The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 479

15, as compared with Numb. xx. 141 affords from history; and (4) this Hadad livetl and probnblo evidence. 3. As to the character reigned before Israel had any kings (vide of the Edomitish kings, it is apparent that it Hengstenberg, 'On the Genuineness of tho was not a hereditary monarchy, since in no Pentateuch,' vol. ii. dissert. 6 ; and cf. case docs the son succeed the father, but an Hiivernick's 'lntrod.,' § 20, and Keil in elective sovereignty, the kings being chosen loco). by the dukes, allufhim, or phylarchs (Keil, Ver. 86.-A.nd Hadad died, and Sam.lab- Hengstenberg, Kahsch, Gerlach), though the " Covering,'' "Garment," (Gesenius, Fiirst, idea of successive usurpations (Lange) is not Mnrphy)-of :M:asrekah-" Vineyard" (Ge- without a measure of probability. senius}-reigned in his stead. Ver. 32.-And :Bela the son of Beor (cf. Ver. 87 .-And Samlah died, and Saul- eh. xiv. 2, where Bela is the name for Zoar; " Asked" (Gesenins)--<>f Rehoboth by the and Numb. xxii. 5, where Balaam's father river-Rehoboth (literally, u:ide spaces) of is callc4 Beor, whence the LXX. has here the River is so called to distinguish it from BaXd,c) reigned in Edom (as the first sove- the Asshurite settlement of the same name reign): and the name of his city was Dinha- in eh. x. 11 (Rosenmiiller), though by some bah-" Concealment," or "Little Place" it is identified with Rehoboth Ir (Ainsworth). (Fi.irst); a place of plunder (Gesenius), the If the river spoken of be the Euphrates situation of which has not been identified. (Onkelos, Keil, Kalisch), then it is probably Ver. 33.-A.nd Bela died, and lobab- to be sought for in the Errachabi or Racha- probably meaning "Desert," or "Shout" beh near the mouth of the Chaboras (Keil), (Gesenius); identified with Job (LXX., though the river may be some small nahar Augustine, Ambrose)- an opinion which in Idumea (Lange), in which case the site Michaelis declares to bo insi,gnis error, nee will be uncertain-reigned in his stead. historicus solum, sed et grammaticus, Jobab Ver. 38.-And Saul died, and Baal-hanan being derived from the root :::i~:(vide 'Supp!.,' - " Lord of Benignity" (Gesenius)-the son p. 40) ; the name of a region of the J ok- of Achbor-" Mouse" (Gesenius)-reigned tanite Arabs (eh. x. 29)-the son of Zerah in his stead. (who may have been the duke Zerah men- Ver. 39.-And Baal-hanan the son of tioned in ver. 17; and is here described by Achbor died, and Hadar-Hadad (1 Chron. the territory over which he ruled as) of i. 60}-reigned in his stead: and the name :Sozrah-" Fort" (Gesenius) ; afterwards an of his city was l'au ;-Pai (1 Chron. i. 50) ; important city of the Edomites (Isa. xxxiv. "Bleating" (Gesenius), "Yawning" (Fiirst), 6 ; lxiii. 1 ; J er. xli.x. 13) ; still to be traced with which accords <l>oywp (LXX. )-and his in El-Busaireh, a village and castle in Arabia wife's name was Mebetabel,-" Whom God Petrren, about twenty-five miles south by benefits " ( Gesenius) - the daughter of east of the Dead Sea (Robinson, vol. ii. pp. Matred, - " Pushing " ( Gcsenius ) - the li70, 571 ; Gcsenius, 'Lex.,' p. 135 : Porter daughter of Mezabab--" Wntcr or GolJ." in Kitto's ' Cyclopedia. ')-reigned in his (Gesenius). That the death of this king, stead-literally, under him, i. e. in succes- which a later chronicler records (1 Chron. i. sion to him. 51), is not hero mentioned by the historian Ver. 34.-And J"obab died, and Husham- is commonly regarded (Rosenmlillcr, Haver- Hushai ; "Haste" (Gcscnius)-of the land nick, Hengstcnberg, Keil, Knlisch, et a/ii) of Temani (n. province in N orthem Idumen, llS a proof that he wo.s then alive, nnd tb.it with a city Teman which has not yet been in foct ho wo.s the king of Edom to whom discovered) reigned in his stead. Moses sent nmbnssadors requesting permission Ver. 35.-A.nd Husham died, and Hadad to pass through the land (Numb. xx. 14). - "Shouting," e. g. for joy (Gesenius); Vers. 40-43.-And these are the names ot whence "Conqueror" (Fiirst)-the son of the dukes thnt came of Esau, according to their J!edad, - " Separation " (Gesenius)- who families, after their places, by their names. emote Midian (vide eh. xxv. 2) in the field It is now generally ngrced that this nncl of Moab (vide eh. xix. 37), reigned in his the ensuing verses contain not 11 second list stead: and the name of his city was Avith of dukes who rose to power on tlJG overthrow -"Ruins" (Gesenius), "Twisting" (Mur- of the preceding. mon11rchica.l institutions phy), "Hut-Village I' (Fiirst). An attempt (Berthcnu, Ainsworth, Patrick), or a con- has been made (Bohlen) to identify this tinuation of the preceding list of dukes, which monarch with the Edomite of the same name had simply been intcIT11ptcd by n parenthesis who 1·ose against Solomon (1 Kings xi. 14) ; about the kings (Bush) ; but either o.n enu- but (1) this H11dad was not of royal blood, meration of the hereditary phylllrchs who while Solomon's contemporary WOJI ; (2) this were contemporaneous with Radar, and in o.ll Hadad w11s a king, while SolQmon's adver- probability formed. his council (Murpl1y), or B1Lry was only a pretender ; (3) this H11dad a territorial catalogue of the districts in which was n conqueror of the ?ilidi:i.nitcs, while in the original o.lluphim who sprang from Esnu Bol<,mon's time tho lllidianitcs had vanished (vcrs. 16-19) ,i::crciscd their soYcrciguty  424 Tll:B BOOK OF GF.m~SIS. [cu. XXX\'I. 1-xxxm. 1.