And these are the generations of Esau ,.... Or the posterity of Esau, his children and grandchildren, as before and hereafter related: the father of the Edomites in Mount Seir ; from whom they of that mountain and in the adjacent country had the name of Edomites or Idumeans. read more
These are the names of Esau's sons ,.... In this and some following verses, an account is given of the sons of Esau, which agrees with what is before observed, and of his sons' sons: Eliphaz the son of Adah the wife of Esau : who seems to be his first wife, and this his first son: Reuel the son of Bashemath and wife of Esau ; his second son by another wife, a daughter of Ishmael, Genesis 36:3 . read more
And the sons of Eliphaz were Teman ,.... This was his firstborn, and from him the city of Teman in Edom or Idumea had its name, see Jeremiah 49:7 ; and Eliphaz is called the Temanite from hence, Job 2:11 ; four more sons are mentioned: Omar, Zepho, and Gatam, and Kenaz ; but I do not find that any towns or cities, or any part of the land of Edom, were denominated from any of them; only it may be observed that Zepho is called Zephi in 1 Chronicles 1:36 ; the account seems fabulous... read more
And Timna was concubine to Eliphaz, Esau's son ,.... She is said to be the sister of Lotan, the eldest son of Seir the Horite, Genesis 36:22 ; in 1 Chronicles 1:36 mention is made of Timna among the sons of Eliphaz, and of Duke Timnah here, Genesis 36:40 ; and Gerundinsis F25 Apud Menasseh ben Israel, conciliator in Gen. Quaest. 57. p. 81. is of opinion, that Timnah the concubine of Eliphaz, after she had bore Amalek, conceived and bore another son, and she dying in childbirth,... read more
And these are the sons of Reuel ,.... Another son of Esau's; this man had four sons, as follow: Nahath, and Zerah, Shammah and Mizzah : of whom we know no more than their names, unless Maps or Massa, which Ptolemy F26 Geograph. l. 5. c. 16. places in Idumea, should have its name from Mizzah: these were the sons of Bashemath, Esau's wife ; her grandsons, as before. read more
And these were the sons of Aholibamah, the daughter of Anah , the daughter of Zibeon, Esau's wife ,.... See Gill on Genesis 36:2 ; here also the Samaritan and Septuagint versions read, "the daughter of Anah, the son of Zibeon": and she bare to Esau, Jeush, and Jaalam, and Korah ; this is repeated from Genesis 36:5 ; no mention is made of her grandchildren, as of his other wives. read more
These were dukes of the sons of Esau ,.... Ben Melech says, the difference between a duke and a king was, that a king is crowned and a duke is not crowned; but Jarchi interprets the word of heads of families, which seems probable; so that as Esau's sons and grandsons are before related, here it is suggested that they had large and numerous families, of which they were the heads and governors; and in this and the following verses, Genesis 36:16 ; the sons and grandsons of Esau by his... read more
Duke Korah ,.... Only among the sons of Eliphaz is reckoned Duke Korah, not before mentioned among his sons, and is left out in the Samaritan version; See Gill on Genesis 36:7 ; to which it may be added, that according to Gerundinsis F1 Apud Menaasseh ut supra. (conciliator in Gen. Quaest. 57. p. 81.) , this is the same with Timna, related among the sons of Eliphaz, 1 Chronicles 1:36 ; who was called by his father Korah: or this might be a grandson of Eliphaz. read more
And these are the sons of Reuel .... See Gill on Genesis 36:15 . read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Genesis 36:9-19
Observe here, 1. That only the names of Esau's sons and grandsons are recorded, only their names, not their history; for it is the church that Moses preserves the records of, not the record of those that are without. Those elders that lived by faith alone obtained a good report. It is Sion that produces the men of renown, not Seir, Ps. 87:5. Nor does the genealogy go any further than the third and fourth generation; the very names of all after are buried in oblivion. It is only the pedigree of... read more