1Ch 3:1 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:
The sons of David - The writer returns to the point at which he had left the posterity of Ram 1Ch_2:9, 1Ch_2:15, and traces out the family of David - the royal house of the tribe of Judah . In 1Ch_3:1-9 all the sons of David are enumerated; in 1Ch_3:10-16, the line of kings of the house of David from Solomon to Jeconiah and Zedekiah; in 1Ch_3:17-21, the descendants of Jeconiah to the grandsons of Zerubbabel; and finally, in 1Ch_3:22-24, other descendants of Shechaniah to the fourth generation.
The second, Daniel - In 2Sa_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.” One scholar 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 Daniel, God is my Judge, and 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.
Now these were the sons of David, which were born unto him in Hebron--It is of consequence for the proper understanding of events in the domestic history of David, to bear in mind the place and time of his sons' birth. The oldest son, born after his father's accession to the sovereign authority is the proper heir to the throne. And hence the natural aspirations of ambition in Ammon, who was long unaware of the alienation of the crown, and could not be easily reconciled to the claims of a younger brother being placed above his own.
1Ch 3:2 The third, Absalom the son of Maachah the daughter of Talmai king of Geshur: the fourth, Adonijah the son of Haggith:
1Ch 3:3 The fifth, Shephatiah of Abital: the sixth, Ithream by Eglah his wife.
By Eglah his wife - David's wife, Eglah, is said in the Targum to be Michal, Saul's daughter; but this does not well agree with 2Sa_6:23 : Michal had no child to the day of her death. Though she had no son after her mockery of David for dancing before the ark [2Sa_6:16, 2Sa_6:20], might have had one previous to that time. She has the title of wife appended to her name because she was his proper wife; and the mention of her name last probably arose from the circumstance that, having been withdrawn from David and married to another husband but afterwards restored, she had in reality become the last of his wives.
1Ch 3:4 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.
1Ch 3:5 And these were born unto him in Jerusalem; Shimea, and Shobab, and Nathan, and Solomon, four, of Bathshua the daughter of Ammiel:
The sons of David - There are three lists of the sons of David, born in Jerusalem . 1) 2Sa_5:14-16; 2) 1Ch_3:5-8; 3) 1Ch_14:4-7. The names correspond with a few of exceptions. In the second list, Shammuah is changed to Shimeah. Again in the second list, Elishua is changed to Elishama. Eliphelet/ Elpalet is absent from the first list, as is Nogah. The presumption is that those children died when young. In the third list, Eliada is changed to Beeliada.
Bathshua, the daughter of Ammiel - Both names are here given in an unusual form. Bathshua is Bathsheba and Ammiel is Eliam.
Solomon – he is mentioned last, though he was the eldest of these four sons, because the genealogy was to be continued from him.
1Ch 3:6 Ibhar also, and Elishama, and Eliphelet,
Elishama, and Eliphelet - In this and the eighth verse these two names occur twice.
Eliphelet - And he had two other sons called by the same names, 1Ch_3:8, 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. However, the first son named Eliphelet is called Elpalet in the corresponding passage in 1Ch_14:4-7.
Elishama --Two sons of the same name are twice mentioned They were the children of different mothers, and had probably some title or epithet appended by which the one was distinguished from the other. Or, it might be, that the former two were dead, and their names had been given to sons afterwards born to preserve their memories. However, Elishama here is called Elishua in the corresponding passages in 2Sa_5:14-16 and 1Ch_14:4-7.
1Ch 3:7 And Nogah, and Nepheg, and Japhia,
1Ch 3:8 And Elishama, and Eliada, and Eliphelet, nine.
Nine - There are thirteen if we count the four sons of Bath-sheba, and nine without them.
1Ch 3:9 These were all the sons of David, beside the sons of the concubines, and Tamar their sister.
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, 2Sa_5:13. Not the sister of the sons of the concubines, but of his other sons, and only of Absalom by the mother's side, of whom see 2Sa_13:1. Of David's daughters only Tamar is mentioned as “their sister,” because she had become known in history through Amnon's crime (2 Sam 13).
beside the sons of the concubines - who are not reckoned, and how many they were is not known; he had ten concubines at least, 2Sa_15:16 and 2Sa_20:3.
1Ch 3:10 And Solomon's son was Rehoboam, Abia his son, Asa his son, Jehoshaphat his son,
Abia - Rather, “Abijah,” as in 2 Chr. 11–14, where the Hebrew word is exactly the same.
And Solomon's son was Rehoboam - From hence to the end of the fourteenth verse, David's successors are reckoned, according to the order of their reign, unto Josiah and his sons. Until Josiah the individual kings are mentioned in their order, the only omission being that of the usurper Athaliah, because she did not belong to the posterity of David. But in 1Ch_3:15 four sons of Josiah are mentioned, not in order to allow of a halt in the long line of David's descendants after Josiah the great reformer, but because with Josiah the regular succession to the throne in the house of David ceased. For the younger son Jehoahaz, who was made king after his father's death by the people, was soon dethroned by Pharaoh-Necho, and led away captive to Egypt; and of the other sons Jehoiakim was set up by Pharaoh, and Zedekiah by Nebuchadnezzar, so that both were only vassals of heathen lords of the land, and the independent kingship of David came properly to an end with the death of Josiah.
And Solomon's son was Rehoboam - David's line is here drawn down to the captivity, through a succession of good and bad, but still influential and celebrated, monarchs. It has rarely happened that a crown has been transmitted from father to son, in lineal descent, for seventeen reigns. But this was the promised reward of David's piety. There is, indeed, observable some vacillation towards the close of this period--the crown passing from one brother to another, an even from uncle to nephew--a sure sign of disorderly times and a disjointed government.
1Ch 3:11 Joram his son, Ahaziah his son, Joash his son,
Ahaziah - Called “Jehoahaz” and “Azariah.”
1Ch 3:12 Amaziah his son, Azariah his son, Jotham his son,
Azariah - Elsewhere in Chronicles called uniformly “Uzziah” but called indifferently “Azariah” and “Uzziah” in Kings.
1Ch 3:13 Ahaz his son, Hezekiah his son, Manasseh his son,
1Ch 3:14 Amon his son, Josiah his son.
1Ch 3:15 And the sons of Josiah were, the firstborn Johanan, the second Jehoiakim, the third Zedekiah, the fourth Shallum.
Johanan the first-born - who is mentioned in this place only, must, it would seem, have died before his father, or with him at Megiddo .
the second Jehoiakim - whose name was Eliakim, changed for the former by the king of Egypt , when, he deposed his younger brother, and set him on the throne, 2Ki_23:24.
the third Zedekiah - whose name was Mattaniah, but changed by the king of Babylon , when he placed him on the throne in the room of his brother's son, 2Ki_24:17,
the third Zedekiah - called the son of Josiah, but in 2Ch_36:19 he is described as the brother of Jehoiachin, who was the son of Jehoiakim, and consequently the grandson of Josiah. Words expressive of affinity or relationship are used with great latitude in the Hebrew.
the fourth Shallum - the same with Jehoahaz, who was first made king in the room of his father; but reigning so short a time, and making so mean a figure, is mentioned last, see Jer_22:11.
the fourth Shallum - (also called Jehoahaz, marginal note and reference) was considerably older than Zedekiah, and was consequently the third, and not the fourth, son. He is perhaps assigned the fourth place here by way of intentional degradation.
1Ch 3:16 And the sons of Jehoiakim: Jeconiah his son, Zedekiah his son.
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.
Zedekiah his son - This is not the Zedekiah mentioned in the preceding verse; for he was not the son but the uncle of Jeconiah, unless he should be called his son because he succeeded him in the kingdom; but he seems to be another of that name, nowhere else mentioned, and not the son of Jeconiah in any sense; he is not reckoned among them in the following verses, but of Jehoiakim.
1Ch 3:17 And the sons of Jeconiah; Assir, Salathiel his son,
Assir - Perhaps born in the captivity, and therefore so named, who either (died young, or was made a eunuch (Isa_39:7; compare Jer_22:30). After Assir’s decease, or mutilation, the line of Solomon became extinct, and according to the principles of the Jewish law Num_27:8-11 the inheritance passed to the next of kin, who were Salathiel and his brethren, descendants from David by the line of Nathan. Luke in calling Salathiel “the son of Neri” Luk_3:27, gives his real, or natural, descent; since no genealogy would assign to the true son and heir of a king any inferior and private parentage.
Assir - which signifies bound, or a prisoner, because, as Kimchi thinks, he was born in a prison, his father then being a captive in Babylon; but rather it refers to Jeconiah himself, and is an appellation of him, and to be rendered:
Assir - Salathiel was not the son of Assir, but of Jeconiah, Mat_1:12. Who then was Assir? Possibly nobody; for as the Hebrew assir signifies a prisoner, it may be considered as an epithet of Jeconiah, who we know was a very long time prisoner in Babylon .
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.
the sons of Jeconiah - For though he was pronounced childless, Jer_22:30, that respects not his having no children in any sense, but none to succeed him in the kingdom:
1Ch 3:18 Malchiram also, and Pedaiah, and Shenazar, Jecamiah, Hoshama, and Nedabiah.
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, 1Ch_3:19, and the son (that is, the grandson) of Salathiel, Mat_1:12. Other scholars say they are the sons of Jeconiah not Salathiel.
Malchiram also--As far as Jeconiah, everything is plain; but there is reason to suspect that the text in the subsequent verses has been dislocated and disarranged. The object of the sacred historian is to trace the royal line through Zerubbabel; yet, according to the present reading, the genealogical stem cannot be drawn from Jeconiah downwards.
1Ch 3:19 And the sons of Pedaiah were, Zerubbabel, and Shimei: and the sons of Zerubbabel; Meshullam, and Hananiah, and Shelomith their sister:
Zerubbabel - elsewhere always called “the son of Salathiel,” was only Salathiel’s heir and legal son, being naturally his nephew, the son of his brother, Pedaiah. Zerubbabel appears to be the son of Salathiel, according to Mat_1:12, and not the son of Pedaiah, as here stated.
And the sons of Pedaiah - From hence to the end of the chapter, the genealogy is carried on from the captivity of Babylon, out of which Zerubbabel came, to the coming of Christ; and if Ezra was the writer of this book, as is generally thought, who was contemporary with Zerubbabel, this account must be written by another hand: and it may be observed, that it is carried on in the same number of generations as in Matthew. Zerubbabel, Hananiah, Jesaiah, Rephaiah, Arnan, Obadiah, Shecaniah, Shemaiah, Neariah, Elioenai, Anani; in Matthew thus, "Zerubbabel, Abiud, Eliakim, Azor, Sadoc, Achim, Eliud, Eleazar, Matthan, Jacob, Joseph"; the difference in names may be accounted for by their having two names;
Their sister - Sister to the two last named sons of Zerubbabel, namely, by both parents; and therefore named before the other five, 1Ch_3:20, who were her brethren by the father, but not by the mother.
1Ch 3:20 And Hashubah, and Ohel, and Berechiah, and Hasadiah, Jushabhesed, five.
1Ch 3:21 And the sons of Hananiah; Pelatiah, and Jesaiah: the sons of Rephaiah, the sons of Arnan, the sons of Obadiah, the sons of Shechaniah.
Shechaniah - All these both parents and their sons blended together, are mentioned as the sons of Hananiah, and branches of the royal stock.
1Ch 3:22 And the sons of Shechaniah; Shemaiah: and the sons of Shemaiah; Hattush, and Igeal, and Bariah, and Neariah, and Shaphat, six.
Six - Five only are found in the text, and the versions give us no assistance; neither do the other versions correct the place. If the father be not here included with his sons, some name must be lost out of the text. One scholar says the Hebrew word, Shisha, which is rendered six, may be the proper name of one of the sons of Shemaiah. Others think the father is included in the number.
1Ch 3:23 And the sons of Neariah; Elioenai, and Hezekiah, and Azrikam, three.
1Ch 3:24 And the sons of Elioenai were, Hodaiah, and Eliashib, and Pelaiah, and Akkub, and Johanan, and Dalaiah, and Anani, seven.
And Anani - “This is the King Messiah who is to be revealed.” Says the Targum and other Jewish scholars, and they refer to Dan_7:13 I saw in the night visions, and behold, One like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him. The word used here in Chronicles is Strong’s H6054 ‛ănânîy From H6051; cloudy; Anani, an Israelite: - Anani. The word used in Daniel 7:13 is Strong’s H6050 ‛ănan (Chaldee); corresponding to H6051: - cloud.
