1 Chronicles

1 Chronicles 7:1-5

The priority and purpose of Chronicles becomes obvious when you notice the amount of space dedicated to Judah and Levi verses the other tribes. Issachar is noted primarily for its eldest some Tola who were leaders and warriors among the people.

1 Chronicles 7:6-12

Benjamin had three sons. The eldest was Bela and his sons were the leaders among the people and they also had many mighty men. The second son was Becher and the third was Jediael; both had men of valor and leaders among their people.

1 Chronicles 7:13

Naphtali is mentioned, almost in passing in comparison to the some of the other tribes. Just by volume of words we can see that Judah and Levi get much more in depth analysis. The lineage of the kings and priests are the focus of this book.

1 Chronicles 7:14-19

These descendants of Manasseh are of the half tribe that settled to the west side of the Jordan. Machir was particularly notable because his offspring included Gilda's whose grandson was Zelophehad. Zelophehad was unfortunate enough (at least viewed that way, in that day) to have only daughters. This created the legal question of whether daughters could inherit. The offspring can be compared to Joshua 17:3-4 and Numbers 27:1-11.

1 Chronicles 7:20-29

The clans of Ephraim are also note in Numbers 26:35-37. The loss of two of Ephraim's sons was significant to the chronicler. Among the Jews, who were so linked to their lineage, the death of these sons also signified the deaths of all their offspring for all future generations. As Ephraim was the dominant tribe this death by the men of Gath was significant.

1 Chronicles 7:30-40

The genealogies of Asher are given here and in greater detail in Genesis 46:17 and Numbers 26:44-45.

©2016 Doug Ford