1 Chronicles 4:!

1 Chronicles 4:1 says, The sons of Judah; Pharez, Hezron, and Carmi, and Hur, and Shobal.  Matthew Henry gives Ezra credit for listing the descendants of Judah, since they lasted longer than the rest of Israel in the Promised Land and were the ones to return out of captivity while the others were lost in the kingdom of Babylon.  We should hope that as followers of Christ, we would never lose our obedience to Him, but if we do that we would be the first to return to Him and not be lost to the world of sin.  Of course, if we are truly saved by faith in Jesus Christ, we will never be spiritually lost forever.  Verse two adds, And Reaiah the son of Shobal begat Jahath; and Jahath begat Ahumai, and Lahad. These are the families of the Zorathites. Verse three continues, And these were of the father of Etam; Jezreel, and Ishma, and Idbash: and the name of their sister was Hazelelponi:  Verse four concludes, And Penuel the father of Gedor, and Ezer the father of Hushah. These are the sons of Hur, the firstborn of Ephratah, the father of Bethlehem.  We are told that these are the sons of Hur, the firstborn of Ephratah, and his descendants, and that he was the father, or establisher, of Bethlehem.  Verse five states, And Ashur the father of Tekoa had two wives, Helah and Naarah.  Once more, we have one of the men of Israel having more than one wife.  This seemed quite common in the Old Testament, though it was never God's plan, and was even in opposition to His plan.  We cannot justify going against God's commandments just because everyone else may be doing it.  Verse six adds, And Naarah bare him Ahuzam, and Hepher, and Temeni, and Haahashtari. These were the sons of Naarah.  First, we are told the sons of Ashur with Naarah.  Verse seven continues, And the sons of Helah were, Zereth, and Jezoar, and Ethnan.  Then, we have the sons of Ashur and Helah listed.  We really aren't told which one he married first.  Verse eight concludes, And Coz begat Anub, and Zobebah, and the families of Aharhel the son of Harum.  Verse nine says, And Jabez was more honourable than his brethren: and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, Because I bare him with sorrow.  Matthew Henry points out that we are not told the name of the father of Jabez, but are told that he was more honorable than his brethren.  Again, I will say that who our parents are is unimportant in our relationship to Jesus Christ, but once we accept Him as our Savior and Lord, we need to be known as honorable men and women.  Verse ten adds, And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that thine hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me! And God granted him that which he requested.  We hear a lot about the prayer of Jabez, usually to promote asking God for more in life, but I believe the key to his prayer is asking that God be with him and keep him committed to God to keep him from doing evil things.  Material things would just pass away, but his relationship with God will last forever, as will ours.

1 Chronicles 3:10

 1 Chronicles 3:10 says, And Solomon's son was Rehoboam, Abia his son, Asa his son, Jehoshaphat his son,  The next few verses list the descendants of Solomon, which makes them also David's descendants, and a part of God's people through whom He was going to bring everlasting salvation.  As Christians, we are also a part of that family.  The crown passed through seventeen descendants of David, starting with Solomon. Verse eleven adds, Joram his son, Ahaziah his son, Joash his son,  Verse twelve continues, Amaziah his son, Azariah his son, Jotham his son,  Verse thirteen states, Ahaz his son, Hezekiah his son, Manasseh his son,  Verse fourteen adds, Amon his son, Josiah his son.  Verse fifteen continues, And the sons of Josiah were, the firstborn Johanan, the second Jehoiakim, the third Zedekiah, the fourth Shallum.  Verse sixteen says, And the sons of Jehoiakim: Jeconiah his son, Zedekiah his son.  Verse seventeen adds, And the sons of Jeconiah; Assir, Salathiel his son,  Verse eighteen continues, Malchiram also, and Pedaiah, and Shenazar, Jecamiah, Hoshama, and Nedabiah.  Verse nineteen says, And the sons of Pedaiah were, Zerubbabel, and Shimei: and the sons of Zerubbabel; Meshullam, and Hananiah, and Shelomith their sister:  In this verse we are given the name of one of the female descendants.  The fact that most are not listed does not mean that they are less important to God.  Jesus Christ died for all, both male and female, and we are all equally important to Him. Verse twenty adds, And Hashubah, and Ohel, and Berechiah, and Hasadiah, Jushabhesed, five.  Verse twenty-one continues, And the sons of Hananiah; Pelatiah, and Jesaiah: the sons of Rephaiah, the sons of Arnan, the sons of Obadiah, the sons of Shechaniah.  Verse twenty-two states, And the sons of Shechaniah; Shemaiah: and the sons of Shemaiah; Hattush, and Igeal, and Bariah, and Neariah, and Shaphat, six.  Verse twenty-three adds, And the sons of Neariah; Elioenai, and Hezekiah, and Azrikam, three.  Verse twenty-four continues, And the sons of Elioenai were, Hodaiah, and Eliashib, and Pelaiah, and Akkub, and Johanan, and Dalaiah, and Anani, seven.  Solomon had many descendants, but not all were king and part of the lineage of Christ, just as all people today are God's people by fact of their birth, but not all are a part of His spiritual family, which comes by rebirth individually through putting their faith in Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and Lord.

1 Chronicles 3:1

1 Chronicles 3:1 says, Now these were the sons of David, which were born unto him in Hebron; the firstborn Amnon, of Ahinoam the Jezreelitess; the second Daniel, of Abigail the Carmelitess:  The next few verses list the sons of David and their mothers.  Even though he was called a man after God's own heart, David certainly didn't follow God's law about marriage.  Verse two adds, The third, Absalom the son of Maachah the daughter of Talmai king of Geshur: the fourth, Adonijah the son of Haggith:  Absalom would certainly give David a lot of problems, but David didn't stop loving him.  Even if we are followers of Christ, our children may give us a lot of problems, but we should never stop loving them.  Verse three continues, The fifth, Shephatiah of Abital: the sixth, Ithream by Eglah his wife.  Verse four states, These six were born unto him in Hebron; and there he reigned seven years and six months: and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty and three years.  His first six children were born in Hebron, where he had reigned for seven and a half years.  Then, he relocated to Jerusalem, where he reigned for thirty-three years, and his other children were born there.   Verse five adds, And these were born unto him in Jerusalem; Shimea, and Shobab, and Nathan, and Solomon, four, of Bathshua the daughter of Ammiel:  Bathsheba is called Bathshua here, and although born tenth, Solomon would follow David as king, Matthew Henry said more because of David preference than because of any great ability Solomon had, because he didn't ask for wisdom until after he became king.  Verse six continues, Ibhar also, and Elishama, and Eliphelet,  Verse seven says, And Nogah, and Nepheg, and Japhia,  Verse eight adds, And Elishama, and Eliada, and Eliphelet, nine.  Verse nine continues, These were all the sons of David, beside the sons of the concubines, and Tamar their sister.  Matthew Henry points out besides these sons, David had more by concubines, but they weren't listed because his concubines had acted treacherously toward him when Absalom had rebelled, but that still wasn't the fault of the children.  Even if someone we have a child by acts terrible to us, that still does not mean that we should not claim the child and love them, even if it causes us problems in life. 

1 Chrnicles 2:42

1 Chronicles 2:42 says, Now the sons of Caleb the brother of Jerahmeel were, Mesha his firstborn, which was the father of Ziph; and the sons of Mareshah the father of Hebron.  This not Caleb who was the good spy as far as I can find out, since they have different fathers listed, but we are still moving forward through the history of Israel. though.  Verse forty-three adds, And the sons of Hebron; Korah, and Tappuah, and Rekem, and Shema.  Hebron would have been Caleb's grandson, and the other four his great-grandsons. Verse forty-five continues, And Shema begat Raham, the father of Jorkoam: and Rekem begat Shammai.  Then, we continue with further generations of the descendants of Caleb.  Verse forty-five concludes, And the son of Shammai was Maon: and Maon was the father of Bethzur.  Verse forty-six states, And Ephah, Caleb's concubine, bare Haran, and Moza, and Gazez: and Haran begat Gazez.   We have the children of Ephah included next, even though she was called his concubine not his wife.  Still, they were just as much Caleb's children as the others were.  Of course, the fact that he had a concubine was not in accordance with Gods' word.  If a man has a child with a woman other than his wife, this is not God's plan, but he is still just as much a father to this child, or these children if he has more than one, and is just as responsible for them.  Verse forty-seven adds, And the sons of Jahdai; Regem, and Jotham, and Gesham, and Pelet, and Ephah, and Shaaph.  This was another wife or concubine and her children.  Verse forty-eight continues, Maachah, Caleb's concubine, bare Sheber, and Tirhanah.  Then, still another concubine and her children.  Verse forty-nine concludes, She bare also Shaaph the father of Madmannah, Sheva the father of Machbenah, and the father of Gibea: and the daughter of Caleb was Achsa.  Verse fifty says, These were the sons of Caleb the son of Hur, the firstborn of Ephratah; Shobal the father of Kirjathjearim.  The last few verses of the chapter list the sons of Caleb, here called the son of Hur, once again, listing them not as fathers of children but of areas of the country.  Verse fifty-one adds, Salma the father of Bethlehem, Hareph the father of Bethgader.  Verse fifty-two continues, And Shobal the father of Kirjathjearim had sons; Haroeh, and half of the Manahethites.  Verse fifty-three says, And the families of Kirjathjearim; the Ithrites, and the Puhites, and the Shumathites, and the Mishraites; of them came the Zareathites, and the Eshtaulites,  Verse fifty-four adds,The sons of Salma; Bethlehem, and the Netophathites, Ataroth, the house of Joab, and half of the Manahethites, the Zorites.  Verse fifty-five continues, And the families of the scribes which dwelt at Jabez; the Tirathites, the Shimeathites, and Suchathites. These are the Kenites that came of Hemath, the father of the house of Rechab.  I will state once more that today it doesn't matter who our parents are as Christians, only Who our Heavenly Father is through our relationship with Jesus Christ. As followers of Christ, no matter what country we are from, we are spiritually brothers and sisters. 

1 Chronicles 2:25

1 Chronicles 2:25 says. And the sons of Jerahmeel the firstborn of Hezron were, Ram the firstborn, and Bunah, and Oren, and Ozem, and Ahijah.  These next few verses tell us about the children and grandchildren and more of Hezron, starting with Jerahmeel, as we continue to move forward in the history of Israel.  Verse twenty-six adds, Jerahmeel had also another wife, whose name was Atarah; she was the mother of Onam.  Jerahmeel had at least two wives, which as I have stated before is never in accordance with God's law.  Verse twenty-seven continues, And the sons of Ram the firstborn of Jerahmeel were, Maaz, and Jamin, and Eker.  Verse twenty-eight states, And the sons of Onam were, Shammai, and Jada. And the sons of Shammai; Nadab and Abishur.  Verse twenty-nine adds, And the name of the wife of Abishur was Abihail, and she bare him Ahban, and Molid.  Verse twenty-nine continues, And the sons of Nadab; Seled, and Appaim: but Seled died without children.  Matthew Henry points out that Seled had no children, so being childless is not something new.  Sometimes, for whatever reason, God just does not bless a couple with children, but that doesn't mean we are to try to have them with someone other than our spouse.  Verse thirty-one says, And the sons of Appaim; Ishi. And the sons of Ishi; Sheshan. And the children of Sheshan; Ahlai.  We are several generations into the descendants of Jerahmeel by now.  Verse thirty-two adds, And the sons of Jada the brother of Shammai; Jether, and Jonathan: and Jether died without children.  Here is another person, Jether, who died without children.  I will say that as Christians, we will all die without spiritual children, since we all become brothers and sisters in Christ.  Verse thirty-three continues, And the sons of Jonathan; Peleth, and Zaza. These were the sons of Jerahmeel.  Verse thirty-four states, Now Sheshan had no sons, but daughters. And Sheshan had a servant, an Egyptian, whose name was Jarha.  Verse thirty-five adds, And Sheshan gave his daughter to Jarha his servant to wife; and she bare him Attai.  Sheshan had no sons, only daughters, and instead of marrying them to one of his fellow Israelites, he married one to an Egyptian, who was his servant, Jahra.  Arranged marriages were common then and still are in some countries and cultures today, but even then, God's people should marry God's people.  Matthew Henry says that Jarha, the Egyptian, was likely a convert to Judaism. We are to reach out to everyone with the gospel, and they may become a part of God's kingdom, but Christians really aren't supposed to marry them until they do.  Verse thirty-six continues, And Attai begat Nathan, and Nathan begat Zabad,  Verse thirty-seven states, And Zabad begat Ephlal, and Ephlal begat Obed,  Verse thirty-eight says, And Obed begat Jehu, and Jehu begat Azariah,  Verse thirty-nine adds, And Azariah begat Helez, and Helez begat Eleasah,  Verse forty-continues, And Eleasah begat Sisamai, and Sisamai begat Shallum,  Verse forty-one concludes, And Shallum begat Jekamiah, and Jekamiah begat Elishama.

1 Chronicles 2:13

1 Chronicles 2:13 says, And Jesse begat his firstborn Eliab, and Abinadab the second, and Shimma the third,  These next few verses are a record of the sons of Jesse, of whom David was one, but not the firstborn.  Usually, the firstborn had the place of prominence in the family.  Our physical birth order in not what is important, but our rebirth into the family of God and faithfulness to Him is what does matter.  Verse fourteen adds, Nethaneel the fourth, Raddai the fifth, Verse fifteen continues, Ozem the sixth, David the seventh:  David was actually the seventh born son of Jesse, but he was the one that God chose to work through.  Verse sixteen states, Whose sisters were Zeruiah, and Abigail. And the sons of Zeruiah; Abishai, and Joab, and Asahel, three.  These three would play a prominent role in Israel. We now have the record two sisters and their children.  The second, Abigail.  Verse seventeen adds, And Abigail bare Amasa: and the father of Amasa was Jether the Ishmeelite. Verse eighteen says, And Caleb the son of Hezron begat children of Azubah his wife, and of Jerioth: her sons are these; Jesher, and Shobab, and Ardon.  Next, we have the descendants of Caleb listed.  Verse nineteen adds, And when Azubah was dead, Caleb took unto him Ephrath, which bare him Hur.  After the death of Azubah, Caleb married Ephrath, and they had a son named Hur.  Verse twenty continues, And Hur begat Uri, and Uri begat Bezaleel.  We are then given the names of the grandchildren and great-grandchildren of Caleb.  Verse twenty-one states, And afterward Hezron went in to the daughter of Machir the father of Gilead, whom he married when he was threescore years old; and she bare him Segub.  We then return to Hezron, who married the daughter of Machir, who was also Gilead's father.  He was sixty years old at the time and she and he had a son named Segub.  We are not told her name.  It seems that sometimes in the Old Testament that women weren't as important as men, but we know that to God they are equally important.  Verse twenty-two adds, And Segub begat Jair, who had three and twenty cities in the land of Gilead.  We are told that Jair had twenty-three cities in the land of Gilead, so he would have been a fairly strong leader.  Verse twenty-three continues, 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.  Verse twenty-four concludes, And after that Hezron was dead in Calebephratah, then Abiah Hezron's wife bare him Ashur the father of Tekoa.  After his death, Hezron still had another son named Ashur, the father of Tekoa.  His lineage increased even after his death, and our reaching of people for Christ might continue even after we die if we have left a good legacy.  Still, for the most part, it is what we do in this lifetime that will reach people for Jesus Christ or turn them away from Him, which we never want to be the cause of. 

1 Chronicles 2:1

1 Chronicles 2:1 says, These are the sons of Israel; Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun,  We now have a record of the birth of the sons of Israel, or Jacob, who would become the fathers of the twelve tribes of the nation of Israel.  These were God's Chosen People from the promise He made to Abraham.  We are God's chosen people by the promise made through Jesus Christ, if we put our faith in Him.  Verse two adds, Dan, Joseph, and Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.  Verse three continues, The sons of Judah; Er, and Onan, and Shelah: which three were born unto him of the daughter of Shua the Canaanitess. And Er, the firstborn of Judah, was evil in the sight of the Lord; and he slew him.  We now start to have a list of the children of Israel's children or his grandchildren but there are no grandchildren of Jesus Christ.  We cannot be saved because our parents were.  We have the added fact that Er, the first born of Judah, did evil in God's sight and God killed him.  God is the Creator and Sustainer of life, so if we become too evil, He may allow us to be killed, even if He doesn't directly cause our death. Verse four continues, And Tamar his daughter in law bore him Pharez and Zerah. All the sons of Judah were five.  Judah also had a son with his daughter-in-law, which really wasn't in accordance with God's will.  We cannot be successful Christians if we disobey God's laws.  Verse five states, The sons of Pharez; Hezron, and Hamul.  Pharez and Zerah were twin brothers.  Verse six adds, And the sons of Zerah; Zimri, and Ethan, and Heman, and Calcol, and Dara: five of them in all.  Verse seven continues, And the sons of Carmi; Achar, the troubler of Israel, who transgressed in the thing accursed.  Achar was called a troubler of Israel who transgressed in the thing accursed.  As Matthew Henry points out, even the best and most honorable families may have those belonging to them that are blemishes on the family name.  This would be Christian families who have those who refuse to follow God today.  Verse eight says, And the sons of Ethan; Azariah.  Verse nine adds, The sons also of Hezron, that were born unto him; Jerahmeel, and Ram, and Chelubai.  Verse ten continues, And Ram begat Amminadab; and Amminadab begat Nahshon, prince of the children of Judah;  Verse eleven states, And Nahshon begat Salma, and Salma begat Boaz,  Verse twelve adds, And Boaz begat Obed, and Obed begat Jesse,  We have now gotten to Jesse, the father of David.  We don't need to trace our ancestry back to any particular person to be a part of God's family but can only trace it back to our relationship with Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord in order to be a part of His family.