CHAPTER 4

¹The sons of Judah were Perez, Hezron, and Carmi and Hur and Shobal. ²And Reaiah the son of Shobal begot Jahath, and Jahath begot Ahumai and Lahad. These were the clans of the Zorathite. ³And these [were the sons of] the father of Etam: Jezreel and Ishma and Idbash, and the name of their sister was Hazelelponi. ⁴And Penuel father of Gedor and Ezer father of Hushah. These were the sons of Hur, firstborn of Ephrathah, father of Bethlehem. ⁵And Ashhur father of Tekoa had two wives, Helah and Naarah. ⁶And Naarah bore to him Ahuzam and Hepher and Temeni and Ahashtari. These were the sons of Naarah. ⁷And the sons of Helah, Zereth and Zohar and Ethnan. ⁸And Koz begot Anub and Hazzobebah, and the clans of Aharhel son of Harum. ⁹And Jabez was more honored than his brothers, and his mother had called his name Jabez, saying, “Why, I have born him in pain.” ¹⁰And Jabez called out to the God of Israel, saying, “May You indeed bless me and increase my territory and Your hand be with me and may You act that I be not in pain.” And God brought about what he had asked. ¹¹And Chelub brother of Shuhah begot Mehir, who was father of Eshton. ¹²And Eshton begat Beth-Rapha and Paseah and Tehinnah, father of Ir-Nahash. These were the men of Rechah. ¹³And the sons of Kenaz were Othniel and Seraiah, and the sons of Othniel, Hathath and Meonothai. ¹⁴And Meonothai begot Ophrah, and Seraiah begot Joab father of Artisan Vale, for they were artisans. ¹⁵And the sons of Caleb son of Jephunneh were Iru, Elah, and Naam. And the son of Elah was Kenaz. ¹⁶And the sons of Jehallelel were Ziph and Ziphah, Tiria, and Asarel. ¹⁷And the sons of Ezra were Jether and Mered Epher, and Jalon. And she conceived Miriam and Shammai and Ishbah father of Eshtemoa. ¹⁸And his Judahite wife bore Jered father of Gedor and Heber father of Sochoh and Jekuthiel father of Zanoah. And these were the sons of Bithiah daughter of Pharaoh whom Mered took as wife. ¹⁹And the sons of the wife of Hodiah sister of Naham father of Keilah the Garmite and Eshtemoa the Maachathite. . . . ²⁰And the sons of Shimon were Amnon, Rinnah, Ben-Hanan, and Tilon. And the sons of Ishi were Zoheth and Ben-Zoheth. ²¹The sons of Shelah son of Judah, Er father of Lecah and Laadah father of Mareshah and the clans of the linen workshop of the house of Beth-Ashbea. ²²And Jokim and the men of Chozeba and Joash and Saraph who married among Moab and Jashubi-Lehem. And these matters are ancient. ²³They were the potters who dwelled in Netaim and Gederah, with the king at his tasks they dwelled there. ²⁴The sons of Simeon, Nemuel and Jamin, Jarib, Zerah, Shaul, ²⁵Shallum his son, Mibsam his son, Mishma his son. ²⁶And the sons of Mishma, Hamel his son, Zacchur his son, Shimei his son. ²⁷And Shimei had sixteen sons and six daughters, but his brothers did not have many sons, and all their clans did not have as many as the sons of Judah. ²⁸And they dwelled in Beersheba and Moladah and Hazar-Shual, ²⁹and in Bilhah and in Ezem and in Tolad, ³⁰and in Bethuel and in Hormah and in Ziklag, ³¹and in Beth-Marcaboth and in Hazar-Susim and in Beth-Biri and in Shaaraim. These were their towns till David was king. ³²And their villages were Etam and Ain, Rimmon and Tochen and Ashan—five towns, ³³and all their villages that were round these towns as far as Baal. These were their settlements, and they traced their lineage by them. ³⁴And Meshobab and Jamlech and Joshah son of Amaziah, ³⁵and Joel and Jehu son of Joshibiah son of Seraiah son of Asiel, ³⁶and Elioenai and Jaakobah and Jeshohaiah and Asaiah and Adiel and Jesimiel and Benaiah, ³⁷and Ziza son of Shiphi son of Allon son of Jedaiah son of Shimri son of Shemaiah. ³⁸These were the ones who came by name, princes in their clans, and their patriarchal house spread out abundantly. ³⁹And they went to the approaches of Gedor as far as the east side of the valley to seek pasture for their flocks. ⁴⁰And they found luxuriant and goodly pasture, and the land was spacious and quiet and tranquil, for of Ham were those who formerly dwelled there. ⁴¹And those written down by name came in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah and struck down their tents and their habitations that were there and utterly destroyed them to this day and dwelled in their stead, for there was pasture for their flocks there. ⁴²And some of them, of the sons of Simeon, went to Mount Seir—five hundred men—and Pelatiah and Neariah and Rephaiah and Uzziel and the sons of Ishi at their head. ⁴³And they struck down the surviving remnant of Amalek, and they have dwelled there to this day.