Synopsis of the Chapter
The genealogy of Judah the Patriarch up to Jesse, who was the father of David and his brothers and sisters.
Verse 3: Er, Firstborn of Judah ¶
3. ER WAS THE FIRSTBORN OF JUDAH — whom God slew on account of his sin of effeminacy and pollution, as I said at Genesis XXXVIII, 7.
Verse 7: Achar ¶
7. ACHAR. — This is Achan, who by his theft disturbed the camp of the Hebrews, and therefore was called 'Achar,' that is 'troubler.' See what was said at Joshua VII.
Verse 9: Ram ¶
9. RAM. — This is 'Aram' the father of Amminadab, Matthew I, who by aphaeresis is called 'Ram.'
Verse 15: The Seventh, David ¶
15. THE SEVENTH, DAVID. — How in 1 Kings XVI, 10, not seven but eight sons of Jesse are counted, I explained in that place.
Verse 16: The Sons of Zeruiah ¶
16. THE SONS OF ZERUIAH: ABISHAI, JOAB, AND ASAHEL. — From this it appears that Abishai was older than his brother Joab, the commander of David's army.
Verse 31: Sheshan Begot Ahlai ¶
31. SHESHAN BEGOT AHLAI — a daughter, not a son, as is clear from verse 34.
Verse 52: Who Saw Half of the Resting Places ¶
52. WHO SAW HALF OF THE RESTING PLACES. — Who is this? First, St. Jerome, in Book I Against the Pelagians, says he was a prophet: for prophets were called 'seers,' that is, foreseeing and foretelling the future, as if to say: Shobal was a 'seer,' that is, he prophesied; but only partially, that is, he did not see the heavenly things clearly and perfectly, where is the place of rest, that is, of perfect quiet.
Second, Vatablus, as if to say: Shobal 'saw' and contemplated, that is, he had charge of or was prince of half the place that was called in Hebrew Hammenuchoth, that is 'of resting places'; perhaps from the fertility of the field and the pleasantness of the place: for 'to see' means to be a prince; for it belongs to a prince to look around at, survey, and contemplate his people, so as to provide for them in all things. A prince therefore is a 'seer,' so that like Argus with a hundred eyes he might inspect everything.
Third, others take 'resting place' to mean a sepulcher; for in it the body rests after death until the general resurrection on the day of judgment. Whence Benedictus in his Bible at verse 54, where we have 'Half of the resting place of Sarai,' translates, or rather explains, 'who possessed half of the sepulcher of Sarah (wife of Abraham) and of the four Patriarchs, namely Adam, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob'; which sepulcher was in Hebron.
Fourth, our Sanchez takes 'resting place' to mean the region in which one dwells, and which one possesses quietly as a master: whence Aeneas says of Italy in Virgil, Aeneid Book VIII: 'This shall be the site of a city, the sure rest from labors.' For we are said to 'see' or discern an inheritance when we go to it, occupy it, and possess it; so that the meaning would be, as if to say: Shobal 'saw,' that is, he possessed as his own, and appropriated with both 'eyes' and hands, half the region in which his parents had rested, or quietly dwelt: and this half portion of the inheritance Shobal transferred to his sons. The same phrase recurs again two verses later; and by the same phrase it is said of Issachar, Genesis chapter XLIX, 15: 'He saw that rest was good,' that is (as is added by way of explanation immediately after), he saw the 'land' assigned to his resting or dwelling, 'that it was excellent.' Psalm CXXXI, verse 8 also says: 'Arise, O Lord, to Your resting place.' And verse 14: 'This is My resting place forever and ever, here I will dwell.'
Fifth, and the genuine meaning: 'Who saw half of the resting places' is a proper name of the son of Shobal, as if to say: The sons of Shobal as father were these two, namely 'Kiriath-jearim' (so perhaps called because he lived in the forests: for these are called in Hebrew יערים iearim: as if dwelling in a city, devoted to hunting), חרהה חצי המנהות haroe chatsi hammenuchot, that is 'seeing half of the resting places'; so called because he possessed half of his father Shobal's 'resting place,' that is, dwelling or region and inheritance; for his brother Kiriath-jearim possessed the other half.
Verse 54: The Sons of Salma ¶
54. THE SONS OF SALMA: BETHLEHEM AND THE NETOPHATHITES, CROWNS OF THE HOUSE OF JOAB, AND HALF OF THE RESTING PLACE OF THE ZORITES. — Benedictus translates 'who possessed half of the sepulcher of Sarah and the four Patriarchs.' But 'Sarai' here is not 'Sarah' the wife of Abraham; for Sarai here in Hebrew is written with the letters Tsade and Ayin, whereas Sarah is written with Shin and He. The meaning therefore is, as if to say: Salma begot four sons, namely the first Bethlehem, the second Netophathi, the third who was called in Hebrew Ataroth beth Joab, that is 'Crowns of the house of Joab,' the fourth whose name was 'Half of the resting place of Sarai.' That all these are proper names is clear from the Septuagint, which retains the Hebrew names as proper, and because here the names of the sons of Salma are being listed.
Verse 55: The Families of Scribes ¶
55. AND THE FAMILIES OF SCRIBES (experts in the Law) DWELLING IN JABEZ. SINGERS AND MUSICIANS, AND THOSE DWELLING IN TENTS. — That these also are proper names is clear from the Hebrew, from the Roman manuscripts which write all these with capital letters, and from the Septuagint which retains the Hebrew names as proper, translating: 'and the peoples of the Sopherim (that is, scribes) dwelling in Jabez, Tirathites, Shimeathites, Sucathites.' The meaning therefore is, as if to say: The families, in Hebrew משפחות mishpachoth, that is, the clans of the scribes (namely the Kenites, as follows) who descended from Salma were three, namely the Tirathites, that is 'Singers'; the Shimeathites, that is 'Musicians'; and the Sucathites, that is 'those dwelling in tents'; because truly the Kenites sang and played the praises of God; nor did they dwell in cities, but in tents, as I said at Jeremiah chapter XXXV, 2.
These are the Kenites (namely the descendants of Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, from whom the Rechabites descended, as I said at Judges chapter I, 16, Exodus chapter XVIII, 4 and following), WHO CAME FROM HEAT, THE FATHER OF THE HOUSE OF RECHAB. — From this it is clear that the Rechabites were Kenites, and that they were also Scribes, Psalm-singers, and Cantors, who sang psalms and hymns to God. But what does 'from Heat' mean? First, Dionysius the Carthusian says, 'from Heat,' that is, from seed which is hot. But I say that 'Heat' is a proper name, which is why the Romans write it with a capital H, and the Septuagint retains the Hebrew name Hemath. Whence second, Vatablus translates: 'Who came from Hemath, the father of the house of Rechab,' as if to say: the Kenites descended from Hemath, who was the father of the Rechabite family. But because our Translator renders 'patris' in the genitive, not 'patre' in the ablative, therefore third, it is better to take 'Hemath' as the city famous by this name in Scripture, namely 'Epiphaneia,' so called from Antiochus Epiphanes. He means therefore that these Kenites fittingly came from 'Emath,' because the city by its name signifies 'heat,' to suggest that these Kenites had imitated the 'heat,' that is, the zeal and fervor of devotion, which had been in their father 'Rechab.' So say Lyranus and Hugo.