These are the sons of Israel Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah, Issachar and Zebulun,
Commentary for this verse has not been generated yet.
Dan, Joseph and Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad and Asher.
The list of Israel's sons ends with these six names, in an order that follows neither their birth nor their mothers' rank. Why this sequence, why is Dan named here when his line is never traced, and why does the chapter then leave the others behind to follow Judah?
Chronicles opens with the nations, then narrows. Those earlier lines ran out into the Gentile world. These names mark the edge of the chosen family, and inside that edge God leaves no one out.
1 Chronicles 2. — Esau with his kings and chiefs are outside the chosen line. God's people are now in view. Not all Abraham's sons, not all Isaac's sons, but of Israel's, not one excepted.
The heading over this list reads "the sons of Israel," not "the sons of Jacob." Scripture uses the two names on purpose. "Jacob" was his name from birth; "Israel" was the new name God gave him.
God speaks of "Abraham" by his new name once it was given. But He speaks of Jacob for the most part as "Jacob," not as "Israel." God sometimes calls him Israel, and each time for one purpose: to remind him that, despite his failures and crooked ways, God was mindful of him and faithful to His promise… Jacob may have needs. But in the name of Israel lay God's pledge to supply all his need… In all these instances and every other, the Holy Spirit tells us, not of Jacob doing his own will, but of Israel the object of God's care and the holder of the promise.
Rachel's two sons stand between Dan and Naphtali, who shared the same mother. One writer reads that scrambled order as a message in itself.
At the beginning of this chapter, Scripture lists the names of the sons of Jacob, called Israel — not in order. The aim, I think, is to present them to us as being all, without distinction, objects of God's purposes in grace. So we find Leah's children first, then Rachel's children placed between Dan and Naphtali, the sons of Bilhah, and last Gad and Asher, the sons of Zilpah, Leah's maid.
This shuffling is not unique to our chapter.
Scripture lists Jacob's sons and the twelve tribes, if I am not mistaken, twenty-two times, and each time in a different order.
Dan heads this verse, yet the family records that follow pass him by. One writer ties that silence to Dan's early history, and to a later list where the name drops out again — yet the silence is not the last word.
This tribe was guilty of setting up idolatry in the land very early, and it continued until the people were carried into captivity… Dan's name is missing from 1 Chronicles 2 – 8, the book that records much of grace and blessing, and this confirms the thought. Revelation 7:3-8 also leaves his name out of the list of tribes from each of which twelve thousand will be sealed in a future day. Still, God will keep His promises to the twelve tribes, and the tribe of Dan will have its portion in the land, as Ezekiel 48:1-2, 32 foretells.
Right after this verse the record leaves the other eleven and follows Judah, the fourth son. Reuben, the firstborn, loses the place his birth gave him.
But Reuben is set aside, and the natural prominence of the birthright only sank him lower when he lost it. When did the natural order ever hold its place under the righteous government of God? For the order of nature is not God's order, and nothing can meet the straying of nature but the sovereign mercy of God… God gave the birthright to Joseph. Yet even here, showing the sovereignty of grace, the genealogy does not follow the birthright.
Judah's promotion, then, rests on nothing in Judah.
God gives Judah the preeminence because according to His counsels the Prince is to come forth from him, and not for any other reason.
Judah's place is not finally about Judah.
Even the people themselves are barely noticed until the KING is seen. That is why the record runs so fast from Judah the son of Israel to David. Of the twelve sons of Israel, Judah takes the first place — not to tell us about Judah, but about Him who came from Judah: the KING first, and afterwards the children of the kingdom.
- Grace names everyone. Esau's line stands outside the chosen family. Inside it, "not one" of Israel's sons goes missing.
- Grace re-orders. The names follow neither birth nor a mother's rank. The disorder presents them all alike as objects of God's purpose in grace.
- Grace overrules nature. Reuben's natural first place collapses, the birthright moves to Joseph, and the line to be traced is neither — because "the order of nature is not God's order."
- Grace keeps its word. Dan is named here and then passed over in silence, yet the promise to his tribe still stands for a future day.
- Grace ends with the King. Judah leads for one reason: the King was to come from him. The list is heading for Him, not for Judah.
The sons of Judah Er, and Onan, and Shelah [which] three were born to him of the daughter of Shua the Canaanitess. And Er, Judah's firstborn, was wicked in the sight of Jehovah; and he slew him.
Chronicles opens the story of the kingdom with the line of Judah, the tribe the royal family came from. The first thing it records there is a marriage to a Canaanite woman and a son whom God put to death. So why does the royal record open with judgment? And what does that show about the way God works out His purposes?
One commentator sees a set order running through these opening chapters, and Judah's list from this verse on follows it:
In the nine chapters that make up the opening section we have the principle later stated by the apostle Paul: not first the spiritual but the natural, then the spiritual. This divine purpose governs even the general genealogy of 1 Chronicles 1. The genealogy of the sons of Israel from 1 Chronicles 2 follows the same rule. Judah takes up the space from 1 Chronicles 2:3 to 4:23.
The mother named here appears elsewhere under another name:
Another name for Bathsheba, the wife of David, in 1 Chronicles 3:5. The same Hebrew word appears as "daughter of Shua," Judah's wife, in Genesis 38:12 and 1 Chronicles 2:3.
One writer sets Judah beside the three fathers before him, and finds his failure of a different kind:
But Judah afterwards goes beyond even all this in a very fearful way. He represents the fourth generation of this chosen family. He does more than fail to head off trouble in ordering his family, like Abraham. He does more than grieve over trouble once it has come in, like Isaac. He is not merely indifferent about whether it comes in, like Jacob. He brings it in himself! For he does nothing less than take a daughter of the Canaanites to be the wife of his son Er!
One writer draws out the gap between what Er's name may mean and how he lived:
Er was the firstborn of Judah's strength. He was named by his father, and the meaning of his name may be "watchful." Er evidently became watchful for opportunities to do evil. He thought no consequences would follow his sins. But the biblical principle in Galatians 6:7 holds good for all time: "God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap." The LORD saw his wickedness, and he reaped what his actions deserved. Pay-day came swiftly for him. Er deceived himself — but was he not simply following his father?
Some men appear in these lists for one reason alone:
Some in Israel are only remembered, one might say, because of some fearful sin that ruined themselves, and often those associated with them. Such were Er, and Achan the troubler of Israel (called here Achar); Reuben, who defiled his father's bed; and the heads of the half tribe of Manasseh, who "whored after the gods of the peoples of the land."
The same writer draws a sobering personal application from these long lists of names:
There is something deeply solemn for the soul in being allowed to go over such a record of names long since forgotten by man. Yet God has remembered every one of them, with every detail of their pathway through this world. Some day our names will likewise be lost to mankind, but neither we nor our ways will be forgotten by God.
Judah heads the list, but not because his house earned it:
God establishes the kingship according to His own counsels. That is the character it always has in Chronicles. Judah, from whom comes the Lawgiver, is presented first. But God chose Judah by pure grace; his history teaches us this here. His wife, a Canaanite, gives him a firstborn, Er, whom the Lord slew because of his wickedness. So, just as in 1 Chronicles 1, we find the natural man here first — the man whose whole history begins with the fall and judgment. Still, God gives Judah the first place. His counsels say the Prince is to come from Judah, and there is no other reason.
This writer takes in all three sons named in the verse — and still sees the line that reaches Christ:
Judah, about to be not only the royal tribe above all others but the ancestor of the King of kings, takes a daughter of Canaan for himself with no regard for God. No wonder wickedness killed his firstborn, and disgrace his brother. No wonder the third son showed the widow no regard. Such is man, and such is Judah; but such too is God. Where terrible sin abounded, grace much more abounded.
- Natural first. God's order in these lists is the natural before the spiritual. Judah's line opens with a fall and a judgment.
- Grace, not merit. God gives Judah first place for one reason only: His purpose set the coming Prince in that line.
- Sown and reaped. Er thought his sin would cost him nothing. The LORD saw it, and pay-day came fast.
- Fathers and sons. Judah brought the Canaanite tie into the family. His firstborn walked the road his father opened.
- Remembered by God. Men forget these names; God keeps every detail of every path — a warning in Er, and a comfort for all who are His.
And Tamar his daughter-in-law bore him Pherez and Zerah. All the sons of Judah were five.
Judah's line opens the tribal genealogies of Chronicles. This verse names a daughter-in-law as the mother of two of Judah's sons, counts five sons in all, and raises one question: why does God keep this on file?
One writer reads Chronicles against the earlier histories and finds the book's aim in its genealogies.
In Chronicles the ruin is read just as plainly as in the earlier books. But the point here is God's plan, settled in advance, to bring in His Only-begotten through a human line — His only begotten Son. That is to say, His purpose stands out more in Chronicles. The genealogy proves it, and gives the key to the book. The sin and rebellion of the kings brought ruin on the people, and God's purpose meets that ruin: His King shall reign.
Among the five is a firstborn who died under God's hand. Judah heads the tribes, but not for anything in himself.
God establishes the kingship according to His own counsels, and that is the character it always has in Chronicles. Judah comes first, and the Lawgiver comes from him. But God chooses Judah by pure grace, and his history teaches us this here. His wife, a Canaanite, gives him a firstborn, Er, whom the Lord killed because of his wickedness. So, just as in 1 Chronicles 1, we find the natural man first — the man whose whole history begins with the fall and judgment.
The stretch of names from Judah to David is short. What it contains is not flattering, and the writer of this comment refuses to look away from it.
Only a list of names from Judah to David! But can we find in the whole book of God a similar space as brief as this which contains so much of grace and of God's unchangeableness in purpose on the one side, and of the vileness of man's nature on the other? For the names here given are inseparably connected with both… Like Judah himself married to a Canaanite woman, take Er, Tamar, Perez — what vileness and shame!
Another writer reads Judah's whole story the same way — as failure that turns into a record of mercy.
In Judah's history we find Judah's utter wandering and misery. Yet in it, and out of it, comes the genealogy of grace. He marries Canaanites. Sin is in his family. He commits fornication with his own daughter-in-law. Everything had gone wrong. Yet out of this sprang Him in whom men should bless, saying, "May your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah."
One commentator asks what brought each of the four women in Matthew's genealogy into the line.
The history of Tamar shows us, in God's own marvellous way, how Christ comes into connection with Judah. So her name appears in the Lord's genealogy in the gospel of Matthew, first of those four women's names. Their presence there shows the grace which has stooped to take up men… The record insists on Tamar's sin, as it insists on Rahab's faith. For Ruth to come in, the sentence of the law has to be set aside. And Bathsheba shows us grace triumphing even over a believer's sin… Tamar's sin alone brought her into the Lord's genealogy, and God has taken pains to record this striking fact, and record it twice.
One writer takes both names as descriptions and follows the line that came from each.
Shelah is fruitful, but Tamar's seed much more. From it Perez, the "breaker forth," breaks out into a vast fruitfulness, which fills up all the later history of Judah. From her come her kings, and her great King. Twin with Perez comes Zerah, or the sunrise. From him come singers later, such as Ethan, and warriors, such as Shammah, Sibbechai and Maharai, sturdy defenders of the throne.
The elders blessing Boaz's house reached back for a pattern and named Perez.
Is it not remarkable that this record should begin with Perez? Or that the elders and the people should hold up the house of Perez as the pattern of blessing for the house of Boaz — "May your house be like the house of Perez"? Who was Perez? Let Genesis 38 answer… But it was through Perez, son of Tamar, that the promised blessing had to come. God led His line of promise through base things of the world, and took up those whom man would reject. This was to magnify His grace and exalt His name.
- Five, then judged. The five include a firstborn the Lord struck down. Nature comes first, then God sets it aside, and the line goes on by grace rather than birth right.
- Named, not hidden. The record keeps Judah's failures in plain sight — Canaanite marriages, sin in the family, his own daughter-in-law — and out of that comes the genealogy of grace.
- Her sin is her title. Tamar enters the Lord's genealogy by the very thing that shamed her. Rahab enters by faith, and Bathsheba by grace over a believer's sin.
- Breaking forth. Perez means the one who breaks out. From him come Judah's kings and Judah's great King. From Zerah, the sunrise, come singers and defenders of that throne.
- The pattern household. God ran His line of promise through what men would reject. Then He made that house the blessing spoken over others, so that His King should reign.
The sons of Pherez Hezron and Hamul.
This verse is a single link in a chain: it names two sons of Perez, and the list runs on from here toward David. The names look bare, yet commentators find in them both the shame of the family they come from and the purpose of God that runs through it.
The chapter does not linger over Judah's family for its own sake. It moves fast, and the speed itself says what the book is about.
God's people are now in view. Not all Abraham's sons, not all Isaac's sons, but of Israel's sons, not one is left out... even the people themselves get little notice until the KING appears. So the account runs quickly from Judah the son of Israel to David (verses 3-15). The account gives just enough of the king's line of descent to show that he is of the tribe of Judah... Of the twelve sons of Israel, Judah takes first place. This is not to tell us about Judah, but about Him who came from Judah — the KING first, and afterwards the children of the Kingdom.
Perez came from Judah by Tamar — a history no family would advertise. Put the names of this short list side by side, and two things stand out at once.
Only a list of names from Judah to David! But can we find anywhere in the book of God a space this short that holds so much? On one side, grace and God's unchanging purpose. On the other, the vileness of man's nature. ... Like Judah himself, married to a Canaanite woman, take Er, Tamar, Perez — what vileness and shame! There is a Hezron and a Boaz, and with them greatness and godliness. But there is also an Achan, marked out as "the troubler of Israel, who transgressed in the thing devoted to destruction."
One writer reads the whole later history of Judah out of the meaning of Perez's name.
Shelah is fruitful, but Tamar's seed much more. From that seed Perez, the "breaker forth," breaks out into abundant fruit, and that fruit fills up all the later history of Judah. From this line come her kings, and her great King. Twin with Perez comes Zerah, the [sun] rise. From him come later singers, such as Ethan, and warriors, such as Shammah, Sibbechai, and Maharai, stout defenders of the throne.
Another writer notes that this "breaking through" and "rising up" come at one of the darkest moments in human history. He sees a sign that God had "another order of manhood in view, a generation which should reach its climax in the Beloved, in David."
The verse names only two families of Perez. One writer weighs both names for meaning.
Two families of Perez have special mention: Hezron ("enclosure"?), and Hamul ("compassionate"). They may represent two tendencies that easily come into conflict with each other, though they should not. Their true meaning shows when the two are joined.
The question mark is the writer's own — he is offering a suggestion, not a settled reading. Other lists of name meanings give "Hezron — walled in" and "Hamul — one who has been pitied."
These two names appear again in the record of the going down to Egypt. There one writer explains why they belong on the list at all.
The historian stops at Zerah and adds an extra note. Er and Onan were on the list of sons, but they did not go down to Egypt — they died before. And Perez's sons were Hezron and Hamul. They are looked at as filling up the breach... Er and Onan never got down, for they died, and Perez had two sons, who are counted in to supply their place.
Two sons of Judah died out of the line, and two sons of Perez take their place. The care behind these records had a purpose far beyond the family itself:
These family records were kept wonderfully, yes divinely. They were kept so that the title of Jesus of Nazareth to the throne might be established both in law and in nature: by law the Son of Joseph, by birth the Son of Mary.
- Shame. The short run of names from Judah to David holds grace and human vileness together — Judah, Tamar, Perez on one side, Hezron and Boaz on the other.
- Breach. Er and Onan died out of the line; Hezron and Hamul are counted in as "filling up the breach," supplying their place.
- Breaking through. Perez means "breaker forth," and from him the line breaks out into abundant fruit that fills the rest of Judah's history.
- Purpose. The chapter barely notices the people until the king appears: Judah is named not for his own sake, but for Him who came from Judah.
- Title. These records were divinely kept so that Jesus of Nazareth could be shown the rightful heir to the throne, by law and by birth.
And the sons of Zerah Zimri, and Ethan, and Heman, and Calcol, and Dara five of them in all.
The verse lists five sons of Zerah. At first glance they add nothing. Zerah was the twin brother of Perez, and Judah's kings come through Perez's line, not his. Yet four of these five names turn up again at the height of Israel's glory, in the one place where Scripture measures human wisdom against Solomon's.
The genealogies of Chronicles are not laid out by birth order but by God's plan, and Judah is given the most room.
Here too the sons of Israel are named first in their natural birth order. But it is the sons of Judah who are set before us in detail in this chapter — not the sons of Reuben, nor of Simeon. The object of the book is God's purpose. Judah was the tribe chosen first for the kingdom, and chosen with the Messiah in view. So we can understand why his sons are traced out first, and at great length.
Four of these names appear again in 1 Kings 4:31, among the wise men Solomon surpassed. There they are called sons of Mahol. One dictionary entry on Mahol weighs the two lists:
A man whose sons were famous for their wisdom, though Solomon's wisdom surpassed theirs. 1 Kings 4:31. Four men with similar names appear in 1 Chr. 2:6 as sons of Zerah. These four are possibly the same men, the word 'son' meaning grandson in one of the passages.
Ethan and Heman also carry a title in 1 Kings and in the psalm headings: Ezrahite.
A title given to Ethan and Heman. 1 Kings 4:31; Psalms 88 and 89, titles. It appears to be another form of Zarhite.
Two of the five left something behind. Commentators generally assign Psalm 88 to Heman and Psalm 89 to Ethan, though some hold it more cautiously than others. Taken that way, the two psalms are read as two halves of one lesson.
This is the wisdom these two men of God teach us. One shows the system of the law, which ends in the curse and the darkness of death. The other shows the system of grace, which rests on the Person of the True David and ends in eternal glory. The first proclaims the end of the old man; the second, the endless reign of the new man.
Ethan's psalm rests everything on what God has promised.
In Psalm 89 the wisdom of Ethan instructs us. What does this other wise man speak of? Of grace! This Psalm is about the unchangeable promises of God and the sure mercies of David. The people's relationship to God on the basis of the covenant of grace made with David leads to this: "Steadfast love will be built up forever; in the heavens You will establish Your faithfulness" — in the heavens, where nothing shall ever touch it.
Calcol and Dara are different. Writers also spell them Chalcol and Darda. They were famous enough to serve as a yardstick, yet the record about them stops at the name.
As to the other two men, Chalcol and Darda, we find no record of anything they did or wrote. Yet they were clearly well known in the time of Solomon, whose wisdom went beyond all of these.
Zerah's name means "sunrise." Two kinds of men come from his line.
Shelah is fruitful, but Tamar's children much more so. Among them Pharez, the "breaker forth," breaks out into a vast crowd of descendants, who fill up all the later history of Judah. From him come Judah's kings, and her great King. Twin with Pharez comes Zerah, or the sunrise. From him come singers later on, such as Ethan, and warriors, such as Shammah, Sibbechai and Maharai, strong defenders of the throne.
These names are more than ancestry. They stand in a record God Himself keeps.
He records at the same time the names of those who had gone through the trials of this history without being blotted out of the book… The Spirit of God also goes farther back. He gives us the genealogy from Adam of the generation blessed by grace according to the sovereignty of God.
- Recorded for purpose. Judah gets the longest list in these chapters. The kingdom, and the Messiah, come through him. The order follows God's plan, not birth.
- Recorded twice. Four of Zerah's five sons surface again as wise men Solomon surpassed. The title "Ezrahite" ties them back to Zerah's family.
- Recorded in song. The psalm headings give Psalm 88 to Heman and Psalm 89 to Ethan. One ends in the darkness of law and death, the other in grace built on the true David.
- Recorded in silence. Calcol and Dara left nothing but their names, and that was enough for God to keep them.
- Recorded by grace. These names were not blotted out of God's book. Grace keeps a record that runs all the way back to Adam.
And the sons of Carmi Achar, the troubler of Israel, who transgressed in the accursed thing.
1 Chronicles 2 lists the family line from Judah to David, Israel's king. In the middle of it one man carries a title no parent would choose — so what did he take, and where can such a life end?
One writer notes how much is packed into so little space:
Only a list of names from Judah to David! But is there anywhere in the whole book of God a space as brief as this? It holds so much of grace and of God's unchanging purpose on the one side, and so much of the vileness of man's nature on the other. … Names renowned in the world and honoured among men? No — names tied to the worst corruption, to disobedience to God and dishonour to His name. Like Judah himself married to a Canaanite woman; take Er, Tamar, Perez — what vileness and shame! There is a Hezron and a Boaz, and with them greatness and godliness, but there is also an Achar (Achan), marked out plainly as "the troubler of Israel, who broke faith in the matter of the devoted thing."
The offence points back to an order God gave before Jericho fell:
Before Jericho was destroyed, God laid a command on Israel. The accursed, or devoted, thing was taken against that command. … Not a shred nor a shekel from Jericho did God allow Israel for their personal glory or wealth. Those called to carry out God's ban on the Canaanite were to take nothing. Now Achan had laid hands on both the garment and the gold. The Lord had devoted the one to the fire, and the other to His treasury. Achan was a prince in Israel, and it is often through the leaders, and not through the rank and file of God's army, that sin and sorrow come in.
His name itself means "troubler," and what he coveted shows what drove him:
Achan (which means "troubler") had coveted "a beautiful cloak from Shinar, and 200 shekels of silver, and a bar of gold weighing 50 shekels." It seems the beautiful cloak attracted him first. It was something that would make him stand out and give him prominence before others. No doubt he thought the silver and the gold would help him keep up that prominent position.
The verse says he troubled Israel, not just himself. Why should a whole nation carry one man's sin?
The whole congregation is held responsible for the evil. "A little leaven leavens the whole lump." Unbelief may ask how all are involved in the sin of one. But the Word of God settles the question — "Israel has sinned" — "they have taken" — "they have stolen" — "they have lied." The assembly was one: one in privilege, one in responsibility. So the sin of one was the sin of all. God called them all to clear themselves completely by putting away the accursed thing from among them. There was not a single member of that large congregation who was not affected by Achan's sin.
One writer applies the same title to anyone who troubles God's people today:
No one may trouble the Lord's sheep without bearing his guilt. Sadly, there are many today who are troubling the Lord's flock. But each one of them will bear his guilt. Achan took the cursed things from Jericho and so brought defeat on Israel (Joshua 7). He is called "the troubler of Israel" (1 Chronicles 2:7).
The valley named after his trouble became a word the prophets later used for hope:
The sin seemed small, yet it brought disasters and terrible judgment. That appears to have left so strong an impression on the nation that hundreds of years later the prophets refer to it. Strangely, they refer to it not to condemn, but as a ground of hope. The judgment of evil, where evil exists, is the only way anyone can enter into the forgiveness and favour of God. So Hosea says that the valley of Achor will be a "door of hope," and she (Israel) will sing there. And Isaiah says the Valley of Achor will be "a place for herds to lie down." Hope shines nowhere so brightly as on the spot where sin has been judged. And no place gives a sinner rest like the foot of the cross.
- Wanting — Achan coveted the cloak, the silver and the gold to stand out. The trouble began as a wish to be seen.
- Taking — what he took belonged to God, for the fire or for His treasury. Not a shred of Jericho was Israel's to keep.
- Troubling — the congregation was one, so God said "Israel has sinned." One man's hidden theft became the whole camp's defeat.
- Naming — the royal family list keeps his disgrace on record. A few short verses hold both God's unchanging purpose and the vileness of man.
- Hoping — the prophets point to the valley named after his trouble as a door of hope. Hope shines brightest where sin has been judged.
And the sons of Ethan Azariah.
One line in the register of Judah, and one son to carry a whole house: this verse remembers Ethan's family by a single name. Why does Scripture keep a record this thin, and why does it stand just after Achan, the troubler of Israel?
Chronicles is not a fresh history. It collects what was left of older records:
I noticed long ago that Chronicles is a gathering up of fragments that remain. The book also has a Judah and Davidic character, in contrast to Israel. It was very likely written by Ezra, a priest, or by a Levite. They take up the remnant that returned, but go back as far as possible to its connection with their original history.
Some argue that fragmentary lists are worthless. Another writer answers them without denying the gaps:
Must we conclude from all this that the text of Chronicles is a human and arbitrary compilation? Does the book therefore have no historical value at all? This is what the rationalists claim, but thank God, their reasoning always fails when it attacks His Word. No enlightened Christian will deny that the genealogies of Chronicles are made up of fragments gathered while everything was in confusion. Yet they are documents on which God sets His seal of approval.
Older translations read "the sons of Ethan" here, though only one name follows. One writer explains why, and what the name Azariah suggests about when he lived:
Further, there is no evidence in Chronicles of any name built on the name Jehovah, or Jah, before God took that name in covenant. The earliest is "the sons of Ethan; Azariah," verse 8. Which generation he belonged to is not shown. Ethan was of the same generation as Achan's grandfather, and Achan was in Canaan. So Azariah quite probably lived after the Exodus. The notion that genealogies give every step is well known to be unfounded. In Chronicles they are only a gathering up of memorials. In this case it is more than probable that he does not say "the son of Ethan" but "the sons" — Azariah was the only one who represented the family.
The name Azariah has a meaning of its own:
Azariah — Helped of Jah (Jehovah)
A gap like this matches the condition of the people whose records these were:
In Chronicles the accuracy of the genealogies depends largely on the importance the Jews attached to them during their captivity. The disorder these lists show matches the state of the remnant as we find them in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. Quite a number among the people and among the priesthood could not prove their genealogy. Though they lacked recorded family heads, the names of their families, groups and cities could still identify them... The great disorder that came in also explains, at least in part, why people counted very distant descendants of a clan head as his sons.
Ethan is remembered as a wise man. One writer names the subject of his psalm:
In Psalm 89 the wisdom of Ethan instructs us. What does this other wise man speak of? Of grace! This Psalm is about the unchangeable promises of God and the sure mercies of David... This magnificent Psalm is the hymn of grace and of all the glory of God which this grace has established and brought to light.
The run of names from Judah to David carries two things at once:
Only a list of names from Judah to David! But can we find in the whole book of God a space as brief as this which holds so much? On one side, grace and God's unchanging purpose. On the other, the vileness of man's nature. The names given here are bound up with both... Names renowned in the world and honoured among men? No, but names linked with the worst corruption, with disobedience to God and dishonour to His name. There is a Hezron and a Boaz, and with them greatness and piety. But there is also an Achan, marked out clearly as "the troubler of Israel, who broke faith in the matter of the devoted thing."
- Confusion. Chronicles gathers what survived of Israel's records for the remnant returning from exile. Many could not prove their line, so gaps and distant "sons" mark the lists — yet God sets His seal on these documents.
- One name. Older translations read "the sons of Ethan," yet only Azariah follows. He alone was left to represent the house. These genealogies are memorials, not complete chains.
- Helped. His name means "helped of Jah." It is the earliest name in Chronicles built on God's covenant name, which fits a man who lived after the Exodus.
- Grace. A list this bare still holds both sides: the vileness of man, seen in Achan, and God's unchanging purpose running on to David.
And the sons of Hezron, who were born to him Jerahmeel, and Ram, and Chelubai.
Hezron has already appeared in the line from Judah. Now the record pauses to name his three sons. Only one of them carries the royal line, yet Scripture keeps all three names. Why record men who lead nowhere? And why is the firstborn not the chosen one?
These names sit at the centre of the chapter. The chapter has one aim: to trace one family down to one man.
In 1 Chronicles 2:9-16 we meet the genealogy of David. This is in fact the main point of that chapter. David comes from Judah, and the line runs back through the ages by way of Jacob, Isaac, Abraham, Shem, and Noah to Adam.
Birth order decides who heads the list. It does not decide whose line God uses.
Fruitlessness is the mark of Jerahmeel's line above all. He was Hezron's eldest son (v. 9), yet here he stands in last place again (v. 25)... The traits of the natural man pass on just as surely as the traits of a man of faith like Caleb; the difference is that the traits of faith pass on by grace. David's line does not come from Jerahmeel, but from Ram, his younger brother (vv. 9-16).
Another writer finds the same order running through the whole opening section of Chronicles.
The first nine chapters form an opening section. In them we find the principle that the apostle Paul put into words long afterward: not the spiritual first, but the natural, and then the spiritual. Even the general genealogy of 1 Chronicles 1 serves this purpose of God. The genealogy of the sons of Israel, starting in 1 Chronicles 2, follows the same rule.
The third son is the one who raises questions. Rossier sees a purpose in the unusual form of his name.
Verse 9 calls Caleb by the name Chelubai, and I think there is a purpose in that. He is the son of Hezron and the great-grandson of Judah. We find his genealogy in verses 18-20... The record calls him the brother of Jerahmeel (the son of Hezron, v. 9). But right at the end of this list we suddenly meet Achsah — the daughter, as we know, of Caleb the son of Jephunneh (Joshua 15:16).
Commentators differ over how far to press the link between the two Calebs. Rossier reads the overlap as deliberate — the son of Jephunneh, who "by his origin really had no right of citizenship in Israel," being grafted into this family by faith. Darby is more cautious: "There is no proof that Caleb was the son of Hezron, son of Pharez; if it was the same Caleb as in Numbers, he was the son of Jephunneh."
Ram carries the crown. Jerahmeel and Chelubai carry nothing — and yet the Spirit stops the march toward David to name them.
Having brought the line down to David, the Holy Spirit pauses, as it were, and notes the sons of Hezron (Esrom in older versions of Matthew 1) other than Ram (Aram there) — that is, Jerahmeel and Chelubai, who is also called Caleb (see verses 9 and 18). The honoured line passed through Ram, but his natural relatives have a place in the records of Judah... Even Segub is named, though he was only half-brother to Ram. Is that not because of his link with David's ancestry, with that line which was always so precious to God that even the slightest tie to it earns a place in these genealogies?
The ten tribes vanished among the nations. Judah did not, and there was a reason for the difference.
God had set David on the throne, and that was a pledge that Christ must sit there too... So God keeps the tribe the King was to come from until the appointed time, when Jesus is born in Bethlehem. He keeps this tribe while the ten are hidden in the dust of the earth... During the captivity, when Gentile rulers held the throne, God carefully guarded the line of the true heirs. After the return from Babylon, Matthew carries that line on to the birth of Christ, and in Him it ends.
- Aim — Verses 9 to 16 are the heart of the chapter. They trace David back through Judah, Jacob, Abraham and Noah to Adam.
- Order — The natural comes first, then the spiritual. Jerahmeel is named first as the eldest and ends up last; the line runs through Ram, the younger brother.
- Grace — A man of faith passes on his character only by grace; the natural man passes on his by birth. That is why Jerahmeel's branch is marked by unfruitfulness.
- Reach — Chelubai is the Caleb of verse 18. Judah's records also hold relatives who carry no crown, because the least tie to David's line earns a place.
- Result — God keeps the tribe and the family safe through Babylon. Matthew then carries the same line on to Christ, and in Him it ends.
And Ram begot Amminadab; and Amminadab begot Nahshon, prince of the children of Judah;
The names from Judah down to David can read like dead weight. Then you notice which ones the Spirit stops to describe. This verse holds two of them: Amminadab, and his son Nahshon, singled out as leader of the tribe of Judah.
Ram, named at the head of this verse, was not the eldest of his family. One writer compares the two brothers:
Unfruitfulness especially marks the line of Jerahmeel. He was Hezron's eldest son (v. 9), yet here he is put in last place again (v. 25). This fits what we have already seen of Chronicles in chapter 1. The features of the natural man pass down just as surely as the features of a man of faith like Caleb. The difference is that Caleb's pass down by grace. David's line does not descend from Jerahmeel, but from Ram, his younger brother (vv. 9-16).
Most of the men between Judah and David get no description at all. Nahshon is a rare exception, and the other two exceptions are remembered for their sin:
From Judah to David there is only a run of names with no distinguishing mark. There are three exceptions, and two of them stand out because of their sin. Er, whom the Lord killed; Achar, the troubler of Israel; and Nahshon, the prince of the children of Judah. Having brought the line down to David, the Holy Spirit pauses and notes the sons of Hezron other than Ram. The honoured line passed through Ram, but his natural relatives have a place in the records of Judah.
So Nahshon's title is not decoration. In a chapter where silence is the norm, the words "prince of the sons of Judah" carry the Spirit's own emphasis.
One commentator ties both names in this verse to the meaning of Judah itself:
Nahshon means "a diviner." Satan inspired some diviners, but God inspired others, and the second kind is meant here. Judah's name means "praise," and God gives the true worshipper grace to discern all things, even the future, as he takes in the word of God... Amminadab (the father of Nahshon) means "the people of the liberal giver." God is indeed the Liberal Giver. Praise and discernment of God's ways always go with knowing that God's grace freely gives us all things to enjoy.
The two men in this verse are not obscure. Their family sat at the meeting point of Israel's royal line and its priestly line:
Ram is sometimes called Aram (Matt. 1:3). Amminadab was the father of Elisheba. She married Aaron, the brother of Moses. Aaron was the first high priest of Israel, and the office then passed down through his family (Ex. 6:23). Nahshon (Naason) was the brother-in-law of Aaron (Ex. 6:23), and prince or head of the tribe of Judah (Num. 1:7; Num. 2:3; 1 Chron. 2:10). Salmon (Salma), son of Nahshon, married Rahab the prostitute and was the father of Boaz (Matt. 1:5).
Nahshon's rank showed itself in the march: his tribe went first. It also opened a door for Rahab, a woman with no claim on Israel at all:
She married Salmon (Matt. 1:5), who was the son of Nahshon, prince of the children of Judah (1 Chron. 2:11), the leader of the tribe that had marched first through the wilderness (Num. 10:14). And so she came straight into the royal line of Israel. She entered one of the most honoured families of all, and became an ancestor of the promised Messiah. She is one of the four women mentioned in the genealogy of our Lord.
Why record any of this? Because the list had a destination, and God was watching over it:
The pedigree shows the distinct line of constitutional royalty promised to the nation. The names given in it are not always those of the eldest in the family. David himself, for instance, was the seventh son of Jesse (1 Chron. 2:15). God decreed that the line of descent from Pherez would end with the Messiah. So He watched over it without a break.
- The line chosen. The royal line skips the firstborn Jerahmeel and runs through Ram, his younger brother. What passes down here passes down by grace.
- The line marked. Between Judah and David only three men get a description, and Nahshon's title, prince of Judah, is one of them.
- The line named. Amminadab means "the people of the liberal giver." Nahshon means "a diviner." Praise and discernment rest on a God who gives freely.
- The line opened. Nahshon led the tribe that marched first. Through his son Salmon, Rahab entered the royal family and the genealogy of the Lord.
- The line kept. The eldest was not always chosen. Yet God Himself guarded this line all the way to the Messiah.
and Nahshon begot Salma, and Salma begot Boaz,
Commentary for this verse has not been generated yet.
and Boaz begot Obed, and Obed begot Jesse;
Three names, one line: the kinsman who redeemed, the son of a Moabite mother, and the unknown farmer whose son became king. Chronicles lingers here because the line to the Messiah runs through this short chain.
Chronicles opens with chapter after chapter of names. One commentator notes that one tribe among the sons of Israel gets far more room than the rest.
This chapter sets the sons of Judah before us in detail — not those of Reuben or of Simeon. The object of the book is purpose. Judah was the tribe chosen first of all for the kingdom, and chosen with a view to the Messiah. So we can understand why the record traces his sons at such length.
Another writer traces David's line through this chapter and points out what Chronicles leaves out.
In 1 Chronicles 2:9-16 we have the genealogy of David, and this is the main thrust of that chapter. Chronicles says nothing at all about David's history and his sufferings as the rejected king. It sets forth David as the object of God's counsels about the kingship, counsels that Christ, the Son of David, will fully accomplish.
The first name in the verse carries its own meaning. In the book of Ruth a nearer relative came first in line, but he could not redeem.
Boaz, who is the instrument of blessing, the kinsman redeemer, is a type of the risen Christ. The name means "In him is strength." When the nearest kinsman failed, Boaz had the power of redemption. The nearer kinsman represents the law, and he could not redeem the inheritance. As the apostle wrote, if the inheritance comes by law, it is no longer by promise, and Ruth must receive everything as the gift of pure grace. So Boaz stepped in. No claim rested on him, though he was a kinsman. He acted out of his own heart of love and grace, bought the land, and married Ruth.
The middle name belongs to a man with almost no recorded story. What he has is a name, and a place in four short lists.
Obed means "servant." He was the son of the wealthy Boaz. By his name at least, and perhaps also by an obedient and dedicated life, he bore a quiet witness. It pointed to his coming grandson David, who "served the purpose of God in his own generation" (Acts 13:36). It pointed further to David's Son and David's Lord, whose service to God is unequalled. The record shows that in Obed's descendants his name became "renowned in Israel." Apart from the brief record in Ruth, it appears in only three places: 1 Chronicles 2:12, as the grandfather of David, and Matthew 1:5 and Luke 3:32, as the ancestor of the Messiah of Israel. But what remarkable honour for the son of a Moabitess — this association with the Anointed of Jehovah in His family line!
Obed's mother was Ruth, and the law shut her nation out of the Lord's congregation.
Ruth was a loving woman, but she came from a source a Jew found deeply offensive. She was a Moabitess, and so forbidden by the law to enter the congregation of the Lord to the tenth generation. Jews loathed the Edomite and the Egyptian less, and their children could enter in the third generation (Deut. 23:3-8). Here was a still deeper testimony that grace would go out and bless the very worst of the Gentiles. Whether the Jews like it or not, God has brought Rahab, the once immoral Gentile, and Ruth, the meek daughter of Moab, into the nation. More than that, He has brought them into the direct line from which the Messiah was to arise.
The verse stops at Jesse, not at his famous son. One writer explains why the smaller name is the one that gets used.
The name "Jesse" stands here, we believe, to heighten the contrast. David had become a name of great renown. Jesse only reminds us of the otherwise unknown farmer from whom David sprang. From one small and unknown the great Messiah was to spring, and yet to be the Root from which Jesse himself sprang.
- Strength. Boaz means "in him is strength." No claim rested on him, yet he redeemed, where the nearer kinsman, who stands for the law, could not.
- Service. Obed means "servant." His name survives in only four places in Scripture, this verse among them, always as a link toward the Messiah.
- Grace. The law barred Ruth the Moabitess from the congregation. Yet she stands in the direct line from which the Messiah came.
- Smallness. The line rests on Jesse, an unknown farmer, so that the great Messiah springs from him and is also the Root from which Jesse sprang.
- Purpose. Chronicles follows Judah because the book is about the kingdom. It presents David as the object of God's counsels, which Christ, the Son of David, will fully accomplish.
and Jesse begot his firstborn Eliab, and Abinadab the second, and Shimea the third,
The verse opens the list of Jesse's sons, a list that ends with David. Two questions follow: why count brothers who never reign, and why is David the seventh son here when Samuel calls him the eighth?
Why record six brothers who never rule? One writer finds the answer in the numbering:
Notice the care and precision with which the sons of Jesse are given, named, and numbered in their order: clearly to tell us that David is the seventh. He alone fills the mind of the inspired writer. The six are numbered only so that David might appear as the seventh, for God's purpose is bound up with that.
Eliab stands first by birth, and the whole opening section of Chronicles follows that same pattern of the natural coming before the chosen. Commenting on the arrangement of these genealogies, one writer names the rule:
In the nine chapters that make up the opening section we have the principle that the apostle Paul formulated long afterwards: not first the spiritual but the natural, then the spiritual. Even the general genealogy of 1 Chronicles 1 is governed by this divine purpose.
Eliab's position and his impressive appearance counted for nothing when a king was being sought. One writer draws out why the firstborn's rank actually told against him:
Eliab has a beautiful name and a stately presence: his name means "my God is Father." Yet notice that Eliab is the firstborn, and David stands at the other end, the eighth. This is against Eliab, though his fine appearance may appeal even to a prophet. He comes under the law of Genesis, and shows the rule: "it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual." But there is no natural Christ, and so none of the old creation. The eighth speaks of the new, and Eliab must give place to David.
The second son's name points to a generous father, yet he is passed over too:
So Abinadab is doomed as well, although as the second son he suggests help or salvation. His name fits that too: "my father is a generous giver." And why, man argues, should God not freely forgive sin? He is good, and the Father of men; why should He not pardon simply because it pleases Him? Why must the Christ be a David, an eighth son, taking man's ruin on Himself and going down to the depth of man's condemnation to redeem him? But it cannot be. Sin is the dark, basic opposite of God, and He cannot dwell with it.
The third son's name appears in more than one form. ESV spells it Shimea here, where older translations read Shimma:
Son of Jesse and brother of David. 1 Samuel 16:9; 1 Samuel 17:13. Called SHIMEAH in 2 Samuel 13:3, and SHIMMA in 1 Chronicles 2:13.
Commentators differ here. One writer, asked why Samuel makes David the eighth son and Chronicles the seventh, answers plainly:
Keil supposes that one of Jesse's sons may have died without children, and so dropped out of the list in the later book. I have nothing better to offer.
Another treats both numbers as deliberate, each fitting the book it stands in:
Is there not a truth hinted at in Samuel which is not needed for the Holy Spirit's purpose in Chronicles? We know that "eight" is right in Samuel and "seventh" in Chronicles. Each is just as much from God as the other. Seven speaks of rest in creation, and eight of rest in resurrection power and glory. David, being in Samuel the eighth, points to the true David who will restore everything, and who will reign over Israel Himself as the risen Man. For rest in creation became impossible once sin came in. Eight means God stepping in with grace when all is lost.
These brothers are the family God chose from. One writer traces the steps of that choice:
The Lord had chosen him, David, to be king over Israel forever; He had chosen Judah as prince; in Judah He had chosen the house of Jesse. Among the sons of Jesse He had taken pleasure in David, to make him king. The Lord's free choice and God's good pleasure rested on the least and most humble of them all.
- Named — Scripture records Eliab, Abinadab and Shimea by name and in order; the third also appears as Shimeah and Shimma elsewhere.
- Numbered — Scripture counts the brothers only so that David arrives as the seventh, and God's purpose hangs on that number.
- Passed over — Eliab's rank and fine looks told against him: the natural comes first, then the spiritual.
- Disputed — Samuel says eighth, Chronicles seventh. Some suggest a son died childless; others hold each number is true to its own book, where eight speaks of rest in resurrection.
- Chosen — God narrowed the choice: Judah, then the house of Jesse, then the least of Jesse's sons, by His own free good pleasure.
Nethaneel the fourth, Raddai the fifth,
A fourth son and a fifth pass by in one line, and Scripture tells us nothing else about either man. Yet the count is deliberate, and it is running toward someone.
Why count sons whose stories Scripture never tells? One commentator finds the answer at the end of the list:
Look how carefully and exactly the sons of Jesse are given, named and numbered in their order. Clearly this is to tell us that David is the seventh. He alone fills the mind of the inspired writer. The six are numbered only so that David might appear as the seventh, for the purpose of God is bound up with that. So "David the seventh" has a meaning far beyond the bare fact of his order. And in fact David was the eighth son, not the seventh. Before God he was both; but in His book God is giving us His thoughts, and not listing natural events here.
That raises a question. In Samuel, God refuses seven sons of Jesse and chooses the eighth. Commentators explain the shorter count here in different ways, and the same writer weighs one of them before settling the matter on other ground:
If the seven are refused and the eighth chosen according to Samuel, why is he numbered the seventh here in Chronicles? Some have supposed that one of Jesse's sons died, and that David would therefore be the seventh. Is that supposition satisfactory? ... We know that "eight" is right in Samuel and "seventh" in Chronicles. One is as divine as the other. Each agrees perfectly with the truth God is communicating there.
The two numbers each carry a picture of rest:
Seven is clearly connected with rest in creation, and eight with rest in resurrection power and glory. David, being the eighth in Samuel, points to the true David who will restore everything and reign over Israel Himself as the risen Man. For rest in creation became impossible once sin came in. Eight signifies God stepping in with grace when all is lost.
Here in Chronicles the number falls on the earthly side:
David, the type of God's rest in His Son when He sits on His earthly throne, is numbered the seventh here. It is God's rest in the renewed earth. But even this could not happen except through One who had passed through death. This seventh-day rest can only come by Christ as the risen Man. How wonderfully the "seventh" and the "eighth" are combined in the Person of Christ!
God's choice passed over Nethanel, Raddai and every older brother. It rested on the least of them:
The Lord's free choice and God's good pleasure had rested on the least and most humble of them all. In God's eyes he was strong and mighty, no doubt, in his struggle with the lion and the bear in the wilderness. But in the eyes of men he had nothing that they should desire him. Was he not a picture of the Perfect Servant? The Lord acclaimed Him as the object of His good pleasure at the very moment He was taking a public place of deepest humiliation in the baptism of repentance.
The same pattern runs through the chapter. The family line does not run through the eldest:
Unfruitfulness especially marks the line of Jerahmeel. Although he was Hezron's eldest son (v. 9), he is once again placed last here (v. 25)... David's line does not come down from Jerahmeel, but from Ram, his younger brother.
Nethanel and Raddai are never heard of again. Yet God keeps their names:
He records at the same time the names of those who had gone through the trials mentioned in this history without being blotted out of the book. Here it is only the outward picture of this blessed memorial of the people of His grace; but in fact this is what we find here.
These names are not filler:
This special mention of Hezron's family and descendants is not a bare family list running from Judah to David, where the evil simply take their turn in order beside the good. These are men of renown. As long as the book of God is read, their names will stand out as the names of men whom God would honour.
- Counted. God numbers Jesse's sons in order for one reason: so the last name, David, lands in its place in His purpose.
- Counted twice. Samuel makes David the eighth son; Chronicles makes him the seventh. One writer calls both numbers God-given, each fitting the truth its own book teaches.
- Chosen. God's choice fell on the least of Jesse's sons, the one men would not have wanted. In the same way, David's line runs through the younger Ram, not the eldest son Jerahmeel.
- Crowned. Seven speaks of rest in creation, eight of rest in resurrection glory. Both meet in Christ, the risen Man who will reign.
- Kept. God writes down even the names with no story attached, keeping the record of the people of His grace.
Ozem the sixth, David the seventh;
One line in a family list carries the weight of the chapter. The writer counts off six brothers, then names David. But Samuel's record says Jesse had eight sons. So why is David the seventh here?
The six older brothers get no story, only a number:
Notice the care and precision in the list of Jesse's sons, named and numbered in order. Clearly this is to tell us that David is the seventh. He alone fills the mind of the inspired writer. The six are numbered only so that David might appear as the seventh, for with that the purpose of God is bound up. So "David the seventh" means far more than the bare fact that he came seventh. And in fact, David was the eighth son, not the seventh. Before God he was both; but in His book God is giving us His thoughts, and not here listing natural events.
Commentators differ on the two numbers. One answer is simple — a son dropped out of the record:
Keil supposes that one of Jesse's sons may have died without descendants, and so the later list leaves him out. I have nothing better to offer.
Another treats both numbers as deliberate, each suited to the book it stands in:
The neglected one is the chosen one. Not one of the previous seven was chosen, so the youngest must have been the eighth. … Is there not a truth hinted at in Samuel that the Holy Spirit did not need for His purpose in giving us the books of Chronicles? We know that "eight" is right in Samuel, and "seventh" in Chronicles. One is as divine as the other. Each agrees perfectly with the truth God is teaching there. The numbers seven and eight have a symbolic meaning in Scripture as well as a natural one. Seven is connected with rest in creation, and eight with rest in resurrection power and glory. Eight means God stepping in with grace when all is lost. The coming kingdom is for the earth, yet it must have a link with resurrection so that it may be stable. That link is the glorious risen Man as King.
The number reaches past David to Christ:
But He is also God's rest in creation. And here, in connection with the earth and God's earthly people, Christ is the "seventh." He is the Creator, and Scripture says, "On the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested." Chronicles does not give the wonderful resurrection-like power found in Samuel. David appears suddenly at the death of Saul, and the tribes gather to make him king. It is simply the earthly kingdom, set up among men. Wonderful as this picture is, it stands far below the reality of the Lord reigning in glory! What is the power of David or the splendour of Solomon compared with the millennial glory of Christ? … But even this rest comes only through One Who had passed through death. So this seventh-day rest can only be by Christ as risen Man. How wonderfully the "seventh" and the "eighth" are combined in the Person of Christ!
The same writer reads David's rise in Samuel as a picture drawn from the far side of death:
Was it not like a resurrection from the dead when David came into the scene of Israel's ruin? For a little while he had been lost to Israel, hidden in the court of Achish. Israel lay crushed on the mountains of Gilboa, and the Philistines were triumphant. … Was he not like one risen from the dead? In resurrection power, as it were, he led Israel from Gilboa, the scene of ruin and death, to take possession of Mount Zion. … David was only a picture of Christ, Who, as the risen Man, is the "eighth."
David's place in the list also tells us how the royal line ran:
The pedigree shows the distinct line of constitutional royalty promised to the nation. The names given in it are not always those of the eldest in the family. David himself, for instance, was the seventh son of Jesse (1 Chron. 2:15). God had decreed that the line from Perez, the son of Judah, would end with the Messiah. So He kept it under His own constant oversight.
The same pattern appears in David's own family:
David, the head of this family, was the lastborn of his father's house, and his family bears the same clear mark of election according to grace. Amnon comes first, the son according to the flesh and the shame of his father's house. He is rejected, like everything that springs from nature. … Once again, nature's order is of no value.
- Counted — Six brothers get a number for one reason: so David can stand as the seventh. God's purpose is bound up with that name.
- Chosen — The royal line does not follow birth order. God kept it in His own hands until it reached the Messiah.
- Seventh — Seven is rest in creation. David the seventh pictures a kingdom on earth, far below the glory of Christ's reign.
- Eighth — Eight is rest in resurrection power. David's rise from ruin at Gilboa to Zion reads like a man raised from the dead.
- Combined — Both numbers meet in Christ: God's rest in creation, and the risen Man who makes that rest secure.