Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 1 Kings 4:8
And these [are] their names: The son of Hur, in mount Ephraim:
8. The son of Hur ] Better Ben-Hur. So the Vulgate and similarly in 1Ki 4:9-11; 1Ki 4:13. The name is a patronymic, and five out of these twelve officers are thus designated by their fathers’ names rather than by their own. Perhaps at the time the father in each case was more distinguished than the son. The place of commissariatofficer is one which might well be given to a younger man of some well-known family. Two of the men were Solomon’s sons-in-law.
in mount Ephraim ] ‘Mount’ conveys a mistaken idea of the rich country of Ephraim. It was a hilly but very fertile region which stretched northwards from the tribe of Benjamin until the land sinks into the plain of Jezreel. It is separated from the Jordan valley by a plain on the east, and by another plain on the west from the Mediterranean sea. It would be more suitably called hill country than mountain.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
In this arrangement of the territory into twelve portions, the divisions of the tribes seem to have been adopted as far as could be managed without unfairness. The prefecture of Ben-Hur corresponded nearly to the territory of Ephraim; that of Ben-Dekar to Dan; that of Ben-Hesed to Judah; those of Ben-Abinadab and Baana to Cis-Jordanic Manasseh; that of Ben-Geber to Manasseh beyond Jordan; of Abinadab to Gad; of Ahimaaz to Naphtali; of Baanah to Asher; of Jehoshaphat to Issachar; of Shimei to Benjamin; and of Geber to Reuben. The order in which the prefectures are mentioned is clearly not the geographical. Perhaps it is the order in which they had to supply the kings table.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
This and others of them are denominated from their fathers, because they were known and famous in their generation.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
8. The son of Huror, as theMargin has it, Benhur, Bendekar. In the rural parts ofSyria, and among the Arabs, it is still common to designate personsnot by their own names, but as the sons of their fathers.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And these [are] their names,…. Or rather the names of their fathers; for of many of them not their own names but their fathers’ names are given, as being well known:
the son of Hur, in Mount Ephraim; a fruitful country in the tribe of Ephraim, from whence this officer was to furnish the king with provisions for one month in the year.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(8) And these are their names.The first division, mount Ephraim, included all the higher part of the territory of Ephraim, one of the most fertile and beautiful regions in Palestine, surrounding the city of Shechem, which lies in a rich plain between Mount Ebel and Gerizim, and including the strong site of the future Samaria. See the description of the country in the blessing of Moses (Deu. 33:13-17).
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
8. The son of Hur It is noticeable that the names of the fathers of these officers are given in each case, and in five cases the proper names of the officers themselves are not given at all. The margin, which follows the Vulgate, renders these five as proper names Ben-hur, Ben-dekar, etc.; but it is more likely that the proper names of these five officers, if ever given, have fallen out of the text by the carelessness of transcribers.
Mount Ephraim The hill country in the territory of the tribe of Ephraim. See note on Jdg 17:1.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
1Ki 4:8 And these [are] their names: The son of Hur, in mount Ephraim:
Ver. 8. And these are their names. ] They were men of renown, and are therefore here memorised.
The son of Hur
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
mount = hill country.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
son of Hur
Or, Benhur.
Fuente: Scofield Reference Bible Notes
The son of Hur: or, Ben-hur, Jdg 17:1, Jdg 19:1
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
1Ki 4:8-10. The son of Hur This person and others of them are denominated from their fathers, because they were known and famous in their generation. In mount Ephraim And the territory belonging to it, which must be understood also of the rest of the places mentioned in the following verses. Elon-beth-hanan Or, Elon, the house, or dwelling- place of Hanan. For Hanan may be a mans name, and this place may be thus distinguished from other Elons. Or, as the word Elon signifies a plain, the meaning may be, the plain of Beth-hanan. Sochoh There were two places of this name, but near each other, Jos 15:35-38. Hepher ln Judah, 1Ch 4:6.