japhlet. Of whom we read not elsewhere, 1 Chronicles 7:34 ch1 7:34 ch1 7:34 ch1 7:34And the sons of Shamer,.... Or Shomer, the brother of Japhlet, Ch1 7:32. Ahi, and Rohgah, Jehubbah, and Aram; of whom nothing is known but their names.
Verse 25
And the sons of his brother Helem,.... Or Helem his brother, that is, the brother of Shomer, who, according to Hillerus (n), is Hotham, Ch1 7:32. Zophah, and Imna, and Shelesh, and Aram; nowhere else mentioned. (n) Onomastic. Sacr. p. 551.
Verse 28
And the sons of Zophah,.... The eldest of the sons of Helem: Suah, and Harnepher, and Shual, and Beri, and Imrah, Bezer; and Hod, and Shamma, and Shilshah, and Ithran, and Beera; in all eleven.
Verse 29
And the sons of Jether,.... The same with Ithran, the last of Zophah's sons but one, Ch1 7:37, Jephunneh, and Pispah, and Ara; not Jephunneh the father of Caleb; he was not of the tribe of Asher, but of Judah.
Verse 30
And the sons of Ulla,.... Who either was the son of Ara, last mentioned, or another son of Jether: Arah, and Haniel, and Rezia; here ends the genealogy of Asher; the last of the tribes; Dan and Zebulun not being reckoned at all.
Verse 32
All these were the children of Asher, heads of their father's house,.... Principal men in their tribe, and respective families: choice and mighty men of valour; these were some selected from others, being eminent for their courage and valour: chief of the princes; or chief princes; the Vulgate Latin version is, dukes of dukes, they were heads of their fathers' families: and the number throughout the genealogy that were apt to war, and to battle, was twenty and six thousand men; that is, in the days of David, Ch1 7:4, this was the number, not of their chief men, nor of all the people in the tribe, but of their militia. Next: 1 Chronicles Chapter 8
Introduction
INTRODUCTION TO 1 CHRONICLES 7 In this chapter are given the genealogies of the tribes of Issachar, Ch1 7:1 of Benjamin, Ch1 7:6 Naphtali, Ch1 7:13, of Manasseh, Ch1 7:14 of Ephraim, Ch1 7:20 and of Asher, Ch1 7:30, even of the chief men of them; and their numbers are reckoned as in the times of David. The tribes of Dan and Zebulun are omitted.
Verse 1
Now the sons of Issachar were Tola, Puah, Jashub, and Shimron, four. The same number is given, Gen 46:13 with a small variation of two of their names, there called Phuvah and Job, from whence so many families sprang, mentioned Num 26:23, where the names are the same as here. , where the names are the same as here. 1 Chronicles 7:2 ch1 7:2 ch1 7:2 ch1 7:2And the sons of Tola,.... The eldest son of Issachar, whose posterity are only reckoned by name: Uzzi, and Rephaiah, and Jeriel, and Jahmai, and Jibsam, and Shemuel, heads of their father's house, to wit, of Tola; the principal man of his family: they were valiant men of might in their generations, famous for their courage and military exploits, though they sprang from Tola, whose name signifies "a worm"; and which name Bochart (k) conjectures was given him by his parents, because he was so weakly that they had no hopes of raising him; and yet from him sprung such mighty men, and from them such a numerous race, as follows: whose number was, in the days of David, two and twenty thousand and six hundred; besides those of the posterity of Uzzi, after mentioned. This was at the time Joab took the number of Israel, by the order of David, Ch1 21:5. (k) Hierozoic. par. 2. l. 4. c. 21. col. 630.
Verse 2
And the sons of Uzzi; Izrahiah,.... Including his posterity: and the sons of Izrahiah; Michael, and Obadiah, and Joel, Ishiah, five; together with their father, all reckoned the sons of Uzzi: all of them chief men; in their father's house, heads of families.
Verse 3
And with them, by their generations, after the house of their fathers, were bands of soldiers for war,.... Companies of men of military courage and skill, who could and did go out to war upon occasion: six and thirty thousand men; besides the 22,600 Tolaites, Ch1 7:2, for they had many wives and sons; having many wives, they had many sons; polygamy was the cause of their large numbers; and that they gave into for the sake of the multiplication of Abraham's seed, according to the divine promise.
Verse 4
And their brethren among all the families of Issachar,.... As those of Puah, Jashub, and Shimron, Ch1 7:1. were men of might; valiant and courageous: reckoned in all, by their genealogies, fourscore and seven thousand; that is, including with these those of Tola and Uzzi before given.
Verse 5
The sons of Benjamin; Bela, and Becher, and Jediael, three. Benjamin had ten sons, but three only are mentioned first; the latter of these seems to be the same with Ashbel, Gen 46:21. . 1 Chronicles 7:7 ch1 7:7 ch1 7:7 ch1 7:7And the sons of Bela; Ezbon, and Uzzi, and Uzziel, and Jerimoth, and Iri, five,.... These are thought by some to be the grandsons of Bela, because of the different names in Ch1 8:3, heads of the house of their fathers, mighty men of valour; principal men in their tribe and families, and of great courage: and were reckoned by their genealogies twenty and two thousand and thirty and four; who sprung from these men.
Verse 6
And the sons of Becher,.... Another son of Benjamin, Ch1 7:6, Zemira, and Joash, and Eliezer and Elioenai, and Omri, and Jerimoth, and Abiah, and Anathoth, and Alameth; the two last of these, according to Kimchi, gave names to two cities in Benjamin, built by them; Anathoth, the native place of Jeremiah the prophet, and Alameth, the same with Bahurim, Sa2 16:5. all these are the sons of Becher; before named.
Verse 7
And the number of them,.... Of the posterity of the sons of Becher: after their genealogy by their generations, heads of the house of their fathers, mighty men of valour; as they increased in succeeding ages, and at the time of David: was twenty thousand and two hundred.
Verse 8
The sons also of Jediael,.... The third son of Benjamin before mentioned, Ch1 7:6. Bilhan, including his posterity, as follows: and the sons of Bilhan; Jeush, and Benjamin; called so after his great grandfather: and Ehud; who was the second judge in Israel, Jdg 3:15. and Chenaanah, and Zethan, and Tharshish, and Ahishahar; of whom we nowhere else read.
Verse 9
All these the sons of Jediael, by the heads of their fathers, mighty men of valour, were seventeen thousand and two hundred soldiers, fit to go out for war and battle. Which, with the above sums put together, make of the tribe of Benjamin, besides what follow, 59,430; who, if numbered by Joab, the account was not given in by him, Ch1 21:6. . 1 Chronicles 7:12 ch1 7:12 ch1 7:12 ch1 7:12Shuppim also, and Huppim, the children of Ir,.... The same with Iri, Ch1 7:7 so that these were not sons of Benjamin, as they seem to be, if they are the same with Muppim and Huppim in Gen 46:21 but his great-grandchildren, and are the same with Shupham and Hupham, from whom families of the tribe of Benjamin sprung, Num 26:39 the Targum calls them the inhabitants of a city, but of what is not said, unless Geba should be meant, Ch1 8:6 and Hushim, the sons of Aher: either the same with Aharah, the third son of Benjamin, Ch1 8:1 or Ahiram, Num 26:38, though some read the words, "the sons of another"; whom they suppose to be Dan, who otherwise is omitted; and Hushim is the only son of Dan, Gen 46:23, where the same plural word is used as here; who, they think, is called another, by way of detestation, that tribe being guilty of gross idolatry; but he rather seems to belong to Benjamin.
Verse 10
The sons of Naphtali: Jahziel, and Guni, and Jezer, and Shallum,.... Called Shillem, Gen 46:24, the sons of Bilhah; Jacob's concubine; her grandsons; for Naphtali, the father of them, was her son; from these sprung so many families, after their names, Num 26:48.
Verse 11
The sons of Manasseh; Ashriel, whom she bare,.... The wife of Manasseh, as distinguished from his concubine in the next clause; though the Targum reads, in connection with that,"whom his Aramitess (or Syrian) concubine bare;'' and then adds: who also bare Machir the father of Gilead; so that Ashriel and Machir were brethren; from which Ashriel sprung the family of the Ashrielites, Num 26:29 as from Machir the Machirites, Num 26:29.
Verse 12
And Machir took to wife the sister of Huppim and Shuppim, whose sister's name was Maachah,.... He married into the tribe of Benjamin, a sister of the persons mentioned, Ch1 7:12 whose name was Maachah: and the name of the second was Zelophehad; the second son of Manasseh, or of his posterity mentioned; for he was not his immediate son; for he was the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, Num 27:1. and Zelophehad had daughters; but no sons, the names of his daughters are given, Num 26:33.
Verse 13
And Maachah the wife of Machir bare a son, and she called his name Peresh; and the name of his brother was Sheresh,.... He had both these sons by her: and his sons were Ulam and Rakem, that is, either the sons of Peresh or Sheresh, the nearest, as Kimchi observes.
Verse 14
And the sons of Ulam: Bedan,.... See Sa1 12:11. these were the sons of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh; that is, were of his posterity, or belonged to his family; for Ulam and Rakem were sons of a brother of Gilead, Ch1 7:16.
Verse 15
And his sister Hammoleketh,.... The sister of Gilead so named; though the Targum renders it "that reigned"; and so Kimchi, that reigned in some part of Gilead; and the Vulgate Latin version translates it, "a queen bare Ishod, and Abiezer, and Mahalah"; Abiezer is the same with Jeezer, from whom a family sprung of that name, Num 26:30, of which Gideon was, Jdg 6:11. . 1 Chronicles 7:19 ch1 7:19 ch1 7:19 ch1 7:19And the sons of Shemida,.... Another son of Gilead's sister, unless the same with Ishod; from him sprung the family of the Shemidaites, Num 26:30. were, Ahian, and Shechem, and Likhi, and Aniam; from Shechem came the family of the Shethemites, as from Likhi, if he is the same with Helek, as probably he may be, was the family of the Helekites, Num 26:30.
Verse 16
And the sons of Ephraim,.... A son of Joseph, and father of a tribe of this name, whose genealogy through five generations follows: Shuthelah, Bered, Tahath, Eladah, Tahath; the second. And the sons of Ephraim,.... A son of Joseph, and father of a tribe of this name, whose genealogy through five generations follows: Shuthelah, Bered, Tahath, Eladah, Tahath; the second. 1 Chronicles 7:21 ch1 7:21 ch1 7:21 ch1 7:21And Zabad his son,.... Not the son of Tahath the second last mentioned, but the son of Ephraim, a second son of his: and Shuthelah; his son, the son of Zabad, called after his uncle's name, Ch1 7:20. and Ezer, and Elead; two other sons of Zabad: whom the men of Gath that were born in that land slew: that is, Zabad and his three sons; these the men of Gath slew, who were Philistines that dwelt there, and were originally of Egypt, and were born in that land, but had removed into Palestine, which had its name from them, of which Gath was one of its cities; and this bordering upon the land of Goshen, or being near it, where the Israelites dwelt, they made inroads upon them, and plundered them: because they came down to take away their cattle; and the sons, the grandsons of Ephraim, resisted them, and so were slain: and that the aggressors were not the Ephraimites, who went out of Egypt before their time, and fell upon the men of Gath, born in the land of the Philistines, in order to dispossess them of their land and substance, and were slain by them, which is the sense of the Targum and other writers, both Jewish and Christian; but the men of Gath, as is clear from this circumstance, that they came down, as men did when they went from Palestine to Egypt, not when they went from Egypt to Palestine, then they "went up"; which would have been the phrase used, if this had been an expedition of the Ephraimites into Palestine; besides, it is not reasonable to think, that the Ephraimites, addicted to husbandry and cattle, and not used to war, should engage in such an enterprise; but rather the men of Gath, or the Philistines, who were a warlike people, and given to spoil and plunder; this, according to a learned chronologer (l), was seventy four years after Jacob went down to Egypt, and one hundred and forty years before the children of Israel came from thence. (l) Nic. Abrami Pharus, l. 9. c. 21. p. 242.
Verse 17
And Ephraim their father mourned many days,.... For the loss of his son and grandchildren for the above fact was done while the Israelites were in Egypt, and Ephraim the patriarch yet alive; nor is there any need to suppose another Ephraim, different from him: and his brethren came to comfort him; some of the heads of the other tribes of Israel, particularly Manasseh, with some of his family.
Verse 18
And when he went in to his wife,.... After his grief and sorrow in part at least had subsided: she conceived and bare a son; which in some measure made up for the loss he had sustained: and he called his name Beriah; which signifies being "in evil" or calamity, he being born in an evil time: because it went evil with his house; or evil was in his house, as Noldius (m), in his family; a great calamity had befallen it. (m) Ebr. Concord. Part. No. 750. p. 165.
Verse 19
And his daughter was Sherah,.... That is, the daughter of Beriah; not an immediate daughter, but a descendant of his, otherwise she could not have reached the times of Joshua, as she did by what follows: who built Bethhoron the nether, and the upper; which were cities on the border of the tribe of Ephraim; which the Israelites having taken from the Canaanites, and destroyed, she rebuilt, see Jos 16:3. and Uzzensherah; which was called after her own name, and to distinguish it from another place called Uzzen; though of neither of them do we read elsewhere.
Verse 20
And Rephah was his son,.... The son of Beriah, whose genealogy from him is traced down to Joshua in this and the two following verses, and stands thus: after Rephah, Resheph, Telah, Tahan, Laadan, Ammihud, Elishama, who was prince of the tribe of Ephraim in the wilderness, Num 1:10, then Non or Nun, whose son was Jehoshua or Joshua. , then Non or Nun, whose son was Jehoshua or Joshua. 1 Chronicles 7:28 ch1 7:28 ch1 7:28 ch1 7:28And their possessions and habitations,.... That is, of the sons of Ephraim, when come into the land of Canaan: were Bethel, and the towns thereof; the villages belonging to it, which was formerly called Luz, and was the border of Ephraim, Jos 16:7. and eastward Naaran: the same with Naarath, Jos 16:7. and westward Gezer, with the towns thereof; of which see Jos 16:3, and Shechem also, and the towns thereof; which was a city of refuge in Mount Ephraim, Jos 20:7 unto Gaza, and the towns thereof; not Gaza, a city of the Philistines, for the tribe of Ephraim did not reach so far; the Targum calls it Aiah; it may be read Adaza, as in the margin of our Bibles.
Verse 21
And by the borders of the children of Manasseh,.... Of the half tribe of Manasseh on this side Jordan: near to them the Ephraimites dwelt, even near to Bethshean and her towns, Taanach and her towns, Megiddo and her towns, Dor and her towns; of all which places see Jos 17:11, in these dwelt the children of Joseph the son of Israel; the Ephraimites, in those mentioned in Ch1 7:28, and the Manassites, in those that are here mentioned; who were both the children or posterity of Joseph, the beloved son of Israel.
Verse 22
The son of Asher,.... Which, and his two grandsons born before Jacob went down to Egypt, are here reckoned as in Gen 46:17 only it is here added Malchiel his second grandson: who is the father of Birzavith; which Jarchi interprets, prince of a city of this name, which signifies pure oil; which it might have from the abundance of olives about it, Asher being a tribe which abounded with them, see Deu 33:24 though some of the Rabbins take it to be the name of a man, whose daughters, they say, as Jarchi observes, were very beautiful, having much oil to anoint with, and were married to kings and priests anointed with oil.
Verse 23
And Heber,.... The other grandson of Asher; and son of Beriah: begat Japhlet, and Shomer, and Hotham, and Shuah their sister; a place on the borders of Ephraim is called the coast of Japhleti; but whether from this Japhlet is uncertain.
Verse 24
And the sons of Japhlet; Pasach, and Bimhal, and Ashvath; these are the children of Japhlet. Of whom we read not elsewhere, And the sons of Japhlet; Pasach, and Bimhal, and Ashvath; these are the children of Japhlet. Of whom we read not elsewhere, 1 Chronicles 7:34 ch1 7:34 ch1 7:34 ch1 7:34And the sons of Shamer,.... Or Shomer, the brother of Japhlet, Ch1 7:32. Ahi, and Rohgah, Jehubbah, and Aram; of whom nothing is known but their names.
Verse 25
And the sons of his brother Helem,.... Or Helem his brother, that is, the brother of Shomer, who, according to Hillerus (n), is Hotham, Ch1 7:32. Zophah, and Imna, and Shelesh, and Aram; nowhere else mentioned. (n) Onomastic. Sacr. p. 551.
Verse 28
And the sons of Zophah,.... The eldest of the sons of Helem: Suah, and Harnepher, and Shual, and Beri, and Imrah, Bezer; and Hod, and Shamma, and Shilshah, and Ithran, and Beera; in all eleven.
Verse 29
And the sons of Jether,.... The same with Ithran, the last of Zophah's sons but one, Ch1 7:37, Jephunneh, and Pispah, and Ara; not Jephunneh the father of Caleb; he was not of the tribe of Asher, but of Judah.
Verse 30
And the sons of Ulla,.... Who either was the son of Ara, last mentioned, or another son of Jether: Arah, and Haniel, and Rezia; here ends the genealogy of Asher; the last of the tribes; Dan and Zebulun not being reckoned at all.
Verse 32
All these were the children of Asher, heads of their father's house,.... Principal men in their tribe, and respective families: choice and mighty men of valour; these were some selected from others, being eminent for their courage and valour: chief of the princes; or chief princes; the Vulgate Latin version is, dukes of dukes, they were heads of their fathers' families: and the number throughout the genealogy that were apt to war, and to battle, was twenty and six thousand men; that is, in the days of David, Ch1 7:4, this was the number, not of their chief men, nor of all the people in the tribe, but of their militia. Next: 1 Chronicles Chapter 8
Introduction
In this chapter we have some account of the genealogies, I. Of Issachar (Ch1 7:1-5). II. Of Benjamin (Ch1 7:6-12). III. Of Naphtali (Ch1 7:13). IV. Of Manasseh (Ch1 7:14-19). V. Of Ephraim (Ch1 7:20-29). VI. Of Asher (Ch1 7:30-40). Here is no account either of Zebulun or Dan. Why they only should be omitted we can assign no reason; only it is the disgrace of the tribe of Dan that idolatry began in that colony of the Danites which fixed in Laish, and called Dan, and there one of the golden calves was set up by Jeroboam. Dan is omitted, Rev. 7.
Verse 1
We have here a short view given us, I. Of the tribe of Issachar, whom Jacob had compared to a strong ass, couching between two burdens (Gen 49:14), an industrious tribe, that minded their country business very closely and rejoiced in their tents, Deu 33:18. And here it appears, 1. That they were a numerous tribe; for they had many wives. So fruitful their country was that they saw no danger of over-stocking the pasture, and so ingenious the people were that they could find work for all hands. Let no people complain of their numbers, provided they suffer none to be idle. 2. That they were a valiant tribe, men of might (Ch1 7:2, Ch1 7:5), chief men, Ch1 7:3. Those that were inured to labour and business were of all men the fittest to serve their country when there was occasion, The number of the respective families, as taken in the days of David, is here set down, amounting in the whole to above 145,000 men fit for war. The account, some think, was taken when Joab numbered the people, 2 Sa. 24. But I rather think it refers to some other computation that was made, perhaps among themselves, because it is said (Ch1 27:24) that that account was not inserted in the chronicles of king David, it having offended God. II. Of the tribe of Benjamin. Some account is here given of this tribe, but much larger in the next chapter. The militia of this tribe scarcely reached to 60,000; but they are said to be mighty men of valour, Ch1 7:7, Ch1 7:9, Ch1 7:11. Benjamin shall ravin as a wolf, Gen 49:27. It was the honour of this tribe that it produced Saul the first king, and more its honour that it adhered to the rightful kings of the house of David when the other tribes revolted. Here is mention (Ch1 7:12) of Hushim the sons of Aher. The sons of Dan are said to be Hushim (Gen 46:23), and therefore some read Aher appellatively, Hushim - the sons of another (that is, another of Jacob's sons) or the sons of a stranger, which Israelites should not be, but such the Danites were when they set up Micah's graven and molten image among them. III. Of the tribe of Naphtali, Ch1 7:13. The first fathers only of that tribe are named, the very same that we shall find, Gen 46:24, only that Shillem there is Shallum here. None of their descendents are named, perhaps because their genealogies were lost. IV. Of the tribe of Manasseh, that part of it which was seated within Jordan; for of the other part we had some account before, Ch1 5:23, etc. Of this tribe observe, 1. That one of them married an Aramitess, that is, a Syrian, Ch1 7:14. This was during their bondage in Egypt, so early did they begin to mingle with the nations. 2. That, though the father married a Syrian, Machir, the son of that marriage, perhaps seeing the inconvenience of it in his father's house, took to wife a daughter of Benjamin, Ch1 7:15. It is good for the children to take warning by their father's mistakes and not stumble at the same stone. 3. Here is mention of Bedan (Ch1 7:17), who perhaps is the same with that Bedan who is mentioned as one of Israel's deliverers, Sa1 12:11. Jair perhaps, who was of Manasseh (Jdg 10:3), was the man.
Verse 20
We have here an account, I. Of the tribe of Ephraim. Great things we read of that tribe when it came to maturity. Here we have an account of the disasters of its infancy, while it was in Egypt as it should seem; for Ephraim himself was alive when those things were done, which yet is hard to imagine if it were, as is here computed, seven generations off. Therefore I am apt to think that either it was another Ephraim or that those who were slain were the immediate sons of that Ephraim that was the son of Joseph. In this passage, which is related here only, we have, 1. The great breach that was made upon the family of Ephraim. The men of Gath, Philistines, giants, slew many of the sons of that family, because they came down to take away their cattle, Ch1 7:21. It is uncertain who were the aggressors here. Some make the men of Gath the aggressors, men born in the land of Egypt, but now resident in Gath, supposing that they came down into the land of Goshen, to drive away the Ephraimites' cattle, and slew the owners, because they stood up in the defence of them. Many a man's life has been exposed and betrayed by his wealth; so far is it from being a strong city. Others think that the Ephraimites made a descent upon the men of Gath to plunder them, presuming that the time had come when they should be put in possession of Canaan; but they paid dearly for their rashness and precipitation. Those that will not wait God's time cannot expect God's blessing. I rather think that the men of Gath came down upon the Ephraimites, because the Israelites in Egypt were shepherds, not soldiers, abounded in cattle of their own, and therefore were not likely to venture their lives for their neighbours' cattle: and the words may be read, The men of Gath slew them, for they came down to take away their cattle. Zabad the son of Ephraim, and Shuthelah, and Ezer, and Elead (his grandchildren), were, as Dr. Lightfoot thinks, the men that were slain. Jacob had foretold that the seed of Ephraim should become a multitude of nations (Gen 48:19), and yet that plant is thus nipped in the bud. God's providences often seem to contradict his promises; but, when they do so, they really magnify the promise, and make the performance of it, notwithstanding, so much more illustrious. The Ephraimites were the posterity of Joseph, and yet his power could not protect them, though some think he was yet living. The sword devours one as well as another. 2. The great grief which oppressed the father of the family hereupon: Ephraim mourned many days. Nothing brings the aged to the grave with more sorrow than their following the young that descend from them to the grave first, especially if in blood. It is often the burden of those that live to be old that they see those go before them of whom they said, These same shall comfort us. It was a brotherly friendly office which his brethren did, when they came to comfort him under this great affliction, to express their sympathy with him and concern for him, and to suggest that to him which would support and quiet him under this sad providence. Probably they reminded him of the promise of increase which Jacob had blessed him when he laid his right hand upon his head. Although his house was not so with God as he hoped, but a house of mourning, a shattered family, yet that promise was sure, Sa2 23:5. 3. The repair of this breach, in some measure, by addition of another son to his family in his old age (Ch1 7:23), like Seth, another seed instead of that of Abel whom Cain slew, Gen 4:25. When God thus restores comfort to his mourners, makes glad according to the days wherein he afflicted, setting the mercies over against the crosses, we ought therein to take notice of the kindness and tenderness of divine Providence; it is as if it repented God concerning his servants, Psa 90:13, Psa 90:15. Yet joy that a man was born into his family could not make him forget his grief; for he gives a melancholy name to his son, Beriah - in trouble, for he was born when the family was in mourning, when it went evil with his house. It is good to have in remembrance the affliction and the misery, the wormwood and the gall, that our souls may be humbled within us, Lam 3:19, Lam 3:20. What name more proper for man that is born of a woman than Beriah, because born into a troublesome world? It is added, as a further honour to the house of Ephraim, (1.) That a daughter of that tribe, Sherah by name, at the time of Israel's setting in Canaan, built some cities, either at her own charge or by her own care; one of them bore her name, Uzzen-sherah, Ch1 7:24. A virtuous woman may be as great an honour and blessing to a family as a mighty man. (2.) That a son of that tribe was employed in the conquest of Canaan, Joshua the son of Nun, Ch1 7:27. In this also the breach made on Ephraim's family was further repaired; and perhaps the resentment of this injury formerly done by the Canaanites to the Ephraimites might make him more vigorous in the war. II. Of the tribe of Asher. Some men of note of that tribe are here named. Their militia was not numerous in comparison with some other tribes, only 26,000 men in all; but their princes were choice and mighty men of valour, chief of the princes (Ch1 7:40), and perhaps it was their wisdom that they coveted not to make their trained bands numerous, but rather to have a few, and those apt to the war and serviceable men.
Verse 1
7:1-40 In this chapter, the genealogies of the remaining tribes of Israel are given. • The sections on the tribes of Issachar, Benjamin, and Asher might have been derived from a military census; the lists are of nearly equal length, emphasize military terminology, record the father’s houses, and provide no information on settlements. • The tribes of Zebulun and Dan are omitted entirely, and Naphtali has a very brief record.
Verse 12
7:12 The Hebrew text of this verse appears to have been disrupted (something was apparently lost during scribal copying) because no introduction is given for either Ir or Hushim. The names Shuppim and Huppim have parallels in the tribe of Benjamin (8:8, 11; Gen 46:21; Num 26:39). If the Hebrew text was in fact damaged, Hushim might be a descendant of Dan (cp. Gen 46:23; Num 26:42).
Verse 13
7:13 In contrast with other genealogies, this abrupt listing of the sons of Naphtali includes only the first generation (cp. Gen 46:24; Num 26:48-50). The manuscript of Chronicles might have suffered damage at an early stage of scribal copying, which could also account for the omission of Dan and Zebulun. It is also possible that the records for Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali were lost when Tiglath-pileser attacked and exiled these tribes during Pekah’s reign (2 Kgs 15:29); in that case, the Chronicler had no records available to include.
Verse 14
7:14-19 Several difficulties in these verses might indicate that the Hebrew text was damaged: (1) Maacah is listed as the sister of Makir as well as his wife (7:15-16). (2) Huppim and Shuppim were listed earlier with Benjamin (7:12), not Manasseh. (3) Those considered Gileadites (7:16-17) are rather ambiguously linked to Gilead, whose direct descendants are not listed (cp. Num 26:30-33). (4) The sons of Shemida are not connected to the genealogy (1 Chr 7:19); Shemida was one of Gilead’s descendants (Num 26:32).
Verse 20
7:20-27 The genealogy of the descendants of Ephraim includes a story illustrating the circumstances of the tribe’s settlement in Canaan (7:21-24). The genealogy ends with Joshua son of Nun, who led Israel into the Promised Land.
Verse 22
7:22 The father of Ezer and Elead is recorded as Ephraim, but Ephraim the son of Joseph could not have settled in Canaan after the Exodus. The traditional solution was to imagine an early exodus for the family of Ephraim. Other possibilities are that the name Ephraim is a scribal mistake or that Ephraim referred to the tribe rather than the son of Joseph who bore the name.