Genesis 36
36
The Descendants of Esau
1 What follows is the account of Esau (also known as Edom).#sn Chapter 36 records what became of Esau. It will list both his actual descendants as well as the people he subsumed under his tribal leadership, people who were aboriginal Edomites. The chapter is long and complicated (see further J. R. Bartlett, “The Edomite King-List of Genesis 36:31-39 and 1 Chronicles 1:43-50,” JTS 16 [1965]: 301-14; and W. J. Horowitz, “Were There Twelve Horite Tribes?” CBQ 35 [1973]: 69-71). In the format of the Book of Genesis, the line of Esau is “tidied up” before the account of Jacob is traced (37:2). As such the arrangement makes a strong contrast with Jacob. As F. Delitzsch says, “secular greatness in general grows up far more rapidly than spiritual greatness” (New Commentary on Genesis, 2:238). In other words, the progress of the world far out distances the progress of the righteous who are waiting for the promise.
2 Esau took his wives from the Canaanites:#tn Heb “from the daughters of Canaan.” Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Oholibamah the daughter of Anah and granddaughter#tn Heb “daughter,” but see Gen 36:24-25. of Zibeon the Hivite, 3 in addition to Basemath the daughter of Ishmael and sister of Nebaioth.
4 Adah bore Eliphaz to Esau, Basemath bore Reuel, 5 and Oholibamah bore Jeush, Jalam, and Korah. These were the sons of Esau who were born to him in the land of Canaan.
6 Esau took his wives, his sons, his daughters, all the people in his household, his livestock, his animals, and all his possessions which he had acquired in the land of Canaan and went to a land some distance away from#tn Heb “from before.” Jacob his brother 7 because they had too many possessions to be able to stay together and the land where they had settled#tn Heb “land of their settlements.” was not able to support them because of their livestock. 8 So Esau (also known as Edom) lived in the hill country of Seir.#tn Traditionally “Mount Seir,” but in this case the expression בְּהַר שֵׂעִיר (bÿhar se’ir) refers to the hill country or highlands of Seir.
9 This is the account of Esau, the father#sn The term father in genealogical records needs to be carefully defined. It can refer to a literal father, a grandfather, a political overlord, or a founder. of the Edomites, in the hill country of Seir.
10 These were the names of Esau’s sons:
Eliphaz, the son of Esau’s wife Adah, and Reuel, the son of Esau’s wife Basemath.
11 The sons of Eliphaz were:
Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, and Kenaz.
12 Timna, a concubine of Esau’s son Eliphaz, bore Amalek to Eliphaz. These were the sons#tn Or “grandsons” (NIV); “descendants” (NEB). of Esau’s wife Adah.
13 These were the sons of Reuel: Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah. These were the sons#tn Or “grandsons” (NIV); “descendants” (NEB). of Esau’s wife Basemath.
14 These were the sons of Esau’s wife Oholibamah the daughter of Anah and granddaughter#tn Heb “daughter,” but see Gen 36:24-25. of Zibeon: She bore Jeush, Jalam, and Korah to Esau.
15 These were the chiefs#tn Or “clan leaders” (so also throughout this chapter). among the descendants#tn Or “sons.” of Esau, the sons of Eliphaz, Esau’s firstborn: chief Teman, chief Omar, chief Zepho, chief Kenaz, 16 chief Korah,#tc The Samaritan Pentateuch omits the name “Korah” (see v. 11 and 1 Chr 1:36). chief Gatam, chief Amalek. These were the chiefs descended from Eliphaz in the land of Edom; these were the sons#tn Or “grandsons” (NIV); “descendants” (NEB). of Adah.
17 These were the sons of Esau’s son Reuel: chief Nahath, chief Zerah, chief Shammah, chief Mizzah. These were the chiefs descended from Reuel in the land of Edom; these were the sons#tn Or “grandsons” (NIV); “descendants” (NEB). of Esau’s wife Basemath.
18 These were the sons of Esau’s wife Oholibamah: chief Jeush, chief Jalam, chief Korah. These were the chiefs descended from Esau’s wife Oholibamah, the daughter of Anah.
19 These were the sons of Esau (also known as Edom), and these were their chiefs.
20 These were the sons of Seir the Horite,#sn The same pattern of sons, grandsons, and chiefs is now listed for Seir the Horite. “Seir” is both the name of the place and the name of the ancestor of these tribes. The name “Horite” is probably not to be identified with “Hurrian.” The clan of Esau settled in this area, intermarried with these Horites and eventually dispossessed them, so that they all became known as Edomites (Deut 2:12 telescopes the whole development). who were living in the land: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, 21 Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan. These were the chiefs of the Horites, the descendants#tn Or “sons.” of Seir in the land of Edom.
22 The sons of Lotan were Hori and Homam;#tn Heb “Hemam”; this is probably a variant spelling of “Homam” (1 Chr 1:39); cf. NRSV, NLT “Heman.” Lotan’s sister was Timna.
23 These were the sons of Shobal: Alvan, Manahath, Ebal, Shepho,#tn This name is given as “Shephi” in 1 Chr 1:40. and Onam.
24 These were the sons of Zibeon: Aiah and Anah (who discovered the hot springs#tn The meaning of this Hebrew term is uncertain; Syriac reads “water” and Vulgate reads “hot water.” in the wilderness as he pastured the donkeys of his father Zibeon).
25 These were the children#tn Heb “sons,” but since a daughter is included in the list, the word must be translated “children.” of Anah: Dishon and Oholibamah, the daughter of Anah.
26 These were the sons of Dishon:#tn Heb “Dishan,” but this must be either a scribal error or variant spelling, since “Dishan” is mentioned in v. 28 (see also v. 21). Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran, and Keran.
27 These were the sons of Ezer: Bilhan, Zaavan, and Akan.
28 These were the sons of Dishan: Uz and Aran.
29 These were the chiefs of the Horites: chief Lotan, chief Shobal, chief Zibeon, chief Anah, 30 chief Dishon, chief Ezer, chief Dishan. These were the chiefs of the Horites, according to their chief lists in the land of Seir.
31 These were the kings who reigned in the land of Edom before any king ruled over the Israelites:#tn Or perhaps “before any Israelite king ruled over [them].”
32 Bela the son of Beor reigned in Edom; the name of his city was Dinhabah.
33 When Bela died, Jobab the son of Zerah from Bozrah reigned in his place.
34 When Jobab died, Husham from the land of the Temanites reigned in his place.
35 When Husham died, Hadad the son of Bedad, who defeated the Midianites in the land of Moab, reigned in his place; the name of his city was Avith.
36 When Hadad died, Samlah from Masrekah reigned in his place.
37 When Samlah died, Shaul from Rehoboth by the River#tn Typically the Hebrew expression “the River” refers to the Euphrates River, but it is not certain whether that is the case here. Among the modern English versions which take this as a reference to the Euphrates are NASB, NCV, NRSV, CEV, NLT. Cf. NAB, TEV “Rehoboth-on-the-River.” reigned in his place.
38 When Shaul died, Baal-Hanan the son of Achbor reigned in his place.
39 When Baal-Hanan the son of Achbor died, Hadad#tc Most mss of the MT read “Hadar” here; “Hadad” is the reading found in some Hebrew mss, the Samaritan Pentateuch, and Syriac (cf. also 1 Chr 1:50). reigned in his place; the name of his city was Pau.#tn The name of the city is given as “Pai” in 1 Chr 1:50. His wife’s name was Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Me-Zahab.
40 These were the names of the chiefs of Esau, according to their families, according to their places, by their names: chief Timna, chief Alvah, chief Jetheth, 41 chief Oholibamah, chief Elah, chief Pinon, 42 chief Kenaz, chief Teman, chief Mibzar, 43 chief Magdiel, chief Iram. These were the chiefs of Edom, according to their settlements#tn Or perhaps “territories”; Heb “dwelling places.” in the land they possessed. This was Esau, the father of the Edomites.
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Berĕshith (Genesis) 36
36
1And this is the genealogy of Ěsaw, who is Eḏom.
2Ěsaw took his wives from the daughters of Kena‛an: Aḏah the daughter of Ělon the Ḥittite, and Oholiḇamah the daughter of Anah, the daughter of Tsiḇ‛on the Ḥiwwite;
3and Basemath, Yishma‛ĕl’s daughter, sister of Neḇayoth.
4And Aḏah bore Eliphaz to Ěsaw, and Basemath bore Re‛u’ĕl.
5And Oholiḇamah bore Ye‛ush, and Ya‛lam, and Qoraḥ. These were the sons of Ěsaw who were born to him in the land of Kena‛an.
6And Ěsaw took his wives, and his sons, and his daughters, and all the beings of his household, and his herds and all his beasts, and all his possessions which he had gained in the land of Kena‛an, and went to a land away from the presence of his brother Ya‛aqoḇ.
7For their possessions were too great for them to dwell together, and the land of their sojournings could not support them because of their herds.
8So Ěsaw dwelt in Mount Sĕ‛ir. Ěsaw is Eḏom.
9And this is the genealogy of Ěsaw the father of the Eḏomites in Mount Sĕ‛ir.
10These were the names of Ěsaw’s sons: Eliphaz son of Aḏah, wife of Ěsaw, and Re‛u’ĕl son of Basemath, wife of Ěsaw.
11And the sons of Eliphaz were Tĕman, Omar, Tsepho, and Gatam, and Qenaz.
12And Timna was the concubine of Eliphaz, Ěsaw’s son, and she bore Amalĕq to Eliphaz. These were the sons of Aḏah, Ěsaw’s wife.
13These were the sons of Re‛u’ĕl: Naḥath and Zeraḥ, Shammah and Mizzah. These were the sons of Basemath, Ěsaw’s wife.
14These were the sons of Oholiḇamah, Ěsaw’s wife, the daughter of Anah, the daughter of Tsiḇ‛on. And she bore to Ěsaw: Ye‛ush, and Ya‛lam, and Qoraḥ.
15These were the chiefs of the sons of Ěsaw. The sons of Eliphaz, the first-born son of Ěsaw, were Chief Tĕman, Chief Omar, Chief Tsepho, Chief Qenaz,
16Chief Qoraḥ, Chief Gatam, Chief Amalĕq. These were the chiefs of Eliphaz in the land of Eḏom. They were the sons of Aḏah.
17And these were the sons of Re‛u’ĕl, Ěsaw’s son: Chief Naḥath, Chief Zeraḥ, Chief Shammah, and Chief Mizzah. These were the chiefs of Re‛u’ĕl in the land of Eḏom. These were the sons of Basemath, Ěsaw’s wife.
18And these were the sons of Oholiḇamah, Ěsaw’s wife: Chief Ye‛ush, Chief Ya‛lam, and Chief Qoraḥ. These were the chiefs descending from Oholiḇamah, Ěsaw’s wife, the daughter of Anah.
19These were the sons of Ěsaw, who is Eḏom, and these were their chiefs.
20These were the sons of Sĕ‛ir the Ḥorite who inhabited the land: Lotan, and Shoḇal, and Tsiḇ‛on, and Anah,
21and Dishon, and Ětser, and Dishan. These were the chiefs of the Ḥorites, the sons of Sĕ‛ir, in the land of Eḏom.
22And the sons of Lotan were Ḥori and Hĕmam. Lotan’s sister was Timna.
23And these were the sons of Shoḇal: Alwan, and Manaḥath, and Ěyḇal, Shepho, and Onam.
24And these were the sons of Tsiḇ‛on: both Ayah and Anah. This was the Anah who found the water in the wilderness as he fed the donkeys of his father Tsiḇ‛on.
25And these were the children of Anah: Dishon and Oholiḇamah the daughter of Anah.
26And these were the sons of Dishon: Ḥemdan, and Eshban, and Yithran, and Keran.
27These were the sons of Ětser: Bilhan, and Za‛awan, and Aqan.
28These were the sons of Dishan: Uts and Aran.
29These were the chiefs of the Ḥorites: Chief Lotan, Chief Shoḇal, Chief Tsiḇ‛on, Chief Anah,
30Chief Dishon, Chief Ětser, and Chief Dishan. These were the chiefs of the Ḥorites, according to their chiefs in the land of Sĕ‛ir.
31And these were the sovereigns who reigned in the land of Eḏom before any sovereign reigned over the children of Yisra’ĕl.
32And Bela the son of Be‛or reigned in Eḏom, and the name of his city was Dinhaḇah.
33And Bela died, and Yoḇaḇ son of Zeraḥ of Botsrah reigned in his place.
34And Yoḇaḇ died, and Ḥusham of the land of the Tĕmanites reigned in his place.
35And Ḥusham died, and Haḏaḏ son of Beḏaḏ, who struck Miḏyan in the field of Mo’aḇ, reigned in his place. And the name of his city was Awith.
36And Haḏaḏ died, and Samlah of Masrĕqah reigned in his place.
37And Samlah died, and Sha’ul of Reḥoḇoth by the River reigned in his place.
38And Sha’ul died, and Ba‛al-Ḥanan son of Aḵbor reigned in his place.
39And Ba‛al-Ḥanan son of Aḵbor died, and Haḏar reigned in his place. And the name of his city was Pa‛u. And his wife’s name was Mehĕtab’ĕl, the daughter of Matrĕḏ, the daughter of Mĕyzahaḇ.
40And these were the names of the chiefs of Ěsaw, according to their clans and their places, by their names: Chief Timnah, Chief Alwah, Chief Yethĕth,
41Chief Oholiḇamah, Chief Ělah, Chief Pinon,
42Chief Qenaz, Chief Tĕman, Chief Miḇtsar,
43Chief Maḡdi’ĕl, Chief Iram. These were the chiefs of Eḏom, according to their dwelling places in the land of their possession. Ěsaw was the father of the Eḏomites.
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