1 Chronicles 2:23

And he took Geshur, and Aram, with the towns of Jair, from them, with Kenath, and the towns thereof, even threescore cities. All these belonged to the sons of Machir the father of Gilead.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(23) And he took . . . of Gilead.—Rather, And Geshur and Aram took the Havoth-jair from them—Kenath and her daughters, sixty cities: all these (were) sons of Machir, chief of Gilead.

Geshur, and Aram.—That is, the Aramean state of Geshur, north-west of Bashan, near Hermon and the Jordan, which was an independent kingdom in the age of David (2Samuel 3:3). The Geshurites “took the tent-villages of Jair from them”—i.e., from the sons of Jair, or the Jairites, at what date is unknown. Comp. Deuteronomy 3:14-15, above cited.

With Kenath.—The Hebrew particle before “Kenath” may be either the sign of the object of the verb, or the preposition “with.” In the latter case, the statement of the verse will be that the twenty-three villages of Jair, together with the (thirty-seven) places called Kenath and her daughters, amounting in all to sixty towns, were taken by the Geshurites. See Numbers 32:41-42, where it is said that Jair occupied the Havoth-jair, and “Nobah went and took Kenath and her daughters, and called it Nobah after his own name.” Kenath is the modern Kanwat, on the western slope of Jebel Hauran.

It is difficult to reconcile all the different statements about the Havoth-jair. Judges 10:3-4, for example, speaks of Jair the Gileadite, who judged Israel twenty -two years, and “had thirty sons that rode on thirty ass colts,” and, moreover, possessed “thirty cities, which are called Havoth-jair unto this day.” Joshua 13:30 seems to make the Havoth-jair sixty towns. Comp. 1Kings 4:13; also 1Chronicles 2:21, where Hezron is sixty when he marries the Gileadite daughter of Machir.

Of course the number of places included in the “camps of Jair” may have varied at different epochs.

All these belonged to the sons of Machir.—Or, all these were sons of Machir—i.e., the clans and families that came of the union of Hezron with the daughter of ‘Machir. (See Note on 1Chronicles 2:21; and Joshua 19:34.)

Benson Commentary

1 Chronicles 2:23. All these belonged to the sons of Machir — Partly to his own sons, and partly to his son-in-law Jair, who by reason of that dear affection which was between them, and his forsaking his own tribe and kindred to fight for them, and to dwell with them, is here reckoned as his own son.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

2:1-55 Genealogies. - We are now come to the register of the children of Israel, that distinguished people, who were to dwell alone, and not be reckoned among the nations. But now, in Christ, all are welcome to his salvation who come to him; all have equal privileges according to their faith in him, their love and devotedness to him. All that is truly valuable consists in the favour, peace, and image of God, and a life spent to his glory, in promoting the welfare of our fellow-creatures.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Rather, "And Geshur and Aram (i. e. the Geshurites Deuteronomy 3:14 and Syrians) took the villages of Jair from them:" recovered, that is, from the new settlers the places which Jair had conquered.

All these belonged to the sons of Machir - Rather, "All these were sons of Machir," i. e. Segub and Jair, with their descendants, were reckoned sons of Machir, rather than sons of Hezron, although only descended from Machir on the mother's side. The reason of this seems to have been that they cast in their lot with the Manassites, and remained in their portion of the trans-Jordanic region.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

23. he took—rather "he had taken." This statement is accounting for his acquisition of so large a territory; he got it by right of conquest from the former possessors.

Kenath—This place, along with its group of surrounding villages, was gained by Nobah, one of Jair's officers sent by him to capture it (Nu 32:1, 2).

All these belonged to the sons of Machir—In their number Jair is included as having completely identified himself by his marriage and residence in Gilead with the tribe of Manasseh.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

And he took, or, for he had taken. So this is the reason why he had so great a territory and jurisdiction given to him.

Geshur and Aram; two cities or great towns so called.

With the towns of Jair, i.e. with those twenty-three cities which he is said to have, 1 Chronicles 2:22.

From them, i.e. from the former inhabitants, which is easily understood.

With Kenath; which was taken by Nobah, one of Jair’s commanders, sent by him to take it, as may be gathered from Numbers 32:41,42.

To the sons of Machir; partly to his own sons, and partly to his son-in-law Jair, who by reason of that dear affection which was betwixt them and his forsaking his own tribe and kindred to fight for them, and to dwell with them, is here reckoned as his own son.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And he took Geshur, and Aram, with the towns of Jair, from them,.... Cities or countries which the Geshurites and Aramaeans, or Syrians, before inhabited; and which he took from them, together with other towns, which, being taken by him, were called after his name; the Targum is, the Geshurites and Aramaeans took the villages of Jair from them; that is, from the sons of Jair in later times; see Joshua 12:5.

with Kenath, and the towns thereof; which Jair took by Nobah his general, and called it after his name, Numbers 32:42, even sixty cities; see Deuteronomy 3:4.

all these belonged to the sons of Machir the father of Gilead: being given him by Moses, Numbers 32:40.

Geneva Study Bible

And he took Geshur, and Aram, with the towns of Jair, {g} from them, with Kenath, and the towns thereof, even threescore cities. All these belonged to the sons of Machir the father of Gilead.

(g) That is, the Geshurites and Syrians took the towns from Jair's children.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

23. And he took Geshur, and Aram, with the towns] R.V. And Geshur and Aram took the towns. Geshur was a (probably Aramaean) kingdom E. of Jordan on the N.E. border of Manasseh. Aram, commonly translated “Syria” or “the Syrians” probably here signifies the kingdom of which Damascus was the capital. The conquest of Manassite territory by the Aramaeans (“Syrians”) here described probably took place before the days of Ahab, for in his reign they were already established as far south as Ramoth-gilead (1 Kings 22:3).

the towns of Jair] R.V. marg., Havvoth Jair. Cp. Deuteronomy 3:14; Jdg 10:4. The name perhaps means “the tent-villages of Jair,” (Arab. ḥǐvâ = “a collection of tents near together”).

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 23. - Geshur was a small district between Argob and Bashan; and Aram, commonly translated Syria, i.e. the ancient Syria, viz. the territory of Damascus. Kenath, rechristened by its subduer Nobah (Numbers 32:42), and retaining this name at the time of Gideon, and Zeba and Sahnunnah subsequently vindicated the life of its old name, and regained it, replaced in the present day by Kenawat. And the towns thereof; Hebrew literally, her daughters; i.e. the small, subordinate groups of people (Numbers 21:25, "All the villages thereof," literally, daughters). All these belonged to the sons of Machir, the father of Gilead, might perhaps be open to the translation, "All these were the possessions of Machir, the possessor of Gilead." 1 Chronicles 2:23

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

These cities named Jair's-life were taken away from the Jairites by Geshur and Aram, i.e., by the Arameans of Geshur and of other places. Geshur denotes the inhabitants of a district of Aram, or Syria, on the north-western frontier of Bashan, in the neighbourhood of Hermon, on the east side of the upper Jordan, which had still its own kings in the time of David (2 Samuel 3:3; 2 Samuel 13:37; 2 Samuel 14:23; 2 Samuel 15:8), but which had been assigned to the Manassites by Moses; cf. Joshua 13:13. The following וגו את־קנת must not be taken as an explanatory apposition to יאיר את־חוּת: "Jair's-life, Kenath and her daughters, sixty cities" (Berth.). For since מאתּם refers to the collective name Jair, Geshur and Aram could not take away from Jair sixty cities, for Jair only possessed twenty-three cities. But besides this, according to Numbers 32:42, Kenath with her daughters had been conquered by Nobah, who gave his own name to the conquered cities; and according to Deuteronomy 3:4, the kingdom of Og in Bashan had sixty fenced cities. But this kingdom was, according to Numbers 32:41, and Numbers 32:42, conquered by two families of Manasseh, by Jair and Nobah, and was divided between them; and as appears from our passage, twenty-three cities were bestowed upon Jair, and all the rest of the land, viz., Kenath with her daughters, fell to Nobah. These two domains together included sixty fenced cities, which in Deuteronomy 3:14 are called Jair's-life; while here, in our verse, only twenty-three cities are so called, and the remaining thirty-seven are comprehended under the name of Kenath had her daughters. WE must therefore either supply a w copul. before את־קנת, or we must take את־ק in the signification "with Kenath," and refer עיר שׁשּׁים to both Jair's-life and Kenath. Cf. herewith the discussion on Deuteronomy 3:12-14; and for Kenath, the ruins of which still exist under the name Kanuat on the western slope of the Jebel Hauran, see the remarks on Numbers 32:42. The time when these cities were taken away by the Arameans is not known. From Judges 10:4 we only learn that the Jair who was judge at a later time again had possession of thirty of these cities, and renewed the name Jair's-life. כּל־אלּה is not all these sixty cities, but the before-mentioned descendants of Hezron, who are called sons, that is offspring, of Machir, because they were begotten with the daughter of Machir. Only two names, it is true, Segub and Jair, are enumerated; but from these two issue the numerous families which took Jair's-life. To these, therefore, must we refer the כּל־אלּה.