And Adah bore to Esau Eliphaz; and Basmath bore Reuel.
Genesis 36 turns from Jacob to the line of Esau, and verse 4 names his first two sons: Eliphaz by Adah, Reuel by Basemath. Two questions come up here: why do these wives have other names earlier in Genesis, and why does Scripture record a family it has already set aside?
Genesis names Esau's wives earlier too, and the names do not match. Commentators explain the gap in more than one way:
One of the wives of Esau, the daughter of Ishmael and the mother of Reuel. Gen. 36:3-4. In the earlier account, Gen. 26:34; Gen. 28:9, the names of Esau's wives differ from those given in Gen. 36:2-3. The women may have had two names, or they may have received another name at their marriage. It seems likely that Bashemath, daughter of Elon, is the same as ADAH, daughter of Elon. And Bashemath, daughter of Ishmael, is likely the same as MAHALATH, daughter of Ishmael.
Who the mothers were matters. Their peoples were enemies of God's people, and the land Esau settled in lay under a curse:
After the record of Esau's generations, we notice that he married wives who were Canaanites, Hittites and Hivites. They were bitter enemies of God's people. We see, too, that he lived in Mount Seir. That land was cursed later, and the curse would remain even in the millennial days to come, when the wilderness will blossom like the rose. It is an illustration of the flesh, which, under the very best influence, cannot be improved.
Eliphaz stands at the head of a line that rose fast. Jacob's family went the other way:
Still, it teaches us something. What is natural comes into power first, and what is spiritual comes after. The family of promise remain shepherds and herdsmen. They wander here and there, outside the land and within it, and are even severely oppressed. Meanwhile the generations of Edom rise fast into importance, away from Canaan, in Mount Seir. The descendants of Edom soon claim the rank of chiefs: "These are the chiefs of the sons of Esau. The sons of Eliphaz the firstborn of Esau."
One son of Eliphaz became a lasting enemy of Israel:
Edom became the treacherous enemy of the people of Israel. Read Obadiah, verses 8-16. From the concubine of Eliphaz was born Amalek, one of the terrible enemies of Israel, with whom there was to be continual warfare (Exodus 17:8-14).
The same line reached much further. Haman came from it:
Agag was the title of the kings of Amalek, probably a general title, as Pharaoh was for the king of Egypt. (1 Sam. 15:9, 32; Num. 24:7) So Haman came from this royal line. Amalek, the people of Haman, descended from Esau through Eliphaz: he was first a chief, and then became the people of Edom. (Gen. 36:12, 16)
Esau did well in earthly things. One writer ties that to Isaac's blessing, and to a wider pattern:
The chapter shows us that Esau prospered in earthly things, so his father's blessing came true for him (27:39-40). He held his own territory and became quite independent of Jacob. His descendants multiplied and became chiefs and men of note. They became not only "chiefs" but even "kings," and that before any king appeared in Israel's line. In earthly greatness and power the children of this world have always come first, ahead of the children of God.
- Names. Esau's wives appear under other names in Genesis 26 and 28. They may have had two names each, or new names at marriage. Commentators call the match likely, not certain.
- Mothers. Esau's wives came from the peoples of the land, and Mount Seir lay under a curse. His line began in ties with God's enemies.
- Firstborn. Eliphaz, Adah's son, heads a line that rises fast into chiefs. Jacob's family stays a wandering household of shepherds.
- Reach. Out of Eliphaz came Amalek, Israel's continual enemy from Exodus 17 on. Haman came from the same line.
- Result. Esau prospered, just as Isaac had said he would. Worldly greatness still comes first; God's people wait.
And Oholibamah bore Jeush and Jaalam and Korah. These are the sons of Esau that were born to him in the land of Canaan.
Genesis 36 pauses the story of Jacob to list his brother's family. Verse 5 closes the first group of names with a detail that matters: Oholibamah bore these three sons in the land of Canaan, and Esau soon left that land behind. Why does Scripture give a whole chapter to a line it has already set aside?
Is this chapter simply dropped in where it happens to fall? One writer answers no:
At first reading, this account of Esau's generation might seem like a disconnected fragment, which could just as well have been inserted a few chapters earlier, or a few later, as where it now stands. But neither chapter nor word can be displaced without spoiling the perfectness of God's word. There is divine wisdom in placing it just where it is.
Verse 5 records where Esau's sons began. What follows explains why they could not stay:
Verse 6 tells us that he took his wives, family, and all his possessions, leaving the land of Canaan, going "from the face of his brother Jacob." The man "after the flesh" cannot dwell together with the one who is chosen by God.
Esau's line rose into dukes and kings. One writer sees God's purpose holding steady underneath:
The next chapter follows with a long list of Esau's generations, ripening early into dukes and kings. The world must have its day. Yet through it all a significant sign appears that God's purpose is being fulfilled — the purpose "which is not of works, but of Him that calls."
Verse 5 names the mother as well as the sons. One reference work traces her family line:
One of the wives of Esau: she was the daughter of Anah, daughter of Zibeon the Hivite. She bore to Esau "duke Jeush, duke Jalam, duke Korah."
Esau's choice of wives was no small detail:
Following the announcement of Esau's generations, we notice who he married. His wives were Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites — enemies of God's people who would never make peace. We see, too, that he lived in Mount Seir. That land was cursed later on, and the curse would stay on it even in the coming thousand-year reign, when the wilderness will blossom like the rose. It is a picture of the flesh, which no influence, however good, can improve.
Esau's family climbed fast. One writer reads that speed as a lesson:
We see at once what remarkable maturity there was here. It is always so — first that which is natural, afterwards that which is spiritual. Even then we find a rapid development of power in the family of Esau. They were all great people, to be sure — duke this and duke that, right to the end of the chapter. Kings even reigned among them, we are told, before Israel had a king at all. I have no doubt this stands as an important sign of how fast what is not of God shoots up. Growth according to God is slower, but it is more lasting.
Another writer sets the two lines side by side:
The world that has turned away from God establishes itself in power, while the heirs of promise are still poor pilgrims on the earth.
So why record the list at all? One writer answers:
The long list of names is therefore meant to impress on us that God has taken full account of the flesh and all its activities, finding it only vanity.
- Placed — Esau's line sits where divine wisdom put it. Move one word of God's book and you spoil it.
- Born — Jeush, Jalam and Korah were born in Canaan. Their father then took them out of it, for the man after the flesh cannot live beside the man God has chosen.
- Bound — their mother Oholibamah was a Hivite. Esau's marriages tied him to God's enemies, and his home was Mount Seir, a cursed land.
- Boosted — first the natural, then the spiritual. Esau's sons rise fast into dukes and kings, while the heirs of promise stay poor pilgrims.
- Booked — God writes down every name, taking full account of the flesh and all it achieves, and finds it only vanity.
And Esau took his wives, and his sons, and his daughters, and all the souls of his house, and his cattle, and all his beasts, and all his possessions, that he had acquired in the land of Canaan, and went into a country away from his brother Jacob.
Genesis 36 pauses the story of Jacob to record the line of Esau. Verse 6 is the moment the brothers part for good, and it raises the question of why they could not share one land.
This move was the end of a long story between the brothers. The nation that came from Esau later turned against Jacob's descendants.
In verse 6 we read that Esau went into the country away from the face of his brother Jacob. In the end it came to a clear and complete separation between Esau and Jacob. Jacob lived in the land where his father was a stranger. And Edom became the treacherous enemy of the people of Israel.
The verse names a departure but no reason for it. One writer traces the reason to the two men themselves, and reads the chapter's long list of names as God's full accounting of everything that line produced.
The man "after the flesh" cannot live together with the one God has chosen… Esau's family shows the usual history of the flesh, which always exalts itself. So the long list of names is there to impress on us that God has taken full account of the flesh and all its activities, finding it only vanity.
Esau moved for his own reasons. No one forced him out. Yet in going he left Canaan to the brother God had chosen. One writer sees God's purpose at work in that.
Then follows a long list of Esau's generations, ripening too early into chiefs and kings. The world must have its day. Yet in the middle of it all we see a significant sign that God is fulfilling His purpose — the purpose that is "not because of works but because of him who calls." For we read that Esau "went into a land away from his brother Jacob."
Esau leaves with everything he owns. Jacob stays in a land where he is a stranger, holding only a promise, and his children inherit that same unsettled life.
But Jacob was "a quiet man," a man of the tent. He took after his fathers. Like Abraham and Isaac, he was a stranger here, living on the surface of the earth for a time, with his eye on the promise. Esau's children were chiefs, settled in their own territories, enjoying their honours and wealth. Jacob's children had to wander from one nation to another. They had to suffer the hardships and wrongs of cruel Egypt, or to cross the trackless, wasted desert as pilgrims.
Esau's line rises fast after this move — chiefs, then kings, long before Israel had either. The speed itself is the lesson.
We see at once what remarkable maturity there was here. It is always so — first what is natural, afterwards what is spiritual. Even then we find a rapid development of power in the family of Esau. They were all great people, of course — chief this and chief that, right to the end of the chapter. Even kings, we are told, reigned before there were any in Israel. I have no doubt this is given to us as an important sign of how rapidly what is not of God shoots up. Growth according to God is slower, but then it is more lasting.
Esau's new home was not just his own taking. Long after this move, God's earlier word about Seir still stood, and it limited what Israel could claim.
Edom had harassed Israel greatly and shown an arrogant pride. Still the Lord would not give Edom's possession to Israel. He remembered His word: "I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession" (Gen. 32:3; 36:6-8; Josh. 24:4). They were, therefore, not to seek what the Lord had not given them. And this is obedience and a lesson of faith. What happy contentment there would be among God's people if this rule were followed.
- Parting. The move was no temporary arrangement. It was a complete and lasting split, and Edom later became Israel's treacherous enemy.
- Cause. The man after the flesh and the man God chose could not share one land.
- Purpose. Esau left Canaan by his own choice. That choice served a purpose resting on God's call, not on works.
- Contrast. Esau's sons gained territories and quick honours. Jacob's family held a land they owned nothing in, and wandered as pilgrims.
- Result. What shoots up fast is not what lasts. Growth according to God is slower and more lasting — and even Esau's land stayed a gift God protected.
For their property was too great for them to dwell together, and the land where they were sojourners could not bear them, because of their cattle.
Two brothers who once could not live at peace now cannot share a country. The reason is not hatred but wealth. Their herds and goods had outgrown the land. The parting looks like a practical deal about pasture. Commentators see more in it: a lasting split of portions. One brother settles into a possession. The other stays a stranger in Canaan.
Why did Esau own so much? One writer points back to his father.
The chapter shows us that Esau prospered in earthly things, so his father's blessing came true for him. He occupied his own territory and became fully independent of Jacob. His descendants multiplied, became chiefs, and were notorious.
Commentators read the crowded pasture as a picture of something deeper. The two men stood on different ground before God. That difference had to show itself.
Verse 6 tells us that he took his wives, family, and all his possessions. He left the land of Canaan, going "from the face of his brother Jacob." The man "after the flesh" cannot live together with the man God has chosen. Yet Esau (Edom) prospers and develops greatly in a material way.
The distance between the herds later hardened into something worse.
In verse 6 we read that Esau went into the country from the face of his brother Jacob. It came at last to a pronounced and complete separation between Esau and Jacob. Jacob dwelt in the land in which his father was a stranger. And Edom became the treacherous foe to the people of Israel.
Esau moved away by his own choice. A commentator sees God's purpose at work in it.
The world must have its day. Yet in the middle of it all comes a clear sign that God's purpose is being fulfilled — the purpose "which is not of works, but of Him who calls."
The verse calls Canaan the land where they were staying as foreigners. Esau traded that temporary standing for land he could own. Jacob stayed on as a stranger.
Esau leaves Canaan for Seir, and his descendants soon, as their names seem to show, live by their sword in this barren region. Two texts here have special meaning for us. First, Esau took all he had gained in the land of Canaan and went into the country away from his brother Jacob. Then the section closes with one short verse that speaks volumes to the ear that hears. It contrasts Jacob's portion with his brother's: "Jacob lived in the land of his father's sojournings, in the land of Canaan."
Centuries later Israel marched toward Canaan. God treated the land Esau settled as His own gift. He told Israel to leave it alone.
They might have wanted to take the plains of Moab or Mount Seir and the lands of Ammon. The Lord forbade them to do so. Disobedience would have been disastrous. Edom had harassed Israel badly and shown an arrogant pride. Even so, Jehovah would not give Edom's land to Israel. He remembered His word: "I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession." So they were not to seek what the Lord had not given them. And this is obedience and a lesson of faith. What happy contentment there would be among God's people, if this rule were followed.
Esau's family tree rises into chiefs and kings. Jacob's family is still wandering with flocks. That order is deliberate.
The Edomite interrupts the course of the line of God's dealings. We see at once what remarkable maturity there was here. It is always so — first that which is natural, afterwards that which is spiritual. Even then we find a rapid development of power in the family of Esau... I have no doubt this is given to us as an important sign of how quickly what is not of God shoots up. Growth according to God is slower, but then it is more permanent.
- Riches divide. The prosperity that fulfilled Isaac's blessing on Esau made shared living impossible. The land could not carry both households.
- Portions separate. Esau took land he could hold in Seir. Jacob stayed in the land where his father had lived as a foreigner.
- Purpose stands. Esau's own choice to leave cleared Canaan for the line that rests on God who calls, not on works.
- Boundaries hold. Mount Seir was God's own gift to Esau. God later told Israel not to covet it. Be content with what God assigns.
- Patience wins. What is natural rises first and fast, into chiefs and kings. What grows according to God grows slower and lasts.
Thus Esau dwelt in mount Seir; Esau is Edom.
Genesis 36:8 closes the account of Esau's move out of Canaan. It ends with one settled fact: he made his home in the hill country of Seir. The short note that Esau is Edom turns a family story into a national one. It also raises a question: what does a man gain by taking his portion outside the land of promise?
The second name in the verse has its own history. It goes back to a bowl of red stew, and then spreads to a people and a land.
Esau was given this name because he craved Jacob's red stew, since Edom means red (Gen. 25:30; Gen. 36:1, 8, 19). But the name is more often used for his tribe and the territory they held... It is a very mountainous district with high peaks and deep valleys, but also with very fertile plains. It had been called Mount Seir. Gen. 36:8.
That link pays off well beyond Genesis.
The chapter also shows clearly that Esau, Edom and Mount Seir are one and the same, when we find these names mentioned later in Scripture. Otherwise the many names here would mean little to us.
This move ended the shared life of the two brothers. The long list of names that follows has a purpose too.
Verse 6 tells us that he took his wives, family, and all his possessions, left the land of Canaan, and went away from his brother Jacob. The man "after the flesh" cannot live together with the one whom God has chosen... The long list of names is meant to press on us that God has taken full account of the flesh and all it does, and finds it empty.
Where a man settles shows what he values. Esau's choice turned away from what God had promised.
So Esau leaves the promise to him [Jacob], and goes to the place God hates — to his own portion.
The contrast is sharpened by the sentence that closes the whole section, once Esau's line has been listed.
Esau leaves Canaan for Seir, and his descendants soon live by their sword in this barren region — their names appear to show it... The section closes with one short verse that says a great deal to the ear that hears. It sets Jacob's portion against his brother's: "Jacob lived in the land of his father's sojournings, in the land of Canaan."
Older translations read "the land in which his father was a stranger" — Jacob lived there as a stranger.
Esau's line rises fast, while the family of promise stays on the move.
This chapter has its own important place: it sketches the earthly lot of Esau. Indirectly it also teaches us something. It shows what is natural coming into power first, and what is spiritual coming later. The family of promise stay shepherds and herdsmen. They wander here and there, outside the land and inside it, and are even badly oppressed. Meanwhile the generations of Edom rise quickly into importance, away from Canaan, in Mount Seir.
That success matched what Isaac had spoken over Esau.
Esau prospered in earthly things, so his father's blessing came true for him (27:39-40). He held his own territory and became quite independent of Jacob. His descendants multiplied and became chiefs, well known to all. They not only became "dukes" but even "kings," and that before any king appeared in Israel's line. In earthly greatness and power the children of this world have always taken precedence over the children of God.
The territory Esau took had a history before him and a verdict after him.
The Horites lived there first, and after them the descendants of Esau, and it took the name EDOM... The word of the Lord announced to the prophet that Mount Seir would be desolate for ever. Ezek. 35:2-15.
God's quarrel with Edom goes back to the character of the man.
From the very beginning the Lord had a word, a dispute, with Edom, as He still has through His prophet: "Esau I have hated. I have laid waste his hill country and left his heritage to jackals of the desert." Esau had no regard for sacred things. He sold his interest in the Lord for a bowl of stew... He set his heart on the present life, and knew very well how to turn what it offered into his own enjoyment.
- Choice. Esau took his household out of Canaan, away from Jacob. The two brothers' lines never share a home again.
- Portion. Esau chose Seir instead of the promise. The section closes by setting his portion beside Jacob's, who still lived as a stranger in Canaan.
- Name. "Esau is Edom" ties the man, the nation and Mount Seir together. Later passages about Edom open up once you know that.
- Prosperity. Isaac's word to Esau came true fast: chiefs, then kings, before Israel had any king. Earthly greatness often runs ahead of the people of God.
- End. The mountains Esau settled are the ones the prophet later marks for lasting desolation. A portion taken outside the promise did not hold.
And these are the generations of Esau, the father of Edom, in mount Seir.
This short line opens a fresh section of Genesis. It gives one man two identities — Esau is also Edom — and places him in Seir, outside the land of promise. Why does Scripture pause the chosen family's story to list his descendants?
Esau carries two names in this verse, and the second one came from an appetite. A reference work traces it back to the day he traded his birthright for a meal:
A name given to Esau because he craved Jacob's red stew, since Edom means red (Genesis 25:30; 36:1, 8, 19). But the name is more often given to his tribe and the land they held. This stretched from the land of Moab southward to the Gulf of Akaba, about 100 miles in length. The region is very mountainous, with high peaks and deep valleys, but it also has rich plains. It had been called Mount Seir (Genesis 36:8). Bozrah and Sela were its chief cities.
This chapter interrupts Jacob's story, and the order is not random. One writer sees the same pattern earlier in Genesis:
The section titled "The generations of Esau" runs from the first verse of Genesis 36 to the first verse of Genesis 37. As with Ishmael and Isaac, the rejected line comes first here, and only briefly, and its record does not follow the order of time. The chosen line comes second, and with it enough dates to let us follow the passing of the years. This points forward to a clear principle of God's ways: "He does away with the first in order to establish the second" (Hebrews 10:9).
Read on past this verse and the names pile up quickly — chiefs, then kings. That speed is itself the lesson:
But there is another genealogy (Genesis 36), and its place here is striking. The Edomite interrupts the course of God's dealings. We see at once how mature things already were here. It is always so — first the natural, afterwards the spiritual. Even then we find a rapid development of power in Esau's family. They were all great people, to be sure — duke this and duke that, to the end of the chapter. Kings, we are told, even reigned there before there were any in Israel. I have no doubt this stands as an important mark of how fast what is not of God shoots up. Growth according to God is slower, but it is more lasting.
The verse gives Esau's address: Seir, outside the land of promise. One writer weighs both what he left and where he went:
Esau now leaves the promise to Jacob, and goes to the place God hates — to his own portion.
Yet the move did not leave him poor. His father's words over him came true in full measure:
The chapter shows us that Esau prospered in earthly things, so his father's blessing came true for him (27:39-40). He held his own territory and became fully independent of Jacob. His descendants multiplied and became chiefs, and they were well known. They became not only "dukes" but even "kings," and that before any king appeared in Israel's line. In earthly greatness and power, the children of this world have always come out ahead of the children of God.
A long roll of unfamiliar names can feel like wasted pages. One commentator says why the two lines live apart, and what the long record is for:
The man "after the flesh" cannot live alongside the one God has chosen... Esau's family shows the usual history of the flesh, always exalting itself. The long list of names is therefore meant to impress one fact on us. God has taken full account of the flesh and all its activities, and finds it only vanity.
The verse also works as a dictionary entry for the rest of the Bible. It locks three names together:
The chapter also shows plainly that Esau, Edom and Mount Seir stand for the same line and the same land. That helps us when we meet these names later in Scripture. Otherwise the many names here may mean little to us.
- Name: "Edom" means red, and it stuck to Esau from the day he craved a bowl of red stew — an appetite became a nation's name.
- Place: Seir was his own portion. He left the promise to Jacob and went to the place God hates.
- Speed: What is not of God shoots up fast. Edom had kings before Israel did. Growth according to God is slower, but it lasts.
- Order: The rejected line comes first, and briefly. The chosen line follows. God does away with the first to establish the second.
- Purpose: The long name-list is God's full account of the flesh, which He finds to be vanity — and a key to these three names later in Scripture.
These are the names of Esau's sons Eliphaz, the son of Adah the wife of Esau; Reuel, the son of Basmath the wife of Esau.
This verse opens the record of Esau's family, naming two sons and the mothers who bore them. Why does Scripture keep such careful record of a family outside the line of promise?
Commentators read the placement of this genealogy as deliberate. It cuts into the story of Jacob just where Edom rises to sudden power.
But there is another genealogy (Gen. 36), and strikingly introduced in this place. The Edomite interrupts the course of the line of God's dealings. We see at once how fully grown this family already was. It is always so — first the natural, then the spiritual. Even then, power grew fast in the family of Esau. They were all great people, to be sure — chief this and chief that, to the end of the chapter. Kings even reigned among them before Israel had any king. I have no doubt this is given to us as an important mark of how fast what is not of God shoots up. Growth according to God is slower, but then it is more permanent.
The verse ties each son to his mother. Esau married into the families of Canaan, and Adah was one of those wives.
One of the wives of Esau, daughter of Elon the Hittite, and so "a daughter of Canaan." She bore Esau his firstborn son Eliphaz. Eliphaz became the father of seven of the chiefs of Edom.
Compare this chapter with Genesis 26 and 28, and Esau's wives carry different names. Commentators offer a likely answer, not a certain one.
One of the wives of Esau, the daughter of Ishmael and the mother of Reuel. Gen. 36:3-4. In the earlier narrative, Gen. 26:34; Gen. 28:9, the names of Esau's wives differ from those given in Gen. 36:2-3. The women may have had two names, or they may have received another name at their marriage. Bashemath, daughter of Elon, is probably the same as ADAH, daughter of Elon. Bashemath, daughter of Ishmael, is probably the same as MAHALATH, daughter of Ishmael.
The names in this verse are not dead ends. Eliphaz's line produced one of Israel's worst enemies.
In verse 6 we read that Esau went into the country away from the face of his brother Jacob. In the end the separation between Esau and Jacob was open and complete. Jacob lived in the land in which his father was a stranger. And Edom became the treacherous foe of the people of Israel. Read Obadiah, verses 8-16. The concubine of Eliphaz bore Amalek, one of the terrible enemies of Israel. Israel would be at war with him again and again (Exodus 17:8-14).
One of Job's friends carries the same name. Idumea, mentioned below, is another name for Edom.
The first friend is Eliphaz the Temanite. Teman is in Idumea. He may have been the son of Esau (Genesis 36:10-11). His name means "my God is fine gold." Teman was noted for its wisdom. "Is wisdom no more in Teman?" (Jeremiah 49:7).
Esau prospered. Yet the call that shaped his family line was never his.
He was a prosperous man; kings and chiefs sprang from him. He came from the man whom God called out of his country and his family, to be separate from all peoples and to receive the promises. Esau returns to the people that Abraham left. Neither the call nor the promise was for him. In his sons he rises to supreme power.
So why record it at all? Commentators give two answers: the list shows what the flesh does, and how little it lasts.
Yet Esau (Edom) prospers and grows great in material things. His sons become "chiefs" (vv. 15-43) before Jacob's family reach such honour. Joseph in Egypt is the exception. We must remember that Joseph did not exalt himself. Pharaoh exalted him. Esau's family shows the usual story of the flesh, which always exalts itself. So the long list of names is meant to impress on us that God has taken full account of the flesh and all it does, and finds it only vanity.
Here, in Genesis, we have only a list of names to tell us that this chief and that king once lived. Their power was short-lived and their greatness soon gone. The record dismisses them in a few words. "These are the generations of Esau."
- Named — The verse ties each son to his mother: Eliphaz to Adah, Reuel to Basemath. Adah's son Eliphaz fathered seven chiefs of Edom.
- Renamed — Esau's wives carry other names in Genesis 26 and 28. Commentators think the same women had two names, though they do not claim certainty.
- Fast — Edom had chiefs and kings before Israel had any. What is not of God shoots up fast; growth God's way is slower and lasts.
- Hostile — Eliphaz's line produced Amalek, Israel's constant enemy. Esau's break with Jacob hardened into Edom's treachery.
- Vanity — God took full account of the flesh and found it empty. All that is left is a list of names: this chief and that king once lived, and no more.
-- And the sons of Eliphaz were Teman, Omar, Zepho, and Gatam, and Kenaz.
Genesis 36:11 lists five bare names: the sons of Eliphaz, one of Esau's sons. Why does Scripture spend space on the family God passed over?
Genesis 36 opens a marked-off section, and the order inside it is deliberate.
The section called "The generations of Esau" runs from the first verse of Genesis 36 to the first verse of Genesis 37. As with Ishmael and Isaac, so here again. Scripture puts the rejected line first, but keeps it short, and does not follow its dates. The chosen line comes second, and then enough dates are given to let us follow the passing of the years. This foreshadows the principle of God's ways, stated so clearly: "He does away with the first in order to establish the second" (Heb. 10:9).
These names do not stay plain names for long. Esau's line rose fast, and the chapter makes a point of the speed.
Here is another genealogy (Gen. 36), and its place in the story is telling. The Edomite line breaks into the course of God's dealings. We see at once how mature this family already was. It is always so — first the natural, afterwards the spiritual. Even then power grows fast in Esau's family. They were all great people, of course — chief this and chief that, right to the end of the chapter. Kings, we are told, even reigned there before there were any in Israel. I have no doubt Scripture gives us this to mark how fast what is not of God shoots up. Growth according to God is slower, but it is more permanent.
The first name, Teman, did not stay one man's name. It became a people, a place, and a name the prophets spoke against.
Son of Eliphaz, a son of Esau, and a chief of Edom; also his descendants and the district they lived in. It is linked four times with Edom and twice with Dedan, which places it in the south. Scripture speaks of its wisdom, and pronounces God's judgements on it. One of Job's friends was Eliphaz the Temanite.
Teman's name for wisdom deserves a second look. One writer asks what such wisdom rests on, once God is left out.
Teman, spoken of here, was noted for the wisdom of its people. The name means "the right hand," which in Scripture means the south… Teman's wisdom is also a dependent wisdom, and it must be. But it is Edomite, not Israelite. So it is a dependence that belongs to the flesh. The Edomite has no faith in God to keep him steady, and no fixed points to reason from. He is born into a world where he must take much from others. He inherits the thoughts of men, and those thoughts can fail. They are often mistaken, sinful, and able to deceive. Yet men pride themselves on this godless wisdom. It often takes the name of science. But it chooses to ignore God, so it must stay ignorant of where all things come from and how they began.
Kenaz closes this short list. Yet not everyone of Edomite blood stayed outside Israel. Commentators think Caleb was one who came in, though they put it as likely, not proven.
Some have supposed, from facts that must be looked at in another place, that he was not a member of the tribe by right of birth. This seems to be confirmed by what is said here: he was given a portion among the children of Judah, according to the word of the Lord. Caleb seems to have been of Edomite stock. He was one of those believers from among the Gentiles. We find many prominent examples of them in the history of God's people. Of Caleb our Lord might have said what He said about the Roman centurion: "with no one in Israel have I found such faith."
A roll of forgotten names is not filler. It is a reckoning.
Esau (Edom) prospers and grows rich in material things. His sons become "chiefs" before Jacob's family reach such honour… Esau's family shows the usual story of the flesh: it always lifts itself up. So the long list of names is there to impress one fact on us. God has taken full account of the flesh and all it does, and finds it only vanity.
- Record. Scripture writes the rejected line first, and writes it briefly. God removes the first to establish the second.
- Rise. Esau's sons carry the title of chief before Jacob's family reach such honour. What is not of God shoots up fast; growth from God is slower, and it lasts.
- Reach. Teman became a region famous for wisdom. But it was Edomite wisdom — borrowed from men, with no fixed point in God to reason from.
- Reckoning. The long list exists so we see that God has taken full account of the flesh and all it achieves, and finds it only vanity.
- Grace. Commentators think Caleb came of Edomite stock — an outsider given a portion in Judah, with faith the Lord Himself would have praised. Even a rejected line has a door in it.
And Timna was concubine to Eliphaz Esau's son, and she bore Amalek to Eliphaz. These are the sons of Adah Esau's wife.
Genesis 36 lists the family of Esau. In the middle of that list, one short note names a woman who was not a wife, and the son she bore. That son, Amalek, gives his name to the nation that fights Israel first and longest. Why does a passing line in a genealogy carry such weight?
The names here are all connected to Esau's firstborn line. Reference works set out the bare facts about the woman named in the verse:
Concubine of Eliphaz, son of Esau, and mother of Amalek. Genesis 36:12.
The closing clause of the verse traces everything back to Adah, and her own background is worth noting, along with what came of her son:
One of the wives of Esau, daughter of Elon the Hittite and so "a daughter of Canaan": she bore to Esau his firstborn son Eliphaz, who became the father of seven of the chiefs of Edom. Genesis 36:2, 4, 15, 16.
Readers often skip these lists. One writer explains why this one is here:
This chapter deals with the generations of Esau. Verse 6 tells us that Esau took his wives, family, and all his possessions and left the land of Canaan, going "from the face of his brother Jacob." The man "after the flesh" cannot live together with the one God has chosen. Yet Esau (Edom) prospers and grows in material things. His sons become chiefs (vv. 15-43) before Jacob's family reach such honour, except for Joseph in Egypt. So the long list of names is meant to impress on us that God has taken full account of the flesh and all its activities, finding it only vanity.
Timna appears only here. What came from her is another matter:
Edom became the treacherous enemy of the people of Israel. From the concubine of Eliphaz came Amalek, one of the terrible enemies of Israel, and there was to be continual war with him (Exodus 17:8-14).
The meaning of "Amalek" is debated, and one writer works through the options while linking the name to the character of the family it came from:
Amalek is the grandson of profane Esau, whose name Edom, earned by his actions, is almost identical with Adam. Amalek's own name has no settled meaning. It has been thought to be made up of am and laq, and so to mean "a people that licks up," or "exhausts." That would fit well enough, but Scripture points rather to a derivation from amal and laq, which would give us the thought of "labour that exhausts." … Amal is connected with the will or lust of the flesh, and Amalek may well be the offspring of the old man, Edom.
Amalekites appear in Scripture long before the birth recorded here, and commentators do not claim to settle it:
These names raise a difficulty. We read of Amalekites in Genesis 14:7, some hundred years before the birth of Amalek, the son of Eliphaz and grandson of Esau, Genesis 36:12. Does everything we read of the tribe after this refer to the descendants of Esau? Or did the older people merge with them? No one knows.
Follow the name forward and it reaches from the wilderness to the book of Esther:
He was the grandson of Esau, who preferred a bowl of stew to the birthright. (See Genesis 36:12) He was the first who opposed Israel, after their baptism "in the cloud and in the sea." These facts fix his character very clearly; and besides these, we know that Saul was set aside from the kingdom of Israel because he failed to destroy Amalek. (1 Samuel 15) Further, we find that Haman is the last of the Amalekites mentioned anywhere in Scripture. He was hanged on a gallows because of his wicked attempt against the descendants of Israel. (See Esther) No Amalekite could enter the assembly of the Lord. And finally, in the chapter now before us, the Lord declares perpetual war with Amalek.
- Root. Timna was Eliphaz's concubine. Eliphaz was Esau's firstborn son by Adah, a Hittite woman of Canaan.
- Line. Esau's family rises fast into chiefs and wealth. God records it in full only to show it is vanity.
- Fruit. Out of that one unnamed union came Amalek, described as one of the terrible enemies of Israel.
- Character. Commentators read Amalek as a picture of the flesh. His name suggests "licking up" or "labour that exhausts" — the offspring of Edom, the old man's line.
- Reach. The trail runs from Exodus 17 to Saul's lost kingdom to Haman's gallows. The Lord declares perpetual war on Amalek. Commentators differ on whether the Amalekites of Genesis 14 come from this Amalek at all.
-- And these are the sons of Reuel Nahath and Zerah, Shammah and Mizzah. These are the sons of Basmath Esau's wife.
Genesis 36 pauses the story of Jacob to record Esau's family line. Verse 13 names the four sons of Reuel, whose mother was Bashemath. Why does Scripture keep a careful register of a family outside the line of promise?
Many readers skip a chapter like this. One writer says its place in the book is chosen, not accidental.
At first reading, this account of Esau's generation might seem like a disconnected fragment. It could just as well sit a few chapters earlier or a few later as where it now stands. But you cannot move a chapter or a word without spoiling the perfection of God's word. There is divine wisdom in placing it just where it is.
The placement makes a contrast. Esau's family is gaining rank in this world while Jacob's family is still waiting on a promise.
The world that has turned away from God establishes itself in power, while the heirs of promise are still poor pilgrims on the earth. This last is a distinct point of revelation.
The same four sons appear later in the chapter as chiefs, or "dukes" in older translations. How fast they rose is itself the lesson.
The Edomite interrupts the course of God's dealings. We see at once what remarkable maturity there was here. It is always so — first that which is natural, afterwards that which is spiritual. Even then we find a rapid development of power in the family of Esau. They were all great people, to be sure — duke this and duke that, to the end of the chapter. Even kings, we are told, reigned before there were any in Israel. I have no doubt this is given to us as an important sign of how rapidly what is not of God shoots up. Growth according to God is slower, but then it is more lasting.
The same pattern shapes what a believer sees today.
As a postscript to the life of Jacob, we have the contrast of Esau. He rises to prominence and earthly greatness, while his brother is still only a pilgrim, living in tents. All this is deeply significant. We are living now in man's day. So we need not be surprised when the world gives the flesh and its works a place and importance far above the lowly pilgrim testimony of the people of God.
The verse gives four names and no account of the men behind them. One writer looks at what those Hebrew names hold.
And what a fruitful line came from the wicked Esau! The Hebrew names tell the story of their expansion, their wickedness and power. What was not of God developed rapidly, as it does now in the earth.
Each of these four is traced forward in Scripture. Zerah, for one, is identified in the record as more than a grandson:
Son of Reuel, a son of Esau, and one of the chiefs of Edom. Gen. 36:13, 17; 1 Chr. 1:37.
The verse closes by naming their grandmother — Bashemath, Esau's wife. Genesis calls this daughter of Ishmael by two different names. One writer reads the change as God's comment on the marriage.
Later the Spirit of God, giving the genealogy of Esau (Gen. 36:3), said that he took Bashemath, Ishmael's daughter, for a wife. Historians say the writer of Genesis made a mistake in mixing the names! We suggest the revised name had deliberate significance. In the eyes of God there was no difference between Ishmael's daughter and a daughter of Canaan. So in the record she carries a name from Canaan... In his second choice Esau came near to the right line. But he stopped short of the mind of God for the descendants of Abraham, the friend of God. How often Christians form close ties with people who outwardly carry the Christian name. Yet they prove to be no different from the world.
The chapter runs on past chiefs to kings. How those kings held power tells the rest.
Violence seems to have marked them, for not one king was followed by his son... In Esau's descendants we see what has marked the world: rival factions fighting for power, where of course the strongest arm wins. God lets the world show itself and its power — or rather its lack of power — first. Then come His purpose and its firm foundation. For there were kings in Edom before any were found in Israel. The Edomite kings are gone, but God's King remains for ever.
- Placed on purpose. Move one word of this chapter and you spoil God's word. It stands here so we read Esau's rise against Jacob's tent.
- Fast growth. What is not of God shoots up quickly; growth according to God is slower but lasts longer.
- Natural first. Esau's sons hold rank while the heirs of promise are still wandering — man's day comes before God's.
- Half-right. Esau came near the right line and stopped short of it. Ties with people who only look godly still end in a line like this.
- Names only. The chiefs are named, then gone. Edom's kings are finished; God's King remains for ever.
-- And these are the sons of Oholibamah, the daughter of Anah, daughter of Zibeon, Esau's wife and she bore to Esau Jeush and Jaalam and Korah.
Genesis 36:14 names Esau's three sons by Oholibamah and traces her line back through Anah to Zibeon. Why does God record a list like this at all, and why here?
The verse names her father Anah and her grandfather Zibeon. One reference work says which people Zibeon belonged to:
A Hivite, father of Anah and grandfather of Oholibamah, a wife of Esau. Genesis 36:2, 14.
One reference work offers a likely answer to an old puzzle about her name:
In the earlier narrative, Genesis 26:34 and Genesis 28:9, the names of Esau's wives differ from those given in Genesis 36:2-3. The women may have had two names, or they may have received another name at their marriage. Judith, daughter of Beeri, may be the same as Oholibamah, daughter of Anah, if Beeri is her father's name and Anah her mother's.
One writer reads Esau's choice of wives, and the land he settled in, as a picture of the flesh — human nature as it is in itself:
After the record of Esau's generations we notice that he married wives who were Canaanites, Hittites and Hivites — sworn enemies of God's people. We see, too, that he lived in Mount Seir, a land later cursed. The curse would remain on it even in the days of Christ's reign, when the wilderness will blossom like the rose. It is an illustration of the flesh, which, under the very best influence, is incapable of improvement.
A list of Genesis name meanings gives her name as:
Oholibamah — Tent of the high place.
These sons belong to a line that does not stay obscure. One writer explains what that rise shows:
It has its own important place: it sketches Esau's lot on earth. Indirectly, though, it teaches us something. What is natural comes into power first, and what is spiritual comes afterwards. The family of promise remain shepherds and herdsmen. They wander here and there, outside the land and within it, and are even badly oppressed. Meanwhile the generations of Edom rise fast into importance, away from Canaan, in Mount Seir. The descendants of Edom soon claim the distinction of chiefs.
Older translations call these chiefs "dukes". The same writer explains what the rank amounted to:
Genesis 36 gives us the rise and progress of their national greatness. First comes the line of their dukes, as they are called. In modern language these would probably answer to the sheikhs of their tribes. Later come the kings who reigned in the land of Edom before any king reigned over the sons of Israel.
So why does Scripture keep so long a record? One writer gives the reason:
Yet Esau (Edom) prospers and develops greatly in a material way, his sons becoming "dukes" before Jacob's family attain such honour (except for Joseph in Egypt). We must remember that Joseph did not exalt himself; Pharaoh exalted him. Esau's family, though, illustrates the common history of the flesh always exalting itself. So the long list of names is meant to impress on us that God has taken full account of the flesh and all it does, and finds it only vanity.
The place of this chapter in Genesis is no accident:
At first reading, this account of Esau's generation might seem like a disconnected fragment. It could sit a few chapters earlier, or a few later, just as well as where it now stands. But neither chapter nor word can be moved without spoiling the perfection of God's word. There is divine wisdom in placing it just where it is.
Another writer states the principle in a single line:
The apostate world establishes itself in power, while the heirs of promise are still poor pilgrims upon the earth.
- Marriage. Oholibamah's line runs back to Zibeon the Hivite. Esau took his wives from peoples called enemies of God's people.
- Offspring. Jeush, Jalam, and Korah belong to that line, and Edom's sons soon claim the rank of chiefs.
- Rise. What is natural comes into power first. Edom has chiefs while the family of promise are still wandering shepherds.
- Record. The long list shows that God has taken full account of the flesh and all its activity, and finds it only vanity.
- Placement. The chapter is not a stray fragment. It stands just where divine wisdom set it.
These are the chiefs of the sons of Esau. The sons of Eliphaz, the firstborn of Esau chief Teman, chief Omar, chief Zepho, chief Kenaz,
Genesis 36:15 starts the list of chiefs born to Eliphaz, Esau's firstborn son — a family that had already left Canaan and the line of promise. Why does Scripture pause Jacob's story to count the honours of Esau, the brother outside the promise?
While Jacob's household is still small, Esau's grandsons already hold titles — "dukes," in the older wording the writers below use. One commentator reads that speed as a rule, not an accident.
But there is another genealogy (Gen. 36), and strikingly introduced in this place. The Edomite interrupts the course of God's dealings. We see at once what remarkable maturity there was here. It is always so — first that which is natural, afterwards that which is spiritual. Even then we find a rapid development of power in the family of Esau. They were all great people, to be sure — duke this and duke that, to the end of the chapter. Even kings, we are told, reigned there before Israel had any. I have no doubt this is given to us as an important mark of how rapidly what is not of God shoots up. Growth according to God is slower, but then it is more permanent.
These titles trace back to a promise. Isaac had blessed Esau with earthly plenty, and this chapter is that word coming true.
The chapter shows us that Esau prospered in earthly things, so that his father's blessing was fulfilled to him (27:39-40). He occupied his own territory, became quite independent of Jacob, and his descendants multiplied and became chiefs and well known. They became not only "dukes" but even "kings," and that before any king appeared in Israel's line. In earthly greatness and power the children of this world have always taken precedence over the children of God.
The first name here does not stay just a person. Teman becomes a people and a region.
Son of Eliphaz, a son of Esau, and a duke of Edom; also his descendants and the district they lived in. It is four times connected with Edom, and twice with Dedan: this places it in the south. Scripture speaks of its wisdom, and God pronounces judgements on it. One of Job's friends was Eliphaz the Temanite.
One writer sets the last judgement in that same land, and names the reason.
The last in this series of judgments will fall in Edom, the land of Esau (Teman being Eliphaz's eldest son, Genesis 36:15), because of Edom's undying hatred of Israel.
It is easy to skip a page of unfamiliar names. One commentator finds two things in it: why Esau's line stands apart, and why the list runs so long.
The man "after the flesh" cannot live together with the one whom God has chosen. Yet Esau (Edom) prospers and grows great in material things. His sons become "dukes" (vv. 15-43) before Jacob's family reach such honour — except for Joseph in Egypt. We must remember that Joseph did not exalt himself; Pharaoh exalted him. Esau's family shows the usual history of the flesh, which always exalts itself. So the long list of names is meant to impress on us that God has taken full account of the flesh and all its activities, finding it only vanity.
Esau's family settled down while Jacob's family kept wandering. The prophets give Edom one steady character.
All the prophets who have spoken of Edom give that people the same character. They find in Edom the same causes of God's controversy with them. Profaneness, pride, hatred of Israel — these are Edom's common marks. The world was Esau's portion, while Israel was still a stranger and a pilgrim. His children had their dukedoms. They were kings too, and they had their cities. They were settled, like eagles nesting in the clefts of the rocks. All this time Jacob's children were still homeless wanderers in lands that were not theirs, or in barren deserts.
Edom's future is bleak, and one writer turns the lesson back on the reader.
While a remnant of the other nations will come in for blessing in a future day, Edom will not. Let us take the moral of it to heart, for we may easily fall into the same spirit as the Edomite. Jeremiah saw the failures and sins of God's people, but he wept over them. Daniel and other godly men confessed those sins as their own. But the spirit of the Edomite is bitter hatred against people who, whatever their failures, are still the people of God.
- Fast — What is not of God shoots up quickly. Esau's grandsons hold titles while Jacob's family is still small.
- Fair — Their rise is no injustice. Isaac's blessing on Esau promised earthly fatness, and God kept it.
- Flesh — The long roll of titles is God taking full account of the flesh, and finding it vanity.
- Fixed — Growth that comes from God is slower, but it lasts. The wanderers, not the chiefs, hold the promise.
- Forewarned — Edom's marks were profaneness, pride, and hatred of God's people — and Edom alone misses the blessing of a future day. That hatred is a spirit anyone can fall into, so take the warning to heart.
chief Korah, chief Gatam, chief Amalek. These are the chiefs of Eliphaz in the land of Edom; these are the sons of Adah.
Genesis 36:16 closes the list of chiefs descended from Eliphaz, Esau's firstborn. The last name on that list is Amalek, whose people would fight Israel for generations. A page of foreign titles raises a fair question: why does Scripture pause to record the rank of Esau's family at all?
This chapter belongs to Esau, not Jacob. One writer draws out the contrast: the line without the promise climbs first.
Jacob has nothing to do with the chapter. It has its own important place of sketching the earthly lot of Esau. Yet it still teaches us something, though not directly. What is natural comes into power first, and what is spiritual comes afterwards. The family of promise remain shepherds and herdsmen. They wander here and there, outside the land and within it, and even suffer harsh oppression. Meanwhile the generations of Edom rise fast into importance, away from Canaan, in Mount Seir.
Another writer treats this as a rule of everyday experience.
The children of Esau had "dukes" in plenty, giving us an early example of what we find so often in Scripture and in our own experience — that the man who loves the world and ignores God goes ahead in the world beyond the man who fears God.
Older translations call these men "dukes"; the ESV calls them chiefs. Neither word means European nobility.
Genesis 36 gives us the rise and progress of their national greatness. First comes the line of their dukes, as they are called. In modern language these would probably answer to the sheikhs of their tribes. Later come the kings who reigned in the land of Edom before any king reigned over the sons of Israel.
Of all the names in this verse, Amalek is the one Scripture never lets drop. One writer sets him beside Pharaoh: two enemies, each blocking a different thing.
Pharaoh represents the hindrance to Israel's rescue out of Egypt. Amalek represents the hindrance to their walk with God through the wilderness. Amalek stands before us as the type of the flesh. He was the grandson of Esau, who preferred a bowl of stew to the birthright. He was the first to oppose Israel after their baptism "in the cloud and in the sea." These facts fix his character clearly. Besides these, we know that Saul lost the kingdom of Israel because he failed to destroy Amalek. Further, Haman is the last of the Amalekites we find any notice of in Scripture. He was hanged on a gallows because of his wicked attempt against the descendants of Israel.
The chief listed in this verse is not a dead end. Centuries later in Persia, Israel's enemy Haman traced his line back to Amalek.
Agag was the title of the kings of Amalek, probably a general title, like the title of Pharaoh, king of Egypt. So Haman came from this royal race. Amalek, Haman's people, descended from Esau through Eliphaz: he was first a chief, and then became the people of Edom.
Scripture records their rank, then drops them.
Here, in Genesis, we have only a list of names to tell us that this chief and that king once lived. Their power was short-lived, their greatness faded, and they are quickly dismissed. "These are the generations of Esau."
If the names seem tedious, that may be part of their purpose.
Esau (Edom) prospers and grows great in material things. His sons become "dukes" before Jacob's family reach such honour — except for Joseph in Egypt. We must remember that Joseph did not exalt himself. Pharaoh exalted him. Esau's family, though, shows the common history of the flesh, which always exalts itself. So the long list of names is meant to impress one fact on us. God has taken full account of the flesh and all its activities, and has found it only vanity.
- Rise — What is natural gains power first. Esau's line holds rank while the family of promise are still wandering herdsmen.
- Rank — The "dukes" of this verse were tribal sheikhs. Edom's greatness later grew as far as kings.
- Amalek — The last name here became the type of the flesh. He struck Israel first in the wilderness, and Saul lost the kingdom for failing to destroy him.
- Haman — The same line appears again in Persia, and ends on a gallows. The flesh outlives its first generation.
- Vanity — God records every title the flesh wins, then lets the list end. He has taken full account of it and found it only vanity.