1 Chronicles 2: 1 – 55
Prove it
2 These were the sons of Israel: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, 2 Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher. 3 The sons of Judah were Er, Onan, and Shelah. These three were born to him by the daughter of Shua, the Canaanitess. Er, the firstborn of Judah, was wicked in the sight of the LORD; so, He killed him. 4 And Tamar, his daughter-in-law, bore him Perez and Zerah. All the sons of Judah were five. 5 The sons of Perez were Hezron and Hamul. 6 The sons of Zerah were Zimri, Ethan, Heman, Calcol, and Dara—five of them in all. 7 The son of Carmi was Achar, the troubler of Israel, who transgressed in the accursed thing. 8 The son of Ethan was Azariah. 9 Also the sons of Hezron who were born to him were Jerahmeel, Ram, and Chelubai. 10 Ram begot Amminadab, and Amminadab begot Nahshon, leader of the children of Judah; 11 Nahshon begot Salma, and Salma begot Boaz; 12 Boaz begot Obed, and Obed begot Jesse; 13 Jesse begot Eliab his firstborn, Abinadab the second, Shimea the third, 14 Nethanel the fourth, Raddai the fifth, 15 Ozem the sixth, and David the seventh. 16 Now their sisters were Zeruiah and Abigail. And the sons of Zeruiah were Abishai, Joab, and Asahel—three. 17 Abigail bore Amasa; and the father of Amasa was Jether the Ishmaelite. 18 Caleb the son of Hezron had children by Azubah, his wife, and by Jerioth. Now these were her sons: Jesher, Shobab, and Ardon. 19 When Azubah died, Caleb took Ephrathas his wife, who bore him Hur. 20 And Hur begot Uri, and Uri begot Bezalel. 21 Now afterward Hezron went in to the daughter of Machir the father of Gilead, whom he married when he was sixty years old; and she bore him Segub. 22 Segub begot Jair, who had twenty-three cities in the land of Gilead. 23 (Geshur and Syria took from them the towns of Jair, with Kenath and its towns—sixty towns.) All these belonged to the sons of Machir the father of Gilead. 24 After Hezron died in Caleb Ephrathah, Hezron’s wife Abijah bore him Ashhur the father of Tekoa. 25 The sons of Jerahmeel, the firstborn of Hezron, were Ram, the firstborn, and Bunah, Oren, Ozem, and Ahijah. 26 Jerahmeel had another wife, whose name was Atarah; she was the mother of Onam. 27 The sons of Ram, the firstborn of Jerahmeel, were Maaz, Jamin, and Eker. 28 The sons of Onam were Shammai and Jada. The sons of Shammai were Nadab and Abishur. 29 And the name of the wife of Abishur was Abihail, and she bore him Ahban and Molid. 30 The sons of Nadab were Seled and Appaim; Seled died without children. 31 The son of Appaim was Ishi, the son of Ishi was Sheshan, and Sheshan’s son was Ahlai. 32 The sons of Jada, the brother of Shammai, were Jether and Jonathan; Jether died without children. 33 The sons of Jonathan were Peleth and Zaza. These were the sons of Jerahmeel. 34 Now Sheshan had no sons, only daughters. And Sheshan had an Egyptian servant whose name was Jarha. 35 Sheshan gave his daughter to Jarha his servant as wife, and she bore him Attai. 36 Attai begot Nathan, and Nathan begot Zabad; 37 Zabad begot Ephlal, and Ephlal begot Obed; 38 Obed begot Jehu, and Jehu begot Azariah; 39 Azariah begot Helez, and Helez begot Eleasah; 40 Eleasah begot Sismai, and Sismai begot Shallum; 41 Shallum begot Jekamiah, and Jekamiah begot Elishama. 42 The descendants of Caleb the brother of Jerahmeel were Mesha, his firstborn, who was the father of Ziph, and the sons of Mareshah the father of Hebron. 43 The sons of Hebron were Korah, Tappuah, Rekem, and Shema. 44 Shema begot Raham the father of Jorkoam, and Rekem begot Shammai. 45 And the son of Shammai was Maon, and Maon was the father of Beth Zur. 46 Ephah, Caleb’s concubine, bore Haran, Moza, and Gazez; and Haran begot Gazez. 47 And the sons of Jahdai were Regem, Jotham, Geshan, Pelet, Ephah, and Shaaph. 48 Maachah, Caleb’s concubine, bore Sheber and Tirhanah. 49 She also bore Shaaph the father of Madmannah, Sheva the father of Machbenah and the father of Gibea. And the daughter of Caleb was Achsah. 50 These were the descendants of Caleb: The sons of Hur, the firstborn of Ephrathah, were Shobal the father of Kirjath Jearim, 51 Salma the father of Bethlehem, and Hareph the father of Beth Gader. 52 And Shobal the father of Kirjath Jearim had descendants: Haroeh, and half of the families of Manuhoth. 53 The families of Kirjath Jearim were the Ithrites, the Puthites, the Shumathites, and the Mishraites. From these came the Zorathites and the Eshtaolites. 54 The sons of Salma were Bethlehem, the Netophathites, Atroth Beth Joab, half of the Manahethites, and the Zorites. 55 And the families of the scribes who dwelt at Jabez were the Tirathites, the Shimeathites, and the Suchathites. These were the Kenites who came from Hammath, the father of the house of Rechab.
Proofs are important not just for developing critical reasoning, and not simply for avoiding errors, but for progress. We need to question our proofs, however good they look, and we must question our assumptions. If we don't, we may miss something vitally important.
The burden of proof lies with you. Let’s consider this possible situation. Your great uncle who was a wealthy bachelor left to all his relatives 20 million dollars to distribute among them. Since you are one of his relatives you are due to get a cut of this inheritance. What is the first thing that comes to your mind? How many relatives are there? You would probably quickly sign up with ‘Ancestor’s.com’ to find all those alive who also are in line for a cut of the money. This list would be a listing of everyone starting with your uncles’ parents and then bridge out to include all living relatives.
You could use this report to give to the law office who is settling your claim to prove that you are one of good old uncle’s descendent. Is there anything else you might want to do? I would say that you would make a copy of your birth certificate which would be an additional proof that you are in the blood line of your uncle.
So, why do I bring all this up? You see, I haven’t come across any academic sceptics who have tried to argue any point on the ancestry of our Lord Jesus Christ. Throughout the bible we come across often the listing of who begot who. In truth out of all people who ever lived since our great ancestor Adam was created, that no one can put together the correct sequential listing of their ancestors like our Holy Spirit has done for our Master and King Jesus Christ.
We know from the book of Revelation that a phony or false Christ will show up on the scene and the people of the world will fully embrace him without checking for his credentials as the Anointed One instead of our Holy Lord Jesus Christ which He informed us in the Gospel of John chapter 5 verse 43, “I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.”
So, as we are in the beginning of the books of Chronicles our Holy God Is taking the proper efforts of proving the proper lineage of all those who were part of Adoni Yahweh’s Perfect Plan.
What has gone before has established that mankind was all descended from Adam through Noah, and that God chose Abraham and especially blessed all his descendants. Now our Blessed Holy Spirit leads to those whom God has especially chosen, the ‘sons’ of Israel/Jacob.
To a people newly returned from Exile and seeking to populate the promised land all this was of great importance. It established from God-given records that God had maintained His people through the centuries, had raised up chosen men to fulfil His purposes, and that what God had once done He could do again. It also underlined the fact that Israel were His chosen people.
Please take note that the emphasis in 2.1 is on Jacob as ‘Israel’. It was as ‘Israel’ that the returning exiles saw themselves (Ezra 2.2; Nehemiah 7.7). And they also saw themselves as sons of Abraham. The twelve sons of Israel (Jacob) are now listed.
2 These were the sons of Israel: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, 2 Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.
As with the previous people listed the individual names represented both the actual sons of Israel, and the tribes which descended from them (although Joseph later divided up into Ephraim and Manasseh). The first six were sons of Leah, and these are followed by Dan (son of Bilhah) and the two natural sons of Rachel. It would appear from this that Dan is being treated as a ‘natural’ son of Rachel. This may well be because Rachel declared him to be such (Genesis 30.6), speaking of him as her son. Naphtali, whom might have been expected to be listed with Dan (being also a son of Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaid), is listed with the sons of Zilpah, Leah’s handmaid, following the sons of Rachel.
The importance of these descriptive genealogies to the new Israel after the Exile cannot be overstressed. They demonstrated how God had expanded the tribes, in this case of Judah, and had fashioned sub-tribes and clans, and had produced over them men of faith and power as required, men who had settled the land and maintained loyalty to the God of Israel, Yahweh. The message was that they should take heart, because what He had done once He could do again.
3 The sons of Judah were Er, Onan, and Shelah. These three were born to him by the daughter of Shua, the Canaanitess. Er, the firstborn of Judah, was wicked in the sight of the LORD; so, He killed him. 4 And Tamar, his daughter-in-law, bore him Perez and Zerah. All the sons of Judah were five.
Here we have mentioned the five sons of Judah who reminded the returned Exiles of what God was like. Those born of a Canaanite mother (presumably an idolatress) came under God’s judgment or are totally ignored. Those born of a woman of Judah have their part in the following genealogies, with the descendants of Hezron, the son of Perez, being outstanding. They are an assurance of God’s continual working on those whom He has chosen, and a guarantee that He will fulfil His purposes.
The sons of Perez and Zerah are now detailed. The side-lining of Shelah (see 4.21) is a warning that God will sideline those who are not true to Him.
5 The sons of Perez were Hezron and Hamul.
The first to be named are the two sons of Perez. These are Hezron and Hamul. However, although both formed sub-tribes (Numbers 26.21), only the descendants of Hezron will enter consideration. It was from him that the leaders of most importance were descended.
6 The sons of Zerah were Zimri, Ethan, Heman, Calcol, and Dara—five of them in all.
The next mentioned are the five 'sons' (descendants) of Zerah. But of these 'sons' only the descendants of Zimri and Ethan will be taken into consideration, and then only briefly. They were, however, famous in their day. Four of these five 'sons' are described in 1 Kings 4.31 as famed wisdom teachers, although being inferior to Solomon in wisdom.
The Chronicler assumes that his readers will be aware that Carmi was descended from Zerah through one of his sons, for Achan was ‘the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah’ (Joshua 7.1).
7 The son of Carmi was Achar, the troubler of Israel, who transgressed in the accursed thing.
‘Achar’ equals ‘Achan’. ‘Achar’ means ‘troubler’. The reference is to what we know as the sin of Achan, who nearly destroyed Israel by his retention of what had been devoted to YHWH. The story is told in Joshua 7.
8 The son of Ethan was Azariah.
Nothing either good or bad is known about this Azariah. We now come to the meat of the chapter with the mention of three prominent sons of Hezron, Ram, Caleb (Celubai) And Jerahmeel. The descendants of each will be provided in some detail.
9 Also the sons of Hezron who were born to him were Jerahmeel, Ram, and Chelubai.
The names of three of the sons of Hezron are now given. From Ram are descended Nahshon and David and his generals. From Caleb are descended Bezalel the son of Uri; Jair a prominent chieftain of Israel; Maon the founder of Beth-Zur, and lords over areas of Judah. From Jerahmeel is descended Elishama, whose fame is lost to us but who was probably well known to the Chronicler’s first readers. It will be noted that the names of the three sons will be dealt with in reverse order, with Ram coming first, possibly because he was the ancestor of the great king David, through whom was promised the Coming King. Caleb comes second as the ancestor of the architect of the Tabernacle, something huge in Israelite eyes. Jerahmeel takes up the last part of the list. We must remember in this regard the emphasis to be placed by the Chronicler on the life of David, and on the activities of the Tabernacle/Temple.
10 Ram begot Amminadab, and Amminadab begot Nahshon, leader of the children of Judah;
Ram was the son of Hezron, who was the son of Perez, who was the son of Judah. From him were descended Nahshon, the prince of Judah at the time of the Exodus (Numbers 1.7); King David, the model of Israelite kingship; and David’s generals who helped to ensure his victories. This emphasises the centrality of David in the Chronicler’s eyes. It would encourage the returned Exiles with the thought of the David yet to come as promised by the prophets.
Amminadab is known to us because Aaron married his daughter, Elisheba, the sister of Nahshon (Exodus 6.23). Please take notice of the emphasis on the fact that David was descended from a prince of Judah, Nahshon the general/war leader of Judah at the time of the Exodus as they prepared to march on Canaan (Numbers 1.7). David was thus of an aristocratic military background. That he shepherded the sheep, as Moses had before him, does not distract from this. Important men had the responsibility of watching over sheep, assisted by servants. Sheep were their livelihood, and at the time kingship was new in Israel. Israel was a pastoral nation.
11 Nahshon begot Salma, and Salma begot Boaz; 12 Boaz begot Obed, and Obed begot Jesse;
Here is the line of David. Note the disinterest in any but the line that led down to David.
13 Jesse begot Eliab his firstborn, Abinadab the second, Shimea the third, 14 Nethanel the fourth, Raddai the fifth, 15 Ozem the sixth, and David the seventh.
Here we have the names of seven sons of Jesse, the youngest of whom was David. We are familiar with Eliab, Abinadab and Shimea (Shammah) from the story of David (1 Samuel 17.13). In chapter 16 if the book of 1 Samuel 16 verse 10 mentions seven sons all older than David. The assumption must be made that one had died childless prior to the point when this list was made.
16 Now their sisters were Zeruiah and Abigail. And the sons of Zeruiah were Abishai, Joab, and Asahel—three.
Mention is now made of David’s two sisters, Zeruiah and Abigail, partly because Zeruiah was the mother of three of David’s war leaders.
The sons of Zeruiah were Joab, David’s commander-in-chief, and Abishai and Asahel, two of his war leaders. Asahel was slain by Abner, Ishbosheth’s general (2 Samuel 2.22-23), who was in turn slain by Joab in revenge (2 Samuel 3.30).
17 Abigail bore Amasa; and the father of Amasa was Jether the Ishmaelite.
Amasa was also one of David’s war leaders but allowed himself to be appointed as commander-in-chief to Absalom during the rebellion (2 Samuel 17.25). He was thus a traitor to his uncle.
18 Caleb the son of Hezron had children by Azubah, his wife, and by Jerioth. Now these were her sons: Jesher, Shobab, and Ardon.
We have here an unusual phrase which has resulted in a number of alternative renderings. Caleb begat children by Azubah his wife, and also by Jerioth. This was possibly because Jerioth was a slave-wife acting on Azubah’s behalf as a surrogate, as with Rachel and Bilhah. ‘Her sons’ may refer to either Azubah or Jerioth, but in either case in such circumstances all the children would be seen from one point of view as Azubah’s, and also (if Jerioth bore all three) as Jerioth’s. This view would appear to be supported by the Targum which claims that Azubah (which means ‘desolation’) was so called because she was barren and despised.
19 When Azubah died, Caleb took Ephrathas his wife, who bore him Hur. 20 And Hur begot Uri, and Uri begot Bezalel.
Caleb’s wife Azubah died and Caleb married Ephrath (in verse 50 Ephrathah). Ephrath then ‘bore him’ Hur. And Hur ‘begat’ Uri, and Uri begat Bezalel.
21 Now afterward Hezron went in to the daughter of Machir the father of Gilead, whom he married when he was sixty years old; and she bore him Segub.
The daughter of Machir was the wife of Hezron’s old age. With this marriage Segub was born, and from him was descended Jair.
22 Segub begot Jair, who had twenty-three cities in the land of Gilead.
Descended from Segub was Jair, who ruled over twenty three cities in the land of Gilead. In Numbers 32.41 this Jair was jointly responsible for the conquest of Gilead, calling the towns he took Havvoth-jair (the ‘towns’ or ‘lives’ of Jair).
23 (Geshur and Syria took from them the towns of Jair, with Kenath and its towns—sixty towns.) All these belonged to the sons of Machir the father of Gilead.
In Numbers 32.41-2 Jair had captured ‘the towns of Jair’. All in all there were sixty cities in the area (Deuteronomy 3.4). But at some stage Geshurrites and the Syrians swept down from the north and took over all the towns, both the twenty-three of Jair and the thirty-seven of Nobah or Kenath. So, a start that had looked promising suffered a decline. The returnees from Exile would remember back, as they read this, to Judah’s own experiences before the Exile when Israel also had seemed to flourish and had then suffered disaster. They would see that history was repeating itself, and that they must learn their lesson from it, but that God was nevertheless in it and would restore the situation. After all God had now once again brought them into Israel. On the other hand, they also hopefully heeded the warning that their future was only certain whilst they were obedient to YHWH. Otherwise they too would once again be destroyed.
24 After Hezron died in Caleb Ephrathah, Hezron’s wife Abijah bore him Ashhur the father of Tekoa.
So Hezron died in Caleb-ephrathah. Abijah was already pregnant when he died and she bore him ‘a son’ whom she named Ashhur. Ashhur was then the ‘father’ (‘ancestor’) of Tekoa, and seemingly Tekoa became lord or founder of the Tekoites, the family of Tekoa, which later settled in a town south of Bethlehem. From their positioning here Abijah and Ashhur had clearly become part of the Calebite clan. It seems probable that Ashhur, being placed at the end of the section, was a man of renown whose name would be known to the returned Exiles and would be an encouragement to them.
25 The sons of Jerahmeel, the firstborn of Hezron, were Ram, the firstborn, and Bunah, Oren, Ozem, and Ahijah.
Jerahmeel’s first wife bore him five sons. His firstborn was named after his brother Ram. The names of all five are given. Ozem was also the name of the sixth son of David (verse 15). Ahijah (Yah is my brother) was a common name in Israel. Only the sons of Ram and Onam are listed.
26 Jerahmeel had another wife, whose name was Atarah; she was the mother of Onam.
Jerahmeel’s second wife was named Atarah and she bore a son called Onam.
27 The sons of Ram, the firstborn of Jerahmeel, were Maaz, Jamin, and Eker.
The names of the grandsons of Jerahmeel through Ram, his firstborn, are now given.
28 The sons of Onam were Shammai and Jada. The sons of Shammai were Nadab and Abishur.
The names of the grandsons of Jerahmeel through Onam his son, are now given. The line of Onam, the son of Jerahmeel, now continues through his sons Shammai and Jada. Shammai had two sons, Nadab and Abishur. The line of Nadab continues for four generations, the line of Abishur for only one. The descendants of Nadab were clearly important.
29 And the name of the wife of Abishur was Abihail, and she bore him Ahban and Molid.
Abishur had a wife named Abihail, who bore him two sons, Ahban and Molid. And with that his genealogy ends, although it is possible (but unlikely) that both died childless.
30 The sons of Nadab were Seled and Appaim; Seled died without children.
Nadab, the son of Shammai, had two sons, one of whom, Seled, died childless. The other, Appaim, produced a dynasty for three generations, Ishi, followed by Sheshan, followed by Ahlai, a daughter.
31 The son of Appaim was Ishi, the son of Ishi was Sheshan, and Sheshan’s son was Ahlai.
Appaim begat Ishi who begat Sheshan, who begat Ahlai. ‘It is because Ahlai was a woman (for inverse 34 we learn that Sheshan had no son) that the genealogy comes to an abrupt end, only to be continued in verse 31. This explains why the genealogy ends with Ahlai. Verses 34-41 then describe her descendants.
Two sons childless, and then no son at all but only a daughter, would underline to the returnees from Exile how God could surmount all obstacles in bringing about His purposes. God did not give up on Nadab’s line despite the difficulties. But it could also be an indication of God’s chastisements, with God’s purposes progressing despite them.
32 The sons of Jada, the brother of Shammai, were Jether and Jonathan; Jether died without children.
Jada was a brother of Shammai and a son of Onam, who was the son of Jerahmeel. He had two sons, Jether and Jonathan. Jether died childless. The new stress on sons dying childless may be intended to convey a warning to the returned Exiles of the necessity of obedience to YHWH. It would be a punishment.
33 The sons of Jonathan were Peleth and Zaza. These were the sons of Jerahmeel.
Meanwhile Jonathan had two sons, Peleth and Zaza. It may be that one at least was noteworthy, although this is not the end of the line for it continues in an unusual way in the next verses.
34 Now Sheshan had no sons, only daughters. And Sheshan had an Egyptian servant whose name was Jarha.
The genealogy of Nadab continues. Sheshan was the son of Ishi, who was the son of Appaim, who was the son of Nadab, who was the son of Shammai, who was the son of Onam, who was the son of Jerahmeel, who was the son of Hezron, who was the son of Perez, who was the son of Judah.
Sheshan failed to produce a son and only begat daughters, thus he had to resort to time honored custom in order to continue the line of Nadab. Therefore, he turned to an Egyptian slave named Jarha, in order that Jarha might produce sons on Sheshan’s behalf.
35 Sheshan gave his daughter to Jarha his servant as wife, and she bore him Attai.
He gave his daughter to be married to Jarha his slave, and the consequence of the marriage was the birth of Attai, through whom the line could continue.
36 Attai begot Nathan, and Nathan begot Zabad; 37 Zabad begot Ephlal, and Ephlal begot Obed; 38 Obed begot Jehu, and Jehu begot Azariah; 39 Azariah begot Helez, and Helez begot Eleasah; 40 Eleasah begot Sismai, and Sismai begot Shallum; 41 Shallum begot Jekamiah, and Jekamiah begot Elishama.
The descendants of Nadab, through Jarha and Ahlai are now listed for thirteen generations, ending in the birth of Elishama. It follows from this that Elishama must have been a man of huge importance. God’s purposes were being fulfilled.
42 The descendants of Caleb the brother of Jerahmeel were Mesha, his firstborn, who was the father of Ziph, and the sons of Mareshah the father of Hebron.
Caleb the brother of Jerahmeel had two sons named Mesha and Mareshah. Mesha was Caleb’s firstborn, and was the father of Ziph. As with earlier references, especially in chapter 1, Mesha was both the father of Ziph and the father of the resulting Ziphites.
The Ziphites were later found in the hill country of Judah in the wilderness of Ziph (1 Samuel 23.14). The city of Ziph was fortified by Rehoboam (2 Chronicles 11.8). It is now known as Tel Zif, four miles SE of Hebron.
Caleb’s son Mareshah may well have given his name to the town of Mareshah, which was listed alongside Keilah and Achzib (Joshua 15.44), through his descendants. Its important defensive position encouraged Rehoboam to fortify it to protect Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 11.8).
43 The sons of Hebron were Korah, Tappuah, Rekem, and Shema.
Hebron was descended from Mareshah, ‘son’ of Caleb, and his four sons were named Korah, Tappuah, Rekem, and Shema. The emphasis will now be on his descendants through Shema.
44 Shema begot Raham the father of Jorkoam, and Rekem begot Shammai.
Shema is then said to beget Raham. Thus Jorkeam is Raham’s son. Shema’s brother Rekem also bore a son, and he was named Shammai.
45 And the son of Shammai was Maon, and Maon was the father of Beth Zur.
Maon is the son of Shammai. It is most likely that Maon was the father of Bethzur, having become a familiar name, was given to the child of Maon, although he may well have become the founder of the town of Beth-zur.
We now have described the children of Caleb’s three concubines, Ephah, Jahdai and Maacah.
46 Ephah, Caleb’s concubine, bore Haran, Moza, and Gazez; and Haran begot Gazez.
The first was Ephah, she bore four sons, and one of them, Haran, begat Gazez.
47 And the sons of Jahdai were Regem, Jotham, Geshan, Pelet, Ephah, and Shaaph.
Set in between details of two of Caleb’s concubines it is quite clear that Jahdai was also one of his concubines.
48 Maachah, Caleb’s concubine, bore Sheber and Tirhanah. 49 She also bore Shaaph the father of Madmannah, Sheva the father of Machbenah and the father of Gibea. And the daughter of Caleb was Achsah.
Caleb’s third concubine Maacah also bore him sons. Two of them were named Sheber and Tirhanah. No mention is made of their sons. The other two, Shaaph and Sheva, were ‘the fathers’ of Madmannah, Machbena and Gibea.
50 These were the descendants of Caleb: The sons of Hur, the firstborn of Ephrathah, were Shobal the father of Kirjath Jearim, 51 Salma the father of Bethlehem, and Hareph the father of Beth Gader.
We now learn about a third Caleb, Caleb the son of Hur, is now distinguished from the two already mentioned. This Caleb was the son of Hur, who was the firstborn of Ephrathah (2.19), and was named after his grandfather. As we have already seen Hur also begat Uri the father of Bezalel (verses 19-20). That this is another Caleb explains why it was previously stressed that the previously mentioned Caleb was the brother of Jerahmeel, so as to distinguish the two (verse 42).
Three descendants of Caleb the son of Hur are now named. All appear to have established, or been lord over, towns, presumably during the conquest. Shobal in some way established/was lord over Kiriath-jearim, Salma established/was lord over Bethlehem, and Hareph established/was lord over Beth-gader.
Kiriath-jearim was a former Gibeonite city (Joshua 9.17), but Shobal was clearly given charge over it and may well have fortified it, thus becoming ‘father’ to its inhabitants. Bethlehem was also called Ephrath (Genesis 35.19) and Rachel was buried ‘on the road to it’. Salma was given lordship over it. But verse 54 suggests that he also had a son called Bethlehem (towns are always ‘daughters of --’ not ‘sons of --’). As men were regularly named after their towns there is nothing unlikely in that. Beth-gader was possibly identical with Geder of Joshua 12.13. Hareph became its lord.
52 And Shobal the father of Kirjath Jearim had descendants: Haroeh, and half of the families of Manuhoth. 53 The families of Kirjath Jearim were the Ithrites, the Puthites, the Shumathites, and the Mishraites. From these came the Zorathites and the Eshtaolites.
The position of Shobal is expanded on. He had other sons, both real and adopted. Haroeh (‘the seer’) would appear to have been a real son, but the Manahathites and the families of Kiriath-jearim would be partly of his family and partly adopted. The ‘families of Kiriath-jearim’ are expanded on as including the Ithrites, and the Puthites, and the Shumathites, and the Mishraites. Of them came the Zorathites and the Eshtaolites. They were thus a conglomerate people adopted by Shobal.
54 The sons of Salma were Bethlehem, the Netophathites, Atroth Beth Joab, half of the Manahethites, and the Zorites. 55 And the families of the scribes who dwelt at Jabez were the Tirathites, the Shimeathites, and the Suchathites. These were the Kenites who came from Hammath, the father of the house of Rechab.
Salma (verse 51) also had wide authority. He had a son whom he named Bethlehem after his town and he was lord over the Netophathites (from the town of Netophath or from a group of villages near Bethlehem).
He was also lord over Atroth-beth-joab (literally ‘the crowns of the house of Joab’). He was also lord over half the Manahathites (Shobal was over the other half). Furthermore, he was lord over the Zorites (the inhabitants of Zorah) and over the families of scribes who dwelt at Jabez.
The families of the scribes who dwelt at Jabez included the Tirathites, the Shimeathites, and the Sucathites. They appear to have been Kenites, tent dwellers who were involved in various trades.
These closing references to powerful aristocrats would encourage the returnees from Exile as they considered how God had built up His people in the past and had established powerful men among them. It would give them hope of what He was going to do in the future.
