1 Chronicles

Introduction

First and Second Chronicles, originally one book, was written sometime after Judah began to return from the Babylonian exile in 538 b.c. (1 Chron. 9:1–2; 2 Chron. 36:23). It focuses primarily on the history of Judah, the southern kingdom of divided Israel. First Chronicles begins with several genealogies, with special emphasis on David and Solomon. The “chronicler” moves next to the history of the kingdom under David, stressing David’s deep interest in worship and his detailed plans for the construction of the temple—which would be built by his son Solomon. First Chronicles was probably written to reassure the returned exiles of God’s faithfulness toward his people. Its author is unknown, although many have thought that Ezra was the principal writer.

From Adam to Abraham

1 1 aAdam, Seth, Enosh; 2 bKenan, Mahalalel, Jared; 3 Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech; 4 Noah, cShem, Ham, and Japheth.

5 dThe sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. 6 The sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz, Riphath,2 and Togarmah. 7 The sons of Javan: Elishah, Tarshish, Kittim, and Rodanim.

8 eThe sons of Ham: Cush, Egypt, Put, and Canaan. 9 The sons of Cush: Seba, Havilah, Sabta, Raamah, and Sabteca. The sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dedan. 10 Cush fathered Nimrod. He was the first on earth to be a mighty man.3

11 fEgypt fathered Ludim, Anamim, Lehabim, Naphtuhim, 12 Pathrusim, Casluhim (from whom the Philistines came), and Caphtorim.

13 Canaan fathered Sidon his firstborn and Heth, 14 and the Jebusites, the Amorites, the Girgashites, 15 the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites, 16 the Arvadites, the Zemarites, and the Hamathites.

17 gThe sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram. And the sons of Aram:4 Uz, Hul, Gether, and Meshech. 18 Arpachshad fathered Shelah, and Shelah fathered Eber. 19 To Eber were born two sons: the name of the one was Peleg5 (for in his days the earth was divided), and his brother’s name was Joktan. 20 Joktan fathered Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, 21 Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, 22 Obal,6 Abimael, Sheba, 23 Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab; all these were the sons of Joktan.

24 hShem, Arpachshad, Shelah; 25 Eber, Peleg, Reu; 26 Serug, Nahor, Terah; 27 Abram, that is, Abraham.

From Abraham to Jacob

28 The sons of Abraham: iIsaac and jIshmael. 29 kThese are their genealogies: the firstborn of Ishmael, Nebaioth, and Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, 30 Mishma, Dumah, Massa, Hadad, Tema, 31 Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. These are the sons of Ishmael. 32 lThe sons of Keturah, Abraham’s concubine: she bore Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. The sons of Jokshan: Sheba and Dedan. 33 The sons of Midian: Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida, and Eldaah. All these were the descendants of Keturah.

34 Abraham fathered iIsaac. The sons of Isaac: mEsau and nIsrael. 35 oThe sons of Esau: Eliphaz, Reuel, Jeush, Jalam, and Korah. 36 The sons of Eliphaz: Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, Kenaz, and of Timna,7 Amalek. 37 The sons of Reuel: Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah.

38 pThe sons of Seir: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan. 39 The sons of Lotan: Hori and Hemam;8 and Lotan’s sister was Timna. 40 The sons of Shobal: Alvan,9 Manahath, Ebal, Shepho,10 and Onam. The sons of Zibeon: Aiah and Anah. 41 The son11 of Anah: Dishon. The sons of Dishon: Hemdan,12 Eshban, Ithran, and Cheran. 42 The sons of Ezer: Bilhan, Zaavan, and Akan.13 The sons of Dishan: Uz and Aran.

43 qThese are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom before any king reigned over the people of Israel: Bela the son of Beor, the name of his city being Dinhabah. 44 Bela died, and Jobab the son of Zerah of rBozrah reigned in his place. 45 Jobab died, and Husham of the land of the sTemanites reigned in his place. 46 Husham died, and Hadad the son of Bedad, who defeated Midian in the country of Moab, reigned in his place, the name of his city being Avith. 47 Hadad died, and Samlah of Masrekah reigned in his place. 48 Samlah died, and Shaul of Rehoboth on the Euphrates14 reigned in his place. 49 Shaul died, and Baal-hanan, the son of Achbor, reigned in his place. 50 Baal-hanan died, and Hadad reigned in his place, the name of his city being Pai; and his wife’s name was Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Mezahab. 51 And Hadad died.

The chiefs of Edom were: chiefs Timna, Alvah, Jetheth, 52 Oholibamah, Elah, Pinon, 53 Kenaz, Teman, Mibzar, 54 Magdiel, and Iram; these are the chiefs of Edom.

A Genealogy of David

2 These are the sons of tIsrael: uReuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, vIssachar, Zebulun, 2 wDan, xJoseph, yBenjamin, zNaphtali, aGad, and Asher. 3 bThe sons of Judah: cEr, Onan and Shelah; these three Bath-shua the Canaanite bore to him. Now Er, Judah’s firstborn, was evil in the sight of the Lord, and he put him to death. 4 His daughter-in-law dTamar also bore him Perez and Zerah. Judah had five sons in all.

5 The esons of Perez: Hezron and Hamul. 6 The sons of Zerah: Zimri, Ethan, Heman, Calcol, and Dara, five in all. 7 The son1 of Carmi: Achan, the troubler of Israel, who fbroke faith in the matter of the devoted thing; 8 and Ethan’s son was Azariah.

9 The sons of Hezron that were born to him: Jerahmeel, gRam, and hChelubai. 10 gRam fathered Amminadab, and iAmminadab fathered jNahshon, prince of the sons of Judah. 11 Nahshon fathered kSalmon,2 Salmon fathered lBoaz, 12 Boaz fathered Obed, lObed fathered Jesse. 13 mJesse fathered Eliab his firstborn, Abinadab the second, nShimea the third, 14 Nethanel the fourth, Raddai the fifth, 15 Ozem the sixth, oDavid the seventh. 16 And their sisters were Zeruiah and Abigail. pThe sons of Zeruiah: Abishai, Joab, and Asahel, three. 17 qAbigail bore Amasa, and the father of Amasa was qJether the Ishmaelite.

18 rCaleb the son of Hezron fathered children by his wife Azubah, and by Jerioth; and these were her sons: Jesher, Shobab, and Ardon. 19 When Azubah died, rCaleb married sEphrath, who bore him tHur. 20 Hur fathered Uri, and Uri fathered uBezalel.

21 Afterward Hezron went in to the daughter of vMachir the father of Gilead, whom he married when he was sixty years old, and she bore him Segub. 22 And Segub fathered Jair, who had twenty-three cities in the land of Gilead. 23 wBut Geshur and Aram took from them Havvoth-jair, Kenath, and its villages, sixty towns. All these were descendants of Machir, the father of Gilead. 24 After the death of Hezron, xCaleb went in to Ephrathah,3 the wife of Hezron his father, and she bore him yAshhur, the father of Tekoa.

25 The sons of zJerahmeel, the firstborn of Hezron: Ram, his firstborn, Bunah, Oren, Ozem, and Ahijah. 26 Jerahmeel also had another wife, whose name was Atarah; she was the mother of Onam. 27 The sons of Ram, the firstborn of Jerahmeel: Maaz, Jamin, and Eker. 28 The sons of Onam: Shammai and Jada. The sons of Shammai: Nadab and Abishur. 29 The name of Abishur’s wife was Abihail, and she bore him Ahban and Molid. 30 The sons of Nadab: Seled and Appaim; and Seled died childless. 31 The son4 of Appaim: Ishi. aThe son of Ishi: Sheshan. The son of Sheshan: Ahlai. 32 The sons of Jada, Shammai’s brother: Jether and Jonathan; and Jether died childless. 33 The sons of Jonathan: Peleth and Zaza. These were the descendants of Jerahmeel. 34 Now Sheshan had no sons, only daughters, but Sheshan had an Egyptian slave whose name was Jarha. 35 So Sheshan gave his daughter in marriage to Jarha his slave, and she bore him Attai. 36 Attai fathered Nathan, and Nathan fathered bZabad. 37 bZabad fathered Ephlal, and Ephlal fathered cObed. 38 Obed fathered Jehu, and Jehu fathered Azariah. 39 Azariah fathered Helez, and Helez fathered Eleasah. 40 Eleasah fathered Sismai, and Sismai fathered Shallum. 41 Shallum fathered Jekamiah, and Jekamiah fathered dElishama.

42 The sons of eCaleb the brother of Jerahmeel: Mareshah5 his firstborn, who fathered Ziph. The son6 of Mareshah: fHebron.7 43 The sons of Hebron: Korah, Tappuah, Rekem and Shema. 44 Shema fathered Raham, the father of Jorkeam; and Rekem fathered Shammai. 45 The son of Shammai: Maon; and Maon fathered Beth-zur. 46 Ephah also, Caleb’s concubine, bore Haran, Moza, and Gazez; and Haran fathered Gazez. 47 The sons of Jahdai: Regem, Jotham, Geshan, Pelet, Ephah, and Shaaph. 48 Maacah, Caleb’s concubine, bore Sheber and Tirhanah. 49 She also bore Shaaph the father of Madmannah, Sheva the father of Machbenah and the father of Gibea; and the gdaughter of Caleb was Achsah. 50 These were the descendants of Caleb.

The sons8 of Hur the firstborn of hEphrathah: Shobal the father of Kiriath-jearim, 51 iSalma, the father of Bethlehem, and Hareph the father of Beth-gader. 52 Shobal the father of Kiriath-jearim had other sons: jHaroeh, half of the Menuhoth. 53 And the clans of Kiriath-jearim: the Ithrites, the Puthites, the Shumathites, and the Mishraites; from these came the kZorathites and the Eshtaolites. 54 The sons of Salma: Bethlehem, the Netophathites, Atroth-beth-joab and half of the Manahathites, the Zorites. 55 The clans also of the scribes who lived at Jabez: the Tirathites, the Shimeathites and the Sucathites. These are the lKenites who came from Hammath, the father of mthe house of Rechab.

Descendants of David

3 nThese are the sons of David who were born to him in Hebron: the firstborn, Amnon, by Ahinoam the Jezreelite; the second, oDaniel, by Abigail the Carmelite, 2 the third, Absalom, whose mother was Maacah, the daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur; the fourth, Adonijah, whose mother was Haggith; 3 the fifth, Shephatiah, by Abital; the sixth, Ithream, by his wife Eglah; 4 six were born to him in Hebron, pwhere he reigned for seven years and six months. qAnd he reigned thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 5 rThese were born to him in Jerusalem: sShimea, Shobab, Nathan and tSolomon, four by uBath-shua, the daughter of uAmmiel; 6 then Ibhar, vElishama, Eliphelet, 7 Nogah, Nepheg, Japhia, 8 Elishama, wEliada, and Eliphelet, nine. 9 All these were David’s sons, besides the sons of the concubines, xand …