1 Chronicles 5:18-26

7. THE DESCENDANTS OF REUBEN, GAD, AND MANASSEH, WAR BEYOND THE JORDAN (1 Chronicles 5:18-26)

TEXT

1 Chronicles 5:18. The sons of Reuben, and the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, of valiant men, men able to bear buckler and sword, and to shoot with bow, and skillful in war, were forty and four thousand seven hundred and threescore, that were able to go forth to war. 19. And they made war with the Hagrites, with Jetur, and Naphish, and Nodab. 20. And they were helped against them, and the Hagrites were delivered into their hand, and all that were with them; for they cried to God in the battle, and he was entreated of them, because they put their trust in him. 21. And they took away their cattle; of their camels fifty thousand, and of sheep two hundred and fifty thousand, and of asses two thousand, and of men a hundred thousand. 22. For there fell many slain, because the war was of God. And they dwelt in their stead until the captivity. 23. And the children of the half-tribe of Manasseh dwelt in the land: they increased from Bashan unto Baal-hermon and Senir and Mount Hermon. 24. And these were the heads of their fathers-' houses: even Epher, and Ishi, and Eliel, and Azriel, and Jeremiah, and Hodaviah, and Jahdiel, mighty men of valor, famous men, heads of their fathers-' houses. 25. And they trespassed against the God of their fathers, and played the harlot after the gods of the peoples of the land, whom God destroyed before them. 26. And the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria, and the spirit of Tilgath-pilneser king of Assyria, and he carried them away, even the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, and brought them unto Halah, and Habor, and Hara, and to the river of Gozan, unto this day.

PARAPHRASE

1 Chronicles 5:18. There were 44,760 armed, trained, and brave troops in the army of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh. 19. They declared war on the Hagrites, the Jeturites, the Naphishites, and the Nodabites. 20. They cried out to God to help them, and he did, for they trusted in him. So the Hagrites and all their allies were defeated. 21. The booty included 50,000 camels, 250,000 sheep, 2,000 donkeys, and 100,000 captives. 22. A great number of the enemy also died in the battle, for God was fighting against them. So the Reubenites lived in the territory of the Hagrites until the time of the Exile. 23. The half-tribe of Manasseh spread through the land from Bashan to Baal-hermon, Senir, and Mount Hermon. They too were very numerous. 24. The chiefs of their clans were the following: Epher, Ishi, Eliel, Azri-el, Jeremiah, Hodaviah, Jahdi-el. Each of these men had a great reputation as a warrior and leader. 25. But they were not true to the God of their fathers; instead they worshiped the idols of the people whom God had destroyed. 26. So God caused King Pul of Assyria (also known as Tilgath-pilneser III) to invade the land and deport the men of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh. They took them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the Gozan River, where they remain to this day.

COMMENTARY

There is no indication here as to just when Reuben, Gad and Manasseh went to war against the Hagrites and their allies. It is of interest to note that in Joshua's day when they sent warriors to help conquer Canaan; they sent 40,000 men (Joshua 4:12-13). In this later day they are able to muster 44,760 men. The Hagrites had been named in 1 Chronicles 5:10. Nothing more is known about Nodab. Jetur and Naphish are named in Genesis 25:15 among Ishmael's people. The name Jetur is preserved in the name Ituraea (Luke 3:1). The Ituraeans were notorious warriors. As in all other military conflicts in which Israel's cause was righteous and in which she trusted in Jehovah, God gave victory to the transjordanic Hebrew tribes in this conflict. That it was a significant event is evident from the tremendous amount of prey taken. The chronicler is concerned that the reader understand that Jehovah gave the victorythe war was of God. The land once owned by desert tribes is now possessed by the tribes of Israel. A part of the tribe of Manasseh settled the Bashan country east of the Sea of Chinnereth. Baal-hermon, Senir, and Mount Hermon all refer to the same area in the north-east corner of Palestine. The descendants of Manasseh (1 Chronicles 5:24) are named only here. They were men of war, as was Machir, Manasseh's son. An often used phrase, played the harlot, is employed here to describe the idolatry of these Hebrew tribes. Jehovah's response to this breach of the covenant is to send Pul, Tilgath-pilneser, of Assyria, to over-run and deport the transjordanic tribes. This took place about 722-21 B.C. These Israelites beyond the Jordan to the east joined their brethren from Samaria and Israel west of the Jordan in the captivity (2 Kings 17:6). They were scattered in the regions of the upper Euphrates river. Hara probably is the same as Haran in Mesopotamia.