1 Chronicles 8

1 Chronicles 8:1

11. Benjamin (Chap. 8)8:1-28 Benjamin, Judah, and some of the tribes of Simeon and Levi formed the southern kingdom taken into Babylonian captivity. Most of the Israelites who returned to Judah under Nehemiah were from these tribes; hence the larger space devoted to them in these genealogies. The Benjamites are discussed here more fully than in 1Ch_7:6-12. When comparing these two lists, as well as those given in Gen_46:21 and Num_26:38-41, the following principles help us to understand the seeming discrepancies.
12. Some men had more than one name.
13. The spelling of some names changed over the years.
14. Some names are omitted because the men died early or childless.
15. The word translated son (ben) can mean son, grandson, great-grandson, etc.
16. Some names are left out because they don’t serve the chronicler’s purpose. 8:29-40 Saul, a Benjamite, was Israel’s first king. His genealogy is given here and in 1Ch_9:35-44. Only the descendants of his son Jonathan, the friend of David, are given here. Merib-Baal (v. 34) is another name for Mephibosheth. The genealogies of Dan and Zebulun are not given. (Dan is also left out in other portions of Scripturenotably Rev. 7.)