Bible Commentaries
1 Chronicles 2

Verse 3

The sons of Judah; Er, and Onan, and Shelah: [which] three were born unto him of the daughter of Shua the Canaanitess. And Er, the firstborn of Judah, was evil in the sight of the LORD; and he slew him.

The sons of Judah. — These are first set down, (1.) For the royal dignity; (2.) For the descent of the Messiah.

Was evil in the sight of the Lord. — Quem nihil latet , Who seeth and punisheth secret sins.

Verse 4

And Tamar his daughter in law bare him Pharez and Zerah. All the sons of Judah [were] five.

And Tamar. — See Trapp on " Matthew 1:3 "

Verse 6

And the sons of Zerah; Zimri, and Ethan, and Heman, and Calcol, and Dara: five of them in all.

And Ethan, and Heman, … — Of these, see on 1 Kings 4:31 .

Verse 7

And the sons of Carmi; Achar, the troubler of Israel, who transgressed in the thing accursed.

Achar. — Alias Achan, Joshua 6:1-27 ; Joshua 7:1-26 per paranomasiam.

Verse 8

And the sons of Ethan; Azariah.

And the sons of Ethan. — Sons, that is, son: synecdoche.

Verse 10

And Ram begat Amminadab; and Amminadab begat Nahshon, prince of the children of Judah; 1 Chronicles 2:11 And Nahshon begat Salma, and Salma begat Boaz, 1 Chronicles 2:12 And Boaz begat Obed, and Obed begat Jesse,

Ver. 10-12. See Trapp on " Matthew 1:3 " See Trapp on " Matthew 1:4 " See Trapp on " Matthew 1:5 "

Verse 15

Ozem the sixth, David the seventh:

David the seventh. — Jesse is said to have eight sons, 1 Samuel 17:12 but one might be his son by adoption.

Verse 16

Whose sisters [were] Zeruiah, and Abigail. And the sons of Zeruiah; Abishai, and Joab, and Asahel, three.

Abishai. — Elder brother to Joab, who yet got the start of him.

Verse 17

And Abigail bare Amasa: and the father of Amasa [was] Jether the Ishmeelite.

Jether the Ishmeelite. — See on 2 Samuel 17:25 .

Verse 24

And after that Hezron was dead in Calebephratah, then Abiah Hezron’s wife bare him Ashur the father of Tekoa.

The father of Tekoa, — i.e., The prince of Tekoa. Augustus would not be called lord, but father of his country, taking great delight in that title given him by the people, and calling the commonwealth his daughter, as Macrobius Lib. ii. cap. 5. writeth.

Verse 26

Jerahmeel had also another wife, whose name [was] Atarah; she [was] the mother of Onam.

Jerahmeel had also another wife. — Besides Abijah [Sic.(?) Besides his wife who was the mother of Ahijah.] 1 Chronicles 2:25 his wife. 1 Chronicles 2:25

Verse 42

Now the sons of Caleb the brother of Jerahmeel [were], Mesha his firstborn, which was the father of Ziph; and the sons of Mareshah the father of Hebron.

He was the father of Hebron. — See on 1 Chronicles 2:24 .

Verse 54

The sons of Salma; Bethlehem, and the Netophathites, Ataroth, the house of Joab, and half of the Manahethites, the Zorites.

The sons of Salma; Bethlehem, — i.e., The Bethlehemites.

Ataroth, the house of Joab. — Or, Crowns of the house of Joab. Those Netophathites, for their prowess and achievements, were Joab’s glory, his crown of rejoicing.

Verse 55

And the families of the scribes which dwelt at Jabez; the Tirathites, the Shimeathites, [and] Suchathites. These [are] the Kenites that came of Hemath, the father of the house of Rechab.

And the families of the scribes. — These were public notaries: or, as some think, Text men, who took the literal interpretation, as distinct from Wise, that is, teachers of traditions, and from Disputers, that is, teachers of allegories and mysteries. See 1 Corinthians 1:20 Jeremiah 8:9 Ezra 7:6 . The first were the best of the three, and of these were the Rechabites, who being Shuchathites, that is, dwellers in tents, might dwell where they pleased: and now dwelt at Jabez, a place which seemeth to have taken its name from that good Jabez of Judah, who prayed so hard, 1 Chronicles 4:10 having, haply, the help of these holy Kenites, the posterity of Jethro. See Judges 1:16 .