The sons of Judah: Pharez ,.... The posterity of Judah in the line of Pharez, for he only is mentioned: Hezron, and Carmi, and Hur, and Shobal . Hezron was the son of Pharez, and Carmi is supposed to be Chelubai, or Caleb, the son of Hezron; and Hur the son of Caleb; and Shobal was the son of the second Caleb the son of Hur; see 1 Chronicles 2:5 . read more
And Reaiah the son of Shobal begat Jahath ,.... Reaiah is the same with Haroeh, 1 Chronicles 2:52 the names are of the same signification: and Jahath begat Ahumai, and Lahad. These are the families of the Zorathites ; who inhabited Zoreah, as the Targum, at least part of it; see 1 Chronicles 2:53 . read more
And these were of the father of Etam ,.... Or of the prince of Etam: or, as the Targum, these are princes that dwelt in Etam, a place not far from Zorah, Judges 15:8 and is mentioned with Bethlehem and Tekoa in the tribe of Judah, 2 Chronicles 11:6 , namely, which follow: Jezreel, and Ishma, and Idbash ; these were the sons of the governor of Etam: and the name of their sister was Hazelelponi ; who, perhaps, was a person of great note in those days, though now unknown; indeed, a... read more
And Penuel the father of Gedor ,.... The prince of that place, according to some, and the same with Hareph, 1 Chronicles 2:51 , and Ezer the father of Hushah : thought to be the same with Shuah, 1 Chronicles 4:11 , these are the sons of Hur, the firstborn of Ephratah : Caleb's wife, 1 Chronicles 2:19 the Targum adds, the same with Miriam; and so other Jewish writers F24 Shemot Rabba, sect. 1. fol. 90. 4. Yalkut in 1 Chron. ii. 19. say, Miriam had two names, and one was... read more
And Ashur the father of Tekoa ,.... A son of Hezron by Abiah, 1 Chronicles 2:24 . had two wives, Helah and Naarah ; as Lamech had, polygamy not being reckoned unlawful in those times. read more
And Naarah bare him Ahuzam, and Hepher, and Temeni, and Haahashtari ,.... Of whom we have no account elsewhere: these were the sons of Naarah ; the second wife of Ashur. read more
And the sons of Helah ,.... The other wife: were Zereth, and Zoar, and Ethnan : nowhere else mentioned. read more
And Coz ,.... Another son of Helah, and brother of the before mentioned: begat Anub, and Zobebah ; of whom we nowhere else read: and the families of Aharhel, the son of Harum ; these were of the posterity of Coz; the Targum is, "and the family of Aharhel, this is Hur, the firstborn of Miriam;'which is not at all probable. read more
The sons of Judah - A genealogy of this tribe has already been given in the second chapter. It is here introduced again, with some variations. Probably there were different copies in the public registers; and the writer of this book, finding that this second one contained some remarkable particulars, thought proper to insert it in this place: and no reader will regret the insertion, when he carefully considers the matter. read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 1 Chronicles 4:1-10
One reason, no doubt, why Ezra is here most particular in the register of the tribe of Judah is because it was that tribe which, with its appendages, Simeon, Benjamin, and Levi, made up the kingdom of Judah, which not only long survived the other tribes in Canaan, but in process of time, now when this was written, returned out of captivity, when the generality of the other tribes were lost in the kingdom of Assyria. The most remarkable person in this paragraph is Jabez. It is not said whose... read more