1 Chronicles 3 Commentary

The children of David which were born to him in Hebron, 1Chr 3:1-4 . Those born to him in Jerusalem, 1Chr 3:5-9 . The regal line from Solomon, 1Chr 3:10-24 . Verse 1 The second, Daniel - In 2Sam 3:3 , this person is called Chileab; he probably had two names. The Targum says, "The second, Daniel, who was also called Chileab, because he was in every respect like to his father." The Targumist refers here to the import of the word כלאב ke-le-ab, like to the father. Jarchi says the two names were given to this person because David, having taken Abigail immediately after the death of Nabal, it could not be ascertained whether this child were the son of David or of Nabal, therefore David called him דניאל Daniel, God is my Judge, and כלאב Chileab, he who is like to the father; probably from the striking resemblance he bore to David, his reputed father. "God is my Judge, I have not fathered another man's child; this is entirely like unto myself. Verse 3 By Eglah his wide - The Targum, Jarchi, and others, maintain that this was Michal, the daughter of Saul; but this does not well agree with 2Sam 6:23 : Michal had no child to the day of her death. Yet she might have had a child before the time that is mentioned above. Verse 5 Shimea, and Shobab - Solomon is mentioned last, though he was the eldest of these four sons, because the genealogy was to be continued from him. Bath-shua בת שוע is the same as Bath-sheba, בת שבע the ו vau being put by mistake in the former for ב beth in the latter. Verse 6 Elishama, and Eliphelet - In this and the eighth verse these two names occur twice; some think this is a mistake, but others suppose that two persons of these names died young, and that the next born received the name of the deceased. - See Jarchi. Verse 8 Nine - There are thirteen if we count the four sons of Bath-sheba, and nine without them; and in the second book of Samuel there are eleven, reckoning the above four, and without them only seven. In the book of Samuel probably only those who were alive were reckoned, while the author of the Chronicles comprises those also who were dead in this enumeration. Jarchi supposes that the duplicate Elishama and Eliphelet are those which increase the regular number seven to nine; and that the dead without posterity, as well as the living, are mentioned to increase the number of David's descendants; for, says he, the whole book is written for the honor of David and his seed. Verse 9 And Tamar their sister - This is the only daughter of David whose name is on record; and yet he is said to have had both Sons and Daughters, 2Sam 5:13 . Verse 16 Zedekiah his son - If this be the same who was the last king of Judah, before the captivity, the word son must be taken here to signify successor; for it is certain that Zedekiah was the successor of Jeconiah, and that Zedekiah was the son of Josiah, and not of Jehoiakim. Verse 17 The sons of Jeconiah - Jeremiah has said ( Jer 22:30 ) that Jeconiah, or, as he calls him, Coniah, should be childless; but this must refer to his posterity being deprived of the throne, and indeed thus the prophet interprets it himself: For no man of his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of David, and ruling any more in Judah. Assir - Salathiel was not the son of Assir, but of Jeconiah, Mat 1:12 . Who then was Assir? Possibly nobody; for as the Hebrew אסר assir signifies a prisoner, it may be considered as an epithet of Jeconiah, who we know was a very long time prisoner in Babylon. See 2Kgs 24:15 and Calmet. Verse 18 Malchiram also - Calmet supposes we should read here, And the sons of Salathiel were Malchiram and Pedaiah, etc. Verse 19 The sons of Pedaiah - Houbigant thinks these words should be omitted. Pedaiah is wanting in the Arabic and Syriac. If this be omitted, Zerubbabel will appear to be the son of Salathiel, according to Mat 1:12 , and not the son of Pedaiah, as here stated. Verse 22 The sons of Shemaiah - six - Five only are found in the text, and the versions give us no assistance; neither do the MSS. correct the place. If the father be not here included with his sons, some name must be lost out of the text. Verse 24 And Anani - "This is the King Messiah who is to be revealed." - T. Jarchi says the same, and refers to Dan 7:13 : Behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds (ענני ananey) of heaven. For this application of the word he gives a fanciful reason, not worthy to be repeated. The Syriac and Arabic omit several names in this table, and make only twenty-three verses in the chapter: but such differences are frequent in the books of Chronicles. I

The Family of David. ( b. c. 1055.) 1 Now these were the sons of David, which were born unto him in Hebron; the firstborn Amnon, of Ahinoam the Jezreelitess; the second Daniel, of Abigail the Carmelitess: 2 The third, Absalom the son of Maachah the daughter of Talmai king of Geshur: the fourth, Adonijah the son of Haggith: 3 The fifth, Shephatiah of Abital: the sixth, Ithream by Eglah his wife. 4 These six were born unto him in Hebron; and there he reigned seven years and six months: and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty and three years. 5 And these were born unto him in Jerusalem; Shimea, and Shobab, and Nathan, and Solomon, four, of Bath-shua the daughter of Ammiel: 6 Ibhar also, and Elishama, and Eliphelet, 7 And Nogah, and Nepheg, and Japhia, 8 And Elishama, and Eliada, and Eliphelet, nine. 9 These were all the sons of David, beside the sons of the concubines, and Tamar their sister. We had an account of David's sons, 2 Sam. iii. 2, &c., and v. 14 , &c. 1. He had many sons; and no doubt wrote as he thought, Ps. cxxvii. 5 . Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of these arrows. 2. Some of them were a grief to him, as Amnon, Absalom, and Adonijah; and we do not read of any of them that imitated his piety or devotion except Solomon, and he came far short of it. 3. One of them, which Bath-sheba bore to him, he called Nathan, probably in honour of Nathan the prophet, who reproved him for his sin in that matter and was instrumental to bring him to repentance. It seems he loved him the better for it as long as he lived. It is wisdom to esteem those our best friends that deal faithfully with us. From this son of David our Lord Jesus descended, as appears Luke iii. 31 . 4. Here are two Elishamas, and two Eliphelets, v. 6 , 8 . Probably the two former were dead, and therefore David called two more by their names, which he would not have done if there had been any ill omen in this practice as some fancy. 5. David had many concubines; but their children are not named, as not worthy of the honour ( v. 9 ), the rather because the concubines had dealt treacherously with David in the affair of Absalom. 6. Of all David's sons Solomon was chosen to succeed him, perhaps not for any personal merits (his wisdom was God's gift), but so, Father, because it seemed good unto thee.

His wife - Possibly so called because she was his first, and therefore most proper wife, though her son was born after all the rest before mentioned, and therefore she and her son are put in the sixth place, the wive being here named only for the sons sake.

Four - All David's children by her, as the text positively affirms: and therefore Solomon is called her, only son, Prov 4:3 , because she loved him as if he had been so. Ammiel - Called also Eliam, 2Sam 11:3 .

Eliphelet - And he had two other sons called by the same names, ver. 8 , probably they were by different wives: and probably they were then distinguished by some additional clause or title, which is here omitted, because the two first were dead before the two second were born, and therefore the names of the deceased were given to these to preserve their memory.

Nine - There are but seven mentioned, 2Sam 5:14 . Two of them are omitted there, because they died very early, and here we have all the sons of David, which clause is not added 2Sam 5:13 - 16.

10 And Solomon's son was Rehoboam, Abia his son, Asa his son, Jehoshaphat his son, 11 Joram his son, Ahaziah his son, Joash his son, 12 Amaziah his son, Azariah his son, Jotham his son, 13 Ahaz his son, Hezekiah his son, Manasseh his son, 14 Amon his son, Josiah his son. 15 And the sons of Josiah were, the firstborn Johanan, the second Jehoiakim, the third Zedekiah, the fourth Shallum. 16 And the sons of Jehoiakim: Jeconiah his son, Zedekiah his son. 17 And the sons of Jeconiah; Assir, Salathiel his son, 18 Malchiram also, and Pedaiah, and Shenazar, Jecamiah, Hoshama, and Nedabiah. 19 And the sons of Pedaiah were, Zerubbabel, and Shimei: and the sons of Zerubbabel; Meshullam, and Hananiah, and Shelomith their sister: 20 And Hashubah, and Ohel, and Berechiah, and Hasadiah, Jushab-hesed, five. 21 And the sons of Hananiah; Pelatiah, and Jesaiah: the sons of Rephaiah, the sons of Arnan, the sons of Obadiah, the sons of Shechaniah. 22 And the sons of Shechaniah; Shemaiah: and the sons of Shemaiah; Hattush, and Igeal, and Bariah, and Neariah, and Shaphat, six. 23 And the sons of Neariah; Elioenai, and Hezekiah, and Azrikam, three. 24 And the sons of Elioenai were, Hodaiah, and Eliashib, and Pelaiah, and Akkub, and Johanan, and Dalaiah, and Anani, seven. David having nineteen sons, we may suppose them to have raised many noble families in Israel whom we never hear of in the history. But the scripture gives us an account only of the descendants of Solomon here, and of Nathan, Luke iii. The rest had the honour to be the sons of David; but these only had the honour to be related to the Messiah. The sons of Nathan were his fathers as man, the sons of Solomon his predecessors as king. We have here, 1. The great and celebrated names by which the line of David is drawn down to the captivity, the kings of Judah in a lineal succession, the history of whom we have had at large in the two books of Kings and shall meet with again in the second book of Chronicles. Seldom has a crown gone in a direct line from father to son for seventeen descents together, as here. This was the recompence of David's piety. About the time of the captivity the lineal descent was interrupted, and the crown went from one brother to another and from a nephew to an uncle, which was a presage of the eclipsing of the glory of that house. 2. The less famous, and most of them very obscure, names, in which the house of David subsisted after the captivity. The only famous man of that house that we meet with at their return from captivity was Zerubbabel, elsewhere called the son of Salathiel, but appearing here to be his grandson ( v. 17-19 ), which is usual in scripture. Belshazzar is called Nebuchadnezzar's son, but was his grandson. Salathiel is said to be the son of Jeconiah because adopted by him, and because, as some think, he succeeded him in the dignity to which he was restored by Evil-merodach. Otherwise Jeconiah was written childless: he was the signet God plucked from his right hand ( Jer. xxii. 24 ), and in his room Zerubbabel was placed, and therefore God saith to him ( Hag. ii. 23 ), I will make thee as a signet. The posterity of Zerubbabel here bear not the same names that they do in the genealogies ( Matt. i. , or Luke iii. ), but those no doubt were taken from the then herald's office, the public registers which the priests kept of all the families of Judah, especially that of David. The last person named in this chapter is Anani, of whom bishop Patrick says that the Targum adds these words, He is the king Messiah, who is to be revealed, and some of the Jewish writers give this reason, because it is said ( Dan. vii. 13 ), the son of man came gnim gnanani—with the clouds of heaven. The reason indeed is very foreign and far-fetched; but that learned man thinks it may be made use of as an evidence that their minds were always full of the thoughts of the Messiah and that they expected it would not be very long after the days of Zerubbabel before the set time of his approach would come.

Shallum - Which most conceive to be the same who is called Jehoahaz, 2Kings 23:30 .

Zedekiak - This was another Zedekiah. How seldom has a crown gone in a direct line, from father to son, as it did here, for seventeen generations! This was the recompense of David's piety. About the captivity the lineal descent was interrupted, and the crown went from a nephew to an uncle, a presage of the glory's departing from that house.

Assir - Or, of Jechoniah the captive, which is added to shew that he begat his son when he was captive in Babylon.

Pedaiah - The sentence seems to be short and imperfect, as is frequent in the Hebrew language, and something is here understood, as, the sons also of Salathiel were Malchiram and Pedaiah, &c. as they gather from hence that the same Zerubbabel is called the son of Pedaiah, ver. 19 , and the son (that is, the grandson) of Salathiel, Matt 1:12 .

Their sister - Sister to the two last named sons of Zerubbabel, namely, by both parents; and therefore named before the other five, ver. 20 , who were her brethren by the father, but not by the mother.

Shechaniah - All these both parents and their sons blended together, are mentioned as the sons of Hananiah, and branches of the royal stock.

Six - Including the father. But the Hebrew word, Shisha, which is rendered six, may be the proper name of one of the sons of Shemaiah.