individuals, peoples, and places; and “son” covers descendants as well as direct offspring. There are several points where someone who tries to read all though the Bible may get stuck or may at least ask the question, “What the heck?” The nine chapters of names that open Chronicles is one of the places where this question is most pressing. Yet the lists occupy a sixth of the book; evidently they were very important to its authors, so it’s worth trying to get into their way of thinking. What might