Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 1 Chronicles 1:43
Now these [are] the kings that reigned in the land of Edom before [any] king reigned over the children of Israel; Bela the son of Beor: and the name of his city [was] Dinhabah.
43 51a. The early Kings of Edom. (Cp. Gen 36:31-39.)
43. in the land of Edom ] Edom continued to play an important part in the history of Israel till long after the Chronicler’s lifetime. See (e.g.) 1Ma 5:65 ; 2Ma 10:14-17 . Moreover the Herods were of Edomite descent.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
The slight differences favor the view, that the writer of Chronicles has here, as elsewhere, abridged from Genesis (see the marginal references).
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 43. Before any king reigned over – Israel] See Ge 36:31, c., where the same verses occur, as I have supposed borrowed from this place and see the notes there.
Bela the son of Beor] “Balaam the impious son of Beor, the same as Laban the Syrian, who formed a confederacy with the sons of Esau, to destroy Jacob and his children; and he studied to destroy them utterly. Afterwards he reigned in Sodom; and the name of his royal city was Dinhabah, because it was undeservedly given to him.” – T.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Of this and the following verses, See Poole “Gen 36:31“, &c., whence this whole relation is taken.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
Ver. 43-54. Now these are the kings that reigned in the land of Edom,…. Which had its name from Esau, who was so called, Ge 25:30. From hence, to the end of the chapter, an account is given of the kings and dukes of Edom, in the same order as in
Ge 30:31.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
The kings of Edom before the introduction of the kingship into Israel. – This is a verbally exact repetition of Gen 36:31-39, except that the introductory formula, Gen 36:32, “and there reigned in Edom,” which is superfluous after the heading, and the addition “ben Achbor” (Gen 36:39) in the account of the death of Baal-hanan in 1Ch 1:50, are omitted; the latter because even in Genesis, where mention is made of the death of other kings, the name of the father of the deceased king is not repeated. Besides this, the king called Hadad (v. 46f.), and the city (v. 50), are in Genesis Hadar (Gen 36:35.) and (Gen 36:39). The first of these variations has arisen from a transcriber’s error, the other from a different pronunciation of the name. A somewhat more important divergence, however, appears, when in Gen 36:39 the death of the king last named is not mentioned, because he was still alive in the time of Moses; while in the Chronicle, on the contrary, not only of him also is it added, , because at the time of the writing of the Chronicle he had long been dead, but the list of the names of the territories of the phylarchs, which in Genesis follows the introductory formula alum , is here connected with the enumeration of the kings by , “Hadad died, and there were chiefs of Edom.” This may mean that, in the view of the chronicler, the reign of the phylarchs took the place of the kingship after the death of the last king, but that interpretation is by no means necessary. The consec. may also merely express the succession of thought, only connecting logically the mention of the princes with the enumeration of the kings; or it may signify that, besides the kings, there were also tribal princes who could rule the land and people. The contents of the register which follows require that should be so understood.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
Esau’s People, Verses 43-54
This list of Edomite kings and dukes (or chiefs) is found also in Genesis chapter 36. Since many kings had lived and died before the time of Moses, who recorded the Genesis list, it follows that the children of Esau became a nation, with kings, long before Israel came out of Egypt and even longer before they had a king. Eight kings are named, indicating that eight generations had passed since Esau became a nation, and Israel was just then asserting herself as a nation. The Lord had promised, through Isaac’s blessing, to give Canaan to Jacob and to make Esau subservient to him (see Genesis 27), but the Lord did not immediately bring it to pass.
Esau had gone from Canaan and established himself in the rocky wilderness south of the Dead Sea. The land is called Mount Seir also, for the primeval tribe which inhabited it before the coming of Esau. The Seirites were absorbed into the kingdom of Edom (De 2:12,22). The places named as “cities” of the Edomite kings are in that area. The kings are nowhere else distinguished by any deed. The wife of Hadad, Mehetabel, is named in verse 50. She must have been distinguished in her time, or was descended from other great women, who are named in the same context. Hadad is said to have been victor in an important engagement with the Moabites, but this is an earlier Hadad than Mehetabel’s husband.
The King James Version lists the chiefs of the Edomites as “dukes,” although their position did not actually correspond to that of the English dukes in 1611.
The following lessons may be noted from study of these genealogies: 1) God has an important purpose for the genealogies, which the Bible student can find by searching, and from which he may profit; 2) God faithfully keeps His promises, even to those who do not worship Him; 3) God orderly arranged the nations of the earth, but men have disrupted His arrangement; 4) the Lord does not allow the testimony of His truth to perish from the earth; 5) sometimes the Lord teaches patience by allowing His people to wait for fulfillment of His promises.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
(43) Before any king reigned over the children of Israel.Comp. Num. 20:14-21, the message of Moses to the king of Edom, asking for a free passage for Israel through his domains. As the older people, and as having been earlier established in its permanent home, Edom was naturally a stage beyond Israel in political development. Unhappily brief as it is, this notice is very appropriately inserted here in an introduction to the history of the kings of the house of David.
Bela the son of Beor.Curiously like Balaam the son of Beor, Num. 22:5. In Hebrew, Bela and Balaam are essentially similar words, the terminal m of the latter being possibly a mere formative. (Perhaps, however, BalaamHeb. Bilam = Bel is a kinsman) comp. Eliam. The prophet whose strange story is read in Numbers 22-24 may, like Isaiah, have been of royal extraction.
Dinhabah.Doom-giving, that is, the place where the king gave judgment (1Sa. 8:5).
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
(43-54) The ancient kings and chiliarchs of Edom, a transcript of Gen. 36:31-43, with only such differences as are incidental to transcribing.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
1Ch 1:43 Now these [are] the kings that reigned in the land of Edom before [any] king reigned over the children of Israel; Bela the son of Beor: and the name of his city [was] Dinhabah.
Ver. 43. Now these are the kings. ] See Trapp on “ Gen 36:31 “ Kings were crowned, dukes were not. Israel had first judges, who were as dukes; after that, kings; and then dukes again, or governors, viz., after the captivity. So had Edom. See 1Ch 1:51-52 .
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
before any king. See note on Gen 36:31, which must have been before the writer’s eyes.
children = sons.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
1Ch 1:43-50
1Ch 1:43-50
“And these are the kings that reigned in the land of Edom, before there reigned any king over the children of Israel: Bela the son of Beor; and the name of his city was Dinhabah. And Belah died, and Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his stead. And Jobab died, and Husham of the land of the Temanites reigned in his stead. And Husham died, and Hadad the son of Bedad, who smote Midian in the field of Moab reigned in his stead; and the name of his city was Avith. And Hadad died, and Samlah of Masrekah reigned in his stead. And Samlah died, and Shaul of Rehoboth by the River reigned in his stead. And Shaul died, and Baalhanan the son of Achbor reigned in his stead. And Baalhanan died, and Hadad reigned in his stead; and the name of his city was Pai; and his wife’s name was Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred. And Hadad died.”
E.M. Zerr:
1Ch 1:43. There were two noted groups of people that came from Esau. The Amalekites are named in V. 36, and now we have Edom introduced, which gave the name of Edomites to another group. Edom, was another name for Esau, and was given to him from the fact of his being red, also because of his fondness for red pottage. (Gen 25:25; Gen 25:30). But the name Edomites, while being related to the meaning of the word, came to refer specifically to that portion of Esau’s descendants who were located near Mount Seir. The references to Seir or Edom, therefore, have in mind this portion of Esau’s descendants, and these people were by far the most important of his family tree. Some favor was shown to the Edomites in that, they had kings before Israel. We recall that Jacob had cheated his brother about the birthright and blessing, but Esau was never entirely forgotten by the Lord.
1Ch 1:44-50. The main point of interest to us in these verses is the fact that Edom had quite a succession of kings, not just one who perhaps sprang up “over night” and soon died out.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
the kings: Gen 36:31-39, Gen 49:10, Num 24:17-19
Reciprocal: Num 33:31 – Benejaakan Deu 2:12 – succeeded them
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
1:43 Now these [are] the {m} kings that reigned in the land of Edom before [any] king reigned over the children of Israel; Bela the son of Beor: and the name of his city [was] Dinhabah.
(m) He makes mention of the kings that came from Esau according to God’s promise made to Abraham concerning him, that kings would come from him. These eight kings reigned one after another in Idumea to the time of David who conquered their country.