The Descendants of Issachar

7 Issachar was the father of four sons: Tola, Puah, Jashub, and Shimron.

² Tola was the father of Uzzi, Rephaiah, Jeriel, Jahmai, Ibsam, and Shemuel, who were all brave soldiers and family leaders in their clan. There were 22,600 people in Tola's family by the time David became king.

³ Uzzi was the father of Izrahiah and the grandfather of Michael, Obadiah, Joel, and Isshiah, who were also family leaders. ⁴ Their families were so large that they had 36,000 soldiers in their clans. ⁵ In fact, according to family records, the tribe of Issachar had a total of 87,000 warriors.

The Descendants of Benjamin and Dan

⁶ Benjamin was the father of three sons: Bela, Becher, and Jediael.

⁷ Bela was the father of Ezbon, Uzzi, Uzziel, Jerimoth, and Iri. They were all brave soldiers and family leaders in their father's clan. The number of soldiers in their clan was 22,034.

⁸ Becher was the father of Zemirah, Joash, Eliezer, Elioenai, Omri, Jeremoth, Abijah, Anathoth, and Alemeth. ⁹ The official family records listed 20,200 soldiers in the families of this clan, as well as their family leaders.

¹⁰ Jediael was the father of Bilhan and the grandfather of Jeush, Benjamin, Ehud, Chenaanah, Zethan, Tarshish, and Ahishahar. ¹¹ They were family leaders in their clan, which had 17,200 soldiers prepared to fight in battle. ¹² Ir was the father of Shuppim and Huppim, who also belonged to this clan.

Dan^[a] was the father of Hushim.

The Descendants of Naphtali

¹³ Naphtali's mother was Bilhah,^[b] and he was the father of Jahziel, Guni, Jezer, and Shallum.

The Descendants of Manasseh

¹⁴ Manasseh and his Syrian wife^[c] were the parents of Asriel and Machir the father of Gilead. ¹⁵ Machir found a wife for Huppim and one for Shuppim. Machir had a sister named Maacah.

Zelophehad was also a descendant of Manasseh, and he had five daughters.^[d]

¹⁶ Machir and his wife Maacah were the parents of Peresh and Sheresh. Peresh was the father of Ulam and Rekem. ¹⁷ Ulam was the father of Bedan. These were all descendants of Gilead, the son of Machir and the grandson of Manasseh.

¹⁸ Gilead's sister Hammolecheth was the mother of Ishhod, Abiezer, and Mahlah.

¹⁹ Shemida, another descendant of Manasseh, was the father of Ahian, Shechem, Likhi, and Aniam.

The Descendants of Ephraim

²⁰ Ephraim was the father of Shuthelah and the ancestor of Bered, Tahath, Eleadah, Tahath, ²¹ Zabad, and Shuthelah.

Ephraim had two other sons, Ezer and Elead. But they were killed when they tried to steal livestock from the people who lived in the territory of Gath. ²² Ephraim mourned for his sons a long time, and his relatives came to comfort him. ²³ Some time later his wife gave birth to another son, and Ephraim named him Beriah, because he was born during a time of misery.^[e]

²⁴ Ephraim's daughter was Sheerah. She built the towns of Lower Beth-Horon, Upper Beth-Horon, and Uzzen-Sheerah.

²⁵ Ephraim also had a son named Rephah, and his descendants included Resheph, Telah, Tahan, ²⁶ Ladan, Ammihud, Elishama, ²⁷ Nun, and Joshua.

²⁸ The descendants of Ephraim took over the territory as far south as Bethel, as far east as Naaran, and as far west as Gezer. Their territory included all the villages around these towns, as well as Shechem, Ayyah, and the nearby villages.

²⁹ The descendants of Manasseh settled in the territory that included Beth-Shan, Taanach, Megiddo, Dor, and the nearby villages.

The descendants of Joseph^[f] lived in these towns and villages.

The Descendants of Asher

³⁰ Asher had four sons, Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, and Beriah, and one daughter, Serah.

³¹ Beriah was the father of Heber and Malchiel the father of Birzaith. ³² Heber was the father of three sons, Japhlet, Shomer, and Hotham, and one daughter, Shua. ³³ Japhlet was the father of Pasach, Bimhal, and Ashvath. ³⁴ Shomer was the father of Ahi, Rohgah, Hubbah, and Aram. ³⁵ And Japhlet's brother Hotham^[g] was the father of Zophah, Imna, Shelesh, and Amal. ³⁶ Zophah was the father of Suah, Harnepher, Shual, Beri, Imrah, ³⁷ Bezer, Hod, Shamma, Shilshah, Ithran, and Beera. ³⁸ Jether was the father of Jephunneh, Pispa, and Ara.

³⁹ Ulla was the father of Arah, Hanniel, and Rizia.

⁴⁰ These were the descendants of Asher, and they were all respected family leaders and brave soldiers. The tribe of Asher had a total of 26,000 soldiers.

More Descendants of Benjamin

8 Benjamin had five sons, who were born in the following order: Bela, Ashbel, Aharah, ² Nohah, and Rapha. ³ Bela was the father of Addar, Gera, Abihud, ⁴ Abishua, Naaman, Ahoah, ⁵ Gera, Shephuphan, and Huram.

^6-7 Ehud was the father of Naaman, Ahijah, and Gera. They were clan leaders in the town of Geba, but were later forced to move to the town of Manahath, and Gera led the way. He had two sons: Uzza and Ahihud.

^8-11 Shaharaim and his wife Hushim had two sons: Abitub and Elpaal. But Shaharaim later divorced her and his other wife, Baara. Then he moved to the country of Moab and married Hodesh, and they had seven sons: Jobab, Zibia, Mesha, Malcam, Jeuz, Sachia, and Mirmah. They were all family leaders in his clan. ¹² Elpaal was the father of Eber, Misham, and Shemed, who settled the towns of Ono and Lod, as well as the nearby villages.

¹³ Beriah and Shema were family leaders in the clan that lived in the town of Aijalon and that forced out the people of Gath. ^14-16 Beriah's descendants included Ahio, Shashak, Jeremoth, Zebadiah, Arad, Eder, Michael, Ishpah, and Joha. ^17-18 Elpaal's descendants included Zebadiah, Meshullam, Hizki, Heber, Ishmerai, Izliah, and Jobab. ^19-21 Shimei's descendants included Jakim, Zichri, Zabdi, Elienai, Zillethai, Eliel, Adaiah, Beraiah, and Shimrath. ^22-25 Shashak's descendants included Ishpan, Eber, Eliel, Abdon, Zichri, Hanan, Hananiah, Elam, Anthothijah, Iphdeiah, and Penuel. ^26-27 Jeroham's descendants included Shamsherai, Shehariah, Athaliah, Jaareshiah, Elijah, and Zichri. ²⁸ These were the family leaders in their ancestor's clan, and they and their descendants lived in Jerusalem.

²⁹ Jeiel^[h] settled the town of Gibeon. He and his wife Maacah lived there ³⁰ along with their sons, who were born in the following order: Abdon, Zur, Kish, Baal, Ner,^[i] Nadab, ³¹ Gedor, Ahio, Zecher, ³² and Mikloth the father of Shimeah. Some of them went to live in Jerusalem near their relatives.

The Descendants of King Saul

³³ Ner was the father of Kish and the grandfather of King Saul.

Saul had four sons: Jonathan, Malchishua, Abinadab, and Eshbaal.^{[j] 34} Jonathan was the father of Meribbaal,^[k] the grandfather of Micah, ³⁵ and the great-grandfather of Pithon, Melech, Tarea, and Ahaz. ³⁶ Saul's other descendants were Jehoaddah, Alemeth, Azmaveth, Zimri, Moza, ³⁷ Binea, Raphah, Eleasah, Azel, ³⁸ as well as Azel's six sons: Azrikam, Bocheru, Ishmael, Sheariah, Obadiah, and Hanan. ³⁹ Azel's brother Eshek was the father of Ulam, Jeush, and Eliphelet. ⁴⁰ Ulam's sons were brave soldiers who were experts at using a bow and arrows. They had a total of 150 children and grandchildren.

All of these belonged to the tribe of Benjamin.

The People Who Returned from Babylonia and Settled in Jerusalem

9 Everyone in Israel was listed in the official family records that were included in the history of Israel's kings.

The people of Judah were taken to Babylonia as prisoners because they sinned against the Lord. ^2 (A) And the first people to return to their towns included priests, Levites, temple workers, and other Israelites. ³ People from the tribes of Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh settled in Jerusalem.

^4-6 There were 690 people from the Judah tribe who settled in Jerusalem. They were all descendants of Judah's three sons: Perez, Shelah, and Zerah. Their leaders were Uthai, Asaiah, and Jeuel. Uthai was the son of Ammihud and a descendant of Omri, Imri, Bani, and Perez. Asaiah was a descendant of Shelah; Jeuel was a descendant of Zerah.

^7-9 There were also 956 family leaders from the Benjamin tribe who settled in Jerusalem. They included: Sallu son of Meshullam, grandson of Hodaviah, and great-grandson of Hassenuah; Ibneiah son of Jeroham; Elah son of Uzzi and grandson of Michri; Meshullam son of Shephatiah, grandson of Reuel, and great-grandson of Ibnijah.

The Priests Who Settled in Jerusalem

^10-12 Here is a list of priests who settled in Jerusalem: Jedaiah; Jehoiarib; Jachin; Azariah, who was a temple official, and whose ancestors included Hilkiah, Meshullam, Zadok, Meraioth, and Ahitub; Adaiah son of Jeroham, whose ancestors included Pashhur and Malchijah; Maasai son of Adiel, whose ancestors included Jahzerah, Meshullam, Meshillemith, and Immer.

¹³ There was a total of 1,760 priests, all of them family leaders in their clan and trained in the work at the temple.

The Levites Who Settled in Jerusalem

^14-16 Here is a list of Levites who settled in Jerusalem: Shemaiah from the Merari clan, whose ancestors included Hasshub, Azrikam, and Hashabiah; Bakbakkar; Heresh; Galal; Mattaniah son of Mica, whose ancestors included Zichri and Asaph; Obadiah son of Shemaiah, whose ancestors included Galal and Jeduthun; Berechiah son of Asa and grandson of Elkanah, who had lived in the villages near the town of Netophah.

The Temple Guards Who Settled in Jerusalem

¹⁷ Shallum, Akkub, Talmon, Ahiman, and their relatives were the guards at the temple gates. Shallum was the leader of this clan, ¹⁸ and for a long time they had been the guards at the King's Gate on the east side of the city. Before that, their ancestors guarded the entrance to the Levite camp.

¹⁹ Shallum son of Kore,^[l] as well as the other men in the Korahite clan, guarded the entrance to the temple, just as their ancestors had guarded the entrance to the sacred tent. ²⁰ Phinehas son of Eleazar had supervised their work because the Lord was with him.

²¹ Zechariah son of Meshelemiah was also one of the guards at the temple.

²² There was a total of 212 guards, all of them listed in the family records in their towns. Their ancestors had been chosen by King David and by Samuel the prophet to be responsible for this work, ²³ and now they guarded the temple gates.

²⁴ There was one full-time guard appointed to each of the four sides of the temple. ²⁵ Their assistants lived in the villages outside the city, and every seven days a group of them would come into the city and take their turn at guard duty. ²⁶ The four full-time guards were Levites, and they supervised the other guards and were responsible for the rooms in the temple and the supplies kept there. ²⁷ They guarded the temple day and night and opened its doors every morning.

The Duties of the Levites

²⁸ Some of the Levites were responsible for the equipment used in worship at the temple, and they had to count everything before and after it was used. ²⁹ Others were responsible for the temple furnishings and its sacred objects, as well as the flour, wine, olive oil, incense, and spices. ³⁰ But only the priests could mix the spices. ³¹ Mattithiah, Shallum's oldest son, was a member of the Levite clan of Korah, and he was in charge of baking the bread used for offerings.^{[m] 32} The Levites from the Kohath clan were in charge of baking the sacred loaves of bread for each Sabbath.^[n]

³³ The Levite family leaders who were the musicians also lived at the temple. They had no other responsibilities, because they were on duty day and night.

³⁴ All of these men were family leaders in the Levi tribe and were listed that way in their family records. They lived in Jerusalem.

King Saul's Family

(1 Chronicles 8.29-38)

³⁵ Jeiel had settled the town of Gibeon, where he and his wife Maacah lived. ³⁶ They had ten sons, who were born in the following order: Abdon, Zur, Kish, Baal, Ner, Nadab, ³⁷ Gedor, Ahio, Zechariah, and Mikloth ³⁸ the father of Shimeam. Some of them went to live in Jerusalem near their relatives.

³⁹ Ner was the father of Kish and the grandfather of King Saul.

Saul had four sons: Jonathan, Malchishua, Abinadab, and Eshbaal.^{[o] 40-41} Jonathan was the father of Meribbaal,^[p] the grandfather of Micah, and the great-grandfather of Pithon, Melech, Tahrea, and Ahaz.^{[q] 42-44} The descendants of Ahaz included Jarah, Alemeth, Azmaveth, Zimri, Moza, Binea, Rephaiah, Eleasah, and Azel and his six sons: Azrikam, Bocheru, Ishmael, Sheariah, Obadiah, and Hanan.

The Bread That Gives Life

²² The people who had stayed on the east side of the lake knew that only one boat had been there. They also knew that Jesus had not left in it with his disciples. But the next day ²³ some boats from Tiberias sailed near the place where the crowd had eaten the bread for which the Lord had given thanks. ²⁴ They saw that Jesus and his disciples had left. Then they got into the boats and went to Capernaum to look for Jesus. ²⁵ They found him on the west side of the lake and asked, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”

²⁶ Jesus answered, “I tell you for certain that you are not looking for me because you saw the miracles,^[a] but because you ate all the food you wanted. ^27 (A) Don't work for food that spoils. Work for food that gives eternal life. The Son of Man will give you this food, because God the Father has given him the right to do so.”

²⁸ “What exactly does God want us to do?” the people asked.

²⁹ Jesus answered, “God wants you to have faith in the one he sent.”

³⁰ They replied, “What miracle will you work, so that we can have faith in you? What will you do? ^31 (B) For example, when our ancestors were in the desert, they were given manna^[b] to eat. It happened just as the Scriptures say, ‘God gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ”

³² Jesus then told them, “I tell you for certain that Moses wasn't the one who gave you bread from heaven. My Father is the one who gives you the true bread from heaven. ³³ And the bread that God gives is the one who came down from heaven to give life to the world.”

³⁴ The people said, “Sir, give us this bread and don't ever stop!”

³⁵ Jesus replied:

I am the bread that gives life! No one who comes to me will ever be hungry. No one who has faith in me will ever be thirsty. ³⁶ I have told you already that you have seen me and still do not have faith in me. ³⁷ Everything and everyone that the Father has given me will come to me, and I won't turn any of them away.

³⁸ I didn't come from heaven to do what I want! I came to do what the Father wants me to do. He sent me, ³⁹ and he wants to make certain that none of the ones he has given me will be lost. Instead, he wants me to raise them to life on the last day.^{[c] 40} My Father wants everyone who sees the Son to have faith in him and to have eternal life. Then I will raise them to life on the last day.

⁴¹ The people started grumbling because Jesus had said he was the bread that had come down from heaven. ⁴² They were asking each other, “Isn't he Jesus, the son of Joseph? Don't we know his father and mother? How can he say that he has come down from heaven?”

⁴³ Jesus told them:

Stop grumbling! ⁴⁴ No one can come to me, unless the Father who sent me makes them want to come. But if they do come, I will raise them to life on the last day.

Read full chapter