Chapter commentary
1 Chronicles Chapter 1
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English original
This chapter and many that follow it repeat the genealogies we have hitherto met with in the sacred history, and put them all together, with considerable additions. We may be tempted, it may be, to think it would have been well if they had not been written, because, when they come to be compared with other parallel places, there are differences found, which we can scarcely accommodate to our satisfaction; yet we must not therefore stumble at the word, but bless God that the things necessary to salvation are plain enough. And since the wise God has thought fit to write these things to us, we should not pass them over unread. All scripture is profitable, though not all alike profitable; and we may take occasion for good thoughts and meditations even from those parts of scripture that do not furnish so much matter for profitable remarks as some other parts. These genealogies, 1. Were then of great use, when they were here preserved, and put into the hands of the Jews after their return from Babylon; for the captivity, like the deluge, had put all into confusion, and they, in that dispersion and despair, would be in danger of losing the distinctions of their tribes and families. This therefore revives the ancient landmarks even of some of the tribes that were carried captive into Assyria. Perhaps it might invite the Jews to study the sacred writings which had been neglected, to find the names of their ancestors, and the rise of their families in them. 2. They are still of some use for the illustrating of the scripture-story, and especially for the clearing of the pedigrees of the Messiah, that it might appear that our blessed Saviour was, according to the prophecies which went before of him, the son of David, the son of Judah, the son of Abraham, the son of Adam. And, now that he has come for whose sake these registers were preserved, the Jews since have so lost all their genealogies that even that of the priests, the most sacred of all, is forgotten, and they know not of any one man in the world that can prove himself of the house of Aaron. When the building is reared the scaffolds are removed. When the promised Seed has come the line that was to lead to him is broken off. In this chapter we have an abstract of all the genealogies in the book of Genesis, till we come to Jacob. I. The descents from Adam to Noah and his sons, out of Gen. v., 1Ch 1:1-4. II. The posterity of Noah's sons, by which the earth was repeopled, out of Gen. x., 1Ch 1:5-23. III. The descents from Shem to Abraham, out of Gen. xi., 1Ch 1:24-28. IV. The posterity of Ishmael, and of Abraham's sons by Keturah, out of Gen. xxv. 1Ch 1:29-35. V. The posterity of Esau, out of Gen. xxxvi., 1Ch 1:36-54. These, it is likely, were passed over lightly in Genesis; and therefore, according to the law of the school, we are made to go over that lesson again which we did not learn well.
1-27
Genealogies (4004 BC)
简体中文
家谱（主前4004年）
¹ 亚当、塞特、以挪士、 ² 该南、玛勒列、雅列、 ³ 以诺、玛土撒拉、拉麦、 ⁴ 挪亚、闪、含、雅弗。 ⁵ 雅弗的儿子是歌篾、玛各、玛代、雅完、土巴、米设、土拉斯。 ⁶ 歌篾的儿子是亚实基拿、利法、陀迦玛。 ⁷ 雅完的儿子是以利沙、他施、基提、多单。 ⁸ 含的儿子是古实、麦西、弗、迦南。 ⁹ 古实的儿子是西巴、哈腓拉、撒弗他、拉玛、撒弗提迦。拉玛的儿子是示巴、底但。 ¹⁰ 古实又生宁录；他开始在世上作英雄。 ¹¹ 麦西生路低人、亚拿米人、利哈比人、拿弗土希人、 ¹² 帕斯鲁细人、迦斯路希人（非利士人是从其中出来的）、迦斐托人。 ¹³ 迦南生长子西顿、赫、 ¹⁴ 又生耶布斯人、亚摩利人、革迦撒人、 ¹⁵ 希未人、亚基人、西尼人、 ¹⁶ 亚瓦底人、洗玛利人、哈马人。 ¹⁷ 闪的儿子是以拦、亚述、亚法撒、路德、亚兰、乌斯、户勒、基帖、玛设。 ¹⁸ 亚法撒生沙拉；沙拉生希伯。 ¹⁹ 希伯生了两个儿子：一个名叫法勒，因为那时人就分地居住；他兄弟名叫约坍。 ²⁰ 约坍生亚摩答、沙列、哈萨玛非、耶拉、 ²¹ 哈多兰、乌萨、德拉、 ²² 以巴、亚比玛利、示巴、 ²³ 俄斐、哈腓拉、约巴。这都是约坍的儿子。 ²⁴ 闪、亚法撒、沙拉、 ²⁵ 希伯、法勒、拉乌、 ²⁶ 西鹿、拿鹤、他拉、 ²⁷ 亚伯兰；亚伯兰就是亚伯拉罕。
这一段以亚当为首字，以亚伯拉罕为末字。前者被造与后者出生之间相去二千年，其中几乎一半时间，亚当本人还活着。亚当是我们肉身的共同父，亚伯拉罕是信者共同的父。前者破坏了无罪之约，我们都因此成为可怜；后者与之所立的恩典之约，使我们都成为，或可成为有福。我们本然都是亚当的子孙，那野橄榄的枝子。让我们留意，借信心成为亚伯拉罕的子孙（罗4:11-12），被接在好橄榄上，分享它的根和肥汁。
I. 这一段的首四节与末四节——这两组经文由闪（代上1:4、24）连接——包含了从亚当到亚伯拉罕的基督圣谱，并被插入他的家谱（路3:34-38），次序此处自上而下，那里自下而上。这家谱证明了那指责的虚假：至于这个人，我们不知他从哪里来。 帕特里克主教在此恰当地观察到：要为犹太各家作家谱，这便显为犹太民族的独特荣耀——唯独他们能将血统追溯到神所造的第一个人，再无别国如此自称，反倒以关于本源的荒诞之说来欺蒙自己与后代：亚迦底人自以为是月以前的人；帖撒利人自以为从石头而生；雅典人自以为从地里长出——正如某些哲学家对宇宙起源的虚妄想象。圣卷关于世界受造和列国兴起所作的记述，其真实性本身带着与那些无聊传说之虚谎同样明显的证据。
II. 中间各节重述洪水之后挪亚众子遍满地面的记述。一、史家从那些与教会无关的人开始——雅弗的众子，他们被安置在外邦人的海岛上，就是西方世界，欧洲各国。他对此只作简述（代上1:5-7），因为犹太人向来与这些民族几乎毫无交往。二、他接着提到那些多为教会仇敌的人——含的众子，他们向南迁移到非洲，以及位于那一方的亚细亚部分。古实的儿子宁录开始作一个暴虐者，或许是针对他当时的神之百姓。但麦西——埃及人从他而出——和迦南——迦南人从他而出——这两个名字在犹太史中却都声名显赫；因为以色列人与他们的后裔有过艰苦的争战，要出埃及地、进迦南地；因此麦西的各分支特别被记下（代上1:11-12），迦南也如此（代上1:13-16）。看神当以色列把埃及作他们的赎价（赛43:3）之时，把他们摆在何等估价中，又在他们面前赶出这一切列国（诗70:8）。三、然后他记下那些是教会先祖和盟友的人——闪的后裔（代上1:17-23）。这些人遍布亚细亚，向东扩展。亚述人、亚兰人、迦勒底人、波斯人、阿拉伯人，都是从他们而出。起初各国各自的渊源是为人所知的；但如今我们却有理由认为，因贸易和版图的扩展、殖民的迁徙、俘虏的迁移，以及许多其他情形，列国已彼此混杂，再无一国——甚至没有一国的最大部分——是完全从这些源流中任何一个而来。只有这一点我们确知：神从一本造出万国的人，住在全地上；他们都从一个亚当、一个挪亚而出。我们岂不都是一位父吗？岂不是一位神所造的吗？（玛2:10）。我们的家谱快快赶到亚伯拉罕的家系，对挪亚众子其余各家的记述都突然中止，唯独留下亚法撒的家——基督要从他而出。弥赛亚那大应许（帕特里克主教说）从亚当传到塞特，从塞特传到闪，从闪传到希伯，再传到希伯来民族——他们被托付这圣洁的宝藏，过于万国，直到应许得着成就，弥赛亚已经来到，那时那民族便成了非我的民。
English original
Genealogies (4004 BC)
¹ Adam, Sheth, Enosh,
² Kenan, Mahalaleel, Jered,
³ Henoch, Methuselah, Lamech,
⁴ Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
⁵ The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras.
⁶ And the sons of Gomer; Ashchenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah.
⁷ And the sons of Javan; Elishah, and Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim.
⁸ The sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, Put, and Canaan.
⁹ And the sons of Cush; Seba, and Havilah, and Sabta, and Raamah, and Sabtecha. And the sons of Raamah; Sheba, and Dedan.
¹⁰ And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be mighty upon the earth.
¹¹ And Mizraim begat Ludim, and Anamim, and Lehabim, and Naphtuhim,
¹² And Pathrusim, and Casluhim, (of whom came the Philistines,) and Caphthorim.
¹³ And Canaan begat Zidon his firstborn, and Heth,
¹⁴ The Jebusite also, and the Amorite, and the Girgashite,
¹⁵ And the Hivite, and the Arkite, and the Sinite,
¹⁶ And the Arvadite, and the Zemarite, and the Hamathite.
¹⁷ The sons of Shem; Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram, and Uz, and Hul, and Gether, and Meshech.
¹⁸ And Arphaxad begat Shelah, and Shelah begat Eber.
¹⁹ And unto Eber were born two sons: the name of the one was Peleg; because in his days the earth was divided: and his brother's name was Joktan.
²⁰ And Joktan begat Almodad, and Sheleph, and Hazarmaveth, and Jerah,
²¹ Hadoram also, and Uzal, and Diklah,
²² And Ebal, and Abimael, and Sheba,
²³ And Ophir, and Havilah, and Jobab. All these were the sons of Joktan.
²⁴ Shem, Arphaxad, Shelah,
²⁵ Eber, Peleg, Reu,
²⁶ Serug, Nahor, Terah,
²⁷ Abram; the same is Abraham.
This paragraph has Adam for its first word and Abraham for its last. Between the creation of the former and the birth of the latter were 2000 years, almost the one-half of which time Adam himself lived. Adam was the common father of our flesh, Abraham the common father of the faithful. By the breach which the former made of the covenant of innocency, we were all made miserable; by the covenant of grace made with the latter, we all are, or may be, made happy. We all are, by nature, the seed of Adam, branches of that wild olive. Let us see to it that, by faith, we become the seed of Abraham (Ro 4:11,12), that we be grafted into the good olive and partake of its root and fatness.
I. The first four verses of this paragraph, and the last four, which are linked together by Shem (1Ch 1:4,24), contain the sacred line of Christ from Adam to Abraham, and are inserted in his pedigree, Lu 3:34-38, the order ascending as here it descends. This genealogy proves the falsehood of that reproach, As for this man, we know not whence he is. Bishop Patrick well observes here that, a genealogy being to be drawn of the families of the Jews, this appears as the peculiar glory of the Jewish nation, that they alone were able to derive their pedigree from the first man that God created, which no other nation pretended to, but abused themselves and their posterity with fabulous accounts of their originals, the Arcadians fancying that they were before the moon, the people of Thessaly that they sprang from stones, the Athenians that they grew out of the earth, much like the vain imaginations which some of the philosophers had of the origin of the universe. The account which the holy scripture gives both of the creation of the world and of the rise of nations carries with it as clear evidences of its own truth as those idle traditions do of their own vanity and falsehood.
II. All the verses between repeat the account of the replenishing of the earth by the sons of Noah after the flood. 1. The historian begins with those who were strangers to the church, the sons of Japhet, who were planted in the isles of the Gentiles, those western parts of the world, the countries of Europe. Of these he gives a short account (1Ch 1:5-7), because with these the Jews had hitherto had little or no dealings. 2. He proceeds to those who had many of them been enemies to the church, the sons of Ham, who moved southward towards Africa and those parts of Asia which lay that way. Nimrod the son of Cush began to be an oppressor, probably to the people of God in his time. But Mizraim, from whom came the Egyptians, and Canaan, from whom came the Canaanites, are both of them names of great note in the Jewish story; for with their descendants the Israel of God had severe struggles to get out of the land of Egypt and into the land of Canaan; and therefore the branches of Mizraim are particularly recorded (1Ch 1:11,12), and of Canaan, 1Ch 1:13-16. See at what a rate God valued Israel when he gave Egypt for their ransom (Isa 43:3), and cast out all these nations before them, Ps 70:8. 3. He then gives an account of those that were the ancestors and allies of the church, the posterity of Shem, 1Ch 1:17-23. These peopled Asia, and spread themselves eastward. The Assyrians, Syrians, Chaldeans, Persians, and Arabians, descended from these. At first the originals of the respective nations were known; but at this day, we have reason to think, the nations are so mingled with one another, by the enlargement of commerce and dominion, the transplanting of colonies, the carrying away of captives, and many other circumstances, that no one nation, no, nor the greatest part of any, is descended entire from any one of these fountains. Only this we are sure of, that God has created of one blood all nations of men; they have all descended from one Adam, one Noah. Have we not all one father? Has not one God created us? Mal 2:10. Our register hastens to the line of Abraham, breaking off abruptly from all the other families of the sons of Noah but that of Arphaxad, from whom Christ was to come. The great promise of the Messiah (says bishop Patrick) was translated from Adam to Seth, from him to Shem, from him to Eber, and so to the Hebrew nation, who were entrusted, above all nations, with that sacred treasure, till the promise was performed and the Messiah had come, and then that nation was made not a people.
28-54
Genealogies (1896 BC)
简体中文
家谱（主前1896年）
²⁸ 亚伯拉罕的儿子是以撒、以实玛利。 ²⁹ 以下记的是他们的后裔：以实玛利的长子是尼拜约，其次是基达、亚德别、米比衫、 ³⁰ 米施玛、度玛、玛撒、哈达、提玛、 ³¹ 伊突、拿非施、基底玛。这些都是以实玛利的儿子。 ³² 亚伯拉罕的妾基土拉所生的儿子记在下面：她生了心兰、约珊、米但、米甸、伊施巴、书亚。约珊的儿子是示巴、底但。 ³³ 米甸的儿子是以法、以弗、哈诺、亚比大、以勒大。这些都是基土拉的子孙。 ³⁴ 亚伯拉罕生以撒。以撒的儿子是以扫和以色列。 ³⁵ 以扫的儿子是以利法、流珥、耶乌施、雅兰、可拉。 ³⁶ 以利法的儿子是提幔、阿抹、洗非、迦坦、基纳斯、亭纳、亚玛力。 ³⁷ 流珥的儿子是拿哈、谢拉、沙玛、米撒。 ³⁸ 西珥的儿子是罗坍、朔巴、祭便、亚拿、底顺、以察、底珊。 ³⁹ 罗坍的儿子是荷利、何幔；罗坍的妹妹是亭纳。 ⁴⁰ 朔巴的儿子是亚利暗、玛拿哈、以巴录、示非、阿南。祭便的儿子是亚雅、亚拿。 ⁴¹ 亚拿的儿子是底顺。底顺的儿子是暗兰、伊施班、益兰、基兰。 ⁴² 以察的儿子是辟罕、撒番、亚干。底珊的儿子是乌斯、亚兰。 ⁴³ 以色列人未有君王治理以先，在以东地作王的记在下面：比珥的儿子比拉；他的京城名叫亭哈巴。 ⁴⁴ 比拉死后，波斯拉人谢拉的儿子约巴接续他作王。 ⁴⁵ 约巴死后，提幔地的人户珊接续他作王。 ⁴⁶ 户珊死后，比达的儿子哈达接续他作王；这哈达在摩押地杀了米甸人；他的京城名叫亚未得。 ⁴⁷ 哈达死后，玛斯利加人桑拉接续他作王。 ⁴⁸ 桑拉死后，河边的利河伯人扫罗接续他作王。 ⁴⁹ 扫罗死后，亚革波的儿子巴勒哈南接续他作王。 ⁵⁰ 巴勒哈南死后，哈达接续他作王；他的京城名叫巴伊；他妻子名叫米希他别，是米萨合的女儿玛特列的女儿。 ⁵¹ 哈达也死了。以东的族长记在下面：亭纳族长、亚勒瓦族长、耶帖族长、 ⁵² 阿何利巴玛族长、以拉族长、比嫩族长、 ⁵³ 基纳斯族长、提幔族长、米比萨族长、 ⁵⁴ 玛基叠族长、以兰族长。这些都是以东的族长。
除亚伯拉罕的子孙以外，万国都已经从这家谱中被撇下：他们在这事上无分无业。耶和华的分，本是他的百姓。 论到他们，他记数账，按名字认识他们；至于那与他生疏的，他远远观看。这并不是说我们因此可以断定，除了亚伯拉罕的子孙之外，再无别国的个人在神眼前蒙恩。在彼得明白以前，这就是真理——原来各国中，那敬畏主行义的人，都为主所悦纳。 必有极多的人从万国被带到天上（启7:9），我们也乐意盼望，世上曾有许多、极多敬虔之人，他们处于神与亚伯拉罕所立独特圣约的范围之外，他们的名字也在生命册上，虽然并非出于以下任何被记在此书中的家族。主认识谁是他的人。 但以色列是一个被选的国民，是预表中的选民；再无别国，按其国民身份而言，得着犹太民族所享的尊荣和特权。那才是圣洁的国，正是这圣史所论的对象；所以我们接着要把亚伯拉罕其余的子孙都撇下，唯独留下雅各的后裔——他们都归入一国，与耶和华联合；而亚伯拉罕其他后裔，据我们所知，无论与神或彼此之间都生疏了。
I. 论到以实玛利人，我们没有什么可说。他们是使女的儿子，本应被赶出去，不可与应许之子同受产业；他们的遭遇要代表那些不信而被弃的犹太人（加4:22-23等），所以圣经对那族着墨不多。以实玛利的十二个儿子在此只被列名（代上1:29-31），为要显明神对亚伯拉罕的应许已经成就——那应许是神答应亚伯拉罕为他所求而赐下的：为亚伯拉罕的缘故，他必成为大国，特别是他必生十二个族长（创17:20）。
II. 论到从亚伯拉罕和基土拉所生的米甸人，我们也没有什么可说。他们是东方之子（约伯或许就是其中之一），从应许之子以撒被分别出来（创25:6），所以此处只被列名（代上1:32）。基土拉的儿子约珊的众子也被记下，米甸的众子也被记下（代上1:32-33），他们最为显赫，或许给这一切家族都赋了名，正如犹大之于犹太人。
III. 论到以东人，我们可说的也不多。他们对神的以色列怀着根深蒂固的敌意；但因他们是出于以撒的儿子以扫，此处仍记载了他们的家族，以及他们一些名人的名字（代上1:35至末）。这些名字与创36:1-43所记（这段全是从那里取的）有些微差异。那里用 Vau 写的三四个名字，此处用 Jod 来写，大概是发音改变了，正如在其他语言中常见的那样。我们今日写许多词的方式，与仅仅二百年前已大不相同。让我们借读这些家谱，趁此想到：一、曾有无数的人经过这世界，在其中演完他们的角色，然后离去。约伯在他早年的日子，就已看见不但每个人都在他后面随之而来，而且在他前面有无数的人（伯21:33）。这一切的人和他们一切所有的，都有他们的日子；他们中许多人在世上曾大噪一时，大有声势；但他们的倾倒之日到了，他们的地方不再认识他们。死亡之路是被人走过之路，但 vestigia nulla retrorsum——无人能回头再走。 二、想到神的护理，他维持着人类的代代相传，使那有罪、当受刑的人类虽仍存留在地上。他何等容易便可将其剪除，无须洪水，也无须烈火！只要使一切世人都没有儿女，像有些人那样，几年之内这地便要卸下它所叹气承当的重担；但神圣的忍耐让那些白占地的树不仅生长，更结子繁殖。一代罪人过去，另一代又来（传1:4、民32:14），只要地还存留，就要如此。不要毁坏，因为其中含有福分。
English original
Genealogies (1896 BC)
²⁸ The sons of Abraham; Isaac, and Ishmael.
²⁹ These are their generations: The firstborn of Ishmael, Nebaioth; then Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam,
³⁰ Mishma, and Dumah, Massa, Hadad, and Tema,
³¹ Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. These are the sons of Ishmael.
³² Now the sons of Keturah, Abraham's concubine: she bare Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah. And the sons of Jokshan; Sheba, and Dedan.
³³ And the sons of Midian; Ephah, and Epher, and Henoch, and Abida, and Eldaah. All these are the sons of Keturah.
³⁴ And Abraham begat Isaac. The sons of Isaac; Esau and Israel.
³⁵ The sons of Esau; Eliphaz, Reuel, and Jeush, and Jaalam, and Korah.
³⁶ The sons of Eliphaz; Teman, and Omar, Zephi, and Gatam, Kenaz, and Timna, and Amalek.
³⁷ The sons of Reuel; Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah.
³⁸ And the sons of Seir; Lotan, and Shobal, and Zibeon, and Anah, and Dishon, and Ezer, and Dishan.
³⁹ And the sons of Lotan; Hori, and Homam: and Timna was Lotan's sister.
⁴⁰ The sons of Shobal; Alian, and Manahath, and Ebal, Shephi, and Onam. And the sons of Zibeon; Aiah, and Anah.
⁴¹ The sons of Anah; Dishon. And the sons of Dishon; Amram, and Eshban, and Ithran, and Cheran.
⁴² The sons of Ezer; Bilhan, and Zavan, and Jakan. The sons of Dishan; Uz, and Aran.
⁴³ Now these are the kings that reigned in the land of Edom before any king reigned over the children of Israel; Bela the son of Beor: and the name of his city was Dinhabah.
⁴⁴ And when Bela was dead, Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his stead.
⁴⁵ And when Jobab was dead, Husham of the land of the Temanites reigned in his stead.
⁴⁶ And when Husham was dead, Hadad the son of Bedad, which smote Midian in the field of Moab, reigned in his stead: and the name of his city was Avith.
⁴⁷ And when Hadad was dead, Samlah of Masrekah reigned in his stead.
⁴⁸ And when Samlah was dead, Shaul of Rehoboth by the river reigned in his stead.
⁴⁹ And when Shaul was dead, Baal-hanan the son of Achbor reigned in his stead.
⁵⁰ And when Baal-hanan was dead, Hadad reigned in his stead: and the name of his city was Pai; and his wife's name was Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Mezahab.
⁵¹ Hadad died also. And the dukes of Edom were; duke Timnah, duke Aliah, duke Jetheth,
⁵² Duke Aholibamah, duke Elah, duke Pinon,
⁵³ Duke Kenaz, duke Teman, duke Mibzar,
⁵⁴ Duke Magdiel, duke Iram. These are the dukes of Edom.
All nations but the seed of Abraham are already shaken off from this genealogy: they have no part nor lot in this matter. The Lord's portion is his people. Of them he keeps an account, knows them by name; but those who are strangers to him he beholds afar off. Not that we are to conclude that therefore no particular persons of any other nation but the seed of Abraham found favour with God. It was a truth, before Peter perceived it, that in every nation he that feared God and wrought righteousness was accepted of him. Multitudes will be brought to heaven out of all nations (Re 7:9), and we are willing to hope there were many, very many, good people in the world, that lay out of the pale of God's covenant of peculiarity with Abraham, whose names were in the book of life, though not descended from any of the following families written in this book. The Lord knows those that are his. But Israel was a chosen nation, elect in type; and no other nation, in its national capacity, was so dignified and privileged as the Jewish nation was. That is the holy nation which is the subject of the sacred story; and therefore we are next to shake off all the seed of Abraham but the posterity of Jacob only, which were all incorporated into one nation and joined to the Lord, while the other descendants from Abraham, for aught that appears, were estranged both from God and from one another.
I. We shall have little to say of the Ishmaelites. They were the sons of the bondwoman, that were to be cast out and not to be heirs with the child of the promise; and their case was to represent that of the unbelieving Jews, who were rejected (Ga 4:22,23, etc.), and therefore there is little notice taken of that nation. Ishmael's twelve sons are just named here (1Ch 1:29-31), to show the performance of the promise God made to Abraham, in answer to his prayer for him, that, for Abraham's sake, he should become a great nation, and particularly that he should beget twelve princes, Ge 17:20.
II. We shall have little to say of the Midianites, who descended from Abraham's children by Keturah. They were children of the east (probably Job was one of them), and were separated from Isaac, the heir of the promise (Ge 25:6), and therefore they are only named here, 1Ch 1:32. The sons of Jokshan, the son of Keturah, are named also, and the sons of Midian (1Ch 1:32,33), who became most eminent, and perhaps gave denomination to all these families, as Judah to the Jews.
III. We shall not have much to say of the Edomites. They had an inveterate enmity to God's Israel; yet because they descended from Esau, the son of Isaac, we have here an account of their families, and the names of some of their famous men, 1Ch 1:35 to the end. Some slight differences there are between some of the names here, and as we had them in Ge 36:1-43, whence this whole account is taken. Three of four names that were written with a Vau there are written with a Jod here, probably the pronunciation being altered, as is usual in other languages. We now write many words very differently from what they were written but 200 years ago. Let us take occasion, from the reading of these genealogies, to think, 1. Of the multitudes that have gone through this world, have acted their part in it, and then quitted it. Job, even in his early day, saw not only every man drawing after him, but innumerable before him, Job 21:33. All these, and all theirs, had their day; many of them made a mighty noise and figure in the world; but their day came to fall, and their place knew them no more. The paths of death are trodden paths, but vestigia nulla retrorsum—none can retrace their steps. 2. Of the providence of God, which keeps up the generations of men, and so preserves that degenerate race, though guilty and obnoxious, in being upon earth. How easily could he cut it off without either a deluge or a conflagration! Write but all the children of men childless, as some are, and in a few years the earth will be eased of the burden under which it groans; but the divine patience lets the trees that cumber the ground not only grow, but propagate. As one generation, even of sinful men, passes away, another comes (Ec 1:4, Nu 32:14), and will do so while the earth remains. Destroy it not, for a blessing is in it.
本章及此后数章重述了我们在神圣历史中迄今为止所见过的谱系，并将其全部汇集一处，还作了相当多的补充。我们或许会受到试探，认为这些谱系若不曾被记录下来就好了，因为将它们与其他平行经文对照时，会发现其中有些差异，我们几乎难以满意地加以调和；然而我们不可因此绊倒在圣言上，而当感谢神，因为与救恩相关的事已经足够清晰明了。既然智慧的神认为应当将这些事为我们记录下来，我们就不该略过不读。全部圣经都是有益的，尽管并非各处都同样有益；即使是那些不像其他部分那样提供丰富训诲材料的经文段落，我们也可以从中获得美好的思想和默想。这些谱系：1. 在当时曾大有功用——当它们在此被保存下来，并交到从巴比伦归回的犹太人手中时；因为被掳如同洪水一般，使一切陷入混乱，他们在那离散与绝望之中，大有丧失各支派和家族区分之虞。因此，这记录恢复了古老的界标，甚至包括那些被掳到亚述的若干支派。或许这还能激发犹太人研读那曾被忽略的圣经，好在其中寻见自己先祖的名字和家族的渊源。2. 它们至今仍有其功用，可以阐明圣经的叙事，尤其是澄清弥赛亚的家谱，借此显明我们蒙福的救主正如在他以先的预言所言，是大卫的子孙、犹大的子孙、亚伯拉罕的子孙、亚当的子孙。如今，那为保存这些谱系而等候的"应许的后裔"已经来到，犹太人此后反倒完全丧失了一切家谱，甚至祭司的谱系——那最为神圣的——也已失传，他们不知道世上可有哪一个人能证明自己是亚伦家的人。建筑既已建成，脚手架便被撤去。应许的后裔既已降临，那条引导人归向他的血脉之线便就此断绝。本章是创世记中直到雅各为止全部谱系的摘要。I. 从亚当到挪亚及其众子的世系，出自创世记第五章，代上1:1-4。II. 挪亚众子的后裔，地上人口由此重新繁衍，出自创世记第十章，代上1:5-23。III. 从闪到亚伯拉罕的世系，出自创世记第十一章，代上1:24-28。IV. 以实玛利的后裔，以及亚伯拉罕从基土拉所生之子的后裔，出自创世记第二十五章，代上1:29-35。V. 以扫的后裔，出自创世记第三十六章，代上1:36-54。这些谱系在创世记中可能只是草草带过；因此，按照学堂的规矩，凡是没有学好的功课，便要我们重新温习一遍。