Genesis 36:1-8

"Now these are the generations of Esau (the same is Edom). Esau took wives of the daughter of Canaan: Adah, the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Oholibamah, the daughter of Anah, the daughter of Zibeon the Hivite, and Basemath Ismael's daughter, sister of Nebaioth. And Adah bare to Esau Eliphaz; and Basemath bare Reuel; and Oholibamah bare Jeush, and Jalam, and Korah: these are the sons of Esau, that were born to him in the land of Canaan. And Esau took his wives, and his sons, and his daughters, and all the souls of his house, and his cattle, and all his beasts, and all his possessions, which he gathered in the land of Canaan; and went into a land away from his brother Jacob. For their substance was too great for them to dwell together; and the land of their sojournings could not bear them because of their cattle. And Esau dwelt in Mount Seir: Esau is Edom."

"These are the generations of Esau ..." This is the ninth of the ten great toledoths that introduce the respective sections of Genesis.[7] Note that, as in every other use of this word, it is a reference to what FOLLOWS, not to what PRECEDES.

We shall not dwell upon the difference in the names of Esau's wives from the names given in Genesis 26:34, and in Genesis 28:9. It is not certainly known why they do not agree. Many proposed "solutions" have included allegations that: it is due to the Arabian custom of replacing original names with surnames marking some memorable event;[8] it is accounted for by there being two sets of wives, those here being the ones married after the others were deceased;[9] it is explained by the fact that each wife had two names (as did also their parents), a not unusual feature among ancient peoples.[10] One explanation is as good as another, but we still do not know. Despite the impossibility of resolving this difficulty, however, it is gratifying to note that Speiser wrote, "The customary breakdown into documentary sources cannot be attempted with much hope of success;"[11] and that Francisco discounted this problem completely with the declaration that, "These records represent authentic ancient materials and come from a time before the Edomites were regarded with hostility."[12]

"Eliphaz ..." This is a name afterward borne by one of Job's friends (Job 2:11; Job 4:1; and Job 15:1).

"Reuel ..." This was a name afterward borne by Moses' father-in-law (Exodus 2:18).

"Born to him in the land of Canaan ..." (Genesis 36:5). This indicates that Esau continued to make his principal residence in Canaan until the removal mentioned in this paragraph. He also had probably been maintaining his vast herds of livestock in the mountains of Seir during a great portion of the same time.

"His cattle, and all his beasts ..." The Anchor Bible translates this as "his livestock," a term which includes cattle, beasts, flocks, and herds.

"The land of their sojournings could not bear them because of their cattle ..." This was the same situation that existed between Abraham and Lot, resulting in their separation. Both examples show the divisive power of great wealth, this being one of the ways in which wealth is wicked, called by Jesus Christ, "the Mammon of Unrighteousness." This does not mean that wealth is necessarily the fruit of unlawful or wicked deeds, but that money itself is wicked:

1. because it divides loved ones and friends;
   
2. surrounds its possessor with false friends;
   
3. tempts him to trust in it;
   
4. promises to solve all his problems, but instead becomes a problem,
   
5. it deceives the owner into thinking it belongs to him;
   
6. (6) it promises much and delivers little; and
   
7. it is an unqualified enemy of spirituality.
   

"And Esau dwelt in Mount Seir: Esau is Edom ..." Yates gave the principal cities of Mount Seir as: Sela, Bozrah, Petra, Teman, and Ezion-Geber.[13] This area lay southward from the Dead Sea in the mountainous region toward the Gulf of Aqaba. Edom lay between Moab to the northward, and Midian to the southward. "Edom," of course, is another name for Esau. The area was also called Idumaea, and its inhabitants Idumaeans. Josephus attributed that change to the Greeks, who, he said, "gave it a more agreeable pronunciation, and named it Idumea."[14]