And the sons of Kenaz ,.... Who was either the son of Chelub, or of Eshton: Othniel, and Seraiah ; the first of these is he who is mentioned, Joshua 15:17 and was the first judge in Israel: and the son of Othniel, Hathath ; and the next mentioned. read more
EXPOSITION After the large space given to the "sons of David," of the tribe of Judah, in the previous chapter, this chapter returns for twenty-three verses to group together a few additional ramifications of the same tribe, whose registers were for some reasons, perhaps not very evident, preserved and known. The first verses follow in the direction already indicated in 1 Chronicles 2:1-55 ; near the end of which we were left with Shobal and Haroeh, probably the same with Reaiah (the... read more
We return here to the neighbourhood of names not quite strange. From comparison of the many passages in Numbers, Joshua, and Judges, which contain references to Othniel and Caleb (son of Jephunneh), the stronger conclusion to which we are led is that Othniel was younger brother of Caleb (probably not by both the same parents) and Kenaz a forefather, of course not literally father. The conclusion is not arrived at without difficulty, or with any real certainty. In the present instance, e.g; ... read more
1 Chronicles 4:12-14. These are the men of Rechah From these sprung the inhabitants of Rechah, a town not mentioned elsewhere. The sons of Kenaz Who was the son, either of Chelub, (1 Chronicles 4:11,) or of his son Eshton, (1 Chronicles 4:12,) and the father of Jephunneh, and consequently Caleb’s grandfather, (1 Chronicles 4:15,) whence Caleb is called a Kenezite, Numbers 32:12. Hathath Understand, and Meonothai, out of the beginning of the following verse, as in 1 Chronicles 4:7,... read more
Descendants of Judah and Simeon (2:1-4:43)Having listed the children of Jacob (Israel) starting with the eldest son Reuben, the writer immediately turns his attention to the tribe of Judah, the tribe that produced the dynasty of David (2:1-17). He traces the line of David first, then goes back to deal with a number of other important people in Judah and lists their descendants (18-55). On completing this, he returns to list the family of David (3:1-9), the descendants of David who reigned after... read more
Hathath. Supply Figure of speech Ellipsis ( App-6 ) thus: "Hathath and Meonothai [and Meonothai] begat Ophrah". read more
13. the sons of Kenaz—the grandfather of Caleb, who from that relationship is called a Kenezite (Numbers 32:12). read more
1. The family of Judah 4:1-23Jacob prophesied that his fourth son, Judah, would become the leader of the Israelites. Through him God would provide the greatest promised blessing to come (Genesis 49:8-12). The Davidic dynasty was one branch of Jacob’s descendants, so the writer had special interest in Judah."Many unrelated fragments have been brought together here in the interests of completeness." [Note: Williamson, p. 58.] Jabez’s prayer (1 Chronicles 4:10) shows that prayer and a... read more
B. The House of Israel chs. 4-7The writer’s next concern was to trace the line of people to whom and through whom God promised to bring blessing and salvation. That nation was Israel, the descendants of Jacob. The writer viewed Israel as consisting of 12 tribes, not just the tribes represented by the returnees from Babylonian exile. The nation as a whole would have a future. [Note: See Howard, pp. 253-56, for a discussion of the Chronicler’s concern to demonstrate the unity of all the... read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 1 Chronicles 4:11-23
We may observe in these verses, 1. That here is a whole family of craftsmen, handicraft tradesmen, that applied themselves to all sorts of manufactures, in which they were ingenious and industrious above their neighbours, 1 Chron. 4:14. There was a valley where they lived which was, from them, called the valley of craftsmen. Those that are craftsmen are not therefore to be looked upon as mean men. These craftsmen, though two of a trade often disagree, yet chose to live together, for the... read more