Genesis 11:26

Verse 26. And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran.] Haran was certainly the eldest son of Terah, and he appears to have been born when Terah was about seventy years of age, and his birth was followed in successive periods with those of Nahor his second, and Abram his youngest son. Many have been greatly puzzled with the account here, supposing because Abram is mentioned first, that therefore he was the eldest son of Terah: but he is only put first by way of dignity. An in stance of this we have already seen, Ge 5:32, where Noah is represented as having Shem, Ham, and Japheth in this order of succession; whereas it is evident from other scriptures that Shem was the youngest son, who for dignity is named first, as Abram is here; and Japheth the eldest, named last, as Haran is here. Terah died two hundred and five years old, Ge 11:32; then Abram departed from Haran when seventy-five years old, Ge 12:4; therefore Abram was born, not when his father Terah was seventy, but when he was one hundred and thirty.

When any case of dignity or pre-eminence is to be marked, then even the youngest son is set before all the rest, though contrary to the usage of the Scriptures in other cases. Hence we find Shem, the youngest son of Noah, always mentioned first; Moses is mentioned before his elder brother Aaron; and Abram before his two elder brethren Haran and Nahor. These observations are sufficient to remove all difficulty from this place.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

26. seventy years] The birth of Terah’s firstborn is postponed for a period twice as long as in the case of the other patriarchs since Shem. Shem was 100 years old when he begat Arpachshad (Gen_11:10). This greater duration of time is connected with the features of faith and discipline attaching to the careers of the greater personages in the Israelite ancestry.

Abram] According to the Hebrew tradition, the name means “the father (ab) is exalted (ram).” It might also mean “Ram (= Ramman) is father.” Compare, in the one case, Jehoram (= Jah is exalted); in the other, Abijah (= Jah is father). See note on Gen_17:5.

Nahor] See on Gen_11:22.

Haran] This name has by some scholars been derived from the Heb. har = “a mountain,” and explained as meaning “Highlanders.” “Beth-haran” is the name of a town built by the “children of Gad” (Num_32:36) and mentioned along with “Beth-Nimrah.” Possibly, therefore, Haran was also the name of a local deity.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And the days of Terah were two hundred years,.... His days are summed up as none of the rest are in this genealogy, that it might be observed; his death being the time of Abram's leaving Chaldea and coming into the land of Canaan, given to him and his seed for an inheritance; see Act 7:4.

and Terah died in Haran: the Arabic historian (s) says, he died in Haran in the month Elul, in the year of his age two hundred and sixty five; but he gives him sixty years too many: a Jewish chronologer (t) says he died in the thirty fifth year of Isaac. Perhaps he gave the name to this place, where he dwelt a while, in memory of his son Haran, which before might be called by another name, Padanaram, as it seems to be called even after this; see Gen 24:10.

(s) Elmaaciuns, ut supra. (p. 31. apud Hottinger. p. 282.) (t) R. Gedaliah, Shalshalet, fol. 2. 1.

Next: Genesis Chapter 12

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

i.e. Began to beget, as Gen 5:32.

Abram, who is first named in order of dignity, (for which cause Shem is put before Ham and Japheth, and Moses before Aaron), not in order of time, which seems to be this: Haran probably was the eldest, because Nahor married his daughter; Nahor the second; and Abram certainly was the youngest, because Terah, Abram's father, lived two hundred and five years, Gen 11:32, and Abram after his father's death, Act 7:4, went out of Haran, when he was seventy-five years old, Gen 12:4-5; therefore he was not begotten in Terah's seventieth year, when Terah began to beget his sons, as here is said, but in his one hundred and thirtieth year, and so there remains seventy-five years precisely to Abram's departure. And Sarai, Haran's daughter, was but ten years younger than Abram, Gen 17:17; and therefore Haran was Abram's elder brother.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram. First named on account of his spiritual pre-eminence. If Abram was Terah"s eldest son, then, as Abram was seventy-five years of age when Terah died, (Gen_12:4) Terah"s whole life could only have been 145 years. But Terah lived to the age of 205 years; (Gen_11:32) therefore Abram was born in Terah"s 130th year. This, however, makes it surprising that Abraham should have reckoned it impossible for him to have a son at 100; (Gen_17:17) only, after having lived so long in childless wedlock, it was not strange that he should feel somewhat doubtful of any issue by Sarai. Kalisch believes that Stephen (Act_7:4) made a mistake in saying Terah died before his son"s migration from Charran, and that he really survived that event by sixty years; while the Samaritan text escapes the difficulty by shortening the life of Terah to 145 years. And Nahor, who must have been younger than Haran, since he married Haran"s daughter. And Haran, who, as the eldest, must have been born in Terah"s seventieth year. Thus the second family register, like the flint, concludes after ten generations with the birth of three sons, who, like Noah"s, are mentioned not in the order of their ages, but of their spiritual pre-eminence.

CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE

HEBREW TEXT SAMARITAN SEPTUAGINT NAMES OF AGE AT REST TOTAL AGE AT REST TOTAL AGE AT REST TOTAL PATRIARCHS SON"S OF NO. OF SON"S OF NO. OF SON"S OF NO. OF BIRTH LIFE YEARS BIRTH LIFE YEARS BIRTH LIFE YEARS SHEM 100 500 600 100 500 600 100 500 600 ARPHXAD 35 403 438 135 303 438 135 400 535 Kai"nan 130 330 460 SALAH 30 403 433 130 303 433 130 330 460 EBER 34 430 464 134 270 404 134 270 404 PELEG 30 209 239 130 109 239 130 209 339 REU 32 207 239 132 107 239 132 207 339 SERUG 30 200 230 130 100 230 130 200 330 NAHOR 29 119 148 79 96 148 179 125 304 TERAH 70 135 205 70 75 145 70 135 205 From this table it appears that 292 years, according to the Hebrew text, passed away between the Flood and the birth, or 292 + 75 = 367 between the Flood and the call of Abraham. Reckoning, however, the age of Torah at Abram"s birth as 130 (vide Exposition), the full period between the Deluge and the patriarch"s departure from Haran will be 367 + 60 = 427 years, which, allowing five pairs to each family, Murphy computes, would in the course of ten generations yield a population of 15, 625, 000 souls; or, supposing a rate of increase equal to that of Abraham"s posterity in Egypt during the 400 years that elapsed from the call to the exodus, the inhabitants of the world in the time of Abraham would be between seven and eight millions. It must, however, be remembered that an element of uncertainty enters into all computations based upon even the Hebrew text. The age of Terah at the birth (apparently) of Abram is put down at seventy. But it admits of demonstration that Abram was born in the 130th year of Terah. What guarantee then do we possess that in every instance the registered son was the firstborn? In the case of Arphaxad this is almost implied in the statement that he was born two years after the Flood. But if the case of Eber were parallel with that of Terah, and Joktan were the son that he begat in his thirty-fourth year, then obviously the birth of Peleg, like that of Abram, may have happened sixty years later; in which case it is apparent that any reckoning which proceeded on the minute verbal accuracy of the registered numbers would be entirely at fault. This consideration might have gone far to explain the wide divergence between the numbers of the Samaritan and Septuagint as compared with the Hebrew text, had it not been that they both agree with it in setting down seventy as the age of Terah at the date of Abram"s birth. The palpable artificiality also of these later tables renders them even less worthy of credit than the Hebrew. The introduction by the LXX of Cainan as the son of Arphaxad, though seemingly confirmed by Luke, (Luk_3:35, Luk_3:36) is clearly an interpolation. It does not occur in the LXX version of 1Ch_1:24, and is not found in either the Samaritan Pentateuch, the Targums or the ancient versions, in Josephus or Philo, or in the Codex Beza of the Gospel of Luke. Its appearance in Luke (and probably also in the LXX) can only be explained as an interpolation. Wordsworth is inclined to regard it as authentic in Luke, and to suppose that Cainaan was excluded from the Mosaic table either to render it symmetrical, as Luke"s table is rendered symmetrical by its insertion, or because of some moral offence, which, though necessitating his expulsion from a Hebrew register, would not prevent his reappearance in his proper place under the gospel.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.