1 Chronicles 5

1Now the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel, (for he was the firstborn; but, forasmuch as he defiled his father’s bed, his birthright was given unto the sons of Joseph the son of Israel: and the genealogy is not to be reckoned after the birthright.

2For Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him came the chief ruler; but the birthright was Joseph’s:)footnote a

3The sons, I say, of Reuben the firstborn of Israel were, Hanoch, and Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi.

4The sons of Joel; Shemaiah his son, Gog his son, Shimei his son,

5Micah his son, Reaia his son, Baal his son,

6Beerah his son, whom Tilgath-pilneser king of Assyria carried away captive: he was prince of the Reubenites.footnote b

7And his brethren by their families, when the genealogy of their generations was reckoned, were the chief, Jeiel, and Zechariah,

8And Bela the son of Azaz, the son of Shema, the son of Joel, who dwelt in Aroer, even unto Nebo and Baal-meon:footnote c

9And eastward he inhabited unto the entering in of the wilderness from the river Euphrates: because their cattle were multiplied in the land of Gilead.

10And in the days of Saul they made war with the Hagarites, who fell by their hand: and they dwelt in their tents throughout all the east land of Gilead.footnote d

11And the children of Gad dwelt over against them, in the land of Bashan unto Salchah:

12Joel the chief, and Shapham the next, and Jaanai, and Shaphat in Bashan.

13And their brethren of the house of their fathers were, Michael, and Meshullam, and Sheba, and Jorai, and Jachan, and Zia, and Heber, seven.

14These are the children of Abihail the son of Huri, the son of Jaroah, the son of Gilead, the son of Michael, the son of Jeshishai, the son of Jahdo, the son of Buz;

15Ahi the son of Abdiel, the son of Guni, chief of the house of their fathers.

16And they dwelt in Gilead in Bashan, and in her towns, and in all the suburbs of Sharon, upon their borders.footnote e

17All these were reckoned by genealogies in the days of Jotham king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam king of Israel.

18The sons of Reuben, and the Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh, of valiant men, men able to bear buckler and sword, and to shoot with bow, and skilful in war, were four and forty thousand seven hundred and threescore, that went out to the war.footnote f

19And they made war with the Hagarites, with Jetur, and Nephish, and Nodab.

20And they were helped against them, and the Hagarites were delivered into their hand, and all that were with them: for they cried to God in the battle, and he was intreated of them; because they put their trust in him.

21And 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 an hundred thousand.footnote gfootnote h

22For there fell down many slain, because the war was of God. And they dwelt in their steads until the captivity.

23And the children of the half tribe of Manasseh dwelt in the land: they increased from Bashan unto Baal-hermon and Senir, and unto mount Hermon.

24And these were the heads of the house of their fathers, even Epher, and Ishi, and Eliel, and Azriel, and Jeremiah, and Hodaviah, and Jahdiel, mighty men of valour, famous men, and heads of the house of their fathers.footnote i

25And they transgressed against the God of their fathers, and went a whoring after the gods of the people of the land, whom God destroyed before them.

26And 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 Gozan, unto this day.

The Descendants of Reuben

1These were the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel. Though he was the firstborn, his birthright was given to the sons of Joseph son of Israel, because Reuben defiled his father’s bed. So he is not reckoned according to birthright. 2And though Judah prevailed over his brothers and a ruler came from him, the birthright belonged to Joseph. 3The sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel:Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi.

4The descendants of Joel:
Shemaiah his son, Gog his son, Shimei his son, 5Micah his son, Reaiah his son, Baal his son, 6and Beerah his son, whom Tiglath-pileserfootnote a king of Assyria carried into exile.
Beerah was a leader of the Reubenites. 7His relatives by their clans are recorded in their genealogy:
Jeiel the chief, Zechariah, 8and Bela son of Azaz, the son of Shema, the son of Joel. They settled in Aroer and as far as Nebo and Baal-meon. 9They also settled in the east as far as the edge of the desert that extends to the Euphrates River, because their livestock had increased in the land of Gilead.

10During the days of Saul they waged war against the Hagrites, who were defeated at their hands, and they occupied the dwellings of the Hagrites throughout the region east of Gilead.

The Descendants of Gad

11The descendants of Gad lived next to the Reubenites in the land of Bashan, as far as Salecah:

12Joel was the chief, Shapham the second, then Jaanai and Shaphat, who lived in Bashan.

13Their kinsmen by families were Michael, Meshullam, Sheba, Jorai, Jacan, Zia, and Eber—seven in all. 14These were the sons of Abihail son of Huri, the son of Jaroah, the son of Gilead, the son of Michael, the son of Jeshishai, the son of Jahdo, the son of Buz. 15Ahi son of Abdiel, the son of Guni, was head of their family.

16They lived in Gilead, in Bashan and its towns, and throughout the pasturelands of Sharon. 17All of them were recorded in the genealogies during the reigns of Jotham king of Judah and Jeroboam king of Israel.

18The Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh had 44,760 warriors—valiant men who carried the shield and sword, drew the bow, and were trained for battle. 19They waged war against the Hagrites, as well as Jetur, Naphish, and Nodab.

20And because they cried out to God in battle, they were helped against their enemies, and the Hagrites and all their allies were delivered into their hands. Because they put their trust in God, He answered their prayers. 21They seized the livestock of the Hagrites—50,000 camels, 250,000 sheep, and 2,000 donkeys. They also took 100,000 captives, 22and many others fell slain, because the battle belonged to God. And they occupied the land until the exile.

The Half-Tribe of Manasseh

23Now the people of the half-tribe of Manasseh were numerous. They settled in the land from Bashan to Baal-hermon (that is, Senir, also known as Mount Hermon).footnote b 24These were the heads of their families:
Epher, Ishi, Eliel, Azriel, Jeremiah, Hodaviah, and Jahdiel.
They were mighty men of valor, famous men, and heads of their families. 25But they were unfaithful to the God of their fathers, and they prostituted themselves with the gods of the peoples of the land, whom God had destroyed before them.

26So the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria (that is, Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria) to take the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh into exile. And he brought them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river of Gozan, where they remain to this day.