1 Chronicles: A Commentary

9 1/ 3/ 10/ 14/ 17/ Translation So all Israel was enrolled by genealogies; and these are written in the Book of the Kings of lsrael.1And Judah was taken into exile to Babylon because of their unfaithfulness . 2/ The first2 settlers3who were in their possessions in their towns were Israel, the priests, the Levites, and the temple servants.4 And in Jerusalem lived some of the people of Judah, some of the people of Benjamin, and some of the people of Ephraim and Manasseh.54/ Uthai6son of Ammihud, son of Omri, son of lmri,1 son of Bani, from8the sons of Perez son of Judah. 5/ And of the Shelanites:9Asaiah10 the firstborn11 and his sons.12 6/ Of the sons of Zerah: JeueP3and their kin, six hundred ninety. 7/ Of the Benjaminites : Sallu14 son of Meshullam, son of Hodaviah,15 son of Hassenuah,168/ lbneiah17 son of Jeroham, Elah son of18 Uzzi, son of Michri,19and Meshullam son of Shephatiah, son of Reuel, son of lbnijah; 9/ and their kindred according to their generations, nine hundred fifty-six.20 All these were21 heads of families according to their ancestral houses. Of the priests: Jedaiah, Jehoiarib, Jachin,22 11/ and Azariah23son of Hilkiah, son of Meshullam, son of Zadok, son of Meraioth, son of Ahitub, the chief officer of the house of God; 12/ and24Adaiah25 son of Jeroham,26 son of Pashhur, son of Malchijah, and Maasai27 son of Adiel,28 son of Jahzerah,29 son of Meshullam,30 son of Meshillemith,31 son of lmmer; 13/ besides their kindred, heads of their ancestral houses, one thousand seven hundred sixty, valiant warriors for the work32of the service of the house of God. Of the Levites: Shemaiah son of Hasshub, son of Azrikam, son of Hashabiah, of the sons of Merari;33 15/ and Bakbakkar, Heresh, Galal,34 and Mattaniah son of Mica, son of Zichri,35 son of Asaph; 16/ and Obadiah36 son of Shemaiah,37 son of Galal, son of Jeduthun ,38 and Berechiah son of Asa,39 son of Elkanah, who lived in the villages of the Netophathites. The gatekeepers were: Shallum,40Akkub, Talmon, Ahiman;41 and their brother42Shallum was the chief, 18/ stationed until now in the king's gate on the east side. These were the gatekeepers of the camps of the Levites. 19/ Shallum son of Kore, son of Ebiasaph, son of Korah, and his kindred of his ancestral house, the Korahites, were in control of the work of the service, guardians of the thresholds of the tent, as their ancestors had been in control of the camp of Yahweh, guardians of the entrance. 20/ Phinehas son of Eleazar was leader43 over them previously; Yahweh was with him.44 21/ Zechariah45 son of 9:1-44 Those Who Lived in the Land and Especially in Jerusalem I retain this name for the source document used by the Chronicler (see the commentary). A reference to "the Book of the Kings of Israel" occurs only at 2 Chr 20:34. LXX, Vg, Tg connect "andJudah" from the next sentence to this first sentence, creating the "Book of the Kings of Israel andjudah" (cf. also Pseudo-Rashi). A reference to this source appears in 2 Chr 27:7; 35:27; 36:8. If this change is made, however, as Rudolph, 82, notes, "and Judah" must be added to the beginning of the next sentence , where it is indispensable. Braun, 130, assumes that both Israel and Judah have been lost. Hence he reads: "the book of the kings of Israel and Judah. But Israel and Judah were exiled. . .." 2 !J'liDKI;"T; BHS notes that LXX, Syr, Arab. presup· pose ;-JliDKI:::J; cf. Neh 7:5. 3 !J':::Ji!i1';"11; some propose D':::Ji!i;-J1 "the first returnees," but this list in Chronicles refers to the settlers "of old." See the commentary. 4 Neb 11:3 adds ;-Jr.J'?i!i 'I:::Jll 'l:::J1 "and the sons of the slaves of Solomon." Cf. Neh 7:57, 60/ / Ezra 2:55, 58. 5 "and some of the people of Ephraim and Manasseh " is omitted in Neh 11:4. 6 'n1ll; eh 11:4 ;-J'nll "Athaiah." Neb 11:4 adds at the beginning ;"111;"1' 'l:::Jr.l "of the sons ofJudah." Knoppers , "Sources," 153, suggests that this may represent haplography in Chronicles. It seems more likely that this phrase has been replaced redactionally in 9:4 by adding the word "son ofJudah" to the mention...