The Israelites' Removal from Sinai to Paran, Part 2

This continues a chronological Bible study.  Because Blogger limits the number of labels per post, this post is actually in two parts.  See the first part here:

The Israelites' Removal from Sinai to Paran, Part 1

(Numbers 10:22) And the standard of the camp of the children of Ephraim set forward according to their armies; and over his host was Elishama the son of Ammihud.

In part one of this post the tribes of the Israelites were moving out from their camps in an order that had been predetermined.  The Israelites under the standard of Judah (Judah, Issachar, Zebulun) moved first; then went the Gershonites and Merarites carrying the tabernacle; then the tribes under the standard of Reuben (Reuben, Simeon, Gad) moved forward; and then went the Kohathites carrying the most holy parts of the tabernacle, those things belonging to the sanctuary.

Now we see that the next to move were the tribes under the standard of Ephraim.  According to Numbers 2, they camped on the west side, and included the tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin.  The captain of the host of Ephraim was Elishama, the son of Ammihud.

(23) And over the host of the tribe of the children of Manasseh was Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.

The captain of the host of the tribe of Manasseh, which was under the standard of Ephraim, was Gamaliel, the son of Pedazur.

(24) And over the host of the tribe of the children of Benjamin was Abidan the son of Gideoni.

The captain over the host of the tribe of Benjamin, that also moved under the standard of Ephraim, was Abidan, the son of Gideoni.

(25) And the standard of the camp of the children of Dan set forward, the rearward of all the camps throughout their hosts; and over his host was Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.

Finally the standard of Dan moved forward, bringing up the rear of all the camps.  The captain of the host of the tribe of Dan was Ahiezer, the son of Ammishaddai.  According to Numbers 2:25 they camped on the north side of the tabernacle.  Included under the standard of Dan were the tribes of Dan, Asher, and Naphtali.

(26) And over the host of the tribe of the children of Asher was Pagiel the son of Ocran.

The captain over the host of the tribe of Asher, which was under the standard of Dan, was Pagiel, the son of Ocran.

(27) And over the host of the tribe of the children of Naphtali was Ahira the son of Enan.

The captain of the host of the tribe of Naphtali, also under the standard of Dan, was Ahira, the son of Enan.

(28) Thus were the journeyings of the children of Israel according to their armies, when they set forward.

Thus was the order in which the children of Israel journeyed forward, by their armies.

(29) And Moses said to Hobab, the son of Reuel the Midianite, Moses's father-in-law, "We are journeying to the place of which the LORD said, ‘I will give it to you.’ Come with us, and we will treat you well, for the LORD has spoken good concerning Israel."

Reuel or Jethro (in some scriptures) was Moses's father-in-law, Zipporah's father; therefore Hobab would be Zipporah's brother.  Back in Exodus 18:27 Moses had left his father-in-law to go to his own land, but apparently, his brother-in-law had stayed with the Israelites.  Now that they were moving on to the place the Lord was giving to them, Moses asked Hobab to join them, promising to treat him well because the Lord had promised blessings on Israel and they would share those with him.

(30) And he said to him, “I will not go, but I will depart to my own land and to my kindred."

Hobab refused, saying he would return to his own land and to his family. 

(31) And he said, "Leave us not, I pray thee, forasmuch as you know how we are to camp in the wilderness, and you may be our eyes."

Moses asked Hobab not to leave them, this time suggesting that he could help them.  Obviously, the Lord was their guide in the cloud, but I suppose Hobab could have been useful in their daily excursions from their camps.  He, being more familiar with the area, could point them to watering places, pastures, or point out dangerous places, etc.  This may have been just Moses's attempt to show Hobab that they sincerely would like him to stay with them.

(32) “And it shall be, if you go with us, yea, it shall be, that what goodness the LORD shall do to us, the same will we do to you.”

Moses continued with his plea to Hobab, repeating that indeed if Hobab went with them, whatever goodness the Lord blessed them with, they would in turn bless Hobab.

(33) And they departed from the mount of the LORD three days' journey; and the ark of the covenant of the LORD went before them in the three days' journey, to search out a resting place for them.

Although it doesn't specifically say so, I think we can assume that Hobab remained with the Israelites, because later scriptures show that his posterity dwelt among the Israelites in Canaan.  The Israelites departed from Mount Sinai, and traveled three days with the pillar of cloud over the Ark of the Covenant leading them, seeking out the next place for them to rest or camp.

(34) And the cloud of the LORD was upon them by day, when they went out of the camp.

The cloud did not just stay as a pillar at the head, but it spread itself in journeying over the whole body of people and was a covering to them from the heat of the sun, as well as a guide to them.  The psalmist spoke of this in Psalm 105:39:  "He spread a cloud for a covering; and fire to give light in the night."

(35) And it came to pass, when the ark set forward, that Moses said, “Rise up, O LORD, and let Your enemies be scattered, and let those who hate You flee before You.”

When the ark set forward, Moses asked the Lord to rise up and scatter their enemies and those who hated Him, so that they might safely travel through the wilderness.  That's a prayer we would all do well to remember; God must come first and we want to follow Him and be dependent upon Him for our successes.

(36) And when it rested, he said, “Return, O LORD, to the many thousands of Israel."

Moses also prayed when the ark rested.  Having asked the Lord to rise up and scatter their enemies as they journeyed, he now asked Him to return to them and take up His abode with them.  Matthew Henry, in his Commentary on the Whole Bible, likened this to the church of God, which has many thousands, hundreds of thousands, yet their safety is not in their numbers, but in the continual presence of God.  Our welfare and happiness, like with the Israelites, depends upon His grace and mercy and guidance.

Moses and the Burning Bush

Continuing from the last blog post a chronological study of the Bible:

(Exodus 3:1) Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian; and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.

In the last chapter, it appeared that Moses's father-in-law was Reuel.  Probably Reuel was the patriarch of the family, and as we read about the sons and daughters of Jacob, or the sons and daughters of Abraham, who were actually descendants further down the line than first sons and daughters, so was probably the case with the daughters of Reuel.  We read elsewhere (Acts 7:30) that forty years had passed since Moses first came to Midian, so perhaps Reuel had died, and now Jethro was the patriarch of the family.  Some of the early commentaries wrote that Jethro was actually Moses's father-in-law, the father of Zipporah, and Reuel was her grandfather, where others believed Jethro was Moses's brother-in-law, Reuel being his father-in-law.  The original word "chathan" which was translated as "father-in-law" was generally understood to mean that, but its actual literal meaning is "to contract affinity through marriage (especially through the bride)", so father-in-law or brother-in-law, either one, would seem reasonable.  I tend to believe Jethro was Moses's father-in-law as he would later become someone from whom Moses would take "fatherly advice".

Moses tended the flock of his father-in-law, and at this time led the flock to the back part of the desert, where there were probably good pastures for feeding the flock.  He came to Horeb, the "mountain of God", a name that was probably given it after the incident which happened next, or perhaps after God gave His people the law from this mountain.  Horeb and Sinai were two peaks of the same mountain.

(2) And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush; and he looked, and behold, the bush burned with fire, but the bush was not consumed.

In Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible, Mr. Clarke wrote that this was no ordinary angel, "not a created angel certainly... but Jesus, the Leader, Redeemer, and Savior of mankind."  Some other Biblical scholars agree, but it was from studying Clarke's writings that I was referred to other passages in the Bible that convinced me it was true.  The original word translated as "angel" was "malak", a "messenger", and the word used for "LORD" was Jehovah.  This messenger of Jehovah would a few verses later give His name.  He could be speaking for Jehovah God, but Who is the Word of God?  John 1 tells us clearly that the Word of God is Jesus.  Additionally, Clarke pointed out that in Exodus 23:20-21, God spoke of an Angel He would send.  He said to beware of that angel and obey His voice because God's name was in Him, and God's name was Jehovah, so that appeared to be the same messenger of Jehovah as is referenced in verse 2 above.  I'm not sure that I understood that phrase to mean Jesus before.  These same words were used for the angel of the LORD who spoke to Hagar.  Maybe the identity of this messenger of God is not what is most important, but we can be certain any messenger would be given the full authority needed to fulfill the will of God at any given time.  Maybe Jesus, the actual Word of God, is who God chose to use from time to time, whereas He may have used a created messenger at other times.  Either way, we can be sure what Moses was about to experience was from God Himself.

(3) And Moses said, “I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.”

Moses wrote about this incident after it happened, so he came to know that it was the Angel of the LORD appearing to him in that bush, but I don't believe he knew it at the time, or at least not at first.  However, he was very interested in trying to figure out how that bush was burning, but was not being burned up.

(4) And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.”

The first thing that caught my attention was that the LORD saw, and God called.  The LORD is "Jehovah", the name for God Himself.  The word translated as "God" is "Elohiym", and it's plural!  That is something I'm not sure I ever before realized.  I've known that Elohim was a name for God, but more specifically, it appears to be the name for the entire Godhead--Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  Jehovah God saw, and then Jehovah God, with the Word Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit of God, called to Moses.  Note that "Eloahh" is the singular form of Elohiym.

Note that the scripture says, "when the LORD saw...".  That would seem to imply that if Moses had not taken notice of the burning bush, God would not have spoken to him at this time.  40 years before this time, Moses seemed to have received a calling that he would rescue his people, but it didn't seem the time was right then.  Maybe even now at this time, God was testing Moses to see if he was ready.  In Paul's writings in the New Testament he wrote about the spirit in man (Romans 8 and 1 Corinthians 2), and the natural man with the spirit of the world cannot see the things of God.  I think back to Esau, who did not appear to see the things of God, but valued more the base things of the world.  Jacob, on the other hand, constantly strove for the blessings of God.  You might think a burning bush that was not consumed would interest anyone, but I am willing to bet there was a spiritual element to this burning bush (obviously, right?) that perhaps only one ready to receive the spiritual things of God would perceive.   Maybe it's like that when God calls us to salvation.  Of course, God would already know if we were going to accept Him or not, just like He already knew that Moses would turn aside to see the burning bush, so are these tests really necessary?  I believe they are for us ourselves.  How many times can we look upon in our past where we can see the leading of God's Holy Spirit that we may not have recognized at the time?  It's important for us to begin to recognize and discern the things of God and I believe God may give us practice for our benefit.  Oh, maybe it's not really designed as "practice"; He's always there and always working, refining us as gold.  But it is important for us to learn to recognize the Holy Spirit because there are many false spirits in the world and many masquerading as angels of light.  Once we start to recognize the Holy Spirit, we are more apt to look for His leading in the future.  God saw that Moses was ready to hear Him and called audibly out to him.  Moses answered right away.  It surely must have taken him by surprise, but in his spirit he must have known this was God calling him, and he answered immediately, ready not just to listen, but to do whatever He asked of him.  

(5) And He said, “Do not draw near this place; take your shoes off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.”

Moses turned aside toward the burning bush, but God commanded that he not come near, that he keep his distance.  He furthermore told him to remove his shoes because he was standing on holy ground.  I don't believe it was previously known as holy, as some have suggested, but was holy because of the presence of God at this moment.  If it had always been considered holy ground, Moses would surely have known about it.  He was instructed to remove his shoes as was the custom of respect and submission, but more than that, this ground was made holy because of the presence of the Lord, and Moses was being cautioned not to enter it lightly or rashly or with irreverence.  Moses was to approach God with a solemn pause, observing proper distance because of the awesome majesty and power of the Lord God, and he was not to tread near with soiled shoes.

(6) Moreover He said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God.

God told Moses that He was the God of his father Amram, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.  The significance of this statement is more apparent when you consider Jesus's words in Mark 12:26-27a (and other places):

“And concerning the dead, that they rise, have you not read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God spoke to him, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living..."

By this statement, God declared to Moses that He was God, the God of his fathers gone before him, teaching him that there was a future state for those who looked to God and had faith in His promises.  Abraham was dead, yet God said, "I am the God of Abraham", not "I was (when he was living)..."  Abraham's soul lived, as did the souls of Moses's fathers before him who had faith in God's promises, and that should give Moses confidence in the fulfillment of the promises made to his forefathers.  Moses realized he was in the presence of God and hid his face, probably ashamed as well as afraid to look upon God.

(7) And the LORD said, “I have surely seen the affliction of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows."

The Lord told Moses that He had seen the affliction of His people in Egypt.  Albert Barnes, in his Notes on the Bible, pointed out that the word translated as "taskmasters" above was a different word than the one used previously, and indicated more like "oppressors, harassers, or tyrants".  God saw, God heard, and God knew...  I believe that was expressed in three distinct ways because God knew the hearts and inward secret sorrows that were not openly expressed. 

(8) "And I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites. (9) Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them."

Furthermore, God told Moses He had come down to deliver His people from the Egyptians.  Because God is omnipresent and is everywhere, He didn't actually physically move from heaven above down to Egypt to deliver His people, but He did make Himself manifest to Moses to declare His plan of deliverance.  However, in the form of Jesus Christ, God did indeed come down from heaven to deliver us!  Not only was God going to deliver His people out of the hand of the Egyptians, but He was going to bring them to a good and large land, in contrast to the small tract of Goshen.  It would be a vast land of richness and abundance, a place then occupied by the Canaanites, etc.  God repeated that He had indeed seen the oppression of His people.

(10) “Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring forth My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.”

God concluded with His commission to Moses that he go to Pharaoh as an ambassador for his people, to negotiate their release from the burdens and oppression, and to bring them out of Egypt.

(11) And Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?”

Moses saw himself as weak, insufficient, and incapable of performing the task at hand.  As Moses thought of himself, he couldn't see that it was even possible that he could accomplish such a thing.

(12) And He said, “Certainly I will be with you; and this shall be a sign to you that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”

Moses was right, he himself could not do such a thing, but God told him that He would surely be with him to accomplish the task.  The words "shall be" were added by the KJV translators for what they thought was clarity, but I don't believe God was telling Moses that the sign would be that he would serve God on that mountain.  Rather, I believe He was saying that this, the burning bush, was the sign that God was surely with him and was the One sending him on such a seemingly impossible mission.  Then when he had brought the people out of Egypt, they would return to this mountain and serve God there.

(13) And Moses said to God, “Behold, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?”

Not only did Moses feel inadequate to challenge Pharaoh, but he felt inadequate to convince the people.  Although that question that Moses expected the people to ask always seemed a strange one to me, it is true that at this time in their existence the children of Israel had been deeply entrenched in Egyptian customs and probably in their superstitions and idolatrous ways.  They probably spoke of many gods who did this and that, and when Moses told them about a supernatural deliverance, he was probably right to assume they would want to know to which god they could attribute such a feat.  Adam Clarke, in his Commentary on the Bible, pointed out that the Israelites at this time probably didn't have much knowledge of the true God.  They lived in oppression under idolatrous pagan tyrants and were surely surrounded by false gods and superstitions.  They certainly had no written Biblical word at this time.  I guess I never thought of it like that before.  For that reason, maybe I can understand a little more the people's lack of faith during the exodus, a little...  God certainly showed Himself to be the Almighty true God, but to a people who were surrounded by so many gods who constantly failed them, maybe that is the reason they seemed to lose faith so easily.  At any rate, Moses expected the people to ask him the name of the god who would deliver them, sort of like, "by whose authority, do you propose these things?"  Moses suspected they would probably test him to decide whether or not they would cooperate with him.

(14) And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”; and He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”

God answered Moses without hesitation.  It wasn't a stupid question proposed by a fearful would-be hero.  The original words given by God were, "Hayah Asher Hayah", and they denoted self-existence, a God eternal and unchangeable, and always the same, yesterday, today, and forever.  He was the God who was faithful and true to all His promises, unchangeable in His word and in His nature.

(15) And moreover God said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.’”

God, Elohim (the plural Godhead), told Moses to tell the people that Jehovah Elohim, "yehovah" itself meaning "self-existent or eternal", the true eternal God of their fathers, of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, that God, had sent Moses to them.  No matter how long they had lived in oppression and idolatrous surroundings, they surely remembered the true eternal God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob!  If the name "I AM" was new or confusing to them, they surely knew Jehovah Elohim of their fathers, a name more familiar and one that surely stood as a memorial to them through the generations since Abraham.  With the new name given personally by God, and with the reference to the Lord God of their fathers, specifically, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, God made Himself known to His people that He might revive among them the religion of their fathers, and remind them of His covenant and raise their expectations that now was the time.

(16) “Go and gather the elders of Israel together, and say to them, ‘The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared to me, saying, “I have surely visited you and seen what is done to you in Egypt;" (17) And I have said I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, to a land flowing with milk and honey.'"

God then told Moses to gather the elders of Israel and tell them exactly what God had told Moses.  The "elders" were probably not men of any authority in church or government, as the people surely were not able to govern themselves.  In this case, the word probably just meant the older men, probably the elder heads of their tribes of families.  Once again God instructed Moses to call Him the Lord God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob.  Additionally, by telling the people that God had said He had "surely visited" the people and that He would bring them out of Egypt to the land flowing with milk and honey, it was an exact fulfillment of the prophetic prediction of Joseph in Genesis 50:24, when he said that God would surely visit them and bring them out of that land to the land which He had sworn to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.

(18) “And they will heed your voice; and you shall come, you and the elders of Israel, to the king of Egypt; and you shall say to him, ‘The LORD God of the Hebrews has met with us; and now let us go, we beseech you, three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God.’”

God assured Moses that the elders would listen to him and would go with him to the king of Egypt.  This first petition to Pharaoh was a humble one and one that would have caused no inconvenience or damage to the Egyptians.  It was a reasonable request that they be allowed to go three days' journey, which was undoubtedly to that "mountain of God", which was said to have been a three days' journey, to worship their God in a place He would have appointed to worship and serve Him purely away from the idolatry of Egypt.  Indeed it was God's plan to remove His people completely from Egypt, but if this simple reasonable request had been granted, then the people would have been free, but of course, they weren't, and God knew that.  In being so modest and reasonable in this first request, the denial of it would prove just how unreasonable and inexcusable Pharaoh's actions were.

(19) “And I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not even by a mighty hand.”

Indeed, God did know that Pharaoh would refuse this request, but it was important for Moses to proceed in this humble way and let Pharaoh prove who he was.  The words translated as "no, not even" above have various other negative meanings and perhaps should probably have been translated as "not without", as we know that even though Pharaoh refused after many demonstrations of God's mighty hand, he eventually did let them go.

(20) “And I will stretch out My hand and strike Egypt with all My wonders which I will do in its midst; and after that he will let you go.”

Even if the proper translation and sense in verse 19 was that Pharaoh would not let them go even by a mighty hand, God said that once He struck Egypt with all His wonders, he would let them go.  That little word translated as "all" was "kol", and it literally meant "the whole".  After Egypt was struck with the totality of God's wonders, then Pharaoh would let them go.  God let Moses know that eventually Pharaoh would relent.  I'm sure that bit of prophecy would give Moses faith to persevere even though it would seem to him that Pharaoh would never let them go.

(21) “And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and it shall come to pass, that when you go, you shall not go empty-handed. (22) But every woman shall ask of her neighbor, and of her who dwells near her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and clothing; and you shall put them on your sons and on your daughters; and you shall plunder the Egyptians.”

God told Moses that when His people left, they would not go empty-handed.  He would give His people favor with the Egyptians so that they would gladly give them all kinds of jewels and clothing.  I'm sure it wouldn't be for some great love for the Hebrews that the Egyptians would do this, but rather recognizing the power of their great God, they would be glad to be at peace with them and be rid of them with anything they asked.  God said in that way they would plunder the Egyptians.  Actually, the original word, "natsal", which was translated as "plunder" also meant "rescue" or "recover".  That is actually the better sense of the word.  In this way, God's people would justly be repaid for all their hard service to the Egyptians.  This would be the fulfillment of a prophecy given to Abraham in Genesis 15:14, “And also that nation whom they serve I will judge; and afterward they shall come out with great substance.”

Moses, the Prequel

I have been doing a chronological Bible study, the order of which was set forth by Skip Andrews here.  Before continuing in Exodus, chapter 2, the chronological order directed me to Hebrews in the New Testament:

(Hebrews 11:23) By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the king’s commandment.

We learned at the end of the first chapter in Exodus that Pharaoh's last command to the people was to kill any boy Hebrew baby they came across.  With this passage from the New Testament about the great faith of Moses, we learned that his parents hid their baby Moses for the first three months of his life.  In reality, verse 23 spoke of Moses's parents' faith.  They saw Moses was a special child and it was said they were not afraid of the king's commandment.  I believe the sense is that once again they feared God more than men.  They must have feared the commandment somewhat or they would not have hidden Moses, but their passion to save their beautiful baby was stronger than any fear of the king.  As they were included in Hebrews' great people of faith, I have to believe when it says "they saw", that perhaps by the Holy Spirit of God, they knew Moses was special and must be saved.  However, even without a unique vision from God, God-fearing people of faith would know that the king's commandment was against the laws of God and contrary to God's promise to multiply His people.

(24) By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, (25) Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; (26) Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt, for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.

I'm not sure why the rest of the Hebrews passage about the faith of Moses would be placed chronologically before the rest of Exodus 2, but it is, and I find myself studying something that has not happened yet in Exodus 2.  I believe the sense of the passage in this chronological place was to show that Moses, regardless of his upbringing, identified with the children of Israel.  Although he could have surely enjoyed much honor and many benefits by being considered the son of Pharaoh's daughter, he had more regard for the promises of God.  Even though he would suffer affliction with the people of God, rather than probable ease and honor and comfort as the son of Pharaoh's daughter, Moses chose to follow God.  Moses was surely lifted up by God to be used by Him, and we know that God spoke to Moses, and the Holy Spirit of God surely inspired Moses to write the first five books of the Old Testament, so I feel certain that Moses had received prophetic knowledge of the coming Messiah, and that was by far the greatest reward, worth all the suffering that might come.

(Acts 7:17) “But when the time of the promise drew near which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt, (18) Till another king arose who did not know Joseph."

Next in the chronological study, I was directed to Acts 7:17-29.  Although this passage does not really take place chronologically before the rest of Exodus, Stephen was speaking about the time of Moses, and his speech may provide a more complete picture of the events leading up to the rest of Exodus.  As Exodus 1 began, so began Stephen's retelling of the time when the children of Israel grew and multiplied in Egypt and there arose a new king who did not know Joseph.

(19) “This man dealt subtilly with our kindred, and evil affected our fathers, so that they cast out their young children, that they might not live."

Stephen told of how the new pharaoh dealt with the children of Israel in Egypt.  He used the original word "katasophizomai", which to me looks like a combination of "catastrophe" and "schizophrenia", and the meaning might actually be closer to that than you might think!  The KJV translators used the phrase "dealt subtilly" which was similar to the word used by the pharaoh in Exodus 1:10 when he said he wanted to "deal wisely" with the Israelites, which was more craftiness and deceit than it was wisdom.  Strong's gave the meaning of the original word as "to be crafty against, that is, circumvent".  Consider "catastrophic splitting" or breaking, as we previously learned the Egyptians were trying to do to the Israelites, and "katasophizomai" covers it pretty well!  Stephen told of how the pharaoh's evil plans affected their forefathers, that they should cast out their babies that they, and therefore the Hebrew nation, might not live and grow.

(20) "In which time Moses was born, and was exceedingly fair, and nourished up in his father's house three months. (21) And when he was cast out, Pharaoh's daughter took him up, and nourished him for her own son."

Stephen told how Moses was born during this time and was nourished in his father's house for three months, but was apparently cast out as ordered by the king, and was taken by Pharaoh's daughter to be her son.

(22) “And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and in deeds."

It appears that Moses had the finest education, being "learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians".  He was "mighty" in words and in deeds.  The word translated as "mighty" was "dunatos", and it meant "powerful" or "capable".  As a learned man, he had a command of language and was a capable man of great abilities.  We will learn later in Exodus that Moses considered himself slow of speech, so being mighty in words may not have meant that he was a great orator, but he was a learned man wise with words and possibly with a vast vocabulary and understanding of language.  However, as Stephen was speaking about Moses in the past after the exodus, he might have been referring to Moses's mighty communications and deeds as he led the children of Israel from Egypt.

(23) "And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the children of Israel."

It appears that Moses lived in the palace of Pharaoh for 40 years, and at the end of that time, it came to him to visit his people, the children of Israel, probably by inspiration of the Holy Spirit of God.

(24) “And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him and avenged him who was oppressed, and struck down the Egyptian. (25) For he supposed that his brethren would have understood that God would deliver them by his hand, but they did not understand."

We will learn when we return to Exodus that the Egyptian was striking a Hebrew, one of Moses's brethren, and Moses defended his brother by killing the Egyptian and hiding him in the sand.  Moses was probably beginning to feel the leading of God to be the deliverer of his people and supposed that the people would understand that he was stepping in to save them, but they didn't see it that way at all.

(26) “And the next day he appeared to two of them as they were fighting, and would have reconciled them, saying, 'Sirs, you are brethren; why do you wrong one another?’ (27) But he who did his neighbor wrong pushed him away, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? (28) Will you kill me as you did the Egyptian yesterday?' (29) Then Moses fled at this saying, and was a stranger in the land of Midian, where he had two sons."

The next day Moses appeared to two Hebrew men who were fighting and tried to intervene and reconcile them.  However, when he asked why they were fighting, the one who was apparently in the wrong, shoved Moses away, and basically asked what right he had to interfere in their matter.  When the man asked Moses if he would kill him as he killed the Egyptian the day before, Moses fled.  We learn a little more of this incident in Exodus 2, that Moses was careful to be unobserved when he struck the Egyptian, so he now knew that what he had done was known, and he surely feared what would happen to him if Pharaoh heard what he had done.  It appears that Moses made no further attempts to deliver Israel, but settled as a stranger in the land of Midian, where he had two sons.  Now back to Exodus 2:

(Exodus 2:1) And a man of the house of Levi went and took as wife a daughter of Levi.

The last thing we read in Exodus 1, was that Pharaoh had commanded his people to cast any Hebrew boy babies into the river.  We now read of a man of the house of Levi who at this time married a daughter of Levi. We learned previously this was Amram, Moses's father, and Jochebed, his father’s sister.

(2) And the woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw that he was a beautiful child, she hid him three months.

Moses's mother conceived and bore Moses during the time of that terrible decree that all male Hebrew babies be destroyed.  Moses's siblings, Aaron and Miriam, were older than he was, so were no doubt born before this decree.  Moses's mother hid him for three months.  You would think that any mother would try to hide her newborn baby and do all that she could to save her child from an evil law that would have him killed.  However, from the Hebrews passage above, we learned that Moses's parents had great faith, faith in God and His will, and not fear and therefore a kind of faith, in a godless king and government.  Stephen said above that evil affected their fathers so that they cast out their young children.  Yes, it was an evil king and an evil law, but the people themselves cast out their babies.  Moses's parents chose not to do this evil thing.  They instead chose God; they chose life!  Is that not a beautiful picture of what we should do when faced with an evil law and government?  They did the right thing and they were considered among the great people of faith in Hebrews!

(3) And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child in it, and laid it in the reeds by the river’s bank. (4) And his sister stood afar off, to know what would be done to him.

When Moses's mother felt she could no longer hide him, she made a little boat for him, put him in it, and laid him in the reeds by the river's bank.  She knew Moses's fate was death if she kept him with her, so her only hope that he might live was to put him in a basket and hope someone else would find him and save him.  She even had his sister watching to see what would happen to him.  When you think about it, Moses's mother must have placed him near where she knew the Egyptian princess might find him.  Otherwise, if any other Egyptian had found him, he or she would have obeyed the king's commandment and killed the baby boy.  If any Hebrew found him, he would be no safer than he was with his mother.  

(5) And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash at the river; and her maidens walked along by the river's side; and when she saw the ark among the reeds, she sent her maid to fetch it. (6) And when she opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the baby wept. And she had compassion on him, and said, “This is one of the Hebrews’ children.”

Sure enough, Pharaoh's daughter came to that location in the river to wash and saw the little boat among the reeds.  She sent her maid to fetch it.  When she opened it and saw the crying baby, she had compassion for him, realizing he was one of the Hebrew children, destined to die.

(7) Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and call a nurse for you from the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for you?”

Moses's sister had obviously been prepared for this possibility, and immediately asked Pharaoh's daughter if she should get her a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for her.

(8) And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Go.” And the maid went and called the child's mother.

I believe the maid here refers to "the maiden", Moses's sister, rather than the princess's own handmaiden.  Pharaoh's daughter thought that was a good idea she had and sent her to find someone to nurse the baby.  The girl went and fetched her own mother, also Moses's mother, again, obviously having been coached in this.

(9) And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, “Take this child away and nurse him for me, and I will give you your wages.” And the woman took the child, and nursed it.

And so Moses was saved from death, and his mother received the additional blessing of being paid to take care of her own child!  I love how God works this way!  I recall once when I was questioning whether my husband and I in good conscience could accept Social Security disability payments from such a wicked government as ours that promotes the killing of innocent babies, among many other evil things.  He reminded me of this incident in the Bible where Moses's mother received wages for nursing her own child from the very household that killed Hebrew babies.  Don't get me wrong, I believe there are or will be times when we must refuse to do evil if it is in conflict with God's laws, but in this instance, and in the matter of paying taxes to a wicked government, we have models.  Jesus taught us to pay our taxes, and in the matter of accepting money from the government, we must remember that it is all God's anyway, and if He chooses to bless us with the government's money, we can accept it and thank and praise Him.  However, I don't doubt that if it was in a person's heart not to accept money from an ungodly government, that God, knowing the person's heart, would find another way to bless him.  That's the way our awesome God works!  He is sovereign above all things and everyone, and He knows the heart of every man and woman.

(10) And the child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. And she called his name Moses, and she said, “Because I drew him out of the water.”

Apparently, when the time of nursing was over, Moses's mother brought him back to Pharaoh's daughter, and he became the son of Pharaoh's daughter.  She called his name Moses, the original word being "mosheh", meaning "drawn forth".

The chronological order of this particular Bible study now takes me to Exodus 6:23 and Numbers 26:60:

(Exodus 6:23) And Aaron took for himself Elisheba, daughter of Amminadab, sister of Nahshon, as wife; and she bore him Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.

(Numbers 26:60) And to Aaron was born Nadab, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.

As Aaron was older than Moses, it is assumed that he was grown and married while Moses was still young and living in the palace of Pharaoh.  Aaron took Elisheba as wife, the daughter of Amminadab, and the sister of Nahshon, a prince of the tribe of Judah.  Elisheba bore Aaron four sons, Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.  Now back to Exodus 2:

(Exodus 2:11) And it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out to his brethren and looked on their burdens; and he spied an Egyptian striking a Hebrew, one of his brethren.

I'm not crazy about this chronological order, as we have already been told about this incident by Stephen in the New Testament, long after it happened, but we are now returned to the time it originally happened.  Moses was grown, 40 years old, according to Stephen, and he went out, apparently from the palace of Pharaoh where he had up to this point lived, to see his people, and he observed their burdens.  He saw an Egyptian striking a Hebrew, one of his brethren.

(12) And he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.

In this original telling of this incident, we see that Moses sought to be unobserved in what he did.  He obviously felt justified in defending his brother, and from Stephen's telling, may have even felt led by God to rescue his people, but he surely knew that the slaying of an Egyptian would never be seen as justified by the Egyptians and by Pharaoh.

(13) And when he went out the second day, behold, two Hebrew men were fighting, and he said to the one who did the wrong, “Why are you striking your neighbor?” (14) And he said, “Who made you a prince and a judge over us? Do you intend to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?” And Moses feared and said, “Surely this thing is known!”

Moses was trying to hide what he did from the Egyptians, but he surely didn't expect his own people to spread the story and turn on him.  He feared that surely this news would now spread to Pharaoh.

(15) Now when Pharaoh heard this thing, he sought to kill Moses. But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh and dwelt in the land of Midian; and he sat down by a well.

Sure enough, when Pharaoh heard about this matter, he sought to kill Moses.  That is when Moses fled to the land of Midian.  As he came to Midian, he sat down by a well.

(16) Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters; and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father's flock.

The original word translated as "priest" was "kohen" and meant either "priest" or "prince".  It was suggested by early commentaries that he might have been a priest of the one true God, or at least as a descendant of Abraham, might have retained the knowledge of the true God, and might be considered a priest of His.  Otherwise, Moses who was being drawn to his own people, surely would not have married one of his daughters, as we will soon learn he did.  In addition, if the seven daughters were daughters of a pagan prince, they more than likely would not have been drawing water for their father's flock, but would have surely had servants for such a task.  If their father was a prince, then the daughters were honorably born, and humble and industrious.

(17) And the shepherds came and drove them away, but Moses stood up and helped them, and watered their flock.

Rude shepherds coming to the well, and possibly even to the very troughs the maidens had already filled, drove the maidens' flock and possibly the maidens themselves out of their way.  Moses, ever the man of honor and justice, helped the maidens and watered their flock.

(18) And when they came to Reuel their father, he said, “How is it that you have come so soon today?”

When the daughters of Reuel, the priest of Midian, came to their father, he asked how they could have finished so soon.  Evidently, with Moses's help, they watered their flock and returned much faster than usual.

(19) And they said, “An Egyptian delivered us from the hand of the shepherds, and also drew enough water for us and watered the flock.”

Reuel's daughters mistook Moses for an Egyptian, probably judging by his dress and speech.  I suppose he had been raised as an Egyptian up to this point.

(20) And he said to his daughters, “And where is he? Why is it that you have left the man? Call him, that he may eat bread.”

The girls had surely been modest and didn't even consider bringing a strange Egyptian man home with them.  However, their father recognized the man's kindness and wished to show his gratitude, and asked that they call the man to come eat with them.

(21) And Moses was content to dwell with the man; and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter.

Moses was content to live in or among Reuel's household, and eventually was given his daughter Zipporah in marriage to him.

(22) And she bore him a son; and he called his name Gershom, for he said, “I have been a stranger in a foreign land.”

Zipporah bore Moses a son whom he named Gershom, which literally meant "refugee".  Moses felt forced to leave his people to escape Pharaoh and was a stranger in this foreign land.

(23) And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of Egypt died; and the children of Israel groaned because of the bondage, and they cried out; and their cry came up to God because of the bondage.

In the process of time, the current king of Egypt died, the one who had sought to kill Moses, but apparently things did not change for the children of Israel.  They cried out to God because of the severity of their oppression and bondage at the hands of the Egyptians.

(24) And God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. (25) And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God acknowledged them.

God heard His people and "remembered" His covenant.  It's not as if God ever forgets; He is ever mindful of all things.  The sense of this "remembering" was that at that point, it was the proper time for God to act and to fulfill His promise and His covenant, proof that He remembered.  God looked upon His children and acknowledged them and their oppression.  God obviously had seen them and their situation for years leading up to this point.  Apparently this was the proper time for God to act.  In Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible, Mr. Henry observed that God heard, remembered, looked, and acknowledged the people, after they cried out to Him.  Verse 23 didn't say specifically that they cried "to God", but it certainly can be inferred, because before this time they groaned and bore their troubles and fretted inwardly, but they finally reached the point where they cried out.  That is certainly the way with our God, and that theme is repeated throughout the Bible, that God waits until His people turn back to Him and realize they need only Him, and then He acts in a big way.  Matthew Henry also pointed out that in verses 24 and 25, God's name is mentioned 4 times.  The way he expressed it was, "The name of God is here emphatically prefixed to four different expressions of a kind intention towards them....The frequent repetition of the name of God here intimates that now we are to expect something great, Opus Deo dignum - A work worthy of God. His eyes, which run to and fro through the earth, are now fixed upon Israel, to show himself strong, to show himself a God in their behalf."  God was about to work in a big way!

(Exodus 6:25) And Eleazar Aaron's son took for himself one of the daughters of Putiel as wife, and she bore him Phinehas; these are the heads of the fathers of the Levites according to their families.

Since this is a chronological order I am studying, apparently sometime after Moses married Zipporah and began having a family, Aaron's son Eleazar also married.  He married one of the daughters of a man named Putiel, and she bore him a son named Phinehas.  These men were some of the heads of the Levites, mentioned among the sons of Levi in Exodus 6.

The Posterity of Esau

As I am following a chronological reading schedule of the Bible by Skip Andrews, I am skipping ahead a few chapters to begin this study in Genesis chapter 36.  Since Jacob and Esau were twins, their lives were parallel, so it's time to see what Esau has been up to:

(Genesis 36:1) Now these are the generations of Esau, who is Edom.

We were told in Genesis 25:30 that Esau was called Edom, which means "red", because of the red stew for which he traded his birthright.  However, if we back up to verse 25 in that same chapter, we were told that Esau was born red and hairy.  He was named Esau, which Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Definitions tells us means "hairy"; he is also called Edom, for the red part.

(2) Esau took his wives from the daughters of Canaan: Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Aholibamah the daughter of Anah, the daughter of Zibeon the Hivite;

We were previously told that Esau had taken Canaanite wives which greatly grieved his parents (Gen. 26:34-35).  It is unclear if these wives are the same as the ones mentioned in that passage, or these are in addition to those wives.  It is very possible that Adah and Bashemath (from Gen. 26:34) are names for the same person as each is called the daughter of Elon the Hittite.  As for Aholibamah, she is said here to be the daughter of Anah and also the daughter of Zibeon the Hivite; that is the way that should read, I believe.  Later in verse 24, we are told that Anah is the son of Zibeon, and we know "the child of" often means "descendant of" in the Bible, so Aholibamah is a descendant of both Anah and Zibeon.  I see no way of connecting Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite (from Gen. 26:34) to Aholibamah here, so they must be different wives.  

(3) And Bashemath Ishmael's daughter, sister of Nebajoth.

This is a continuation of verse 2, naming another of Esau's wives.  This definitely appears to be the same woman as Mahalath from Genesis 28:9 as both are called daughters of Ishmael and sisters of Nebajoth.

(4) And Adah bore Eliphaz to Esau, and Bashemath bore Reuel. (5) And Aholibamah bore Jeush, Jaalam, and Korah; these were the sons of Esau who were born to him in the land of Canaan.

Now Esau's children are mentioned.  Perhaps the wives listed above are the ones mentioned because they are the ones who gave Esau children, perhaps explaining why Judith from Genesis 26:34 is not mentioned.  Although I didn't personally read the ancient writings myself, Dr. John Gill wrote that Jerome and Jonathan in the early centuries after Christ (A.D. 200-400) said that this Eliphaz is the same friend of Job that came to visit him.  That Eliphaz was called a Temanite, and Tema was a son of Ishmael.  I suppose it could be true, but what stands out to me in my personal study is that I am supposed to be studying a chronological reading of the Bible and I was instructed to read Job before Abraham, and this is the second time Temanites have been mentioned, meaning at least the life of Abraham and perhaps those of his children, should have been read chronologically before Job, but it's too late for that now.  I certainly digress. The sons of Esau born to him in the land of Canaan were Eliphaz, Reuel, Jeush, Jaalam, and Korah.

(6) And Esau took his wives, and his sons, and his daughters, and all the persons of his house, and his cattle and all his animals, and all his substance which he had gotten in the land of Canaan, and went to a country away from the face of his brother Jacob.

Esau apparently had daughters, too, although those were not named.  He took his entire family and household and left the land of Canaan away from his brother Jacob.

(7) For their riches were too great for them to dwell together, and the land where they were strangers could not support them because of their cattle.  (8) So Esau dwelt in Mount Seir; Esau is Edom.

They were still sojourners and not possessors in the land of Canaan, so they still had the land's inhabitants to dwell among, and there was not room for both Jacob and Esau there, so Esau moved to Mt. Seir.  Again we are reminded that Esau is also called Edom, probably to explain why his descendants are called Edomites in the next verse.

(9) And these are the generations of Esau the father of the Edomites in Mount Seir: (10) These are the names of Esau's sons: Eliphaz the son of Adah the wife of Esau, and Reuel the son of Bashemath the wife of Esau.

Here begins a genealogy of Esau.  His sons are listed again, one might assume in a chronological order, with Eliphaz being his oldest son by his wife Adah, and Reuel his second son by his wife Bashemath. 

(11) And the sons of Eliphaz were Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, and Kenaz.

The firstborn son of Eliphaz was Teman, which may be more likely the namesake of the Temanites, which identifies the Eliphaz in Job.  It seems there is discrepancy among scholars as to whether the city of Teman was named for Tema, the son of Ishmael, or more likely for Teman, the grandson of Esau.

(12) And Timna was the concubine of Eliphaz, Esau's son, and she bore Amalek to Eliphaz; these were the sons of Adah, Esau's wife.

Amalek was the father of the Amalekites who were bitter enemies of the Jews.  As a son of Eliphaz's concubine, he is added to the list of "sons", or actually grandsons that were borne by Adah.

(13) And these are the sons of Reuel: Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah; these were the sons of Bashemath, Esau's wife.

The "sons", or more precisely grandsons that came from Esau's wife Bashemath, were Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah, none of whom are mentioned elsewhere in the Bible, other than perhaps if they occur in a genealogy.

(14) And these were the sons of Aholibamah, Esau's wife, the daughter of Anah, the daughter of Zibeon; and she bore to Esau Jeush, Jaalam, and Korah.

Esau's sons by Aholibamah are listed again with no sons of theirs mentioned.

(15) These were dukes of the sons of Esau: the sons of Eliphaz the firstborn son of Esau, duke Teman, duke Omar, duke Zepho, duke Kenaz,

A duke was a captain or a governor, but could also be a head of family.  Sons and grandsons of Esau are listed as dukes or leaders of some sort.

(16) Duke Korah, duke Gatam, and duke Amalek; these were the dukes of Eliphaz in the land of Edom; these were the sons of Adah.

Korah is inserted here as a son of Adah.  There is a Korah who is a son of Aholibamah, but as he is mentioned later among her sons, I don't believe this is the same Korah, unless he was mistakenly mentioned twice.  1 Chronicles 1:36 lists these sons of Eliphaz and adds Timna.  Timna was also the name of Eliphaz's concubine, so perhaps Korah is another son of Timna who was also identified by his mother's name.   

(17) And these are the sons of Reuel, Esau's son: duke Nahath, duke Zerah, duke Shammah, duke Mizzah; these are the dukes of Reuel in the land of Edom; these are the sons of Bashemath Esau's wife. (18) And these are the sons of Aholibamah Esau's wife: duke Jeush, duke Jaalam, duke Korah; these were the dukes of Aholibamah the daughter of Anah, Esau's wife. (19) These are the sons of Esau, who is Edom, and these are their dukes.

The list of dukes from Esau's sons and grandsons continues.

(20) These are the sons of Seir the Horite, who inhabited the land: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, and Anah, (21) And Dishon, and Ezer, and Dishan; these are the dukes of the Horites, the children of Seir in the land of Edom.

Now we have a description of the original inhabitants of the land, the sons of Seir the Horite, first mentioned in Genesis 14:6.  Anah is listed as a son, but I believe he is the son of Zibeon as discovered above, but just as grandsons of Esau were called sons, all these are descendant sons of Seir, and also called dukes. 

(22) And the children of Lotan were Hori and Hemam; and Lotan's sister was Timna.

Seir's son Lotan's children are mentioned, probably to show the relationship of Timna, who became Eliphaz's concubine, and mother of his son Amalek, and possibly another son known by Timna or Korah.

(23) And the children of Shobal were these: Alvan, Manahath, Ebal, Shepho, and Onam.

The sons of Shobal, the second son of Seir, are listed.

(24) And these are the children of Zibeon: both Ajah and Anah; this was the Anah who found the mules in the wilderness, as he fed the donkeys of Zibeon his father.

The third son of Seir is Zibeon and his sons are listed, including Anah, who was listed as the fourth "son" of Seir.  Anah is described to the reader who would know the story, although we have not been privy to it.  There is no consensus among historians as to what this story might be.  Some believe that Anah may have discovered breeding horses with donkeys produced mules, but I tend to believe the second story.  The word translated as "mules" is "yem" and also thought to mean "warm or hot springs", so he probably discovered hot springs.  In fact, the meaning is uncertain, as it is used only one time in all of scripture.  Readers of the day may have known what this Anah was famous for, but we just have to take their word for it.  It could be this Anah was being described to distinguish him from another Anah, and therein lies the problem of trying to decipher who all these people are who are only mentioned once or twice.   

(25) And the children of Anah were these: Dishon, and Aholibamah the daughter of Anah.

It appears this Dishon was named after his uncle who was mentioned in verse 21 as a son of Seir.  I suppose it's possible we also have an Anah named after his uncle Anah, and maybe Zibeon is a brother to one and a father to another.  Whew!  It's easy to get bogged down in the "weeds".  I believe the true intent of mentioning this genealogy of Seir and the original inhabitants of the land is to show how the Edomites married into this group of people.  Timna, Esau's son Eliphaz's concubine and the mother of Eliphaz's son Amalek, was a descendant of Seir, as was Aholibamah, who became Esau's wife.

(26) And these are the children of Dishon: Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran, and Cheran.

This appears to go back to the uncle Dishon, the son of Seir, and names his children.

(27) The children of Ezer are these: Bilhan, Zaavan, and Akan. (28) The children of Dishan are these: Uz and Aran.

The children of the last two sons of Seir are listed, none particularly noteworthy except perhaps Uz, for whom the land of Uz may have been named.

(29) These are the dukes of the Horites: duke Lotan, duke Shobal, duke Zibeon, duke Anah, (30) Duke Dishon, duke Ezer, and duke Dishan; these are the dukes of Hori, among their dukes in the land of Seir.

All the sons of Seir are listed as dukes.  Hori was Lotan's son and Seir's grandson.  It would seem the Horites were called so after him, in the land of Seir, the original inhabitant of the land.

(31) And these are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom, before there reigned any king over the children of Israel.

Next we begin a list of kings who reigned in the land that would become known as the land of Edom, called so after Esau.  It is unclear whether these are kings who reigned before, during, or after the time it became known as Edom.  There are scholars who believe the dukes of Esau rose up to take over from the kings.  There are others, as I found when I read these accounts in 1 Chronicles 1 below, who believe these kings came from Esau.  I honestly do not know, nor can I tell from scripture, but obviously the Edomites came to power and had some dominion, as was prophesied by Isaac to his Esau in Genesis 27.  There has been much discussion among Biblical scholars as to how Moses, who supposedly wrote the first five books of the Bible, could have mentioned any possibility that there would ever be a king over Israel when they had no king in his lifetime.  I see no problem with this as Moses evidently wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.  There are many prophetic pictures of the coming Christ found in these books written by him.

(32) And Bela the son of Beor reigned in Edom, and the name of his city was Dinhabah. (33) And Bela died, and Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his place. (34) And Jobab died, and Husham of the land of Temani reigned in his place.

A succession of kings is begun, but I don't see any noteworthy names, except perhaps that the land of Temani may be so-called after Teman, the son of Eliphaz (Esau's son) above.  If that is so, then it does seem there is an influence of the family of Esau during the reign of kings in the land.

(35) And Husham died, and Hadad the son of Bedad, who attacked Midian in the field of Moab, reigned in his place; and the name of his city was Avith.

Again we have an aside, a description of this Bedad that the original reader would have known, but one of someone of whom we have not been made aware.  It is possible that the Midian he attacked was Abraham's son by Keturah, and that would have been noteworthy to the early reader.

(36) And Hadad died, and Samlah of Masrekah reigned in his place. (37) And Samlah died, and Saul of Rehoboth by the river reigned in his place. (38) And Saul died, and Baal-Hanan the son of Achbor reigned in his place.

The succession of kings who reigned in the land of Edom continues with no especially noteworthy names.

(39) And Baal-Hanan the son of Achbor died, and Hadar reigned in his place; and the name of his city was Pau; and his wife's name was Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Mezahab.

Hadar appears to be the last of the kings in this land.  His wife seems to be a person of note because of the particular mention of her and her ancestors, but once again, we present-day readers don't really know who she is.  Dr. John Gill supposes that this monarchy was put to an end "by the united familes of Seir and Esau, and changed into dukedoms; of which there were seven of the race of Seir, and fourteen of the race of Esau, of whom an account is given in the preceding part of this chapter..."  I say "supposes" because I haven't found any other historical evidence for his assertion.  The other early commentaries I study are silent on this.

(40) And these are the names of the dukes that came of Esau, according to their families, after their places, by their names: duke Timnah, duke Alvah, duke Jetheth,

Dr. Gill continues his thought that after the monarchy ceased, the government in Edom was by dukes partly by the race of Seir and partly by the race of Esau.  He points out that neither Esau nor the sons of his first two wives are called dukes, only his sons by his last wife and his grandsons, which seems to show that the dukedoms were not immediate in the land, but may have occurred later when an end was put to the monarchy by "the joint influence of Seir and Esau".

I now turn to Keil and Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament which points out that "the names which follow are not a second list of Edomitish tribe-princes (viz., of those who continued the ancient constitution, with its hereditary aristocracy, after Hadar's death), but merely relate to the capital cities of the old phylarchs, is evident from the expression in the heading, 'After their places, by their names,' as compared with Gen 36:43, 'According to their habitations in the land of their possession.'"  In this statement, I don't know if this commentary is refuting the idea set forth by Dr. Gill or not.  K & D continues that since that is the intention of the list, it should come to no surprise that only two names in this list correspond to those given in Genesis 36:15-19.  "This proves nothing more than that only two of the capitals received their names from the princes who captured or founded them, viz., Timnah and Kenaz."  (Actually, I personally thought Teman was one, too, mentioned in verse 42 with Kenaz.)  I am relieved to know I don't have to research where all the these new dukes came from!  If I am interpreting this correctly, we formerly already read a list of some of the dukes that came initially from Esau's sons and grandsons, and now we have more who have names of cities corresponding to their names that have perhaps sprung up since the beginning of the dukedoms of Esau.  Perhaps we are being shown how the Edomites grew in the region.  I have to say I feel like I have spent a long time trapped in the weeds in this study by names that really don't have any more significance in the Bible.  It was important to the early reader and it is significant in that out of Esau grew a mighty people.  The lists of dukes from Esau continues:

(41) Duke Aholibamah, duke Elah, duke Pinon,

As there appeared to be a son of Eliphaz, Esau's son, known by his mother's name, Timna, there appears to be a son known as Aholibamah, and evidently a place also known by that name.

(42) Duke Kenaz, duke Teman, duke Mibzar, (43) Duke Magdiel, duke Iram; these are the dukes of Edom, according to their dwelling places in the land of their possession; Esau is the father of the Edomites.

It is important to note that as the posterity of Esau grew, his descendants came to take possession of the land of Seir.  In verses 6-8 above, Esau first went to Mount Seir, and by the time this chapter ended, many dukes have come from the line of Esau and they possess the land formerly held by Seir and a line of kings.

As this is a chronological Bible study, my reading now turns to 1 Chronicles 1:35 where the genealogy of Esau is recapped:

(1 Chronicles 1:35) The sons of Esau were Eliphaz, Reuel, Jeush, Jaalam, and Korah. (36) The sons of Eliphaz were Teman, Omar, Zephi, Gatam, and Kenaz; and Timna and Amalek. (37) The sons of Reuel were Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah. (38) And the sons of Seir were Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan.

I find it interesting that in this genealogy in 1 Chronicles 1, which is a genealogy starting with Adam, that Seir is introduced in it along with Esau.  Seir was not of the race of Esau, but as Esau's family married into his, and Esau's descendants eventually overtook his land, I suppose he has an important role in the line of Esau.

(39) And the sons of Lotan were Hori and Homam; and Timna was Lotan's sister. (40) The sons of Shobal were Alian, Manahath, Ebal, Shephi, and Onam. And the sons of Zibeon were Ajah and Anah.

Alian was written as Alvan before.  The original name appears to be the same:  Alvan or Alyan, originally meaning "tall".

(41) The son of Anah was Dishon. And the sons of Dishon were Amram, Eshban, Ithran, and Cheran.

Amram appears to be the same as Hemdan in Genesis 36:26.  The original name was either "Chemdan" or "Chamran", probably depending on the handwriting on the particular early manuscript first read.

(42) The sons of Ezer were Bilhan, Zaavan, and Jaakan. The sons of Dishan were Uz and Aran. (43) Now these are the kings who 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;

Again I find it peculiar that a list of kings who reigned before and/or during the time the Edomites were growing and taking possession of the land, would be included in a genealogy that started with Adam and concluded with the families of the sons of Isaac.  The 1599 Geneva Bible Translation Notes supposes that these are kings who came from Esau, and although I was not sure about that when I was studying Esau's descendants in Genesis 36, it certainly does seem to fit now that they are included in a genealogy along with a description of Esau's descendants.  As I have supposed all along, at the very least, these genealogies of Esau show how his power and dominion grew, and show how he intermarried with the original inhabitants of the land.

(44) And when Bela was dead, Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his place; (45) And when Jobab was dead, Husham of the land of the Temanites reigned in his place; (46) And when Husham was dead, Hadad the son of Bedad, who attacked Midian in the field of Moab, reigned in his place, and the name of his city was Avith. (47) And when Hadad was dead, Samlah of Masrekah reigned in his place. (48) And when Samlah was dead, Shaul of Rehoboth by the river reigned in his place. (49) And when Shaul was dead, Baal-Hanan the son of Achbor reigned in his place. (50) And when Baal-Hanan was dead, Hadad reigned in his place; and the name of his city was Pai; and his wife's name was Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Mezahab.

The list of kings continues pretty much as it did in Genesis 36, with a few variations in spellings.

(51) Hadad died also. And the dukes of Edom were duke Timnah, duke Aliah, duke Jetheth,

"Hadad died also."  Then begins a list of the dukes of Edom.  This makes it sound as if the monarchy ended and then the dukedoms of Edom began.  As I've said before, whether they are part of Esau's descendants or not, they played a part in making Edom what it was, and that is about as much as I am going to get out of this study! 

(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.

As I am happy to be finished with this cumbersome genealogy, I will reflect on the fact that genealogies were important in Biblical times.  All these descendants of Esau could trace their lineage back to Abraham, and that was of utmost importance to the people back then, as that made them a part of the blessings and promises that God made to Abraham and his descendants.