1 Chronicles 3 – The Royal Line of David and the House of Jesse

A. The descendants of David.

1. (1-3) The wives of David and their sons.

Now these were the sons of David who were born to him in Hebron: The firstborn was Amnon, by Ahinoam the Jezreelitess; the second, Daniel, by Abigail the Carmelitess; the third, Absalom the son of Maacah, the daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur; the fourth, Adonijah the son of Haggith; the fifth, Shephatiah, by Abital; the sixth, Ithream, by his wife Eglah.

a. Now these were the sons of David: David had several wives and seven are listed in this chapter; Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, Abigail the Carmelitess, Maacah, Haggith, Abital, Eglah, and Bathshua (1 Chronicles 3:5). These were in addition to his concubines (2 Samuel 5:13).

i. Daniel: “In 2 Samuel 3:3, this person is called Chileab; he probably had two names. The Targum says, ‘The second, Daniel, who was also called Chileab, because he was in every respect like to his father.” (Clarke)

b. Eglah: Most suppose that this is another name for Michal, the daughter of Saul.

2. (4-9) Sons born to David in Jerusalem.

These six were born to him in Hebron. There he reigned seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years. And these were born to him in Jerusalem: Shimea, Shobab, Nathan, and Solomon; four by Bathshua the daughter of Ammiel. Also there were Ibhar, Elishama, Eliphelet, Nogah, Nepheg, Japhia, Elishama, Eliada, and Eliphelet; nine in all. These were all the sons of David, besides the sons of the concubines, and Tamar their sister.

a. And in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years: The reign of David can be divided into these two parts; before he made Jerusalem his capital city and after.

b. Bathshua: Most suppose that this is another name for Bathsheba.

i. “Bathshua is probably an alternative pronunciation for Bathsheba, perhaps influenced by 1 Chronicles 2:3, though Solomon is described unexpectedly as her fourth son (cf. 2 Samuel 12:24-25).” (Selman)

B. The royal line of Judah after David.

1. (10-16) The line of David until the time of Judah’s exile.

Solomon’s son was Rehoboam; Abijah was his son, Asa his son, Jehoshaphat his son, Joram his son, Ahaziah his son, Joash his son, Amaziah his son, Azariah his son, Jotham his son, Ahaz his son, Hezekiah his son, Manasseh his son, Amon his son, and Josiah his son. The sons of Josiah were Johanan the firstborn, the second Jehoiakim, the third Zedekiah, and the fourth Shallum. The sons of Jehoiakim were Jeconiah his son and Zedekiah his son.

a. Solomon’s son was Rehoboam: This section traces the descent of the line of David from Solomon to the time after the exile, when Chronicles seems to have been written.

i. “All the Davidic kings are here, and only Athaliah, Ahab’s daughter (cf. 2 Kings 11) is missing.” (Selman)

ii. “Josiah’s firstborn son, Johanan, is not mentioned elsewhere and may have died young.” (Payne)

iii. Selman on Shallum, Jehoiakim, and Zedekiah: “The information here cannot be reconciled with what is said about their ages in 2 Kings 23:31, 36; 24:18, and it is easiest to assume some scribal error in connection with the numbers.”

2. (17-24) The line of David after the time of Judah’s exile.

And the sons of Jeconiah were Assir, Shealtiel his son, and Malchiram, Pedaiah, Shenazzar, Jecamiah, Hoshama, and Nedabiah. The sons of Pedaiah were Zerubbabel and Shimei. The sons of Zerubbabel were Meshullam, Hananiah, Shelomith their sister, and Hashubah, Ohel, Berechiah, Hasadiah, and Jushab-Hesed; five in all. The sons of Hananiah were Pelatiah and Jeshaiah, the sons of Rephaiah, the sons of Arnan, the sons of Obadiah, and the sons of Shechaniah. The son of Shechaniah was Shemaiah. The sons of Shemaiah were Hattush, Igal, Bariah, Neariah, and Shaphat; six in all. The sons of Neariah were Elioenai, Hezekiah, and Azrikam; three in all. The sons of Elioenai were Hodaviah, Eliashib, Pelaiah, Akkub, Johanan, Delaiah, and Anani; seven in all.

a. And the sons of Jeconiah: These were the descendants of the line of David born after the fall of Judah. They carried on the royal line of David.

i. “Jeremiah has said (Jeremiah 22:24-30) that Jeconiah, or, as he calls him, Coniah, should be childless; but this must refer to his posterity being deprived of the throne, and indeed thus the prophet interprets it himself: For no man of his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of David, and ruling anymore in Judah.” (Clarke)

ii. “Through this multitude of largely unknown names, the Chronicler points out that God’s election purposes were still at work despite the vicissitudes of Judah’s history (e.g. 1 Chronicles 2:3,7) and the exile (e.g. 1 Chronicles 3:17-24).” (Selman)

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