Numbers 26:38-41

The sons of Benjamin after their families: of Bela, the family of the Belaites: of Ashbel, the family of the Ashbelites: of Ahiram, the family of the Ahiramites:

The sons of Benjamin after their families - (see the note at Genesis 46:21).

Of Bela - or Belah (Genesis 46:21: cf. 1 Chronicles 7:6; 1 Chronicles 8:1) [Septuagint, Bale]. The Belaites comprised a list of several influential houses. The most distinguished person connected with them was Ehud. Becher, though not mentioned in this passage, stands in the other lists (Genesis 46:21; 1 Chronicles 7:6) as the second son of Benjamin; and so also in 1 Chronicles 8:1, by a slight, and it is thought proper, alteration of the present Hebrew text, extending no further than the shifting of a single letter from the end of one word to form the commencement of the following [thus-instead of uw-Binyaamin (H1144) howliyd (H3205) 'et (H854) Bela` (H1106) bªkorow (H1060) 'Ashbeel (H788), 'Benjamin begat Bela, his first-born, Ashbel, etc., substitute 'et (H854) Bela` (H1106) beeker (H1069) uw-'Ashbeel (H788), etc., Bela, Becher, and Ashbel] (see further the note at 1 Chronicles 8:1).

And in accounting for the fact that there is no family called after this second son of Benjamin, while in the list of Ephraim's descendants there appears a family of Bachrites, who took their name from Becher, an ingenious conjecture has been made-that owing to the massacre of the Ephraimite tribe by the men of Gath (1 Chronicles 7:21), which had destroyed a large proportion of the males, the daughters of Ephraim sought husbands in other tribes, and hence, Becher, or the head of his house, having married an Ephraimite heiress, relinquished his status in his native tribe of Benjamin, so that his name was thenceforth connected with that of his wife (Lord A. Hervey, author of the 'Genealogies,' etc., Smith's 'Dictionary,' art. 'Becher').

Ashbel - opinion of God. It is probable that he is the same who is called Jedrael (knowledge of God: 1 Chronicles 7:6).

Ahiram - or Ehi (Genesis 46:21), or Aharah (1 Chronicles 8:1) [Septuagint, Iachiran].

Verse 39. Shupham - Muppim (Genesis 46:21), or Shuppim (1 Chronicles 7:12), or Shephuphan (1 Chronicles 8:5). These brothers were great-grandsons of Benjamin (see the note at Genesis 46:21). Lord A. Hervey, however, thinks that Shupham was the son of Benjamin, as is here represented, but that his family were afterward reckoned with that of which Ir, the son of Bela, was chief (cf. 1 Chronicles 25:9; 1 Chronicles 26:8; Smith's 'Dictionary,' art. 'Muppim').

Hupham - or Huppim (Genesis 46:21; 1 Chronicles 7:12).

Verse 40. Ard - or Addar (1 Chronicles 8:3) [Septuagint, Adar].

Naaman - [Septuagint, Noeman] (see the note at 1 Chronicles 8:7).