1 Chronicles 4
GOD’S WORD Translation
More of Judah’s Descendants
4 Judah’s descendants were Perez, Hezron, Carmi, Hur, and Shobal. 2 Reaiah, son of Shobal, was the father of Jahath. Jahath was the father of Ahumai and Lahad. These were the families of the Zorathites.
3 These were the first settlers in Etam: Jezreel, Ishma, and Idbash. Their sister’s name was Hazelelponi. 4 Penuel was the father of Gedor, and Ezer was the father of Hushah. These were the sons of Hur, the firstborn of Ephrathah, who first settled Bethlehem.
5 Ashhur, who first settled Tekoa, had two wives, Helah and Naarah. 6 Naarah gave birth to Ahuzzam, Hepher, Temeni, and Haahashtari. These were Naarah’s sons. 7 Helah’s sons were Zereth, Izohar, and Ethnan. 8 Koz was the father of Anub and Zobebah, and he was the ancestor of the families of Aharhel, son of Harum.
9 Jabez was more honorable than his brothers. His mother had named him Jabez [Painful], because she said that his birth was painful. 10 Jabez prayed to the God of Israel, “Please bless me and give me more territory. May your power be with me and free me from evil so that I will not be in pain.” God gave him what he prayed for.
11 Chelub, Shuhah’s brother, was the father of Mehir, who was the father of Eshton. 12 Eshton was the first to settle Beth Rapha. He was the father of Paseah and Tehinnah, who first settled the city of Nahash. These were the men from Recah.
13 Kenaz’s sons were Othniel and Seraiah. The sons of Othniel were Hathath and Meonothai.[a] 14 Meonothai was the father of Ophrah. Seraiah was the father of Joab, who first settled the valley of Craftsmen. (It was named this because they were craftsmen.) 15 The sons of Caleb, son of Jephunneh, were Iru, Elah, and Naam. Elah’s son was Kenaz.
16 Jehallelel’s sons were Ziph, Ziphah, Tiria, and Asarel. 17 Ezrah’s sons were Jether, Mered, Epher, and Jalon. His wife gave birth to Miriam, Shammai, and Ishbah, who first settled Eshtemoa. 18 His Judean wife was the mother of Jered, who first settled Gedor, Heber, who first settled Soco, and Jekuthiel, who first settled Zanoah.
19 The sons of Hodiah’s wife, the sister of Naham, first settled Keilah of the Garmites and Eshtemoa of the Maacathites. 20 Shimon’s sons were Amnon, Rinnah, Ben Hanan, and Tilon. Ishi’s sons were Zoheth and Ben Zoheth.
21 The descendants of Shelah, son of Judah, were Er, who first settled Lecah, Laadah, who first settled Mareshah, families of the guild of linen workers at Beth Ashbea, 22 Jokim, Joash, Saraph, and the men of Cozeba. Saraph ruled Moab and Jashubi Lehem (according to ancient records). 23 They were the potters who lived at Netaim and Gederah. They lived there with the king and did his work.
Simeon’s Descendants
24 Simeon’s sons were Nemuel, Jamin, Jarib, Zerah, and Shaul. 25 Shaul’s son was Shallum. Shallum’s son was Mibsam. Mibsam’s son was Mishma. 26 Mishma’s son was Hammuel. Hammuel’s son was Zaccur. Zaccur’s son was Shimei. 27 Shimei had 16 sons and 6 daughters. But his brothers didn’t have many children, so their entire family didn’t become as large as the people of Judah.
28 Simeon’s descendants lived in Beersheba, Moladah, Hazar Shual, 29 Bilhah, Ezem, Tolad, 30 Bethuel, Hormah, Ziklag, 31 Beth Marcaboth, Hazar Susim, Beth Biri, and Shaaraim. These were their cities until David became king. 32 Their five cities were Etam, Ain, Rimmon, Tochen, and Ashan. 33 They also had all the villages around these cities as far as the city of Baal. These places were where they lived, and they had their own genealogical records:
34 Meshobab, Jamlech, Joshah (son of Amaziah), 35 Joel, Jehu (son of Joshibiah, grandson of Seraiah, and great-grandson of Asiel), 36 Elioenai, Jaakobah, Jeshohaiah, Asaiah, Adiel, Jesimiel, Benaiah, and 37 Ziza (son of Shiphi, grandson of Allon, great-grandson of Jedaiah, a descendant of Shimri and Shemaiah). 38 These who are mentioned by name were leaders in their families, and the number of people in their households increased.
39 They moved to the outskirts of Gedor, on the east side of the valley, to find pasture for their flocks. 40 They found pasture that was rich and good. The land was vast, peaceful, and quiet because the Hamites used to live there. 41 In the days of King Hezekiah of Judah, the men listed here knocked down tents and killed the Meunites. They claimed the Meunites for God and destroyed them. (Even today no Meunites live there.) They lived in that land in place of the Meunites in order to have pasture for their flocks. 42 Ishi’s sons Pelatiah, Neariah, Rephaiah, and Uzziel led 500 of Simeon’s male descendants to Mount Seir. 43 They killed the Amalekites who were left. Simeon’s descendants still live there today.
Footnotes
- 4:13 Greek; Masoretic Text omits “and Meonothai.”
1 Chronicles 4
New Living Translation
Other Descendants of Judah
4 The descendants of Judah were Perez, Hezron, Carmi, Hur, and Shobal.
2 Shobal’s son Reaiah was the father of Jahath. Jahath was the father of Ahumai and Lahad. These were the families of the Zorathites.
3 The descendants of[a] Etam were Jezreel, Ishma, Idbash, their sister Hazzelelponi, 4 Penuel (the father of[b] Gedor), and Ezer (the father of Hushah). These were the descendants of Hur (the firstborn of Ephrathah), the ancestor of Bethlehem.
5 Ashhur (the father of Tekoa) had two wives, named Helah and Naarah. 6 Naarah gave birth to Ahuzzam, Hepher, Temeni, and Haahashtari. 7 Helah gave birth to Zereth, Izhar,[c] Ethnan, 8 and Koz, who became the ancestor of Anub, Zobebah, and all the families of Aharhel son of Harum.
9 There was a man named Jabez who was more honorable than any of his brothers. His mother named him Jabez[d] because his birth had been so painful. 10 He was the one who prayed to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and expand my territory! Please be with me in all that I do, and keep me from all trouble and pain!” And God granted him his request.
11 Kelub (the brother of Shuhah) was the father of Mehir. Mehir was the father of Eshton. 12 Eshton was the father of Beth-rapha, Paseah, and Tehinnah. Tehinnah was the father of Ir-nahash. These were the descendants of Recah.
13 The sons of Kenaz were Othniel and Seraiah. Othniel’s sons were Hathath and Meonothai.[e] 14 Meonothai was the father of Ophrah. Seraiah was the father of Joab, the founder of the Valley of Craftsmen,[f] so called because they were craftsmen.
15 The sons of Caleb son of Jephunneh were Iru, Elah, and Naam. The son of Elah was Kenaz.
16 The sons of Jehallelel were Ziph, Ziphah, Tiria, and Asarel.
17 The sons of Ezrah were Jether, Mered, Epher, and Jalon. One of Mered’s wives became[g] the mother of Miriam, Shammai, and Ishbah (the father of Eshtemoa). 18 He married a woman from Judah, who became the mother of Jered (the father of Gedor), Heber (the father of Soco), and Jekuthiel (the father of Zanoah). Mered also married Bithia, a daughter of Pharaoh, and she bore him children.
19 Hodiah’s wife was the sister of Naham. One of her sons was the father of Keilah the Garmite, and another was the father of Eshtemoa the Maacathite.
20 The sons of Shimon were Amnon, Rinnah, Ben-hanan, and Tilon.
The descendants of Ishi were Zoheth and Ben-zoheth.
Descendants of Judah’s Son Shelah
21 Shelah was one of Judah’s sons. The descendants of Shelah were Er (the father of Lecah); Laadah (the father of Mareshah); the families of linen workers at Beth-ashbea; 22 Jokim; the men of Cozeba; and Joash and Saraph, who ruled over Moab and Jashubi-lehem. These names all come from ancient records. 23 They were the pottery makers who lived in Netaim and Gederah. They lived there and worked for the king.
Descendants of Simeon
24 The sons of Simeon were Jemuel,[h] Jamin, Jarib, Zohar,[i] and Shaul.
25 The descendants of Shaul were Shallum, Mibsam, and Mishma.
26 The descendants of Mishma were Hammuel, Zaccur, and Shimei.
27 Shimei had sixteen sons and six daughters, but none of his brothers had large families. So Simeon’s tribe never grew as large as the tribe of Judah.
28 They lived in Beersheba, Moladah, Hazar-shual, 29 Bilhah, Ezem, Tolad, 30 Bethuel, Hormah, Ziklag, 31 Beth-marcaboth, Hazar-susim, Beth-biri, and Shaaraim. These towns were under their control until the time of King David. 32 Their descendants also lived in Etam, Ain, Rimmon, Token, and Ashan—five towns 33 and their surrounding villages as far away as Baalath.[j] This was their territory, and these names are listed in their genealogical records.
34 Other descendants of Simeon included Meshobab, Jamlech, Joshah son of Amaziah, 35 Joel, Jehu son of Joshibiah, son of Seraiah, son of Asiel, 36 Elioenai, Jaakobah, Jeshohaiah, Asaiah, Adiel, Jesimiel, Benaiah, 37 and Ziza son of Shiphi, son of Allon, son of Jedaiah, son of Shimri, son of Shemaiah.
38 These were the names of some of the leaders of Simeon’s wealthy clans. Their families grew, 39 and they traveled to the region of Gerar,[k] in the east part of the valley, seeking pastureland for their flocks. 40 They found lush pastures there, and the land was spacious, quiet, and peaceful.
Some of Ham’s descendants had been living in that region. 41 But during the reign of King Hezekiah of Judah, these leaders of Simeon invaded the region and completely destroyed[l] the homes of the descendants of Ham and of the Meunites. No trace of them remains today. They killed everyone who lived there and took the land for themselves, because they wanted its good pastureland for their flocks. 42 Five hundred of these invaders from the tribe of Simeon went to Mount Seir, led by Pelatiah, Neariah, Rephaiah, and Uzziel—all sons of Ishi. 43 They destroyed the few Amalekites who had survived, and they have lived there ever since.
Footnotes
- 4:3 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads father of. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
- 4:4 Or the founder of; also in 4:5, 12, 14, 17, 18, and perhaps other instances where the text reads the father of.
- 4:7 As in an alternate reading in the Masoretic Text (see also Latin Vulgate); the other alternate and the Greek version read Zohar.
- 4:9 Jabez sounds like a Hebrew word meaning “distress” or “pain.”
- 4:13 As in some Greek manuscripts and Latin Vulgate; Hebrew lacks and Meonothai.
- 4:14 Or Joab, the father of Ge-harashim.
- 4:17 Or Jether’s wife became; Hebrew reads She became.
- 4:24a As in Syriac version (see also Gen 46:10; Exod 6:15); Hebrew reads Nemuel.
- 4:24b As in parallel texts at Gen 46:10 and Exod 6:15; Hebrew reads Zerah.
- 4:33 As in some Greek manuscripts (see also Josh 19:8); Hebrew reads Baal.
- 4:39 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads Gedor.
- 4:41 The Hebrew term used here refers to the complete consecration of things or people to the Lord, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering.
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