Genesis 36
The Descendants of Esau
1What follows is the account of Esau (also known as Edom).
Warning: This is a technical chapter for mature students only. However, there is a purpose for this chapter. The entire counsel of the Word of God must be studied so that the mind of God can be understood. These types of chapters also silence the skeptics who attempt to attack the historicity and archaeology of the Bible.
This is the toldoth of Esau, who was the rejected line of the Messiah. He is also known as Edom, meaning “red,” because the nation of Edom would come out of his loins.
2Esau took his wives from the Canaanites: Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Oholibamah the daughter of Anah and granddaughter of Zibeon the Hivite,
Esau married two Canaanite women, meaning that the Edomites are a half-breed of Jews and Canaanites. The Jews were the chosen race of God, but the Canaanites were the cursed race, who were involved in the occult. This evil Canaanite occultic influence which caused their divine extermination would be passed on to the descendants of Esau.
Adah means “ornament.” Many earrings, bracelets, and other ornaments were used in worshiping the Canaanite gods. Oholibamah means “tent of a high place.” These tents were used for temple prostitutes. Many of the prostitution temples and tents were placed on the tops of hills or mountains so that God could be blasphemed in the highest place. Satan wants these sexual rituals to be committed as close to heaven as possible.
There are 47 references to the Hittites in the Bible. However, the Assyrians wiped them off the face of the earth. There was no trace of the Hittites for over 3000 years. Skeptics used to laugh and mock at the Bible, claiming that the Bible was inaccurate, uninspired, and filled with errors. Then, Hugo Winckler, a German archaeologist and historian uncovered the capital of the Hittite Empire at Boğazkale, Turkey and 39 other Hittite cities. This archaeological discovery silenced the skeptics.
3in addition to Basemath the daughter of Ishmael and sister of Nebaioth.
Basemath was an alternate name for Adah, the first Canaanite wife of Esau. Her name means “perfumed.” This was possibly the perfume that the temple prostitutes wore during their sexual worship.
4Adah bore Eliphaz to Esau, Basemath bore Reuel, 5and Oholibamah bore Jeush, Jalam, and Korah. These were the sons of Esau who were born to him in the land of Canaan.
These sons were born to Esau inside the land of Canaan. They would grow as a large nation and threaten the future existence of Israel. Moses wanted the chosen people of the Exodus to know about their future enemies.
6Esau took his wives, his sons, his daughters, all the people in his household, his livestock, his animals, and all his possessions which he had acquired in the land of Canaan and went to a land some distance away from Jacob his brother
Esau took the Abrahamic Covenant quite seriously. He ceded the land to his brother Jacob. He moved his family outside the borders of the land that was promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
7because they had too many possessions to be able to stay together and the land where they had settled was not able to support them because of their livestock.
The Canaanite city states held most of the land and the best land as well. Therefore, the neutral land was minimal and could not support both of them. As Israel grows larger, they will need more land. The Canaanites will grow in their evilness. When their cup of iniquity is full, then Joshua would move in and exterminate them. Israel would eventually inhabit the land, but only partially. They will completely inhabit the land during the Millennial Kingdom.
8So Esau (also known as Edom) lived in the hill country of Seir.
Mount Seir was in the land of Edom.
9This is the account of Esau, the father of the Edomites, in the hill country of Seir.
The first toldoth recorded the lineage of the Edomites who were born in the land of Canaan. The second toldoth recorded the lineage of the Edomites who were born outside the land of Canaan. They were born in the land of Mount Seir, which is Edom.
10These were the names of Esau’s sons: Eliphaz, the son of Esau’s wife Adah, and Reuel, the son of Esau’s wife Basemath.
Esau had two sons, one from each of his Canaanite wives.
11The sons of Eliphaz were: Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, and Kenaz.
These are all grandsons of Esau through Eliphaz. Eliphaz the Temanite may have been one of Job’s three friends. The timing is about the same. The events of Job were located in Edom.
12Timna, a concubine of Esau’s son Eliphaz, bore Amalek to Eliphaz. These were the sons of Esau’s wife Adah.
These are more grandsons of Esau. The descendants of Amalek were the Amalekites. They were the first nation to attack Israel. King Saul slaughtered them at God’s command. The Tribe of Simeon exterminated them in the days of King Hezekiah.
13These were the sons of Reuel: Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah. These were the sons of Esau’s wife Basemath.
These were more grandsons of Esau. Reuel means “friend of God.” He is the first of two grandsons to contain God in his name.
14These were the sons of Esau’s wife Oholibamah the daughter of Anah and granddaughter of Zibeon: She bore Jeush, Jalam, and Korah to Esau.
These were sons of Esau through his second wife Ohilibamah. Jeush means “Jehovah helps.” This is the only son or grandson of Esau whose name contains Jehovah.
15These were the chiefs among the descendants of Esau, the sons of Eliphaz, Esau’s firstborn: chief Teman, chief Omar, chief Zepho, chief Kenaz, 16chief Korah, chief Gatam, chief Amalek. These were the chiefs descended from Eliphaz in the land of Edom; these were the sons of Adah. 17These were the sons of Esau’s son Reuel: chief Nahath, chief Zerah, chief Shammah, chief Mizzah. These were the chiefs descended from Reuel in the land of Edom; these were the sons of Esau’s wife Basemath. 18These were the sons of Esau’s wife Oholibamah: chief Jeush, chief Jalam, chief Korah. These were the chiefs descended from Esau’s wife Oholibamah, the daughter of Anah. 19These were the sons of Esau (also known as Edom), and these were their chiefs.
The Edomites were nomadic much like the American Indians, living in the mountains of Seir. Each of the tribes possessed a chieftain, who was very similar to an Indian chief.
20These were the sons of Seir the Horite, who were living in the land: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah,
Horite means “cave dwellers.” They lived in the caves of Mount Seir before Esau moved into the land. They are known as the Hurrians. They are mentioned often in the Nuzi Tablets. Before Esau, they were an independent nation. The Edomites eventually conquered and intermarried with the Hurrians. Verses 20-30 give the generations of the Hurrians before they were conquered by the Edomites.
Lotan was the brother of Timna, who became a concubine to Eliphaz (son of Esau).
21Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan. These were the chiefs of the Horites, the descendants of Seir in the land of Edom.
Seir the Hurrian had a total of seven sons, who were all tribal chiefs in Seir before the Edomites conquered them.
22The sons of Lotan were Hori and Homam; Lotan’s sister was Timna 23These were the sons of Shobal: Alvan, Manahath, Ebal, Shepho, and Onam. 24These were the sons of Zibeon: Aiah and Anah (who discovered the hot springs in the wilderness as he pastured the donkeys of his father Zibeon). 25These were the children of Anah: Dishon and Oholibamah, the daughter of Anah. 26These were the sons of Dishon: Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran, and Keran. 27These were the sons of Ezer: Bilhan, Zaavan, and Akan. 28These were the sons of Dishan: Uz and Aran.
This completes the list of Seir’s grandsons.
29These were the chiefs of the Horites: chief Lotan, chief Shobal, chief Zibeon, chief Anah, 30chief Dishon, chief Ezer, chief Dishan. These were the chiefs of the Horites, according to their chief lists in the land of Seir.
This is a list of seven Hurrian chiefs who ruled the land before being conquered by the Edomites.
31These were the kings who reigned in the land of Edom before any king ruled over the Israelites:
Verses 32-39 give a detailed list of Edomite kings who ruled Edom until the days of Moses. Moses knew that Israel would eventually have kings, because he spelled out laws for kings in Deuteronomy 17:14-20 and 28:36. Secularists ignore the prophetic element of Moses’ writing and insist that this book must have been written during the monarchy period.
The Hebrew word for “ruled” is מְלָךְ (melek), an infinitive, which is a verbal noun. Since Moses did not use the qal perfect verb form (meaning past tense), then this infinitive is imperfect, making it a prophecy of what is to come. Liberals are wrong when they claim that this verb was written by a later scribe during the monarchy. This is pure bias, because the liberal does not believe in the supernatural or in prophecy. The Hebrew grammar proves them wrong.
32Bela the son of Beor reigned in Edom; the name of his city was Dinhabah.
Many rabbi claim that this was Balaam, but there is no biblical evidence for this superstitious claim.
33When Bela died, Jobab the son of Zerah from Bozrah reigned in his place. 34When Jobab died, Husham from the land of the Temanites reigned in his place. 35When Husham died, Hadad the son of Bedad, who defeated the Midianites in the land of Moab, reigned in his place; the name of his city was Avith. 36When Hadad died, Samlah from Masrekah reigned in his place. 37When Samlah died, Shaul from Rehoboth by the River reigned in his place. 38When Shaul died, Baal-Hanan the son of Achbor reigned in his place.
These were the Edomite kings up to the days of Moses.
39When Baal-Hanan the son of Achbor died, Hadad reigned in his place; the name of his city was Pau. His wife’s name was Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Me-Zahab.
The eighth and final Edomite king listed was Baal-Hanan. Moses wrote a letter to this king, asking for permission to cross through his land during the Exodus. Baal-Hanan refused, which invited the curses of the Abrahamic Covenant upon him.
40These were the names of the chiefs of Esau, according to their families, according to their places, by their names: chief Timna, chief Alvah, chief Jetheth, 41chief Oholibamah, chief Elah, chief Pinon, 42chief Kenaz, chief Teman, chief Mibzar, 43chief Magdiel, chief Iram. These were the chiefs of Edom, according to their settlements in the land they possessed. This was Esau, the father of the Edomites.
Moses ended the chapter by listing the tribal chiefs that came from Esau.
It is important to note that Jacob and Esau were twin brothers from the same womb, but their family lines will lead to opposite outcomes in the Millennial KIngdom to come. There will be a line of Jacob. There will not be any descendants of Esau (Isaiah 34:5).The line of Jacob will live in Israel. The line of Esau will live in hell. The land of Israel will return to its Garden of Eden conditions. The land of Edom will become a burning wasteland for demons (Isaiah 34:9-17).
Why are there no Edomites in the Millennial Kingdom? The reason is the sovereignty of God. Man is totally depraved and evil and wants nothing to do with God. Man would rather live in the eternal Lake of Fire with Satan than in the New Jerusalem with the Lord Jesus Christ.
When the Lord Jesus Christ came to earth, mankind blasphemed Him, spit upon Him, beat Him, and crucified Him. When the devil comes to earth in the guise of the Antichrist, man will worship the devil in human flesh.
When Jacob and Esau were born, they both grew up and rejected God. However, God opened Jacob's eyes and revealed Himself to Jacob. This divine revelation was an irresistible call which Jacob could not resist.
In contrast, God left Esau alone and allowed him to make his own choice. Esau chose the riches of this world over the riches of heaven. Esau rejected God and chose the devil. He taught his children to do the same. The end result is that there will be no Edomites in the Millennial Kingdom. They would not like it there. They would prefer Hell over the Millennial Kingdom.
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The human viewpoint of the satanic world system teaches that if there is a God, then He will allow everyone into heaven, including the Edomites.
The divine viewpoint of the inspired, inerrant, and infallible Word of God teaches that there will be no Edomites in the Millennial Kingdom. At the end of the Millennial Kingdom, all Edomites will be thrown into the Lake of Fire.
Human viewpoint teaches that there is no heaven or hell.
Divine viewpoint teaches that there is a heaven and hell, but man will always choose hell unless God intervenes. This divine intervention is called grace. Man is only saved by the grace (or the kindness) of God.